Comments on: Sweating the small stuff

By: Tom Maguire

Tom Maguire — Tue, 25 May 2004 17:19:57 +0000

Careful study of the weather data shows that the temperature has been dropping to the dew point each evening, so it is entirely possible that each morning, some city-slicker White House aide sees dewey lawns and concludes that it must have rained the previous night. Or maybe Georege Tenet gave the weather briefing.

By: bikerchick

bikerchick — Tue, 25 May 2004 00:11:43 +0000

This does read like The Onion My gawd!

By: Nat Whilk

Nat Whilk — Mon, 24 May 2004 21:11:02 +0000

Nick wrote: “it’s not the [expletive deleted] bike crash, it’s the cover-up.” And the evidence for this alleged cover-up is what? That a 3-inch downpour on 5/13 couldn’t possibly have affected the topsoil on 5/22?

By: nick

nick — Mon, 24 May 2004 19:48:17 +0000

trostky: it’s not the arse-over-tit bike crash, it’s the cover-up. And it’s the fact that Bush’s White House handlers are so habituated to lying than they lie about something so trivial as an arse-over-tit bike crash.

By: trostky

trostky — Mon, 24 May 2004 19:37:38 +0000

OK, you people are just as insane as the bloggers making a stir of Kerry’s bicycle accident two weeks ago. Ride a bicycle long enough, and you will wreck it, even if you’re the leader of the free world. Yeesshhh….

By: derek

derek — Mon, 24 May 2004 18:44:19 +0000

I just tried to get past weather data for Crawford, Texas [station 2004] and you can’t get any Here is what comes up when you click on the May 1 link in the post: “Today’s Date: May 24, 2004 Climatology for , View this data in Metric | English units. View Records Information. Show CDD. Key: e = estimated; M = not available; *= tied, most recent year shown *** No Climo Data Available for Station 2004 *** Select a Month: Jan04 | Feb04 | Mar04 | Apr04 | May04 | Jun03 | Jul03 | Aug03 | Sep03 | Oct03 | Nov03 | Dec03 | Get Climatology for thePast 12 Years Get Climatology for the whole world”

By: scott h.

scott h. — Mon, 24 May 2004 17:02:06 +0000

“It doesn’t mean that he didn’t act recklessly..” It doesn’t mean he did act recklessly, unless you think riding a bike a little over a week after a rainfall is particularly foolhardy. BTW, the White House spokesman said “It’s been raining a lot and the topsoil is loose”, not “the pavement was wet” or even “the topsoil was wet”.

By: Nat Whilk

Nat Whilk — Mon, 24 May 2004 16:28:07 +0000

Randy Paul wrote: “I’m sure that the weather for Waco is probably about the same for Crawford.” Why then is the weather for Waco not the same as the weather for McGregor? Or do you think that the 2.79 inches that McGregor received on 5/13 (2.73 inches in one hour) is about the same as the 0.92 inches that Waco received on that date?

By: Randy Paul

Randy Paul — Mon, 24 May 2004 16:03:00 +0000

Nat Whilk: Crawford is probably too small to have it’s own weather measuring facilities, however, we are talking about a town 24 miles away on relatively lowlying Texas plains. I’m sure that the weather for Waco is probably about the same for Crawford. Rvman: He was accompanied by several other bicyclists and he’s the only one I read about falling.

By: rvman

rvman — Mon, 24 May 2004 15:51:31 +0000

What reckless? If we are to believe the accounts, not only was he wearing a helmet and mouthguard, he was riding with his doctor. People wipe out on bikes all the time, especially on broken ground. If Bush was “reckless”, so is anyone who rides a bike. His dad jumps out of perfectly serviceable airplanes. W probably grew up active and slightly klutzy, so he is used to occasionally doing this, and doesn’t mind it so much as some of us would. 99% of the ground is dry around Crawford, but believe me, there are the occasional rut and scrape and streambed which are still muddy – he may have hit one of those. Those won’t all be dry until July sometime, and even then, they will be crusty and broken and still hazards. (My credentials – lifelong Texan with a fair amount of time spent on trails similar to the ones Bush biked, albeit on foot.)

By: Nat Whilk

Nat Whilk — Mon, 24 May 2004 15:40:59 +0000

Randy Paul wrote: "AccuWeather shows using the same zip code that on May 1 there was 2.89 inches of rain, a trace on May 8 & 9, .92 on the 13th, and .02 on the 14th with zero since then, thus nearly nine days with no rain; not even a trace." If you'll look closely at that report, you'll see that it's actually for Waco.

By: Randy Paul

Randy Paul — Mon, 24 May 2004 14:39:48 +0000

Dr. Weevil, It doesn’t mean that he didn’t act recklessly, a trait which he seems to be comfortable with whether it’s biking, eating pretzels or say, invading a country on false pretenses.

By: Barry

Barry — Mon, 24 May 2004 14:33:23 +0000

dave heasman: ” I’d think Bush was hitting the bottle again, too, except for the logistical problems – isn’t he surrounded by minders every hour of the day? He can’t just slip out to the liquor store can he? Or do you think he has a stash at Crawford that he put there before he went on the wagon?” Dave, he also came into the office with an incredibly experienced staff and set of connections which might not have been seen since FDR, or John Quincy Adams. Then, he was ‘blessed’ with a gift from a lower power (9/11, which I count as a gift for his administration, because he has certainly treated it that way). And Bush has still managed to screw things up to an amazing degree. The problem with “Bush is inexperienced, but he has good advisors” is that advisors advise; the president decides. So the idea that he tells his minders to get him a drink or get a new job is quite plausible.

By: Dr. Weevil

Dr. Weevil — Mon, 24 May 2004 12:21:41 +0000

I’m astonished that anyone thinks he can judge soil conditions in Crawford by reading weather reports on the web. Those who actually live in the area find the White House story plausible. Here’s Buddy Larsen on Just One Minute: “I live 45 minutes from Crawford. The dominant topsoil on slopes is called ‘caliche’. It’s got a lot of bentonite it, a clay which becomes slippery and ubstable when hydrated, and on north-facing slopes, will retain moisture for quite a long time. The lower slopes especially, due to drainage, stay wet long after the last rainfall.” So far, so good. He continues: “What we will need to ascertain is, azimuth, attitude, angle of approach, and velocity. A good topo map, plus affidavits from witnesses, a study of bike tireology, and at least two independant medical reports on the injuries, will set the groundwork for a full investigation, with perhaps a congessional hearing if it turns out that he fell on a southern exposure slope, which, according to my charts, should have been less slippery than the president may or may not have indicated. Eternal vigilance is the price of freedom!..posted by Buddy” Here’s ‘Dave in Texas’ on A Small Victory: “I live here, 40 miles south of Crawford. We are 10” ahead of normal rainfall for the year. 2 weeks ago I dumped 11” of water out of the rain gauge over the course of the week. “And you’re dead on about the soil. It expands with the water, contracts and crumbles with dry heat.” Kind of makes most of these comments look ignorant and petty.

By: dave heasman

dave heasman — Mon, 24 May 2004 11:14:23 +0000

I’d think Bush was hitting the bottle again, too, except for the logistical problems – isn’t he surrounded by minders every hour of the day? He can’t just slip out to the liquor store can he? Or do you think he has a stash at Crawford that he put there before he went on the wagon?