Wend has once again taken interest in the Wenger Patagonian Expedition Race and posted a short Gallery of images. Go here to see it: Wend Magazine
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This last January I had the pleasure of attending a Specialized BG bicycle fit course at Specialized's Morgan Hill, CA headquarters. I attended as a journalist for GearJunkie.com and a blog will be up soon to share my experiences.
The Specialized Museum - full of tasty items for the bike weenie.
A hidden bonus of the visit was a tour of the testing areas where helmets are smashed, frames are destroyed and the emloyees grin like lunatics. Photography was not permitted in these areas - sorry.
A pretty trick tandem TT bike with shaft drive -- prototype only.
A very exciting tour through the bicycle museum allowed me to see in person, the bicycles of some of my favorite pro peloton riders. Ned Overend's bike was there, as was Fabian Cancellara's, Mario Cipollini's, Tom Boonen's (the bike that he won the '08 Paris Roubaix aboard) and Andy Schleck's. It was pretty awesome for this bike dork. I'm pretty sure I had an involuntary grin and my heart rate was racing. Yep, I'm a dork.
Fabian Cancellara's 2009 Tour De France, S-Works Tarmac.
It was a great visit and great to ride the California hills on dry pavement in January. I'm still waiting for those conditions here in MN. I'll post a link to the article when it goes live.
After 8 airports and 68 hours of travel, I've made it from Southern Chile to Minneapolis once again. Weather and the nightmare that is US Customs caused Stephen Regenold and I to miss a few plane rides and before we knew it, we'd been breathing airport air, losing track of what day it was and generally falling into a travel-induced depression because of the nearly 3 days of airtravel.
But, with our chill, Patagonian attitudes, we weathered it pretty well. Now that I'm home its a whirlwind of client emails and calls and endless photo editing, but at least I am in my own home, petting my dog, eating dinner with my family and helping the kids with homework. Normal life is awesome sometimes.
In the days and weeks to come I will be posting more images of my Chilean travels. Once again, I've left Chile and Patagonia with a sad heart. The place is amazing and the people very special. If I can't be home, I want to be there. Thanks again for a great 2.5 weeks, Chile!
Team GearJunkie, speeding toward the finish to grab 2nd place in the 2011 WPER.
The 2011 Wenger Patagonian Expedition Race is over. Everyone is back in street clothes after living in Gore-Tex, wool, Polartec, and the like, for over a week. Press, volunteers, and racers all had grand adventures, far from cell phones, schedules and the normal concerns of the world. It was great.
Being here chasing the race, shooting and reporting has been so rad again this year. If a more awesome places exists than Patagonia, then I can't wait to see it. I love it here. I'll be posting images throughout the next week or so to give you all a sense of the place. If you are seeking a trip full of gorgeous scenery, gracious locals and as much fresh air as you can stand, then I suggest you begin plans for a trip to Chilean Patagonia straight away. You won't be sorry.
I'm looking forward to being home soon though, as I miss my family and friends. If you fall into one of those two categories, let's get together soon, eh?!
Go here : GearJunkie.com for the latest race info from Patagonia. Tomorrow we head into the wilderness and the following morning the race begins. My coverage will become more choppy, but WAY more interesting too!
Excited for this! Stay tuned everyone.
A year ago I referred to my trip to Patagonia as a "once in a lifetime trip", but as it turns out, I'm heading back. I'll once again be the media/journalist/photographer guy for GearJunkie.com while the team races in the Wenger Patagonian Expedition Race. The GJ team is looking really strong this year and is aiming for a win --or at lease podium.
You can follow race updates on the GearJunkie Race Channel. I'll also be tweeting as I can (even by satelite this year!) if you'd like to follow that way.
Thanks to all of you who have sent me well-wishes for travel and coverage. I'll do my best to get there safe, give the best race reports I can muster and get back to my family in one piece. So long!
Yesterday I had the honor of hanging out with Andy Thieman and shootings some portraits of him on his bicycle. That ole' "two-wheeled-freedom-machine" is pretty near and dear to Andy. He's using his bicycle to battle testicular cancer and the affects that his chemo will soon begin to have on his body.
Andy spun on his trainer till he was a sweaty, drippy mess. Then I told him to take it up to 80% effort and hold it for me. I needed to see pain on his face--it worked. Poor guy held it there for about 4 minutes while I fiddled with lighting and settings.
Andy is strong in both body and mind. He bluntly declared, "I'm not going to die from this--no way". I love that fighter attitude and cannot wait to see the day he pumps his fist in victory. Keep an eye on my Twitter feed for updates from Andy and you can follow his blog here: BloodSweatChemo
There will also be an interview coming shortly on GearJunkie.
Sally from Skiing Magazine taking full advantage of the 10" of fresh Utah powder.
This last week I attended OR (outdoor retailers) Winter Tradeshow as a press member for GearJunkie.com. We scoped the latest/greatest from all the outdoor industry companies. The first day was a "demo day" where we could test out new skis, boards, snowshoes, etc... I mostly spent the day boarding the 10" of fresh powder that had fallen overnight in the Wasatch Mnt. Range just outside Salt Lake City, UT.
Our backcountry guide (forgot his name) took good care of us.
We had the honor of attending a press tour of an untracked bowl of powder outside the ski resort boundary. but first we had to "skin" up to the bowl from the valley. After a sweaty climb we were treated to some amazingly fluffy, untracked powder! It was DEVINE! It was without a doubt the best snowboarding experience of my life--even though it was over in less than a minute. Split-boards allow we boarders to see the backcountry under our own power now. I heart powder.
More Show stuff to come, but I had to share these images first. Thank you Utah for showing me a good time --I'll be back!
I've never been one to make heros of men, but this guy comes close. Kevin Connelly was born without legs and--as it should be--went right on living and challenging and conquering. I love this guy's story and respect him as a fellow photographer. I hope to meet him one day. I bet he skates better than me.
Photo Credit: "Double Take" by Kelly Gorham.
Check out his intriguing photo project and book: http://www.therollingexhibition.com/
How did we get anyone to donate with faces llke this?!
December 23rd marked the last day of our Mustaches For Kids Charity drive and my group decided to go out in style and throw a "Mustach Bash".
Ninjas with mustaches?
It was held in the "Manctuary" -- a ridiculously awesome garage space owned by a gent named Josh. In addition to bikes, motorcycles and tools everywhere, there was a collection of deer skulls/antlers from deer that had locked horns and died during the rut--amazing! There was a pool table, projector screen with Wii RockBand playing, and a throwing-star competition.
Matt swings a mean hammer.
And I'm not sure what it is called, but some guys were having a nail-driving contest with a large log and a framing hammer. If you could not find something you loved about this location, your manliness was in question.
This guy was an actual carpenter and had real skills--but no mustache?
I'd like to thank all of you that donated to the cause. Last I heard we had raised over $3600. for Urban Boat Builders to continue their service to the at-risk youth of Minneapolis and S. Paul! Not bad for a bunch of goofy-looking dudes with half-grown mustaches.
