A Busy 2013 - Part 2

As if the first half of 2013 wasn't busy enough, the second half was a whirlwind.

July

It started out July 4 with a FAM golf trip to Hilton Head where I was able to play Harbour Town Golf Links.

A great time in Hilton Head was followed with news that the USTA women's 25K Pro Circuit Event I run the media for would move from Troy, Alabama to Macon, GA along with my friend Eric Hayes, who is the new men's and women's tennis coach at Mercer University.

We would have to put together an event that usually takes 10 months, in 2 months. So long to Troy, a very coll college town with a sports-minded University in Troy University- but hello to a great tennis town in Macon.

Another golf FAM trip to Mississippi as I was able to stay and play at Dancing Rabbit, but also was invited to play the Pro-AM at the Sanderson Farms Championship - PGA Event. Got to play wil a great young player and UGA grad in Brendon Todd.

That brings us to the summer of tennis and Atlanta's stop on the ATP World Tour- the BB&T Atlanta Open.

My AJC "Go Guide" preview piece on the BB&T was a win/win for all involved in this event.

John Isner was crowned this year's champ.

Following the BB&T, it was off to cover the Atlanta Grand Prix international track and field meet where I was able to have a word and an exclusive with Lolo Jones.

CBS Better Mornings Atlanta invited me on to talk about some new Back to School gadgets.

August

More tennis in August at the Western & Southern Open in Mason, OH.

August ended and Sept. began with a golf FAM trip to Destin, FL and Sandestin.

September

Another golf FAM trip to start September to an unlikely place in Sylacauga, Alabama.  Sylacauga is home to the research and development golf course- FarmLinks. Run by the ultra-friendly Pursell Family, FarmLinks and Pursell Farms is growing and I can't wait for my next visit.

Mid September also found me at the Hyatt Lost Pines Resort and Wolfdancer G.C. in Austin, TX for a great trip to a world class resort.

October

October was busy, busy, busy.

From getting ready for the 25K in Macon, the ButlerCars.com Tennis Classic of Macon, to PR clients and finishing my first book of the year.

Then it was off to the exciting Bassmasters Championship in Ridgeland, MS to cover this great event.

Plus an unexpected surprise in being awarded the key to the city of Ridgeland, MS by the honorable Mayor Gene McGee.

Part 3 still to come

My Appearance on "Sports Extra" with Sam Crenshaw 12/22/13

My last TV appearance of the year as I join Sam Crenshaw on 11 Alive's "Sports Extra" to talk last minute sports items that would be perfect Christmas gifts.

I feature Samsung Galaxy Gear, the new Prince Graphite Classic 107 tennis racquet, the Kenny Giannini putter, the ActivMotion bar and high tech golf shirts from Tommy Hilfiger, Devereaux, and Antiqua.

Talking Gadget Gifts on WMAZ CBS Morning Show in Macon Today

Talking some of my favorite gadgets that would make great Christmas gifts on WMAZ, the CBS affiliate in Macon.  With morning show host Suzanne Lawler.

Talking the iShower, the Polaroid Z2300, Leef USB drives, STM's Backpack, and cool new Samsung smartphone that doubles as a camera.

Day 10: Rick's 12 Days of Christmas - Pelican Backpacks

Pelican makes backpacks that will protect your gear.

Take for example the Pelican ProGear S100

The Pelican ProGear S100 Sport Elite Laptop Backpack features an integrated Pelican case for the ultimate in crushproof, watertight, and impact resistant protection. This top-loader pack includes a 25 liter main storage compartment, SureGrip soft rubber handle, and load compression straps. The shoulder straps float when the backpack is placed in water. With the S100 you get a TSA ready and under-seat convenient backpack that opens easily and closes securely. With a lumbar pad, chest clip, removable hip belt, and ergonomic ventilated back you get the ultimate in comfort, and for convenience, look no further than our expanding sling storage for jackets and bedrolls.

Order yours...

Day 5: Rick's 12 Days of Christmas - Drobo Mini

Anyone who has a home, office, or even home office and does serious work on a computer could use a Drobo.

it's also the fastest portable storage array--with cutting-edge Thunderbolt and USB 3.0 connectivity and innovative use of solid state drives (SSDs). Along with the power of BeyondRAID, it delivers all the power and flexibility of its larger sibling, Drobo 5D, in a miniaturized package.

Whether you're working at your desktop, shooting and editing photos or videos on-site, or traveling to the next location, it's the world's first high-performance and protected portable storage array. So now you can take and access your valuable digital assets wherever you go. Easiest, fastest, safest, smallest--Drobo Mini is very unique and unexpected--but frankly that's what you should expect from Drobo.

Drobo Mini has everything that's in the high-capacity Drobo 5D in a package that's the size of a deli sandwich. Made of a cutting-edge metallic carbon fiber with a soft-touch rubberized finish, Drobo Mini is small, ruggedized, and feels as cool as it looks. From the modern materials to the wraparound light indicators to the drive bay design, Mini is truly big storage in a small box.

Weighing in at about 3 pounds (fully loaded with drives installed), you can now carry up to 3TB of usable and protected capacity in your travel bag. (When drives with more than 1TB capacity become available, you will have greater capacity.) To make Drobo Mini as portable as possible, there's an optional carrying case that holds the Drobo, power supply, and a connectivity cable.

Drobo Mini takes 2.5" drives--that's what makes it portable. Four hot-swappable drive bays support drives of any capacity. No carriers or screws are needed to insert drives into a Drobo and the Drobo Mini is no different. An innovative new design allows drives to click in and out like a ballpoint pen.

Since 2.5" drives are primarily used in laptop computers, they're designed to be portable. Because of this, you can pick up and move Drobo Mini around with confidence.

I advise you to consider a Drobo Mini.