Finding Wilderness

Archive for January, 2010

I got a flat this morning on a vaunted Specialized Armadillo tire.  It was a typical winter flat – a large piece of glass stuck to the tire that gradually worked its way in.  Still no flats this winter on the much cheaper Michelin Erilium 2 on the front wheel.  I’ve been comparing the Armadillos against the Eriliums this winter.  The Armadillos are tougher, but the well-kept secret of the Erilium is the microbead tread on the surface of the tire that hits the road.  This seems to prevent the glass from sticking, which is the key, especially on wet roads.  I wonder if Michelin even knows this.  This is my third season with the Michelin Eriliums.  I hope they keep making them.  I hope the other tire companies start considering the surface of the tire with this function in mind.  The flat sticky tire that is perfect for racing in the summer is the worst thing for commuting in the winter.

There was a a previous cougar attack in British Columbia on December 31st, this one in Danskin. Two cougars attacked two young children playing outside while there mother was cleaning a church. The mother rushed out, saw that one of the cougars had the head of her seven-year-old boy in its mouth. She hit it on the head with a rag and it ran away. Her five-year-old daughter said that there was also another cougar. The family appears lucky. Attacking cougars are usually more persistent than this.

A golden retriever defended an 11-year-old boy when he was attacked by a cougar in his backyard in Boston Bar, British Columbia. The dog rushed to intervene as the cougar was going for the boy. While the cougar turned its attack on the dog, the boy ran into the house and the family called 911. The dog undoubtedly saved the boy from serious injury, if not his life. What is amazing to me is that the police were able to arrive soon enough to shoot the cougar and save the dog. (Arrived within one minute according to the CTV News report.)