A new store has opened up in our favorite city, and we love it.  The Rocket Fizz Soda Pop and Candy Shop offers over 500 different bottled soda pops (both old and new) and a great selection of nostalgic candies.  My favorite, the little bottles of Coca Cola made with the real cane sugar – now that’s what Coke is supposed to taste like!  It’s great fun to look through the huge selection and try out the sodas (Empire Cream Soda is a new Coffman Team pick).  The Rocket Fizz Soda Pop and Candy Shop is located at 5130 S. Forte Apache #260.  For more information, visit www.rocketfizz.com.

Kerry’s Marine Rider’s group participated in the 11^th Annual Police Officers Riding 4 Kids (or P.O.R.K.) Charity Run to benefit the Nevada Childhood Cancer Foundation.  It was a great opportunity to help a good cause, and get the bike out for a ride.  For more information on P.O.R.K. and up-coming events, go to www.pork4kids.org.

The Farm, located at 7222 W. Grand Teton Drive, is a Las Vegas institution and a great place to get fresh eggs, jellies, fruits and vegetables year-round.  But in October, The Farm goes all-out for the Pumpkin Squash Festival.  The Coffman Team braved the chickens (who, while huge, mostly stayed in their pens – which I stayed out of) to pick up some pumpkin chips, squash pie and peach preserves.  There weren’t any fresh eggs available when we arrived, but there were some by the time we were leaving (it doesn’t get any fresher than that), so we were able to get a dozen of those, too.  The event also has carriage rides and a petting zoo, and is a great place to pick out a holiday pumpkin.  The Pumpkin Squash Festival is a reminder of the small town Vegas used to be – The Farm’s owner, Sharon Linsenbardt, is there to visit with her guests, just like she has been for the last 42 years.  The Festival is free, and runs every weekend in October, from 9 am to 9 pm.

To celebrate the 9^th annual Las Vegas BikeFest, Las Vegas Harley Davidson offered demo rides of their 2010 models.  Kerry was the only one to actually ride the new bikes, but the rest of the Coffman Team was on-site for encouragement and photography.  Make sure to ask Kerry what he thought of Harley’s new line-up next time you see him!

The Coffman Team was able to attend one of the many events that took place around Las Vegas in remembrance of 9/11.  Las Vegas Fire and Rescue joined fire departments across the country to honor the 343 firefighters who lost their lives eight years ago.  At 6:55 am, firefighters gathered at the flagpole in front of each fire station while a set of five bell tolls was played three times over the firefighters’ communication channel. 

Before radios, fire services communicated using fire alarm boxes on street corners.  When a fire alarm was pulled or dispatch needed to alert the department members of certain events, the bells at the fire stations would ring in a code telling the location of the box or the type of event.  Three sets of five bell tolls told everyone in the department that a firefighter had just been lost in the line of duty.

In addition to the tolling of the bells, an American flag that once flew over the World Trade Center was flown at half-mast at Fire Station 5 on Hinson Street, where a piece of steel from the World Trade Center is also on display.

It’s no secret that the summers in Vegas are hot, hot, hot. So The Coffman Team is always on the lookout for air-conditioned activities. When we heard that the Orleans Arena was offering indoor, off-road motorcycle racing – we had to go see EnduroCross for ourselves.

Tons of logs, boulders, sand and water were brought into the arena to form outdoor obstacles for the racers. There was even a “night” race – where the lights in the arena were turned off, and riders had to race using only their headlights.

EnduroCross is returning to the Orleans Arena in November, and is definitely worth checking out.

From school children riding bikes with training wheels attached to Kerry’s Marine Corp Riders on their motorcycles, from horse-drawn wagons to Segways, from Native American Dancers to Storm Troopers, the Summerlin Patriotic Parade is not only a Vegas tradition, but a perfect example of the city‘s diversity. The Coffman Team (less Kerry, who was negotiating the parade route very slowly – since his motorcycle club had to keep pace behind the aforementioned bike-peddling children), had a great time cheering from the sidelines as babies in parent-pulled wagons to retired military veterans went by in their red-white-and-blue best.

National Trails Day was celebrated on June 6th this year, with approximately 3,000 trail-themed events across the country designed to promote awareness and appreciation for America’s trails. With its 150-mile trail system, Summerlin was a natural fit for the day. Summerlin’s Happy Trail Family Fun Walk and Run

Fun walkers enjoyed games at the halfway point.

featured a 1.6 mile fun walk through the Arbors Paseo Park trail system with a stop at the mid-way point for some water balloon tossing, sack races and other activities and games. Those looking for more of a challenge could enjoy a 9-mile fun run (I am not kidding you, the Summerlin Striders, a Summerlin-based running club, was referring to it as a “fun” run. Just shows that people’s definition of fun varies widely).

The Summerlin Trail System features several types of planned trails in its extensive system, including natural, village and bike trails. For more information and a map of the trail system, visit www.summerlin.com.

On June 7, 2009, the Las Vegas Metro Police Department had a fund raising motorcycle ride for Dave Rooney, one of their motorcycle officers who is recovering from a serious illness that has left him and his family with some substantial medical bills.

Around 500 motorcycle riders showed up including a detachment of the Marine Motorcycle Riders of Las Vegas.  Kerry was one of the riders that participated, and he really enjoyed the event and the ride.

For more information about Dave you can go to www.getwelldave.com

 To see video clip of Channel 8^’s coverage of the event, including an 8 second interview with Kerry click here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TjXBlfl8cTY