The Stevenson Family blogs

Senior Year Updates

Thu, 6 May 2010 19:44:31 -0400

With about three weeks left in my last year of high school, I decided it was time for some updates on what's going on in my life!

My final season of Outdoor Track & Field is coming to a close, with only two meets left- the County and Regional meets. Both the QO girls and boys teams finished second in their Division this year, each only losing one meet each!
Around the end of April, our sprint relay teams and several Seniors (including myself) traveled up to the University of Pennsylvania to compete in and watch the world-famous Penn Relays. Those two days of watching some of the best college and international athletes compete in the sport I love was an awesome experience! And yes, we did get to witness the incredible speed of Usain Bolt, who anchored his leg of the Jamaican 4x100 relay in 8.97 seconds to lead them to victory over the American team. There's nothing like experiencing 40,000 of the most enthusiastic track fans out there go crazy the second he walked onto the track and struck his famous "lightning bolt" pose.

My team and me at the 2010 Penn Relays

In other news, I have made my official college decision and will be headed to Auburn University this fall! My intended major is Zoology, with a Pre-Veterinary concentration.

R & G Tail Tidy - Awful Product

Mon, 24 Aug 2009 10:33:13 -0400

I installed a tail tidy (fender eliminator) tonight on the 2006 Triumph Sprint ST. There are a couple of products out there for the Sprint and it appears that I chose poorly. The troubles began trying to purchase the thing from Bike Bits Distribution, a trading unit of Hog Heaven LLC. The commerce site was something out of the 90's. I had no way of knowing what shipping costs were prior to entering my credit card number, a definite no-no. They finally replied to an email after a couple of days and I purchased the product.

Trying to get the thing on my bike was an exercise that took far too long, the instructions were awful and the piece fit poorly, requiring a Dremel tool and a drill before the thing was mounted with the turn signals hanging loosely due to poor fit.

Do not buy the Tail Tidy from R & G.

Kenwood TM-V71A Tacoma Install

Sun, 23 Aug 2009 22:57:05 -0400

A pictorial of a recent installation of a Kenwood TM-V71A dual-band amateur radio in my 2006 Toyota Tacoma Double Cab. It is my desire to use this radio for cross-band repeating during amateur emergency service and also while foot mobile. Since I live near a major city it is important that I have the transceiver hidden and the control head easily removable. One of the challenges (or features) of the installation is that the Kenwood, unlike other remote head radios, has the mic connector on the transceiver instead of the remote faceplate.

The installation goals included having 1) a hidden install with wires and cables properly and safely routed 2) the transciever remotely mounted and 3) an easily reversible install with no holes drilled or cuts made.

The antenna is a Larsen KG2/70CXPL glass mount type dual-band that covers 2m and 440 Mhz.

Here is the interior piece of the antenna and the beginning of the coax routing down the rear passenger side:

The coax was able to be tucked under the edge without the need to remove the panel:

Removing the rear, passenger side scuff plate (and most other pieces or interior plastics) was simply a matter of applying firm, constant upward pressure until what Toyota calls the "claws" release:

The antenna coax safely tucked in amongst the truck's cable bundle. Notice that I made use of the existing clamps:

The coax cable runs under the plastic panel to the front door. Again, removal of the scuff plate involved a firm, constant upward pressure until the claws released. This picture shows the coax being routed below the carpet under the seat toward the eventual mounting location:

Here the power cable is shown with the transceiver end shoved under the carpet toward the mounting location under the seat:

The power cable is also safely tucked in with the existing bundle and routed under the clamps toward the front of the truck:

Under the kick panel, toward the dash/firewall and waiting for connection to the wires routed from the battery:

Starting at the battery side with the power wires, attached to a grounding point close to the battery and the positive battery terminal:

Running the DC power alongside an existing wire bundle that traverses the engine compartment:

The pass-thru location for the power wires. Toyota truly thinks of everything as this opening seems to serve no other purpose than to provide a location for running power to a ham radio:

How perfect is that?

The grommet after drilling a large enough hole for the wires. It is not easy drilling a piece of rubber...

Poking a hole in the sound absorbent material on the other side of the firewall:

Completing the power wire run across the engine compartment:

Taking the DC power into the interior of the truck. The wires from the battery side were connected to the cable previously routed from the mounting location.

Now it is time to mount the ham radio. The mounting idea was to place the rig under the seat but off of the floor. Besides the environmental issue of dirt and dust on the carpet, mounting a radio on the floor exposes it to more vibration, possible kicking and makes vacuuming more difficult. In addition, in the Tacoma, floor mounting the radio would place it directly in line with a heating duct.

Seat mounting in the Toyota Tacoma is simply four large bolts so removing the seat was easy. Here you see the seat pivoted back as removing the seat would have entailed the removal of a set of wires and clamps:

A shot of the aforementioned heating duct under the seat with the coax and wires coming through the hole in the carpet:

Looks kinda cramped to be mounting a radio on the bottom of the seat huh?

I relocated one wire bundle and its clamp to an existing hole toward the edge of the seat, opening up some room on the bottom of the seat cushion.

Next, the radio's mounting bracket was zip-stripped to the metal webbing on the bottom of the seat cushion. My original idea was to use small hose clamps but that did not work. And yes, I know the picture is blurry. You try laying half inside a truck on your back in the front floor and take a picture of the bottom of the seat and get proper focus :-)

A couple of shots of the Kenwood TM-V71A dual-band ham radio mounted on the underside of the passenger side seat:

Now it's time to run the cable for the remote faceplate. The rear console has to be removed in order to slide the front console backward far enough to route the wiring. The shifter faceplate and the cup holder use the same claw mounting as the door scuffplates, just pull them up firmly.

The control head cable is from the center console area, under the carpet toward the opening below the seat and connected to the transceiver:

The other end of the control head cable is routed safely through the center console section, again following existing wire bundles and ensuring that it is not near the movement of the shifter levers, gears, and cables.

The cable exits at the front of the console area directly under the radio and climate controls:

Once the front portion of the center console is back in place the control head cable causes a slight gap in the plastic, but it is not necessary to drill or cut to route the cable.

I have yet to decide the exact mounting technique for the remote faceplate so for now it will sit in the front console loose. Update: The faceplate is, for now, attached to the console using velcro tape on the back mounting base. We'll see how long that lasts.

The radio power-checks okay and with the external antenna installation the RF check can soon take place.

The microphone cable was routed out from under the seat and I leave the microphone laying on the center console.

Put the console pieces back on, secure the seat and the installation is complete.

The entire set of pictures of the installation can be found on my Flickr account.

The total installation time was roughly 4 hours, but your time may vary as I had all the tools and parts I needed on hand.

Lessons:

Toyota makes trucks that are easy to work on. Some engineer designed this with that concept in mind.
There are two ways of doing most everything - the right way and the lazy way.
After spending this amount of time on the install I need to 1) keep the truck for a while and 2) get on the air more
This stuff is fun!

To learn more about amateur radio, go the American Radio Relay League.

2009 DC Cycle World International Motorcycle Show

Mon, 12 Jan 2009 12:02:22 -0500

I went to the 2009 DC Cycle World International Motorcycle Show at the convention center this past weekend and indulged in two of my passions - motorcycles and photography,

After learning last year that taking pictures with a bajillion people climbing on the bikes is difficult I decided to go into the city on Friday night. The results are clear pictures of most everything there. Next year- a better flash for for improved images.

Above: Honda's new DN-01 was the first bike one saw upon entering the show. I think Honda realizes that its riders are getting older and they are designing bikes that, while not a true step-through, are a mix between large scooters and "true" motorcycles.

I think that this year's changes on the cutting-edge sportbikes are mostly cosmetic. I didn't notice anything radically different about the hardware on the Japanese crotch rockets. It seems like only Ducati is coming up with technology changes.

I did take note of the fact that many manufacturers are adding "custom" touches to their lineups, both cruiser and sport. Perhaps the wild success of shops satisfying cutomers' desires to make a bike their own is driving this trend.

The best example of this was at the Victory booth, everything there looked like a custom-made bike. Nobody is innovating like Victory right now. Accordingly, on Saturday I saw more people trial-sitting their bikes than any other brand.

Above: Ducati's are quite simply works of art, there is no other way to describe these machines. You look at them at see a design that is beautiful and as you stand there mesmerized you note that they are all outfitted with Brembo brakes, Ohlins suspension, and Marchesini wheels. These things aren't just pretty, they perform as well.

Harley is going Orange.

Somebody in their marketing department obviously mentioned that people identify that Orange with Harley. One wonders exactly how long HD can continue to sell bikes based on a personna.

The first re-style of the Yamaha V-Max in twenty years comes this year.

As before, the thing looks like it's all engine:

After twenty years of pretendin', the side scoops are now functional.

As always, the customs and the oldies were there. I just didn't feel like taking pictures of 'em this year.

The entire photoset can be found here.

Graduation Announcements

Wed, 21 May 2008 21:02:19 -0400

As many of you know, I'm graduating very soon. I lost my list of people to send announcements to, so some people got announcements and some haven't.

If you have not yet received an announcement, please email me here and include your mailing address. Thanks!

Chipotle Burrito

Sun, 22 Jul 2007 16:15:09 -0400

Think about this next time you go to Chipotle and order a burrito:

13" Flour Tortilla

Rice
Black Beans

Barbacoa (5oz)

Tomato Salsa
Corn Salsa

Cheese
Sour Cream
Lettuce
Chips

Chipotle Nutrition Facts
Serving Size: 1 Burrito


Amount Per Serving

Calories 1835	Calories from Fat 642

% DV*

Total Fat 72g

Saturated Fat 24g

Cholesterol 144mg

Sodium 3908mg

Total Carbohydrate 219g

Dietary Fiber 18.5g

Sugars 10g

Protein 76g


Vitamin A 147%

Vitamin C 70%

Calcium 59%

Iron 40%

Try it yourself with this calculator

Jeff Stevenson
jxs2151
.

As a Matter of Fact...

Wed, 11 Jul 2007 22:05:49 -0400

If you are one of those drivers that plants yourself in the left lane, riding along at 60 mph and not feeling the least bit compelled to move over and let a faster vehicle pass, then yes I am one of those bikers that "weaves in and out of traffic" as I go around you.

Jeff Stevenson
jxs2151
.

Meetup.com Group Ride to Thurmont and Vicinity

Tue, 1 May 2007 12:28:42 -0400

Went riding with the The Rockville MD/VA/DC Motorcycle Riders Meetup Group Saturday.

We rode the backroads east of 270 north to Thurmont, MD, stopping to eat at the Cozy Inn & Restaurant before proceeding west across Cacoctin Mountain on Rt. 77. From there we ended up at High Rock, near Camp David.

Check out this panoramic view from High Rock, looking out on Great Valley:

http://www.potomacwatershed.net/resource/antimono/hirkasse.html

Here's a shot of me at High Rock, standing as close to the edge as I am going to get when the dropoff is several hundred feet.

All the pictures from the ride can be found here.

.
Jeff Stevenson
.

Seeing The Broader Picture

Mon, 30 Apr 2007 16:20:11 -0400

Former UN Sectretary-General Kofi Annan recalled that when he was in school in Ghana, the headmaster Francis Bartels had once “put a broad sheet of white paper on the wall, with a little black dot in the right-hand corner, and asked, ‘Boys, what do you see?’” The boys shouted in unison, “A black dot.”

Bartels then admonished them, “So not a single one of you saw the broad white sheet of paper. You only saw the black dot. This is the awful thing about human nature. People never see the goodness of things and the broader picture. Don’t go through life with that attitude.”

.
Jeff Stevenson
.

March 25th Meetup.com Motorcycle Ride

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 16:41:46 -0500

Spent today riding with a great group of guys (and a girl) from The Rockville MD / VA / DC Motorcycle Riders Meetup Group. One group started in Olney, VA and we all met on Dock Street in Annapolis.

From there our group of ten rode to Tilghman Island, MD where we ate lunch at The Bridge Restaurant. Then it was back to DC in the Ocean City traffic.

All the pictures from the ride can be found here.

The quality may seem a little off since they were taken with the cell phone camera. Don't even ask how I got the moving, on-the-road pics.....it's probably not legal.

.

Do you care enough to show up?

Fri, 2 Mar 2007 12:17:46 -0500

On March 17th, the Anti-America crowd is planning a march in DC. International Answer, a group with known links to International Marxism-Lenism (www.discoverthenetwork.org) is organizing a march to the Pentagon to call for an immediate surrender in Iraq, the impeachment of President Bush and Vice President Cheney, etc. Their planned march will take them past several memorials to our military. The last time this bunch showed up in DC they defaced the Capitol Building and desecrated the Lone Sailor statue that stands watch at the U.S. Navy Memorial.

This time it will be different. Several military veterans organizations are committed to protecting the sanctity of our memorials and are organizing to counter the Anti-American crowds impact on DC. A Gathering of Eagles is the main group and information can be found on their website.

Do you care enough to spend your Saturday standing with the veterans who defend our country?

.

A Father's Love

Mon, 13 Nov 2006 12:30:14 -0500

First view this:

CAN - Father & son bond of Dick and Rick Hoyt

Then go read the story:

Team Hoyt History

Then view a longer video:

Team Hoyt

Then, sit down and think.

.

Dear Future Me

Mon, 6 Nov 2006 17:23:01 -0500

If you could bury a time capsule what would you put in it? What would you say? Would you even want to say something to yourself in the future that could possibly affect the way you think about things then?

If you could email yourself up to thirty years in the future would you? You would need an email address you are sure would still be working thirty years from now. You would need a service that could send the email.

If you are intested in the fascinating prospect of sending yourself an email that would be delivered tomorrow, next month, next year, or fifteen or thirty years in the future check out http://futureme.org/index.php

And thirty years from now you can thank me for pointing this out to you.

.

DC Photo Trip #2

Sat, 28 Oct 2006 09:09:01 -0400

Beth had a photography class assignment and the topic was "architecture" so what better place to go than into DC?

I took this picture of her taking a shot of the beautiful neoclassical columns that front the National Archives building.

.

Summit Point Track Day

Sun, 24 Dec 2006 18:31:34 -0500

Luis Bruder and I went to Summit Point Motorsports Park today to watch a motorcycle track day. This event, sponsored by the Northeast Sportbike Association (NESBA), allows riders to "enhance their riding skills in a safe, track environment without the pressure of a race event." Not sure if this is something I want to do next year but it looked darn interesting. Anyone got a cheap 600 they wanna sell me for a track bike?

Tons of pics are here.

Feel free to download and do with as you wish. Yeah, I know some of the images are slightly out of focus and not centered, but you try to catch a motorcycle in a curve doing 90 mph while you are panning the camera at full zoom. It's hard to do and the autofocus doesn't keep up. I mostly did a manual focus on a certain point of the track and panned to that spot, tracking the bike and tried to snap at the proper focus point.

I did not do any digital adjustments to the images. If they appear dark, run 'em through Photoshop and adjust.

If you want to make prints it is best to download the largest image size. Click the image you want in Flickr, select "All Sizes", then select "Original (3072 x 2048)", right-click the image and save it.

If you like the pictures take some time to drop me a note.

.