My obsession with ‘bike and bivvy’ trips has entered a new level. I’ve entered The Welsh Ride Thing.
Apparently it’s an event for hardened adventurers, ultra racers or bivvy-nerds. I shudder to guess which category I fall into. Either way I better get an actual bivvy under my belt before June…and maybe a bit of bike training too.
Pancake Day is just around the corner (tomorrow in fact) so if you’re in need of a little inspiration watch this video I filmed with my mum. It’s yum. Think of it as a few extra calories that will help you get you up that next mountain.
I’ve been talking about taking on my first ever ‘Bike & Bivvy’ trip for a good while and knew 2012 would be the year I would take on the adventure.
Aware of my enthusiasm Patrick suggested we take on the ‘Bike & Bivvy’ challenge a few days ago. A snap decision was made and it appeared like a really good idea at the time but as the days off rolled round and the weather looked a little iffy suddenly we weren’t so sure. Enthusiasm for something new and a little adventure pushed us over the edge and on Wednesday night you could find us in a storm of kit, packs, food and maps. The rough plan was to cycle the next day from Manchester to Dewsbury. Odd choice I know but we have family in Dewsbury so it seemed like an easy finishing point. Hot food and showers etcetc.
The idea would be to arrive in the Peaks for the bivvy and find a cool spot with a view and bivvy the night away cosy as little lambs. Ride out the next day for an early finish and a train home.
A last minute epiphany picking up a gas canister at a camping shop by the river Mersey near Sale saw a change in our route. We decided to cycle along the banks of the River Mersey to Stockport following sections of the excellent Trans Pennine Trail and then jump over to the Goyt Way and then onto the Pennine Bridleway towards Hayfield and Edale beyond. The idea of the mostly car-less route was great and whilst more circuitous it was far more enjoyable than our original plan. On the approach into the Peaks it would take in some mountain bike trails we’re familiar with including Jacobs Ladder, Baby Head boulevard (slang) and out towards Cutgate Path. Over the back and then NE towards Dewsbury, a total of about 60 miles, the obvious idea being to cut it in half with an overnight stop in the peaks.
Stopping to check directions
As we started along the Trans Pennine Trail we we’re happy with our route decision. Occasionally we could see and hear the motorway traffic but we’re at least separated by the River Mersey. In fact as we travelled along
I love action cameras and a couple of days ago I got my hands on the Swann Freestyle HD and over the next couple of weeks I’ll be writing a review and comparing it to the already well established GoPro HERO.
My initial thoughts without even turning it on are a little mixed. I’m disappointed the Swann HD doesn’t have a wide angle lens like the GoPro however I am looking forward to playing with the extra features such as the remote control, VOX voice activated recording and the laser transmitter. The Swann HD also comes with an LCD backpac as standard which is a little bonus.
I’ll update you on how I get on and post a review up for the Outdoors Magic website.
If you take as many photos as I do then sometimes you get fed up of them all being hidden away on your hard drive. It can be nice to frame a couple and stick them on the mantlepiece but I hate picking a favourite. Yet I love to be reminded of adventurous trips taken years ago or to see the faces of friends who have since emigrated to the other side of the world.
Since the discovery of Fotoclips all my photo analogue woes have been solved! Fotoclips are made by Lomography and are these tiny, transparent mounts, which you can use to display your photos. Each pack contains about 100 pieces of 2D clips and for the creatively adventurous who wish to make lampshades and things there are an additional 10 pieces of 3D clips.
Incredible footage from the Nikon D4 but it’s the film and the athletes that inspire me most! Filmed by Corey Rich the video features kayaker Dane Jackson, endurance mountain biker Rebecca Rusch and climber Alex Honnold and simply reflects on why any of us do what we do. I could watch it over and over again….in fact I think I will.
So the start of a new year and most of us feel a little reflective and perhaps set ourselves new goals for the coming year. I for one have been pondering whether to start my own 365 photography project. Taking 1 photo for every day of the year as a way to document my life in 2012. I hoped such a project would force me to slow down and think about the world a little differently whilst also improving my photography. I’d planned to start on the 1st January but I wasn’t sure I had the commitment and it would become another half hearted fad.
Whilst I may not have the commitment plenty of others have. Over the last few years there have been lots of inspiring portrait projects not least of all Everyday by Noah Kalina. Noah is from Brooklyn and started to capture self portraits of himself back in 2000 at the age of 19. He’s still going. Another inspiring self portrait project is The Longest Way by Christoph Rehage which provides an insight into a 4500km journey by foot through the Gobi desert. I’ve even been tempted to dabble with my own slightly odd experiment in 2010 whilst out in India but the less said about that the better.
It must be something to do with the era in which we live and the popularity, affordability and immediacy of digital photography that these types of projects keep emerging but today I came across another outstanding project by Jeff Harris which has left me feeling shaken up and ready to pop…in a good way. Harris used to make new years resolutions promising to write diaries which always fizzled out by February. As a photographer however, he realised he could always spare five minutes to take a self portrait. So since the 1st January 1999 he’s been doing just that. That’s over 4,748 self-portraits.
When asked why Harris said:
“I see no reason to not make a self-portrait each day. I’m always around and always free. It’s kind of like going to the gym—it flexes your muscles and keeps you in shape.”
“I didn’t want 365 images of me sitting on the couch each day,” says Harris. “There could have been that tendency, especially during the cold dark winter months to stay inside all the time, but this project inspired me to get out there and seek out interesting things.”
An intimate and honest approach from the mundane to the adventurous. Over the projects thirteen years it’s clear Harris hasn’t got bored and he even confesses to finding it harder to stop the longer he continues. He’s now in his fourteenth year of an ever-evolving art project documenting a life well lived. For a glimpse into Harris’ world watch the video below that was produced for Time Magazine lightbox.
Yesterday my deliciously lovely bamboo iphone case was delivered by the postman. It had been a long wait.
It looks beautiful and feels incredibly smooth however they aren’t cheap. They’re handmade in Portland, Oregon and in the UK you don’t see many other people with such stylish iphone covers.
I’m a little scared it may not deal with the general abuse I put my iphone through. By Grove’s own admission the natural material varies greatly, so sometimes the case survives really harsh drops onto concrete, other times they break from the slightest drop onto carpet. It all depends on the unpredictable chance of where it hits and the variation in the material. Don’t think of it as a ‘protective case’ but more of a stylish cover.
You can choose (or even design your own) handmade Grove iphone case from grovemade.com.
I recently spotted the ‘India is’ Global Video Challenge 2011 and having spent an amazing 3 months in India only last year I thought it was appropriate I should knock together an entry. I had already created a short split-screen video called I ♥ India but it didn’t quite fit all the criteria so using a lot of the same footage I recreated a shorter edit and uploaded my entry. Now I’m just crossing my fingers.
Continuing our work with Grangers and assisting them with the creation of a number of how-to guide videos. We’re stitching together short and snappy videos for their entire collection of cleaning and waterproofing products. Here’s a couple of screenshots.
First Bike & Bivvy TripFebruary 18, 2012
Action Cameras: Swann Freestyle HD V’s GoPro HeroJanuary 27, 2012
Algonquin Park PhotomotionNovember 7, 2009First Bike & Bivvy TripFebruary 18, 2012
A Mountain biking Film: Lee QuarryJune 2, 2010
DIY Cable Cam for Mountain BikingFebruary 20, 2011Algonquin Park PhotomotionNovember 7, 2009First Bike & Bivvy TripFebruary 18, 2012A Mountain biking Film: Lee QuarryJune 2, 2010
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