[meteorite-list] Way To Go Count!!!!!!!!!!
From: Galactic Stone & Ironworks <meteoritemike_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Thu, 4 Mar 2010 15:54:58 -0500 Message-ID: <e51421551003041254u53be642dq993257648d5d9f63_at_mail.gmail.com> Greetings Count and List, What a great account. I am going to save that post. I can only imagine the rush of endorphins and adrenaline that must have resulted from realizing the portion you found was just the tip of the proverbial iceberg. :) Yes, AFAIK, that is one of the biggest meteorites pulled out of that area. Sonny probably knows. You may have a new main mass on your hands! Best regards and happy huntings! MikeG On 3/4/10, countdeiro at earthlink.net <countdeiro at earthlink.net> wrote: > Alexander Seidel and List, > > Alexander asked that I share with him and the List the personal experience > of having my first find be such a remarkable specimen. I am told by those > who should know that this chondrite is the largest intact specimen so far > found in Nevada. I would ask the List if this is so. > > Here's an account for those who wish to read about a "newbie" finding his > first metorite. > > I began to study meteorites about a year ago as a diversion to take my mind > off the two years of radiation and chemo treatments I had been undergoing > for stage IV metastized cancer. I had responded well for a 72 year old and > was in remission. I needed some new pursuit to get my mental and physical > health back. Little did I know that I was about to catch another > disease..and this one incurable...the obsession with meteorites. > > After purchasing some sixty different types and classifications, a stereo > scope and a cabinet for comparison purposes ...and reading numerous posts on > List and dozens of papers, attending Tucson... putting faces on all whom I > had met online... I decided I was ready to go into the field. > > I was fortunate to have made acquaintance with Sonny Clary who lives nearby. > He had become my mentor, given me samples and shown me some pointers on > hunting by taking me on a short local trip to look at an area of interest. > We spent maybe two hours in the field. Sonny moves quickly, his acute vision > and experience letting him cover a lot of ground in very little time. I > found I was more comfortable going my own way and not slowing him up. > Neither he, nor I, found anything. > > I have four grandsons and I spent a few hours in some vacant fields in Las > Vegas throwing down weathered samples and demonstrating to them the use of > the cane and detector. Ten year old , Vincent, was fascinated. The others > non-plussed. > > Night before last, May 2nd., Sonny called late and invited me to spend my > first full day hunting an area he felt was promising several hours away. We > met at his home and loaded up the gear, food and water. Brix, his super > Alsatian, whined excitedly knowing we were going on a hunt. Sonny has > trained Brix to the point that the dog will bring him rocks in the field. No > meteorites yet...but it will happen. > > We arrived in the desert around nine o'clock. The temperature was a pleasant > 67 degrees under clear skies and no wind. We saddled up and agreed as to > which way each of us would go. Sonny took off to the left and I to the > right. Within minutes we were out of sight of each other. We did have a > means of communicating electronically in the event of an emergency. Both of > us are Nevadans and have spent years in the desert hunting game, Sonny > meteorites and in my case, before it became illegal, early man artifacts. > > After several hours with no luck, we met back at the truck and traveled two > miles north on the valley floor. After another hour or two of nothing but > meteor wrongs picked up from the desert pavement, Sonny decided to expand > our search area again several miles west. > > This time we were on excellent ground. Flat, with very little organic growth > and hardly any rocks at all. If they were here, the meteorites would stand > out prominently. Again, Sonny strode off northwest with Brix roaming in > front of him. Brix has received snake avoidance training and a good thing, > because the rattlers, including the feared "Mohave Green", are coming out of > their dens this time of year to warm themselves, and shed their winter skin, > making them ill tempered and aggressive. Sonny hunted with no assistance > from cane, or detector. I used my staff with a circular neodymium magnet > screwed on the end. > > I followed Sonny to the west, deciding to make the first leg of my search > into the reduced visibility of the sun, so I could make the other two half > mile legs with the sun at my side and rear to highlight the ground and > prevent squinting. I have special tinted prescription glasses that provide > some UV protection, reduce eye strain and sharpen the field of view. > > Sonny and Brix were quickly out of sight. About an hour and a half into > things and while walking forward a few paces at a 45 degree angle to the > left and then to the right, my scan picked up an irregular shape 50' to my > right. It was so out of place as to shape and color that I knew immediately > it was a possible. I turned and walked toward it. As I got within a few > yards I could see that it had the familiar dark desert patination that I had > studied on my Gold Basin samples. It was a three inch high tip sticking out > of the ground like a triangular iceberg. I started to laugh out loud as I > walked around it in a tight circle. Taking my cane, I carefully placed it > close along side dangling it loosely between two fingers. Nevada chondrites > tend to have low metal. The cane moved slowly against the rock. So subtle > was it's movement that I didn't immediately believe it and had to do the > exercise all around the tip. Each time it "clicked" I got a rush of > excitement. Before I could contain myself, I reached down and grabbed the > exposed tip and pulled. My hand slipped off. > > I began to dig with my hands. Down two inches. Still no movement. Step back. > Put scale cube down. Take picture. Three more inches and shove it with your > foot. No movement. More pictures and the thought of "How in the hell did I > get this lucky?" Frantic digging like a rabid gopher. "How big was this > thing?" "Wow" "Wait till Sonny sees this." Then I got greedy. I didn't want > it to stop getting bigger, but finally at a depth of about nine inches I was > able to go under the edge of the triangular shape. I stood up, put my foot > against it and shoved. It came free from it's thousands of years entrapment > in the desert floor. I had my first find. > > I called Sonny on cell. At first he thought I was joking, but when I offered > a $100 wager if he came and found it was not a meteorite, he started his > trek to my location. He arrived in fifteen minutes, the last few yards with > a huge grin on his face and his arms out stretched. "Dude" he said. "You the > man." We were like a couple of kids for a minute. Literally pounding each > others fists and laughing. I have never seen Sonny so animated. Brix > immediately went to the meteorite, and curling around it, he laid down on > guard. It was his now. > > Count Deiro > IMCA 3536 > > > > > > > Danken Ihnen f?r Ihre Gl?ckw?nsche. Ich spreche ein kleines Deutsch. Ich bin > eine erste Generation Italiener/Amerikaner. Mein Vater wurde nahe an Torino > geboren und meine Mutter war von Lyon. Ich habe viele Reisen nach > Deutschland gemacht und ich habe Freunde in Hamburgs, Berlin, Frankfurten > und M?nchen. Ich werde Ihnen meine kleine Geschichte auf Englisch erz?hlen. > Ja habe ich viele Verwandte in N?rdlichem Italien und ich besuche jedes > Jahr. > > -----Original Message----- >>From: Alexander Seidel <gsac at gmx.net> >>Sent: Mar 4, 2010 10:39 AM >>To: countdeiro at earthlink.net >>Subject: Re: [meteorite-list] Way To Go Count!!!!!!!!!! >> >>Sogar sehr gut, Count! :-) Wuerdest Du uns.... err, pardon, I should better >> switch to my bad English, Sir! >> >>Wouldn?t you like to tell us about the details, Guido? I mean, what exactly >> happened when you parted from Sonny Clary on your own track, how long did >> it take you to realize there was something strange down there? Did you >> first stick a magnet to that "pyramid" looking out of the soil? Did you >> immediately realize THIS IS IT, or was it a second thought? Was Sonny near >> by, did you call him? Did you extract that whole big stone with your hands >> (...before Sonny arrived?) or did you have a tool to do it? ... You know, >> Count, sorts of "story telling" like this, which may enjoy you while >> writing, and surely enjoys us when reading! So please, Guido, think of the >> idea of writing this up for me, ...errrr I mean for us, of course! >> >>Oh, by the way, I read you are a real Count. Then again you sign with >> Guido, which is a first name somewhat common in Germany and Switzerland. >> Do you have ancestors here, on this side of the Big Pond, while being >> American citizen? Well, just curious... :-) >> >>All my best, ganz herzliche Gruesse an Dich, >>Alex from Berlin >> >> >> >>-------- Original-Nachricht -------- >>> Datum: Thu, 4 Mar 2010 10:27:51 -0500 (EST) >>> Von: countdeiro at earthlink.net >>> An: Alexander Seidel <gsac at gmx.net> >>> Betreff: Re: [meteorite-list] Way To Go Count!!!!!!!!!! >> >>> Thank you, Alex >>> >>> Alles gut est.... >>> >>> Guido >>> >>> -----Original Message----- >>> >From: Alexander Seidel <gsac at gmx.net> >>> >Sent: Mar 4, 2010 4:52 AM >>> >To: countdeiro at earthlink.net, wahlperry at aol.com, >>> meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com, nakhladog at comcast.net >>> >Subject: Re: [meteorite-list] Way To Go Count!!!!!!!!!! >>> > >>> >That?s fabulous, Count! You are da bomb! :-) >>> > >>> >Best, >>> >Alex >>> >Berlin/Germany >>> > >>> > >>> > >>> >-------- Original-Nachricht -------- >>> >> Datum: Wed, 3 Mar 2010 23:14:45 -0500 (EST) >>> >> Von: countdeiro at earthlink.net >>> >> An: Rob Wesel <nakhladog at comcast.net>, >>> meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com, wahlperry at aol.com >>> >> Betreff: Re: [meteorite-list] Way To Go Count!!!!!!!!!! >>> > >>> >> Can you imagine the feelings that course through you when your on your >>> >> first full day of hunting after 10 months of study and you have to dig >>> with >>> >> your hands to unearth this 28 pounder? Your first meteorite? I almost >>> messed >>> >> myself. I am emboldened now to say that I have graduated and I, for >>> one, >>> >> will no longer refer to myself as a newbie. >>> >> >>> >> My best wishes to everyone who shares the obsession with these >>> >> visitors >>> >> from space. Thank you Sonny. >>> >> >>> >> Guido >>> >> >>> >> -----Original Message----- >>> >> >From: Rob Wesel <nakhladog at comcast.net> >>> >> >Sent: Mar 3, 2010 9:45 PM >>> >> >To: meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com, wahlperry at aol.com >>> >> >Subject: [meteorite-list] Way To Go Count!!!!!!!!!! >>> >> > >>> >> >Holy cow! >>> >> > >>> >> >Nice one guys and to The Count....Is it in the city limits????? >>> >> > >>> >> >Really nice find, congratu-frickin-lations. Must have been something >>> to >>> >> find >>> >> >that peak and have to keep digging and digging and digging >>> >> > >>> >> >Rob Wesel >>> >> >www.nakhladogmeteorites.com >>> >> >www.facebook.com/nakhladog >>> >> >------------------ >>> >> >We are the music makers... >>> >> >and we are the dreamers of the dreams. >>> >> >Willy Wonka, 1971 >>> >> > >>> >> > >>> >> >----- Original Message ----- >>> >> >From: <wahlperry at aol.com> >>> >> >To: <meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com> >>> >> >Sent: Wednesday, March 03, 2010 6:30 PM >>> >> >Subject: [meteorite-list] I hate Count (Guido) Diero ! : ) >>> >> > >>> >> > >>> >> >> Hi List, >>> >> >> >>> >> >> I bet you could call this beginners luck. I took Guido out >>> >> >> meteorite >>> >> >> hunting. I turned left and he turned right. To check out what he >>> found >>> >> >> scroll to the bottom of the meteorite hunts page. More to come >>> later. >>> >> >> >>> >> >> >>> http://www.nevadameteorites.com/nevadameteorites/METEORITE_HUNTS.html >>> >> >> >>> >> >> Sonny >>> >> >> >>> >> >> ______________________________________________ >>> >> >> Visit the Archives at >>> >> >> http://www.meteoritecentral.com/mailing-list-archives.html >>> >> >> Meteorite-list mailing list >>> >> >> Meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com >>> >> >> http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list >>> >> > >>> >> >______________________________________________ >>> >> >Visit the Archives at >>> >> http://www.meteoritecentral.com/mailing-list-archives.html >>> >> >Meteorite-list mailing list >>> >> >Meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com >>> >> >http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list >>> >> >>> >> ______________________________________________ >>> >> Visit the Archives at >>> >> http://www.meteoritecentral.com/mailing-list-archives.html >>> >> Meteorite-list mailing list >>> >> Meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com >>> >> http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list > > ______________________________________________ > Visit the Archives at > http://www.meteoritecentral.com/mailing-list-archives.html > Meteorite-list mailing list > Meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com > http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list > -- ------------------------------------------------------------ Mike Gilmer - Galactic Stone & Ironworks Meteorites http://www.galactic-stone.com http://www.facebook.com/galacticstone ------------------------------------------------------------Received on Thu 04 Mar 2010 03:54:58 PM PST |
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