Bits of Updates

Get it? I made a BIT of a joke there...small pun...remember? I call my girls Little Bit and Baby Bit? Okay, so it's not THAT funny. I got a giggle out of it.

So my girls are doing well. Baby Bit is two months old now, 10 pounds, 8 ounces, and 23 inches long...or tall. Everyone who sees her comments on how tiny she is, but she is, according to her pediatrician, tall (75th percentile for height) and healthy (50th percentile for weight). She had her first set of vaccines on Tuesday, and she did not like them ONE LITTLE BIT (no, I was not trying to make another "bit" pun.). She is a sensitive little girl; when she gets cold, it's to the bone and she cries bitterly to let us know she needs a blanket. When she feels pain, it is very intense. Little Bit handled her first shots pretty well, but not so much Baby Bit. She had a tough night getting over them. I gave her a tiny dose of Infant Tylenol and she slept and slept and slept, and felt better the next morning. She has two major accomplishments of late: 1) she sleeps through the night (AT LAST!!!); and 2) she can turn over from her back to her tummy! We are oh so proud. :-)

Little Bit has us a bit (there it is again!) puzzled. She is not a tidy girl...not even remotely. If I could post a picture of her playroom, you would see just how much STUFF we have allowed her to accumulate over her short life. If you've ever watched "Clean House", you'll get an idea of what her bedroom and playroom are like. She comes by it honestly; I was the same way as a kid. Now that I'm grown up, I'm still not terribly tidy, but I'm not quite as messy as she is. So I bought her "Clutter Control" from American Girl. She's had it for several months but not applied any of the suggestions given in the book...till recently. We gave her some new storage in her bedroom, which gave her a place to put many of her favorite dolls and stuffed animals. I'm so impressed...she has kept her room picked up and walkable. I caught her cleaning out and organizing her notebook for school. Her bathroom is actually clean...and I didn't do it...SHE DID! She asked me if she could sweep the porch. Next she wants to tackle her playroom (which, once it's done, will be Baby Bit's room. I think she has forgotten this fact.). I am fairly certain that an alien has been switched out for Little Bit.

Finally, the COOLEST thing EVER happened to The HOFFER. HE HAS A TROPHY NAMED IN HIS HONOR! Is that not WAY COOL???? Here is the announcement that was made about the trophy:


We have a special surprise this year! It has been in the making for several years. It is our new "best of show" trophy. It is being named the Cash Matthews trophy. We picked Cash because of his Oklahoma background and if you have ever met him you would know there is no other individual who deserves this more! Right attitude, loves god and family and is a top notch representative for BMX. In the years Past we have also let Cash and the current ABA Hall of famers pick the winner. This year it will probably be half Cash/HOL and half fan favorite vote! If you win the trophy you can keep it for the following year for display with your bike. There will also be a number plate on the bars to keep forever that will have info on sponsors and to be a excellent thing to hang on the bike. The only thing we ask is that the trophy be returned by Oct. 1, 2008 to be engraved with the 08 winners info. This thing is huge and weighs a ton! LOL, so be prepared to ship it back if you win out! We would like to thank thumperpilot and the ABA for all the help they give to make this a fun deal for everyone. Also thanks to Osrlracer for his help in years past. BMX cyclery of Sand Springs,Vintagebmx.com, OSBMX.com and HRP number plates for letting us use some logos and for all the good work they do! And thanks to Cash for letting us put his name on the trophy.


What else can you say about something like that except "HOW COOL!!!!"!

Gotta go pick up Little Bit from school. More on the trophy thing, as well as the girls, soon.

More BMX...And More Baby

Thanks to everyone who has participated in the BMX Hall of Fame voting! If you haven't voted yet, you need to do it soon. The deadline for voting is September 4th, so go make your voice heard! The three nominees suggested by The HOFFER (see last post) are very deserving, and voting takes a quick 60 seconds, so hop to it!!!

If you've never seen an actual BMX race, your big chance is this week while watching the Olympics! This was posted last week on the American Bicycle Association BMX website (www.ababmx.com):

"The 2008 Olympics are well underway in Beijing, China and BMX racings' debut is just a week away. The excitement is building within the industry and fans with the anticipation for BMX racing hitting the world stage. Below are the airdates and times listed by NBC. We just wanted everyone to be aware of the dates and times so they don't miss out. Please forward this on to all your friends and family to spread the BMX word. GO TEAM USA!!

Aug. 19th 8:00-9:00pm, Primetime, Live ET/CT

Men's BMX Cycling

Aug. 20th 12:30-2:00am

Men's BMX Cycling Quarterfinals

Aug. 20th 2:00-5:00am

Men's BMX Cycling, Primetime Replay

Aug. 20th 8:00-10:00pm, Primetime, Live ET/CT

Mens and Womens BMX Cycling Finals

Aug. 21st 2:00-5:00am

Mens and Womens BMX Cycling Finals, Primetime Replay"


Be sure to set your DVR/Tivo/VCR/whatever you use to record TV shows for TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY to see some of BMX's finest giving their all. While watching, be sure to cheer on a couple of The HOFFER's buddies who are riding for Team USA: Kyle Bennett and Donny Robinson. WOO HOO!!!

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More baby stuff to come. Assuming she doesn't come early, we are three weeks away (as of August 19th) from welcoming Tiny Bit into the family. I'm feeling fine, although a bit panicky because I feel like I still have so much to do before she gets here. I was able to cross several big ones off my list this past weekend, after Little Bit's birthday and family leaving town. I had a huge burst of energy Sunday and got quite a bit done trying to return some semblance of order to my house and my laundry load! Yes, I know that is often a sign that the baby's coming soon. But hey, three weeks IS soon, so I'm counting on that!!! School starts on Thursday, so I will give you birthday party details and baby stuff at that time.

Till then, GO TEAM USA!!!!!!

Hall of Fame Voting Commences!

Wow...I haven't posted in weeks and now I have two posts in less than 24 hours??? What's up with that???

When I first began blogging, my very first post was about last year's ABA BMX Hall of Fame vote. Well guess what, sports fans? It's that time of year again! Anyone can vote, and all you need is a valid email address. So take about 60 seconds and cast your vote! Here's the email that The HOFFER sent out recently about how to vote and who he voted for:

One of the great honors of my life was to be inducted into the ABA BMX Hall of Fame. My time in bmx was meaningful to me as a kid and then again later as an adult. Many of you were helpful in submitting votes on my behalf, and I am still so thankful for that support.

The 2008 Hall of Fame is upon us and I would appreciate if you would take a moment now and vote for some very worthy nominees. It just takes a moment and it helps a very worthy cause.

Here is how I am voting this year:

Early BMX Pioneer: Danny Oakley. Danny was on the Mongoose Team during my own time there and was instrumental in so much about bmx, it is really hard to figure out how he isn't already in the HOF. He helped numerous companies get off the ground, was a bmx inventor, and most importantly, was a GREAT champion of bmx racing. Danny was one of the few guys to have a custom bike made in his honor by the legendary Mongoose Factory and to this day, he is one of the most respected racers and innovators in the history of BMX. Oh yea, he grew up to be an actual ROCKET SCIENTIST!

BMX Racer: Tim Judge: Tim Judge was one of the few riders from the East Coast to get excellent magazine coverage in the early days. Tim won numerous titles including a World Championship in the early 80's. Tim had perhaps the most dramatic style of any racer of his era, and frequently you would see kids imitating him "doing a Judge" over a jump. The BMX HOF has overlooked many east coast riders and the vote for Tim Judge is very worthy for that and many other reasons. Tim went on to be a Jet Ski champion and is to this day regarded as one of the finest racing talents of any sport.

BMX Industry: Roger Berg: Roger Berg was the inventor of the UNI Seat that stormed the US and the world during the 80's. His constant innovation in bmx was fueled by his experience at GM where he invented the square headlight and was near the development team of the famous Corvette. Roger was one of the first to use wind tunnel technology in the invention of bmx equipment. His products are some of the most copied to this day and his induction into the bmx hall of fame is just recognition for all he has done.

The link to vote is this: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=voeEegM28gVFX_2bOq56seqw_3d_3d

Please take a moment to vote now as the voting ends soon. Thank you for participating in bmx, one of the greatest sports for kids! BMX is in the Olympics this year as well so stay tuned on August 19 for some awesome racing! Thanks again! Oh, and if you have some friends who would like to help make history, please feel free to forward this to your address book! Anyone with a valid email can vote. You can vote from any valid email address! Have fun!!!

A HOF-er Thanksgiving

So I'm a little late. I have never been accused of being timely.

If you check out Cash's blog, you'll find his post about our Thanksgiving trip to Tulsa. He gave the "Cliff Notes" version; I'm filling you in on the details and providing photographic proof that we actually went!

He mentioned that we stayed at the Radisson Hotel with Sleep Number beds. What he didn’t tell you about was the indoor waterpark. It was mostly for small children—the water was three feet at its deepest—but Little Bit had a great time, even though she’s not such the small child anymore. There were a couple of slides, a fake palm tree with water flowing out the top, water cannons and fountains of water squirting up everywhere. I never did have access to the camera while at the pool, so here are a couple of pictures from Radisson’s website:

It was pretty nifty, but those fountains made it really loud. Not pictured is the hot tub, which TOTALLY rocked! I took Little Bit down to play every evening till close. Needless to say, she slept very well.

I must say I was not impressed with the Sleep Number beds. I like to sleep on a soft mattress, so my sleep number was around 30. Basically, I just deflated my side of the bed, which kept Cash rolling onto my side of the bed throughout the night. And since I am one of those people who needs plenty of space while sleeping, it was not good. It was nice, however, to be able to try it without having to extract that large number of dollars from my wallet.

Wednesday was the Hall of Fame banquet, and it was wonderful. Cash was MC for the event and put together a great slide presentation for the three new inductees. The first inductee was someone who made an impact in BMX through industry (that could be bikes, magazines, technology, etc.), and that was Elaine Holt-Osmond. (No relation!)

I didn't get to spend much time with Elaine, but let me tell you what I already know about her: she has to be one of the SWEETEST humans to EVER grace this earth. I wish she didn’t live all the way over in sunny California so I could get to know her better in person (although it does give me an excuse to travel!!!). Elaine coined the term BMX and started a magazine called “Bicycle Motocross News”. She was involved for only four years, but her impact on the sport is still being felt today. She didn’t even know she had been nominated and wouldn’t have found out if Cash hadn’t tracked her down! Wouldn’t THAT be a cool phone call to get?

The second inductee to the BMX Hall of Fame was Dennis Dain.

From the ABA BMX website:

"Best known as the “Red Baron”, this Western Sports-A-Rama local was pilot of the world’s greatest side-hack team. During the hack era of the 70’s, Dain & Ruiz were on top, practically undefeated between the years 1975 to 1979. He was one of the original bike testers for Elaine Holt’s Bicycle Motocross News (the sport’s first newspaper). Dain was one of the first racers to be sponsored by GT, and even had his own Dain replica frame. He also rode for Redline and was a longtime racer for ABA BMX Hall of Famer “Big Daddy” Ralph throughout most of his career. Dain was a founding member of PRO. Dennis still lives in California and works for UPS."

I got to meet Dennis and his wife Sauni, and they were kind enough to let us hang out with them for much of the weekend. They were so genuine and fun, and I really enjoyed getting to know them. Little Bit was more impressed that they live five minutes from and have season passes to Disneyland than she was about anything else. She also thought it was cool that Dennis is a fan of both Hannah Montana and Kim Possible! Instant street cred in the eyes of an eight-year-old!

The third and final inductee was Nebraska’s own Greg Grubbs.

Once again, from the ABA BMX website, because they can explain it better than I can:

"Greg was the first racer from Nebraska to make a name for his self on the national circuit. Not only was he fast, he was the hero to many racers that wore glasses and he was well known for his sense of humor. Greg started racing in 1976, turned Pro at age 15 in 1980, then won the ABA Cornhusker National in the 16 expert class, back when you could race Pro and expert in the same day. In 1981, he won 12 ABA single A races, while riding for SE Racing in the summer. He won the Jag World Championships in A Pro and Pro Open in 1981. In 1982, he was picked up by Redline and won his first race for his new sponsor in Orlando , Florida as AA Pro. He was featured on the December ‘82 BMX ACTION cover. He finished the ‘82 season as the #3 Pro behind the Patterson Bros. In 1983, Greg was dropped from Redline and began wearing a jersey that stated “FREE AGENT”. In the summer of ‘83, he was the first instructor/counselor at the Woodward Training Center along with Mike Miranda, Mike Poulson and Joe Baumert. He briefly rode for JAG BMX. He rode for Hyper BMX from mid-1984 to end of 1985, until owner Billy Farrell was killed in an auto accident. He retired in 1986. From ‘86 to ’90, he attended the University of Nebraska , where he received his B.A. in Anthropology. He made a comeback in 1990 by winning first race back as A Pro at the Mid-West Nationals. In 1991, he blew out his knee at the Mile High Nationals and retired permanently. He was the on-camera talent for the ABA BMX TV Show “Pump”. Greg currently lives in Los Angeles where he works on commercial production and works for the TV show Motocross Files."

Having worn glasses myself since the third grade, I can understand why he was such a hero to the bespectacled set! In addition to commercial production, he apparently has been working hard on his golf game. I've been told he is a single-digit handicap golfer. In case you don't know much about golf, that's REALLY REALLY good!!!

Here’s a picture after the banquet was over. Elaine, unfortunately, had to leave early, so I didn’t get a picture of her with the other HOF-ers. Good job, Cash!!! You were awesome!!!

Here’s Little Bit--isn't she just so sweet??--at the coliseum on Thanksgiving Day during practice for the races that started Friday. Dang, she has great hair. Little Bit and I sat in the stands playing with her pink Nintendo while Cash and the guys checked things out around the Grands.

Cash took this picture that same day, also at the coliseum during practice. The guy on the far left is our friend Alex from Arkansas, but his nickname is Elvis. Elvis is one of the funniest humans I’ve ever met, and he has an amazing story. Earlier this year he had a heart attack and died—yes, DIED—at work. He was revived at his desk and twice more on the way to the hospital. He now has a pacemaker to keep his heart going, and guess what he did that weekend: HE RACED! Elvis, you rock. Between Dennis & Greg is Joe Baumert, Greg’s best friend. They raced together in Nebraska when they were kids and were always ranked #1 and #2 in the state.

We had a great time in Tulsa. I loved meeting all of this year's inductees and spending the weekend with them, as well as some of our BMX teammates! Congratulations to this year's inductees and here's to next year!