You can check it out on Craigslist

I had such a good time at the Beaver Creek XTERRA two weeks ago that I somehow convinced Ian to drive back to Utah for the XTERRA Mountain Championships in Snowbasin (where I won the Winter XTERRA Worlds) last weekend.

We arrived in Ogden on Friday afternoon after driving the seven-hour slog scenic route north through some of Colorado and Utah's lesser known hotspots like Rangely, Dinosaur, Vernal and Roosevelt. How come Rangely never makes any of those magazine 'best places to live' lists like Carbondale just did?

But I digress. In a flashback to last March, we again stayed with Micheal and Jenny Tobin at Jenny's parents' timeshare condo near Powder Mountain. Jenny, an XTERRA veteran, was also racing on Saturday morning. We quickly unpacked the car and Juniper got reacquainted Micheal and Jenny's kids: Jack (three weeks younger than Juniper) and Mikella (four).

[caption id="attachment_249" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Juniper says (I'll take your) 'Cheese!'"][/caption]

Unfortunately, we got to Ogden too late for me to pre-ride any of the course. That would catch up with me the next day.

Saturday morning came early, but I was feeling pretty good. The first challenge of the day came up when race officials ruled the water in the reservoir was too warm for the pros to be allowed to wear wetsuits. As we know, I'm NOT a strong swimmer and I knew I would miss the extra flotation my XTERRA Wetsuit provides. Oh well.

This was a much bigger race than Beaver Creek, with over 700 athletes competing and a deep field of pros that included both the reigning men's and women's world champions. My plan was to swim slow and steady and try not get run over. The first lap of the swim went pretty well and I found a nice pocket at the back of the pro group.

But then, on the second lap, many of the sport racers, who started about 10 minutes after we did on the short course, caught up to me and slowed my pace. Standing on shore, Ian watched a twelve-year-old kid and a single leg amputee athlete (AWESOME!) get out the water before I did. However, I did manage to keep my freestyle stroke going for the whole swim this time and I finished about eight minutes behind the top pro women.

From there, things got even tougher. I was now caught up with a lot of the amateur racers who swam faster than I did, but are slower than me on a bike. The ride started on a paved road but quickly funneled into a singletrack log jam. I passed hundreds of riders but eventually got to a point where I just couldn't get around anyone else. I finally gave up and settled into the slower pace.

Knowing that there was no way I could make up all that time, I tried to stay positive and have a fast transition and a decent run, which I did, finishing in 13th overall among the pro women.

Conrad Stolz, the world champ, won the men's race, while Melanie McQuaid won for the women. Jenny Tobin had a great race and finished in an impressive fifth place. Full race results here.

Overall, the race at Snowbasin was a humbling experience for me, but I certainly learned a lot and I'm more motivated than ever to improve my swimming.

But for now, my swimming will have to go on hold as I turn my focus to the Wulong Mountain Quest in China. Mike Kloser, Micheal Tobin, Josiah Middaugh and I are racing for Team Nike and we leave next Wednesday!

Um es vorweg zu nehmen: Einmal mehr kann ich sagen "MISSION ACCOMPLISHED"! Mit dem Deutschen Meistertitel in der M40 habe ich mir gleichzeitig die Qualifikation für die Xterra Weltmeisterschaft Ende Oktober in Hawaii gesichert. Auch wenn ich schon jetzt sehr zufrieden mit meiner ersten "Wiedereinsteiger-Saison" als Triathlet bin. Oder um einen unserer jüngsten Olympia-Sieger zu zitieren: "Es ist das I-Tüpfelchen auf dem I-Tüpfelchen auf dem I-Tüpfelchen auf dem Sahnehäubchen."

Aber der Reihe nach . . .

Es fing alles andere als optimal an. Ich musste noch bis Donnerstag-Abend arbeiten und kam ziemlich müde und ausgelaugt nach Hause. Dann am Freitag noch alles packen und allein in einem 7½-Stunden-Horrortrip im Dauerregen mit schlechtfahrenden Ossis um die linke Spur kämpfen. Am Abend angekommen konnte man schon nicht mehr allzuviel sehen von der Szenerie. Ein dunkler Baggersee und in der Ferne wolkenverhangene, ebenso dunkle Berge. Einladend ist was anderes . . . :-(

Glücklicherweise war das kleine Hotel sehr cozy und ich ging totmüde SEHR früh ins Bett. Am Morgen dann das gleiche Bild: 11°C und Dauerregen. Alles nass und kalt. Eklig. Beim Frühstück erkannte man die Sportler natürlich gleich an den schicken Triathlon-Klamotten und ich kam mit zwei ausgesprochen netten Ossis aus Fürstenwalde ins Gespräch (danke, Nic & Ulf für den interessanten Austausch). Das ist auch immer ein netter Teil eines Wettkampfes für mich: Wenn ich schon allein irgendwo hin fahre, dann wenigstens nette Sportskameraden treffen und ein wenig den Horizont erweitern.

Unten am See angekommen dann der erste Minuspunkt: Muss man den Sportlern jetzt wirklich noch zwei Euro Parkgebühr abknöpfen? Sowas hinterlässt bei mir immer einen schalen Nachgeschmack. Die zwei Euro sind mir völlig wurscht aber das Signal kommt negativ an. Aber bei wirklich anständigen 40 Euro Startgebühr will ich nicht mosern.

Als ich meine Sachen in die Wechselzone einchecken möchte, überholt ein supereiliger Sportkollege "mal noch schnell" auf der anderen Wegseite und stösst frontal mit mir zusammen. Rechte Hand blutig und ganz arg Aua. A . . .och! Muss denn sowas sein? Gaaanz toll! "Fängt ja schon super an heute", denke ich mir. Die Kampfrichter sind extrem genau und wollen sogar den Neo prüfen, ob er die maximale Materialstärke auch ja nicht überschreitet (naja, OK, ist halt eine offizielle Deutsche Meisterschaft). Dann schön alles in der nun schon aufgeweichten Wechselzone sauber platzieren (endlich mal richtig viel Platz!). Locker einlaufen. Neo anziehen. Ab in die Startbox. Netterweise ist der Chef-Kampfrichter vor Ort und lässt uns noch einschwimmen. Ich bin gerade im netten Gespräch mit Kathrin Hill (die später Deutsche Meisterin werden soll), als auch schon der Startschuss ertönt. Meinem etwas gedämpften Motivationsniveau gemäß (ich fühlte mich immer noch müde nach dieser lahmen, arbeitsreichen Woche) ließ ich es etwas ZU locker angehen und -schwupps - war auch die erste größere Gruppe weg. Von Maik Petzold, der eigentlich morgen in Peking starten sollte, will ich hier mal gar nicht reden. Er spulte die 1,5 Kilometer in sagenhaften 19:51 (bißchen lang) im optimal temperierten O-See runter und holte schon im Wasser 1:24 auf den späteren Sieger und neuen Deutschen Meister Ronny Dietz und 2:45 auf den Zweitplatzierten Jörg Scheiderbauer heraus. Ich zockelte recht entspannt nach 24:46 kurz vor der ersten Frau als 22. an Land. Auf dem Bike musste ich mich dann in Geduld üben, denn mein Körper wollte diese hohen Intensitäten noch nicht so rasch hergeben. In Olbersdorf bekam ich dann auch gleich die Quittung für das, was man bei einer Meisterschaft (oder ganz allgemein bei einem ernsthaften Rennen oder im Grunde IMMER) nie machen sollte: Ohne Streckenkenntnis an den Start gehen. Ich verfuhr mich. Ist mir noch nie passiert. Insbesondere bei einer MTB-Strecke kann's da schon mal Überraschungen geben. Und der Streckenposten, der die Straße absperrte, schaute auch nur entsetzt hinterher, statt korrigierend einzugreifen. Naja. Auf der nächsten längeren Gerade kam mir in den Sinn, dass da was nicht stimmt, denn die Typen vor mir waren plötzlich auf 300 m nicht mehr zu sehen. Ich kehrte um und wieder rauf auf die Strecke. Oweh. Da waren auch schon die ersten drei Frauen vorbei, die auch als "richtige" Bike-Cracks alle schneller auf dem Rad fuhren. Nach und nach wurde ich auch etwas "wärmer", kam besser in den Tritt. Berg hoch war die spätere Siegerin Renata Bucher aus der Schweiz stets einen Tick schneller (Mörder-Druck!!), bergab dann die letztjährige Siegerin und diesjährige Zweite Anna Baylis-Scheiderbauer. Genau, die australische Ex-MTB-Profi-Fahrerin ist die Ehefrau von Jörg Scheiderbauer (s.o.). Das machte jetzt mehr und mehr Spaß. Tolle Strecke. Für einen Nicht-MTB-Profi wie mich technisch an einigen Stellen echt herausfordernd. Und bei DEM Sauwetter natürlich eine brutale Schlammschlacht. Immer schön der technisch ausgezeichnet fahrenden Anna hinterher. Am Ende des Tages sollten die Bremsklötze meiner Scheibenbremsen völlig runtergeschrubbt sein. Vollkommen blank! Anderen ging es offenbar gleich. Gegen Ende der Radstrecke konnte ich mich von den Top-Mädels noch etwas absetzen, aber sie sollten mich - wie einige Herren auch - in der Wechselzone wieder überholen. Einmal mehr kam ich nicht aus meinen MTB-Schuhen raus. Die Schnallen meiner ansonsten echt guten Shimano-Schuhe ließen sich beim besten Willen nicht öffnen. Und mit eiskalten Händen gleich gar nicht . . . :-( Irgendwann schaffte ich es dann trotz geschlossener Schnallen herauszuschlüpfen (das sollte im Grunde unmöglich sein!!).

Beim Laufen war es dann wieder ein einziger Spaß. Nass und vollkommen verdreckt waren wir ja eh' alle und die Laufstrecke hatte es so richtig in sich. Super crossig! Und da zuvor bestimmt zehn Leute in der T2 an mir vorbeigerauscht waren, musste ich die natürlich alle wieder ein- und überholen. ;-) Mit der elftbesten Laufzeit schob ich mich noch auf Platz 21 gesamt vor. Das war Platz 12 in der DM-Wertung (der Rest war praktisch die tschechische Meisterschaft) und Platz 1 in der M40. Die M40 international gewann wie erwartet der amtierende Xterra-Weltmeister Ulli Katzer aus Österreich.

So schnell war ich noch nie vom Ziel-Buffet weg. Alles war einfach nur noch NASS und KALT. Der böige Westwind tat sein Übriges. Hände und Füße waren gerade mal so eben im Ziel aufgetaut. Und bei Freund Immo Trebing aus Calw sah man nur noch zwei weiße Augäpfel aus einem ansonsten völlig braunen, dreckverschmierten Gesicht lächeln. Ich glaube, wir hatten alle trotz der sehr widrigen, aber Xterra-gerechten Bedingungen JEDE MENGE SPASS!! :-)

Nebenbei bemerkt: Armin Beyrich kam nach 5:05 h als 70-jähriger bei diesen Bedingungen ins Ziel. Da können sich jede Menge junger Menschen eine Scheibe von abschneiden!

Einen herzlichen Dank an die wirklich engagierte Organisation der Zittauer Triathleten rund um Benno. Bis auf ein paar Kleinigkeiten war das richtig gut gemacht. Abends gab es dann noch eine sehr intime Siegerehrung "im kleinen Kreis" (mehr hätten auch nicht in das winzige Zelt gepasst) und einen netten, kameradschaftlichen Austausch mit den Dornstädtern (Familie Sauter wurden von Thilo Zoberbier unterstützt dritte in der Teamwertung). Abgerundet wurde das Ganze mit einem leckeren Buffet, bevor die Abordnung des SF Donstadt noch die weite Heimreise antrat und ich bei meiner Ex-Freundin Sophia in Dresden Unterschlupf fand.

Races Stats:

• Distanzen: 1,5 - 36 - 9 (Swim - MTB - Crosslauf)
• Zeiten & Platzierungen: 24:46 (22.) - 1:53:19 (28.) - 35:46 (11.)
• Gesamt: 2:53:52 --> 21. Gesamt (2. M40) - DM-Wertung: 12. Gesamt (1. M40)
• Wetter: 11°C, Dauerregen und böiger Westwind - mit einem Wort: Sauwetter!
• Wasser: wohlige 19°C (das Wärmste des Tages)
• Equipment: Blueseventy Helix Wetsuit, Blueseventy Vission Goggles; Scott Genius RC-10; Shimano MTB-Schuhe SH-M225; Alpina Tri-Guard 40 mit klaren Gläsern; Alpina Mythos MTB-Helm; Asics DS-Racer Laufschuhe
• Ergebnisliste gibt's hier!
• Bericht und Bilder von bernd Kiesel gibt's hier!

Blick ins Lenninger Tal - kurz vor dem großen Regen

Es war mal wieder Zeit: Nach monatelangem Schönwetterradeln habe ich gestern meine kurze MTB-Runde zeitlich so gelegt, dass ich in den Regen kam. War toll! :-) Endlich wich die elendige Hitze. Richtig erfrischend. Außerdem kann es ja theoretisch auch in einem der zwei up-coming races nass werden. Dann krieg' ich bestimmt gleich Angst, steig' ab und schiebe . . . ;-)

Also: Es war eine richtig schöne Matschtour gestern Abend. Und wer's nicht glauben mag, der schaue hier:

!!!

On Saturday the Hub and I were zippin' around town, running errands and just generally having a nice day. At lunch he casually mentions that maybe we could go look at cars? Sure, says I. Why not?

The Hubby drives a Jeep. He had wanted a Jeep Wrangler for a long, long time, so when the opportunity came around for him to get one fairly cheap, he did. And he loved it. But, you know. It's a jeep. It has plastic windows and bad heating and it is over ten years old. It is a fun summer car, but it sucks in the winter. So I understood his desire for a new car.

We went to a local dealership (I wont say who; our sales guy was a tool) and looked at several cars and SUVs. We drive less than 7,000 miles a year so mileage isn't a huge issue for us, beyond caring for the planet and good stewardship and blahbitty-bloo. Since we are both tall guys, we also need a car that we can both be comfortable in. I don't want to take family trips in a Versa,  I would never be able to uncrumple my body again.

We looked at the Murano, but it was a little rich for our blood. We looked at a Pathfinder, but it was surprisingly small inside. And we finally looked at a Xterra. It was leggy and had tons of head room. So, we test drove it. With the tool.

Tool sauntered over and chatted with us about the Xterra. He waxed poetic about how they needed to sell a certain number in order to get some recognition or something, and how he is willing to look at any deal. Lies and deceit. He gave us the keys to drive it for a bit. And then he hopped in the back.

I am not used to salespeople riding during the test drive. I'm sure that it is a rule, but I haven't experienced it yet. I asked him why he was driving with us, and he said that he would have to get permission to let us go alone. Oh, alright. You can go with us. Sheesh.

He blabbered on and on about his life and his girlfriend and his poodle (or something equally emasculating) and Hub and I finally just drove back to the dealership so we wouldn't have to listen to him anymore. Yes, we get it. Now shush.

We walked inside and basically told him our bottom line. I don't dicker well (hee) so I actually just told him what we were willing to pay. He, of course, came back with a higher figure. We reiterated our number, and he hemmed and hawed until we got up to leave. I have no patience for BS. He then started the threats - this deal wont be here Monday. You can't buy this car for less. We are the biggest dealership. Blech. We strutted out.

All this to say, he called on Tuesday and we have a new car. Yay! We win!

Anyway, I've been putting in a bunch of time on the single speed, and I have to say that I may be single speed for life. I haven't eve re-installed the wheels on my full suspension bike since the Xterra. The SS is just so quiet and simple...no worrying about shifting or shearing a derailleur, no chain slap or other noises...just simplicity and smoothness. If you haven't tried it, this is the purest and most simple form of mountain biking, and man does it rule. My bike is an older Giant Cadex carbon frame with a White Bros. ENO eccentric hub to convert it, v-brakes , Rock Shox Jett (which MUST go) fork, LX cranks and a smattering of low-level parts which I plan to upgrade, because that's just what I do to all of my bikes.

With the advent of the Ergon paddle-style grip, I have seen plenty of knock offs, mainly from Serfas and Bontrager, but I am sure there are plenty more. The idea behind them is simple: support the heel of the hand maintain a particular wrist angle, and the rider will be more comfortable. Despite tripling (!!) the weight and cost of my standard rubber grips, Lizard Skins, I decided to get a set of these and give'em a try. My LBS was out of the correct size of Ergons, so I hit up another local shop for these Bontarger Satellite's

These guys are Ergon knock-offs which give support to the heel of each hand while riding. During a 1 1/2 hour trail ride, these grips were nothing but sweet. I had to stop and adjust them twice to get the angles right, but the lock-on mechanism made all the difference for simplicity of adjustment. The grips kept my hands from going numb, and

just seemed to give that little extra bit of comfort that can make all the difference...no one likes the numb hands that round bars can cause, both on the road and the trail. If the knock-offs are this nice, I can't wait to get the real deal (Ergon) and give them a shot. If you've ever experienced hand numbness, especially on a hard tail or fully-rigid bike, these are the grips for you They're expensive, but take the weight and cost penalty and get these grips! You will not regret it!

My whole life I have played it safe. I did all those good things that your parents want you to do. I went to university, settled into a nice safe nursing job, and purchased a condo. This year I'm breaking out of my comfort zone. I quit my job this March to travel to South Africa for two months and race the first half of the Xterra series and then go back to work after moving to Bend, Oregon in June. So far I've spent two months in South Africa, raced Ironman Port Elizabeth, and competed in the first Xterra race of the year.

Plans change. While in South Africa I decided not to go back to work right away (in June like I planned) and remain unemployed until after the racing season is over. After playing it safe for so long, it is time to take a mini-retirement and find out where I really want to be in life. So, this year I'll be racing the Xterra USA and European series as a pro athlete! It's scary and exciting at the same time.

So here is to trying new things and exploring all life has to offer. 

This is one of my favorite workouts. It can't be beat for building power, speed, and confidence, and is especially great when runnng with a group. I tackled this one solo today. I know that I could have worked a bit harder; My max heart rate was only 178. The main set of my workout was 37:30 with an average HR of 164. The warm-up was 15:23 and cool-down was 13:22 for a total workout time of 50:53.

I know I could have have worked harder; when I do this workout later in the season, I will give myself far less time between repeats, and hopefully will have someone to push me through and give me a "carrot" to chase. For today, not a bad run.

Tiger Yamasaki, Coyote Colquhoun, Panther Hamilton, Mountain Goat Maloney, Bobcat Boyce, Big & Little Horn Clark

Did my very first off road race in the weekend, a mild 16km jaunt out in the woodhill forest north of Auckland.

I've done a couple of 10k races on road, but never anything this long, or off road! I wasn't quite sure what to expect. It was tough, pretty much the first 30-40 minutes were uphill, with one real leg killer at the 7k mark. The rest of the team from work opted to downgrade to the short course, just 6.5k, but me being me wanted the challenge.

Gave my ankle a roll at the top of the big hill, but it came right after a few more km. It was awesome running through the bush on the flat and downhill, at least the bits that weren't wet clay lined mud slides! There is nothing like being in a row of guys, running through the bush, all wordlessly pushing each other along... Highly recommend the experience!

Managed to knock off the course in 1:21:12, which for me was a great time. I have to admit that by the end I didn't have much left in my legs and was pretty pleased to finish in one piece. Big ups to Macs' who provided beers at the finish line, great idea!

Thinking if I can polish off 16km in that time I might be up to a half marathon before years end. We'll have to wait and see on that though.

Next ones in a months time, can't wait to see what the course is like!

On a final note I saw the most awesome mushrooms/toadstools in the forest. I mean these were exactly like the ones in the story books, you know the bright red with white spots. Had there been a few fireflys around I would have sworn there were fairies there too!

I got into Reno around 4:30pm on Friday and it was like 95 degrees.  We have two rental cars right now until my parents drive to Carmel on Wednesday.  I'm driving a Nissan Xterra which is actually pretty sweet.  Sadly, I'll be giving it up soon.

I saw the Mailanders on Friday night.  That was a good time.  It was me, Jim, Caitlin, and them, and we talked for about three hours.  And we ate Lydia's cookies which were tasty.  On a side note, earlier that night I had my first In-N-Out burger in four months and it was amazing.

Saturday was the best of all days so far.  Mark Sexton had a giant party officially titled "Summer Phun Thyme" and it was basically a sequel to the Rocktoberfestapaloozastock that occurred last year, which I missed.  We built a stage out of plywood and cinder blocks that actually looked pretty professional once finished.  There were three bands lined up - The Yavin Four (obvious Star Wars reference), The Stately Gentlemen, and The Mark Sexton Band.  The Gents played a few Beatles covers and some of their originals so I was able to play with them.

After the bands played, it was your typical college party, except that there was a shitload of people there and Eric Paulsen was there!  That was the highlight of the night because he doesn't usually go to parties.  But I think he's going to more often.  That'll be fun.

The night ended with Alex Vaughn driving Anthony and I back to Anthony's apartment, but first we took a detour at Del Taco.  We got six tacos each and we realized later that it was a lot of food.  But we ate them all anyways.  I crashed on their couch and in the morning we went back to Mark's to finish tearing down and also to get our cars.

I want to write about last night (the brobecue) but right now I have to leave to go to Jesse's to work on some songs.  Maybe I'll write more tonight.

"The Seal XP is a hybrid goggle that combines the superior visibility and exceptional comfort of the Seal Mask with the low profile and hydrodynamics of the Kaiman Goggles. It has a flexible, one-piece frame and comfortable, watertight skirt that provides for hours of swimming and water sports enjoyment. The low profile, wrap-around design of the Seal XP creates less drag, has greater hydrodynamics and is ideal for fitness swimming or swim training. The unique Plexisol® lens provides 100% UV protection and is fog and scratch resistant. The innovative easy-adjust buckle system of the Seal XP also allows for quick and easy adjustments, even while wearing the mask."

My Review:

Having used traditional swim goggles for years, and finding only a few models that fit me properly, I thought I'd give the Seal series a try. My initial though was that they looked even more awful than normal goggles, but the demo really stuck to my head, so what the hell? I tried the original Seal mask, which I felt was a tad too bulky, so I went with the XP.

What I like:

The fit and (initial) water tightness and the visibility. The mask squeezed on to my head just right for about the first four months, with nary a leak. The visibility is also tops, and is particularly nice in an open water setting where spotting is key.

What I dislike:

The goggles began to leak after about four months. I noticed it initially during flip-turns, but now I have to crank the straps down every time I swim or they leak a little bit at a time...just enough to be obnoxious. For $25 I shouldn't have this problem four months in to a relationship. These guys also fog up like mad. I began using McNett's Sea Drops to keep the fog away, and it has made a huge difference.

Recently I got my hands on some Aqua Sphere Vista prototypes, and they seemed to have fixed the leak problem (which I was told was a common fit issue), and the Vista is now available to the public. Though I haven't fully tested them yet, I recommend forgoing the XP's in favor of the new Vista mask; it is slightly higher profile than the XP, but seems to have a superior fit.

The swim was about 63F, so not uncomfortable. The course was a clockwise loop, about 800m in length, and the water was nice and clear. I finished my swim in 12:13, which is well off of what I am capable of (Sub-12 for 1000 yds. so far this year), but that was in the pool, so I am not all that unhappy.

Coming into T1, I couldn't get my wetsuit off my f'n feet, then lost a sock. T1 Time 4:21, almost 2 minutes slower than anyone else in my category.

The bike portion was 12.5 miles of sweet, sweet single track. I hadn't pre-ridden the course, so I didn't know quite what to expect, but these were the best trails I have been on in a while. I had some serious braking problems (probably need to be bled), and I think the bike needs a real tune-up not some home-job that I do in a few seconds. Since I hadn't ridden the course, I definitely lost some time almost everywhere as the course was super-technical, and those who knew it could take advantage of the terrain instead of just responding to it like I had to do.

T2 wasn't quite as bad, but I still lost an entire minute to my other age-groupers. Goddamn it.

The run was, as always, where I struggled. My pace for the 4 miles was 10:30!?! I know that I'm slow, but that is just ridiculous.

I have a ton of endurance right now. I really think that I just need to work on developing some top-end speed. If I can get my pace in the 7:45-8:00 category where I know I can be, get my transitions together, and PRE-RIDE I will become a lot more competitive. It sounds so simple, right?

All Picture are located at the bottom of the page. Please click on the Thumbnail to see a larger photo:

• Nick Mart Item #1 2005 Nissan X-Terra Off-Road Edition

We are selling our Nissan X-Terra because we can no longer fit in it safely with 3 kids.

Selling for $15,500

Great Condition, Under 38 K miles, A/C, V-6 245 H.P. Engine,5 speed Automatic Transmission, 2-WD, Roof Rack, Running Boards, Privacy Glass, AM/FM Radio w/ Single CD, 1 Owner, Great SUV.

• Nick Mart Item #2 2006 ETS Wolff Systems Sunvision Pro 28LE Tanning Bed SOLD!

This Bed Is In "LIKE NEW" Condition, We bought it brand new almost 2 years ago with our tax return and have barely been able to use it.

It has VERY low bulb hours on original bulbs! It has 28 Wolff Velocity Body Bulbs that will last a minimum of 1000 Hours of use. (only 80 hours on them now)
It uses a 20 Amp 220 Volt Outlet.

Sunvision series 7ft 28 lamp commercial bed.

NEW MSRP: Price: $4,699

This is what Sunvision has to say about this model:

The Sunvision 28LE tanning bed provides unmatched tanning versatility. The Sunvision 28LE is one of our most versatile tanning beds. The Sunvision 28LE tanning bed would make a great revenue addition to your hair or nail salon.

Selling for $1900
Best for Local Pick-up but will be willing to deliver within specific locations for an additional charge. Buyer is free to arrange their own personal pick up and delivery as well.

Hier mal eine Vorschau des XTERRA Austria und darunter der O-See Challenge:

If you're not in the Crit mood, come on up and enjoy the weekend.

This 2000 Nissan Xterra was nice.  I had never driven one before and I liked the looks of it.  It was a confortable ride with lots of interior space.

 My truck was silver, as have been all the vehicles I have had a choice in buying, it was 4 wheel drive. I drove it off the lot and to the stereo installers and put $1500 worth of stereo, speakers, amp and subs in. 

This was the best vehicle I have ever owned. Shortly after I bought it, there was a tropical storm in Houston that did a lot of flooding. The girlfriend was on her way to visit, and had had an uneventful trip until she got within a quarter mile of my apartment. Then she wound up in the water, and her car stalled.  I hopped in the truck and headed out to rescue her. When I left the apartment complex, the security gate swung open and was pushing water. The bottom of it was almost a foot off the ground. When I hit the dip between the driveway and the street, water rolled up the hood almost to the windshield. She never even sputtered. Rescued the girlfriend and went home.

A couple of years and several thousand miles later, I was living in Idaho through the winter. We decided to go for a drive, and found ourselves heading up a mountain road that was never plowed. There was about six inches of packed snow and tire trails, no problem. We got up the canyon a ways and the snow got deeper, and the trail fainter. I put the truck in 4 wheel drive and started looking for a place to turn around. There wasn't anyplace that wasn't unpacked snow that I was fairly certain I would get stuck in. I had no choice but to go to the end of the road where I knew a open parking area was and try to turn around without stopping. The snow pack at the end of the road wasn't as solid as I had hoped, and we had a spooky couple of minutes when I had to rock it back and forth while pushing the top layer of snow with the bumper. But, the X-Terra pulled though and we made it out of the canyon.

A few weeks after that, we were heading up the highway to spend New Years Eve with my family, and there was a nasty snow storm. A wet, sticky snow was falling, and turning to slush on ice on the highway. As we approached a small town that the highway went down the middle of, a car came around a corner headed straight for us, sideways. There was no way to avoid it, we hit. $10,000 worth of damage to my truck, but she survived and kept running. Totalled the other car.

So my truck had been through three feet of water, two feet of snow and one Saturn SL2. And she was still running.

Moved back to Texas, and wound up with a job 50 miles away from home. We didn't move closer for various reasons, so I was putting 100 miles a day on my truck. The only complaint I had about my truck was the gas mileage. I was budgeting $400 a month in gas, since this all happened post Hurricane Katrina. My truck had over 160,000 miles on it, I had to do something.

I went and found a car that got twice the mileage, and the payment was low enough that with the gas savings, I was only spending about $60 more than I was, and I had a more reliable vehicle. I had just spent $2500 after a busted timing belt, and I could tell the transmission was about to fail as well. So I traded in my truck.

I don't have the attachment to the new car that I had with my truck. The truck was my truck, the car feels like a rental. Just something to drive because I have to.

I wish I hadn't traded it in, I could have kept it and still made the payments. I miss my truck.