I Googled Myself

I googled myself today.  It's been a loooooong time since the last time I've googled my name, but I know that THIS SITE was not the winner.  But it's the winner now.

While reading my name doppelganger's bio, I realized something interesting:  if you replace every religious figure's proper name with "cycling" or similar, then his bio could be my bio!  For example, here's a sentence from his bio:

     After receiving the powerful gift of the Holy Ghost, Jeff had a fresh, new outlook on life.

If you follow my biography replacement rule, this becomes:

     After receiving the powerful gift of cycling, Jeff had a fresh, new outlook on life.

There's one particular sentence where my biography replacement rule doesn't quite work:

     As Jeff’s love for God began to grow, his love for people followed suit.

As my love for cycling began to grow, I stayed the same cantankerous jerk that I've always been.  Just ask Victoria!

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYBODY!  SEE YOU NEXT YEAR!

Taking A Bath in the Fiesta Bowl

We have been Texas Longhorns football season ticket holders since 2005.  In 2005, due to my own screw-up, we didn't apply for tickets to the 2006 Rose Bowl.  Of course, Texas beat USC and was the national champion.  Since then, we've applied for tickets to the bowl games, and have received them every year.  The following season, the Longhorns played Iowa in the Alamo Bowl.  I sold 2 tickets, and Victoria and I attended the game with the remaining 2 tickets.  After the 2007 season, the Longhorns played Arizona State in the Holiday Bowl.  Due to the difficulty and expense of travel, I sold all 4 tickets and made a small profit.  It was a good 3 year run, with the exception of the debacle of missing the national championship game.

This year, I applied for bowl tickets again, just as in previous years.  Except this year, there was a really good chance that the Longhorns would be playing in the Orange Bowl for the national championship.  Instead, they are playing in the Fiesta Bowl against Ohio State.  It's still a great game, but it's not the national championship.  On December 15, I found out that we had been able to purchase four tickets to the 2009 Fiesta Bowl, and would receive them in the next few days.

Due to the difficulty and expense of travelling to the Phoenix area for the game, I decided to sell all four tickets.  I had paid face value of $135 each, or a total of $540 plus $20 service charge.  I listed the tickets on eBay, with a reserve price that was still a loss:  $500 for all four tickets.  The auction only reached $400, so nobody won the auction.  The same day, a friend of a friend expressed interest, but then backed out after a day of thinking and calling other friends.  I relisted on eBay, and this time the market was even worse:  the tickets sold for a total of $220.  Yes, I lost $320 on the tickets, plus the $20 service charge to buy the tickets, and another $25 to ship the tickets to the buyer.  In total, a net loss of $365.

Sadly, today I shipped the 4 tickets to the buyer, who appears to be a ticket broker.  It has been a tough year for the Longhorns, and a tough year for me.

Feel the Love

I don't get paid by Chainlove, but I love their site and have bought lots of stuff from them at deep discounts.  If you don't know about the site, they offer one item at a time and for a limited time, so you have to pay attention or you'll miss a great deal.

My latest bargain is a pair of Northwave Aerator 3 shoes (see below photo).  I got them for $54.99 plus $5.70 in shipping.  The cheapest competitor's price I've found is $99.99 from Performance Bike.  What a bargain!

These aren't the best shoes, but I bought them to use for spin class, and they'll work great.  Carbon soles, very good ventilation, and a comfortably snug fit.  Can't wait to try them out when I'm in Austin at the gym.

McAllen Slogans

Several months ago I posted ten good things about the Rio Grande Valley.  I didn't mean to mislead you, as it isn't all sunny skies and sweet smelling roses down here.  I was reminded of that today, when I read a McAllen Monitor article about the city of McAllen's effort to choose a new slogan.  The readers' comments and suggestions for slogans crack me up.  Here are a few of my favorites...

McAllen -- San Antonio's Ugly Sister

McAllen -- The Home of Obesity and Diabetes

McAllen -- Well at Least it's not Laredo

McAllen -- The B@ll$ of Texas (ed. note -- in contrast to the Heart of Texas)

McAllen -- North Reynosa, Tamaulipas

McAllen -- We Got all the Chain Restaurants

McAllen -- City of 10000 Taquerias

McAllen -- Where Mexico Comes to Shop and Throw Garbage

If you doubt any of these, please give me a call when you're in the area, and I'll show you a few definitive, supporting examples.

Fun with Pre-Ride Flat Repairs

Yesterday I went to one of the local bike shops and bought a new set of Michelin Pro3 tires and two tubes.  As mentioned in my previous post, I had a flat due to a hole in the rear tire, so it was time to replace them.  I took Betsy with me to the bike shop, and let her choose the tire color; rather, she could choose between blue and gray.  My bike is black and silver with the most subtle of blue accent in the paint, so I usually choose black or gray tires.  Betsy's favorite color is blue, so guess which color tires I bought?  In case you can't see the subtle hint of blue, I've included a close up photo too.

FLAT REPAIR

I wanted to meet some Team McAllen folks for a ride at 10am, so at 9am I headed out to the garage to change out the tires.  I pulled the rear wheel, removed the tire and tube, and found not just the original hole, but a very large cut AND a piece of metal stuck through the tire.  I threw out the tire and tube, and mounted the new tire and tube.  I put a few pounds of pressure in the tire, checked for pinches, then inflated it to 115 PSI.  I put it back on the bike, then moved to the front tire.

I pulled the front tire and tube, and threw them both away even though the tube had no leaks of which I was aware.  I mounted the new tire and tube, put a few pounds of pressure in the tire, then watched the gauge on the pump drop as the air leaked out of the tube.  I pumped it back to about 50 PSI, and could hear a leak near the valve.  Drat.  I checked my bike area in the garage, and had no extra tubes.  What?  I ran upstairs, and got my spare tube out of my ride kit.  I ran back downstairs, mounted the new tube and tire, and it held air.  Sweet!

It was then that I noticed the just-replaced REAR tire was almost flat.  I pumped it up again, but couldn't hear any leaks.  And now I was out of spare tubes.  I threw the bike in the truck, drove the 1 mile to the ride start location, hoping that someone would have a tube I could borrow.  At 10:05a, I decided to go back home and dig the good rear tube out of the trash.  I got it, drove back to the start point, changed the tube again, and all was good.  4 tubes changed in the span of an hour, plus a previously unmentioned chain removal, cleaning, and installation.  While frustrated with the need to change 4 tubes, I think my splits were pretty good!

Best I can guess is that I had a bad batch of tubes.  I'll take them back to the LBS and see if I can get a refund.  And I'll be sure and order a dozen tubes so that I'll be better prepared next time.

POST FLAT RIDE

The weather for today was supposed to be in the lower 70s by 12pm.  Since I was riding at 10am, I figured that my normal short sleeve kit with knee warmers and arm warmers would be sufficient.  At the last minute, I decided to replace the arm warmers with a long sleeve wicking undershirt.  I froze the entire ride.  The temp was in the upper 40s, and the humidity was near 90%, making it feel even more cold and damp.  Additionally, the sun was hidden behind a thick layer of clouds.  My fingers were cold, my toes were cold, and my arms were cold.  I was miserable, but the riding was good.

In hindsight, I should have worn my winter socks, full length tights, full finger gloves, winter jersey with undershirt, and skully cap under my helmet.  Yes, it was that cold to me.  And you cold weather folks -- leave me alone.  Also, I know -- a smarter rider would have simply walked outside and gauged the weather instead of relying on weather forecasts.

I decided to just do an hour of riding loops in Granjeno.  I pushed fairly hard, averaging 19.1 MPH over 19.1 miles (yes, exactly an hour of ride time if you round off the digits).  Since I wasn't drafting and the wind was low, I'm pretty happy with the results.

Lastly, as most cyclists will tell you -- all rides are good, but some are better than others.  This one was good, and would have been better if I had worn the right clothing and not had to change 4 flats before starting.

Christmas Gift Idea Part I

If you're still shopping for a Christmas gift for that special someone, you might try jewelry.  Here's a link to a great video on the subject, with credit to MeMo for pointing me in the right direction.

Chased by the Cold

I woke up this morning for what is becoming my weekly ride -- the Sunday Team McAllen ride.  I occasionally have been squeezing in a ride during the week, but mostly I've been going to the gym.  I was looking forward to a good, strong ride.

The forecast had predicted fog, so I hadn't planned on riding to the ride start point.  It was indeed foggy, and I was glad I had slept a little late instead of risking the danger of riding in the pre-dawn hours in the fog.  As I loaded the bike into my truck, I realized my rear tire was flat.  If you recall last week's ride, I had a flat towards the end of the ride.  It was due to a pinhole in the tire, and during this last week I hadn't replaced the tire or put any kind of liner between the tire and tube.  I wasn't surprised that it was flat again, and decided to change it at the Burger King start point.  I didn't have an extra tire, but I threw an extra tube and CO2 in my kit bag, and headed north in the fog.

When I reached Burger King, I changed the flat, lining the tire with a dollar bill to prevent another flat.  I had some help, and as he pumped the tire to full pressure, I wasn't really paying much attention.  I told him to pump to 120 (I was riding on Vredestein Fortezza TriComps), and as he reached that point the tube burst explosively.  Good thing I brought a back-up.  We changed it again, and that time it held.  It was most likely a tube pinch, and I paid close attention the 2nd time, as I was now riding on my last tube.

The team lined up to leave, and temperatures were in the high 60s.  A cold front was predicted to come through around 11am, so we chose to ride north in hopes that the cold front would push us back to Burger King on our way back.  Instead of our normal elite-intermediate-beginner groups, we all rode out together, and headed north.

A group of faster riders broke after 5 miles into the ride.  I really wanted to hammer with them, but due to my flat situation I elected to stay with the large group and the SAG vehicle.  Around 9:00a, we were close to our 20 mile turnaround point.  We could see the dark clouds of the leading edge of the cold front.  We turned south, and like clockwork, we had a strong tailwind courtesy of the pushing cold front.  Sometimes plans do actually work.

The tailwind was nice, but it was cold.  Each time the wind would surge, it would feel like standing in front of the open door of a refrigerator.  The temp was dropping from nearly 70F to 55F, and it was dropping quickly.  Most of us were riding in our summer weight kits, so we hammered hard to keep from getting caught in the cold for too long.  Speeds exceed 30 MPH on one nice stretch of road, but of course we had a strong tailwind.

As I turned into Burger King, covered in gooseflesh, I noticed that the rear tire was getting a little spongy.  The tire and tube had held up just long enough for me to finish 42 miles, averaging 18 MPH.   And although I was cold, it wasn't really that bad.  And before you comment, I mean it was cold for South Texas.  Between outracing the cold and rolling the dice on a 3rd flat tire, I felt pretty good about the ride. 

I hope I can squeeze in one or two more over the holidays, but my priority is obviously going to be family.  And I might not have much time for the blog over the next week or two.  So if you don't hear from me...

HAPPY HOLIDAYS, READERS!

2009 Fiesta Bowl Tickets for Sale

Several weeks ago, before anyone knew in which bowl game Texas would play, I applied as a season ticket holder to purchase tickets.  They're playing Ohio State in the Fiesta Bowl, and I found out this week that I qualified for tickets, so I now have 4 tickets in hand for the January 5, 2009 game.  Unfortunately, between family, financial, scheduling, and professional constraints, we can't attend.

The seats are in Section 449L, near the end zone, and are decent but not great tickets.  I really wish we could attend, but since we can't, I've listed the tickets for sale on eBay.  If one of my 18 loyal readers wants them, please bid.  And if you're looking to buy a house in Mission, Texas, send me an e-mail!

Influenza in the Family

MSince Thanksgiving week, either Lola, Victoria, Betsy, or I have been sick.  Some days, there was overlap, but we haven't all been well at the same time since Thanksgiving.  We've made several trips to the doctor, with varying diagnoses of viral infection or post-viral bacterial infection, but today Victoria took Betsy to the pediatrician and she tested positive for the flu.  And Lola's test came back slightly positive, meaning she's been exposed or is recovering.  That's not really the holiday news we were waiting to receive.

As a result, Betsy will be out of school all week.  Vic, Lola, and I are all on Tamiflu.  If you've ever been prescribed Tamiflu, then perhaps you know that it costs $50 for a 10 pill course.  So we're $150 poorer, hoping that we're all actually recovering from the flu rather than being exposed to it shortly after recovering from something else.

While waiting on prescription, I checked my blood pressure and pulse.  The results were:

The American Heart Association says that anything less than 120/80 mmHg is optimal.  WebMD says well-conditioned athletes have a pulse rate in the 40-60 beat per minute range.   I don't really consider myself a well-conditioned athlete, and I am happy that my efforts are paying off in the form of better health indices.  Considering that I have cardiovascular disease history in my family, I'll keep an eye on these measures, and obviously continue to try to exercise and stay fit.

A Few Gym Observations

The combination of travel and winter weather has limited my cycling opportunities.  I'm glad that my employer subsidizes my gym membership, as it helps me stay fit and keeps me ready to hit the road on the bike when I get the chance.

Anywhere you have a large slice of society, you will see interesting things.  And you will see very strange things.  Here's a few of my recent observations from my mornings in the gym. 

• My gym rents reserved lockers for around $100 per year.  Alternatively, you can use a free locker, which is what I do.  There's a reserved locker near mine that I've seen opened a few times.  It is full of around 2 feet of dirty clothes packed into the bottom.  What the heck?
  
• There's a guy that exercises in the morning, and is always on a treadmill near me.  He walks at about 4 miles per hour, with the incline at 100%, but holds on to the handrail at the front of the treadmill.  He leans back so far that it looks like he's waterskiing, not walking.  Proper form?  No.  Does he sweat and seem to get a good workout?  Yes.
  
• There's this one stupid guy that keeps leaving his toiletry kit on the shelf above one of the sinks.  I saw it happen a few weeks ago, and then again today.  The stupid guy is me.
  

I'm sure I'll see more strange things, but I really hope I don't see that same toiletry kit left in the locker room.

Grass Fire South of San Antonio

Last Friday, Dec 12, I was 2 hours into my 5 hour drive and I saw smoke.  Big smoke.  I saw the first glimpse not far south of the Loop 410 and I-37 interchange.  As I got closer and closer to the smoke, I realized that it was very near the road.  South and Central Texas is in a prolonged drought, and as I drive I-37 every week, I see blackened patches on the roadside, the result of grass fires usually started by cigarettes or sparks from vehicles.  I assumed the source of the smoke would be one of these small grass fires, and wondered if I would be driving next to a fire on the side of the road, or "through" the fire as it burned between the lanes of the interstate.

As I approached, I slowed to a mere 50 MPH, positioned the trusty iPhone behind my severely cracked windshield, and snapped a few iPhotos.  Enjoy.

About a 1/2 Mile Away

About a 1/4 Mile Away

The Flames

Non-Sanctioned Wind Battle

I got up this morning at 5:40a, brushed my teeth, threw on my cycling kit, and jumped on the bike to ride to the Burger King and meet up with my Team McAllen group.  With regard to temperature, it was a beautiful day in the Rio Grande Valley.  It was about 65F when I left, and I finished the ride with the temperature still below 70F.  Unfortunately, we also had typical RGV winds -- 21 MPH from the SSE, gusting to 29 MPH (per Weather.com).  But since we don't have hills, I consider the wind to be the equivalent of a climbing route.  The ride would potentially be tougher than a normal Sunday, but that's part of the fun of cycling.

I rode the 15 miles to the Burger King, and arrived at 6:40a.  The parking lot was empty, even though the ride was scheduled to start at 7:00a.  A few other riders trickled in, and when the Major arrived, he told us that the Team McAllen officers had decided to cancel the ride because of potential safety issues when riding in strong wind.  Those of us that showed up were on our own without SAG, but that was no issue for us.  We pedaled out to do the normal Sunday route.

As you probably guessed, riding north was super duper easy.  And if you've never ridden into a 29 MPH gust, I'll say that...well...it was the opposite of super duper easy.  I ran out of gears when pulling into the wind.  It would move me around on the road if I didn't stay completely focused on my line.  It was impossible to talk to each other without screaming over the wind.  We couldn't hear cars approaching from the rear.  2 riders dropped out of the 7 man group.

Even with all of that seemingly negative wind effect, it was a GREAT ride.  Challenging, well-paced, and with good company.  I even had a flat about a mile from home, and that couldn't bring me down.

Here's a link to the ride details, and here's a summary image if you're not the clickety-click type:

I Got My Rock Moves

During my travels to Austin,  I typically wake up at 5:30a, get dressed in lightweight indoor workout clothes, then drive to Pure Austin Fitness to exercise.  I then shower at the gym, get dressed, and go to work.  This week, it has been very cold in the morning, and I decided to exercise in the hotel gym instead of at Pure Austin in order to avoid walking outside in thin shorts and shirt. 

I typically don’t like hotel gyms.  But this week, I got a good deal at the Sheraton, and since it’s a nicer hotel, it has nice facilities:  cardio room, weight room, and plenty of equipment with integrated TVs.  But when it’s not what you’re accustomed to, exercise equipment can be an adventure.

Here’s a taste of what I’ve experienced this week:

• My typical routine is to run 30 minutes at 6 mph on a treadmill.  I usually pick the interval program so that the incline varies and hopefully I build a little muscle.  But honest to goodness, I can’t figure out the programs on the hotel treadmills.  I tried.  And tried again.  In the end, I just adjusted things manually, which I hate to do as I don’t really like a lot of machine interaction during a run.  It feels like trying to swat a fly while drinking a glass of milk.
  
• The treadmill has a TV monitor mounted on front.  Like a greyhound chasing a fake rabbit, I subconsciously chased the television image.  At 6 mph I bumped by belly against the front bar of the machine several times, so I finally bumped the speed to 7 mph.  That was a big enough jump that I quit bumping, but now my legs are a little sore.  I guess that’s actually a good thing!
  
• This morning I skipped the treadmill and used the stair machine (the kind with pedals that go up and down, not actual rotating stairs).  I haven’t used a stair machine in years.  It was actually a pretty enjoyable workout.  My main issue is technique – is it better to take short, quick, shallow steps, or to maximize pedal travel and take deep, slower steps?  Conservation of energy implies it doesn’t matter, but I’m probably missing something in my analysis.
  
• While working out I watched a channel I rarely watch:  VH1.  I don't really listen to pop music, so it was all brand new to me.  Like this video, sung by a dude that sounds like the lead singer of lots of popular bands that I can't name.  Then I saw the video of Pink's 'So What'.  She seems just nutty enough to be interesting.  And I like the lyric "I got my rock moves".  I'll be using that as my own catch phrase effective immediately.
  

Tomorrow I think I'll try to brave the semi-cold temps and do a lunchtime ride.  This indoor gym junk can only tide me over for a little while.

Happy Birthday Pa-Paw!

Today, December 9, is my grandfather's birthday.  I called Pa-Paw tonight, and we talked for awhile about his happy day -- shrimp and catfish for lunch and the weather, mainly.  He's over 80, and starting to suffer from Alzheimer's, so every conversation is a blessing.  

The whole family was home for Thanksgiving this year.  With me traveling from the Rio Grande Valley to Austin every week, an extra trip to Houston wasn't at the top of my list.  But family is important, and I'm glad that we were able to go.  I'm very thankful that we were able to see my grandparents, and to get this photo of Pa-Paw and Lola.  I'm also thankful to my dear wife Victoria for reminding me to call Pa-paw, and that every minute with him is important.

Belated Photos from the Awareness Ride for Cancer

A few weeks ago, I wrote about the Awareness Ride for Cancer.  It was the first event that I rode with the family.  Unfortunately, I didn't have any photos at that time, but one of the event sponsors sent me a couple of photos.

Betsy and I Riding the Trailer Bike Rig

Lola and Me after the Ride

Post Ride Pizza Slice

Thanks to Celines for the photos!  I can't wait to do this ride again, but hopefully with Betsy riding her own bike or with a real tandem. 

Chilly Toys for Tots Ride

Yesterday was the 3rd Annual Toys for Tots Ride, sponsored by Team McAllen and Bicycle World.  I rode this ride last year, and remember it because I was completely out of shape and was dropped by the group, and left to fight the wind on my own.

This year I'm in much better shape, so getting dropped wasn't going to happen.  What was unusual about today was the temperature.  It was cold by Rio Grande Valley standards.  50F at the start of the ride, with high humidity making it feel much colder.  Here's the chronology of the ride in terms of clothing:

1. Leave home at 7:15a wearing 'normal' RGV cycling clothing:  bibs and short sleeve jersey.
   
2. Arrive at ride start.  Decide to wear arm warmers, knee warmers, and skull cap.
   
3. Ride bike around parking lot.  Decide to wear full finger glove liners under half finger gloves.  Also decide to put on my heavy winter vest.
   
4. Ride starts.  After first 5 miles, actually wish I had on warmer gloves and shoe covers.
   
5. Ride next 15 miles to turnaround point.  Take off all layers except bibs and short sleeve jersey.
   
6. Feel great for the rest of the ride.

That's the RGV for you.  By the time I delayered, it was probably 70F already.  It hit 80F in the afternoon!

Here's the link to the ride stats.  Quick summary:  37 miles, 18.2 average mph.  Easy ride, and decent pace.  I'll take it any day.

Having Fun Getting a Tooth Repaired

I have a brother who is 2 years younger than I am.  I don't know about the experience of other brothers, but we were very competitive.  Anything we did was a contest -- who can get the highest score in Super Mario Brothers, who can hit the ball farther, who can insult the other the best.  I'm not proud of it, but our competitiveness often led to arguments, which often ended in the ultimate contest -- who can fight the best.  I don't think fighting is the right way to solve problems, but that's the way we were.

I enrolled in the University of Houston in 1988, and my brother followed 2 years later.  We lived together in a garage apartment that was probably 500 square feet.  We had bunk beds, as 2 beds wouldn't fit in the apartment.  We continued to be competitive, and to argue, and sometimes fight.  During one particularly bad fight, I broke my right rear upper molar.  Luckily, no root was exposed, and the dentist repaired it by putting in some sort of filling.

The filling lasted almost 20 years.  It broke out last week when I bit into a Peanut M&M that contained a surprise shell or other hard object.  Yesterday, I had it repaired.  What's amazing is how it was repaired:

• I was given an injection to numb the tooth.
  
• The remaining filling material was ground out, as were the rough edges of the broken tooth.
  
• Some sort of fluoride layer was applied to the tooth to enhance the tooth strength.
  
• Several digital photos of the tooth were taken, loaded into a specially designed computer with equally special software.
  
• The dentist used the software to create a model of the tooth, and of a porcelain insert that would rebuild the missing, broken section of tooth.
  
• The model was downloaded to a small milling machine, and the insert was machined there in the office.
  
• The insert was then 'glued' into place and cleaned up.
  

I'm an engineer by training and education, and this process amazed me.  I watched the entire 12 minute milling process, and took the below photo with my iPhone.  I had to add comments, as the image is obscured by water droplets on the cover of the milling machine.

I understand that this is one of the nerdiest, strangest posts ever.  It's probably in 2nd place behind my Falfurrias Butter post.  I don't care.  This process was very cool, took barely 2 hours, and I had barely any discomfort, and no pain.  It was almost enjoyable!

Rich Creamery Butter

A post about butter?  From a guy that writes mainly about cycling?  It's true.

I've never bought Falfurrias Butter, but I've seen it on the shelves at HEB.  The retro packaging and odd name drew my attention, but I don't think I ever bought any.  I never really thought about it until I moved to the Rio Grande Valley, and started driving through Falfurrias.  Last Sunday, as I drove through at sunset, I snapped this photo with my iPhone.

Once I move to Austin, I doubt I'll give another thought to Falfurrias Butter.  Then again, I might actually buy some in honor of our time in the RGV.

Very Belated Longhorns Post

On Thanksgiving, I decided to risk divorce and total familial alienation and attend the Texas Longhorns football game against the Texas A&M Aggies.  My brother and I left my parents' house around 2:30p, and drove to Houston to pick up a friend at the Love's Truck Stop in Waller, TX.  While there, I spotted this display of Aggie paraphernalia:

I bet this stuff was marked down even lower after the Longhorns beat the Aggies 49-9.  

The win mattered, but it didn't matter enough, as Oklahoma outranks Texas in the BCS rankings even though Texas beat them 45-35, head-to-head, on neutral ground.  As a result, they will play Missouri in the Big 12 championship, which means Texas will have to watch two teams that they beat play for the Big 12 title.  I'm not happy about this travesty of the Big 12 tiebreaker and the BCS, but I agree with Mack Brown:  "It is what it is. We don't like it, we don't agree with it or think it's fair, but, like anything else, we'll handle it and move forward."  I hope it gets handled by Missouri beating the stuffing out of the Sooners, and Texas getting the invite to play Alabama in the national championship game.

And lastly, lest the cult of Aggie be angered by the clearance sale, here's a little respect.  I've always been very impressed by the Aggie Band.  They are a thrill to watch, unlike those goofball milkmen-prison trusty-house painters that wave their hands around and lead Aggiedom in what is politely referred to as 'yells'.  So here's a photo of the Aggie Band marching in Darrell K. Royal Memorial Stadium.  Enjoy, as you won't see it again for two years.