Chocolate Festival :)

Last week was long and filled with just work. Not very fun but my life at the moment.

However Saturday was the Blacksburg Chocolate festival, and thankfully this year the weather was lovely. It seems spring is trying to come to Virginia finally. (Though on Sunday it didn't feel like it once again.)

Spring

I meet up with Cait and some of her friends there. Thankfully they got there before I did and got me some tasting tickets (you can't get chocolate without them!) as the ran out a little while later. I seriously would have cried if I couldn't have chocolate.

Companies from Blacksburg and Christiansburg buy chocolate from a vendor and we get it from them with the tickets. So you end up getting chocolate from banks and lawyers, which is a little weird.

Chocolate from a Bank

chatting

Pretty soaps but not edible :(

 They were also tickets available for the saddest looking beer/wine garden I have ever seen. Set up in the parking lot of a rundown motel by the market, it cost $25 to get in. Very sad and oddly not very busy.

Beer "garden"

 They also haas some really interesting chocolates. I tried chocolate with rosemary, which I really loved. Though I wasn't so sure and the Beer bacon brittle. (I decided to skip that particular taste.)

Lots of Beer Bacon brittle left

 It was a lot busier than last year and it was so nice to be out int he sun for a change.

Not the only one whose happy

 And I thought I was remarkably restrained. I only got 10 tasting tickets. (The others were saying how they couldn't eat anymore chocolate - they obviously don't have my stamina!) And I didn't try to buy/run away with the giant teddy.

Giant teddy!!!!

sunny College Avenue

We had a wonder around and finished up our chocolate tickets. I did put a few in my bag for later (something I did regret as 2 melted) as we went for lunch. And instead of the depressing beer garden, we went up to the roof of a nearby restaurant to grab a drink (though I am being good at the moment so stuck to ginger ale). It was so nice sitting in the sun. After this winter, I am ready for warmth.
Sunday was shockingly working.
Now I need to go a get my laundry. Just as another thunderstorm breaks. Figures. It's impressive but So much for putting it in the drier! And now it's hailing. great! :(

Shooting with SWAT

On Friday, after a meeting with people from the athletics department regarding the issues with the football team and then doing the photography for the Physics Awards Day Ceremony (it was a busy day), I got a lift from a police friend out to the VT shooting range to participate in the range day with the members of the police department and ERT (aka SWAT) as part of the police academy. So much fun!

Thankfully the weather held off though it was really muddy and I was very glad I had brought some rough clothes to put over my smart "I am a photographer" clothes. 

I got there just as they were finishing the pistols and a shooter competition. :-( But I got to do the pistols later. 

Preparing the next lot of guns

Inspection

After the pistols there was a round robin with a shot gun, a AR something (an assault rifle but I can't remember the full name), and an MP5 (which was fully automatic - very cool and scary!).

Showing the shot gun

On the range

Aim and fire!

I stood back a bit and watch first. But Nicole was kind enough to take some photos of me while I shot to super big guns.
I was a little nervous about these. They had some kick, so on Nicole's advice, I started on the easiest one, the AR something.

Shooting

He could tell I was a little nervous.

I think they all realized I was a bit nervous as after one shot I was "ok I'm good". Thankfully they made me shoot some more. After all when am I likely to get this sort of chance again?
I also didn't realize until looking at these photos exactly how curly my hair is these days! (Who sees the back of their head? And no one had mentioned the curl extent.) So here I look like Little Orphan Annie grew up and got very/violently annoyed at the world. Think "Annie" meets "Die Hard".

Practicing holding the MP5.

I was even more nervous about the MP5 after hearing people talk about it. This one likes to kill birds. The barrel really pulls up and tries to escape. Not something that seems like a very good idea. But it was fully automatic (i.e hold down the trigger and it just keeps on going until the magazine is empty.) I regret not taking a little more time with it but seriously I was so scared of losing control and taking out birds, trees and possibly members of the ERT team and students. I imagine I would have a very hard getting another visa after something like that!

Shooting the MP5

The last of the big guns was the shot gun. OH MY GOD!!!! That kicked a punch. I have some nice bruises on my shoulder and my cheek (as you have to put your cheek on the gun to look down the sight - might be using a bit of concealer for the next few days to avoid awkward questions!)
It was crazy powerful and has some serious recoil. But it was very satisfying to see the paper target obliterate!

Aim ... 

Fire!!! (Followed by "Ouch")

As I missed the pistols, they were sweet enough to let me go afterwards with one other person who was also late. I asked Nicole to basically assume I knew nothing (which is a pretty good assumption). I think I am a pretty good shot. My second shot was just above the 'x'. I had a little issue with wincing and closing my eyes when I was about to shoot but sorted that out. And as you can see below, it was pretty good and nearly all hit the target and most within the center (and 5 in the centre circle). :)
Not exactly a sharp shooter but it was only my second try!

My target

Dead!

So the world really needs to realize I am dangerous and stop messy with me! :) 

An evening with SWAT

Well they are called ERT (emergency response team) here but same thing.
Last night I spent a few hours at a talk by the VT ERT team and at range safety. It was run by Detective Daniel Hardy, who was great at the presentation and funny. He showed us some of the equipment such as the bullet proof vests, battering rams, and lots of guns.

The shielding in the ERT vest

How to break down your door.

We could also try the gear on. I did actually wear it as there wasn't time for everyone but I did pick it up. Seriously heavy,  ~50 lb and thats not included all the other gear

Getting kitted out

Armed and ready

They brought along a bunch of guns. There were a few shot guns, a sniper rifle and some machine guns! I couldn't tell you the names though. He also talked about the types of ammo (such as the non-lethal bean bags) and other bits of kit they have such as flash-bangs and tear gas.

the guns

After the talk, we could all go up and look at the guns and equipment. Well, everything except the sniper rifle, which was super highly calibrated so he didn't want anyone touching it.

More guns and a flash-bang

top:shot gun, middle: another gun, Bottom: grenade launcher

And more guns

They also brought some of the protection gear in, the usual shield you see in films and a more flexible one called a Bat shield. Seriously. That's it's name.

the old riot/bullet shield

Testing out the newer BAT shield

BAT shield

I have only been around guns once before (despite having lived in the US for a while now), at the range where Caroline and I did a class and went shooting. And then it was cry much "always treat the gun like it is loaded". Not so much here which made me more than a little nervous. I know they weren't loaded but still.... They were pointing them anywhere and I really didn't want to do staring down the barrel of a gun, loaded or not.

I was a little nervous around all this

ERT vest

The best quote of the night: when explaining the sniper rifle, "We use this when we want to reach out and touch someone. And touch them in a very specific place." I guess that's one way of describing a sniper rifle!

"Ruby", the sniper rifle

The rest of the evening was on range safety. And there was not as much as I personally would have liked but I have a somewhat British dislike of guns. and really don't want to get shot. Ever.
But tomorrow should be fun. I have to turn up late due to a work commitment but tomorrow we get to shot the guns.

Driving police cars!

This week on Monday for the police academy, we were doing vehicle operations, i.e. deriving police cars as fast as we could around an obstacle course. :)
We went out to the local airport to do the course which was a sharp 'S' followed by a 'light bulb' (like a painted on roundabout for the British readers) and then back through the 'S'.
First we went through the a cop driving slowly, and then at high speed with them driving. I was sitting in the back. There is not a lot of room there; I now have some impressive bruises on my knees. :(
Then it was our turn. First time was low speed to get used to the course.

Checking things out

 Then all bets were off. It was as fast as you wanted and with lights going.

Caning it.

 The final time was the same but with the sirens. That was a serious adrenaline rush!

All out.

I waited until most people had been so no one was really watching just in case I took out a whole heap of cones. However this meant it had the added problem of it then being dark. Still it was great fun and I would happily have gone through a few more times. I might not have gone as fast as some of the others (though I think only by a second or two) but I didn't hit a single cone! SO I might not get there as fast but everyone will be in one piece. 

Most people hit the cones on the roundabout but I have driven in Gornal, Dudley. That was not a tight turn!

Night driving

Then a couple of the police went, competing. Obviously much quicker than us! And Tony Haga, who loves his driving, did the course in reverse. In the dark.

After picking up the cones, we got the mobile command unit (a huge RV) back to the VT police department. Which has no seatbeats, which was interesting. (Until someone sitting on a rolling chair rolled per my toes when we went around a bend. Then I was not so impressed.)

Night scope in the mobile command centre.