did up some photos for bikereg.com and passed them along to fred yesterday (that's this guy):


for the record, i really dislike watermarking photos and have avoided it as long as possible.
i can't avoid any longer! oh well. it was a good run.

this is the first sunday in....months? that i haven't been at a race. it feels weird.

yesterday, i became obsessed with emptying the storage unit i have had for more than a year. you would think i didn't need all the stuff in there if i haven't touched it in a year... but it was more of a space issue of combining 2 people's stuff together than not actually needing it.

i discovered that i had temporarily abandoned my mamiya 645 pro in there, all perfectly packaged and in it's own bag. with all 4 of those lenses settled in with it.

that camera. incredible. gifted to me by the also incredible tom galliher a few years ago. GIFTED TO ME. while i couldn't believe it was really being given to me at the time, it is, if possible, even more baffling now, knowing how much in love you can fall with a particular camera that does exactly what you want in certain circumstances. it is, of course, shocking on a financial level too, but less so (he's pro, i'm sure he's trading in and trading up fairly frequently. i don't know).

i feel the need to publicly thank him again for fostering my love of photography and for contributing to fostering whatever talent i have in my trigger finger... his selfless gift to me, someone he hardly knows, has never been forgotten or taken for granted.

rediscovering the mamiya has given me an obsession to return to film. so pardon me if waste a little extra money in the months to come... it is necessary for my sanity to cultivate whatever creativity and patience still reside in my brain.

i also decided upon development of the preposterous amount of rolls of film i have discovered upon (finally) unpacking boxes. this is the stash so far:


i also discovered that i have ABSOLUTELY NO 120mm take up reels. it's ridiculous because i used to have about a hundred at any given time. now i have none. i have been away from film too long, and that right there proves it.

This next week promises to be a little more relaxing than this past week was (overtime at work, much?), but i will be traveling to iceman in traverse city, michigan, to cheer on my wonderful father, who is my personal favorite cyclist that has ever lived. (and neff? if he goes... i'm thinking he usually does maybe).

j.pow... enough said.

this is all for now of the USGP in louisville this weekend....j-POW.



a genuinely nice guy who does genuinely amazing things on a bike.

as promised, some lovin from the USGP in Madison, day 2.
also, a shoutout to http://madcross.org and mr. ryan knapp (and, as always, the wonderful fiance erik) for linking to me on their respective sites/pages. it's those little things that get me so excited sometimes!
first, the lovely nicole borem in ye olde women's race:




and please don't mind the weird scatteredness of these photos; they are actually in chronological order, though i'm sure it will look like they aren't... for some reason I started with the middle of the pack and went forward.
neff:


the run up goodness:












i liked this great angle at the barriers, and i just kept going back:














kabush, before getting naked for his post-race interview at cyclingdirt.org:


























all in all a great day.

i'm thinking i'll have more to post tomorrow after i spend some time in riveting ashley and hudson, indiana. what? you've NEVER heard of ashley or hudson? ....shocking. not. although i discovered today that there's some very shootable places there; after family obligations tomorrow i may wander around a bit. i just hope i don't come across an extra volatile meth lab (as we all know, rural indiana is plagued with meth labs) and blow up.

Madison pre-race.

USGP day 2, a little pre race wonderfulness...

neff!


knapp: "i'm resting."


who needs embrocation? sherer's got it covered.


who wants to smell like tim johnson?


tim johnson or tims johnson? ha.




...drugz... or nose spray.








LAYLA!


z - i told you you'd regret this face... scared:


race photos to come.

made the long journey to madison, wisconsin...
the fruits of mine and erik's labors, haha:


warmuptime:








racetime:






























a.fabulous.day, followed by fabulousness at olive garden, i mean chilis, i mean buffalo wild wings. someone wasn't thinking ahead, planning a home football game and a USGP weekend at the same time; everywhere had a crazy wait!! it all worked out though.