connoisseur series500

I wonder if Holmgren is a good coach. He is a very good GM, but a coach? I can't remember specific incidents offhand, but I'm not sure he's the right man for the job right now. Who did they lose, and who did they gain this year, Shawn? Might be interesting. (Me)ion Branch is overrated and didn't do much when he left the Pats. Jackson seems to be a letdown. Alexander is a good rb, of course, and Hasselbeck is a good qb. They lost Hutchison and it may have hurt their running game last year. Anyway, what are the changes in personnel this year? NFC seems very competitive.

Really good news for da Bearz! Grossman is in the final contract year so he'll be pushing hard this season. Defence will be as good as ever. New Orleans looked awful in last night's preseason game, which doesn't mean anything (I guess.) Chicago will be one of the favorites to meet the Pats in the Super Bowl.

SS1 wants to know how Randy Moss is doing in camp. The impact of Randy Moss. Simply put, Tom Brady hasn’t had a receiver like Moss, and watching the two develop a rapport has been intriguing at times. Initially, Brady seemed to be struggling to adjust to the speed in which Moss got down the field, with some of the long, rainbow-arcing passes falling short of the mark. But on the day Moss appeared to tweak his hamstring, the two were putting on a clinic of sorts – whether it be long balls, intermediate routes, patterns across the middle, or near the goal-line. As long as Moss is healthy, he is going to be a major weapon.

Same here. same

Is there any need for these kinds of comments, Dan? I mean it's not pro-wrestling or anything. You can make your point (and even have truth on your side, as I believe you do,) but there's no need for such slurs. I don't think it enhances your argument in the slightest. And I doubt you'll be able to win Goodspeak over to some of your points by throwing such gratuitous shots.

I don't even know if the Steeler/Saints game is on my NFL network. They've got a scrimmage between the Ravens and Redskins on right now. boring....

Colts had a leaky "D" last year, but the offense was good enough plus the "D" was able to gather themselves for a few games during the playoffs to enable them to win the Super Bowl. They had to make a miraculous comeback against NE, but Manning & Co were able to take advantage of a winded NE defence to pull it off. This year is a different story: 1. They've lost three defensive backs to free agency, including their starting duo. 2. DT Corey Simon has been released. He is now an unofficial first round bust. 3. Leading tackler Cato June was lost to free agency. 4. LT Tarik Glenn announced his retirement. He was rock guarding Manning's left side. Colts traded next year's first rounder to pick up rookie Tony Ugoh as a replacement in the second round. In the meantime, they gave up a second rounder for McFarland. They'll be missing a few valuable picks in next year's draft. 5. Now the latest news out of camp: DT Booger McFarland may be out for the season. POSTED 11:11 a.m. EDT, August 5, 2007 BOOGER HAS A BOO-BOO, BUT HOW BAD IS IT? On the same day that the Colts terminated the contract of free-agent bust Corey Simon, the guy whom the Colts acquired last season to take his place was undergoing an MRI. And before word of the Booger McFarland MRI broke, an anonymous tipster advised us that the injury is serious, and likely season-ending. Though we have not yet corroborated this tip, and are not officially reporting that McFarland is out for the year, we can understand why the Colts aren't announcing the severity of the injury, if it indeed is severe. With an even greater need in the interior of a defensive line that was getting shredding against the run before it somehow picked it up in the playoffs, the Colts would likely like to finagle a trade with a team that doesn't realize the urgency that the team might now be facing, because that would drive the price tag north. Safety Bob Sanders is one of the best in the game, but he's injury-prone and likely won't last the season. Will the Colts even be able to win their division?

Moss is just fine. They held him out a couple of practice sessions for precautionary reasons. He and Thomas B. already have an establlished connection. No further practice necessary.

Happy Birthday Shawn!

yes but we want RERE cds!

Have a good one!

I can't identify the blue hole where these guys dive, because there are several of them in Abaco, but the logging road they took to get there is similar to ours. In fact, I was also hoping to find one of these blue holes while driving south. I was told that one of the logging roads would take us to it, but there were no markings, so you'd have to luck out and select the right road if you are to locate it.

Found this on youtube. Someone took a video of the road leading to Hole in the Wall. Our logging road appeared to be more overgrown on the bottom than this road, though there is more growth here on the sides and above. We didn't have fronds hitting the windshield.

Incredible photos. I hope there are few if any casualties. Scary stuff. The cars look like toys in the photos.

I got these pictures from an Abaco forum. An intrepid visitor or local had gone down there and taken them. Wonderful pics!

Here's a picture of the lighthouse interior. Can you imagine being inside all alone at the very tip of the uninhabited island? The ghosts would be screaming their tales.

I remained haunted by that picture as I decided to attempt the logging road. Would it eventually lead to a desolate beach such as the one in the picture with the lighthouse in the distance? Oh man! It would be great. We would be the only humans to have likely touched that beach in months! There's no question that the road would lead to a beach. The sea was to the east! Well the road got very dicey. We travelled at only 15 miles per hour. Vegetation was scraping the exhaust system underneath the car, and bushes scraped both sides as we bounced along. Both my father and my son were getting nervous. Where does this road lead? It seemed to go on forever. We travelled for close to 45 minutes when I lost my nerve and decided to turn back. I couldn't really define the fear. It was a vague sort of thing, but it is only now that I fully realize the dangers. The farther we travelled down that road, the farther we were away from help if the car broke down. I didn't have a cellphone and I had my 73 year old father and 14 year old son in the car with me. The heat in the July sun was overwhelming and dehydration would be a huge fear. Rationality returned and overcame my overwhelming curiosity to continue down the unknown road. We would have to turn back. I couldn't risk our lives like that. When I got back into town, I asked a local where that road led, "the one to the east of the Preserves sign." He confirmed that it led to a beach. "Is it spectacular?" "Not at all. There are many better beaches farther south." "Can we see the lighthouse from the beach?" "Oh, no. The lighthouse is quite a bit south from there. You would have to take a logging road farther south to reach such beaches." Somehow I felt better. I guess I didn't miss a thing! But next time I visit Abaco, I'm renting a four-wheeler with high clearance so I can explore some of those old roads which lead to magnificent empty beaches!

I have never visited Hole in the Wall. The Southern part of the island is virtually uninhabited and there are some wonderful beaches on the way to Hole in the Wall. The only problem is that the road pretty much ends and it turns into dirt roads like the one shown in the earlier picture. Abaco has an indigenous parrot which is endangered. There is a pocket of surviving parrots around Hole in the Wall, and the Bahamian government decided to declare the lands as a Natural Preserve. Of course, no one is there, least of all park rangers. The place is deserted. On the day that we visited Schooner Bay, I decided to drive farther south towards the Preserve. I couldn't take the Buick to Hole in the Wall, but perhaps I could get somewhat close and discover something interesting. The land narrowed as we drove south and we were at one point able to see the ocean on both sides of the road. Then the land broadened again until we couldn't see the ocean on either side. We eventually reached a sign declaring the boundary of the National Preserve. There was an old logging road east of the sign, which could only lead to a beach. I remember seeing a picture of a beach on the southeastern side with the lighthouse in the distance. Here it is: (my story continues on the next post)

Facing due South and the spit of land where the "hole in the wall" resides: The distances are greater than it looks, and that's likely sharp coral. You would definitely need to wear some shoes before you walk out to the very tip of Abaco island!

And the views from it are spectacular. As typical with Abaco, since no one is ever around, you can pretty much do whatever you want. Someone climbed the deserted lighthouse and took these shots. This is facing NE.

Here are some shots of the lighthouse:

The lighthouse is run down but still operates. There are no active tours which take people to Hole in the Wall, though you could contract with a local to take you down in a four-wheel drive vehicle with high clearance. The road is unpaved and adventurous. Here's a picture of the road leading towards it. Rental car companies won't allow you to use their vehicles for such a rugged trip. The old logging roads look like this except the overgrowth isn't as great. You have to drive for an hour or so under these conditions in order to reach the lighthouse.