Kendall Giles

I've been on the road quite a bit lately, plus am in the middle of the fall semester, so postings have been not as frequent as I would like. However, I've been progressing through the RKC Right of Passage, and today I tried out my new 28KG kettlebell.

This was a move up in weight for me, and today I did 5 sets of hard-style press ladders with 3 rungs with the 28KG kettlebell. I then did 7 minutes of swings with the 28KG kettlebell, 20 swings per minute, or 8642 pounds lifted in 7 minutes. Finally, I finished with 5 sets of 3 hard-style pullups.

I should also comment on the new kettlebell. There have been some discussions in the community about the fact that DragonDoor moved their kettlebell production offshore to China. While I understand there were some initial issues with quality, by now I think things are under control. At least the kettlebell I got seemed to be in good working order. The finish was a little different than my US-made kettlebell, but it did not cause any problems during my workout, and there were no seams or ridges to tear into my flesh. All the edges were smooth, and the weight and logo verbage was clear. So I was happy with my new DragonDoor kettlebell, and will buy another, once I am ready to move up in weight.

Rebec Vineyard and Winery, in Amherst, Virginia, recently hosted the 18th Annual Virginia Wine and Garlic Festival. Six area wineries, lots of garlicky foods, music, and entertainers made this a really fun time for all.

The short video below captures a few of the sights and sounds there, in case you missed it or are curious.

Be sure to check out the forthcoming Richmond Noir, an anthology of original noir stories by Dean King, Laura Browder, Howard Owen, Yazmina Beverly, Tom De Haven, X.C. Atkins, Meagan Saunders, Anne Soffee, Clint McCowan, Conrad Persons, Clay Chapman, Pir Rothenberg, David Robbins, Hermine Pinson, and Dennis Danvers.

With a Foreward by Tom Robbins.

Edited by Andrew Blossom, Brian Castleberry, and Tom De Haven.

By the way, rumor has it that the tomb pictured above houses the Richmond vampire...