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The $9.1 million project is about 10 percent complete.
Located between Montoursville and Williamsport, the original 85-year old structure was demolished after being severely damaged in floods resulting from Tropical Storm Lee in September 2011.
Construction is currently focused on the foundation for the first pier, the only one of the bridge's two piers that will be in the water under normal water levels. Seventy steel piles will be driven into bedrock, approximately 50-feet below the creek. The 1927 bridge across Loyalsock Creek sat on timber mats buried only eight feet below the stream's bottom.
Jeff Stover, executive director of SEDA-COG, expects the foundation for the first pier to be completed by the end of November.
In addition to the two piers, the center section of the railroad bridge will employ a truss, comprised of nearly 3,600 pieces of steel. Steel for the project is being produced at ArcelorMittal and fabricated at High Steel's Williamsport and Lancaster plants, making the new bridge an all-Pennsylvania project.
As work on the pier continues, track in Montoursville between Sooner Pipe and Mill Street is being removed, east of Loyalsock Creek, in order that the grade can be raised approximately 3.5 feet. A new concrete grade crossing with flashing lights will be installed at Mill Street.
The new bridge will be higher than the old structure, three-feet above water flow, based on 100-year storm levels and 1.5-feet above flow, based on Tropical Storm Lee. The new bridge will also be longer than the old one, 474-feet compared to 350-feet, and have a wider hydraulic opening.
"This is going to be a solid, massive structure," said Stover, "and a valuable addition to Central Pennsylvania's shortline railroad system."


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i have been pretty busy the last week or so, so im not too sure if they have confirmed that there will be a 3rd update.
with that said..
i think that when they tell us how they are changing circle abilities and announce the blu spells, they could add more?
theres a few things SCH and COR (my main job) could use, ur be upgraded?

subset: commoncrawl


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In a recent letter a gentleman from St. Louis opined that the Amtrak station should remain in its present location on Third Street. One of his reasons was proximity to the Lincoln sites.
The location proposed for an intermodal transit hub is the block north of the County Building, which is just as close to most of the Lincoln sites and is, in fact, closer to others.
St. Louis has an intermodal station which combines Metrolink, Amtrak and Greyhound in one building. Champaign also has such a facility, as does Bloomington. I feel to see why nostalgia for the present location should preclude Springfield from joining those cities, which realize that intermodal transit hubs are the wave of the future.
I take several trips to Chicago every year and would welcome such an improvement to the downtown area. I already am reaping the benefit of having 20 minutes shaved off the one-way time to Chicago, which will be reduced by a full hour once the entire length is high-speed.
Juliana Hackman


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Here we have a sturdy bottle opener made from solid hard wood. It attaches directly to the wall for convenient bottle opening, and doubles as a lovely piece of handcrafted decor. Each wall-mounted bottle opener is simply screen-printed with "Drink Local" and a state silhouette of your choice in white. If there's a better reason than beer to support local, we haven't heard it. Nor do we want to.
- Wall-mounted bottle opener measures 18" x 5.5" and comes fully assembled with mounting screws.
- Screen-printed with eco-friendly, water-based inks.
- Wood is stained and varnished with a clear gloss for a smooth finish and easy cleaning.
- As this item is crafted with solid hard wood, the exact product you receive will vary in color, grain or texture from that pictured.
This product ships from the maker within 7 days, via USPS
Our custom items are made just for you and cannot be returned except for damage or defect. However, if you are not completely satisfied with your purchase, please contact our customer service team and we will do whatever we can to make it right.


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Great video. Young girls shitting in front of the camera and having fun with their poop. Fantastic Poop Bomber. This girl could not stop. Extra long scene!This girl is really into it, loves to poo, loves the poo and is also very very pretty!!
Format: mp4
Duration: 7:49
Video: 1920x1080, MP4V, 9768kbps
Audio: 93kbps
File size: 564.5 MB


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Electronic Arts has decided to mark the holiday weekend with a sale on its iOS and Android apps, so you can complement your chocolate bunnies and hard-boiled eggs with some games. More than 55 games have been discounted, including some that normally go for $9.99 going for 99 cents.
A few notable apps from the sale list include Battlefield: Bad Company 2 on iPhone and iPad, Command and Conquer: Red Alert on iPad, Dead Space on iPhone and iPad, The Sims 3, Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3, and a variety of sports and Need for Speed titles. Check out the full list and plan which ones you'll drop a fin on.


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The commercial fishery for tilefishes in Louisiana waters will close at 12:01 a.m. on July 22, 2006, and will remain closed until the opening of the spring commercial tilefish season on Jan. 1, 2007. The tilefish assemblage includes tilefish, goldface tilefish, blackline tilefish, anchor tilefish and blueline tilefish.
The decision was made by Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Secretary Dwight Landreneau, following notification by the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) that the federal waters of the Gulf of Mexico is closed for the commercial harvest of tilefishes from 12:01 a.m. July 22 until 12:01 a.m. Jan. 1, 2007, and per a request from NMFS.
Regulations for the tilefish fishery in the Gulf of Mexico include a commercial quota. Based on reported landings, the NMFS is closing the tilefish commercial fishery in federal waters off Louisiana, and requested that LDWF enact compatible rules. NMFS requested consistent regulations for Louisiana waters to enhance effectiveness and enforceability of regulations.
Secretary Landreneau was authorized by the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Commission at their January, 2006 meeting to take these actions to provide consistent regulations between state and adjacent federal waters, and noted that the season closure is necessary to prevent overfishing of the species assemblage.
The commission also authorized Landreneau to change or modify opening and closing dates for commercial tilefish seasons in Louisiana waters to comply with changes or modifications in season dates in federal waters. The commission's actions ensure that regulations in state waters will mirror regulations of NMFS for federally managed waters.
After the closure, all commercial harvest, possession, purchase, barter, trade, sale or attempts to purchase, barter, trade or sell tilefishes is prohibited until 12:01 a.m., Jan. 1, 2006, the date set for the opening of the 2006 season. The prohibition on sale/purchase of tilefishes during the closure does not apply to those that were harvested, landed ashore, and sold prior to the effective date of the closure and were held in cold storage by a dealer or processor provided appropriate records in accordance with R.S. 56:306.5 and 56:306.6 are properly maintained.
For more information contact Harry Blanchet at 225/765-2889 or email@example.com.


text:
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Thomasville, N.C. - Matt Byford of Coker College (4-2 overall, 4-1 CVAC) has been selected as the NCAA Division II Carolinas-Virginia Athletics Conference (CVAC) men's tennis Player of the Week. Byford led the Cobras to another 2-0 week with a pair of road victories at Belmont Abbey College and Queens University of Charlotte. Against the Crusaders, Byford pulled out a 7-5 first set win and then cruised to a 6-1 win in the second set. The junior from Essex, England dropped the first set 6-7 in his singles match at Queens but rebounded to win the match with 6-4 and 6-0 victories.
In doubles he teamed with countryman Duncan Grew to form a strong team. The duo is 4-2 on the year and were 8-4, 8-2 winners last week. Coker's number one player in both singles and doubles has been on a roll that has coincided with the team's 4-0 streak. Byford has not lost a match since February 19 and has high hopes of keeping his streak alive for the remainder of the season.


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The Orioles played one of their better all-around games of the young season Sunday, using three homers and strong pitching to shut out the Minnesota Twins, 6-0, while capturing their ninth series victory in 12 opportunities.
And yet the Orioles fly out of Minnesota for an extended homestand with the potential of losing their most consistent starting pitcher — Taiwanese lefty Wei-Yin Chen — for a few weeks.
"I don't even want to think about it," said Orioles first baseman Chris Davis.
Chen, who is 3-3 with a 3.04 ERA in eight starts in 2013, left Sunday after five shutout innings with a soreness in his right side that he and Orioles manager Buck Showalter hope was a cramp, but initially has been diagnosed as a right oblique strain.
He'll be re-evaluated Monday and the club will have a better idea whether he can make his next start or if Chen will have to be placed on the 15-day disabled list — which would be a big blow to an already uncertain rotation.
"Let's wait and see," Showalter said after Sunday's victory that gave the Orioles a 3-3 season split with the Twins. "I'm going to think good things. I was just telling Wei-Yin that. [His side] feels a little better now."
Chen allowed five hits while walking none and striking out three for his third win in four decisions before feeling a pain he described as "soreness."
"It's never happened to me before and I can tell I had a really good first four innings and I definitely feel good physically," Chen said through interpreter Tim Lin. "Unfortunately, in the fifth inning, I don't know what happened."
By the time Chen left, the Orioles (23-15) had a five-run lead and were heading toward their seventh victory in 10 games. The scoring was paced by home runs from Adam Jones, Steve Pearce and Davis against Twins starter Scott Diamond (3-3).
Davis' 442-foot, two-run blast off the batter's eye wall in straightaway center gave the Orioles a lead in the first that they never relinquished.
"It was a very clean game," said Davis, who drove in three more runs and now has 37 RBIs and 11 homers this season. "We have been swinging the bats well the last few days. Feels good to win the game by a pretty big margin."
Perhaps the biggest offensive star was — again — the afternoon's youngest: Orioles' 20-year-old third baseman Manny Machado, who had three of the club's 11 hits. He had nine hits in 16 at-bats in the three-game series against the Twins and is now hitting .405 (34-for-84) in his past 19 games, which have included 12 multi-hit efforts.
"I'm not even paying much attention to it. I don't look up there and see what I'm hitting," said Machado, who is batting .331 on the season. "Things are going right. It's one of those times when things are falling for you and everything is going good. Things have been going pretty good for me."
Call that an understatement.
Machado, 20, is the first big league player under age 21 to record three consecutive games of three or more hits since Pittsburgh Pirates' 21-year-old Rennie Stennett in September 1971.
If he can get three more hits in Tuesday's contest against the San Diego Padres at Camden Yards, he'll be the fourth player in Orioles history to accomplish the feat in four straight games, joining Hall of Famers Eddie Murray and Cal Ripken Jr. and outfielder Don Buford.
"That'd be awesome. That would be pretty cool to be in that category," Machado said. "You have Hall of Famers there, so to be in the same category with them would be a blessing."
Showalter made a point of lauding the club's entire effort, including a staunch defense and a bullpen that again accumulated zeroes.
Tommy Hunter entered in relief of Chen and didn't allow a run in the sixth, upping his scoreless inning streak to 15 2/3 over 10 appearances. Darren O'Day, Brian Matusz and Pedro Strop combined to shut out the Twins for the final three frames.
It was the second shutout of the season for the Orioles — both started by Chen. The Twins (17-17) had been blanked only one other time this year.
Now the Orioles, after playing 14 of their past 17 on the road — and winning nine of them — get to come back to Camden Yards for eight home games in 10 days.
"We've just got so many bridges to cross, but you look at the schedule when the season starts, you look at this [past] stretch and you know it's going to be a challenge, especially the teams we're playing," Showalter said. "It should be a good off-day for our guys [Monday]. We should get back at a decent hour and I'm happy for them. They deserve it. Been a real grind for them for the last three weeks."
Things have gone rather well so far for the Orioles, who many pundits expected to step backward after last year's surprising 93-win season.
Yet in what might be one of their finest victories of the season — their second largest victory margin of the year — the specter of potentially losing the rock-solid Chen remains.
"That's one thing we are really trying to get squared away is our pitching staff. Trying to get some guys in here, throw some innings, eat up some innings and take some pressure off our bullpen," Davis said. "That's what he was doing today. So, I don't even want to go there with that."


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All military veterans on the Kenai Peninusla: Ask your children and grandchildren what their school has planned for Veterans Day. I think that you will be shocked by the answers you recieve. The 11th month, 11th day,11th hour each and every year is recognized as Veterans' Day. This year it falls on Sunday, with observances at the Soldotna Sports Center.
Posted November 7, 2012 10:28 am


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Gretchen Musgrove
Gretchen Musgrove
I love teaching Nia for its many mind-expanding and body-nourishing benefits. I am also a creative professional focused on making girl-powered businesses go boom! More about my marketing business at media-sweet.com.
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Alma Marie Mowery
Alma Marie Mowery, 85, died Friday August 17, 2012 in Willcox, Arizona. Graveside services will be 11:00 a.m. Thursday at the Stinnett Cemetery with Rev. Dr. Tom Lapacka, Pastor of the Trinity Lutheran Church in Borger officiating. Local arrangements are under the direction of Minton Chatwell Funeral Directors of Borger. Funeral services were held Monday in Willcox, AZ.Mrs. Mowery was a Borger area resident for 50 years and was a member of the Trinity Lutheran Church. She was a Dietician for 35 years and sold Home Interiors. She was a member of the Ergonian Society where she was past president. She was a big fan of the Stinnett Rattlers and the Dallas Cowboys football teams.Alma was preceded in death by her parents, her husband, A. D. Mowery, her son Allen David Mowery, her sister Mary Grace Smith, and her brother Loren Cutler.She is survived by her daughter Gloria Norris and husband Jimmy, of Willcox, AZ, her son Bruce Mowery of Amarillo, her 2 sisters; Erma Hoeltzel husband Bruce, Wanda Tidwell and husband David all of Enid, OK; 4 Grandchildren; Jennifer Norris and Jim Furgason, Tamra Norris, Timothy Norris, Nathan Norris and wife Bethany, 5 Great-Grandchildren; Preston and Lane Dubois, Kade and Keeley Norris, and Sydney Allison Norris.Visitation will be from 5:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. Wednesday evening at the Funeral Home.To send condolences, sign the online guestbook at www.mintonchatwell.com.


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good luck with that idea...
good luck with that idea...
This is a fucking joke.
I think I should get probation..........
Sincerely, Jeffrey Dahmer
or more appropriately, casey anthony.
The bridge is out up ahead!!! Hit the one on the left:
did you really expect anything less from the school that proposed a 2 game suspension for tressel lying about known violations?
I expected them to learn from that blunder, but oh well....
Learning from your mistakes is what intelligent people do. Ohio State and intelligent people....not so much.
is that sources say they've admitted being repeat violators, but say that vacating these wins and nothing else is the proper punishment.
Do they understand what rules they actually broke?!?!?
I thought they'd go pretty light -- something like 3 scholarships a year for 2 years -- but I never thought they'd ask for zero scholarship losses.
Either they have really good reason to be confident or they're insane.
The only thing in the NOA is that Tressel lied. I don't know how serious the NCAA usually comes down on a program for that.
Tressel will likely get a substantial show-cause, but beyond that the NCAA needs to accuse OSU of more to get to serious punishment, IMO.
I'm not expecting bowl bans or anything. But I thought they'd offer up token scholarship reductions just to show that they were acknowledging they did something wrong.
Since I've now read the article, them finding another player might be a big deal. Why did their process fail the first time, and why did Smith emphatically state that after a "thorough" investigation that no further players had violated rules?
the hasty 11 day "internal investigation" that concluded that "this is an isolated event. we are very fortunate that we have discovered and are positive that this is an isolated event."
OSU not is proposing these punishments in response to any allegations re: Talbott or large parts of the SI article or anything to do with cars...OSU isn't going to get any bowl bans or scholarship reductions, I don't think, until it's charged with lack of institutional control, which hasn't happened yet.
They will face serious punishment. You have to stop thinking about this as being about OSU and start thinking about the broader narrative.
The NCAA isn't stupid. They weren't letting these programs get away with murder before because they were blind or dumb. They did it because they depend on college football, and the strength of national brands. They let things go because it was in their best interest to maintain the appearance of propriety in college sports and to make certain that valuable brands were not diminished.
They can't do that anymore. The narrative has changed. Pandora's box has opened wide and the media is connecting the dots. In the last year: USC, Auburn, North Carolina, OSu and now Oregon. The narrative has changed and people are paying attention.
The NCAA's best interest before was in playing blind, deaf and dumb. Now that the dirt in the system is on public display and getting worse, the NCAA's interest in showing they can crack down. They have to, or the narrative will end with the belief that they are a toothless organization and college football is too dirty to be saved. For the NCAA, that's just bad buisness.
The NCAA will hit OSU hard, will hit UNC hard and will hit Oregon hard. They will keep hitting these programs until the narrative shifts again, to where they can at least claim that they're doing something to decentivize these rogue, championship level programs from running amok. They don't have a choice.
Being a 501 c(3) organization, I would think that the NCAA had better do something big or risk facing a congressional hearing and losing their tax exempt status.
A very real possibility. At this point it's very clear that you can build a money making, nationally recognized football team through corrupt dealings. That's Oregon became a football powerhouse. that's how UNC attracts talent so good they don't need to play a down their final year to be drafted in the first round. And everybody knows it.
If the NCAA backs off, it's basically a greenlight for every program who wants to win to follow Oregon's example. Anybody can make it big. It'll be like a wild west boomtown without law. People are already questioning the "amateur" status of college football. The NCAA knows that if this becomes an institution based on money and only on money, they will cease to exist.
I'd like to see Congress tell the NCAA "Either drop the hammer of the gods on Ohio State, UNC, Tennessee, Auburn and oregon or we'll drop the hammer on you."
But what about the NARRATIVE?? Who's going to protect the NARRATIVE??
It's like the story my dad used to tell me about when he did something wrong and his mom told him go outside and get a switch off of a tree for a whipping. Now, he got to pick it, but he knew either way he was gonna be fucked. Too small and she went and got one to her liking. Too big and he was just asking for trouble. I think OSU just picked the smallest twig they could find and once the NCAA sees it I hope they go outside and get a log to beat them with.
"My old man just used to lay out a wrench, a switch, and a belt and say 'Choose'"
"I'd have to go with the belt there, Chief"
"Naw, I always chose the wrench"
"Why the wrench?"
"Because fuck him, that's why"
People seem to miss this point.
It would be interesting to see what punishments schools have received when their coach violates bylaw 10.1.
OSU did self imposed a basketball post season ban (but no scholly loses?) when Jim O'Brien was fired.
Cal/ Bozerman- vacated wins, probation.
Minnesota/ Haskins- vacated wins, probation.
Baylor/ Bliss- no OOC games for a year, vacated wins, probation.
IU/ Sampson- probation.
Well done. So.... it doesn't seem terribly out of line to me
*ducks for cover*
Haskins' violations also yielded a 1 year postseason ban and 11 docked scholarships over 4 years.
I stand corrected, I was rushing and must have missed it, so...what he said ^^.
Yes, but the reason the repeat offender tag was created is for exactly this type of situation. If OSU's punishment for O'brien's sins was to just vacate some games and receive probation, the punishment for Tressel's violations should be greater.
I prefer they receive *tangible* penalties.
That is what they will more than likely get.
Let's hope that golf thing pans out and the people involves actually cooperated, or yes, I do think this might actually stick.
Vacate 2010
2+ year bowl ban
5 scholarships a year for 3 years.
against Pryor and others turn out to be proved/ believed by the NCAA they could end up being ineligible for all of 2009, 2008, and more if they look into other players named in the SI article. 2 year bowl ban doesn't really hurt a team that much, it only affects the upperclassmen who might decide to transfer/ declare for the draft. 3+ years affects incoming recruits. At USC they "appealed" the sanctions so that the 2 year bowl ban took place, then after the ban is lifted the limited scholarships took effect. The limited scholarship year kids can play in a bowl their freshman year with only a 2 year ban in that case. They don't really care about how many or how few of them are in a class, just the bowl game. I say let them recruit as many kids as they want, but have a 5 year ban. That will hurt who they can recruit.
That's a good start to the sanctions.
This will not end well for them. If I was USC and read this proposed punishment, I would fall out of my chair laughing.
From my understanding, they don't really have to respond with more than what they did YET, because the NCAA hasn't updated their notice of allegations with the additional info about the cars, and other shadyness that came out later.
They're not expecting any additional allegations.
osu has been thumbing their nose at the NCAA this whole time. i guess we'll have to wait and see what happens, but this seems like another joke.
"Sources said the university concedes it is a repeat offender, but contends it has responded appropriately, imposed fitting sanctions on its football program and should face no further punishment"
This can't be true with what they proposed!
I will be shocked if it turns out they are not challenging the repeat offender tag.
crazy Buckeyes. What they are doing is thumbing their noses at the NCAA. "Yeah NCAA, what about it?... screw you." OSU isn't even contrite. I hope this pisses somebody off within the NCAA, and they decide to make an example of them.
once when I was a kid, I still got spanked pretty bad and grounded and my stuff taken away. I can understand the administrations mindset, they know they are royally screwed, and are afraid of getting the punishment they deserve, so they're giving themselves 1/10th of that punishment and are now hoping that will be enough. Unfortunately when the noble thing would be to fall on your own sword, falling on your own butter knife instead hardly seems enough.
Gordon Gee is the greatest college president in the country. He's the best person since Jesus! this is plenty punishment enough for such an upstanding leader of such a phenomenal institution of higher learning. In other words, they are freaking delusional.
More arrogance plz!
I actually did a double-take after reading that article. I was sure I was at The Onion.
"Ohio State is admitting major violations of NCAA regulations, but says it should not face harsh punishment because no OSU official other than Tressel was aware of player violations."
This obviously makes very little sense. The problems were so rampant at OSU that you have to believe that some of the assistant knew what was going on. And those assistants are still employed by OSU.
Oh wow, just saw this:
Apparently Tress doesn't have to pay his fine and is in fact getting money from the university. OSU is just digging themselves into a deeper hole...
This probably deserves its own thread. Nothing says "It's all Tressel's fault" quite like not making him pay his fine and paying him instead.
This response makes me pretty nervous that they have reason to believe they won't be getting hit that hard. "We said bye to Terrelle, we said bye to Tressel, everything is great now!"
Don't forget allowing him to retire instead of resign/get fired, so he can be classifed at a state retiree and get good health insurance benefits
They are either very arrogant, or they know the NCAA isn't going to nuke them from orbit. The NCAA has to act. Their credibility... what little they have, is at stake.
names, dates and places.
GS: Yes sir, JT!
I would laugh, but they have pretty good NCAA sanctions counsel now who saw this proposal and would have told them to their face if it was a really stupid idea. :(
Counterpoint- "I hope he doesn't fire me!"/ Two game suspension and a fine equalling 7% of income.
That's less than the amount JT tithes to his church every year!
In all seriousness: I've never been prouder to wear Michigan gear around Columbus. It sure is great to be a Michigan Wolverine.
The same counsel that thought the two game suspension plus fine for Tressel was sufficient punishment? I don't believe the NCAA has alleged any new offenses since then.
OSU has consistently followed a policy of minimum action. Maybe it's a good approach. We'll see. I expect it to work out if the NCAA doesn't charge any further violations and to backfire if they do.
"The university also acknowledges that it sought the resignation of Tressel, who departed on May 30."
Yet earlier this year...
"In the immediate aftermath of Jim Tressel's stunningly jarring decision to step down as head coach at Ohio State, it was reported that The Vest was "encouraged" to resign for the good of the football program and the university.
In what's described as his first sit-down interview since the resignation, OSU president E. Gordon Gee once again maintained that simply wasn't the case, that the decision was Tressel's and Tressel's alone."
They embarrassed the NCAA with that Sugar Bowl and made them look like fools. Volunteering to vacate the 2010 season is simply an acknowledgement of that fact and is not going to be nearly enough of a punishment.
What if I did that to myself when I got in trouble - no punishment for the future, but only past punishment:
"Honey, I know you just caught me sexting my ex-gfs, so I'll punish myself. Instead of you denying me sex for the next year, I'll no longer take credit for any of the sex we've had for the last year."
That's the equivalent to how OSU punished themselves.
Or another analogy:
When I robbed that bank last year it was wrong. I'm going to give all of the money back and keep a really close eye on my behavior for the next couple of years.
Ah... my friend, you must still be unwed.
For us married men, both of those are inherently true. And forget about the sexting.
I'm wed and with child. I wrote that post from 2007.
Haha, yes I suppose my word choice was awkward. I'm not with child, I have a child, who I did not give birth to, but merely contributed to the cause.
Great, looks like we beat Ohio State last year, after all.
Don't you mean 6?
... means they still have never beaten an SEC team
This is fantastic I think. If they came close to what the NCAA was thinking, they'd probably get a break. I can't imagine the NCAA gives them any slack now. Hopefully it's buckeye nation that's being delusional and not us.
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This will probably be an embed fail.
is that this actually is pretty close to what the NCAA was thinking.
Whatever their mindset (maybe trying to preserve a good story for recruits, maybe denial, maybe something else) it seems that this won't end well for OSU. I wish they had been even sillier, and simply offered to vacate the Sugar Bowl win.
As far as some of the outrage in the comments, we don't get mad at fish for swimming, so why should we get mad at OSU for being OSU?
Hahahahah this is sooo comical
Tressell came clean from day one. But the dealership, tatgate, and the whole entire cover up will end up killing the OSU
The only thing more atrocious is that there are commentors on Eleven Warriors (the level-headed OSU blog) who are complaining this is too much.
Well they better get a bowl ban before this is all said and Dunn.
I would say that this seems like a joke, that it seems like it makes Ohio look even worse, but that would just be my feelings, man. I need hard data to decide if this is bad for Ohio. Hold all comments until we have the hard numbers from which to base 'real' arguments.
OSU self-imposed sanctions < USC sanctions
OSU violations >= USC violations
Therefore, OSU self-imposed sanctions < deserved OSU sanctions
Thank you, I now have a framework from which to build a valid opinion of what happened. I had an opinion before, but I could not trust it without logical scaffolding on which to hang it.
Just clueless/arrogant or lawyer advice? Either way ridiculous.
That shit won't fly.
Actually I think with the NCAA not having the "updated" allegations, this would seem like a light, but fairly decent self imposed punishment. HOWEVA, if the NCAA finds the other allegations to be true, they will bring the hammer down. I'm assuming once it's all said and done that OSU will: Vacate 2010 season, 3-5 Scholly loss per year for 3 years, and 2 year bowl ban. Very similar to USC's sanctions.
So OSU's strategy becomes clear: they recognize, correctly, that the NCAA will never reduce a school's self-imposed punishment. It always adds a little more on. So you may as well go ultra-light on the self-imposed stuff and hope that the tacked-on punishment isn't that bad. If you fall on your sword, you really gain nothing. This is not the most morally upright position to take, but it could work out for them.
As the bylawblog said, the self imposing of penalties is pretty worthless. You're basically guessing at what the NCAA will hand down and trying to get "time served" between your response and the hearing date.
I'm sure OSU and counsel belive it's in the ball park, but you certainly don't want to go overboard on penalties. The NCAA doesn't usually let you take those back.
but i think he also makes another point that's gone unnoticed. he said that the main reason for self-imposing penalties is to start the clock and then get time served when they're imposed. but osu didn't self-impose any penalties for which that is possible meaning that they won't be able to start serving bowl bans and/or scholly reductions until after the ncaa levels its penalty. that's stupid. if they get a 1 year bowl ban, osu should take it this year when they'll have either a crappy or young qb.
That's what I meant by "time-served". I agree with what you're saying, but with the timing of the hearing, there will still be time for the NCAA to give OSU a post season ban this year.
If things were moved back a few months, then I would see a self imposed post season ban for this year making more sense.
i hope that if they have a 1 year bowl ban it is for the next season, not the coming one. hurts more in recruiting.
But there are two circumstances where it makes sense to self-impose realistic penalties.
The first (largely Michigan's case) is where the infractions are "major" but technical and with a pretty well established set of precedent. In those cases, you can self-impose a little less than what you'd get anyway, and you can hope the NCAA appreciates the good faith effort and doesn't feel the need to tack on the extra sliver it otherwise would have.
The second (which SCREAMS Ohio State here) is where there is probably a lot of other stuff that COULD be penalized that isn't in the Notice of Allegation that could be. For example, you get an LOI for tatgate, but it turns out there were a bunch of other unrelated Pryor-based offenses. You put the hammer to yourself on the issues raised, and pray to Sweet Six Pound Eight Ounce Baby Jesus that the NCAA closes the book before they take a close look behind the curtain.
Just in case that doesn't work:
I imagine the bottom of the letter to the NCAA reads, "PS - /wanking motion."
If they get fewer years of probation than us for a decade of cheating then I give up all hope. The fact that their failure to bomb the ENTIRE compliance department alone warrants 5 years of probation, a 3 year post-season ban, and a loss of 40 scholarships for 4 years. Maybe a little harsh, I know, but FFFFFFFFFFFUUUUUUUUUUUU OSU and your BS antics.
Their punishment amounts to the loss of a coach that was going to retire in a couple of years and the loss of a player that never materialized into all-world - and 2 YEARS PROBATION! Who cares about a vacated season. What about the 9 seasons prior? FFFFFFFFFFFFFUUUUUUUUUUUUUU! I now hope the NCAA napalms your athletc department back to the days of intramural cricket.
You're just all emotional, Gary. The NCAA is going to give their penalties based on facts, not emotion. You will be disappointed.
I can't believe the stuff I'm hearing in Ohio today. Common sentiment seems to be they should only vacate the bowl win, if anything at all. I can't believe this.
They should get an even harsher penalty now for being so damn arrogant as to think that's good enough.
PDFs are now online, in case you're stuck in a boring meeting
They think since their athletic program is now a repeat offender for major violations that the NCAA is NOT going to punk them with scholarship losses and a bowl ban? C'mon. Gene "The Tool" Smith must be totally in the ozone after using a ton of airplane glue to try and patch together TSIO's public image while creating a fantasy-land picture of OSU's innocence for the NCAA. What an imbecile. Now, he's telling everyone how great TSIO's compliance department is while at the same time explaining all these new measures they're implementing that any 1/2 brained athletic department anywhere else would have already been doing. Duh. How does this guy keep his job?
If USC and Tennessee are any indication, he won't.
Funny how half of Tressel's response to the allegatons focuses on his charity work and donations, as it that somehow made it all ok.
I mean, if OSU thinks this is sufficient, it suggests to me that the NCAA's punishment might not be as severe as people are thinking it will be.
How sure are we that OSU will get a bowl ban & scholarship reduction?
Or am I just being affected by tsio's delusion?
You have to keep in mind that these are the same people who thought a 2 game suspension for tressell was sufficient. & look how that turned out...
First Tressel resigned, then he didn't , then he was to pay the 250 K fine, now he isn't. Give me a break already. If I were an OSU alum, I would be screaming for them to clean house, and that would include Gee and Smith.
Not only does he not have to pay the fine, but he is going to be paid for the month of June? Wait, wha-?
That news is going to come as quite a shock to the administration and the buckeye fans.
I understand not shooting oneself in the foot, but this seems a bit of a stretch even for them.
The penalties should have been more:
LOL man this is hilarious. I'm thinking/hoping it will be 2002, 2004-2010 seasons vacated since they had cheating pricks on all of those teams. A 3 year bowl ban and a big scholarship loss. If that is the case the series record will go to 57-36-6 Michigan.
Seriously... Wtf is this guy doing here?
Feel free to neg him on sight.
You can't search what isn't there.
This is the same group of people who "slapped Tressel's wrist" with a 2 game suspension.
This is the same group of people who laughed at the idea of firing Tressel.
Their inital response is almost never realistic.
No matter the severity of the self-imposed sanctions, the NCAA would likely add on to it. So it makes ense to shoot low.
The reality of this is that we are going to think it's not enough, and all the OSU fans who have been saying "It wasn't really THAT bad" will point to this and say "SEE? It wasn't that bad!" The only opinion that really matters at this point is the NCAA's, and what they think of all this.
Personally though, after reading that article, it seems like a total cover-up job by OSU. As was stated already, I don't understand how they can say that they sought the resignation of Tressel and can say they are "embarrassed" by his actions. And to say that Tressel has a "proven history of promoting rules compliance" AFTER admitting that "the university concedes it is a 'repeat violator'" does not make sense. That doesn't even take into account the trouble he got into at YSU. I think Tressel has shown in different ways that he is a good man, but for OSU to point out that he has donated $3 million is completely irrelevant and makes them look weak: "Hey look! Our coach may have brushed this under the rug and blatantly cheated, but look how much money he has given away! That has to mean something... right? RIGHT??"
It appears to me that there are some holes in this story, and it really seems to me that OSU is doing whatever they can to cover their butts, rather than come out with the truth. Then again, it's hard for me to tell how much of my opinion is shaped by the facts, and how much of it is shaped by my homeristic love for Michigan. I guess we'll just have to wait and see what the NCAA says.
Tressel's "integrity and proven history of promoting rules compliance,"
anyone remember reading 'Dotting the Lie'?
Tressel's "integrity and proven history of promoting rules compliance,"
anyone remember reading 'Dotting the Lie'?
So with the allegations that the NCAA has brought against Ohio how realistic is a multi year bowl ban? I know most people here think there must be more dished out but we are all biased and thinking about the golf and cars and additional tattoos. At this point it does not seem the NCAA is taking any of that into consideration. Is there a realistic possibility we will all be greatly disappointed with the punishment the NCAA gives out?
That is all.
Try again.
I love how they are punishing themselves for something that they already knew about before the Sugar Bowl but they go ahead and allow the perpetrating players and coach to participate in the game and get their payout. Then, 7 months later, they are going to vacate the win? What a joke. They are the Kwame Kilpatrick of universities.
Well, that seems to be fair.
Nothing else to see here folks. Move along!
This is in fact a joke and a half and then some, but I can't shake the nagging feeling the NCAA will think this is sufficient or close to it, especially if in fact there are no more allegations to be handed down.
"The responsibility is upon Tressel. No other institutional personnel were aware" of the violations, and the former coach failed in his obligation to report them, the response says. "The institution is embarrassed by the actions of Tressel."
Wow talk about an 180. I was sure there would be some finger pointing to Tressel but really OSU, he did everything?
The institution is "embarassed" yet they don't fine him and they end up paying him for an extra month...what a joke.
Am I the only one who does necessarily want more punishment from the NCAA? Ohio will long suffer in the arena of public opinion. Their reputation has taken a nosedive. They will suffer a coaching change. They have suffered some lost recruits, and will likely continue to do so - if less than we thought.
But, I don't necessarily want to face an overly-handicapped Ohio on the field for years to come. I want to face them on the same terms. Let them continue to be a perpetual top-10 program. Its better for the rivalry, and its better for us when we beat them.
no matter what kind of punishment comes down. That being said, they have fluanted the rules and must be punished. I'm sure the O-lie-o fanbase has been cackeling with glee over our run ins with the NCAA, let's see how they hold up now that the shoe is on the other foot.
I am guessing that this is not the first time they have knowingly played ineligible players, just the first time caught red handed. What sort of punishment is vacating a season worth? Very litle.
This is The Story of O (you will be punished!). It has to be a bowl ban and loss of scholies or NCAA loses a lot of cred.
Am I the only one who does necessarily want more punishment from the NCAA? Ohio will long suffer in the arena of public opinion.
No they won't, if they don't receive additional sanctions. The court of public opinion will exonerate them and move on to the next scandal.
I guess we have to agree to differ - outside of the state of Ohio, I dont think they will be exonerated as soon as you think they will. We can think of programs that carry a reputation for being dirty - and the egregiousness of the string of events at Ohio I think will put it in that category, at least for some time.
Auburn was accused of violations last year, got off, and now they don't seem to be any worse off for it. Every year there are scandals. If they don't result in serious punishment, the public forgets about them. If OSU does not receive any punishment beyond this, watch: their recruiting will instantly pick up. The whole issue will have essentially blown over.
Ohio State is going to continue to give yous guys all you can handle. Sweatervest or no sweatervest. I would not assume that "the tide has turned" just yet, if I were a Wolverine fan.
This might have worked if they had done this and fires Tressel immediately after they discovered it, but not after the whole charade of the past half year.
champagne is still on ice. hubris is a helluva drug.
vacating an entire season is a good place to start.
...it is a joke.
OSU should have at least suggested a few schollies lost. That would have at least made it plausible.
And the paying Tressel's own fine seems like a kick in the nuts to the NCAA, no?
OSU still is in denial. They may not get USC like penalties...but it is going to be close.
"OSU should have at least suggested a few schollies lost."
Why, neoavatara? OSU committed no recruiting violations. A coach lied, nobody died. Vacate wins because of ineligible players: I'm OK with that. But I would be very, very surprised if OSU gets any schollie reductions.
Remember that scholarship reductions aren't only used for recruiting violations. USC got hammered with reductions and wasn't accused of anything resembling a recruiting violation.
I would think that vacating 2010 is an automatic no-brainer when you knowingly play even one inelligable starter let alone 5. If the inelligable players were all bench warmers who rarely saw the field then you have a case for appeal, but playing inelligable starters is always an automatic forfeit in any sport.
So they act like they are self imposing a major punishment by vacating their wins which should be an automatic anyway. This is a joke!
Then the only other punishment they impose on themselves is to put themselves on probation? What does that even mean to put yourself on probation??? Yah, I put myself on probation after I drank too much on Friday night. Oops, I did the same on Saturday night. I gave myself a stiff repremand and threatened to put myself on double-secret probation. That showed me!
I hope the NCAA sees this for what it is.
Looks like the AD department took some pointers from the Iraqi Ministry of Information.
I love how only now does Smith say he asked Tressel to resign. This guy only says what fits his argument in the moment even if it contradicts all other previous statements...rediculous.
In State of Ohio, levied sanctions are light. In Soviet Russia, sanctions level you.
do you think this has anything to do with recruiting?
if they self impose a post season ban right now, some recruits will be scared away immediately
if they don't self impose a post season ban, maybe they're hoping that by the time those sanctions are handed down by the NCAA, it will be too late and their recruits will be locked in (either past LOI Day, or just so late in the process a recruit wouldn't want to back out)
this example could explain scholarship cutting too in fear that they would lose out on the scholarship-fridge recruits
obviously a lot of hypotheticals but this announcement from OSU is just so bogus that there has to be SOME explanation for it.... right?!?!?!
If they were really smart they'd've smacked themselves with a bowl ban for just this one year, which the recruits wouldn't have to worry about, and I don't think the NCAA would've added to it.
...because if they get a bowl ban the NCAA may give recruits and underclassman an opportunity to transfer without having to take a year off...think the did that in the USC case.
The NCAA only allows players to transfer that would be shut out of the postseason for the rest of their college careers. One-year ban = seniors only, two year ban (as with USC) = seniors and juniors, etc.
That is scared that we may have underestimated Gene Smith's pull within the NCAA, and that it has already been agreed upon that this is all they'll get?
Otherwise this is the dumbest, most arrogant response they could ever come up with.
OSU violation playbook:
How long did it take you to think that up, Mr. Smarty Pants Coyote?
This is just....I don't know if it's hilarious or what, but:
"The responsibility is upon Tressel. No other institutional personnel were aware" of the violations, and the former coach failed in his obligation to report them, the response says. "The institution is embarrassed by the actions of Tressel."
The university argues that Tressel's "integrity and proven history of promoting rules compliance," combined with his team's improving academic performance and other factors, should mitigate the severity of any NCAA sanctions. It also notes that he and his wife have donated $3 million since 2001, primarily to Ohio State.
So in other words: This is all Tressel's fault, not ours! He's the scumbag. But he's also a really good guy and we should be punished less because of that. In fact, he gave us three million dollars! That makes us less guilty! Oh, but even though Tressel's the guilty one, we're not going to punish him.
Ohio State is run by the biggest fucking morons in the world.
It seems to me this punishment is what they should face for playing ineligible players for the year. When you add Tressel's repeated lies, additional sanctions must come in. That's where bowl bans/schollie reductions come into play. Good luck not getting hit much, much harder OSU.
It seems to me this punishment is what they should face for playing ineligible players for the year. When you add Tressel's repeated lies, additional sanctions must come in. That's where bowl bans/schollie reductions come into play. Good luck not getting hit much, much harder OSU.
Let's see...
We get 3 years probation and practice time reductions for misinterpreting a rule on stretching counting as practice time and OSU expects to get two years probation and no other penalties for playing ineligible players and lying about it to the NCAA?
Even if the NCAA disregards the cars, the tats, the cash, etc., this just can't possibly be reality.
The "tats": the players involved have already been punished for receiving tattoos. One of them is gone.
The cars: there is nothing there. It has been investigated, and dismissed. But, there will be closer monitoring of player's cars. But, as the university said, "we are not going to hire a P.I. to follow them everywhere they go."
The cash: The cash? WTF are you talking about? The only cash involved is around a thousand $ or two that they received from selling there jewelry.
This is nowhere on the level of USC. I believe you Michigan fans are going to be more disappointed with the NCAA ruling than OSU fans.
Desperation. That is what I see and hear on Mgoblog.
I'm done trolling now. Just wanted to get a little chuckle out of yous guys.
Let's see...
We get 3 years probation and practice time reductions for misinterpreting a rule on stretching counting as practice time and OSU expects to get two years probation and no other penalties for playing ineligible players and lying about it to the NCAA?
Even if the NCAA disregards the cars, the tats, the cash, etc., this just can't possibly be reality.
You guys need to stop looking at this situation in terms of what OSU's punishment becomes i.e. bowl bans, scholarship reductions, etc. Just remember that the largest possible amount of damage has already been done: Jim Tressel, their savior and incredibly successful coach was forced to resign. Their recruiting has already taken a decent hit to our benefit, their best player and starting QB left along with 5 others who won't play the first five games. And most importantly, their national perception as a clean program has gone down the shitter. Anything else is just a bonus.
Thank you for reminding us all of the absolute devastation. It still brings a smile to my face.
Joe Schad was just on ESPN and was saying he wouldn't be suprised if the penalties will be more like USC's than like this. Said NCAA is trying to get rid of all these violations.
I think Schad and others are missing the fact that OSU isn't responding right now to any of the reports we've seen in the past couple of months about Talbott, cars, or the new Rife-related stuff that SI found. It remains to be seen whether the NCAA will charge OSU with anything related to those reports.
This is ridiculous even just for the Tressel situation. The head coach purposefully cheated to win an NC. There needs to be real punishment.
Just save us the hymnals dude.
The charges they are already facing are plenty. OSU won't be worth a tressel for many years to come.
Priceless. Absolutely priceless.
you are neg-on-sight in my book.
That's like robbing a bank and calling "having to give the money back," your punishment. You're still getting jail time for robbing the bank. There is no way this is it for them.
If OSU gets away with this USC should sue the NCAA.
I don't disagree with that, but it doesn't change the fact that Ohio State still needs to be rightfully punished. Auburn has nothing to do with that.
Why IPFW? USC paid players and family members, tens of thousands of $, and did not cooperate with NCAA investigators.
At OSU, the coach(now gone) lied about a few players selling their own personal property for tattoos. One of the players involved is also now gone(a player that Rich Rod would have got on his knees and begged to go to UM, if it would have helped. Maybe he did?), and the others involved have been suspended.
They have nothing, NOTHING on the cars crap, and nothing on the "free round of golf" crap. And the player in question in that issue is gone also.
There WILL be weeping and gnashing of the teeth when the NCAA gives their final ruling, but I'm willing to bet it ain't going to be coming from Ohio State.
"lowers the boom" on your heads.
Someone needs to make a new t-shirt design with the Michigan - OSU series record:
Wins - Losses - Ties - Vacated
Is killing this on his twitter account.
"But we're still champs!"
basically they are saying "pretend those games didn't happen" and that's it. no other penalties.
Here's what they should do:
1) vacate all of Tressel's games
2) impose a 3 or 4 year post season ban and
3) lose 10 scholarships for each of the next 5 years.
Hopefully the NCAA response will go something like this:
against the Buckeyes.
20-73 is an amazing football game score on its own, but to pull off a defeat like that by being outscored by 50+ points on the road?
OSU vacating the win isn't the same as forfeiting. They treat it like the game never happened.
No, it's still a loss for them. It's only vacated on OSU's end.
I wasn't entirely sure before now that you were trolling. Now I know.
My son was given a free ticket to go to the Rockets/Wolverines game in A^2. He is a lifelong OSU and Rockets fan, and was making quite a bit of noise for the Rockets. I'm surprised he didn't get the shat kicked out of him, honestly.
And for the record, Toledo has a winning record vs. the Big Ten. With wins over PSU, UM, Purdon't, and IU, Minnehaha.
They, us aswell, seem to forget that football is a game but Research money pays for the school. How can you look like this in the press and expect people to drop donations for your research? Football is more or less an advertizing tool for the University to get the name out for there product. Good football teams get people excited and pocket books open even if they aren't football fans. Maybe they are of the no publicity is bad publicity thought. They should come out say they are sorry and lay the hammer to show that they are a University of high moral character or the money for new projects will dry up and the professors will go to places where they can get money for there projects.
So like....can the NCAA just accept OSU's self-imposed sanctions, which admit to major violations, then turn around this Fall, issue a new Notice of Allegations regarding the stuff SI turned up, call it another major violation of the same issues previously stated and give OSU the death penalty?
They'd do what they did to us after the FBI grand jury testimony came out about Ed Martin - reopen the case, conduct a new investigation and apply new sanctions if needed. It would be considered the same case, not a new one.
You guys are so desperate(I get it. 10 years of frustration will do that to a person. I remember the 90s, believe me). If this is an indication of the whining that is going to take place north of the border, after the sanctions are announced, I have a feeling this is going to be a boon for all of the psychiatrists in Michigan.
because that GIF is disgusting. I completely agree with your position.
Does this mean that Rich rodriguez can claim a victory over OSU?
Technically... ?
No. The game is vacated, not forfeited. In practice, the way it works is that we're still saddled with a loss, but OSU can't claim victory. It's weird.
This is the equivalent of a bank robber's punishment being to only have to give the money back... What color is the sky in their world...
[looks out window]
Yep. Overcast, 40% chance of rain.
Rod Gilmore said on CFL that this is a joke.
First off, I'm sorry if this has been answered elsewhere.
If they vacate all of their wins for the 2010 season, does that wipe each game from the slate of every team they've played (like the season never happened)? Or are all of the teams they've played given the W by forfeit?
Thanks in advance.
We don't get a win
That means I'm still 0-2 against them as a student. I guess we'll just have to win this year so I go out with a bang.
that they should only be punished slightly more than a Michigan team who stretched too much by vacating their 2010 wins?? GIVE ME A BREAK! Everyone knows "vacating wins" is the biggest farce out there. Come on NCAA! Do the right thing. Down with bowls and down with schollies.
We're giving ourselves a self imposed probation too! What the heck more do you MU fans want?
I assume that post was sarcastic, but even so. MU?!
Sorry! O-L-I-O
So isn't it technically 595 days since Ohio State last officially beat Michigan?
Gene Smith says: "It's unique because usually there's a lack of institutional control or a failure to monitor. I can't think of one case that we were able to find (like ours)."
Gee, I wonder why? Certainly not because this situation is the very definition of lack of institutional control. No, coming up with a 2-game ban was certainly appropriate. Similarly, your compliance department looking no further than the evidence already found by outside sources points to this being entirely on Tressel.
I'm sure the NCAA will agree with you. Because of course, we all know that the NCAA likes being seen as an institution incapable of enforcing its own rules, and they so thoroughly enjoyed the public response to their ruling on Cam Newton. They're definitely going to accept this.
Is there a way to not only make them give up scholarships, but to actually make them give them to their opponents?
Funny post over there at Eleven Warriors. Here's a snippet.
"This is pretty huge as I imagine most of us were bracing for something much worse. Of course, the NCAA could come back and say the punishment is not enough, but given athletic director Gene Smith's relationship with the organization and the close level of cooperation between the school and the NCAA, there's a chance that the two sides are somewhere in the vicinity of each other on the punishment side of things. "
I can't wait until August.
"Close, but definitely wrong...." *delivers shock to electrodes attached to Gene Smith's balls*
When they do that Script Ohio bullshit, they need to dot the "I" in probation
Shame on me for thinking they learned their lesson.
.....with lessons and morals and all that stuff.
Where they are trying to save money and Bart says that the way he will help is by taking up smoking and then quitting...
1) The self-imposed penalties are crap. Without loss of scholarships and bowl appearances, the program will not suffer. How many Michigan fans care a hoot about OSU vacating their wins and halting their consecutive wins against us? We're bigger than that. We believe it's decided on the field. While we can lose legitimately to them, we should also win legitimately against them. To me, we will have forever lost to OSU all of these years. It's up to Hoke and his Michigan men to fix this trend.
2) Is it just me or does OSU changing Vest's resignation to "retirement" signal an opportunity for him to come back into college coaching elsewhere? I was of the understanding that a resignation, combined with NCAA penalties that include loss of scholarships and bowl games, would keep him from coaching in college ever again.
3) With the thumbing of their noses at the system, the NCAA needs to come down even harder on them. What a bunch of asses.
4) Some here have suggested congress get involved in the NCAA. Please don't go there! I think it is pathetic that congress got involved with the major league baseball HGH crap! We don't need government involvement in our sports. The government can't keep from spending more than it takes in. Why on God's green earth do we want them involved with the NCAA?
1. Agreed.
2. As for Cheatypants McSweatervest's retirement/resignation, it doesn't really matter -- the thing that will stop him from coaching again is the show-cause penalty that he's basically guaranteed to get because of his violations for lying to the NCAA.
My God. The weeping and gnashing of teeth here is precious. You would think we(OSU) were Casey Anthony.
Bad analogy, I guess.
For buckeye dude
Don't be surprised and saddened if Bri'onte Dunn and Kyle Kalis stay with the good guys(that would be Ohio State, FYI).
Horrible analogy, even for a buckeye!
What a Draconian self-punishment. Next thing you know, they'll make Gene Smith stand in a corner quietly for five minutes.
The very concept of Insitutional Control was conceived to prevent OSU from doing what they have been doing for the past decade, and what they are trying to do now. They are bending over backwards to not self police, and when somebody breaks the rules, they claim that it is an isolated case every single time. Maurice Clarett? Isolated case. Troy Smith? Isolated case. The Tat 5? Isolated case (even though SI says that it's the Tat 28). Jim Tressel's lying? Isolated case.
Never ever do a meaningful investigation. Dennis Talbot? No investigation. "Loaner" vehicles? No investigation. Dozens of suspicious car deals? No investigation. OSU makes sure that they never find significant wrongdoing, and then they use plausible deniability whenever someone else finds something.
There could not possibly be a more perfect case to be put onto a silver platter for the NCAA. They are either going to rip OSU a new asshole, or they are going to tacitly endorse wholesale cheating and institutional neglect. I see no middle ground now. If OSU gets off with no penalty, I'm going to be among the first alumni writing a letter to Dave Brandon, Mary Sue Coleman, and Brady Hoke demanding that we start doing exactly what OSU has done. The playing field is not level. We're bringing a knife to a gun fight. If the NCAA lets OSU get away with cheating, then we need to start cheating. I want boosters giving our recruits cars and I want our coach to shrug his shoulders and claim that he has no knowledge whenever somebody gets caught. No more of this "winning the right way" business. If the NCAA doesn't impose USC-like penalties on OSU or at least something close, then there's no such thing as "the right way" anymore. We'd be stupid not to cheat.
If Osu gets off with these laughably light self-imposed sanctions, it might be time to jettison the NCAA altogether. If they do not enforce the rules fairly and implicitly endorse cheaters like Osu, Oregon, and Auburn, then there is no purpose to sustaining the NCAA's bureaucracy. The Year of Scandal could be the prelude to a new seismic shift in college athletics away from the NCAA and towards several alternatives, including: superconferences, establishment of a paid farm system for pre-NFL talent, Wild West-style talent grabs by the heavyweight programs, and in general, an increasingly widening gap between the haves (SEC) and the have-nots (Sun Belt).
Of course, if things continue to deteriorate at current rates, I am of the opinion that Congress will get involved sooner or later.
Absolutely ridiculous that is all that they are self-imposing. Can't wait to see how the NCAA cracks down
It's not strict enough! It just lets them off the hook.
The penalties should hurt them for the next 2 or 3 years, like USC's sanctions. Just pretending 2010 never happened won't fly.
the NCAA comes back and says, "you know what? We think you guys(Ohio State) are being to hard on yourselves, and we're going to demand that you REDUCE your self imposed penalties!"
What are you going to do then, huh? Huh?!
you realize that the violations occurred BEFORE the 2010 season. The NCAA will likely impose sanctions and punishment in correlation to when known violations occurred. If they reveal ineligibility from 2007 on, for example, they will likely force sanctions involving 2007 and on. Keep dreaming, cooler pooper, keep dreaming.


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Regarding AppArmor: "SELinux is already upstream. Why is Novell selling security as a proprietary add on?. The user space solution for apprmor is still proprietary for your information."
These links http://developer.novell.com/wiki/index.php/Apparmor_FAQ and http://www.novell.com/products/apparmor/overview.html will explain the product better to you. As for your "proprietary add on" comment I've already stated AppArmor is licensed under the Gnu Public License (GPL) and therefore has no licensing fees. Novell is not forcing anyone to use the security product. What's good is by releasing the product under the GPL they are giving everyone access to another security tool in which to secure their networks.
Regarding XGL license: "Its not. Its under the Xorg license. Atleast get the facts straight"
Well then what you're implying is that information online such as here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XGL where it's stated XGL was released open source 02/02/06 is incorrect.


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Another supply chain internet disruptor; Pandora watch the effect of this company on people like Apple and others. Aivars Lode
Pandora Media Inc. (P), the Internet radio service, is capping free mobile listening at 40 hours a month in the absence of sufficient advertising sales to pay for rising music costs.
The change, which begins in March, applies to U.S. users and will affect about 4 percent of the 65.6 million listeners, Chief Executive Officer Joe Kennedy said in an interview. Fans can pay 99 cents to continue listening on mobile devices, the Oakland, California-based company said yesterday on its website.
Pandora is seeking to contain music expenses that climbed 81 percent in the nine monthsended Oct. 31, outpacing a 59 percent increase in advertising sales. The company pays for each song streamed, with costs ballooning as usage grows, and collects revenue through subscriber fees and ad sales.
"At this moment in time, this is the right lever to pull," Kennedy said. "We see this as a smart way to manage monetization and growth."
Listeners who exceed the mobile threshold can still use Pandora for free on computers, or pay 99 cents for unlimited mobile use for the remainder of the month. Pandora One subscribers, who pay $4 a month or $36 a year to skip commercials, aren't subject to the limit.
Pandora, scheduled to report fourth-quarter results on March 7, fell 4.2 percent to $12.20 at the close in New York. The stock has climbed 33 percent this year. Excluding items, analysts forecast a loss of 6 cents a share, the average of 20 estimates compiled by Bloomberg, on revenue of $122.3 million.
Ad Shortfall
"It is a statement about their inability to monetize," Michael Pachter, an analyst with Wedbush Securities in Los Angeles, said in an e-mail. He has a neutral rating on the stock. "If they could sell ads for the extra hours of listening, they wouldn't have to do this. Their costs are rising faster than revenues."
The company is sending out e-mail messages today to users who regularly exceed the 40-hour mobile limit, Kennedy said. Going forward, Pandora will also send e-mail alerts to users who reach 85 percent of the limit, he said.
"Limiting listening is a very unusual thing to do, and very contrary to our mission," Tim Westergren, co-founder and chief strategy officer, wrote on the website. "This is an effort to balance the reality of increasing royalty costs with our desire to maximize access to free listening on Pandora."
User Options
The cap isn't expected to create meaningful revenue, Kennedy said. Some users will pay the 99 cents or sign up for Pandora One, he said.
"Some will choose one of those options, but we would be surprised if most people did that," Kennedy said.
More than three-quarters of Pandora listening occurs on mobile devices, which includes smartphones and tablet computers, with most not exceeding the cap, the company said.
The mobile cap doesn't apply to factory auto-sound systems or consumer electronics devices, such as Web-connected television sets and a Samsung refrigerator, the company said. Pandora is available in 85 car models from Toyota, Honda, Ford, Mercedes-Benz and others, and 760 consumer electronics products.
Pandora is increasing mobile ad sales, Kennedy said. In the quarter ended Oct. 31, mobile advertising revenue more than doubled to $73.9 million, outpacing the 85 percent gain in mobile listening for the first time.
"We continue to grow mobile at a rapid pace," Kennedy said. "We expect to maintain and grow the size of our mobile audience while managing the growth in hours."
Royalty Rates
The company supports federal legislation that would lead to lower royalty payments. Rates for music used by over-the-air, online, satellite and pay-TV radio stations are determined every five years by a three judge panel at the Copyright Royalty Board, part of the Library of Congress.
Pandora and other online radio services paid 0.11 cent per song in 2012, a fee that will rise to 0.14 cent in 2015. The royalty board has yet to set rates for 2016 and beyond.
Those costs added up quickly, Kennedy said. The company reported its 65.6 million active users streamed 1.39 billion hours of programming in January, a 47 percent rise from a year ago. Pandora has estimated royalty costs of $250 million for the year ended last month, about 25 percent of all payments by made radio companies worldwide, Kennedy said.
In July 2009 the company set a 40-hour limit on desktop listening that was lifted in September 2011. During that time, the company held music costs steady while building advertising sales, Kennedy said. Pandora may remove the mobile cap when mobile ad revenue catches up, he said.
"We look forward to the day, just as with desktop, that the monetization rate rises and we can lift this cap on mobile, too," Kennedy said.


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BANGOR, Maine — Many of Maine's child care facilities did not obtain criminal history records of employees, held on to breast milk or medication long after it had expired, and let children play near potentially dangerous items such as knives, space heaters and cleaning supplies, according to a federal audit.
The audit was conducted by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Service's Office of Inspector General in 2013, and reports of its findings were released early Friday morning.
Included in the reports were descriptions of expired medications found in first-aid kits, year-old frozen breast milk found in one freezer and a lack of routine maintenance at some facilities, resulting in chipped paint, broken fencing and exposed pipes. In some facilities, there were no records that showed that criminal history reports had been obtained.
The reports stated that some child care providers did not conduct annual screenings for potential lead hazards, stage monthly fire drills or have records of rabies certificates for pets at the facility, all of which are required by the state.
Also included in the reports were photographs of an uncovered electrical outlet, knives stored in unlocked drawers and pet food left out near toys where children played.
The audit was conducted at facilities in Maine that receive federal funding and was meant to determine whether the state's monitoring efforts ensured that facilities met state standards. Recommendations to Maine's Department of Health and Human Services, such as that the state agency should ensure "more frequent and thorough on-site monitoring" and reduce licensing inspectors caseloads, also were included in the report.
The reports said that six licensed day care centers and 20 licensed family child day care home providers were inspected, unannounced. All but three of the facilities visited had at least one instance of noncompliance. None of the facilities were named.
The state had inspected 18 of the 20 day care centers and all six of the day care home providers, which did not always have the effect of ensuring those facilities complied with state standards, the reports said.
Maine's Department of Health and Human Services commissioner, Mary Mayhew, responded to the audit in a letter to the regional inspector general for audit services.
"We appreciate the time spent in Maine by [the Office of Inspector General's] staff reviewing Maine's child day care centers," she said. "We believe this effort will enable us to perform this function more accurately in the future."
Mayhew's letter, dated June 16, explained how the state is already working to carry out the recommendations.
"Maine has increased licensing surveyor personnel by [16] positions that will decrease surveyor caseloads from an average of 180 licenses to 80," the letter said.
The letter also said that unannounced inspections are conducted at least annually at child care facilities and that the department is developing a web portal that will allow parents and guardians to research child care providers.
The letter noted that "the state of Maine aims to focus efforts on reducing the number of unlicensed child care providers."
A spokesman for the department said that the state does not know how many unlicensed providers exist but that "we suspect the number is rather large."
"We ask those who are aware of unlicensed providers to reach out to the Maine DLRS and report them, so we can investigate and work with them to become licensed," he said.
Mayhew was unavailable for further comment on Friday.
The federal agency has conducted similar audits and released reports on child care facilities in Michigan and Connecticut, a spokesperson said. Reports on other states will be released soon. The spokesperson declined to compare states' practices.


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Linked by Thom Holwerda on Thu 18th Nov 2010 16:44 UTC
...and finally it pays off for OSNews to have a Dutch editor. Yes, I knew this glorious day would one day be upon us, the day upon which the rest of the technology world would be struggling with Google Translate to decipher a Dutch article with news in it. But not for OSNews, oh no! Anyway, Steve Wozniak, Apple founder and still technically an employee, gave an interview to a Dutch newspaper (the worst we have, but still) in which he made some interesting remarks. Update: Told you it's the worst newspaper we have.
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RE: The worst newspaper...
by puenktchen on Fri 19th Nov 2010 14:30 UTC in reply to "The worst newspaper..."
So De Telegraaf is the worst in The Netherlands? Hah! Just goes to show, Old Europe will never catch up with the the Anglo world.
the dutch newspaper market is strange, even de telegraaf is much better than the average german paper. and a few quality papers dominate the market, which all belong to the same company, which doesn't interfere with their political standing.


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Huh? I have not read the Scissors one; I was talking about the Joyce.
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Huh? I have not read the Scissors one; I was talking about the Joyce.
oh, i forgot i posted that. damnit. i had to read that book in high school. couldn't make sense of it.
You read Running with Scissors in high school? Weird.
I've been reading Nomads of the Longbow: The Siriono of Eastern Bolivia. Quite fascinating really. Much easier than most anthropological texts in the sense that it makes things exciting. From detailing the fashioning of tools to the seasonal fare to describing the technique used when hunting Howler monkeys.
I've been reading it for a while now... I've been slacking off and watching movies instead of reading at work... My eyes are starting to hurt though, so it's back to books tomorrow.
I'm reading Beloved by Toni Morrison which is about a black family circa 1873 getting on after slavery. I bought it because Diane Rehm on NPR had a show about this book several months back (last fall?), and it sounded interesting. I think I saw the movie (with Oprah) when it came out years ago. Anyone reading anything good?
I fucking hate Thomas Pynchon. If I ever see him I'm going to solder his genitals to a bobcat. Then shoot the bobcat up with PCP.
I hate Diane Rehm. What Pot said though.
I'm starting Underworld by Dan Delillo soon. I read What is the What, and it was entertaining, and i just finished Cat's Cradle, which was great. I also wanna read One Day In the Life of Ivan Denisovich by Alexander Solzhenitsyn, Dubliners, Portrait of an Artist..., Crying of Lot 49 and many others over summer.
I'm going to start Tim Egan's "The Worst Hard Time: The Untold Story of Those Who Survived the Great American Dust Bowl" in the near future. It's supposed to be interesting.
riverrun, past Eve and Adam's, from swerve of shore to bend of bay, brings us by a commodius vicus of recirculation back to Howth Castle and Environs...
Yeah, I dunno what that is. I kind of do, I guess. I googled it, but I don't want to be one of those assholes who relies on googling to have a conversation about anything other than the weather.
I liked Beloved but didn't love it. The supernatural aspects turned me off. I guess it was the way they were treated/approached. I did love Song of Solomon though.
Bryan as nice as The Crying of Lot 49 if you're not familiar with Pynchon (shut up haters) I might push you towards one of his fuller novels. Lot 49 is wonderful but V and Gravity's Rainbow and the others are actually well plotted and such. They're miles ahead. If you want something shorter I'd say that you should consider the short stories collection Slow Learner, in particular "Entropy." If you're a Pynchon vet then forget all this... or, if you wish, comment upon my advice.
Joyce>Wallace>Pynchon. I don't know why more people don't see that. It's a simple formula really.
Sorry Hannah.
I am currently reading Thirst For Love by Mishima. It's clearly an early novel and at this point it seems like he could've used an editor with more teeth but the story is picking up and approaching the glories of his other books. Though I've only read two others. Thus far.
Also I have no idea what Wallace you'd care to throw in with those giants. I can't come up with any that've been around long enough to even consider. Also I can't find any Wallaces that I've read which is what I mean, sort of.
Consider the fact that I am currently reading both Gravity's Rainbow and Mason & Dixon. Simultaneously. One of them starts pissing me off due to some 40 page tangent about mechanical ducks and so I switch to the other. Back and forth like that until I start soldering genitals. Don't give me any bullshit.
I haven't read ANY Pynchon. I remember my high school English teacher telling us in hushed tones how hard he was to read.
I guess I never got around to him because of that.
I actually agree with this ('cept the soldering bit). Pynchon's style gets really cloying in his long novels. Lot 49 may not have much of a plot but it's small enough to get through without feeling like you need to crack your head against a wall and it has plenty of little gems of passages. Entropy is definitely my favorite of his writings.Quote:
Consider the fact that I am currently reading both Gravity's Rainbow and Mason & Dixon. Simultaneously. One of them starts pissing me off due to some 40 page tangent about mechanical ducks and so I switch to the other. Back and forth like that until I start soldering genitals. Don't give me any bullshit.
I'm not sure I could handle GR and M&D at the same time. Much respect, Pot. I think when I was reading GR I would break it up with plays by Stoppard and Ionesco and such.
Anyway, I think Wallace falls somewhere in between the two. Easily the most promising American writer out there right now. Read "Jest" if you haven't and then the short stories. Trust me, you won't be sorry.
Yes, but when Pynchon allows things to happen it takes so long to happen that I forgot what had happened before and I wondered why I was in a sewer hunting pasty alligators.Quote:
I'm not sure I'd say it was that 49 doesn't have a plot as much as Pynchon just says what happens rather than allowing the events to happen, instead of describing events.
i don't agree w/ the joyce > wallace > pynchon. i sort of feel as if joyce should be excused from that comparison altogether, not because he's wonderful or anything, i hold no particular reverance for joyce, but just because it's inaccurate. wallace > pynchon > gaddis seems a more apt evolution.
if wallace's next novel is anywhere near the quality of infinite jest (and it will be a while before his next novel, as suggested by his reading of "something that is part of something larger and not even close to halfway finished yet"), he will have cemented himself among literary giants.


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The Overlooked Bullpen
Rob Bradford of WEEI posted his Major League bullpen power rankings this morning. Naturally, the first thing I did was a Ctrl + F for "Phillies". Much to my surprise, they were in the top one-third, but the more I thought about it, the more it made sense. Lost in the talk about the Phillies' four aces and how many innings they ought to accrue, the bullpen is actually quite formidable.
Faithful readers of the blog know how highly I think of Ryan Madson, but even outside of him, there are quality pitchers capable of getting outs reliably. But let's start with Madson and get him out of the way.
Madson is awesome. It aggravated me to no end to see him shunned for an apparent inability to close games despite never really getting a fair shot. He was not given the benefit of the doubt when a small sample size can produce a wide variety of results irrespective of skill. During the 2010 season, he posted a 10.9 K/9 and a 2.2 BB/9. His 4.9 strikeout-to-walk ratio was ninth-best in the Majors among relief pitchers, sandwiched by Luke Gregerson and Billy Wagner, two very highly-regarded bullpen arms. And among relievers with at least 50 innings in Phillies franchise history, Madson joined Doug Jones as the only ones to post a 4.9 or better strikeout-to-walk ratio. His 2.49 SIERA was 12th-best in baseball. His change-up is arguably the best in the Majors — even better than Cole Hamels'. If there's a Phillies reliever you don't want to face, it's Madson.
How about Brad Lidge? He is cast aside as a reliever at the end of his career with not much left to offer. As I mentioned yesterday, the Phillies need to decide on what to do with the closer situation, and it likely won't include Lidge going forward. Still, he is a well above-average reliever. His 3.55 SIERA was right there with highly-respected closer Andrew Bailey and a tenth of a run behind Mariano Rivera.
Lidge's 2010 season turned around after Ryan Zimmerman of the Washington Nationals hit a walk-off home run on July 31. To that point, Lidge had a 5.57 ERA with a BB/9 of an even 6.0. After the game, Zimmerman hinted that Lidge was tipping his pitches. From August 1 through the rest of the season, Lidge corrected his flaws and posted a 0.73 ERA with a 3.6 BB/9. Baseball is a game of constant adjustments. Lidge appeared to make the correct adjustments in the final two months last year, and he can only learn from that and benefit going forward. He is not by any means a washed up reliever; in fact, he is still among the most feared in baseball.
Jose Contreras finished 2010 with a 3.19 SIERA, certainly a great accomplishment as it was his first full season as a reliever. He averaged just over a strikeout per inning and was stingy with the free passes as his 2.5 BB/9 indicated. He even induced a good amount of ground balls (45 percent) to help limit the damage. Because he is not in a glorified position with its own title, such as "set-up" or "closer", Contreras is assumed to be just another reliever, but he is good enough to close on quite a few teams. He may have worn down towards the end of the season as his second-half ERA was more than a full run higher than his first-half ERA, but now that he is going into his second full season as a reliever, he can make the proper adjustments in terms of preparation and conditioning.
J.C. Romero is responsible for the poorly-groomed fingernails of many a Philadelphian, but I insist it's not his fault. As mentioned various times here on the blog, Romero should be used strictly against left-handed hitters. His xFIP against lefties is a paltry 3.61, but against right-handers, it rises to an unacceptable 5.34. Charlie Manuel has limited Romero's use to lefties more and more, but never entirely. It would behoove Ruben Amaro to demand that Romero never be used against a right-handed hitter in a meaningful situation. When used properly, Romero is a remarkably effective lefty.
Antonio Bastardo will likely be the team's second lefty out of the bullpen. He seems to have been given this reputation as a good-but-not-quite-good-enough reliever, but in limited action, he posted a 2.90 SIERA. He can attribute that to an incredible 12.5 K/9 (in about 19 innings), which is not a fluke. Over his Minor League career, he posted a 10.3 K/9. Bastardo's goal should be to limit his walks, but he is right now an MLB-capable reliever. Consider that his 4.3 BB/9 last year is comparable to Lidge's 4.1 career average. Those walk rates are not good by any means, but you accept it with the amount of swings-and-misses they induce.
The bullpen will round out with a slop-throwing long reliever (probably Kyle Kendrick) and perhaps a young arm. Scott Mathieson is one such candidate whom I feel hasn't been given a fair shot at keeping a job as a Major League reliever. He had all of one and two-thirds innings in 2010 including one appearance in mid-June in which he struggled and was immediately jettisoned to Triple-A Lehigh Valley. The kid, fully recovered from Tommy John surgery, has done just about everything he can possibly do in the Minors — he's thrown 566 innings in the Minors with a 9.0 K/9, 2.9 BB/9 and 3.82 ERA — so it's time to use him or lose him.
Another name to keep in mind is Justin De Fratus (he's on Twitter!). The 23-year-old has been nothing short of impressive in his brief professional career. Last year, between Single-A Clearwater and Double-A Reading, he posted a 1.94 ERA with a 9.8 K/9 and 2.2 BB/9. ESPN's Jason Grey is very high on De Fratus as well:
De Fratus absolutely looks like a big league bullpen arm, with a 92-95 mph fastball that touched 96 mph once when I saw him, and good tilt on an 83-85 mph slider that can get strikeouts. A strong pitcher with a good frame who uses his lower half well, De Fratus does a good job finishing his pitches. De Fratus isn't far from a call-up and looks like he could fill a seventh- or eighth-inning role at the big league level, and from there anything can happen. Then again, he's also in an organization that left Scott Mathieson behind to dominate Triple-A hitters all year.
The Phillies are expected to have a formidable offense and baseball's best starting rotation, but don't forget about the bullpen. Their role may have been condensed, but they still have a say on exactly how successful the Phillies will be in the regular season and how far they will advance in the playoffs.


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Naropa University's lineage holder is the Sakyong Jamgön Mipham Rinpoche, the eldest son of Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche, the university's founder. Sakyong literally means "earth-protector."
The Sakyong speaks annually to the Naropa University community and has also taught classes through Naropa University Extended Studies.
Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche was born in 1962 in Bodhagaya, India, to Lady Könchok Palden. He spent his early years receiving a Buddhist education, later joining his father in the West, where he continued his study of Buddhist philosophy and ritual. He has studied with the great masters His Holiness Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche—teacher of the Dalai Lama and the king of Bhutan—and Penor Rinpoche.
The Sakyong is married to Princess Tseyang Palmo, daughter of His Eminence Namkha Drimed Rabjam Rinpoche, head of the Ripa lineage. He has written two books, the national bestseller Turning the Mind into An Ally and Ruling Your World.
In addition, the Sakyong is a poet and an artist. He is also an accomplished marathon runner, and does so to raise money for Tibet. He travels extensively, teaching throughout the world, and is head of Shambhala International.


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Manchester, Saints square off today in Jam T20 final
Jermaine Lannaman, Sunday Gleaner Writer
Two-time defending champions St Catherine and Manchester will today square off in the final of the Jamaica Cricket Association Twenty20 championship at Up Park Camp, beginning at 2 p.m.
Led by André Russell and opener Oraine Williams, St Catherine defeated Melbourne by 73 runs while Manchester, thanks to another standout performance from Damion Bryce, defeated surprise qualifiers St Mary by 81 runs in semi-final play at Up Park Camp yesterday.
Russell made 54 off a mere 15 balls, including eight sixes, while Williams hit three sixes and two fours in making 57 off as St Catherine, who won the toss and elected to bat, posted a challenging 195 for four.
Wayne Morgan, 43 off 30 balls, including three sixes and two fours, also got among the runs against Nikita Miller, Chris Lamont, Damion Jacobs, and Yannick Elliott, who all ended with a wicket each.
Melbourne, in reply, could only manage 122 for seven off their allotted 20 overs with spinners Odean Brown and Bevon Brown ending with two for 16 and two for 16 and two for 19, respectively.
"Today, we batted really well with Russell and Oraine really getting the job done along with spinners Odean and Bevon. We can almost always depend on them to bring us home," said St Catherine captain Tamar Lambert.
"It's now on to the final tomorrow where you will have two teams, who over the past couple of years have been playing consistently good cricket," he added.
Impressive total
Manchester, meanwhile, were led home on a 47-ball 64 from Bryce, who laid the foundation for his team's impressive total of 192 for six.
Bryce hit four sixes and four fours during his knock and was supported by captain Gary Graham, 55, Jamie Merchant, 33, and Zeniffe Fowler, 16. Pacer Claudius Thompson, with two for 37, took most wickets.
St Mary, in response, were restricted to 111 off 15 overs with part-time off-spinner Nicholas Walters claiming three for 15 and pacer Chris Powell, two for 26.
"It was a good all-round performance from the team today with Bryce and young Nicholas Walters again showing what they are capable of," said Graham.


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It's been awhile since our first visit to Tolt McDonald Park, decided today would be the day for a revisit. Original riding plan was to join fellow work and riding pal, musician guy Brian - not to be confused with my other pal Brian - also a work related riding pal and a musician. As a Devo related tribute, maybe should call 'em Brian 1 and Brian 2.
Back to the original plan; ride Grand Ridge over to the Duthie Mountain Bike Park. Seven miles, 1100 foot elevation gain. Include some simple math and you have a 14 mile round trip and 2200 feet of climbing. Plus, add in some additional miles goofing around Duthie. Son Ian was to join the festivities along with us, 'cept he woke up at 10:00 AM looking mighty tired. He did about 15 miles of singletrack on Saturday, and about 8 miles or so Friday night. He wasn't sure about the long ride today.
When in doubt, cut it out - my motto for riding with kids. Don't want to ruin the fun with a death march. Wife also thinks I'm killing the kid with riding. Little does she know, he's actually killing me at times. Informed Brian we'll sample Grand Ridge another time. We've never ridden it, but will eventually.
Of course, after breakfast and laying around a bit, Ian wants to do something - like ride. His JL Velo team had a social ride lined up with Garmin Cervelo pro rider Tom Pederson. That would be cool, no? He's not really interested. How about an easy local road ride? Nope. Says "Road riding is a little boring, you just sit and pedal. Mountain biking is more fun."
Mmm...the boy does have a point. Okay, let's hit Tolt McDonald Park instead. First stop at El Toredor in Redmond for some proper burrito loading. Followed by the drive out to Carnation...
After a short, but steep climb into the park, rewarded with a nice view of the Cascades. Once you're up there, the trails are fairly flat. One of the reasons why picked the area for today. Just do some fun cruising.
Area consists of roads - really gravel/rock doubletrack - with pinball mazes of singletrack laced throughout the park. The map was only semi-useful, since none of the trails are actually marked. Pretty easy to get lost and wander around a bit, then hit a main road to find your way back. Hopefully...
Plenty of this kind of trail action. Not bad at all.
Lots of twisty, fun, rooted out singletrack to be found. We just cruised around making random trail choices, until we hit a main road. It would take awhile learn this area - can get confusing.
Lots of twisty, fun, rooted out singletrack to be found. We just cruised around making random trail choices, until we hit a main road. It would take awhile learn this area - can get confusing.
We kept it short today, about 10 miles of singletrack exploring - also had a late start. Tolt McDonald is pretty fun though and worth the trip. We'll make visit # 3 before the summer is over.
That concludes this insanely fast written post. With any luck, its even readable.
Ride on. Ride often.