Last week(end) was a work break for me and a trip to Moab, Utah for the National Land Rover rally.

In case you are unaware, Shawn runs a specialty Land Rover upgrade business for her dad, so these types of events are a mix between work and play.  My truck hauled more parts than I care to mention.

The whole trip was not off-roading… we did plenty of on-road trips, like my first trip to Needles Overlook of Canyonlands NP.

Here you can see the Island in the sky from a whole new angle.

There were some great xbeds in the Navajo to see too.

The dogs, on this trip and the other trips, had some fun… mostly sitting in the car, which they generally got tired of, but also got to run wild, which they very much enjoyed.  Hopefully it was worth it for them.

Onyx was VERY happy at times.

This was mostly at off-leash times, like in this rec canyon called the Millcreek area.  They actually played in the water… a little… no swimming, but splashing.

One day was a geo trip I lead for Land Rover folks that went really well, besides the weather.  By the way, this is Landscape Arch, and it is so fragile, it could fall tomorrow.  You NEED to visit me and see this before it does fall.  Pictures do not do it justice.

We did Canyonlands and Upheaval Dome, hoping for better weather…

But it was ridiculous.  In a place made for long vistas, this is a FAIL if I’ve ever seen one!

I did actually go on only one trail, called Chicken Corners.  No crazy climbs, no trucks tipping or breaking, just a long, long off-road trail, but the end was so worth it.

A view of the Colorado below Dead Horse Point…

…and Island in the Sky would be worth twice the drive!

All in all, a great trip, a great week, lots of new friends, but over too quick.  Next trip: hopefully Oregon, with a Dolphins/Raiders game for good measure.

I know, another vastly-delayed post, but here it goes:  Fern, his buddy Tony, and I flew out to Austin to see the UCLA v. Texas game on Sept 25.  Out there, we met up with their buddy Dennis (front row).

To put it mildly, the trip was EPIC!  Maybe the highlight happened right away: a private, backroom tour of the facilities… thank you Dennis!

Of course, all the emphasis on a certain game in which a certain team lost was great.  We could easily agree on that.

The stuffed former mascots was a little creepy…

The facilities were unbelievable… hard to describe the decadence.  As a pure coincidence, former Bruin and NFL first-rounder Robert Thomas was there, and he said some NFL facilities were not as good!

They take every game VERY seriously.

Easily the highlight of this highlight was a certain office we got to go in:

None other than Mack Brown!  Sure, there were Heismans and autographed memorabilia lying around, but the crown jewel (literally) took the cake:

Yes, that is Mack Brown’s 2005 championship ring on Fernando’s finger.  Awesome!

OK, that was cool too…

That night we hit the infamous Austin 6th street… craziness ensued, including: meeting UCLA blogger Jon Gold, cage dancing, getting kicked out of a place because I was wearing shorts and skater shoes (that’s in the place with cage dancing… classy…), crying drunks, puking drunks, public urinations, asian invasions, and $3 breast sucks.  Don’t ask.

The game itself was honestly, a letdown.  We DOMINATED, and the crowd was not nearly as intense, organized, or loud as Knoxville.  Oh well, maybe Lincoln will compete (in 2013… save up now!).

The rest of the time was more mellow, hanging out, and touring, including the LBJ library, which was pretty cool.

All in all, right up there with the Tenn trip.  We are planning Corvallis next year (assuming the still go with the schedule changing), so don’t miss out, just go next time!