I’ve never heard of this one and that’s because it’s an Applebee’s franchise exclusive fountain soda. Rightly so, because they shouldn’t be trying to sell this anywhere. Maybe it was a bad mix at this particular restaurant, because the aftertaste really stood out; it was really strong and very artificial flavoring. A search says it’s “blending blue raspberry and blackberry with Mountain Dew’s citrus base, similar to Voltage but with darker berry notes.” Voltage is one of the rare flavors I’ll buy at the store and Dark Berry Bash tastes nothing like it. I can only give it a 2/10 and it was so bad I’m not sure I’d try it again to find out if I got a bad batch.
When I saw that Tiger Woods’ former caddie, Steve Williams, was putting out a book about their partnership on the golf course I ordered it right away. Together We Roared was a good read and I was pleased to see they didn’t give much attention to Tiger’s off the course troubles during those years. The focus was on the golf and the relationship between player and caddie. Williams provided a lot of insight and stories that have never been told and he even opened up his house to his co-author, showing some of his Tiger memorabilia.
This book is great for any golfer, especially a Tiger fan.
This Trolli flavor is an exclusive to Walmart. It’s a cherry lemon flavor.
Inspired by the iconic Trolli Sour Brite Crawlers gummi candy, this limited-time Mountain Dew flavor delivers a fizzy sweet-and-sour combination with zero sugar. Source
I don’t remember seeing a new flavor that only came in the zero sugar variety. It’s an interesting choice for one based on a very sugary candy!
This is one of the worst flavors I’ve tried in a long time. It has a really bad fake aftertaste, since they had to add something with it not having any sugar and only 15 calories. Giving it 2/10 might even be too high.
I finally picked up a cup of the new Mountain Dew flavor, exclusive to Taco Bell. It’s called Baja Midnight and it very good. I think it might be my favorite Baja variant.
Crafted to satisfy the thirst of a new generation, the drink blends passion fruit flavor with the iconic tropical lime taste of MOUNTAIN DEW BAJA BLAST—available exclusively at Taco Bell restaurants.
When I took my first drink I thought it was a berry flavor with a hint of something else, so the passion fruit makes a lot of sense. I’d definitely drink this again. I give it a 9/10.
This Dragon Fruit flavor is exclusive to Walmart, which I just don’t understand. Why not sell it everywhere? After the first or second swing, it was a no for me. Then I got the taste for it and actually enjoyed it. I don’t think I’ve ever ate dragon fruit, so I’m not sure how to explain the flavor. It’s decent though, so I’ll give it a 6.5/10.
This is special release, only Little Caesars, which a friend picked up for me. I was really curious what the “mango sweet heat flavor” would taste like. The Baja Laguna Lemonade had a “mango lemonade flavor” and it was pretty meh.
When I took a drink, my first thought was, “This is terrible!” I think it may just have been the shock of such a different flavor. It’s actually pretty decent. Fruity with a touch of heat. I’ll say it’s a 7/10.
This new limited edition Mountain Dew is a “tropical citrus punch” and it quite good. The graphics on the bottle show sliced oranges and limes and I definitely get a lot of that. I’d drink this again and give it an 8/10.
I finished putting up the golf simulator at the end of December and I think three+ months is a pretty good period of time to have some thoughts about everything. In case you missed it, check out my serious on the build:
How much have I really been using it? Initially, not as much as I’d hoped. I’d say I was getting downstairs for 3-4 days a week. Over the last several weeks, especially after getting outside for a quick nine holes, I’ve gotten the itch to play, so I’ve been putting in more time to get ready for the 2025 season. I’ve been able to get on the golf sim 5-6 days a week.
The PC
The computer has been great and no complaints on that build. I can always upgrade memory if I need to. The mouse kind of sucks, so I may switch to a wired one. I do regret not getting a larger monitor, especially with the additions I mention later.
The Environment
The enclosure is holding up well and all of the padding is great; I’ve only had a handful of bad ricochets. The screen does show ball marks (only noticeable if the projector is off), but that may be my fault for using balls too long and initially using some balls with logos or a little marker on them. The turf is holding up well and I don’t see any wear marks where we stand. The hitting strip is really good too and I haven’t felt any wrist or elbow pain at any point. I feel like I can tell when I hit a fat shot, so it doesn’t seem like the club is bouncing up in to the ball for a better shot.
The Other Electronics
The projector has been fine. There are better ones, but I’m not sure the extra cost is worth it yet, because prices will come down on the higher level 4K ones. I couldn’t be happier with the ProTee VX launch monitor paired up with the GSPro software. My yardages are consistent with what I’d expect on the golf course and I’ve had very few shots get missed. ProTee in frequently updating their software and there are so many new courses being updated and released for GSPro every week.
This review may sound like a broken record with everything being so great, but I think that’s due to how much research I did.
Updates
This week I added swing cameras for front and down the line views. Luckily I ordered this stuff from AliExpress before the tariffs kicked in:
They just came in, so I haven’t had a lot of time with them, but so far the cameras are a sweet addition. I need to do some cable management.
I’m working on some fixes and it’s great to be able to check my positions after each swing.
I may sign up for lessons on Skillest, but I’ll see how these fixes go first.
In the Future
I started planning to build a cart for the sets of clubs we bought at an estate sale. Hopefully I’ll make progress soon, because I’m getting tired of looking at them lined up along the wall.
I also want to build a control box with a bunch of buttons I can press with a club so I don’t have to use the keyboard and mouse during a round. That’ll be a fun project combining electronics and woodworking.
There were two large projects in the new house with the wall for the gym/shop and then the golf sim. Working in the new shop is a joy and will get even better after I build a big assembly/outfeed table.
I’m looking forward to continuing the momentum of November and December in to 2025 and hope to tackle smaller projects through the entire year.
When I saw Jon Sherman had written a follow up to “The Four Foundations of Golf” I immediately ordered a copy (get yours on Amazon). I try to read that book every year, so I was excited to take a deeper dive in to some of the aspects of competitive golf. While I haven’t played any tournaments in years, I’d like to get back in to it and I do complete all summer with our golf group
If you haven’t read Jon’s first book, I think you would get much more out of it first. Then absorb his second book. One of the key focuses in “Winning Golf” is how tournament/competitive golf is such a different beast than recreational, mainly due to the pressures.
Two things I’ll adapt for next year:
Set principals (or goals) related to the mental aspects of the game. Such as staying positive (or returning focus to it when thoughts drift negative) or how I’d prefer to react to different situations on the course.
After each round, review not only how I played, but also how well I did with my principals. Look for patterns in play as well as mental.
I won’t reread this book often but can see myself coming back to some sections. Check out the books and follow @practicalgolf on X/Twitter, where he shares a lot of great stuff from “The Four Foundations.”
Nick Momrik 