North America

I received a note from Dale Brown regarding his photo sets and wanted to pass it along...nice shots of handcrafted cycles. 

Davis Junction doctor pursues his speed skating passion - Rockford Register Star

Sure, there were skating parties in Retzer’s childhood, but his true love affair with skates didn’t come until he was in his 30s with young daughters at home. Then, he bought Rollerblades for himself and his daughter.

“Something clicked in me,” he said.

It wasn’t long before Retzer’s competitive side weighed in, and he began doing inline speed skating competitions. He trains with the Rockford Road Scholars and has competed for the past 20 years in places from Minnesota to Georgia. Some races are marathon-length.

Others are nearly 100 miles over hilly courses.

In good weather, Retzer skates daily and logs about 2,000 miles a year. He’s been clocked as fast as 43 miles an hour.

I took a break from working on the website and some family health issues, and from photos and video of the US Figure Skating Championships, to read this nice story of a day out at a new rink...in a snow storm. There's a balance of thoughts on the rink and the money and the goals, but really, to me, it sounds like the start of something beautiful in Toronto. Community and physical activity often amplify each other well. If you have a minute, read this journal entry of the brand new shovel and brand new skating rink. 

Skate Across Toronto: The best $9.99 the National Post ever spent - National Post -

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I found the link to this article pondering about do what you love and all that over on an inline instruction email list, and they were joking about running away with the circus, so I should credit them for the idea of my title, too! I never found any video of Katie Ketchum in Cirque du Soleil, but I found two nice ones of her burning up with some sweet style on one of her favorite indoor street courses...She seems to focus on intricate, precise landings, but can pop a spin (see 0:52 or so). Mostly though it's less rotational and more flowing moves with stylish finishes...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=icfC53VJ7pE

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