March Madness

Which of the DTB Cousins would have been most interested in March Madness? If you said Brady, you're wrong. The correct answer it Devin. He would have filled out a couple of brackets - one with his favorite choices, and another with his "expert" opinion. He would have tried to convince his cousins to fill out brackets too. Brady would have done it, but wouldn't have paid much attention after his favorite team was out - unless it looked as if he might actually beat Devin in the bracket challenge (a dubious possibility at best). Trey would have agreed to fill one out, but would have been too busy to get around to it. Devin would have been highly invested in the whole tournament, trying to pick up helpful hints on how to improve his game. How do I know this? I'm one of the few people who have read the sequel to The Narrows Escape.

The second book of the DTB series, Drake's Treasure, takes place during the boys' first year of junior high. Devin and Brady both attend Prospector Jr. High, while Trey attends rival Foothills Jr. High. Devin tries out for, and makes the basketball team - his favorite sport despite being vertically challenged. Although not the major plot line in the book, his involvement on the team is one of the subplots in the story.

2013 excursion

Although I have hiked the entire trail twice, I have only hiked sections of the trail (the bottom portion) since writing my first draft of The Narrows Escape. Although I tried to hike the entire trail again for research purposes, on each occasion the flash flood warning was "moderate" (the same classification as that of our ill-fated trip), so I limited my explorations to short excursions while keeping a sharp eye on the weather and key signs of flash floods. Here is a picture of a sign on the Riverwalk Trail that describes what to look for:

My latest venture into the Narrows was last summer (2013). I went with my brother-in-law Darin, my nephew Spencer, and my daughter Erika. It was the first time into the Narrows for each of them. We hiked up to Orderville Canyon, then we went up that branch for a little bit before hiking out. It was late in the season, so the water wasn't as high, but it did get up to our waists at one point. Here are some pictures from that trip:

Super Bowl XLVIII

The DTB cousins would have been excited that the Denver Broncos were in the Super Bowl. It was the favorite NFL team of all three cousins - particularly because Trey's uncle used to play for them. In addition, the Broncos were the "home" team for Devin before his family's move to California. Unfortunately, the blowout loss to the Seahawks would have been an all too familiar theme. The first Super Bowl the cousins would have paid any attention to was Super Bowl XII, when Trey's Uncle Jon and company lost to Dallas Cowboys, led by Roger Staubach. Although that was the only Super Bowl appearance for the Broncos at the time of the first DTB book, The Narrows Escape, the Broncos went on to appear in three more Super Bowls to close out the 1980s. Unfortunately, those were all blowout losses too. It wouldn't be until January 1998 that their beloved Broncos, led by their aging star John Elway, won their first championship. Elway retired the following year after leading the Broncos to back-to-back Super Bowl titles. Unfortunately, that was to be the Broncos' last appearance in the big game until yesterday's debacle. Ah well, there is always next year.

New Year's Resolution

I used to write daily. Then after several setbacks, I became disheartened. I haven't written regularly for a while, but I'm excited about a new idea. My resolution this year is to write daily and finish my new manuscript by next summer. It isn't a DTB adventure, but if it is successful, maybe that will open up the opportunity to publish the other two DTB novels I've already written.

Trey's ankle

In early versions of The Narrows Escape, Trey's ankle played a bigger role in the pre-hike narrative. However, when I decided to cut down the reunion portion of the book to get to the hike faster, I cut out most of the drama surrounding whether or not Trey would be allowed to go. I've already published a couple of those clips, but this clip is where the decision is actually made. It takes place the night before the hike. What I like about it is that it shows his parents' teaching style. Here it is:

As his family headed back to their camper for the evening, Trey said, “Well, I guess I better check my pack to make sure I have everything.” He held his breath, hoping that his parents would acquiesce without an argument.

“I don’t think you should go,” Dad announced, dousing Trey’s hopes.

“But I’m fine!” Trey exclaimed, walking around to prove his point. Although he succeeded in walking ten yards or so without a limp, his ankle groaned in response. It was getting better all the time, but it still had a long way to go before it was 100% again. He gritted his teeth and faked a smile. “See?”

“I can see that you’re a pretty good actor,” replied Dad.

“It really doesn’t hurt that much anymore,” Trey persisted. “I mean, sure, I can feel it a little, but I’ll be fine. I promise!”

“Why do you want to go so bad?” asked Mom.

“To be with my cousins,” Trey answered immediately. “It’ll be fun, and I may never get the chance again.”

“Remember what I said about not doing something dumb just to fit in?” Dad asked. “Well, hiking down a rocky river with a sprained ankle falls into that category.”

“But this is different!” Trey argued. “This is a family thing! Aren’t you the one who’s always talking about ‘Family First’? So how can you say this is something dumb?”

“The hike’s not dumb,” Dad clarified. “Hiking it on a sprained ankle is.”

“It’s not fair!” Trey fumed. “You promised I could go if I could walk without limping!”

“I didn’t promise any such thing,” Dad countered. “I said we’d talk about it. And we’re talking about it.”

“What’s the use of talking about it if your mind’s already made up?” asked Trey.

Dad sighed. He had a large frown on his face. “I didn’t say you couldn’t go,” he explained. “I said I didn’t think you should go.”

“So it’s my decision?” Trey asked warily.

Dad looked at Mom. She shrugged and he looked back at Trey. He took a deep breath and let it out. “I guess you’re old enough to make your own decision …”

“All right!” exclaimed Trey.

“…But before you do,” continued Dad, “I want you to thoroughly consider the consequences of your decision, and I want you to pray about it.”

“Okay!” Trey agreed. But even as he said it, he was already thinking about how much fun they were going to have.

Quicksand

One of the most difficult parts of our flashflood experience was dealing with the aftermath. As the flood passed through the canyon, it left debris in piles along the way. It also dumped loads of silt in areas where the river changed directions. As we were navigating our way downstream, I was in the lead, since I had been down the canyon before. At one point, we were on an elevated bench, and needed to get back down to the river since the bench was going to end. As I turned to head down the slope, I noted that the sand looked extremely wet. As soon as I stepped on it, my foot immediately began to sink. I took another step forward to keep my balance, and that foot sunk too. Within seconds, I was up to my waist in soupy mud, and continued to sink. I couldn't move my legs to extricate myself, so I immediately lay back onto my pack, hoping to distribute my weight more evenly. I don't know how far I would have sunk, but I didn't want to find out either. My dad rushed forward and grabbed my arm, while becoming partially submerged in the muck himself. My cousin Troy held out his walking stick, which I grabbed, and used to maneuver myself so that I was facing the group. With the help of my dad and cousins, I was able to climb out. As soon as it appeared that I was safe, Uncle Merlin snapped a picture:

Me, my dad, and Greg



After I got out, my uncle took another picture. This time you can see how deep I was in the sand.

It was a terrifying experience to say the least, and obviously became part of the novel. Yet for some reason, most readers assume it is one of the fictitious parts of the adventure. However, here's proof of its validity.

Castle Dark

I was going through a box of old papers when I ran across a fun pad I created when I was about ten. It had simple puzzles, crosswords, mazes, and a serial DTB adventure. The idea was to publish a monthly fun pad for my subscribers. I don't know if I sold any copies, though my mom may have purchased one for the 10 cent purchase price. In any case, I didn't make any future editions. I read through the first episode of the DTB adventure, and got a good laugh at my writing skills. I don't know if it was my first ever attempt to write a DTB cousin adventure, but here it is in its entirety - spelling mistakes and all:

     Once upon a time, there was witch who lived in California. She lived in a castle called Castle Dark. Lots of people said it is haunted. The castle still stands in California but nobody will go in it. Everybody says it is either haunted or falling a part. They President says he will give a hundred dollars to the person or people who go inside. The DTB cousins of Upland California take the job. They packed equipment and started off. The DTB cousins are detectives and have solved other cases so they were not afraid. As they walked up the dusty path they thought about the adventures that would soon take place. Soon they reached Castle Dark. They went inside single file. Darin first, Troy second, and last but not least Brad. As they walked Darin steped on a button like thing on the ground and a skeleton pops out of a secret opening. The DTB cousins walk on. Soon they come to a door. They opened the door and saw a misty room with cobwebs all over. The DTB cousins got on their hands and knees and crawled across the floor. In the middle of the room was an opening in the floor. The DTB cousins decided to go inside and explore. One at a time the dropped down into the dark pit. They turned on their flashlights and found themselves in a large tunnel ful of boxes and bags. They heard someone walking toward them. Quickly the DTB cousins turned off their flashlights and hid behind some boxes. The lights went on and they saw a man carring a box. He put it down, turned off the light, and left without noticing the boys. The DTB cousins came out of hiding and decided to see what was in the boxes. They turned on their flashlights and looked in a box. It was ful of bags of money marked Bank of America. They opened another box and found money bags marked 1 National Bank. Darin said, "Two banks can't be working here together." Troy said, "It might be a band of crooks." Brad said, "I agree with Troy." The DTB cousins decided to investigate further, then inform the police. They turned off their flashlights and quietly and slowly slipped through the bundles. As they went on they saw a dim outline of a figure walking down the hallway. Soon they came to a lighted part and hid behind boxes. They saw the bank thief Dangerous Dan himself. That's when the DTB cousins knew Dangerous Dan's men were working there. The DTB cousins decided to go tell the police. As they retraced their steps they soon came to the opening in the floor above. Brad got on Troy's shoulders and pulled himself up. Just when Troy was going to get out one of Dangerous Dan's men came. He had his gun raised and said Don't move!
To be continued...