Portfolio Pics - Part 1

I decided that I'll start to get a bit more photography on my blog so I'm going to post a portfolio pic from time to time.

Here's the first one. Comments and critique welcome!

"Siblings"

Do not reproduce images.

The Landy is coming along ever so slowly... Here are some updates.

First, Dan fab'd up these great lower rear shock mounts, we just have to coat them with a nice thick coating of POR-15 and they'll be set.

Second, I finally got around to installing the electric fans on the radiator. These will be quite a nice upgrade to the cooling system and should keep it cooler than the old mechanical fan while improving gas mileage a tiny bit. I had to build some aluminum brackets, but I think it turned out pretty nice!

Finally, I got the block-hugger headers on after a lot of cursing and headaches and I installed the stainless steel brake lines. I'll have some more pictures of those to come later...

"A Utah Man am I"

This song definitely shows the age of the school, but it still rings true today!

VERSE
I am a Utah man, sir, and I live across the green.
Our gang, it is the jolliest that you have ever seen.
Our coeds are the fairest and each one's a shining star.
Our yell, you hear it ringing through the mountains near and far.

CHORUS
Who am I, sir? A Utah man am I. A Utah man, sir, and will be till I die;
We're up to snuff; we never bluff,
We're game for any fuss,
No other gang of college men
dare meet us in the MUSS.
So fill your lungs and sing it out and
shout it to the sky,
We'll fight for dear old Crimson,
for a Utah man am I.

VERSE
And when we prom the avenue, all lined up in a row,
And arm in arm and step in time as down the street we go.
No matter if a freshman green, or in a senior's gown,
The people all admit we are the warmest gang in town.

CHORUS

VERSE
We may not live forever on this jolly good old sphere,
But while we do we'll live a life of merriment and cheer,
And when our college days are o'er and night is drawing nigh,
With parting breath we'll sing that song:
"A Utah Man Am I".

CHORUS

'Bama's Chi-Town

And no, I don't mean Ala-Bama. I got lucky and happened to travel for work to Chicago the week of the election and I was there the night of Obama's rally/acceptance speech/victory party/drunken people fest in Grant Park. It was amazing to have the opportunity to be there. Now for some pics.

Bikes lining the fence around Grant Park:

One of the many big screens:

"The Hottest New t-shirt Design"

Looking from Grant Park down Jackson St. across Michigan Ave.:

"Rivets"

I also got lucky enough to hang with some high school friends, Lanny and Adam, which was great. Not to mention seeing Andy (I want that pic of us, please). And, while I was sitting down to lunch at Giordano's at the Prudential Tower, none other than Scott W. and his fam walked in. They were driving a natural gas GMC Jimmy home from New York (how cool is that?!) and happened to be eating at the same place in Chicago that I was, small world? yep.

Tour of Utah - Tyler Hamilton

I got a few good pics from the Tour of Utah, and I finally got around to processing them. Here's my favorite one that I got from the race. Corner #1 in the Friday night Criterium in downtown SLC.

Rock Racing's own, Tyler Hamilton:

Republicrat

I had a friend send me these funny videos.

If you consider yourself Republican watch this video first:
Video that Republican's need to see

If you consider yourself a Democrat, watch this video first:
Video that Democrat's need to see

If you don't consider yourself a Republicrat, then watch both of them and I think you'll like them.

It's unfortunate that politics is this way in America.

Ich bin ein Berliner

Thanks to JFK for uttering the words "Ich bin ein Berliner," thus immortalizing Americans as jelly donuts to virtually all Germans. Today however, I am the jelly donut. I missed the bus I usually catch so I rode downtown to catch a later one. The driver didn't get breakfast so he asked me if I was OK with him stopping to get something. I said yes and we stopped in front of Vosen's Bread Paradise (~280 W. 200 S., go here if you get a chance!). I decided I needed something too and as we opened the door, the smell of dense, rich German bread hit me like a brick wall. I wanted one of each.
I finally decided on a Hazelnut Danish and a "Berliner", or jelly filled donut covered in powdered sugar. See it below in all it's cell-phone-pic glory. What a way to start a morning!
BTW, this post was published to the web while on the bus. Thnaks for the wi-fi UTA!

Zion's HDR attempt

Steve and Liz invited us to St. George with them this weekend with no kiddies. We couldn't pass up a free place to stay and the classic Anderson hospitality so we headed down. The weather was perfect and some of the trees were starting to change. Now for the pics... With all the shadows, it was very hard to get the detail in the sky along with the colorful trees. So what did I do? I tried my hand at HDR again.

Here are the originals

In this one the sky looks great but the trees are blacked out

This one the trees look good but the sky is washed out

Here's an attempt at a happy medium, but the trees are still a bit dark and the sky lost some detail

Here's the HDR Version

Now you can see the High Dynamic Range (HDR) in this version. The trees keep their true color and the sky is a rich blue with whispy clouds. Not bad since I'm still figure the HDR thing out. In hindsight, I should have taken about 5 images instead of 3. Now I know.

More pics to come!

Lake "Pal"

Thanks to the Wildings and the Bennetts for making the second annual trip to Lake Powell an absolute blast! Now for some pics...

"Relationship Building"

"Sunrise at 'Pal'"

"At the Helm"
"The Gang"

"Surf's up"

Experimenting with stroboscopic flash

"Houseboat Livin'"
"Sweet Dreams"

Business trips and a bit of snow

As GinaBina mentioned, we've both been on business trips this week, she's been in Austin and I've been in "The City of Steel", as it's known, Pittsburgh. We both had great trips but hate spending the time away from home separately.

Pittsburgh is now on my "good" list of cities, thanks in large part to a colleague's brother taking me around and being the best tour guide ever. Thanks Mark! What's more is while my tardiness almost inhibited a nice leisurely bike ride through the city, Mark was nice enough to wait for me and take me around the insanely steep hills in and around Pittsburgh. Here's a general map of roughly where we went. The map is not exactly accurate because I got pretty lost on some of the streets on top of the mountain, so I just followed Mark's wheel. Hopefully Mark will send me the pic he took on top of Mt. Washington while we were riding. In the meantime, here's a quick snapshot of the night view we saw.


Mark also took me to Girasole one night (see mini-review below) and Point Brugge Cafe the next night (again, mini-review is below).

Girasole:
Because I was just following Mark like a blind man the whole night, I was enjoying the Shadyside neighborhood in my own little world when Mark ducked down a small flight of stairs into a bustling, tight and quaint Italian restaurant. When the door opened, the dense aromas of Italian food and wine billowed out the door and into the patio where we were standing at the bottom of the stairs. The owner, who they call "Pai" greeted Mark as if he was family (Mark's daughter, Ryan, works there too). Pai got us a table while the rest of Pai's family and other servers were bustling around the tight quarters. I ordered the Bucatini on suggestion from Ryan and it was perfect. Long, straw-shaped bucatini was swimming in a mix of pancetta, peppers, spicy sauce and of course... smoked mozzarella. It had just enough kick to open the sinuses while filling my mouth with that great smoky taste of the pancetta. mmm, I'm making myself hungry again. Dessert was Tiramisú and it did indeed "pick me up".

Point Brugge Café:
After the great ride, we swung by Mark's house to clean up a bit (he's got some amazing scooters, one is restored beautifully and almost completed, the other is classically "antique"). After throwing out a few suggestions, Mark threw out a "great Belgian restaurant that has really good mussels." That piqued my interest and we were off. The neighborhood of Point Breeze was Mark's old stomping ground when he would visit his G-ma and G-pa. The little cafe on the corner had a floor-to-ceiling glass front that opened completely to the street with a few tables on the sidewalk. It was fairly minimally (in a good way) decorated restaurant that was playing none other than a Luna song when we walked in! We started with a Tomato and Spinach dip at the bar until Ryan got there. Hearty Belgian beer and seafood smells filled the air. The menu looked great, but I had to try the mussels. I ordered a pound and a half of the Red Curry mussels along with a side of belgian frites. To put it simply, I ate every last one and left wishing I had a doggy bag of some more. Ryan had a few connections with some of the people there so we got the Belgian Chocolate Cake and the Pumpkin Roulade free. Can't beat that.

Primanti Bros:
Last but not least, on my way out of town on Friday, I stopped off at the infamous Primanti Bros. for one of the most unique sandwiches I've ever had. The 'chef' slapped out two huge slices of white bread onto the counter and loaded one side with philly cheesesteak. He continued piling with fresh cole slaw, tomatoes, and a healthy helping of french fries - on the sandwich, not on the side - before he slathered some sauces on and squished the other slice of bread on top. The monstrosity was about 8 inches tall before he leaned over it with his body-weighted hand on top and compressed it into about 3-4 inches tall. Then tightly wrapped it in paper and handed it to me. If you go to Pittsburgh, go to Primanti's at least once.

PS, we got the first snow of the season today! It was like the middle of January here with about an inch or more of snow blanketing everything and more coming throughout the day.

The world of photography just changed...drastically

This is the first actual video I've seen from Canon's new digital SLR camera (probably the first posted anywhere). Yes, I said "video" and "SLR" in the same sentence. What's more is that it films through any SLR lens you can imagine and it does so at 1080p resolution! All of you out there can finally take advantage of your hi-def TV's when watching your family home videos of the kids in the tub, haha!

See the stunning, un-enhanced video made by Vincent Leforet here using the as-yet unreleased Canon 5D Mark II camera. That pre-order list just got really long.

For more reading about the camera and the making of the video, see Leforet's blog here and here.

Forget those lame mashups that people have been putting together the last few years, I'm ready for some quality independent films on very low budgets.

Early Autumn Uinta Backpacking

It just doesn't get any better, crisp mountain air, chilly alpine lakes, the girl I love, and a night in the mountains. Far, far away from any of the worries of life. Now for some pics, since I do still call this blog "Two Wheel Photos".

A few "artsy ones" first:

"Glass"

"Lichen Fetish"

"andiamo"

"Grass Swirls"

"Star Trails"

"Leading Lines"

And, of course, the ones of my babe:

"Here Goes"

"Wall Lake"

"Pensive"

"Take a Deep Breath; ahhh"

To drill or not to drill, you decide.

Will drilling in ANWR and the outer continental shelf help our energy situation? You decide, based on this chart built from the US Department of Energy's data.

(Data from the US Department of Energy)

***my opinion*** Sure we can drill, but why the heck are our partisan candidates even talking about drilling when it will have such a minimal effect on our situation? They've coerced us into believing that what they're talking about (drilling) really is a significant issue with regard to our energy independence when it is so clearly insignificant. Besides, in 10 years shouldn't we have other things going for us instead of needing to use our last few remaining drops of domestic oil? (and it really is drops on the grand scheme of things) Additionally, when the oil finally does come on line, we will still only be able to get it for the international oil price (currently over $100). At that price, it won't have any effect whatsoever on what you pay at the pump. Bottom line, that is not cheap oil, and there's not much of it. Yes, that little bit of oil would come from the US instead of abroad, but the other 99% of the oil we use would still be foreign. Shouldn't we address the 99% instead?

To put things in perspective, OPEC met yesterday and simply decided (it took them all of one day to decide) to turn down the flow on their 'spigot' by 530,000 barrels per day. So, on not much more than a whim, OPEC reduced their oil output by more than twice what the US could ever get by drilling as much as we possibly could. That is, assuming we would also have built the required infrastructure to process the additional oil that we drill. I'm not singling out either candidate here, because both of them are making such a big deal about whether to drill. They should NOT be focusing on drilling at all, it is a drop in the oil bucket, that's all. We have much bigger fish to fry. Don't you love partisan politics? It's either one extreme or the other and each candidate's flame is stoked further by his/her respective party instead of by the real issues.

"Clowns to the left of me,
jokers to the right,
here I am stuck in the middle with you."

Nice clouds...

Just had to post this quick shot of the sunset tonight. Look at those clouds! They were on fire.

Tour of Utah Final - Local brings home the win!

The Tour of Utah turned into quite the nailbiter towards the end of Stage 4. With Salt Lake native Jeff Louder putting in a major attack on the lead group of riders to catch and pass Blake Caldwell (overall leader at the time) on the final climb up to Snowbird Ski Resort. After Stage 4, Louder was only 7 seconds down from Caldwell with a short time trial to come in Stage 5. After 14,000+ feet of grueling elevation gain on Saturday, the racers headed out to Miller Motorsports Park on Sunday to finish things up with a short and fast time trial of 12km around the LHM track and surrounding area to finally finish in front of the grandstands on the butter-smooth asphalt of the world-class racetrack. In the end, Louder knocked off 8 seconds from Blake Caldwell's previous 7 second lead leaving Louder wearing the yellow jersey on the final podium.



What a great race, and congratulations to Jeff Louder, representing for the "801".

Pics of Stage 2 and 3 to come soon from me. More pics on Cyclingnews.com and Velonews.com

Tour of Utah - Stage 3 video

Thanks to thefredcast for this great video of the Tour of Utah Stage 3 in downtown Salt Lake City.



Full results can be found at this link on Cyclingnews.com Here's a short quote from their write-up:

"Argentina's speedster, Ricardo Escuela of Successful Living, treated the crowds to a sprint showdown, winning the bunch kick ahead of Fast Freddy Rodriguez (Rock Racing) and Jonny Clarke (Toyota-United)."

Stage 2 short update and Stage 3 tonight in SLC!

Stage 2 yesterday was amazing, I got some great pics that I'll post as soon as I get some time. See the write-up on Cycling News to read about Stg. 2.

Stage 3 is the spectator-friendly criterium starting and finishing at Pioneer Park in downtown SLC tonight. Start time is at 7pm. Then stay for the Friday night movie in the park starting at 9pm.

Tour of Utah - Stage 2 Intro

Stage 2 is tomorrow, and it's the first brutal mountain stage of the Tour of Utah.

Stats:
Distance: 137km (84.6 mi)
Elevation: 3,226m (10,585 ft)

Three cruel climbs evenly spread throughout the day with the first coming at mile 6. Then one minor climb just 8 miles from the finish to smack the racers around one more time before the long downhill approach to the finish at the U of U Orthopedic Center. Should be a great race. Best places to watch are the top of each mountain pass, especially the decisive and aptly-named "Big Mountain." Click the map below for an interactive approach to the race course map.

Watch for early attacks on the climb up North Ogden Canyon with more serious attacks coming on the second climb on the backside of Mt. Ogden, and finally the climb up Big Mountain starting at about mile #62 will surely have fireworks all the way up it.

Tour of Utah - Opening Day

Just a quick update, Cycling News has posted the page for the Tour of Utah. Check it out here for updates, photos, etc.

So far in stage 1, a breakaway of 3 has gone off the front and one rider bridged up at about mile 55. Breakaway had a gap of about 6 minutes last I heard. Listen online at The Fan Sports Network for updates every 30 minutes or so.

***Update***

The break stayed away but dropped back down to 3 riders.

Final after Stage 1
1st - Jason Donald (Garmin-Chipotle)
2nd - Sheldon Deeney (The Fan Network Composite Team)
3rd - Brad White (Successful Living)

Tomorrow is a fairly big mountain stage with 10,000 feet of vertical climbing. I'll be watching from the top of Big Mountain!

Flashback - 2006 Tour of Utah

Just a few snapshots of mine that I found from the 2006 Tour of Utah.

Heading up the Alpine Loop:


Arriving at Snowbird:

Tour of Utah - Stage 1

When:
Wednesday, August 13, 2008 - 10 am

Stats:
Distance: 162 km (101.2 mi)
Elevation Gain: 1,478m (4851 ft)
3 intermediate sprints (mile 40, 72, 87)
1 intermediate climb (mile 60)

Starts in Nephi and heads towards Fairview canyon.

Best places to watch:
See TOU website here

The Tour of Utah is Back!

After a brief hiatus last year, the Tour of Utah professional bike race is back this year. (next week in fact!) This year is "bigga' and betta' than ever"! A $75,000 prize purse and plenty of bragging rights up for grabs makes this race the "Richest Race in America". The race is now on the National Race Calendar which means that more mainstream professional bike teams will be vying for National points. Over the course of the 5 day/5 stage race, riders will cover 336 miles with 30,000 feet of climbing.

More 4 wheel on this two wheel blog

Finally got the body on!

Prepping new chassis for the body to go on.


Almost on, time for a posed picture of me and my bros.
First "test drive"


I think GB is as excited as I am to have the "Landy" back in commission.

The body is on (mostly).

Saturday Ride

Last night when we were getting ready to go to bed, Gina asked if I thought she could do Big Mountain... I answered by telling her that it would be hard, then I showed her what the profile looks like for that ride:


I was pretty excited when she said she wanted to try. Sure enough, we woke up this morning to a beautiful, cool summer morning with the sun shining and a steady stream of cyclists heading up Emigration Canyon. The wind was a bit strong at first, but didn't last long after we got into the canyon. Up we went. The pedals kept turning over and before we knew it we were at Little Mountain. Gina said she didn't even want to stop until we got to the Reservoir (look in the profile and it's the little dip on the way up). We stopped and ate a bit, drank some water and then it was back on the bike for the steep section. Gina cruised right up the switchbacks of Big Mountain and I think the top looked more beautiful than ever because she had worked so hard. Now for some pics at the top:


Gina taking a short break after a steep switchback section. (almost there!)



Ahhh, the top. (I keep forgetting my camera, so I have to use my crappy cell phone one)