Surf, Sand and ‘Cross

pilarcitos cx 5_003, originally uploaded by Coda2.

 

The finale of the Bay Area SuperPrestige Cyclocross series, held at Coyote Point near San Mateo, was a fitting end to a great series of racing.  A bayside course made for dramatic views as well as dramatic racing and as a spectator I can say this is a wonderful venue with many prime vantage spots.  Since September I’ve been able to photograph six races throughout the region with a catalogue of over 5,500 photos marking the action.  Some of these are good, and some not so good, but I’ve had a great time learning more about the “dirty side” of cycling and hope to see and photograph much more in the coming years.

 

This past weekend was a busy one with District Champs. in Livermore (pictures here)and BASP #5 (pictures here), combined with a currently busy day job means I’m a little behind in getting all of these images posted.  It takes a while to move 1,600 photos (this weekend’s tally) through the workflow, you know?  However, I should be finished by the weekend of 15-Dec so please be sure to check back for more pictures.

 

Any teams looking for promotional photos are website pictures, let me know and I will do my best to accommodate.  I’m a big fan of promoting the sport of cycling so let me know how I can help, if at all possible.

 

I hope everyone enjoys the images as much as I’ve had taking them!

 

Cheers,

Scott

 

Pilarcitos #4 @ Golden Gate Park

pilarcitos cx 4_010, originally uploaded by Coda2.

 

Our first day of racing under cloudy skies in weeks made for a nice change of pace.  Up to now nearly all the ‘cross races I’ve photographed have been under bright, bright blue sky with lots of sun (and lots of contrast, too).  But today, with much of the race covering terrain in the shadows of the great trees in Golden Gate Park, in addition to the thick layer of clouds, the light ended up being very flat and somewhat dim.  To me, the light not being ideal made for an interesting challenge as after over 4,000 photos of ‘cross racing under bright, blue sky so far this season was getting a little old.  Wider apertures, greater effort on pre-focusing, and solid stabilization techniques were all necessary to get a good percentage of usable shots.  I do, also, have nothing but high praise for the Nikkor 70-200 2.8 VR lens as it performed like a champ today and would recommend it to anyone.

 

With the race being in such an “urban” location, the crowds ended up being fantastic which made for a great atmosphere:  one giant ‘cross party in the middle of SF is a good thing, in my opinion.  I still have more shots to put up and should be done by Thursday of this week, but as always, if you are looking for something or someone specific, let me know.  The shots already posted can be found here on flickr.

 

Cheers,

 

NCNCA Cup 4 Manzanita Park

Finally some rain in the previous days turned the ever present dust into mud and made one fun looking ‘cross course. Pictures are going up now and can be found here, so keep checking back here or on flickr directly. I’ll be posting about 80 shots on this set, but if you are looking something (or someone) specific, let me know and I will take a look through the stock (note: I was shooting the later races from about noon on through the end).

This course looked absolutely killer and a complete joy to ride and here’s to hoping the riders felt the same.

Cheers,
Scott

MIA @ Pilarcitos CX #3

Several folks have asked about photos from Pilarcitos CX #3 at McClaren Park and unfortunately they will not be posted because I wasn’t there! So sorry to everyone looking for more shots on this well run series.

However, I will be at Pilarcitos CX #4 in GG Park later this month as well as several events in December, so be sure to check back for more pictures then and/or look for me on site that weekend. There is also an outside chance I will be able to get down to the CCCX event in Prunedale this coming weekend if things go well.

Thank you for all the kind comments so far and I’ll see you all out there soon.

Cheers and good luck racers,

Pilarcitos SuperPrestige CX #2

pilarcitos cx 2_004, originally uploaded by Coda2.

I have most of the shots I plan to post already up on flickr here. I have *tons* more that I have not gotten around to posting, so if you raced between 11am and 2pm I might have a shot of you. Just send me a note or leave a comment with contact info if you want me to check the rest of the stock.

Also, as a reminder: I do not mind downloading of my photos for personal use or reposting on blogs or websites. All I ask in return is attribution and link back to the source (flickr) so that people can find me if they are interested in my work. Thank you for all the kind comments I have received so far and I hope to see you all at future races.  It’s been fun so far!

 

Cheers,

Scott

Crossing Over

prestige08, originally uploaded by Coda2.

A dry, dusty day at Sierra Point for the 1st race in the Pilarcitos SuperPrestige Cyclocross series. I was able to get quite a few good shots, so look for more photos on flickr in the coming days (I should have them all up by Tuesday, 09-Oct). Note: if you see yourself or someone you know in these pictures, leave a comment on flickr and I will add the info to the caption. Cheers and thanks all.

 

Edit 08-Oct: Managed to get a handful more posted to flickr. The rest will be up tomorrow.

Edit 11-Oct:  All photos should be posted now, but if you’re looking for something specific and it’s not on flickr, let me know and I will look through the rest of the un-posted stock.  With luck, I should be at Pilarctios CX#2 near Candlestick so you can hit me up then, too.

Knight Rider

Nothing like a day at the Faire (Renaissance Faire, that is). Take a look at some of the shots I was able to get. All in all, it turned out to be a bright and warm day despite the day previous bringing us some unexpected and unusual rain (December through March is when it normally gets wet here).

I still have a handful more photos to post to this set (~8 to 10 more) so be sure to check back if you are curious.

Cheers,

Next up: Cyclocross on 07-Oct

Giro di SF done. Football up Next.

I finally have nearly all of the Giro di San Francisco photos processed.  I may post 1 or 2 more, but what I have already up is the best of the bunch (or what is left is just repeats).  If you are looking for something specific such as a rider or team shots that you don’t see, let me know and I will take a look through the remainder.  Note that I was only able to shoot the Men’s and Women’s Elite and Men’s Cat 3 races.

Next up is high school football on 21-Sep at Leigh High School in San Jose.  Ahhh, the gridiron…can’t wait!  In the meantime, here is one of my favorite shots from Verona, Italy.

Where there is smoke…

Last week a rather large brush fire started in Henry Coe state park only a few miles from San Jose which is now sending icky smoke and ash our way. This time of year, our weather consists of basically no clouds and occasional fog settling in late at night, so it’s unusual to see such “cloud cover” at dusk (as pictured here). Here you can see another local photographer captured this great image of the fire just a day after it started.

Giro di San Francisco

sfgiro_01, originally uploaded by Coda2.

Photos from the Giro di San Francisco on 03-Sep 2007 are starting to go up. I took some 1,100 photos during the race so it will take me a while to work through all of them. Also, be sure to check this page for all the latest shots as I process the batch. In addition to the normal challenges of shooting fast moving subjects in a mix of deep shadow and bright sun, I was also taking my new lens for its inaugural run…plus the batteries in my SB-800, despite being new, seemed to be out of juice. *sigh* It all worked out in the end, but not without some fiddling and camera related drama on my part.

Special thanks to the race sponsors and organizers for a well run, and fun to watch, race.  Cheers.