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Scotland's best will spend the next two weeks taking on Thailand as eight players and two coaches have made the trip east for a training camp.
Barely had the rackets been put away after the weekend's Yonex Scottish National Championships than many of the finalists were on a plane to Bangkok.
Training with the Thai national squad – including players such as women's world number three Ratchanok Intanon – the visiting Scots will spend a fortnight learning from some of the best in the world.
With the Commonwealth Games rapidly approaching on the horizon and key international tournaments preceding it, the players are hoping to use the trip to fine tune their games ahead of a one of the busiest periods of the year.
"This training period will stand me in really good stead.
The quality of their ladies' singles players is really quite high – I think they've got four in the world's top 25," said Kirsty Gilmour, who travelled on Monday having won a seventh consecutive national women's singles title the day before.
"So to be in that environment, I'm going to relish that opportunity, it's going to be a really good two weeks."
Joining Gilmour in Thailand are fellow 2018 Scottish champions Kieran Merrilees, Adam Hall, Alex Dunn, Julie MacPherson and Eleanor O'Donnell.
And six-time champion Merrilees is hoping to learn a few new things from their Thai sparring partners.
"It will be a really good experience," he said.
"The Asian players are really good, so to be able to go out there and see what it's like in their environment will give us a few ideas for when we come back to Scotland – I'm looking forward to it."
Coaches Tat Meng Wong and Andy Bowman have also made the trip, along with finalists from the weekend Patrick MacHugh and Martin Campbell.
With MacHugh wanting to use the experience to hone his skills ahead of potential selection for the Commonwealth Games.
"It should be good. It'll be nice to train against some different people and it's a bit of a hotter climate as well so it will just be something a bit different for us," said the national men's doubles runner-up.
"We want to get that good training block in place ahead of the Austria and German Opens – then hopefully the Commonwealth Games."
While two-time Scottish women's doubles champion MacPherson – who also won the Iceland International with O'Donnell the previous week for their first international series title – is looking forward to a training block after a busy period of competition.
"It's come around so quickly.
We've had such a busy month leading up to the Commonwealth Games, it's just been non-stop," she said.
O'Donnell added: "I'm definitely looking forward to it. It's going to be different but I think everyone is looking forward to it, being in a different environment, hitting with different players."


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July 24th- University Park, PA—The Brooklyn bats were silenced and a three-game winning streak was put to an end as the Cyclones (20-16) fell to the State College Spikes (11-26) by a score of 5-1 on Sunday night at Lubrano Park.
July 3rd -- Brooklyn, New York -- For the second night in a row, Staten Island rallied late as Brooklyn fell to the Yankees (14-2) 3-2 after the start of the game was delayed by 23 minutes due to rain. Staten Island extended their winning streak to a franchise-best 13 games.
The Cyclones put two on the board in the bottom of the first inning. Hot-hitting Ismael Tijerina, who entered the day batting .351, began the frame with a double on a line drive to right field before Luke Stewart deposited a 1-1 offering well into the rightfield bleachers for a two-run lead off of Baby Bombers' starter Bryan Mitchell.
The Yankees narrowed the deficit to a run in the top of the third inning which was the first time starter Carlos Vazquez had given up a run before the fifth inning in his four starts. Bobby Rinard doubled with one-out to left field before Mason Williams doubled in a run on a line drive just in front of Charley Thurber.
With a runner on second and one out in the top of the fifth inning, Cito Culver chased Vazquez with a line drive double to left, scoring Williams who had doubled to start the rally. Vazquez finished with five strikeouts and a walk on seven hits before being replaced by Steven Winnick with one out in the fourth.
Second round pick Cory Mazzoni made his Cyclones' debut by throwing an inning of scoreless relief in the top of the seventh walking one and striking out two.
Staten Island scored the deciding run in the top of the ninth inning when Rinard began the frame by reaching base on a fielding error by Cyclones short stop Ish Tijerina. Mason Williams placed a bunt down the third baseline that Richard Lucas fielded cleanly but on the play Rinard was able to make it all the way to third as the Cyclones left the base unattended. Cito Culver brought home the go-ahead run on bloop fly ball that landed just out of the reach of a pair of Cyclones
In the ninth, Brandon Pinder retired the Cyclones in order for his league-leading fifth save of the season.
The series resumes on the road tomorrow at 7:00 PM as Jeff Walters (0-1, 2.70 ERA) battles William Oliver (1-0, 3.29 ERA) before Brooklyn returns home for a three game series with the Vermont Lake Monsters beginning Wednesday at 7:00 PM. Reggy the Purple Party Dude will make an appearance and fans can run the bases at the conclusion of the game. Tickets are still available by calling 718-507-TIXX, at the MCU Park box office, or at BrooklynCyclones.com.

subset: commoncrawl


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NEET Eligibility Criteria 2020: NTA will release the Eligibility Criteria for NEET 2020 Exm. It is advised to the candidates that read carefully the eligibility criteria when you proceeding to fill NEET Application Form. The National Level Medical Entrance Test is known as National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) which is conducted for admission in MBBS & BDS courses which is offered by the medical and dental colleges across India. Candidates can get complete details of NEET Eligibility Criteria from the below given articles.
NEET Eligibility Criteria 2020
NEET 2020 Exam Dates has been released now, Click Here to Check Complete Schedule.
When you are going to fill NEET Application Form there you need to check the eligibility. Below listed are the point which you must fulfill for appearing NEET 2020:
Basic Eligibility:
- Number of Attempts: In recent news it is released that from these candidates will able to attempt exam 9 times (GEN) & 14 attempts (SC/ST/OBC category candidates).
- Aadhaar Card: For NEET Registration process candidates must have a valid Aadhaar card those who are Indian Citizen.
- Candidates must be the citizen of India.
- NRIs (Non-Resident Indians), OCIs (Overseas Citizen of India), PIOs (Persons of Indian Origin) & Foreign Nationals can also apply.
Age Criteria:
- Minimum Limit: At the time of admission candidates must be 17 years old on or before 31st December 2018.
- Maximum Limit: At the time of admission candidates must be 25 years old as on date of examination.
- Relaxation: Relaxation will be provided for the SC/ST/OBC category i.e. 5 years.
|Unreserved Category (UR)
|Born on or after 8th May 1993
|SC/ST/OBC Category
|Born on or after 8th May 1988
Qualification Criteria
- Qualifying Exam: Candidates must have passed the higher/senior secondary examination or ISCE which is equivalent to 10+2 examination after a period of 12 years study.
- Subjects: Candidates must pass the above qualifying examination with Physics, Chemistry, Biology/Biotechnology & Mathematics or any other elective subjects with English.
- Minimum Marks: Candidates need to secure
- For GEN: 50% marks
- For SC/ST/OBC: 40% marks in PCB groups.
- Appearing Candidates: A candidate who are appearing in the qualifying examination will be eligible. They need to bring their passing certificate at Counseling time.
Note: Maths marks will not be considered for admission to MBBS/BDS courses.
Eligibility for 15% All India Quota Seats
- Must be the citizen of India, An NRIs, PIOs, OCIs & Foreign candidates can also apply.
For J & K, AP & Telangana States:
- Those who belong from J&K, AP and Telangana will be eligible for 15% All India Quota seats and also eligible for admission to the AFMC, Pune for this they need to declare a self declaration.
- Those who belong from Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and J & K may also appear for admission to Private Medical/Dental Colleges or any Private/Deemed University & Armed Forces Medical College (AFMC), Pune.
Eligibility for 85% State Quota Seats
Most of the 85% seats for admission into the MBBS/ BDS courses are filled through state counselling which is conducted after successfully result declaration and remaining 15% of the seats are filled through All India quota which is under centralized counseling in all over India. Here we are listed eligibility for the 85% quota seats of the states:
- Those who have appeared/appearing in qualifying examination.
- Those who have a valid domicile of the respective states.
- Residential proof of the state.
Eligibility for Seats in Participating Bodies
There are some other medical colleges which also participating in NEET Exam for fulfilling the which are as:
- Armed Forces Medical College (AFMC)
- Banaras Hindu University (BHU)
- Jamia Hamdard University
- University of Delhi.
- As per the Government of India's rules an OCI (Overseas Citizen of India) candidates can appear in the exam.
- Maximum age limit would be measurable according to the rules of states/ universities/ institutions for those candidates, who are seeking to admission for participating Institutions/ Universities/ States.


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Switzerland has welcomed the official appointment of the new United Nations secretary-general, António Guterres, although media warned that he had his work cut out in the "most difficult job in the world". He replaces Ban Ki-moon, who will step down at the end of the year.
The 193-member UN General Assembly on Thursday unanimously appointed the 67-year-old former Portuguese Prime Minister as the ninth secretary-general of the world body for five years, beginning January 1, 2017.
The news of his selection last week by the UN Security Council received rapturous applause from newspapers and officials in Geneva.
"International Geneva jumped with joy," wrote the Tribune de Genève, also referring to Guterres as a "Genevan".
"Impossible to have dreamed of a better choice," raved an editorial. "The former boss of the UNHCR [UN Refugee Agency], who speaks perfect French, knows all the inner workings of the UN machine. This is a trump card for Geneva."
Yves Daccord, director general of the Swiss-run International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), said Guterres had proven qualities as a leader. "His main challenge will be to build a UN capable of finding collective political solutions to the inextricable crises of today."
The French-speaking daily Le Temps described Guterres as a "clear and strong orator compared with the South Korean [Ban Ki-Moon], who is an unassertive diplomat. But [Guterres's] honeymoon period risks being short. How can he not disappoint, as the secretary-general's post is the most difficult job in the world?"
In a statement on Thursday, the Swiss foreign ministry said it "looked forward to working with Guterres and supporting him in the execution of his future duties". It underlined his extensive experience as a politician and as former head of the UNHCR from 2005-2015.
It said Switzerland was keen to work with Guterres on priorities such as international security, reforming the UN system and developing the potential of International Geneva as a centre of global governance in the fields of peace and security, human rights, humanitarian work and migration.
swissinfo.ch with agencies


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Amazon's mission to put Alexa everywhere took another step forward today with the announcement of a new set of tools to build the digital assistant into in-car entertainment systems.
The new Alexa Auto Software Development Kit includes code to program in capabilities like calling, media streaming, navigation and search, all via voice command. Amazon says the new tools make it simple for users to access Alexa's more than 45,000 skills like controlling smart home devices and getting weather reports while driving.
This isn't Amazon's first move toward getting its digital assistant into vehicles. In early 2017, Amazon and Ford showed off an Alexa-powered in-car system at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.
Amazon's vehicular ambitions extend beyond the in-car systems. Last year, a Garmin debuted a $150 Alexa-powered device, followed by a $50 Alexa Device from San Francisco-based Speak Music.


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Today, Jun Yoshino, a Sony Interactive Entertainment Producer on International Software Development team working on The Last Guardian, tweeted that the title has finally gone gold, meaning development is complete. Yoshino has since deleted the tweet, but not before Guerrilla Games responded (in an also now deleted tweet) by saying, "Congrats!"
Assuming The Last Guardian truly did go gold today, it's possible Yoshino simply tweeted the announcement too early and Sony is planning on doing a separate post about the game going gold. If they do, we'll let you know.
The Last Guardian was previously supposed to release next week on October 25, but it was delayed to December 6 because Sony wants to "deliver the most polished experience possible for our fans who have supported us for so long."
You can see 20 minutes of The Last Guardian gameplay over here, with the details from the ESRB rating over here.
[Source: Jun Yoshino, Guerrilla Games]


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This car rental branch is located in the West Mesa area near the intersection of South Alma School Road and West Broadway Road. There is Light Rail access near the location and pickup from the Light Rail Station.
Mesa, Tempe, Gilbert, Chandler
Cubs Spring Training Facility (Sloan Park) - approximately a 7 minute drive
Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport - approximately a 12 minute drive
Payson – approximately a 1.5 hour drive
Sedona – approximately a 2 hour drive
Flagstaff – approximately a 3 hour drive
Grand Canyon – approximately a 4 hour drive
Avoid rush hour traffic early in the morning (7-9 am) and early evening (5-7 pm).
Mesa Riverview, Cubs Sloan Park, Hohokam Stadium, Mesa Arizona Temple


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yeah! yeah! drooz studio is growing up.
the new "teen" & "home" collections are here!
"for ten years I have designed art geared towards infants and toddlers. now, and as my own children are growing up, I have been inspired to "grow" my design style as well. I'm so proud of my latest creations and the messages they share. ...a collection of images that are geared toward a teen sensibility. with two pre-teens in our house (one girl, one boy!) we are going through lots of changes here! social, personal, academic, spiritual - you name it! I find myself wanting to boost my kids confidence more and more as they deal with new issues- encourage them to be the best they can be and inspire them to greatness.... or at least help them make it thru the day! my focus in these designs is to provoke positive messaging, motivation, inspiration, celebration, encouragement,and over-all daily reminders "to be your best".
these giclee prints (offered by Oopsy Daisy and available at drooz.com) were originally created by Shelly Kennedy using photography, hand painting, collage, vintage images, and digital altering. over 60 new images - they are available in a BOY teen collection, GIRL teen collection and a HOME collection. the TEEN collection pieces are 14 x 14. HOME collection 18 x18. also offered is a trio and a "9 square" in each series (shown above).


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May 15 is the official start of the East Pacific Hurricane season (yeah I know it is August 1…but damn this tropical season has been slow) …or what I sometimes like to call "my special happy time" but more frequently refer to it as "a royal pain in the ass for surf forecasters".
Since we finally have a hurricane that is moving through an open part of the swell window I thought that I would throw together a little info on East Pacific Hurricanes and how they affect the surf in Southern California.
Unless you have been living under a rock in the Himalayas (that doesn't have cable or satellite TV) you probably have at least an idea of what a hurricane is…so I won't spend a ton of time going over the storm itself…here is the official version from the National Hurricane Center.
"The terms "hurricane" and "typhoon" are regionally specific names for a strong "tropical cyclone". A tropical cyclone is the generic term for a non-frontal synoptic scale low-pressure system over tropical or sub-tropical waters with organized convection (i.e. thunderstorm activity) and definite cyclonic surface wind circulation
Tropical cyclones with maximum sustained surface winds of less than 34 knots are called "tropical depressions" Once the tropical cyclone reaches winds of at least 34 knots they are typically called a "tropical storm" and assigned a name. From there when winds reach 64-knots then they called "hurricanes" (or cyclones or typhoons…depending on what geographic region you are in)."
The official version is a little dry considering they are trying to describe potentially one of the most destructive releases of latent heat energy that can occur in our atmosphere…but hey that is government for you…I am sure that they could describe a nuclear explosion in a way that would make you fall asleep after the third paragraph.
For this little lesson…first I am going to throw down a little geography and terminology, because that is the way that I roll, and it will help our conversation about surf make more sense later, particularly when we start dealing with active storms. Anyway here is a little of the geography…
Our region is a little "special"
When you look around the world there are generally 7 areas that have consistent cyclone activity but our special little corner in the east North Pacific actually boasts an extra-bonus feature…our storms have a tendency to move away from land and generally pose less of a danger to life/limb/and property. Don't get me wrong…they are still ass-kicking weather systems and will sometimes spin back and wreak havoc through Mexico and Central America…but they are quite a bit less likely to do so than the other tropical regions.
This is sort of a catch-22 from a surf standpoint…hurricanes have a tendency to send the strongest swell along their movement path, which means that while we don't have storms make landfall, (and come along and stick it in sideways like they do to the East Coast sometimes), we also don't always get the best swell that we could from these systems.
The Layout
From a geographic standpoint the East Pacific tropical region runs from the west Coast of Central America, down to the equator, and then out to the 140W longitude line. The northern border is a little more flexible since storms have a tendency to die off as they hit cold water.
The incubator
The Gulf of Tehuantepec and the surrounding areas have a tendency to be the storm incubator of the EPAC tropics. The mix of coastal geography, local wind patterns, and extremely warm water provide a good catalyst for storm formation. In most tropical seasons you can track a number of storms back to this little caldron that is located down along the coast of southern Mainland Mexico.
The ITCZ
The ITCZ is short for "Intertropical Convergence Zone", which is good that they gave it an acronym because writing the full term gets old fast. The ITCZ is an area where two different cells of air circulation meet along the surface of the ocean and push skyward. This convergence has a tendency to create a band of thunderstorms and tropical systems that are the early stages of tropical waves (and eventually full tropical cyclones). Anyway the ITCZ is more of a fluid entity than a fixed weather feature…oh it always exists…but it can move around and change intensity as different factors influence it. The ITCZ is important in the fact that it provides a low-wind zone for tropical storms to start their cyclonic rotation without being disrupted. From a forecast standpoint it is important to keep track of the ITCZ…the further north it drifts the better of a chance you have a storm formation…to close to the equator and you lose the Coriolis Effect.
Sea Surface Temps
When it comes to forecasting surf from hurricanes it is always important to keep an eye on sea-surface temperatures. Hurricanes need some very specific conditions to form and maintain circulation. One of the biggest factors is the ocean temps. The general rule of thumb is that a storm needs sea-surface temps to be at least 80-degrees Fahrenheit (or around 27-degrees Celsius)…and that temperature needs to extend down about 50-meters below the ocean surface. The storm doesn't actually draw that much energy from the water but it is more about the water temperature's effect on the air-mass directly above it. (this sort of gives me a headache…so I leave the heavy mental lifting to the NHC's big brains)
Due to limitations of public satellites it is hard to get a read on ocean temps beyond what you can see on surface but you can sort of guestimate where the pockets of storm potential water is.
Once a storm has moved out of the warmer waters it starts to lose power as its convection fails. This also means a lot of the storms winds start to lift up off the surface of the ocean and swell production is cut off, which is obviously a important thing to keep an eye on if you are trying to score surf from a hurricane.
Upper level steerage and sheering winds
On some levels hurricanes are actually pretty fragile weather systems…we already talked about their need for warm-water/warm-airmass which affects them from a surface standpoint…well they also need specific conditions to occur in the upper level of the atmosphere in order to start circulation. In particular they need some light/moderate winds blowing through the higher altitudes to sort of spark up the circulation that eventually becomes the full-scale cyclone convection. If these winds are too light then the storm won't spin up. The adverse is true as well…if the winds are too strong they will shear the top of the storm off, breaking the balance needed to maintain rotation.
One thing to watch is how the large scale wind patterns are moving through the tropical region…sometimes a storm will start in a favorable area only to move into a region that has more wind moving in the upper levels and it will begin to shear…and again once the storm starts to unbalance the surface winds get disrupted and swell production is shut down.
La Nina and El Nino (its Spanish for "the nino"!)
You hear a lot about El Nino/La Nina patterns in connection to hurricanes…and they do have a strong influence on the season as a whole…but it is good to think of it in terms of "potential" rather than a guaranteed stellar surf season. Both of these patterns represent the difference in SST's for the East Pacific region. An El Nino year means that the SST's are above average and the La Nina means that they are below average. The thing to keep in mind that there is quite a difference between an El Nino that is 0.5 degrees warmer than average compared to an El Nino that is a whopping 4.0+ degrees warmer. The amount of energy that it takes to heat several million cubic miles of ocean water is staggering and the more heat that is poured into it the more energy it will have to release later to equalize itself.
Here is the official definition from the Climate Prediction Center…
El Niño – El Niño, a phase of ENSO, is a periodic warming of surface ocean waters in the eastern tropical Pacific along with a shift in convection in the western Pacific further east than the climatological average. These conditions affect weather patterns around the world. El Niño episodes occur roughly every four-to-five years and can last up to 12-to-18 months. The preliminary CPC definition of El Niño is a phenomenon in the equatorial Pacific Ocean characterized by a positive sea surface temperature departure from normal (for the 1971-2000 base period), averaged over three months, greater than or equal in magnitude to 0.5oC in a region defined by 120oW-170oW and 5oN-5oS (commonly referred to as Niño 3.4). El Niño, which would appear off the coast of Peru around Christmas time, is Spanish for "the boy" referring to the Christ child.
Basically when you break it down…an El Nino year means warmer water in the East Pacific Tropical region…more warm water means more potential hurricanes. La Nina means cooler water and less potential hurricanes…(Funny thing about that is the opposite is actually true for the US East Coast. El Nino generally means a less active tropical season while a La Nina means a more intense one. Damn can't they make anything easy.)
And finally…this picture sums up the El Nino perfectly…
Ok enough science…lets get on to the surf.
Does your head hurt…yeah mine too…lets talk about the fun stuff…the surf that a hurricane can kick out.
Hurricane surf is pretty special…it has a tendency to be punchy, stacked up, and at the right spots…really hollow. It also can sneak in from swell angles that we could never get from normal southern hemi storms, which in turn lets it hit spots that are normally small and sheltered.
If you have been surfing for a few years you probably have a hurricane surf story…everyone does…they sort of go "remember hurricane 'blank'? Man I surfed this longboard-spot/reef/harbor-entrance/evil-lair/point-break…it was like double overhead and reeling!"
The thing is that hurricane swells feel magical…they usually hit over the summer when the water is warm and clear and the swell is so consistent that you surf until your arms want to fall off. When you start thinking about Hurricane swells in the terms of the waves that you will surf of course you want to score more and more of it.
Getting Hurricane Surf
When you get down to brass tacks hurricanes are similar, but smaller, versions of mid and upper latitude storms…so the same principles apply to them when it comes time for them to generate swell.
You may want to brush up on how waves are made…you can read my barely coherent ramblings on that here.
Here are the basic things that you need to keep in mind when forecasting surf from hurricanes.
Storm Size – The bigger the storm the larger the fetch, the more fetch the more potential swell.
Intensity – The greater the wind speeds the bigger the surf…generally goes hand in hand with storm size since the bigger storms have a tendency to have more intense wind speeds than the smaller systems.
Movement track – You want a storm to be moving toward you. Hurricanes that are moving are sort of like flashlights…the swell is sent out the along the movement track. So the longer the storm is moving toward your location the more swell (and bigger waves) you can expect.
Movement Speed – This is tied to movement track…a storm can move too fast and sort of outrun the swell it is producing, which limits both the quality and quantity. A slower moving storm will have time to build a better sea-state, which lets it build a better swell. A perfectly paced storm will actually create a "travelling fetch" which will let the storm pour more energy into waves that it has already created…basically building the swell without the need for faster winds.
Storm Track vs Storm Speed
Ideally if you want to get great hurricane surf you want the storm to be moving toward you at a slow to moderate pace. Now actually getting a hurricane to head your direction isn't all that probable…it is sort of like herding cats, (well if the cat was 300 miles across, didn't respond to the slightest human stimuli, and could smash everything that you care about into tiny pieces…then yeah it would be just like that…where was I? oh storm movement) this is where good storm speed can help compensate for a bad storm track.
If we go back to the flashlight analogy…the faster a storm moves the tighter the beam of swell becomes. If a storm is stalled or moving at a very slow rate it is sending out energy in all directions but as the storm speed picks up the swell energy tightens along the movement path. This image is a good illustration of what I mean.
You can still get swell from a hurricane even if it isn't headed directly towards your location but the system needs to be moving at the correct speed in regard to your position.
These are good rules of thumb concerning storm speed.
1. The Storm is moving away from your location: You want the speed to below 2-knots
2. Storm is moving along a path 90-degrees perpendicular to your location: You want the speed to below 5-7 knots (depends on the storm size…a wider storm can be moving a touch faster).
3. Storm generally toward your location: You want the movement speed to be below 8-10 knots.
4. Storm is coming to punch your ticket and drive up your homeowners insurance: Then you can have storm speed up to 15-17 knots and still get swell…any faster and the system starts to outrun the swell energy…and probably your ability to escape to safety. (Man aren't I cheery today)
Seasonal expectations
While you can get hurricane swell at almost any time during the tropical season… Southern California definitely sees better hurricane swell activity as we move through the middle to end of the season. The reason for this is more due to the nature of the seasonal wind patterns than anything.
During the "Early Season", which runs from the spring into early summer, tropical systems have a tendency to track straight from east-to-west and move out into the open ocean.
As you get into the middle of the season, which is summer into early fall, the storms start to make a slight jog northward and eventually hook back toward land. This hook starts to line up the movement track with SoCal making it more likely for us to get waves.
Finally at the end of the season most storms are performing the "hook" sometimes right after they have formed. This is one of the more dangerous times to be along the Pacific side of Baja since storms can spin back toward land relatively quickly. They can cause a lot of damage even making landfall as a tropical wave or depression…remember there is a lot of dry land in baja that can't hold a lot of water…so even a couple of inches of rain (or say the 30 inches a tropical storm can drop in a short period) can cause major flooding.
Naturally you want to be somewhere in the middle/end of the season where the storms have a chance of "aiming" towards SoCal and the Pacific Side of Baja.
Swell Windows and Swell Directions
Swell windows are pretty darn important to Hurricane swells…more so than the bigger frontal systems. First off a hurricane is a smaller storm so the fetch is narrower and the swell is more focused…this compounded by the fact that hurricane swells generally have shorter swell-periods which don't wrap around corners as well as long-period swells. So if the storm is out of your swell window you are sort of out of luck…I have seen swells where the angle of the swell will cut off surf like a knife-blade as you move a 1/4 mile up a beach.
Generally Orange County and LA have the most SE'erly swell windows and can take in swells from 155-160 degrees…some of the other spots like north San Diego, Santa Barbara, and Ventura start seeing swell around 170. Other very protected areas like the South Bay need a more traditional SW swell around 200-210 degrees (which isn't all that common for a tropical systems.
What this all boils down too
Tropical storms, hurricanes, typhoons, cyclones, or whatever you want to call them are very dynamic and intense weather phenomenon capable of causing massive swaths of destruction and at the same time spinning up endless lines of flawless surf. However they are pretty complicated and fairly delicate compared to their big gnarly sub-tropical frontal storms that do the majority of the work in producing rideable swell.
If you plan on trying to score waves from hurricanes it is important to track them very closely, look at as many sources for information and if you can, try to read between the lines, it is very common that environmental satellites and computer models will miss the little details, or be running hours behind (hours that can make you miss pulling the trigger on a trip to your favorite hurricane spot). Spend the time looking at the visible and infrared images of the storm, watch how they move…plot the exact lines for your spot's swell windows…there are so many things that you can do that will up your chances of getting decent waves.
Finally, I would always caution tempering your expectations of a storm…there are so many factors that go into creating a good hurricane swell and if even a couple of them are out of balance then the swell can come through smaller and weaker…so when you actually head out to find these waves know that they are fickle, they tease, and if you keep your sights set on realistic levels then you can be pleasantly surprised if one comes through better and bigger than you thought it would.
Happy Hunting!
My favorite Hurricane Links
For those of you that are interested in taking hurricane tracking to the next level here are a few of my favorite links to hurricane related stuff…as always there is a ton more stuff out there, but these will get you going.
Climate Prediction Center
National Hurricane Center
NHC Satellites
Navy Research Laboratory Monterey
Cooperative Institute for Meteorological Satellite Studies
FNMOC Ensemble Forecasts (good place to see upper level winds)
NOAA Sea-Surface Temps


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The Mole: Season 1 - Before he became a CNN star, Anderson Cooper hosted this smart and fun reality show.
Honk for Dong - Trapped in a foreign country and flat broke? Well, you know what to do!
MoJo Rising
miri: Were you guys fans of the show before you decided to apply? I mean, had you been watching it?
Joseph: Yes. We were big fans of the show.
Monica: His mom had always watched it and his sisters watched since Season 1. And we started probably watching, I guess, in the middle of-about halfway through all the seasons, like Season 4, I think. We started really, really watching, and we're just like, wow, this is so amazing. You know, it's this fantasy. You feel like it would be the coolest show to go on.
Tribefan: That's for sure. Had you applied before? Was this the first time you applied, when you got on?
Monica: Yes. It was our first time.
Tribefan: Oh, well, you were lucky first time out.
Monica: Yeah.
Tribefan: What did you do in your video? Were you just talking or doing anything special in your video?
Monica: We kind of were just really energetic. And we had this little cheer that we did for MoJo, just kind of being goofy and being stupid and making fun of each other. And Joseph walked over, and it was so funny-he walked over and he-Joseph: Farted on her.
Joseph: Well, too, I was like, "Well, Monica, so"-I was interviewing her, and I was like, "What do you hate about me?" And she really let loose and it kind of pissed me off. So I was like, all right, you do me now. Me. She did me, and I told her everything I hated about her.
Tribefan: That's an interesting approach. And apparently it worked. I know Joni did say that she saw you at the finals, and you're not allowed to talk to each other, but she said she knew that you guys would be picked because you had the look.
Joseph: She really said that?
Tribefan: Yeah. She said she knew for sure you guys would be picked.
Monica: Oh, we knew that they were going to be picked because we knew they were crazy just from watching them from afar.
Joseph: Well, sometimes we'd go do interviews after them with the producers, and hell, we could hear them in there screaming and shit. And we were like, what in the hell is going on? So we're like, oh, my God, do we need to scream and shit like they do?
Tribefan: Well, the screaming obviously was in real life and not just on the show.
Joseph: That's right. And the peeing of the pants.
miri: Oh, no.
Tribefan: Now, did you come up with the MoJo nickname? Was that something you already had called yourself?
Joseph: Well, a lot of her friends call her Mo and some of mine call me Joe. And then I think one of our friends actually gave us that nickname.
Monica: Nobody ever really nicknamed us, like, hey, MoJo. But we would always go to different places, and when we're on trips, if we'd see a bar called MoJo-and not surprisingly, there's a lot of businesses, you know, like MoJo Lounge or whatever. So we'd just get a t-shirt from there. And then when figured, why not take it on the Race? It's kind of a way for people to remember us and not have to say Monica and Joseph every time.
Joseph: Yeah. Or they'll make up their own little nickname for us.
Tribefan: That's true. Beat them to the punch.
Monica: Yeah. Exactly.
Tribefan: Once you found out you were going to get on the Race, what did you do to prepare?
Joseph: Well, Monica has always worked out, and I really didn't do much of anything. I went on a hunting trip in New Mexico, an elk hunting trip, the week before. So I had probably walked, oh, maybe 50 miles that week, you know, hunting for elk. That really got me in shape the week-two weeks before we left?
Monica: Yeah.
Joseph: So, I mean, I was in shape from doing that. And Monica's a workout freak, so-
Tribefan: I remember that from your pre-Race video.
Monica: We also-you don't know what to bring, so we just watched-I think we watched every freaking episode of Amazing Race ever. And so we just watched them over and over, and just really paid attention to the size of peoples' backpacks and the clothing that they're wearing and what they're packing. But you can't really see what they're packing. I really did try to bring layers. I didn't want to bring a heavy coat that I couldn't take apart, so I would just bring a fleece and a rain jacket. I could put them all together if I really needed to.
miri: And yet they weren't really weighing down your backpack.
Monica: Exactly.
Tribefan: Was there anything you brought that you wish you'd just left behind?
Joseph: I think I would have just maybe packed one pair of pants and not shorts or anything - use that for everything. But our packs really-they never slowed us down.
Monica: We were smart, though. We spent a lot of money on our packs because we-I mean, if you think about it, you are carrying those around for 30 days. So what is $400 when you're carrying it around and it's going to help you win a million, possibly, or whatever.
Tribefan: Oh, yeah. If it fits you properly and everything.
Monica: Yeah. And we bought these ultra-light ones. So before you put anything in them, they weighed, what, a pound?
Joseph: Yeah. They were really light.
Monica: Or two pounds. Where some of the other ones will weigh eight pounds before you even put anything in them because they're just-you know, have the structure. We had these ultra-light ones. Anyways, my backpack only weighed 18 pounds. That was the most it ever weighed. And if you look at the Double Ds, their backpacks weighed 43 pounds or something apiece.
Tribefan: Oh, my gosh.
Joseph: Yeah. They were giving their stuff away halfway through the Race.
miri: Yeah. We always feel on the first couple legs of the Race, you kind of get an idea for who's going to go the longest by who starts out with the smallest backpacks.
Tribefan: I sort of feel that you get tired enough without dragging all that extra weight around. My goodness.
Monica: I know. It was so-I mean, it really made a huge difference. It really did.
Tribefan: How long before you actually left for the Race did you find out that you'd been picked?
Monica: Oh, my gosh.
Joseph: Four weeks.
Monica: Yeah.
Tribefan: That's a fair amount of time.
Monica: I don't know even that, Joseph.
Joseph: We were in Vegas, and-
Monica: October 12th.
Joseph: October 12th.
Monica: To October 22nd.
Joseph: And somebody asks Monica to do the show.
Monica: And we left November 4th. So we got back from L.A. on the 22nd. We found out two days later that we were on the show. And we were in Denver, leaving on the starting line November 4th. So, what, that's only like ten days.
Tribefan: Wow. I'm not sure I could turn it around that quick.
miri: Especially since a lot of that time you spend in kind of a little-is that when you're in like a mini-sequester before the Race starts?
Monica: Yeah. You have this whole time before you go up on the starting line. But it's just kind of orientation, like this is a clue. This is-I mean, you know it all, but they just really want you to understand the game 110%.
miri: Right. And you have to practice reading the clues out loud in front of the cameras and stuff like that?
Monica: Exactly. Yeah. And do a little staged leg. It's just in one big banquet hallway room. I mean, it's like, okay, now make your way and eat this whole loaf of bread or do ten pushups.
Tribefan: Oh, really?
Monica: Just something stupid like that, just to make you get the whole gist of it.
miri: And are you doing this separately or with the other teams? Does each team do it-
Joseph: Separately.
miri: Yeah. That just seems to me like it must be one of the weirdest times. It's actually before the Race starts and during the interview process and everything, where you can see all the other teams but you're not allowed to talk to them. And when we were talking with Joni, she was talking about how they were going a little bit stir-crazy during that whole time they were stuck in their hotel room out in L.A. during the interview process.
Joseph: Yeah. It was miserable.
miri: I mean, how did y'all deal with it? Did you just come up with games to play, or what did you do?
Joseph: We kind of entertained each other. You had to just watch a lot of TV, I guess. I don't know.
Monica: What did we do? We would order takeout because in L.A., they have all those businesses that will go and get food for you. And that was kind of cool because we don't have that here. And we would maybe order down a bottle of wine from the hotel or something. I mean, but really nothing. Really, it was extremely boring and awkward because you would go downstairs and you'd have these three breakfast, lunch, and dinner designated times, and you would see all these people that are obviously your competition. And so it's really competitive and awkward. And it's just weird. You don't know anyone's name. You can't really look at each other. They tell you not to make eye contact. They tell you not to wear your state logo on a shirt because they-it's all strategy. You don't want people knowing where you're from. And I'm like, well, now that I look back, that really didn't matter. If they would have known we were from Arkansas, so what?
Tribefan: I guess maybe they don't want people thinking, oh, well, we're from the same state. Maybe they won't pick me. I don't know. But as Joni was saying, too, that had never occurred to me, that they didn't want them to hear each other's accents or anything.
Monica: I know. It's so weird.
Tribefan: That had never crossed my mind. I thought they just didn't want them talking so they would share information, but-
Monica: They don't want you meeting, period, before "go."
miri: So obviously, the mind games are already starting a little bit, though. You're trying to figure out who your competition is going to be, and starting to maybe size them up a little bit?
Joseph: You're trying to size them up. But to me, there's no mind games on the Race. What the hell is that going to do?Tribefan: True.
Joseph: I mean, come on, guys.
Tribefan: It seemed kind of fruitless.
Joseph: Yeah. And then people tried to make us out to be the bad boys after-you know, saying we didn't give money because we knew they were talking all that shit about us. But whatever.
Tribefan: Yeah. But how did you feel about your edit overall? Because I think I read an interview along the way where either Fran or Barry or someone said that they thought you had an odd edit - that we really weren't seeing you as you really are.
Monica: I know. I thought the same thing. I think everybody else was truly represented. Their personality came across. Mine and Joseph's did not, at all, I didn't think. I mean, it's just like they didn't show us at all until the feud happened with the Hippies, and then they showed us constantly. And a lot of it was just that whole feud. And since the Hippies won, we knew they won the whole time. Right?
Tribefan: Right.
Monica: So we knew why they were getting edited so fondly and awesome. You know, they looked awesome. Everybody loved the Hippies. Well, that's because they won. I mean, they don't want America to vote for a team or root for a team that doesn't win, or root for a team that everybody hates. Or they don't want a team to win that everybody hates.
Tribefan: Sometimes they've not been able to avoid that, but-
Monica: Yeah. That's true. But our edit-I thought there were certain points in the Race, I was like, wow, that was us right there. Okay. For example, on the Yield mat, when we got Yielded and we were kind of having a little spat and I was about to cry and Joseph was like, "Stop crying," and I'm like, "Well, I would stop crying if you would just stop talking to me." And we kind of make fun of each other, and he's talking about how, "I'm a brat," and he's mocking me. I mean, stuff like that, even though it's kind of bad, it's funny to us. And that was really just how we are with each other. And I didn't see that a whole lot throughout the Race.miri: Because that's showing your sense of humor, and they just didn't really have a lot of that come through.
miri: Right.
Joseph: I'm a funny guy and am always joking around.
Monica: Yeah. Never saw that on the Race.
Joseph: Never saw that on the Race.
Tribefan: Yeah. I would agree because I think that would be my one real criticism of your team as it was portrayed - there didn't seem to be any humor there.
Joseph: Right. And there was a lot. They just didn't show it.
miri: And that must have been frustrating for you, I mean, because this is kind of your travelogue of this grand experience that you had. And you come across as not really having that much fun.
Tribefan: Although we will admit when you would open the clues, it looked like you were having a great time when you'd find out where you were going.
Monica: Yeah. I think that that was a big thing. I just knew that that was going to come across about me. And it really-if you pay attention and you really watch the show, it does. I mean, I even had one of the producers tell me , we've never seen anybody so excited about where they're going next and just all these new places. Because that's just the type of person I am. I get really excited about everything. And they did sometimes-they would play me saying-I'd say, "Woohoo!" like that sometimes, and they would have me saying it way more than I ever said it.
Tribefan: We'll drop in a "Woohoo!" here.
Tribefan: Were there specific moments that happened to you, fun things or funny things that you wish they had shown but we just never got to see?
Joseph: There was a paint huffer dude that was high in Australia that chased after Monica.
Monica: He did. And I was so scared. And everybody was laughing at me because I was so scared that he was going to poke me with a knife or a needle or something.
Tribefan: Oh, no.
Monica: I don't know. You don't know what these crazy paint huffers are going to do to you.
Joseph: Eric and Jeremy and I were laughing our asses off.
Monica: He was chasing me around the car. And I was so scared, and I was like, "Guys, just get him away from me!" But they never showed it. And I guess in Castellamare in Sicily, our cab driver was so badass. He was the most fun person, and he just thought he was going to be a superstar. He already looked like Rico Suave.
Joseph: Yeah. He was a pretty-boy Italian. He was hilarious.
Monica: And when he saw the cameras, he thought we were just superstars. And he was like, "Oh, my God, I'm going to be famous American! I'm going to be on American TV!" And we just had a blast with him the whole time. We were laughing with him, running around Castellamare. And we made up almost three hours on that leg. We just kicked ass on that leg. So that whole thing, I thought they were going to show a lot more of him and us laughing and having a good time. But they really didn't.
Tribefan: We often wonder-when we watch the show early in the episodes, if someone is not getting a lot of air time, we think, well, they're probably going to be around for a while. Because early on, you guys really weren't in it very much.
MoJo: Right.
Tribefan: They didn't show too much. But usually that just means because you were there for a while so they had something to work with. But then we do miss out on some development of your characters and stuff.
Joseph: Right.
Monica: I know. It's like all of a sudden, here we are.
Tribefan: Yeah. Really, suddenly, because I was reading through our posts just trying to get a sense of what people would want to know, and there was-somebody was like, oh, they're finally starting to show some personality. And it's not you. I mean, we understand that it's the editing. But sometimes it's just odd, and we don't get a good picture, really, of who you are.
Monica: And there's a lot of things that I would say that are me. It's funny because I would say stuff like, "I'm filthy," and then I would be, "But I love it," and stuff like that. And then they show me as this finicky little person that can't carry a fish. And that's not me at all.
Joseph: That so got edited wrong. I mean, she still has scars on her arms from that damn fish. I mean, it made her bleed.
Tribefan: Oh, my gosh. How come you were carrying it that way?
Monica: Yeah. I shouldn't have carried it that way. But those scales-did you even think that they would hurt, Joseph, when you picked it up?Joseph: No.
miri: Yeah. Because you started out-I mean, you were having fun with them.
Joseph: And then Jagino didn't raise his hand when I was yelling his name, that son of a bitch.
Monica: And then you said you were going to stab all the locals in the head, and that was really nice of you.
Tribefan: Yeah. We liked that.
Monica: It's funny, too, because we look back and we wonder so much. We're like, why did he not raise his hands for us? I think it's like they see me crying and they're like, hey, Jagino, maybe you should hide out for a little bit and let Monica freak out.
Joseph: I swear to God, we walked by him and talked to him, too, and he didn't say anything.
miri: Everyone was thinking it was because there might have been some pronunciation issues.
Monica: Oh, I know.
Joseph: Hell, no. That guy knows-we're Americans, and he knows exactly who we are.
Monica: How do you say that, J-a-g-i-n-o, in Italian?
miri: I have no idea. I would have been butchering it nonstop.
Joseph: Yeah. We were butchering it. But rewind the tape and look at other contestants.
Monica: We were all saying it wrong.
Joseph: He raised his hand. I mean, it's like-
Tribefan: Everybody says it wrong.
Monica: Oh, I know. My whole Palermo thing, but I say PALl-er-mo.
miri: The editors had more than a little bit of fun at your expense with that one.
Monica: But everybody else pronounced it wrong, too, besides Fran and Barry, who have traveled the world.
Tribefan: Yeah. That's true.
Joseph: Oh, Barry gave me a history lesson when Monica was doing the statue.
Tribefan: What was he telling you?
Joseph: Oh, "Joseph, do you know that they used to have wars here? And they'd have plays here, and this is what this is like." Yeah, Barry. Yeah. Thanks. Appreciate that, buddy.
Tribefan: Were you there?
Joseph: I love Barry to death, though. They're good people. We're still friends with them.
Tribefan: Oh, that's great. Did you get along pretty much with everybody on the Race?
Joseph: We really did, except for Yolanda.
Tribefan: Really?
Joseph: Ray may have-he seemed like he would try to break away from her and talk to us at times. When we were in Australia at the lake, he came and he hung out in the pool with BJ and Tyler and me and Monica and Eric and Jeremy.
Monica: And the funny thing is, if I can break in-sorry. I'm just interrupting for a second.
Joseph: I weel keel you.
Monica: When we were hanging out with them in Australia, that was right after we beat them to the finish line-I mean, beat them to the mat. And that's how it was between us. We were kind of perturbed by them or whatever, but we would still hang out with them.
Joseph: Yeah.
Monica: It wasn't as bad as it was on TV.
Joseph: Yeah, for sure. We hung with them right after that was over with.
Monica: Yeah. Okay. Go ahead.
Joseph: But, I mean, that's all I was going to say, is Yolanda would come around and Ray would just kind of be quiet. I think that was part of her strategy.
Tribefan: Yeah. Kind of putting her game face on nonstop.
Joseph: Yeah. It's like, chill the hell out and have some fun, Yolanda.
miri: Well, that kind of goes to-the race is a combination of competition and experience. And I think some people focus so much on the competition that they really lose a lot on the experience side.
Monica: Oh, you're exactly right.
Joseph: Yolanda, when it was all over with, she kind of was wondering why people weren't being nice to her. It's like, come on. You didn't make an attempt to get to know anybody on the Race.
Monica: So now when we're all hanging out, we don't know you. We know everybody else. We don't know you.
miri: Has that changed a little bit since the race, or have y'all not had a chance to chat much with them?
Monica: We still don't talk, no.
Joseph: Well, I don't care to be friends with Ray and Yolanda. Actually, Ray's a nice guy. I shouldn't say that. But Yolanda, man, she just sucks.
Monica: Joseph.
Joseph: I don't care.
miri: Okay. Honesty. That's good.
Tribefan: Yeah. We like that. Do you want to take on some the-
Monica: Except for she's going to get on TARflies and see. Yolanda-Joseph says, Yolanda sucks.
Joseph: You think I give a shit? Look what she said about us on national television.
Tribefan: And what did she say about you? I'm forgetting.
Joseph: She said something-I mean, she talked shit about us the whole time, I think.
Monica: Oh, she said, "There's not much up there," talking about how we're not smart.
Joseph: Like we're stupid.
Monica: And then she said-they claim to be nice people but they're really not, like with the whole money thing. And you know what? That's just not true. I mean, that's just-we totally knew that they were saying they wanted to Yield us way before then. Right when we got to the Jabreen Castle in Oman, we were told that they were telling all the other teams they wanted to Yield us. So that very next morning we're like, we're not leaving you money, then. You're talking bad about us, you're in the middle of the desert with no gas, and you think that we're going to leave you money? No. Like, no.
Joseph: I think it's funny that Yolanda was saying stuff about us, and she didn't even know us. And then we were saying something. I was like, well, we don't even know them, so maybe we shouldn't say anything about them.
Monica: Yeah.
Joseph: But then she is saying this shit about us the whole race.
Monica: Well, that's good, because we didn't talk bad about people and she did.
Tribefan: It's just funny. I was looking at some of the videos on CBS.com, and on your pre-Race video, you were saying how you wouldn't take anything personally, that it really is-it's a game and you have to let it go. It's a game.
Joseph: Yeah.
Tribefan: But then you did seem to take things personally, I mean, especially with the whole Yield thing and all that, was it just different in the heat of the Race than you thought it would be?
Joseph: Sure, it was, because right after that happened, like Monica said a while ago, we hung out with them in the pool all night. We hung out with the guys and had a good time.Tribefan: Right.
miri: Well, and that's like a lot of people took, Joseph, your comment on the mat of, you Yielded us and yet we came in-we beat you. It's almost just being mean to them. But I almost took it as total shock that it came out that way.
Joseph: Yeah.
miri: Was it a combination of both?
Monica: Yeah.
Joseph: You're being mean to me. Are you kidding? They had a personal vendetta against us. They obviously Yielded us. Why would you Yield the team that's waiting in line right behind you? You would want to Yield the person you think is going to arrive last to guarantee your victory.
Tribefan: Well, that's what I would think.
Joseph: Okay. That's just not very smart playing the game.
Tribefan: Why do you think it was a vendetta against you? Because you said they were saying these things before you even didn't leave them money.
Joseph: I think that they admitted it on the Early Show. They said that they were-I think BJ said. He said I was just jealous because they're a really good looking couple and Monica is so good looking.
Joseph: He said it. I mean-
Tribefan: It's a reason, as good as any.
Monica: I don't know why they would care about that. And they may have just been kidding. But I really do think that they did not want to get beat by us. Like we were the last couple they wanted to get beat by. I don't know why. It's just kind of like, okay, this young, all-American couple is not going to beat us. We went to Harvard, and blah blah blah. I think they were kind of-
Joseph: I think that's why Yolanda hated us, too. She couldn't figure out why we kept on beating them.
Monica: That's true.
Tribefan: You guys came in second several times. Was it really frustrating to just miss coming in first?
Joseph: Oh, my God, yes. Oh, man, it's so tough. And that's just the way the Race works. It's hard like that. And we needed some good luck sometimes, and sometimes it just wouldn't happen for us. Like the damn Fast Forward. Eric and Jeremy-hell, we were there for ten minutes busting plates.
Tribefan: I know. They had the best luck.
Joseph: We even heard production, when we got there say, okay, MoJo's here. They're going to get the Fast Forward. We were like, yeah! But we just picked the wrong side of the table.
Monica: When they came in and started doing it, I'm like, why do you need the Fast Forward?
Tribefan: Honestly. Yeah. They really didn't. And I don't know if it was all editing or if they really were just that lucky. They always seemed to find everything fast. No matter what the task was, they did it fast. And they were all luck-based.
Joseph: Yeah. They did have quite a bit of luck.
Monica: Oh, so much luck.
Tribefan: No matter what you're searching for, they found it.
Monica: Well, it was interesting to me because I think all the way up to Palermo and then to-yeah, all the way up to Germany and Palermo, it was like BJ and Tyler and Eric and Jeremy had gotten ahead in Russia, and they just stayed ahead because there were no equalizers for the longest time. We were getting so frustrated because I remember Bertram came up to us after Palermo and after Germany. He goes, "You guys have the fastest time out of any team." He was like, "You kicked ass." He really couldn't believe how-I mean, "From the Pit Start to the Pit Stop, you did it phenomenally fast." But there was no possible way we could have gotten ahead. So it's just weird. When you're really in the game, you understand it a lot more.
Tribefan: Right. But there have been seasons where all we did was complain because it seemed like nobody could ever hold a lead because they'd be bunched up every time you turned around. And then this season didn't seem to be that way at all.
Joseph: Yeah. This season, there was no-
Monica: Equalizers.
Joseph: -bottlenecks at the beginning of the Race.
Tribefan: Right. And that's why we had the same two teams coming in first time after time.
Monica: I know. And we said that, really. What fans are going to like seeing Eric and Jeremy and BJ and Tyler come in every time?
Tribefan: It made it a lot less interesting.
Joseph: Right. It really did.
Tribefan: You really do want to see teams getting mixed up. And you don't want to, oh, God, who is going to be this week? Is it Eric and Jeremy or the other ones? You know, that's just boring.
Monica: I know.
Tribefan: Plus we just miss the Fast Forward being on every leg, too, because that was always a chance to mix things up. But no more.
Monica: I know. There used to be a Fast Forward on every leg.
Tribefan: I know. We liked that because then you could use it strategically. Now you have to grab it.
Monica: Exactly.
Tribefan: There's no thought process to it, really.
Monica: Really. I know.
Tribefan: So we don't like that.
Monica: Me, either.
Tribefan: So of all the tasks you had to do, what were your favorites?
Monica: Okay. What was yours, Joe?
Joseph: Oh, the rappel was really cool in São Paolo. I hate heights, and it was actually kind of relieving to just get up there and do it.
Tribefan: Yeah, after the climb.
Joseph: Yeah. At the waterfall rappel, and the climb up, that was awesome.
Tribefan: Oh, yeah. That would be nice.
miri: I have never understood how those ascender things work. They just look so awkward.
Joseph: I can explain it to you.
miri: They look really difficult.
Joseph: It's kind of like a brain fart. You got a stopper on your waist and a stopper on your hand. So you stand up, and what you want to do is pull your waist up as high as it can go. Then you lift your arm and your leg together and stand up again. You pull your waist up as high as it can go.
Monica: You have something around your foot, too, so when you stand, you go higher.
miri: I mean, I understand it logically. But it just-I don't know. It's one of those things that I would still be stuck at the bottom of that.
Joseph: It's a brain fart, for sure.
Tribefan: Well, Fran, I know she struggled with it a lot.
Monica: I know.
Tribefan: And then you look at her and go, that's what I would be doing, dangling there helplessly, not being able to figure it out. I would have done the other one.
Monica: Oh, the ethanol?
Tribefan: Yeah.
Monica: I know. We didn't even think about that. But I think that was way faster.
Joseph: I wish we'd have done that.
miri: Really?Joseph: Oh, yeah.
miri: Ah, I see. Yeah, because I know like, for example, the task, the dry and the wet one in Australia where you guys ended up doing the dry one with the didgeridoo, when Phil was describing it; I think we were all saying, do the wet! That's going to be faster! And then it wasn't.
Monica: Yeah. It wasn't.
Tribefan: Because people did it really fast. I mean, was it really that quick to learn to do that?
Monica: It's not really learning to do it. It's just getting there and getting all your safety harness on. Then they give you a safety briefing. And then you were like a mile in waist-high water. So it's not really like you can just swim it real quick. It's a lot more complicated. So everybody thought we just got lucky. But we knew it was going to take longer.
miri: And how long did it take to-was it a long time to try and find the guy who was playing the didgeridoo, or was it fairly easy to try and find?
Joseph: That was fairly easy. You could hear them. There was only probably eight of them out there.
Monica: But the actual Lost City, it was hard to find. But we found it pretty easily because we had this awesome map. So it was six miles on a dirt road in the Outback.
Joseph: God, that victory was so sweet, that leg.
Tribefan: I'm sure it was.
Joseph: I loved it. I don't think I've loved anything more than that my whole life.
Tribefan: It made for an exciting finish that day.
Monica: It did. I was even up in my chair, on my feet, like, "Go! Go! Go!" And I knew what happened. I don't know what I was doing.
Tribefan: We've never quite had a race to the mat like that one. Not like that one.
Monica: You guys would know. Has anybody ever beat somebody who Yielded them?
Tribefan: I don't think so.
miri: I don't think so, either.
Joseph: Wait, wait. MoJo did.
Tribefan: Other than you? No.
Monica: Sweet. We have one claim to fame. Right?
Tribefan: That's right.
[note: as several people have since pointed out, Tribefan and miri were overlooking Freddy and Kendra. During TAR6, they were yielded by Rebecca and Adam but still managed to beat them to the mat.]
Joseph: Yeah. There you go.
Tribefan: Yeah. You take what you can get. Right?
Monica: Exactly.
Tribefan: And that had to be very sweet, after all of the drama leading up to the Yield.
Monica: It was.
miri: And then when you were doing that other task, you didn't have any other teams in your sight. So you really had no idea at that point?
Monica: No, we didn't, till we got out of that. And we saw Ray and Yolanda pass us, so we knew they were going to be first if the other thing took longer. And then when we saw Eric and Jeremy and BJ and Tyler stopped in the middle of the road asking for directions, we-
Joseph: Shit our pants.
Monica: Yeah. We were so excited.
Monica: That's what I was trying to think of, "Shit our pants."
Tribefan: A technical term. That works.
Monica: Exactly.
Tribefan: So how annoying were those monkeys when you were setting up that monkey feast?
Joseph: Oh, man, they were so annoying because, first, you couldn't do anything about them to stop them. And eventually, a Thai man had to get under my table and shoot them with a slingshot, I think, to keep them away.
Tribefan: It's like, we're never going to finish this.
Joseph: Right.
Monica: This is like the never-ending story.
Tribefan: Honestly. Well, monkeys always make for good TV, but I'm sure they were just annoying as hell.
Monica: Yeah, they were.
miri: Especially since you guys really weren't in a good mood at that point after what had happened with the bus at that one station. What really happened there?Monica: Well, we got out of the airport and there was this really long line. And this cab came up to us and said, "I'll take you." And so we get in the cab with him. And Joseph thought it was really shady. I remember he said that on the thing. He goes, "This is so shady." Well, the guy, he was nice and everything, but he just didn't seem like he knew any English whatsoever. So we show him the clue, and he's like, "Yeah, yeah, I take you to Mo Chit." And so he takes us there and it's completely deserted. And there's all these people sleeping in the bus station. And we're like, oh, well, they must be waiting till the morning bus. We go over to the thing where he says that you get the tickets, and there was a sign there that said, opens at 5:20 a.m. And there's all these signs everywhere, opens at 5:20. Well, that's a whole different terminal than where they were. And I don't know where they were, but all the other teams got taken to the right terminal.
miri: How frustrating.
Joseph: And what it is, I think that there are different businesses there. The top level has different buses, and they're not going to refer you to the top people. You know what I'm saying? They're like, no, take this bus. This is-
miri: They're competing.
Joseph: Right. So that's where we got screwed.
miri: Oh, wow. Because it did not come across that way at all.
Joseph: No. It came across like we were just, oh, okay. That's it. See ya.
Tribefan: Yeah. We believe you. Okay.
miri: We don't care about that million dollars any more.
Joseph: Yeah. Screw that. We just want to go get a cheap hotel and take a cold shower.
Tribefan: Had you done any international travel at all before you went on the Race?
Joseph: I had been to over in Europe before for a couple weeks. And I'd also been on some hunting trips in British Columbia. And Monica and I had been to Barbados together.
Monica: And I've been to Mexico a lot. That's it.
Tribefan: Were there any places in particular you were hoping you'd get to go?
Joseph: Australia.
Monica: Greece.
Tribefan: You got both.
Joseph: We got to go to both.
Monica: We got really lucky.
Joseph: I was really wanting to go to Africa, though, so bad.
Tribefan: Oh, that's right. You didn't get to-that's okay, though. That's okay. But you got to go to Greece. You'd never been to Greece before.
Joseph: That's right.Tribefan: Very cool. Let me see. What in hindsight would you have done differently than you did on the Race?
Tribefan: Where did you get a penalty?
Monica: When we got our Yield taken away.
Tribefan: Oh, okay.
Monica: We got our Yield taken away because-
Joseph: It was complete horseshit.
Monica: -because we handed in-at the end of the leg, you have to hand in all your clues in your pocket thing. And we handed in all our clues on the very first leg and our Yield was in there.
Tribefan: Oh, yeah.
Monica: And they took it from us.
Tribefan: Yeah. You're not the first team that's happened to, apparently.
Monica: Really?
Tribefan: Yeah. I think it happened to the Bowling Moms, didn't it?
miri: I believe so, yes.
Tribefan: Yeah. You just hand over all your stuff and later on go, oh, my God.
Joseph: I told the guy that you deal with in production with this type of issue, I said, what's the difference in me leaving it in the airport and going back a half hour later and picking it up?
Monica: I know where it is. When we got back, right there.
Joseph: Yeah. We told them, we go, we know exactly where it is. It's right where I gave it to the lady, and it's right there. I didn't lose it. Just a bunch of bullshit.
Tribefan: And it was like, too bad for you!
Monica: Yeah. So you get real paranoid, if you know what I mean. You just get real paranoid about doing stuff right. And what if you miss this and you have to go back? And I just think that sometimes we would panic a little more than other teams. Is this right? Is this the way it would go? I don't know.
Tribefan: So do you think some of that was just a reaction to not sleeping enough and-
Joseph: Oh, definitely. You're so tired the whole time, it's ridiculous.
Monica: Yeah. And you're just-you've got high anxiety. You just have a lot of anxiety.
miri: Because it seemed like, Monica, you would tend to stress, and you just needed to vent about that and get it out and then you would be okay.
Monica: Exactly. Because you probably want to cry a lot more than I cried. But then you just let it out over stuff that isn't that big a deal. But you know what? To America, it's not that big a deal because you're watching on your television. But to us, it is a big deal.
miri: Oh, yeah.
Monica: Because we don't want to go home.
Tribefan: You don't want to go home, and you're invested. You want to be there.
Monica: Exactly.
Tribefan: And there's a nice prize at the end.
Monica: Yeah. And it wasn't even about the money to me. To be honest with you, I never thought about that money the whole Race. I really didn't. All I thought about was not getting eliminated. I just didn't-I wanted to go to the next place. That's all I cared about.
Tribefan: Yeah. I've heard so many people say that even if you don't win, just to get to the end so you can experience everything.
Joseph: Right.
Monica: Yeah. And I feel a sense of accomplishment. And I feel like we got to see the entire Race besides Tokyo. And that's great because there's a lot of people that didn't get to see a lot of stuff.
miri: Oh, definitely. Definitely. And just getting on the show is an accomplishment.
Tribefan: You absolutely can be proud of what you accomplished. You've done something that we all envy. I'm not sure I'd actually go so far as to apply, but it's a terrific thing. You got on the show. You got as far as you did. And you did very well. So yeah, that is something.
Monica: Thank you.
Joseph: Thank you very much.
Monica: It was fun. I mean, it was so much fun. We want to do it again.
Joseph: We hope we get chosen if there's an All Star season.miri: Y'all would do it?
Tribefan: We're having this ongoing discussion about All Stars on TARflies. So feel free to weigh in.
Monica: Do you think they'll do it?
Tribefan: I think they could. I think a couple of things. One, the fact that Big Brother is having an All Star this summer. Amazing Race is third in their big three reality shows. I think it makes it more likely. And I wouldn't be surprised if they aren't talking about it. I think it's inevitable, with Big Brother having one.
Joseph: I think so. I think they're going to do it for sure.
Monica: You think they'll have America vote?
Tribefan: You know, I think it would be very curious to see because I would hope that-I know for Big Brother they're doing it where America votes for six of them and the producers pick the others because, truthfully, America would probably mostly go for people in recent seasons because not everyone has watched from the beginning.
Monica: I know. And also, they wouldn't pick all the demographics across the board. They would pick more of the teams that have been the favorite, and it might not represent. There might be two couples and two moms and dads, or whatever.
Tribefan: Oh, absolutely. And I even laugh because when I even make up my list of favorite teams, there's a lot of men.
Tribefan: And they're not necessarily eye candy. It's just I like the Guidos and I liked a lot of the male teams.
Monica: Yeah. Exactly.
Tribefan: So it's obvious the producers would have to have a hand in it. But it would be nice if America could vote for some.
Monica: Yeah. You're right.
Tribefan: And I think that will definitely weigh in favor of the more recent teams. So I personally hope-there's a difference of opinion on this-I would like to see an All Star Race.
Monica: Oh, me, too.
Tribefan: Because I always enjoy the Racers from before. I always feel-I'm always connected to them and I'd like to see them again. So I'm hoping for it.
Monica: And they even do like a fresh meat thing, like six new ones and six old ones. That wouldn't really be fair to the old ones, though. We don't want new ones.
Tribefan: No. I don't think they should mix them up. It should be all old ones. Were you following anything on the message boards and stuff when you weren't allowed to post and you had to be lurking around? Were you reading any of the stuff that was on?
Joseph: We didn't read a whole lot. We'd get on there for a short while.
Monica: I would. I would. I would read a lot of the bad stuff just because you're inclined to. It's kind of like watching a car wreck or something.
Tribefan: Yeah. It's human nature.
Monica: Yeah. But I would read Survivor Sucks sometimes because there was really bad stuff.
Tribefan: Those are the mean ones.
Monica: Oh, I know.
Tribefan: Oh, my God.
Monica: One time-I'm not going to tell you what it said, but it was like, Monica, if you're reading this, blah blah blah. And I was like, oh, my God. These people are evil. Like "I hope you die," and all this stuff.
Tribefan: I know. Ken from Season 3 has told us he would read the most horrible things about himself, and it would just hurt him into the core. Was there any big misperception that you'd like to correct now, now that you can talk? Is there anything people thought about you that you just want to tell them that they were wrong?
Monica: Yeah. Because I really thought, over the course of the Race, I really developed a sense of pride and accomplishment. And I hung in there with the boys. I just kind of felt like it was me-because Yolanda was never around-it was me and a bunch of guys. And I really felt like I just hung in there with them and kicked ass a lot of times. And to me, on the Race [on TV], it really felt like I was this prissy little girl who didn't want fish guts or didn't want to do this and cried about everything. And if you really look, I skydived and didn't think twice about it. I bungee jumped and didn't think twice about it. I felt like I overcame a lot of fears. And it really didn't come across that way.
Tribefan: Well, I don't think-I think the only time you might have looked really prissy was the fish thing. But as you were explaining, it really wasn't a prissy thing.
Joseph: Right. It was the whole-
Monica: And people don't know that.
Tribefan: Right. They don't. It's like this girl going, "Ooh, get the fish off me!"
miri: I think Carissa had a little bit of issue with the crawfish. If you read her column-
Monica: I didn't say, "This is the worst thing ever," there. They put that in there. Because I went down once and it freaked me out because it started flopping everywhere and really going crazy. And it was only a little bitty hole. And so I tried to grab it, and I couldn't grab it. And then we're also out in the middle of the ocean. You don't understand that. I'm treading water. I've got salt all in my eyes. But besides that, it wasn't really that bad. I just had to go back down. And I got it the second time.
Tribefan: Yeah I would have freaked out because I don't like things like that. I am a sissy girl when it comes to that.
Monica: I know. You're like, okay, I'm holding this huge lobster. Nasty.
Tribefan: So when all was said and done, what do you think was the biggest benefit for you personally, both of you, in running the Amazing Race? What did you get out of it?
Joseph: Probably getting to know each other-us getting to know each other more. I mean, we'd already been together for three years, but it's like, damn. You learn so much more going through those stressful situations. It's crazy.
Tribefan: Yeah. It's a little more intense than just dating on Friday and Saturday nights.
Joseph: Yeah. Well, we did a little more than that.
Tribefan: Oh, I would think so.
Tribefan: And I thought Eric and Jeremy were not in the room!
Monica: And also, you-I don't know. I mean, we thought we knew each other, obviously. But it's like you see each other in the worst possible situations, and you see that-you know, we held up and actually treated each other in a dignified manner. I mean, you're going to fight a little bit. But I was so impressed with him because he's always had a little bit of a temper. And I didn't know what it was going to be like in these crazy, obscene situations. And I was so proud of him.
Tribefan: So he performed better than you thought he would in those kinds of situations?
Monica: Oh, my God, yeah. He kicked ass a lot of times. And sometimes he would just take the initiative. And like he picked up that 100-pound bell and just ran up those stairs. And he just did a lot of stuff that really impressed me. And then we had fun together. That was one thing. We really did have a blast together.
Tribefan: That's good to hear because, as I said, it didn't always come across that way to us. So it's good to know that you did enjoy.Joseph: Oh, we had so much-the time of our lives, seriously. It was such a great experience.
Tribefan: We see that a lot with the former Racers. There's a bond between them. You all experienced something that the rest of us didn't. I mean, we think we know, but we don't really know.
miri: It's such a completely unique situation, even from season to season. You have a bond with the people from your season that people from another season aren't going to fully understand because it's-every situation is so unique.
Monica: Exactly.
Joseph: Right. And you really do feel closer to the people that hung in there more and you get to know better, like Eric and Jeremy, BJ and Tyler. Not so much Ray and Yolanda because I don't think-
Tribefan: As we've discussed, yes.
Monica: Dani and Danielle.
Joseph: Yeah. Dani and Danielle. Of course, they weren't in there very long, but we still got to know them.
Tribefan: That's cool.
Monica: Dave and Lori. They're so funny.
Tribefan: Yeah. That's good to know. Did you enjoy the parties in New York?
Joseph: Oh, yes.
Monica: Thank you, guys. That was so much fun.
Joseph: That was awesome.
Tribefan: I know other Racers have always said it's like it's your chance to be a rock star for a night.
Monica: I know. It's kind of surreal. You're like, I'm not famous, but I feel famous.
Joseph: I feel really famous right now. What's wrong with this?
Tribefan: They want my picture! I must be famous!
miri: It's like more pictures taken of you that one night than the rest of your life, practically. Right?
Joseph: I know. For sure.
Monica: It was fun. We had a great time.
Tribefan: So what's up in the near future for you guys? What's going on?
Monica: Well, we have been just kind of organizing our lives after I graduated. And I'm going to move here. It's just 45 minutes down the road, but it's called Fort Smith, and I usually live in Fayetteville. So I'm going to do that, and then start real estate. And Joseph is in development here in Fort Smith. And so we're not really teaming up, but I'm going to sell other people's houses, but I'm really getting into it because of him. You know what I mean?
Tribefan: Oh, yeah. And down the road, who knows what opportunities that opens up for both of you.
Joseph: For sure.
Tribefan: That sounds good. And what's up with that website you started, Smack My Reality? Tell me about it.
Monica: Well, we started this because our friend is a huge-he's just business-savvy. And we had a friend that was really into web design. He's phenomenal at it. The site is so functional, we're really impressed with it. But it's called Smack My Reality, and it's just a forum site about all reality shows. And it has this feature right now about how you go on there, and it's either kind of a love or hate thing. You can smack [kiss] 'em or smack [slap] 'em. And we'll have different people there all the time. And then we'll have like a dumbass of the week every week. We had Lee from the Apprentice because he showed up late to his interview with Donald Trump or whatever. And then we have a bunch of commentaries from Racers, and links to their Myspace, and you can e-mail them personally, and just a bunch of stuff like that. And we're going to try to get more reality stars rather than Racers, but since we have connections with Racers, we just have them right now.
Tribefan: It's a starting point. That's good.
Monica: Well, thank you guys for the interview. It was good.
miri: Thank you so much.
Tribefan: We had fun, too. I was glad I talked to you. And I'm glad to hear you had a great time on the Race.
Joseph: Yes, we did. Hopefully we'll see you guys at the premiere party or New York.
Tribefan: That's my plan.
Monica: We're keeping up with the Amazing Race for hopefully the rest of our lives, so I'm sure we'll see you again.
Tribefan: Well, I would hope so. We look forward to it.Monica: Thank you, guys.


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As it often is in the online photography world, I am not really sure when I first 'met' Chris. What I do know, is that his work instantly pulled me in and wanting more. I probably stalked his facebook feed for a little bit and then when he and a mutual contact were preparing for a week long photography field trip that would bring them close to my city, we started discussing a meet up. That unfortunately, didn't happen. But what did happen was a new friendship. Chris has a beautiful way of capturing simple and meaningful details. He has uses the darkness to find the light, both metaphorically and photographically. Sometimes he does this with humor, sometimes beauty, and often with both. Over the past six months or so I have found incredible inspiration as well as a comrade in Chris. I will let his work speak for itself here, but if you don't already follow along with his work, you should. You can find more of Chris on his website and on Facebook . Or follow along with him on Instagram and Twitter, @chrishendersonphoto
What cameras do you shoot with? Do you have a favorite?
I primarily use a Canon 5D Mark II and Mark III, as well as my iPhone 5. As for my favorite, I tend not to play favorites with them. Sometimes, I will get into a groove with the Mark III, but then fall back in love with the Mark II and primarily shoot with it. I carry my iPhone everywhere I go and shoot so much with it. I'm like a kid in a candy shop when I spot a little pocket of light that just needs to be photographed, but I don't want to carry a big camera all of the time. The iPhone really helps me have that opportunity to visualize an image and make it happen.
What do you love most about photography?
What I love about photography is why I got into it in the first place…therapy, an escape. My brother died a few years ago, it took six months for it to hit me. I went into this dark, dark place. I picked up this little digital point-and-shoot that I had bought my wife the Christmas before and I found myself carrying it everywhere I went. Eventually, this form of therapy became an opportunity for me to create something, whether it be for myself, or making an image at a wedding, or of a family. What I love about photography is not only what I get out of it-a form of comfort and expression-but what others get out of it too. Some photographers go out of their way to create beauty in a from that feels artificial. Why fake it when there is so much beauty in this world? I do know that it has become one of the few things that I know. When people ask me what I want to do with my life, I don't know much, but photography is right up there.
What and Who inspires you?
Everything inspires me. It used to be finding beautiful things and making a photograph of it. Now, I find beauty in everything around me. I'll drive by broken down homes, or some sort of graffiti everyday, but then it'll strike me that it would make for a great image. I'm always chasing light, especially in dark places. I am obsessed with trying to capture sunsets and quiet moments that people otherwise wouldn't notice. There are a ton of photographers that inspire me daily, most of them 'big names', if you will. But one of my friends really inspired me to push myself further. We started at the same time. Our styles were pretty different. But I found her stuff to be astoundingly good and it make me really push myself to be as good, if not better. I'm not a competitive person, typically. But I found myself pushed in a way that other photographers hadn't pushed me. But also? Any photographer that drops me a line that encourages me is right up there on my inspiration list. I can't explain how much it means to me and continues to drive me.
What was your happiest/worst photographic moment and why?
I can't think of a best moment that stands out above all. But I know that every time that someone reacts positively to their images, I feel as if life couldn't get better. In the past year, I started shooting some boudoir sessions. I'll never forget when this one woman messaged me and said that she has never felt more beautiful, empowered and alive. That, to me, just makes it all worth it. I did another portrait session where I kept challenging them to step out of their comfort zone a little and in the end, felt that I captured them in a way that they wished others could see them. My worst moment came when I posted images from a maternity session. The images were well received, especially by the couple in the images. In fact, they said that they wished I had shot their wedding. So, I was on this artist high for a few moments when I got a message from a FB friend beginning with the line "Since nobody else will tell you, your photos in this session suck." It's hard to take negative feedback in general. But as a creative, I think we're overall more sensitive to the feedback we receive. I told some photographer buds of mine and they helped me laugh it off in the end. But it stung pretty bad for awhile.
Final thoughts?
Lately, my desire to pick up the camera has taken a hit. Sometimes, the real world gives extra gravity to everything you see and feel. Picking up the camera has become harder and harder to do. But doing this has taken the weight off of my camera a little bit.
A huge thank you to Chris for taking time to share 24hours of his world with us.
Keep chasing that light,


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It's happening again. Every four months or so, Mercury goes retrograde and the world goes into chaos. According to Bustle, The planet Mercury rules communication, travel, and data, which means that all of these things can be affected by the retrograde period. Have you been feeling like everything you say is wrong? Have you been … Continue reading Mercury Rx in Pisces
Tag: mercury retrograde
Mercury Retrograde
Mercury retrograde is like going to get a tooth pulled, it hurts like hell, and the anxiety prior to and following the retrograde is almost unbearable, and yet you know it's probably for the best and the benefits of going through the uncomfortable time will result in you being a much happier and healthier person. … Continue reading Mercury Retrograde


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Hey everyone,
My name is Chris Sharpe and I'm fairly new to the forums and unsure where to post or if this is even a viable option. I've been caving for the last 3 years, started through classes as an undergrad, and recently became a member of the NSS. One of my friends from work (who is also an NSS member) was wanted to plan a trip to Grindstaff Cave in Hampton TN. From previous experience I understand that cave maps are like gold and heavily protected items, however I was curious if someone had a map that they would like to share or if anybody knows whether or not this particular cave has been surveyed or mapped. Thank you all for your time and I will see you guys later.


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18 Dec Preventing Tire Blowouts: How to Check Your Tire's Tread (Part 1)
Checking the tread on your tires – especially before the winter season or a long drive – is just as important as checking your tires' air pressure. This is because both the tread and air pressure are crucial to preventing tire blowouts and other forms of tire failure that could result in serious car accidents. While checking tires' air pressure can be done by using a pressure gauge and following the guidelines set forth in the vehicle's owner's manual, knowing what to do to check the tread on tires may not be as straightforward for many drivers.
The following are some easy tests that drivers can use to check their tires' tread and ensure that they are not driving on bald tires:
The Penny Test for Checking If Tires Have At Least 2/23" of Tread
Most states require that drivers have at least 2/32" of tread on their tires for safety purposes. This is because, when there is less tread than 2/32", cars are more likely to hydroplane on wet roads. Additionally, insufficient tread on tires (i.e., bald tires) can increase the chances that tires will blowout if drivers happened to drive over potholes, debris or other objects in the road. To check if tires have at least 2/32", use the penny test:
- Hold a penny with the top of Lincoln's head facing downwards.
- Place the penny in the grooves of the tread.
- Look at the front of the penny – if the top of Lincoln's head is covered by the tread, then there is at least 2/32" of tread on the tires.
For additional helpful tips on how to quickly and easily check tire tread, be sure to read the forthcoming Part 2 of this blog.
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