Charcoal Toothpaste...

So there's a charcoal toothpaste product in asia! I stumbled upon this site and laughed so hard at the comments. I don't consider myself a "hard core camper" but I have brushed my teeth with charcoal from a cooled fire... multiple times. I still bring a toothbrush and paste, but I love the stunned reaction people give you when they see you actually do this. Rarely has anyone joined in, but that's ok. You'd be surprised at how well it works and how clean your teeth feel, and you can feel a bit more connected with the aborigines...

...Camping anyone?


http://www.weirdasianews.com/2007/11/03/black-charcoal-toothpaste/


**By the way, I could attach pictures to illustrate, but they are a bit freaky so I'll work on some this summer and maybe do a follow up tribute to my carefully selected website address... invented by Mark Bangerter who witnessed the charcoal tooth-brushing 1st hand on a camping trip in Acadia a few years ago.

Tour of the Gila

Today I attended my first bike race ever... stage 4 of The Tour of the Gila in Silver City, NM... amazing! Racers rode 40 laps (just over 40 miles) around downtown Silver. Among the racers were greats such as Lance Armstrong, Levi Leipheimer and Floyd Landis.

The racers come so fast that it's a challenge to pick out individual riders. Fortunately for us they have 40 laps. It's really a great spectator event and made for a very inspiring day.

Tomorrow they ride 105.7 miles through the Gila Mountains gaining 9,360 feet. Our spectators guide refers to the race as 'the climber's race' or 'the toughest one-day race in America'. Since I don't follow the sport of cycling, and can be a bit out of touch with these things, I'd never heard of this race, but I'm happy my friends invited me along. Such a fabulous day. Thanks Jerra and Chris!