Are You Fit?

 

Visit #1447, Saturday 14 October 23, 7:00-9:00AM, 4.9 miles, 2.0 lbs. of litter.

Temps in the 50s, mostly cloudy with rain developing in the afternoon.

I'm currently reading Fit Nation - The Gains & Pains of America's Exercise Obsession, by Natalia Mehlman Petrzela.

Then President John F. Kennedy continued former President Eisenhower's executive order establishing the Presidential Council on Youth Fitness but dropped the "Youth" from the title in an attempt to encourage all Americans to exercise. Here's an excerpt from Chapter Six.

"In 1908, (then President) Roosevelt had challenged the Marines to hike fifty miles in three days. Kennedy raised the stakes to fifty miles in one day, and he invited his whole staff to take part. Robert Kennedy took on the task most publicly. Wearing Oxford loafers that were soon soaked by rain, Robert, along with four members of his staff and a rambunctious dog, set out at five o'clock in the morning. Some of the party dropped out, and the team nearly abandoned their mission altogether halfway, but the press continued to photograph the dwindling squad from helicopters. Alone in the snow and slush by mile thirty-five, Kennedy finished the journey and joked that as miserable as he was, he couldn't renege on a physical challenge from his brother".

I didn't hike fifty miles in loafers on Saturday but I did carry my chainsaw. Had President Kennedy been alive, I hope he would have approved.

I hiked up the Blue Trail toward West Peak to remove a tree across the trail which I discovered last week.

Two cuts later I rolled them downslope.

Up at West Peak, I pleasantly discovered the Meriden Parks Department has picked up the anti-freeze bottles I found last week and placed in a convenient to locate spot. My thanks to them.

Down at Merimere Reservoir, it appears the Meriden Water Department is not as efficient. The stolen sign I reported to the city last week has not been replaced. 

In case you don't know, Meriden has a "311" web link where you can report anything in the city you see that needs service. This is how I reported the missing sign. I received an automated reply, which doesn't exactly inspire confidence that it actually reached a real person.

I will have to start a one-man office pool to see how long it will take for them to replace the sign.

Reaching the park, the bollard I reported missing in early September and was promptly replaced, is in the process of being vandalized or stolen again. You can unthread the nuts by hand. Today I found the bolts loosened as if whoever was caught in the act while unbolting it from the ground. Time for the parks department to think of a more secure method of attachment. We'll have to see if the bollard is still in place in a week.

My workout is done.