Think I can sell my mutant pretzle on EPay? Too late, I ate it.
On the Friday before the Lunar New Year, I stopped by Kin Wah Chinese Restaurant for dinner. For the New Year, they had a special on Harbin Lager. I had never tried one of these before, so I gave it a shot. There was no indication of size on the ad, so I was initially shocked by the 600ml size. Flavor-wise, I was expecting a vile, overly-hopped, Pilsen-esque Heineken clone along the lines of a Tsingtao, but was pleasantly surprised with something wonderful. The initial mouth feel was dry not unlike a Japanese lager, but with more bittering hops. This gave it more of a Pilsen-like first flavor, but the middle had a distinct, full malt flavor like a Bavarian lager. The finish was clean. This was a good, refreshing, easily drinkable beer. I later called Fabio to tell him about it, and he stunned me with the revelation that Harbin fell under Anheuser-Busch ownership in 2004. Oh man… well, I guess if that wasn’t the case, I probably wouldn’t have had the chance to try it in the States! Continue reading ‘Beer Is Good – Harbin Lager’
Super-bowl?
What is this “Super-bowl” thing you speak of?
Another sunny weekend beaconed us out to the trails again. The warm, blue skies fostered our expectations of dry conditions, but the reality was there had been reasonably heavy rain since last Saturday, probably somewhere in the last 48 hours. Scat had forgotten his SPD shoes in his rush to get out of the house. Rubber zori’s were not the ideal substitute, so he borrowed socks from Ckucke and BMX shoes from me. Continue reading ‘Sunday, Muddy Sunday’
I love days like this.
Blue skies and warm sunlight follow me to Waimanalo, and a gentle sea breeze blows me up to the trailhead. Root, Scat, and Ckucke are already there, prepping their bikes for the ride. My Moment hasn’t been ridden for months, so the tires have gone soft and weird lint balls and dust have accumulated on it. I pump up the tires with the Silca Super Pista and run some Boeshield on the chain. Root’s chain is dry and squeaky like a robot out of a Miyazaki film, so he squirrels some of my lube. Continue reading ‘Days Like This’
It’s coming up to a month now, and it’s a little strange, I don’t feel my mom’s absence too much right now. I guess it’s been pretty busy cleaning up around the house, working out food and cooking, fixing plumbing. Haven’t had any serious sadness bouts. In some slow moments and sometimes before going to sleep the events of that afternoon play through my mind and I keep thinking about if there was something different I could have done, but I push them out of thought because it does no good to dwell on it. I wonder how much Nora Neko understands. I caught her here hanging out on a pile of mom’s stuff during the week after when my sister was here helping out. Nora Neko used to hang out every morning in my mom’s lap, but now her routine is upset. She dissappeared for a couple days once. But she’s back now. I guess I’m going through the same kind of thing. I’m not sure if I really fully understand what happened, but I’m readjusting to it. Continue reading ‘Filling the Void’
This is another Chainlove find. These shorts sell for $120 USD MSRP, a price that makes you think twice about getting a pair, but on closeout at less than $60 USD, they are within the reach of all but the poorest dirtbag. General appearance is very good, with durable nylon and mesh construction. The inseam length is nice and long. The center seam is welded – not stitched – both to provide a snag-free seat interface and to reduce discomfort by eliminating the thickness of a stitched seam. Mesh vents start on either side of the backside, and wrap around and down the front of the legs and back around the hemline. These provide more than adequate ventilation. There are two front slash pockets and two zippered pockets on the outer thighs, the one on the right being rather small because it is cut to accommodate the Fox head logo in the vent mesh. There are Velcro adjusters on either side toward the back that add tension to the waist elastic. Belt loops are also provided. The front closure is laced “board short†style with a half-length gusseted Velcro fly. The inner liner is made from a breathable stretch mesh with an integrated chamois. There are two loops at the side seams of the liner short that interface with two thin bias tape ribbons on the outer short that close with tiny plastic snaps. Continue reading ‘Fox Attack MTB Short’
Original article is here
On this past Saturday’s ride, the chinstrap buckle stopped working. It would “clickâ€, but any pressure would result in the buckle popping open and the strap coming loose. I discovered this at the beginning of the ride to my dismay, but rode anyway despite the danger. I emailed Fox on Monday, but they replied with a stock, “please call our 1-800 number so we can sell you the replacement part†message. When I asked if this was a warranty issue, they replied with a cut-and-paste of their warranty policy, indicating that I should take it back to the dealer. Seems like they’re all “corporate†and don’t handle customer service issues in the same proactive manner as some companies still rooted in their sport do nowadays (Burton and HopeTech USA are good examples of companies with excellent customer service). Continue reading ‘Fox Flux MTB Helmet Update’
In my book, GU makes the best energy gels, both in nutritional content technology and flavor. Now they have upped the ante by introducing Roctane, basically a double load of calories and performance enhancing components in around the same volume. With double the content, comes double the price: A regular GU retails for about $1.25 USD, whereas a Roctane retails for around $2.50 USD. I bought a few back in December before heading to Japan for snowboarding and gave them a try. Indeed, the effects are more noticeable than with a regular GU. The added aminos and citrates that Roctane includes helped delay the burn and maintain performance levels. This was especially critical, since I didn’t bring with me my normal complement of sports drinks that usually provide these. There are two flavors, a vanilla/orange and a blueberry/pomegranite. Of the two, I only like the blueberry. The orange has a bitter orange peel flavor. This is in line with my dislike of GU’s other orange-flavored products – the regular GU gel and the GU2O electrolyte beverage powder. Continue reading ‘GU Roctane Energy Gel’
Okay, maybe that’s a little bit of an exaggeration, but it is my favorite Loco Moco-type thing available here on O’ahu. Here are the long-awaited pics of the Sugoi Hash Loco Moco that I mentioned a while back. The absolute best Loco Moco I ever had was at the cafeteria at the Sahoro Resort in Hokkaido (not at the Club Med, but at the second floor of the ski center). If you notice in the right picture, the fork is 25mm (1″) across the tips, meaning the hash patty is well over 30mm (1-1/4″) thick! Sugoi!
Just as awesome the second time around!