Continuing Rockport's Tropical Christmas Weekend

So, now that you've had the tour of the cottage, we'll move on. Part of the deal for us was to be out of the cottage while all the visitors came, and to let the docents from the historical society, who were all dressed in garb from the 50's to the 70's, give the tours and tell the history of each of the historical homes. So Curt and I headed for Rockport's bay front where all the action was scheduled to be. As we passed part of Little Bay, we could see a great kite flying extravaganza going on. It was a perfect day: sunny, 72 degrees, and windy. (Sorry to mention the temperature to all of you up north. While you're shoveling snow, we're still swatting mosquitos down here!)

As we rounded the curve, we saw more...

...and as we got closer we could make out some of the shapes. There were all kinds of sea creatures, from sea horses to dolphins to sharks. Notice the band shell below, which we showed you up close a few days ago.

Then we wandered through the vendors all over the grounds beside the bay:

My favorite sight was the dance concert given by Kinetic Movement Center, a local dance studio. These little girls were doing such a lovely job dancing to Christmas music.

Note the kites still flying in the background. They flew for HOURS.

Then we took a loop through historic downtown Rockport, with the cute shops all painted in coastal colors:

....and suddenly it was time for the event Curt has been anticipating for weeks on end... The BELT SANDER RACES! Now, mind you, this had nothing to do with Rockport's Christmas celebration. It's something that occurs every other Saturday (I have lots more of these to look forward to). 

As we drove up to the Legends Saloon, we could see that the crowd was already gathering:

Looks like they've eaten their share of oysters here:

Entering the yard, we could see that it was set up like a real racing event. Oops, pardon me. It IS a real racing event....

....complete with hats and T-shirts for sale in a rainbow of colors:

Now here are a few facts for those of you who need to know:

The track is 75' long, and there are two lanes. The sanders run two at a time, just like a drag race. It's a round robin format, so each sander runs against every other sander in its class. 

Each sander runs inside a trough, so it doesn't jump the track (though that has been known to happen on occasion).

The sanders are plugged in and long extension cords run the length of the track between the two racing troughs. Each new set of contestants secures the extension cord to his/her sander with duct tape

There are two classes: stock and modified. The stock sanders have to be just as they come out of the box, with only the "outriggers" added for stability, and a fancy paint job if the owner wishes. In the modified class, anything goes. We saw one with a router motor in it, and heard about one with an electric lawn mower motor in it. You can do anything, as long as it fits on a belt sander chassis. Notwithstanding the duct tape cord fastener, these are amazingly sophisticated machines, highly engineered for power and speed, using a lot of the same physics principles employed in race cars. 

Each sander is given a name. Some are designed to intimidate other racers, and others...well, who knows?  A few we remember: Grain Maker, Grinder, Jolly Roger, Hard Iced Tea, Ol' Blue, Plum Crazy. Contestants may choose whatever grit of sandpaper they wish to race with, although 36 grit seems to be the most popular.

An announcer introduces each new pair of contestants using information from a sheet they've filled out. I did notice, that to the delight of the crowd, that the announcer does not hesitate to ignore the facts on the sheet and make up his own story about contestants now and then. Racers are a comfortable mix of locals and Winter Texans (other states call them Snowbirds, but we Texans embrace these visitors and they fit right in during the winter months).

The announcer sets up the pair of racers, but the race is started electronically with a row of descending lights from red to green (similar to the "Christmas Tree" in drag racing). When the green light flashes, the racers hit their switches and they're off. False starts are recorded electronically, and each racer is allowed only one false start per race; if it happens a second time, they lose that race. If there is a false start, the power automatically shuts off to that sander....so there's no doubt as to which sander false started. It's the one sitting dead in the race lane. 

Time is recorded to the 10,000th of a second. Race time, reaction time, and number of miles per hour are all reported. The stock sanders make the 75' journey in about 4 seconds, at around 14 mph, while the modified sanders do it between 2-3 seconds, and get over 20 mph. 

Enough facts. If you want to know more, you have to come visit us on a race weekend. Now for the event itself.

It started, as all good patriotic races do, with the National Anthem. All hats were off and everyone faced the American flag while a recording of The Star Spangled Banner played.

(Above) I'm not sure why that woman didn't take the football off her head during the National Anthem.... Oh, wait. It's the head of the man in front of her. Sorry!

Veterans were recognized, and the announcer thanked them for their service to our country and reminded everyone to keep our servicemen and women, and our veterans, in prayer daily. A nice touch, we thought, and one that reminded us that we are, after all, in Texas. Then the races started.

There were about 15 men racing sanders, and two women. Some people raced two sanders, one in each class. Things moved along pretty briskly; it was obvious they've done this for a while and have worked out most of the kinks.

Duct taping the extension cord and getting ready for the start:

(Keep your eye on the red and blue sanders in front of these gentlemen.)

Focused and ready, thumbs lightly on switches, ready to mash as soon as the green light flashes on:

And the sanders are GONE! These racers' thumbs are pressed into the switches with enough force crush an oyster!

Headed down the raceway...

From the other end, here come two sanders down the track:

....and the blue sander wins!

There's a great deal of joking, camaraderie, and friendly banter among the contestants, as well as lots of encouragement (positive and otherwise) from the spectators. 

This little guy is getting an early start, with lots of pointers from Grandpa.

One of the women racers in the background...

....and here's the other. I loved her shirt!

And here's what it's all about: the Winners' Circle!

Now these guys will spend the next 2 weeks tinkering with their motors and you can bet they'll be back at the racetrack on December 13th!

If belt sander racing isn't on your list of things to get excited about, come back soon for more of Rockport's Christmas weekend. There are some wonderful historic homes to show you, as well as other festivities. See you soon!

Rockport Coastal Christmas is Here

This is the weekend everyone has been gearing up for around here. We put the final touches on moving into the house. Well, almost final. There's still one door we're keeping closed. It opens into the room my Mom used to call the "Conservatory." A classy disguise for the "wreck room." And the Home Tour committee came in and set up the pink flocked Christmas tree (egads! They weren't kidding!). So I'll give you the tour:

Front entry:

Turn left into the living room, with lots of seating for guests (come visit!):

Heading out toward the sunroom...have to play a few tunes on the way:

And yes, the pink flocked Christmas tree, with hand painted sailboats underneath:

A few of Mrs. Santa's knitting projects waiting for her to sit down in the sunroom and work on them:

And some of the rest of Mrs. Santa's studio, for making Christmas cards:

Of course, you've seen the view out of the sunroom many times, but it never gets tiresome!

 Back into the dining room:

Close-up of the table:

Continuing on into the kitchen:

Complete with 1950s labels on boxes and jars, and my 50s singing cowgirl apron:

Down the hall into the hall bathroom (carefully avoiding the Conservatory):

oops! Who opened that door? Shut it, quick, before someone gets hurt!

Into the master bedroom:

And master bath (note the crab on the floor rug):

And you're done! A perfect little 1950's beach cottage. Nothing pretentious, nothing grand...just a prime spot for relaxing. We love it!

And that's all I'm blogging for now. We're still right in the middle of this action-packed weekend, and Curt and I want to get out and see the other houses on the tour. So we're off... But come back, because I know you can't wait to hear about the World Famous Belt Sander Races! And you won't be disappointed!

Just Another Day in Paradise

We're still pinching ourselves to make sure we're not dreaming. It's so much fun to be here in Rockport. It's relaxing and stimulating at the same time. There's always the ever-changing backdrop of the ocean with its many moods and textures. And we're having so much fun exploring.

Started out hearing the yard guys working outside this morning. Now that's a real benefit of renting, as opposed to owning a place. Just last night when I went outside to take pictures of the Christmas decorations to put on the blog, I thought the grass was getting kind of long. Didn't have to do anything about it. The guys showed up this morning first thing. Trimmed, mowed, blew off the debris...and all we have to do is enjoy it.

Our first outing of the day was to what I believe is the most inviting art studio/gallery I've ever entered, Studio 3 in the historic section of Rockport. The artists are a young couple, John and Jamie Speck. We didn't meet John because he teaches art at the high school in Port Aransas. But Jamie welcomed us in and we were awestruck at what they've done to this place that not long ago was a T-shirt shop badly in need of repair. Here's a glimpse of this amazing space:

Starting tomorrow morning, I'll be taking a weekly art journaling class from Jamie. here's the great space where we get to work, with the teacher/artist herself. We felt like we knew Jamie from the moment we met her because she reminds us so much of our daughter Kelly.

She provides all the tools needed....even aprons to protect your clothing:

Even the restroom is inviting!

A few more fun views of the studio....

Even Jamie's personal upstairs workspace, which SHE thinks is messy (it's supposed to be messy; she's an artist!) is delightful:

I can't wait to spend some time there tomorrow with Jamie and the other 3 women in the class. 

After visiting the studio, we took a photo tour of Rockport's harbor and picturesque bait shops:

Bea's Bait Shop seemed to be the only one open today:

As we wandered along the bay, we watched a guy kite boarding. He was amazing!

And here I caught him in a flip! (Missed the kite, though...)

And I took a few shots of the part of Rockport beach where all the Christmas festivities will take place this weekend. We've heard that there will be wall-to-wall people and cars, so I thought I'd show it to you on a cool, windy day when nothing is happening:

The band shell:

As we saw this friend, we remembered the cute 2-line poem by Dixon Merritt that we used to recite to our kids:

A wonderful bird is the pelican. 

His bill will hold more than his bellican. 

Actually, we just looked it up online to make sure of the poet, who we mistakenly thought was Ogden Nash. Turns out it has 5 lines, but when we read them we realized why we only taught our kids the first two!

Well, I'm off to bed. My art class starts early tomorrow, and I want to be creative, not weary. 

Saturday's Coming!

Things are really gearing up for the big doings around here this weekend. I've been hearing about Rockport's Christmas celebration, and I can't wait to see it all. In the meantime, were preparing here at the house for the influx of hundreds of visitors we'll have Saturday and Sunday. Phoebe brought her group of docents over to give them a tour of the cottages that will be displayed and to go over a bit of the history of Harbor Lights Cottages. (Below)

I've been trying to find places for the last of my craft and music items. It's tough when you love to do too many things! I've stowed most of my knitting and weaving yarn, my beading supplies, fabric and embroidery goodies, music books and gear. The instruments (guitars, harp, mandolin, fiddle and ukuleles) will have to stay on display, as well as all my stamping, art and papercrafting supplies. It is the season for making Christmas cards, after all!

And now.... (drum roll, please)...the Christmas tree across the street is lit! I believe the Town of Fulton has finished decorating. I haven't seen workers over there in the past couple of days. So here's the nighttime view out our picture windows which face the bay:

This photo is taken down along the street toward the harbor:

 

And as we look from our cottage in the other direction, toward the left, we see the Fulton Convention Center lit up as well.

We never close the blinds, even at night. It's just too much fun to look out and see all those lights, and know that we didn't have to lift a finger to be able to get more enjoyment from them than probably anyone else in town.

So from out in the road, passers-by get an unrestricted view of the inside of our cottage. It's not usually too exciting for them, though. They mostly get to see a head or two, as we spend much time in the sunroom reading/knitting/working on the computer. Here is the view I had from the road tonight as I came home from my exercise class at the Fitness Center. You can just see Curt's head in the 2nd window from the left.

But now for the REALLY exciting stuff (according to Curt). Every other Saturday behind the Legends Tavern in Fulton (only 4 blocks from our cottage), they hold the internationally famous....(prepare yourself)...belt sander races! No kidding. Curt checked out the venue today. There are parallel lanes about 40' long, and people actually plug in their hopped-up belt sanders with long extension cords and race them. Now, Curt assures me that this is a well known competitive event, popular in Europe and Asia as well. And, he says, if you Google "belt sander races", you'll find a YouTube video of Rockport's races at the top of the list. I'm going to check it out as soon as I finish writing this blog.

Well, this Saturday Is THE day. Curt will be there, camera at the ready, to give you a first-hand report of the action. I'll cover the Rockport Christmas events at the other end of town, and we'll both get together in the afternoon to visit some of the houses on the Historical Homes Tour. Who said small towns are sleepy? There's more stuff going on in this little town than we can hope to keep up with!

So be sure to check back in for the full story (stories). These faithful reporters will do our best to keep you abreast of the breaking news on the exciting Texas coast!