[stoney]

Go karting was done. Haley raced and adult kart. She uh... Beat. Yeah, we'll use that word. Beat the entire field, with exception of a teen league kid who was beating me, during her first race while she was getting used to the kart. Second race was even moreso. Faster overall group and she was still top-3.

I can't wait to put her back into the Jr karts, with less power. It's like going back to Miata's. Handling mistakes become evident after you take power out of the equation.

 

[boostindoubles]

@chuffer are you going to run a low wire that the drip tubing hangs from? We like to keep the drip tubing off the ground so we can work the ground around the plants without damaging any tubing.

 

[Jozz]

Go karting was done. Haley raced and adult kart. She uh... Beat. Yeah, we'll use that word. Beat the entire field, with exception of a teen league kid who was beating me, during her first race while she was getting used to the kart. Second race was even moreso. Faster overall group and she was still top-3.

I can't wait to put her back into the Jr karts, with less power. It's like going back to Miata's. Handling mistakes become evident after you take power out of the equation.

So what is the weight difference between you and Haley?

 

[sunringlerider]

That’s so very cool!

Where are you located? What varietals? What trellising system? Soil?

So, many questions!

My wife and I will probably hand plant and acre or two from cuttings this winter.Trellis, fencing and clearing are our main expenses.

I kind of stumbled into the idea. Have been trying to expand our operation but land prices are crazy. So a higher value crop came to mind.

The one spot I am thinking is a sandy loam that is very well drained.
We are in north east Indiana. There are a few other very small vineyards around but only one other production vineyard in the area.
There’s about a dozen different varieties that are well adapted to Indiana’s climate. Still a long ways from planting any. Still working out viable markets for the harvested grapes.

 

[johnbryanpeters]

What is "Nextdoor" ?

Presume that it's like "Front Porch Forum" around here - neighborhood babble site.

 

[AngryMetalsmith]

Presume that it's like "Front Porch Forum" around here - neighborhood babble site.

I sort of feel like I am missing something here, but not really.

 

[iRider]

I sort of feel like I am missing something here, but not really.

Nah, you have Ridemonkey, so basically the same. However, it spans farther than the local neighborhood gossip (minus all the CO monkeys) and all have a remote interest in 2-wheeled offroad sports.

 

[Toshi]

Hello all

skied with Aya-chan, who is just the cutest tiny skier. She did some turns today and had a good attitude.

Headed off soon to try to find a parking spot somewhere to pick up elder girls and ski a few laps with them.

 

[mandown]

I joined next door as an alias for the lulz.

Lots of people here think carrying a firearm solves everything.
Homeless camp updates become political debates.
Lots of dog poop updates.
The only think anyone agrees on is that a lost cat is a code-red reason to form Voltron.

 

[Westy]

What is "Nextdoor" ?

Dumb neighborhood social media where people display a complete lack of common sense. Signed up when my dog was jumping the fence regularly.

 

[jonKranked]

What is "Nextdoor" ?

Like Facebook but it's all Karens

 

[jonKranked]

Took my kids for a hike in the woods before the snow melts tomorrow. They enjoyed themselves.

 

[jstuhlman]

rode bikes. wife took older dude to see her brother and his fam in asheville. me and the younger dude about to build a fire and grill some steaks.

 

[6thElement]

 

[sunringlerider]

Fire was made. S’mores consumed.
On to making braised short ribs for dinner. If I don’t eat too much, I’ll zwift. Odds are not good.

 

[sunringlerider]

View attachment 170066

A half?

 

[Nick]

Extra large ski day. Dumped snow all day, steeps are open, pb&j consumed, legs shot. Now im gonna make an old fashioned and some steak tacos.

BOOM!

 

[eric strt6]

I sort of feel like I am missing something here, but not really.

It's like the 1950s phone party line in one sense. Community gossip and nonsense mixed in with a few useful items like does anyone want these extra items I have or where can I find ......

my wife is on it. I see no point

 

[Westy]

Too much snow to ride. Roads to the mountains closed because of too much snow. Not enough snow to ski the places that are accessable.

 

[johnbryanpeters]

Too much snow to ride. Roads to the mountains closed because of too much snow. Not enough snow to ski the places that are accessable.

Swim in it.

 

[TreeSaw]

Evening monkeys. De-Christmased the house. Made some fresh venison backstraps for dinner...it's just Sq-Earl & I as the girls are both at friends tonight. About to have a delicious manhattan and hit the hot tub before watching some Netflix. It's crazy cold today and supposed to be icy tomorrow so I won't be travelling far.

 

[Westy]

View attachment 170066

 

[gonefirefightin]

Both freezers full of beef, long day, ready for the apocalypse now

 

[eric strt6]

BBQ ribs were consumed followed by taking the dogs out for a 40 minute walk. Now back to the EMS textbook for the rest of the evening. I'm hoping to get through 400 pages today.

 

[Toshi]

Kid 3 in first pic can now turn. She still can’t stop.

That’s kids 2 and 1 in the second pic. Kid 1 is ripping it up and getting quite quick. Kid 2 still reverts to wedge christie when it gets steep but will likely be carving it up on everything by the end of the season.

 

[stoney]

So what is the weight difference between you and Haley?

170#. The weight disparity is obviously huge. She was having trouble with speed in corners and it was chattering pretty bad - she couldn't keep the back end planted. 3-4 more races in adult and I think she's be down into 23's. She'll have a chance to talk to the super fast girl who she is looking up to on Tuesday. I'll push her to ask about how she drives about karts, because she can't weight more than 90#.

 

[MikeD]

oleder brother finally got the cream puff inspected

She's a beaut, Clark!

So many 650s became abortive custom hack attempts. I mean, some great customs too, bit it's super nice to see an original in such good shape...yet also a rider.

 

[chuffer]

Once the vine reaches the wire you shouldn't need any support for the plant. The galvanized posts should really only be neccessary for holding up the wire and supporting the weight of the berries. Once the plant is supported on the wire we remove the bamboo and use it somewhere else.

We tie young plants to bamboo stakes and if the stake cant be clipped to the bottom wire we will tie cotton string from the top of the bamboo to the bottom wire. We use tape guns (like the tapener) to clip the shoots to whatever we are using to stabilize them.

Heres a pic of the last trellis system I put together for my dads apple orchard. This is a 7 wire V-trellis on a 12x2 spacing.

View attachment 170067

Yeah, that is how most vineyards here are planted. In this new planting we will be doing things a bit differently. Not planting in rows and no wires. Going with a hexagonal pattern and a so-called goblet pruning technique. A couple of friends here have gone this route and we like the results. It is certainly not how you farm for highest yield and profit margin!

As for drip lines, no one we work with uses them. You don’t really need them in many places here in the valley. Manually irrigate the young vines with a tank for two years and then dry farming after that. Pretty common practice here.

Spent the day pruning one of our leased sites. I now see grape vines when I close my eyes. Always happens during pruning. Trippy.

 

[chuffer]

I kind of stumbled into the idea. Have been trying to expand our operation but land prices are crazy. So a higher value crop came to mind.

The one spot I am thinking is a sandy loam that is very well drained.
We are in north east Indiana. There are a few other very small vineyards around but only one other production vineyard in the area.
There’s about a dozen different varieties that are well adapted to Indiana’s climate. Still a long ways from planting any. Still working out viable markets for the harvested grapes.

That was going to be my next question. Gotta have a place to sell them!

The alternative is to make your own vino. It can be done without too much expensive equipment. Most of the expensive equipment is about saving time, automating or increasing capacity. A press is the only really big money item that you absolutely have to have.

 

[boostindoubles]

Yeah, that is how most vineyards here are planted. In this new planting we will be doing things a bit differently. Not planting in rows and no wires. Going with a hexagonal pattern and a so-called goblet pruning technique. A couple of friends here have gone this route and we like the results. It is certainly not how you farm for highest yield and profit margin!

As for drip lines, no one we work with uses them. You don’t really need them in many places here in the valley. Manually irrigate the young vines with a tank for two years and then dry farming after that. Pretty common practice here.

Spent the day pruning one of our leased sites. I now see grape vines when I close my eyes. Always happens during pruning. Trippy.

Sounds like fun! If your not spending money on trellis wire and anchors/posts then splurging on metal stakes for the plants makes sense.

Hand watering to establish roots and then letting it ride wouldn't work here very well but it's all commercial wineries and Concord contracts with Welch's/Smuckers around here.

I've got a process for making raisins that's delicious and I can scale it up with a little investment. I need more berries to scale up the process though.