“AHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

Well, perhaps there is no reason to get that excited but let me tell you the tale of my horrific experience (supposedly) by the hands of a tick.

Two weeks ago I was heading home after work and decided to skip a previously planned rendezvous due to an emerging sledgehammer of a headache. As a few more days went by the headache got worse, the fever increased, I would absolutely be soaked in sweat while sleeping due to chills, and finally my neck began to become stiff. The stiff neck was the beginning sign that this was more than the flu.

Dear readers,

A terrible accident occurred last night at Devil's Lake State Park near Baraboo, WI. A man was killed while "rock climbing" at the park late at night. See WSJ story here.

While when anyone dies it is a tragedy - just as it is when any person dies every day around the world - I feel "rock climbers" are being unfairly characterized by the media whenever someone takes a critical false step. A rock climber uses safety equipment and experience to scale a cliff in confidence that if a fall is taken he or she will be caught by their gear. This man should not be characterized as a "rock climber" due to the fact that he was not using gear to protect any falls.

Right, with snow finally falling in the deep south of Wisconsin it is time to strap on those skinny skis and take a ride. Tyrol Basin (http://www.tyrolbasin.com/), Cascade Mountain (http://www.cascademountain.com/) and Devils Head (http://www.devilsheadresort.com/snowsports/) have been open for a few weeks making snow with spotty success for the down hillers but the flat land skiers, known as “Cross Country” have been straight SOL…until now! It is time to pull out the wax and head out!

Madison’s first-ever public Tecmo Super Bowl tournament had a respectable debut this afternoon. Announced two weeks ago through the madison.com forum, the event had about twenty participants ready to demonstrate their skills with the 1991 Nintendo game. The Plaza Tavern hosted, with three Nintendo Entertainment Systems set up in the back room and one up front.

Just listening to the responses to the on-screen action, you might think you were hearing people who were watching a football game with human players, until you heard the occasional “why are my guys diving?” complaint. The game itself, of course, has a definite NES musical style. But like many of those old cartridges it has its own kind of charm, and beer and Nintendo is a pretty pleasant way for a child of the 80s to spend his time.

Select the “read more” link for pictures.

We've had a number of people searching for this article Mark wrote on sledding in Madison thanks to the Wisconsin State Journal mentioning it in an article this morning. Their inbound link is broken (there shouldn't be a space before "sleddinginmadison" in the url) so we thought we would move it up so it would be easier to find. Thanks for coming!

With the seemingly never-ending snow that the area received last week, so set off the official start of the winter recreation season. Bust out those skis, skates, and, of course, SLEDS! My mission: search far and wide to find the perfect sledding hill in Dane County. My weapon: the timeless favorite, the saucer.

What happened was something wonderful. I found many great hills, each with their own special qualities. My journey started in Sun Prairie and then took a turn south to scope out the hills Stoughton has to offer. I then came back up through Madison’s Eastside on my way to the many, varied hills on the Westside. Looping around the Northwest side of Mendota I next headed to Waunakee to check out what their hills had to offer. Sanitarium Hill was next in the loop before heading home. What an adventure.

A couple of weeks ago, the phenomenon of recreational adult kickball in Madison was covered here, focusing on the MUSA Madison, which encompasses more than fifty teams. MUSA stands for the Midwest Unconventional Sports Association, which organizes adult kickball (and more) leagues for seven cities/regions in Wisconsin and Minnesota.

The home base this spring and summer for the Madison kicksters is Demetral Field, a park sitting near Oscar Mayer just south of the airport. Mike Glass, Director of Operations for MUSA Madison, is there every week, making sure that the show is running smoothly.

In between games yesterday evening, Glass spoke with Dane101, discussing the game of kickball, the growth of MUSA, and some great skills... you know, like teamnaming skills. The interview and a few photos appear below the fold.

Though my friends have been kicking around for the last two years, encouraging me to join them, it wasn't until this spring that I finally succumbed. My leap off from this particular bridge was into the world of adult kickball, a pastime that has bounced around the country for about seven/eight years, arriving in Madison shortly after the turn of the century.

The sport is as you remember it from recess, only, as remarked upon by participants, observers, and emblazoned on the red rubber ball itself, the role of EtOH is paramount to the experience.

Madison is home to two leagues, which are the Midwest Unconventional Sports Association (MUSA), playing at Demetral Field up by Oscar Mayer and the airport, and Legends Sports, which is located at parks across the city, including Brittingham, Elver, High Point, and Wingra parks. These leagues sponsor other sports for relapsed adults, including flag football and dodgeball, but it's the kicksters who are the meat and potatoes of these operations.