Singletrack Heaven

Another great "end of the summer" ride through new winding & hilly singletrack! The kms just flew by and new trails to explore were numerous - we are in awe by the possibilities of networking trails. We are thinking about developing a loop for a race track - its just too good to keep secret!

A Study In Motion

This shot was taken by my wife Wendy and I think it captures well the motion of the waterfall. Yours truly as the somewhat stationary object within the picture provides some contrast. If the exposure had been somewhat longer - more blur would have occured of the water falling but because I too was in motion some of the effect would have been lost.

This shot of Jason was taken by me on a fall trip to the Sandilands last year. I panned the camera while taking the picture in the opposite direction as to what Jason was travelling - the result is motion blur - that provides a sense of the bike travelling fast but fortunately I was able to capture the bike somewhat so that you can still identify it.

This shot I took this Spring during a race in the Sandilands - the rider is unidentified and I was able to capture the bike but still provide some motion in the picture. I think the picture would have been better (in capturing motion) if I had captured the tail-end of the bike and had the blurred space behind. But on the other hand - I like how the athleticism of the rider seems focused on the trail ahead - the wheel's blur adds to the affect of motion.

Another identified rider during the Sandilands race this Spring - this time it is the bike in motion and the background & foregrand is still. Simply another way to capture motion.
I've posted this shot of Pat before - also from that epic Sandilands Race shoot - I panned with Pat as he made this corner and I was able to keep him somewhat focused but blurred the background.

A field of sunflowers (some shots below as well) also provided me some opportunity to experiment with motion - only in this case somewhat artificial & abstract. This shot was taken at sunset which added to the color intensity - I took it while zooming in or out manually with my lens - if my memory serves me correctly I zoomed out after focusing on the centre of the flower.

This shot is maybe a bit over-dramatic with its color & blur (I have a similiar shot below which may be a bit better) - I actually just tweaked the stalk of the flower from below and caught it in motion.

Early Morning Ride

Waking up at 5:30am is not something I normally enjoy doing, especially knowing my bike is in repair mode but thanks to Pat borrowing me his Rocky Mtn I was on the trail with the boyz by 6:30am - two hours later & 20kms - beautiful morning sun - winding new trail to explore - can it get better? Oh sure the dew on the feet got old once my socks were soaked through but wow! it is just amazing to keep finding new singletrack to enjoy! Winter is not that far off now, college is starting in a week & a half - so each ride becomes more precious! Oh, I posted an interesting post that is entitled "A Study of Motion."

Syllabi Factory & Preparation H

Well - we've made the change-over from a modular based semester to a double-block semester - which means all my syllabi for semester one need to be ready for the first week of September. One new course that I have to create on the fly - Communications - is in process but I am moderately excited about it as change is good. Preparation can be tough - some would say its one of the toughest things about being an educator but I enjoy research and putting my notes for my presentations together. It's the marking that is the real "bed-pan" of the teaching world. Anyways - I'll be back in the trenches shortly!

Fork Malfunction

Well - Pat & I brought some newcomers to our epic playland - The Sandilands. It was cool but humid out - but we rode some nice hardpacked trails that we hadn't been on for at least a year. We had heard that someone had done some clearing but we soon discovered that a storm which apparently passed through had toppled multiple trees near a clear-cut section (thanks to our park's willingness to be a supplier of wood to local lumbermills - so much for conservation). It was still fun riding but our speed was interrupted by the occasional diversion around or over fallen trees. At one point, I spotted a hornets nest that had fallen with a tree and yelled out a warning to the others but the last two in queue got a few stings. Shortly thereafter, my fork got squooshy (best word I could come up with) and lost air pressure - my guess is a seal or two went! It was getting dark as well - so we took an apparent short-cut on a quad trail/lumbertruck road back to a sweet singletrack section unaffected by the windstorm. So - the ride although great to get out resulted in my bike being out of commission till the fork is fixed. Thankfully, Pat was able to send it off today to be warrantied and hopefully sent back in better condition in a week or so! Tomorrow - is an early morning ride - 6am - and I'll be on a loaner courtesy of Body-Driven Sports - thanks Pat once again!

Birthday Girl Aimee Turns Two!

One of Aimee's gifts - gotta love Play-doh!
Focused on the candle and ready to blow it out!
Chelsea, cousin Kalia (from Ethiopia) & Grandma at play in the kitchen baking something chocolate!
I have no idea as to what the name of this flower is - only it grows on a vine-like structure in my mother's garden! Unfortunately - her gifts of gardening have not been passed down to me!

More Shots of Summer!

Both our girls love water - running through sprinklers or getting shot by the water hose!

I love this shot and how it captures Aimee's aim and Chelsea's air!

Yours truly taking my girls on a cruise in the lovely paddleboat!

It's been a summer full of birthdays - I accidently shot this at 1600ISO or something grainy but it really adds something to the shot. I have a sepia version of this that I may just get framed. Everynow and then an attempt at capturing a moment ends up becoming art!

Subject #2: The Elusive Sunflower

In my attempts at photography - I also am fond of the less elusive subject known to those in the flora world as the sunflower.

On the journeys we take to my homeland of Riverside - we pass by numerous fields of grain, beans & yes the towering flower known as the sunflower! Most of these shots were taken at dusk and I played around with some exposure settings. I love how the backlight shows off the hairy stem of this work of art!

Abstract motion past a field of yellow!

Photo Subject: Ducks of Star Lake

Every photo season I try and change things up and focus in on a particular subject in different lighting conditions, movement, etc. In the past i've shot grey owls, deer, etc. So here is my attempt at capturing some moments in the lives of our local waterfowl - the mighty ducks! Some brave ducklings who play along our shoreline entertaining our kids!
An evening thunderstorm provided some unique lighting and misty waters for this shot. Note: I was in the water for this shot to get down & low - in the world of the duck!
My bro-in-law Rolf (Ang's hubbie) provided some entertainment this past weekend with the temporary capture of this maturing duckling (apparently - a little too tame or dumb).
Standing on guard and unaware of the photographer who clicks endlessly in hope of a great shot!

The Girls Of Summer

Chelsea climbing the wall at Red Camp
Bathing Beauties - Gotta Love Bubble Bath!
Au du Daisy?
Setting up for some sunflower shots!

More Pics

I like taking shots that are more texture-oriented like the shot above & below. The nice warm light courtesy of a Manitoba sunset following a rain shower.

The horsefly above just adds some character to an already interesting photo.

The lovely sunset that provided the light!

Some Recent Nature Pictures

A fern that grows along my Star Lake Bike Trail

Some blue bells I believe!

I have probably about 30 shots of this local vulture that circles & soars the currents above the Star Lake area!

Some daisies at sunset

Back to the Wild

Okay - I freely admit to enjoying my time on the road bike but wow was it good to be back on my mountain bike this past Monday! The fire restrictions have lifted for now, meaning that backcountry travel is again permissable - so yeah it meant I got a few rides in this weekend and on Monday Pat joined me for an epic 18km ride in Ingolf, Ontario. There is something amazing about that place - maybe its the rolling granite or the technical singletrack but it is absolutely paradise for mtn bikers like me. It's hard on one's body though - lots of drops, loose rocks, roots, tight corners, exposure on lake shore cliffs, and the kms may fly by but not without some wear on the muscles!

I also spent some time on my hidden trail near the cottage and rode it successfully with only two sections where i needed to dismount. I have to say this again - as much as road biking was a great experience - mtn biking still is way more addictive and satisfying. I think it is because it is somewhat like chess on two-wheeled adrenaline - you have must make moves & decisions to make on the fly!

Tonight - Pat and I escaped to the Sandilands and did our classic 10km loop to Suicide Hill and back. We met a bear on the way in and he or she seemed quite relaxed and unalarmed at our sudden presence. The air was really muggy and we both felt in our lungs on some of the climbs. Legs felt great though - lots of tight, winding singletrack - the lack of riding this trail though in the past three weeks meant we had to stop a few times to remove debris and some of our descents were almost blind due to low-hanging branches. Fallen trees from a recent t-storm also resulted in some detours or tree removal. Anyways - great to be back in the wilds of the Sandilands on my bright blue Trance!

Below are some shots from a cross-country race in the Sandilands that my riding buddies Pat & Jason participated back in June.

Pat rounding a corner...

Jason in motion...

I love this shot of Pat on another corner - the motion blur worked out quite well!

Jason pushing the limits of speed...