PIX 11

Hi!
-Z

The other day I saw a word in an essay that struck a chord with me and prompted me to do some viral research on it… That word was Chernobyl.

The Chernobyl disaster was a nuclear reactor accident that occurred on April 26, 1986 at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine, which was then part of the Soviet Union. It is considered to be the worst nuclear disaster and the only “level 7″ event on the International Nuclear Event Scale… there isn’s a level that is higher than level 7.

It’s widespread contamination of the area is still visible today… there’s now an entire forest called “The Red Forest” which is a forest that has been genetically altered to possess “red” redwood trees.

It’s truly amazingly tragic what such a nuclear disaster can do… I found a few links on the Chernobyl Disaster that show the ecological, sociological, and humanitarian effects of the event, and I wanted to share them with you because some of you may not have seen these.

Links

• Magnum In Motion
• Chernobyl Accident
• Elena Filatova

Points of Interest

The Mountain Dew Tree

Hello everybody!
Well, it’s that time of year again! The Tour de France is back on Versus, and finally, it’s broadcast in High Definition for the first time ever. That means that the “sweepstakes” are back on, and this time, instead of Saab, Cadillac has assumed the role of the auto-manufacturer trying to peddle their wares on the consumerism of America, called Ride Of Your Life. In an effort to help all of you get some prizes this year, I am once again publishing all of the code-words that I have found to work with this year’s sweepstakes. So, without further adieu, here are the code words… If you win, or you find any other code words that work, please let me know by leaving a comment… Oh yeah, and, as an added service, your choices here will be saved for the next time you return… However, you may need to use an Internet browser such as Safari, that supports more than 50 cookies, so you can be sure your choices here will be successfully saved.

UPDATE: I’ve verified that this list is complete… using all of the code words below will give you a screen that states: “You have used all the code words you can” on the sweepstakes site. Good Luck everyone!

1.	Accelerate
2.	Acceleration
3.	Aerodynamic
4.	Ascent
5.	Astana
6.	Attack
7.	Bicycling
8.	Bobke
9.	Bonk
10.	Breakaway
11.	CTS
12.	Cadence
13.	Cadillac
14.	Cervelo
15.	Chain
16.	Champagne
17.	Chasers
18.	Climb
19.	Descent
20.	Disc Wheel
21.	Domestique
22.	Drafting
23.	Echelon
24.	Energy
25.	Epic Cycle
26.	Feed Zone
27.	France
28.	Fuel
29.	Gap
30.	Garmin Slipstream
31.	Gears
32.	Gradient
33.	Green Jersey
34.	Hammering
35.	Hanging On
36.	Heart Rate
37.	High Definition
38.	Hydration
39.	Ignition
40.	Independence Day
41.	Leadout
42.	Mobile
43.	Monaco
44.	Musette
45.	Paceline
46.	Paris
47.	Peddle
48.	Peloton
49.	Performance
50.	Podium
51.	Polka Dot Jersey
52.	Power
53.	Pursuit
54.	RPM
55.	Rest Day
56.	Ride Of Your Life
57.	Saddle
58.	Saxo Bank
59.	Shift
60.	Speed
61.	Spokes
62.	Sprint
63.	Team Car
64.	Team Columbia
65.	Team Director
66.	Team Time Trial
67.	Throttle
68.	Time Clock
69.	Tour
70.	Ventoux
71.	Versus
72.	Watts
73.	White Jersey
74.	Yellow Jersey

It was hot out there today for the riders… 85ºF for a good majority of the race… But, the men of the tour didn’t let the heat affect their performance, as they powered through the 187 kilometers of the race. A few minor climbs and some beautiful countryside welcomed the peloton today, and Mark Cavendish took the stage win. Nice work Mark!

Wow!
What a race! I love Le Tour… The Stage 1 TT in Monaco, called the “Race of Truth” by many, did not disappoint, as Lance Armstrong came back after retirement to place 10th overall. Fabian Cancellara took the yellow jersey, and it was definitely a pleasure to be watching the guys run almost the same circuit as F1. It looks like the tour is already off to a great start, and Monaco was definitely a great place to start this year’s tour.

Well,
It looks like Cadillac beat Saab to the punch (or to the advertising table) in this years Versus advertising campaign during the Tour de France… For the past few years Saab has held their “Fly To The Finish” sweepstakes, providing viewers with a chance to win a bunch of Cervelo and Saab prizes, even though I’ve never won anything, nor have I heard of anyone else winning anything. Yet, Saab is not conducting their sweepstakes this year and appears to have been dropped off the back by Cadillac. Yet, in the place of the “Fly To The Finish” this year we find the “Ride Of Your Life” sweepstakes, by Cadillac. For those of you who were here on my Blog last year, you can find the code words here:

2009 Cadillac “Ride Of Your Life” Code Words

Hey guys!
It’s been quite some time since I’ve actually done anything on here, so I figured it was time to log back in and pay some respect to the riders of the 2009 Tour de France. It’s going to be an exciting tour this year as Lance Armstrong is back, and is looking to be a contender in this years pinnacle of cycling. I know I’ll be watching the next few weeks quite contently, even though I would have preferred to be there watching the guys make their way across some of the most beautiful parts of France.

Colombian Style
UPDATE: Different cities in Colombia have variations of Salsa. The most common is the Cali Style Salsa.
Which is what you see all over Salsa Congresses, the upper body is kept still, poised and relaxed while executing endless intricacies in the feet. Musical to everything, not just the conga, or clave, or on1… dancers use every single number, sound, beat, instrument to choreograph their dances. It is said that Colombian salsa evolved during the big band swing era, when swing dance steps were danced to Cumbia music. Cumbia was traditionally danced in folkloric ensembles without holding one’s partner. Salsa (Cumbia) Cumbia style salsa began in Colombia and is danced to a different type of salsa music with “Cumbia” sound which is similar to the salsa rhythm but has a longer pause between the first three and the last three beats. It is rare to find a Cumbia instructional class as most people who dance this style were taught by family and friends. The style is still quite popular in South/Latin America and can be distinguished by a circular style of open/side breaks with a tap on the pauses of 4 and 8. Feet never move forward and backwards as in the Mambo step. Instead, the movement is a series of back to center or side to center footsteps. The style has very little turn patterns and is generally not a fast or “showy” style. Instead most Cumbia dancers will hold their partner very close with their entire bodies touching from head to toe. If turns are involved, they are generally very simple rock step left turns.

Cuban Style Salsa
Cuban Style Salsa is most similar to the original form of salsa rooted in Cuba. It is characterized by Afro Cuban style body movement which includes body isolation and hip movement. Cuban style salsa does not have many fast spins. Instead the movement is very circular as opposed to linear and partners tend to travel around each other. The hip movement is more noticeable in this style and stems from the pumping of the knees. The footwork is quite simple – the complexity lies in the arm work which requires the follower to have limber, flexible arms. Cuban style salsa is considered “male dominated” in the sense that the leader tends to be more “showy” and will create a greater push/pull feel for the follower then many other styles. Most Cuban style dancers tap on the pauses which are on the 4th and 8th beats if the dancers dance on 1. However, Cuban style salsa dancers do not always stay on the 1 beat and tend to stray depending on where the music takes them.

Miami Style Salsa (Classico Cubano, Casino)
Miami style salsa evolved from the Cuban style of salsa but is a more difficult and technically advanced style of Cuban salsa. Advanced Miami salsa moves tend to be intricate and pretzel-like and require a flexible follower to execute the moves. Many of the Miami moves are the same as Casino Rueda moves and the style is still more circular than linear. Open breaks or the Guapea basic (leader and follower break back and then push off each other) with a tap are the most common basic steps in Miami style salsa. Cross body lead variations are common but are executed in a more circular fashion.

Casino Rueda Style Salsa (Rueda de Casino, Salsa Rueda)
Casino Rueda (meaning salsa wheel) is a group dance which originated in Havana, Cuba in the 1960s by a group called Guaracheros de Regla. In this dance, couples dance in a circle while one dancer, designated as “The Caller”, provides hand signals or calls out the moves which will be executed by every couple in the circle simultaneously. Many of the Casino moves involve swapping or switching partners which makes the dance tricky to execute and spectacular to watch. Rueda is very popular in Cuba and Miami and has gained popularity all over the world. Cuban Rueda tends to be more playful with easy to follow fun moves while Miami Rueda has many complicated turn patterns and requires memorization and skill to execute. Many callers will know anywhere from 150-300 moves so memory, speed and accuracy is a key to ensuring the circle is not broken. The advantage of learning Casino Rueda is that all moves learned in the Rueda circle can be danced one on one with a partner adding to a dancer’s repertoire of moves.

L.A. Style Salsa (Dancing “On 1″)
L.A. style salsa, usually danced “On 1″, is a flashier version of New York style salsa moves. Dancers use lots of dips, flips, drops and tricks which make for a great show to watch. The back and forth Mambo basic, again in a linear motion, is utilized with the leader breaking forward on 1. Because the dominating beat is the 1 beat which is the most accented beat in the series, the dancing looks and feels powerful and fast. L.A. style salsa has incorporated many other types of dancing including jazz, hip hop, and ballroom which is challenging for the dancers and entertaining for the viewers. Similar to the New York style salsa, many of the moves are created from cross body lead variations. Shines are an important component of this type of salsa with complicated, speedy footwork and jazzy moves.

New York Style Salsa (Dancing “On 2″, Mambo Salsa, Eddie Torres Style)
Salsa on 2, commonly referred to as “Mambo”, is a style of salsa first introduced by Eddie Torres in New York in the 1960s. Technically speaking, dancing “On 2″ refers to the beat the dancers break forward on. Followers will break forward with the left foot on the 2 and leaders will break forward on the 6. New York style salsa is distinguished by smooth, controlled, highly technical movements that are elegant, graceful, flow well and are not rushed. The style is very linear and many of the turn patterns evolve from cross body lead variations. Multiple spins, complicated footwork, Afro Cuban body movement and shines are a must. Dancing “On 2″ is rhythmically more difficult as it is easier to hear the 1 beat and break on this beat. Many dancers learn to dance “On 1″ first and then train “On 2″ as they feel it is more musically and rhythmically rich and complex.

Puerto Rican Style Salsa
Puerto Rican style salsa can be danced “On 1″ or “On 2″. If you are dancing Puerto Rican style “On 2″ dancing, it is opposite from New York style in the sense that the leader breaks forward on 2 instead of the follower (can be called “On 6″). Some say that shines originated in Puerto Rico as these dancers would break away from their partners and execute extremely fast and complicated solo footwork. The lines are very clean and there is a great deal of shoulder shimmies incorporated into the dancing. There is an emphasis on dancing to the “Clave” especially the 2/3 clave (pa-pa, pa-pa-pa). In fact Felipe Polanco, one of the pioneers of Puerto Rican salsa, has created a unique basic that compliments the uneven 5 beat dance which incorporates a sliding forward and back motion that hits the accents of the clave.

Salsa Shines
Shines refer to solo work when the leader breaks away from the follower and each dancer has the opportunity to freestyle on their own to the rhythm and accents of the salsa music. Shines involve more complex footwork as well as body movement and arm work. Shines are common in the New York, L.A. and Puerto Rican styles of dancing. They are not as common in the Cuban, Miami and Columbia styles of dancing. The term “shines” originally referred to having the opportunity to “shine” independently. Shines give dancers an opportunity to take a break from partner work and turn patterns and freestyle. There are many common shines such as Suzy Qs and flares but every dancer has their own unique and individual movements which allows dancers to be constantly challenged.

Salsa Styling
Incorporating styling techniques into any style of salsa has become very common. For both men and women shines, leg work, arm work, body movement, spins, body isolation, shoulder shimmies and rolls, and even hand styling have become a huge trend in the salsa scene. There are lessons dedicated to the art of salsa stylin’. Hip hop, jazz, flamenco, belly dancing, ballroom, break dancing/pop and lock, and Afro Cuban styles have all be infused into the art of styling.