On Monday night, two dogs chase and attack a woman who was running in Montebello.

Breathing heavily and in fright, the woman was heard screaming on Via Val Verde Street in Montebello from resident Hrachouhi Ovakimyan. She opened the door to let the woman in and tried to scare the muts away.

The woman was minding her own business and taking her weekly run, when she heard barking. She ran faster to get away from the dogs. She then began yelling for help when she felt one of the dogs bite her lower leg. One of the dogs bit her calf and she was bleeding heavily.

The type of dogs were unidentified, but according to the woman, they were very big, and hairy. She said the dogs looked similar to chows.

Since the muts did not have any collars, they are thought to have been wild. The dogs have not yet been found but the pound is doing its best to find them.

The paramedics were not called on the request of the woman, but a police officer did escort her to Beverly Hospital. The woman recieved a rabies shot for the bite and went home the next morning. She has not fully recovered, but is doing better.

It’s almost Monday so it’s time to post mosaics for Mosaic Monday with Mary at Little Red House and post something blue for Blue Monday with Sally at Smiling Sally!

On Thursday last week I met 2 of my sisters at the high school we all graduated from for a Homecoming Reunion BBQ. The school was unveiling a 100 year celebration mural and giving tours of the school culminating with a BBQ and entertainment from the band and Cheer Squads. Our high school colors were and are blue and gold so it was easy to have lots of blue to show you.

Early in Montebello’s history there were oil derricks on the hills that surround Montebello, that is where the Oilers came from. Our school newspaper was Derrick Diary. Our mascots were Ollie the Olive.

This next photo was taken in 1968 of a group of my friends standing in the same courtyard that I took one of the photos in the mosaic above. You can see that the building hasn’t changed except for some fresh paint.

Didn’t we dress reasonably back in the 60’s for school? :0)

The Auditorium is exactly the same and the lockers are the same but the courtyard with the blue umbrellas is new.

After they unveiled the new mural the pep squads let helium balloons go up into the sky.

This was just downright scary to watch. I kept wanting to yell “CATCH HER!”

Have a great week everyone!

Today two of my sisters are meeting me at Montebello High School for a Homecoming BBQ. It’s special this year because our High School is celebrating their 100 year anniversary. Kathy graduated in 1964, Vera graduated in 1966, Fred graduated in 1967, and I graduated in 1968. It wasn’t easy following my older sisters and brother through school because they were a lot more compliant and successful then I was. I’d always hear comments like “you aren’t like your sisters”,or “I thought you’d do better because you are a Bagdanov”. My sister Kathy was G.A.A. president. My sister Vera was Valedictorian of her class, a wiz in mathematics. Back then there were no calculators and you should have seen her work that slide rule…amazing. My brother Fred was ASB president. Our 4 younger brothers and sister graduated from high school in Whittier. Was it Monte Vista Lana?

I’m looking forward to meeting a couple who I’ve met through my blog who graduated in 1951 and 1954. I’m also hoping to see other people I haven’t seen for 41 years.

Have a great Thursday everyone.

It’s time to pick your favorites from this past week! Thanks to Susanne at Living to Tell the Story for hosting this great exercise.

Here’s some of highlights from this past week.

I never thought I was a morning person but the older I’ve gotten the more I’ve enjoyed early morning and seeing the Sunrise. I’ve been out with Dear at dawn and by myself at dawn this week and it really is a glorious time of the day…

It was very cool to go to the Camarillo Ranch House on Sunday for the celebration of Adolfo Camarillo’s 145th birthday and see these famous Camarillo White horses.

During the celebration they had the great old Victorian house open for tours. I enjoy walking through and seeing the architecture and period pieces in all the rooms. I’d love a breakfast room like this…heck, I’d love a formal dining room like this. There is a very grand dining room just next to this room.

So you know the saying “You can’t go home again” well I met up with one of my best friends from high school in our home town for lunch this week. While we were there we decided to drive over to our alma mater and take a photo. We also drove down memory lane to each of our childhood homes to see what they look like today…

On the way home from our lunch I took a detour to here. First United Christian Molokan Church on Lorena St. in East Los Angeles. As a child and pre-teen my family spent lots of time here. My grandfather was a preacher/elder at this church. I am grateful and thankful to God that He led my father and our family out of this religion and into His marvelous grace filled life. My father accepted Christ as his Savior at the Billy Graham Crusade in Los Angeles in 1963.

If I was still a Molokan and as a married woman I would have to dress like this for church…

I spotted this Molokan lady while I was in Montebello yesterday. She’s probably on her way to a lopsha lunch after a funeral.  She’s wearing all white and after the graveside ceremony you go home and change into your white outfit for the funeral meal.  Lopsha (Russian noodle soup) is usually served after the graveside service. Borsch is more typically served at weddings.

I really enjoy traditions and I partipate in traditions. BUT I have to step back and evaluate when my traditions become my religion instead of relying on what Jesus did for me on the cross. For me worship is all about Jesus.  From time to time it’s good to seriously evaluate what I am worshiping.

And now I’m off to see the sunrise and then a  fun time is afoot. I’m picking up Willow and meeting Sara (another local blogger) to tour the Getty Museum. We’re going to be exposed to some great works of art. Have a great day everyone and I’ll come around to see your favorites later this afternoon.

When the North American Summit Leaders’ Summit was held in Montebello, Quebec in August 2007, something came to the attention of Dave Coles, President of the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union.

Amidst a seemingly peaceful protest, Coles noticed that three bandana-clad “burly” men were attempting to incite the protestors to become violent toward riot police.

As with many of these situations at the national level, the R.C.M.P. has jurisdiction or control if you will over security, however, then Minister of Public Safety Stockwell Day indicated that security on the front line and directed toward controlling the protesters was the responsibility of Quebec’s provincial police agency, the Sureté du Québec.  That in my opinion, is fairly normal.

What Mr. Coles charged is that the three burly men were actually police officers.  This seems to go against the rationale to what the police were there to do.  To quell violence not insight it.  After concluding in quickie internal investigation there was no wrongdoing, the Comité à la déontologie policière said yesterday in a media release there was grounds to believe wrongdoing occurred on the part of the officers, and has now summoned them to a hearing on the matter.

Now the committee, which has the power to issue binding rulings on the Quebec police, will hold public hearings on the issue within the next six months. The three officers – Jean-François Boucher, Joey Laflamme and Patrick Tremblay – are required to appear - The Globe and Mail reports.

Aside from the obvious disciplinary sanctions that these officers now potentially face.  Mr. Coles and many like him are asking the tough question of who directed these officers to take such action?  Accountability needs to be had in order to restore faith in the public’s perception of how the police handle these situations.

Like one of my other articles, (also found here), I have the fortunate ability to break this down as a former police officer, who was also part of the York Regional Police’s Public Order Unit.  Just to qualify my skills, I receive basic Public Order training at Downsview park with the Toronto Police Service’s Public Order Unit, and did requalification training at C.F.B. Meaford with a number of Ontario police agencies.  I was also deployed to Caledonia at the height of the tension between the First Nations people and local residents.

In my training we were taught how to deal with such situations and my superiors would have never instructed officers to take up such actions.  Just as the protestors arms themselves with video cameras and other “weapons” of technology, so do the police.  In such public order situations, there could be plainclothes officers in the crowd monitoring situations, recording for evidentiary purposes, and watching certain groups known to police to cause problems.  Nothing wrong with that.

But the thought that the police were the ones instigating the problems is quite saddening.  I hope justice is swift, and those responsible, whether it is the Sûreté du Québec, R.C.M.P., or politicians are able to dealt with appropriately.

After watching the YouTube video,

Montebello Protest

And hearing all of the evidence the Committee has ruled in the following manner:

ALLOWS the application for review in respect of the three respondent

sergeants on the allegations stated by the Commissioner in his decision:

Was disrespectful or impolite towards any person (section 5 of the Code);

Used obscene, blasphemous or abusive language (section 5 of the Code);

8 Item 4.10 of the Commissioner’s investigation report.Failed to respect the authority of the law by inciting persons to violence (section 7 of the Code);

Refused to produce identification when a person asked him to do so (section 6 of the Code);

Furthermore, now that the Committee has overruled the Commissioner, the door has probably been opened for a criminal investigation in relation to assault charges against one officer, and potentially this:

Unlawful Assembly:

63. (1) An unlawful assembly is an assem- bly of three or more persons who, with intent to carry out any common purpose, assemble in such a manner or so conduct themselves when they are assembled as to cause persons in the neighbourhood of the assembly to fear, on rea- sonable grounds, that they

(a) will disturb the peace tumultuously; or

(b) will by that assembly needlessly and without reasonable cause provoke other per- sons to disturb the peace tumultuously.

(2) Persons who are lawfully assembled may become an unlawful assembly if they conduct themselves with a common purpose in a man- ner that would have made the assembly unlaw- ful if they had assembled in that manner for that purpose.

Like all interesting developing stories, we shall see where this leads us.

(source : http://www.cep.ca/press/ 22/10/09)

OTTAWA – Plus de deux ans après qu’ils se soient présentés comme de faux manifestants lors d’une manifestation contre le Sommet des chefs d’États nord-américains à Montebello, un jugement vient de condamner trois agents de la police du Québec pour « avoir manqué de respect envers l’autorité de la loi en incitant des personnes à la violence ». 

Le jugement du Comité à la déontologie policière *, diffusé hier, a aussi établi que les agents avaient été irrespectueux ou impolis, avaient utilisé un langage obscène, blasphématoire ou abusif, et avaient refusé de s’identifier lorsqu’il leur fut demandé de le faire.

 

« C’est une victoire pour la démocratie et pour le droit démocratique de manifester de façon pacifique, mais je me pose la même question qu’il y a deux ans », a lancé Dave Coles, celui qui a démasqué les faux manifestants.

 

« Qui leur a commandé d’agir ainsi? Nous avons besoin d’une enquête judiciaire indépendante pour connaître la vérité sur tout ce camouflage. Lorsque des gens manifestent pour protester parce qu’ils sont préoccupés par un problème et qu’ils se font attaquer par des gens supposés les défendre, il y a quelque chose qui ne tourne pas rond dans le système. »

 

Dave Coles, président du Syndicat canadien des communications, de l’énergie et du papier, a fait la une des nouvelles lorsque ses tentatives pour stopper trois hommes costauds, vêtus de noir, un d’eux armé d’une roche et qui avaient infiltré la manifestation pacifique, ont été saisies sur vidéo et diffusées sur YouTube. Il avait demandé qu’une enquête publique ait lieu immédiatement après l’incident du 20 août 2007.

 

« Ces agents n’ont pas pris la décision eux-mêmes de se présenter comme de faux manifestants et d’inciter à la violence. La police a été utilisée pour tenter de transformer une manifestation pacifique en un événement violent. Le public devrait être très inquiet. »

 

Les trois agents de la police doivent comparaître devant le comité qui enquête sur leurs comportements d’ici les deux prochaines semaines.

Paul Manley, le cinéaste indépendant qui a filmé l’incident de Montebello, l’a inclus dans son récent documentaire révélant le programme secret et antidémocratique des corporations derrière le Partenariat pour la sécurité et la prospérité. La diffusion du documentaire est en cours dans plusieurs villes partout au Canada. http://www.youmespp.com/screenings/.

 

*Une copie de la décision est disponible en français au www.scep.ca. La traduction anglaise n’est pas encore disponible.

 

The natural vision of Switzerland is hidden within the auspices of its perceptions. Between three distinctive regions, the options of possibilities exist. From the beauty of its Italian influenced Ticino region to the dizzing heights of the Western Alps to the subtle and smooth feeling of Zurich, this arena offers a different array of sights, tastes and community.

With direct service from LAX and NY, the different stages of Swiss Airlines offers distinctiveness of comfort. After the relaxation of the Star Alliance Lounge in LAX’s Tom Bradley Terminal, the flight is caught with utmost ease, retrieved just before takeoff. The key is timing as the fires of Los Angeles burn away to reveal the gentle twilight allowed by an overnight flight, 10 hours in length. With ample legroom, power outlets for necessary work, comfortable temperature and a three-course meal elegant of wine, the eyes closed only to reveal the day later.

With the ease of a Swiss Pass allowing full transport through the country’s rail system, the four-hour journey to Mariesco in the Ticino region unveiled winding views through massive valleys brimmed with the sight of the 15,000 foot Mt. Rosa which takes the breath away.

The Ticino region lies in the South of Switzerland. Staying at the Hotel Serpiano (which is only 500 meters from the Italian border), the grandiosity is apparent overlooking Lake Lugano towards Mancote. Only a matter of miles away, Lake Como, which has become the getaway home of George Clooney, shows the connection of the beauty of the region for people of taste.

Touring the small town of Meride, reminiscent of Tuscany, replete with the two churches of San Silvestro & San Rocco, a single candle is lit as the vision of Santa Lucia peers forth in essential silence as a woman speaks greetings from a window above.

A short ride away, Agriloro, the winery of Meinrad Perler, sits in the breast of Monte Gereroso winding succinctly through a small wisp of heaven between Switzerland and Italy. Formerly a banker but now with several wine notices of brilliance under his belt, Perler winds his grapes between experiments of chemistry and quality interest. His gold prize winning 2007 Merlot Reserve is the pinnacle of taste with zest and a bite of blackberry while his Casmiro, despite a fraction of scitzophrenia, pulls off a motley blend with a range of sensibility.

Lunch within the cool shadow of Meride at the Grotto Fosatti waifs with the compelling aroma of morels that wanders from the kitchen as the owner flirts with a visiting girl who inquires of his polenta. His wide smiling response: “But my risotto!”

The serving of polenta, based of cornmeal with a bit of a twist, offers a hearty comparison to the pork surrounded by carrots and potatoes. When balanced in zest with a soft but nice Punto 902 Merlot and preceded by a light salad touched by Balsamico, it is bella. However it is the Verissimo, made in a mixture of Frangelico and whiskey, that hits with a heightened sweetness hidden in the wonder of an  expresso.

In short order following, Bellinazona, resting in a nearby valley, was a strategic battle position of lore heightened by the rule of the Dukes Of Milan (“Tempest” anyone?) in the early 1400s. Castles reign in the tender geography but the cool winds prevail giving a sense of calm that besets the night.

At Hotel Cereda, a quiet terrace offers a soothing afternoon moment of life as a light breeze shimmers, the light drifting through the lifting trees as La Rossa, a local Ticino beer, fades the sounds away.

The vision of Castelgrande, occupying the first line of defense against the Milanese Dukes of the past, shows the cusp of how the generals might have perceived the battles. With similar tinges in the Moravian embattlement of parts of the Czech Republic again the Turks, the key here is the maintaining of longetivity and the implementation of strategic strikes. Advancing marauders along these long fortified walls would be suceptible to unprotected attacks further proving the advantageous wranglings of this structure.

From the Castlegrande, the long leading grass terrain into the heart of town creates elation in its simplicity and daring. From its pinnacle view, three preparing castles ascend up the respondent hill.

At Castle Montebello, the working drawbridge highlights the beauty of the overlooking grass as the resident beast, a friendly cat, marches in time under orders to the delight of all involved before bounding down the hill to welcome an unprepared guest.

Dinner within Castle Castello, further up the mountain, offered the last of Ticino before the transition to the heights of the Alps.

The restaurant Osteria Sasso Corbaro sits quietly within the coolness of the tower atrium of Castello. The paradoxical influence of its seafood with lobster claw fettucini dwelling within a light primavera sauce offered slight resistance in its overcooked mentality while the luscious haddock, flaky while not overcoming the wonder of Norwegian sole in Scandinavia, offered a content antecedent. The smoothness of Cornico Oro Merlot, infinitely drinkable in its peppers, encouraged the late evening within the global possibilities of those present from Johannesburg to Mumbai to Milano, one with all in laughter. As the sweetness of Collecta Costana, with its continuing influence of Vessimo & Expresso, ended the evening, talk of love for “The Big Lebowski” predicated tales of fun.

Driving into the increasing elevation of the St. Gotthard Pass, the tree line fades away as the pinnacle leading to one glacier view makes the skyline like heaven. The immenseness of the rock against the human form makes one perceive life differently. Unlike the Rockies, these views stretch on to forever and suggest something primordial.

As the road retreats in the distance, the vision of a lone girl against the backdrop indicates the sheer magnificance of the wonder.

Approaching Sion, the scream of fighter jets zooming low over the wine headquarters of Espace Provins pre-supposes its variety. In tour mode, the simpleness of the 2008 Merlot overcomes the smooth citrus elements of 2007 Bougnesa White while the cool recollection of 2008 Ice ladles the consuming cheese wonder of small cakes. But exercise calls.

Pfyn/Finges borders along the angle of the Valais Valley with gentle grasslands leading up to winding trails. Unbecoming of harsh angles for the novice, stories of myths in the forest laying on a bed of ferns becomes the whistling brushing of the trees. A knowing guide understands the need to enjoy even as the sturdy bridge becomes with dancing.

The natural essence of the area allows for combination of the mineral elements in interesting ways as pure mineral water from the Valais is combined in chemistry with a local absinthe, replete in its bottle, creating a milky elixir consumed by all in numbers.

As the rain begins to fall, a bottle of Ticino Casmiro (from Agriloro) is shared  as the many nationalities with a sense of comraderie find commonality in their stories of life, tenderness, fun and, best of all: chocolate.

In the quiet town of Fiesch in the region of Goms, an early morning walk brings the eye to the base of a beheamouth. Bordering a tram, the vision continues as the cable car transport makes its way almost directly up 9000 feet at the top of theEggishorn. As a small wire bridge danges over a 600 foot drop, the swinging becomes contingent.

As the wind blows, the view over the Aletsch Glacier is intense. This unadulterated view of the Western Alps is inconceivable at times in its mass. Looking down 1000 feet below to the floor of the glacier leading down from a peak nearly 14000 feet, the ice is cracked with rivules that can extend almost 200 feet below the surface. The extreme depth of the glacial ice reaching down nearly 2000 feet is one of the deepest in the world.

As a guide leads a group up to the angle of the panorama, one thinks of the journey to Mordor with Frodo in “Lord Of The Rings” as the small figures wind around straggly rocks and straight drops-offs into gulfs of nothingness. The true insignifance of man becomes quite clear.

As the clouds roll through, a fighter jet on maneuvers screams through the glacier floor with afterburners flaring into a vertical cut of the cloudy darkness as pelts of ice rain down. The balance of technology and nature bending in the wind impedes a sense of foreboding while, in the distance, the godliness of the Matterhorn watches aloft in her majesty.

Lunch at the cusp of this vision begates a need for stamina and heartiness. At the Horli Hitta Alpine Hut, “rosti”, combining a bed of hash browns, crispy and flavorful, is blanketed in creamy yorta cheese with thick but curt slices of bacon and topped with fried eggs; a just meal for the hearty traveler.

Only one thing elevated above the soaring awe with the clamor of wistful horns trumpeting the sound of tradition: chocolate. The quest began.

Later, as the gurgling brook entices the small village of Binn with the light richness of Swiss cheese, the city center crackles with life.

In quiet succession, the chocolate grail of Nutella appears through the small oasis of Migros lighting up the hearts of women gathered from across the world. As the calfs moo and the tinkling of their neck bells resound, the calmness of life in the Binntal consumes the valley.

Early morning brings a sense of simple contentment. At the Hotel Fieschhof, the pure natural air consumes the cusp of dawn as church bells sound in the distance with a crisp echo that imagines a silence with the edge of heaven, away from the indulgence of the city.

Leaving the lift of the country on the Swiss Express to Zurich, the fast rails offer richness as the smiles of those around us is aroused approaching the excitement of Switzerland’s central city.

The beauty of Lake Zurich leading into the city river flow is as clear as the water that feeds it. Aboard the ferry Uteliberg as ancient twin pillars from the 12th Century overlook the departure, the clouds break over the soothing stillness.

As the white rush of rain covers the city of Zurich, the top of the Uteliberg billows with the roar of the wind, basking in the love of nature.

Returning to the streets, the newfound clarity evenly succumbs the 1200 spring fed drinking fountains across the city allowing for a pure gulp of water as the sweet music from inside the Fraumunster Cathedral parallels the quiet passing of nuns.

As the side streets allow escape within the city center, the solidity of the Swiss Banks juts above with the institutions of UBS and Credit Suisse. Nearby the clocks in evervescent perpuity tick time with a preciseness known all over the world.

Listening to the bells chimes in the warmth of the Cafe Weggem, an expresso and a tart svatchka plum crumb cake comforts, a small getaway for those in the know as a drizzling brightness seeps in through the windows.

Zurich also offers a veil of surrounding proponents diverse in their thought processes.

At the Masaola Rainforest Preserve, part of the Zurich Zoo, a complete recreation of a Madagascar habitat down to the temperature and thousands of different plantlife species, animals roam wild acting in their preternatural state. A fruit bat flies overhead, its wingspan heavy with each passing glide. Gray haired lemurs screech in the back trees, arguing with each other over some fallen food. A giant male tortoise roars his dominance with full open viciousness as he climbs atop his female mate. And red leaf lemurs watch the human integers with veiled eyes before flying dozens of feet in the air to adjoining trees, locking their roots in the ever increasing soil.

By visionary proactivity, the Swiss National Museum traces both the history and the thoughts of Switzerland. Like the US, this nation is built upon the motley proponents of immigrants (in this case from Germany to Italy to France) which constitute its specified thought process which is relegated over almost 800 years.

Inside its walls, an early stained glass window, highlighting Mary entitled “Madonna of Flums”, dating from 1200 and commissioned by the Chapel of St. Jacob , bustles in the light with its hues of red blue and brown.

Nearby the monastery tapestry of “The Walled Garden”, dated 1580, gives a whole new modern take of intent with refracted mirror light from video projectors that allow the actual stories depicting the birth, death and resurrection of Christ to take on an animated quality within the actual structures without physically hurting the artifact.

In another tiny corner, the oldest existing panorama, depicting Zurich, to survive the Restoration, dated 1421, shows a vision of life not completely different than the vista portrait of today. The twin steeples above the city mirror the Fraumunster Cathedral leading across the bridge and out into Lake Zurich as the clouds rise above the blue, comforting in their consistency as citizens mill about their daily routines.

As the “aplermagronen”, a traditional Swiss meal combining macaroni and chicken croquette then topped with apple sauce, consumes with the smooth of a Feldschlossen, the Swiss experience in the heart of Zurich reaches full circle.

From the sweeping green valleys of Ticino to the dizzying heights of the Eggishorn in the Binntal to the calm soothing waters of Lake Zurich, the natural tendencies of Switzerland speak in clear terms to the likes of a discerning international audience searching for the best in clear and green prerogatives while still enjoying the more grapelike and hearty inclinations of a traveling world.

Saturday September 26 2009: Three undercover officers attempt to infiltrate a March Against Police Brutality at the University of Pittsburgh, but fail miserably due to their horrendous disguise attempts. During the march, one of them breaks a photographer’s camera. This is just one example of a larger pattern of attempts to silence the media during the G20 protests.

For Canadian leftists, this should bring back flashbacks to the Montebello protests in 2007.

Tam faz concurso cultural para shows de Jerry Lee Lewis

A Tam lançou o concurso cultural “Embarque no rock com Jerry Lee Lewis”. A ação levará três pessoas com acompanhantes para assistir aos shows da turnê brasileira do cantor, compositor e pianista norte-americano, patrocinada pela companhia aérea.

Para participar, os interessados residentes nas cidades de Porto Alegre, São Paulo ou Belo Horizonte devem se cadastrar no site da promoção e responder a pergunta “Qual é a sua música preferida do Jerry Lee Lewis e por quê?”. As frases serão recebidas até o dia 13 de setembro, quando será selecionada a melhor frase de cada uma das três cidades.

Durante a turnê, promotores da Tam ainda convidarão o público a se cadastrar para concorrer ao prêmio de 40 mil pontos no programa Tam Fidelidade, que poderá ser trocado por passagens aéreas, roteiros da Tam Viagens ou prêmios do catálogo do Multiplus Fidelidade.

Cacau Show investe R$ 1,5 milhão no lançamento do doce Montebello

E a Cacau Show resolveu investir pesado no lançamento do seu doce de marshmallow aerado: Montebello. Nos sabores coco, coco queimado, tradicional e maracujá, o produto é divulgado em materiais de ponto-de-venda, spots de rádio, mídia impressa, TV e outdoors.

Montebello is the local hill that anyone in the area loves to climb.  It’s about 5.1 miles, and ~ 2000 feet climbing.  However, the road ends at that point, and there have been rumors that you can cross the gate there, and continue on the fire road, which turns into a dirt path, to go all the way to the other side of Page Mill Rd.  At that point, you can continue to bomb down the mountain, and not have to rely on an out and back.

Well, I decided to go for it.  The road starts out with hard pack, so it is fairly rideable.  Keep in mind, I’m riding my road bike, with 23’s and not really meant for off-roading.  There are some pretty fantastic views from up on top.

Now the one thing that worried me was finding the right trail to get to my final destination.  I figure that there would be signs pointing me the way, and there was.  I see a sign that says “Montebello Parking 2.8 miles”, with an arrow pointing the direction.  I figure perfect, I should just be able to follow the sign, and be home free.  The trail that this took me on gave me fantastic views, but some of the grades were pretty steep, and yes, the were full of dirt.  It got to a point where the dirt was loosely packed, and when I’m going down a 10+ % grade, with no traction, on a road bike, that could only mean trouble.  Instead of continuing down with questionable traction, I slowed down, but even then, I lost traction, and fell over.  I was smothered with dirt, as if I was sliding into second base in a baseball game.

I dusted myself off, and continued on, and the grades only got steeper, but at least the views got more spectacular.  I eventually got to a section, where it mentions Montebello Parking, so I follow that sign too.  Bad move … this took me to what looked like a hiking only trail.  I couldn’t find any other signs, so I just kept going down, until there was no road to ride on.  OMG … I even tried walking across, but I couldn’t find anything resembling a trail to get onto Page Mill.  So I had to backtrack my way to where I came from.  This also meant climbing on soft packed trails, and that meant no traction, and no way to climb, no matter how hard I pedaled.  I had to walk portions of this, and ride portions of it.  This was very tiring, exhausing, and frustrating.  When I got back, I double checked the sign, and it did say Montebello Parking … damn.

The sign originally took me to the left, so when I got back to the junction, I instead went straight on ahead.  I saw a sign to go to Page Mill, and took that direction, regardless of what the sign said for Montebello Parking.

Ah, concrete pavement.  I never that I would be so happy to see pavement.  If I weren’t in such a hurry to get home, I’d kiss it!

By the time I got home, I had gotten in about 36 miles, and 3600 feet climbing.  I think I’ll have to make a special asterisk for this ride.  This was a hairy ride, doing a mountain bike ride on a road bike!  Now I know what it’s like to do cyclocross.  My reaction to those racing cyclocross … why?

Later on, Eric (aka ahpook) sent me his GPS tracking of the ride he did, and looks like I made a wrong turn.  Damn!  Here is his ride trace …

Now compare this with my route

I did make a wrong turn.  I don’t think I’ll attempt this ride again solo.  If I do it again, it will be with someone else, so that I am not out there all by myself.  I only saw one other person on this route, and that was a mountain biker, coming up on the hairy trail designed for a mountain bike.  I must have gotten off my bike about 10 times on this off-road detour, and took a spill twice.  I had so much dirt on me, I felt like I was mountain biking.

I was fatigued by the end of the day, but it was a little different type of fatigue.  You get a different type of fatigue, losing traction on dirt, and walking on dirt, as opposed to climbing 20+ % hills on concrete pavement.  This affirms why I love road biking a lot more than mountain biking.

Des photos prisent ce matin et qui circulent par e-mail

Ces photos qui circulent depuis ce matin par e-mail montrent la violence de cet accident des plus meurtriers. Mais ce qui est aussi choquant dans cette série de photos c’est le nombre de badauds entourant les véhicules accidentés. De voir autant de personne sur le site d’un accident à Maurice n’est pas inhabituel mais cela doit s’arrêter.

Ce matin sur la MBC radio un responsable d’une association de secouristes qui était présent sur les lieux de l’accident à relever un point très important. Il a expliqué que c’était très bien que tout de suite après l’accident de nombreux automobilistes sont venus au secours des victimes en attendant que la police, les ambulances et les pompiers arrivent sur place. Il a fait ressortir qu’il s’est rendu compte que très peu de personnes avaient des notions de premiers soins. On a souvent vu à Maurice des automobilistes extirpant des victimes d’accident de leur vehicule pour les envoyer à l’hôpital avant l’arrivée du SAMU. Il faut savoir que déplacé une victime d’accident sans savoir comment le faire, sans immobiliser son cou et sa tête peuvent être fatal, il vaut mieux donc ne pas toucher aux blessés si on ne sait pas comment faire et attendre l’arrivée du SAMU même si cela peut prendre 10 minutes.

Mais les dizaines de personnes que nous voyons sur ces photos sont des curieux ou même des voyeurs assoiffés de tôle froissés et de sang. Leur présence sur un site d’accident gêne considérablement les services de secours dans leur travail et une telle foule sur un lieu d’accident pendant de si longues minutes fait disparaitre des indices qui pourraient aider aux enquêteurs de déterminer les causes exactes d’un accident. A son arrivée la police aurait du pouvoir faire évacuer les voyeurs de la zone de l’accident et cela aurait été beaucoup plus facile si NOUS mauriciens étions plus disciplinés.

Video suite à l’accident de cette après midi, même scénario…