108 For Hotter 'N Hell 100 With Below 100 Arriving Tomorrow

Look at what is on the weather menu for tomorrow!

Under 100 degrees for the first time in what seems a long time. With some possible thunderstorming.

Today, Saturday, August 26, the temperature is scheduled to reach 108 degrees.

Today, in Wichita Falls, we have thousands of bikers in town for the Hotter 'N Hell 100 race. Thousands of bikers roll their wheels for 100 miles under the scorching sun predicted to heat to 108 degrees today.

If it was not so HOT I would venture to the MPEC (Multi-Purpose Event Center) downtown to watch the racers cross the finish line. I have only done that once, on a cloudy day, not heated above 100 degrees, and I recollect that day as being miserably HOT.

There are many things to see at ground zero of the Hotter 'N Hell 100 location. Food trucks, vendors vending various bike-related products, a big tent covered beer garden, live music, an art garden of various works of art featuring bikes. 

I do not know if the bike art garden is a regular feature, or just was part of my one and only time attending.

An interesting tent near the finish line is the Triage Tent, where those wounded by a bike wreck get their wounds attended to. This was one of the bloodiest things I have ever seen in person.

I have never had the slightest inkling of a desire to ride my bike in the Hotter 'N Hell 100.

Maybe if it was the Hotter 'N Hell 10.

Actually, there are several other races of shorter duration for those for whom pedaling 100 miles is not even remotely feasible...

Hotter 'N Hell 113 Sunday Degrees

Today is scheduled to be the HOTTEST day so far this HOT time of the year. What with it being very HOT dangerous HEAT, I won't be doing any salubrious endorphin inducing aerobic activity in the outer world today.

My air conditioning system failed, over night, a couple nights ago. This had the interior space being 87 degrees. The air conditioning system was quickly fixed soon after the sun arrived to begin super heating us again. A heat pump part called a capacitor had died.

Today is the next to last Sunday of August. A day or two over a month to go til the end of this super HOT summer.

The Hotter 'N Hell 100 bike race is next weekend. Unlike last year's Hotter 'N Hell, this year's temperature is currently predicted to be over 100 degrees. 

Two Girls In Bikinis Frolic In Wichita Falls

 

Saw that which you see here, this morning, via a Wichita Falls radio station's website.

I found it a bit disturbing that a pair of girls in bikinis would get into the murky water below the manmade Wichita Falls.

I have always thought the water was way deeper than as indicated by the knee deep water the two girls are standing in.

I also always assumed there was a pump in the pool which re-circulated water to the top of the falls.

From the 1023 The Bull website article about this swimming incident...

Official Rules for The Falls in Wichita Falls

It shall be unlawful for any person to swim or bathe in any ornamental water fountains, ponds, streams or lakes situated in any city parks within the city, except Lake Wichita and the areas of Lake Arrowhead which are not designated as a no swimming area by subsection.

The girls were filmed during their falls frolic, for a TikTok video.

The girls claim they barely got their feet wet and did not get totally in the water, which does look way too shallow to enable swimming, despite what the title to this article says....

Mid August Bare Naked Look At Mount Rainier

Saw that which you see here, this morning, on Facebook, via Washington's Miss Chris. I believe this look at Mount Rainier is looking at the Mountain from Tacoma. Perhaps from Point Ruston, near Point Defiance Park.

The Mount Rainier volcano looks like a giant version of the only mountain in the Texas town I am currently in, a manmade mountain I call Mount Wichita, but which is also known as Murphy's Hill.

It is a couple months before snow might start sticking to Mount Rainier. I do not recollect ever seeing the Mountain as bare naked of a frozen covering as what appears to be the case in this photo.

Mount Rainier is home to several glaciers. I assume the white which remains are those glaciers, with last winter's snow long melted.

The snow and any glaciers have long been gone from Mount Wichita. The nearest real mountain is hundreds of miles from my current location.

Unless one counts as real mountains the Wichita Mountains, which are located in Oklahoma, about 60 miles north of my Wichita Falls location...

Cool August Windfall Walk Through Lucy Park Backwoods Jungle

For the first time in many days we are not going to be heated to over 100 on this 14th day of August. 

89 degrees is the predicted high for today. With a strong wind blowing, making the air feel cooler than the low 80s temperature I enjoyed at Lucy Park this morning.

Some of last Thursday's blown over trees have been cleared off the Circle Trail. Today I walked the Lucy Park backwoods jungle, where none of the windfalls have been removed. This made for some challenging obstacles, navigating around the fallen debris, through tall grass, keeping a sharp lookout for snakes slithering in the grass.

I saw nothing slither today. But, I was attacked, repeatedly by jumping grasshoppers. 

Time seems to be flying by ever faster. We are already over half way through summer. I am ready for summer to come to a merciful end...

Hot Walk Around Sikes Lake With Few Geese Along With Goose Murder Protesters

 

I did not overheat during yesterday's walk in Lucy Park. Clouds were blocking most of the sun's rays.

So, today, the day known as Saturday, the second such day of August, I decided to walk around Sikes Lake, even though there is little shade at that location, and the temperature was in the 100-degree range, with a strong wind blowing, making the air feel cooler than 100 degrees.

The air may have felt cooler than 100 degrees, but, unlike yesterday, today I overheated, ending up being a sweaty mess by the time I got back to the air-conditioned comfort of my mechanized means of motion.

Tomorrow I think my walking will once again take place in Walmart.

The walk around Sikes Lake is noticeably different since the mass extermination of 343 geese, about a month ago.

The remaining Sikes Lake birds, even though being birds of different feathers, seem to be flocking together, sharing one of the few shady locations around Sikes Lake.

Even though the mass murder of the Sikes Lake was several weeks ago, the Goose Murder Protesters are still protesting. By the time I exited the Sikes Lake parking lot about a dozen protesters were waving Goose Murder protest signs, standing in the shade on the south side of Midwestern Boulevard.

I have yet to learn what the goal is of the Goose Murder Protesters. Do they want to see someone charged with Goosicide? Or what?

Lucy Park And Surrounding Area Blown Apart By Extreme Wind

Last night, a couple hours before midnight, a flash of light lit up my bedroom, followed quickly by thunder booming. And then it happened again. And again. I did not think we were scheduled to have a thunderstorm.

And then rain began pouring down.

Also not on the schedule.

By dawn's early light, at my location, there was little to be seen indicating a storm had passed by in the night. Just a few puddles of water.

Even though the outer world was hot, at the time of my regularly scheduled walk, and even though rain would increase the humidity, some clouds were blotting out some of the incoming sun rays. And so I decided to go to Lucy Park for the first time in a couple weeks.

When I got to the first traffic light on Kemp Boulevard, it was not working. When the next traffic light was also dark I thought there must be a power outage. Each traffic light was out as I continued north on Kemp. And then as I came to the end of Kemp, at its intersection with the Seymour Highway I saw the roof torn off an apartment complex, with one wall blown in, exposing the apartment's interior.

Then, turning right onto the Seymour Highway I started seeing all sorts of destruction. Some buildings totally destroyed. Signs blown down. Lots of damage.

I wondered if a tornado had done this damage. And why was there no mention of this in this morning's Wichita Falls Times News Record, a newspaper I have previously indicated was a pitiful excuse for a newspaper. Even worse than the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

Taking a left from the Seymour Highway, on the road that leads to Lucy Park, I saw a power pole down, with its transformer on the ground. 

As soon as I entered Lucy Park I was seeing a lot of damage. Trees yanked out of the ground. Limbs blown off trees. A big mess.

The paved trail was blocked by fallen trees in multiple locations. I took photos of some of this, which is what you are looking at above, and below.

That is the Circle Trail, as it circles through Lucy Park you are seeing blocked by a windfall.

Here the wind blew a limb onto a light pole.

Crews were busy cleaning up this mess at another section of the park.

Another Circle Trail blockage.

A windfall pile by the burned out Lucy Park Japanese Pagoda.

More Circle Trail blockage.

At the Lucy Park Duck Pond I came upon some people clearing debris from that location. I asked if they knew if this was a tornado which did all this damage. 

No.

I was told it was an extremely powerful burst of straight line wind. I have experienced the straight line wind phenomenon twice. It is a scary thing to experience.

I was told that there was a lot of damage to be seen as you drive west on the Seymour Highway.

And so, upon leaving Lucy Park I drove west on the Seymour Highway. There were a lot of looky-loos doing the same. I saw several buildings badly damaged, ripped apart, roofs blown off. Blown down signs.

By the time I got to the west entry to the Wichita Bluffs Nature Area the scenes of destruction had ended.

Happy Birthday With Trump & Blue Cheese

This morning I had myself some fun opening envelopes and packages that have arrived in the past couple days.

I found the birthday card you see above inside one of the envelopes I opened. The happy birthday greeting at the lower left on the card included for the first time ever, a happy birthday from my Great Nephew, Cade.

This morning Cade's grandma, who is also my sister Jackie, text messaged a happy birthday message, along with a photo of Cade, who is now one month old.

Cade looks so tiny. It would make me nervous to hold the little bundle of joy.

That Donald Trump thing you see sitting on top of the card from Cade and family arrived from Amazon a couple days ago, sent by a certified McNutt in Virginia.

In one of the boxes, which showed up this week, one contained a giant 7 pound round of Blue Cheese. The round of Blue Cheese was surrounded by multiple freezer packs to keep the Blue Cheese cool.

Of all the cheeses in cheese world, Blue Cheese is my favorite...

Happy Birthday Elsie Hotpepper

The young lady you see here, up a creek with only one paddle, goes by many names, with my favorite being Elsie Hotpepper.

The cattle herd Elsie is ramrodding is making its way across the pristine waters of the Trinity River, at a location I believe to be at the east side of Fort Worth, near where the river soon leaves Fort Worth and enters Arlington.

I am not certain what particular photo shoot brought about this photo. It may have been part of Elsie Hotpepper's audition for some TV show, Yellowstone, maybe.

It is hard to keep up with the various antics of Elsie Hotpepper. Truth be told, keeping up with the Hotpepper can be a bit exhausting.

Anyway, today, August 10, is Elsie Hotpepper's birthday.

29 years old.

At least that is what is indicated by Happy Birthday signage installed overnight in Elsie Hotpepper's front yard...

With Mobility Restored Drought Stricken Lake Wichita Visit

My means of motorized mechanical motion has been under a doctor's care since Monday. This morning the motion device was released from doctor's care, fully recovered.

So, before noon I drove to the nearest Walmart for some high speed walking and acquisition of various edible items.

I have been reading of late about the sad low level status of local lakes, with the water level going lower and lower as the drought goes on and on.

So, after Walmart I drove to the nearest lake, well, other than Sikes Lake, which is only a couple blocks from my abode. The lake I drove to was Lake Wichita.

Upon arrival at the Lake Wichita parking lot I as struck by how pitiful Mount Wichita looks, mostly void of any green vegetation. If a downpour ever happens Mount Wichita likely will suffer some serious erosion.

And now this look at the current state of Lake Wichita. In normal non-drought times, all you see that is green, is under water.

Lake Wichita has shrunk significantly since I last saw this disappearing body of water.

I think it was Memorial Day weekend when last I was at Lake Wichita, that being the weekend the Veterans Memorial was dedicated, part of which is what you see in the photo at the top, with barren Mount Wichita hovering in the background.

Currently we are under a water restriction regimen.

I can irrigate my lawn only on odd number days. Today is an odd number day.

But, I shall be a good citizen and forego doing any lawn watering. It seems pointless to try and have a green lawn at this particular location on the planet at this particular time...