NorthStarNerd.Org

Nordic Wonder Ski Video!

The Spring of 2013 in Minnesota may go down as the best Nordic skiing conditions ever. I personally can not remember cross-country skiing on April 13th with perfect "mid Winter" conditions. This morning as the sun was rising over Lake Superior I headed out onto the Lester Amity Ski Trails. After a two day blizzard, the sun reappears and the trails were in their finery. The pines trees were snow encrusted, and the classic track was set and deep.

I hope you enjoy the video I made using my GoPro camera. I use a head mount for my camera, and normally only take video on downhills in order I may concentrate on holding the camera platform steady (i.e. me). The alternative is dizzying. 

There are three parts to the video:

• The Upper Trails
• Ski Down to the Deeps (a waterfall at the trail's head)
• Skiing Home on Occidental Blvd (200 yards from the Deeps)

Because this blog is "NorthStarNerd.Org", here are two tools which were invaluable in making my movie:

• MP4Cam2AVI: This free utility from SourceForge converts mp4 files to avi. One of the free tools to create movies is Microsoft Movie Maker, but it only works with Microsoft video formats. Thus you should understand the need for a conversion tool. Microsoft Movie Make allows one to easily add music, titles, transitions, etc. 
• Internet Archive Music: I like to use "legal" music where I also don't have to worry about the possability of computer viruses (often found on mp3 sites). The Internet Archive provides me that option.

Here are two photographs from today's ski inclduing a picture from my ski boot's perspective, followed by Nordic Wonder ... The Movie!

  
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Nordic Wonder: The Movie!

Epic Ski: The Stars in Alignment!

In 57 years I've never had the stars in alignment for a such an epic ski. The setup for this fantastic morning on skis started last Monday. The City of Duluth decided Spring had arrived, and started the construction of the new Lakewalk tunnel. The net effect of this decision was the closure to traffic of Brighton Beach Road and Scenic Highway 61.

Fast forward to Thursday, and a late season snowstorm dumped 8 inches of white stuff on our leftover  snow. Just the fact that we would have snow still on the ground on April 12th is unusual. Over the course of this morning I watched the huge winds (60 mph gusts) deliver new snow. A true lake effect was in process. Finally, I decided the winds were abating enough to hit the Nordic ski trails.

My first decision was to ski up 7 Bridges Road, which is always closed in the Winter. However, the effect of new wet deep snow made glide almost impossible due to both clumping and having to break trail. After skiing one of the toughest kilometers in my life, I made the fateful decision to do an about face and head down to Lake Superior.

Normally Brighton Beach Road and Scenic Highway 61 are two of the most travelled roads in the Duluth area. When one combines the winds and waves, the tourists and locals normally turn each road into a parking lot. Ah yes ... the roads were closed and snow covered! Thus started a 10 kilometer ski up and back to the Lakewood Pumping Station (where 61 reopens).

The ski was a hoot! My waxless skis had great glide, and being able to stride along next to the huge Lake Superior breakers was fantastic. I hope you enjoy a few of my photos from this morning's ski. I doubt this combination of a later Winter / Spring storm plus road closures will ever occur again in my lifetime! Click upon any image to view at full size.

Occidental Blvd ... just uphill from my home

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Lester River Bridge

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Brighton Beach Road #1

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Brighton Beach Road #2

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Scenic Highway 61
(thankfully no other skiers or cars ... did not have to break the law!)

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Ski's End: Across the road from my house

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Garmin Data

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If you're still with me, take a look at yesterday's post. I have some photos and a short video of the waves rolling in just before the snows started and reduced visability.

• Surf's Up on Lake Superior

Surf's Up on Lake Superior!

Winter refuses to give up in northern Minnesota this year. Today winds were clocked at 60 mph out of the Northeast. Anyone from these parts knows that those conditions means for great waves on Lake Superior. Thus, this morning I drove up the shore to Stoney Point. Within 60 minutes the snows kicked in and visibilty dropped to zero.

Click upon any image to view at full size. You will also find a brief video below the two photos.

Stoney Point Breakers

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Fishing Shed in a Protected Cove

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Stoney Point Rollers

Silicon Lakeshore

Coming soon to northern Minnesota. Search for our group on LinkedIn.

Managing Your Social Networks / LinkedIn Conversations

Three weeks from today I retire from Honeywell. It's been a good 28+ year run, but when life changes, it's important to manage one's social networks. Over the years I've always actively managed my social contacts, particularly upon my favorite social network for professional relationships, LinkedIn. Thus, I ask the question, how many of you actively manage your contacts?

Earlier today I consolidated my LinkedIn contacts from 750+ to slightly under 350 individuals. While the 400 people I eliminated are good folk, when life changes, one needs to manage that change. With my impending retirement, and startup of limited software consulting, my approach will become more regional. Thus, I decided to eliminate noise in my network feed. While you may not agree with my approach, you should actively manage your networks.

LinkedIn's announcement today that one will now be able to "at/@" mention someone in an update drove my change to limit noise. I love their new feature, and in this case will be able to better handle the value.