SheSue Experience

A Lineman's tool cart

You won’t find any horses or cowboys at this rodeo. Instead the tools of the trade are steel shank boots, floating belts, safety straps, gaff guards and climber pads. The Pacific Northwest Lineman Rodeo is all about the men and women who work on power lines to keep the lights and computers running. At the rodeo both journeyman and apprentices compete for speed in events that simulate every day work.

Pole Climb Contest

One of the events was a pole climb and did those guys go. Made my knees ache! This guy is at the top of the pole. Their boots are made with steel shanks and have spikes sort of like studs on your car. This is for grabbing onto the pole as they climb. He is leaning back into his leather safety strap. This is a strap that is wrapped around the pole and secured on either side of a harness they wore.

Hurt Man Event

The hurt man rescue isn’t very typical, but practice never hurts. Bent over backwards in the picture is a dummy simulating an injured man tangled in some lines and probably shocked from electricity. The lineman climbs up the pole to the injured man. All his tools are raised up to him in a bucket on a pulley system. After getting the injured man in a harness, the lineman cuts the lines the injured man was tangled in and the lineman’s partner lowers the injured man to the ground, once again using a pulley system.

Bucket on Pulley System

Other events included the high line event, insulator replacement event and relay event. Many events were done in pairs of lineman. In all of the events, the equipment used was raised and lowered by pulley including the ladder. The guys would climb up the pole with their spiky boots and no harness. Once at the top, they hooked their safety strap into place. They also wore big heavy gloves when dealing with any wires. While speed was the name of the game, their work was also judged for accuracy. The apprentices also took written tests that were judged and they had to demonstrate intricate work with the rope they use. One test was some fancy knot work. My son’s stint in Boy Scouts would have given him the edge here.

Harnessed and Ready to Ride the Aeriel Bucket

Here I am in a harness getting ready to go up in an aerial bucket. Today, instead of climbing the pole, the bucket is used as much as possible, mostly to save wear and tear on the body. Linemen only climb the poles when a bucket truck can’t get into the repair location. The ride up was smooth, operated by a 17 year veteran. Here is the view of the rodeo from the top of the bucket.

View from the Aeriel Bucket

What is a rodeo without vendors such as this one selling linemen supplies. There were also several food vendors, some informational tents and a raffle. Part of the raffle money was donated to the Oregon Burn Center.

Tools of the Trade

The rodeo is used as training for apprentices and as practice for journeymen. Journeymen complete as a team while Apprentices compete head to head. Winners of this rodeo go on to the International Lineman Rodeo in Kansas City, MO.

For more information on the park including a map, check out the City of Portland Parks and Rec website.

Admit it. When you were about 16, you longed for one of those fuzzy black velvet hangings. Was it those big-eyed puppies or Elvis or waves crashing on the shore. Maybe it was naked ladies or John F. Kennedy or Michael Jackson. Have no fear, they’re still around!

The Velveteria in Portland, Oregon started as a past time for Caren Anderson and Carl Baldwin. They found the velvet paintings at garage sales, estate sales, on eBay, in antique stores, thrift shops and in gas station parking lots. They began buying up paintings of kittens, clowns, devils, politicians, cartoon characters, movie stars, and presidents. When their little past time grew to over a thousand paintings, they opened Velveteria, the museum of velvet art.

So don your bell bottom pants and check out the Velveteria.

If you need a break from the craziness, the Japanese Gardens is just the place to go. Located high in the West hills on over 5 acres, you will find 5 separate garden styles. There is also an authentic Japanese tea house where they offer demonstrations of tea parties; spectacular views, meandering streams, a pavilion where they have events and exhibitions and of course, the gift store.

I went with my sister. We took the guided tour. My sister has recently been to Japan and was impressed at how like Japan the gardens were. In fact, His Excellency Nobuo Matsunago, the former Ambassador of Japan to the Unites States said of the gardens, “the most beautiful and authentic Japanese garden in the world outside of Japan.”

The tour started with the pavilion where we attended the Iris Folding demonstration at a different time. The building has shoji (translucent paper panels) and verandas that denote the integration of house and garden. The Flat Garden is intricately raked sand with 2 island that are supposed to represent a sake cup and a gourd bottle. This signifies pleasure and a wish for your happiness.

The Strolling pond garden is just like it sounds. 2 ponds separated by a Moon Bridge. The lower pond has statues of a tortoise and a crane which are symbols of longevity. The design of this garden told of the wealth of the owner.

The Tea Garden surrounds the tea house. There are actually 2 gardens. The inner garden next to the house and the outer garden where guests wait before entering the tea house. The gardens are meant to be simple just as the inside of the tea house. When you enter the house, you are meant to forget all about the material world around you. This way you will focus on the ceremony. The ceremonies are like a ballet, highly choreographed.

After the tea house, along the path, you come to the Zig Zag Bridge which leads through a pond filled with koi. Above the pond you will find Heavenly Falls, one of several falls through out the gardens. Water falls are a metaphor for the life cycle. The top is birth, the falls are your teenage years, the pond is adulthood and the trickle of water leaving the pond represents your senior years.

The other water falls are part of the Natural Garden. This is my favorite garden. You pass by ponds, waterfalls, bridges, trees, shrubs and rock pathways. From early spring to late in the fall, there is always something in bloom in these well tended, yet natural gardens. The last garden is the Sand and Stone Garden. These type of gardens are always found in front of Buddhist temples. They are attended and appreciated for their simplicity.

There are 5 gardens as Buddhists believe this number to be lucky. You will find no symmetry in the gardens. Each garden is designed with many enclosures. This allows you to focus only on the beauty that currently surrounds you. The trees are kept low as a human element. In each garden you will find stones which are considered the bones or structure of the garden. Plants form a seasonal tapestry and water represents life. The simple materials used represent the physical world.

For more information check out the Japanese Gardens website.

In 1825 Hudson’s Bay Company established a huge fur trading network throughout the Pacific Northwest. Fort Vancouver was the administrative center and main supply depot. Today, the fort has been reconstructed to about the 1840 era.

When you first enter the fort, it seems like there is a lot of empty space until you read that 600 people were all crammed inside these walls. Many school groups pass through these gates every year. The blacksmith’s put on a good show as well as other volunteers who appear in period costume.