Remember going back to school and having to get in front of the class and tell everyone what you did last summer? Well I am not done with summer yet but school's in so here are a few adventures from a busy summer.
I can't pack the whole summer in 1 post so this one will cover Brewing, Golf, Martial Arts and Sailing.
Brewing!
As one might expect from the Blockchain Beerologist, there were a few batches of beer brewed for a thirsty summer. Namely, amber ale, cream ale, a peach rhubarb session ale and my favourite New England IPA.
One addition to the operation this summer was our new mash paddle! The big brewer was too hard to stir properly with the big stainless spoon so we had a woodworker craft one up with speed holes! So great to brew with the garage door open in the warm sunny summer days.
Speaking of which, I am enjoying one of the IPAs right now. Pretty damn close to the ideal one which I believe is a delicate balance between sweet and bitter, hazy but crisp, with a touch of malt body at 6.3% ABV.
Even the brewery dog seems to enjoy the weather. Summer is for brewing too.
Golf!
We started the year out strong with weekly indoor golf sessions while waiting for the spring to come. Though it wasn't our golfiest summer, we got out 6 times at different courses each time. We were ready for a big golf season and the big guy here set the season on fire. Most of our rounds were with our head brewer who likes to swing 110% all the time.
This is one of the challenging holes at River Valley Golf course nearby. Relatively inexpensive and out of the way but stuffed away in a forest on the side of a river. Here, you can try to swing towards the green but there are 3 fat hardwoods right in your way. The drop to the cart path is quite substantial and hitting it hard to the right gets you in all sorts of trouble. This game is supposed to be FUN!
Here is another grossly elevated tee. This time, it overlooks cottage country in the Haliburton Highlands. The yellow of the tee box is not an optical illusion as it was dry enough for a fire ban and the green down below was one of the only green parts of the course. I hit it slightly short and just to the right of the green so I escaped the rough stuff.
There was a little drama on the course as a tournament got a little out of hand. You can rest assured I behaved properly but some didn't in this wild tournament which actually resulted in a police investigation. I guess golf can be a little wild too! Perfect summer activity I long for all winter.
Martial Arts
The main reason I am putting this here is because I didn't train enough martial arts this summer. Sure there were plenty of out of town adventures and summer activities. That doesn't excuse the lack of training I did. Only a few times among all the other fun.
The good news is I have a membership at the best school in the region and a lifelong commitment to training. I don't fancy myself as a killer and have to commit more to tournament fighting but I think my life will be way better and last longer when I never stop training Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Should be some fun stories as I return to regular training this month.
Sailing!
Can you think of a more summery activity than racing sailboats? Until this summer, it had been since before covid that I had a boat to sail on and a crew to be a part of. The big man went all in on a racing sailboat as it was time to put the band back together.
We won the J27 North American Championships a number of years ago and now we are the rag tag crew of hull number 6 of 5 of a J90. It is a whole new boat with all new crew tactics to be developed so we are starting humble this year.
It might take us a few years to get back into contention but the summers spent on Lake Ontario working things out are more than worth it. So much to learn and these guys are a pile of fun.
What better summer activity than getting out on the water, trying to make the boat go fast while testing yourself physically, and drinkin' beer with the boys? So happy to be back sailing again as a great summer pastime.
Until Next Time...
I have more summer episodes coming up with adventures in cottaging, gardening, brewery tours, music and much more. Summer is something special up here when we only get 3 months of it and I have many more summer stories to share.
Thanks for checking in & sharing my summer adventure!
