Rants on Cycling and on Life: Photos of people and bicycles that pass in front of my camera
4.30.2009
the Joe Foley Baker's Dozen Photo Project
Joe Foley's BlogI must say... I am really impressed by Joe Foley's skills with the camera
Joe did a good job of capturing Fatmarc's 90210 good looks!
old school 90210... none of this new stuff
http://fatmarc.blogspot.com/
hustle and flow... more like bumble and blow...
my effort in traffic in my cross town commute and my cross town rides is to ride through like a ghost
not expecting anyone to alter their trajectory due to my movements...
well... that is not entirely true... the cars behind me may not always be granted the passage that they desire
as I am forced to make the decisions for them
as they have shown that they have no care or concern for my well being
as they have shown that their actions lack strategy... they move without logic or meaning
their actions are devoid of common sense and lack common courtesy
this morning my timing was off
perhaps I was focused on too many things at once
left out the back alley at the same time as one of my neighbors
his office is around the corner from mine
he travels on his small 50cc motor scooter while I travel by bicycle
on this day he issued the challenge of John Henry.... MAN VERSUS MACHINE
although I did not fully accept the joking challenge I could not refuse the seeing who would win with a natural effort not a race filled approach
I altered my trajectory and I altered my pace
but only slightly... thinking the more direct route would get me their more quickly
the scooter left out fast but I caught up with him without trying to take things to race pace
our route was the very similar... I saw him a half a block ahead at each turn through the streets of Mount Pleasant as I took the alleys
after a short hill in Adams Morgan I caught him at a red light
the light turned green before I had a chance to make a pass
I rode with my camera around my neck and was still looking for potential subjects for the page
after passing him at a red light I slowed my pace to get a moving shot of a woman with a nice basket on her bike as I went down 18th Street
then I passed him at the base of the hill where he stopped for a series of red lights
a collection of red lights and stop signs sent me forward at a rate he could not match
I was riding neither fast nor furious
my actions were not as fluid or smooth as I usually aim to have them be
it was like I was trying to force a square peg into a square hole
yet I managed to fit through just the same
cars were slowing and stopping
and I was pausing and going in ways that caused more concern for the other than expected
the classic rarity of a car driver seeing me and slowing for me when I planned to dip behind them unseen happened more than once
it is an awkward exchange... how can you say... I did not want you to stop for me? when we always want the car driver to slow and stop rather than run us down...
yet... I wanted these cars to maintain their trajectory
as my path was through the space that they had previously occupied
but no... they slowed and stopped... thus keeping the space that I wanted to pass through
forcing me to awkwardly alter my pace and roll in front of them
when I really wanted to pass behind them
making me neither smooth nor considerate
making me look like both the idiot and the asshole
not expecting anyone to alter their trajectory due to my movements...
well... that is not entirely true... the cars behind me may not always be granted the passage that they desire
as I am forced to make the decisions for them
as they have shown that they have no care or concern for my well being
as they have shown that their actions lack strategy... they move without logic or meaning
their actions are devoid of common sense and lack common courtesy
this morning my timing was off
perhaps I was focused on too many things at once
left out the back alley at the same time as one of my neighbors
his office is around the corner from mine
he travels on his small 50cc motor scooter while I travel by bicycle
on this day he issued the challenge of John Henry.... MAN VERSUS MACHINE
although I did not fully accept the joking challenge I could not refuse the seeing who would win with a natural effort not a race filled approach
I altered my trajectory and I altered my pace
but only slightly... thinking the more direct route would get me their more quickly
the scooter left out fast but I caught up with him without trying to take things to race pace
our route was the very similar... I saw him a half a block ahead at each turn through the streets of Mount Pleasant as I took the alleys
after a short hill in Adams Morgan I caught him at a red light
the light turned green before I had a chance to make a pass
I rode with my camera around my neck and was still looking for potential subjects for the page
after passing him at a red light I slowed my pace to get a moving shot of a woman with a nice basket on her bike as I went down 18th Street
then I passed him at the base of the hill where he stopped for a series of red lights
a collection of red lights and stop signs sent me forward at a rate he could not match
I was riding neither fast nor furious
my actions were not as fluid or smooth as I usually aim to have them be
it was like I was trying to force a square peg into a square hole
yet I managed to fit through just the same
cars were slowing and stopping
and I was pausing and going in ways that caused more concern for the other than expected
the classic rarity of a car driver seeing me and slowing for me when I planned to dip behind them unseen happened more than once
it is an awkward exchange... how can you say... I did not want you to stop for me? when we always want the car driver to slow and stop rather than run us down...
yet... I wanted these cars to maintain their trajectory
as my path was through the space that they had previously occupied
but no... they slowed and stopped... thus keeping the space that I wanted to pass through
forcing me to awkwardly alter my pace and roll in front of them
when I really wanted to pass behind them
making me neither smooth nor considerate
making me look like both the idiot and the asshole
lance... lance... lance
Lance is back on the bike...story in the NY TIMES
www.nytimes.com
I wonder... is it better to be in a ditch in Spain or in the gutter in NYC?
Then there’s the obvious side effects — the pain, the time off the bike and
psychologically, you’re a little like, ‘I’m 37 years old, lying in a ditch in Spain. O.K., what am I doing?’ ”
in recent years Lance has been in the tabloids
funny he thinks some behavior is appropriate for a 37 year old father... while crashing his bicycle is not appropriate
http://thesuperficial.com
www.huffingtonpost.com
I have not documented the trail... but it may have involved Kate Hudson... Paris Hilton... Matthew McConahey.... and the Olson twins
now... I have no issue with Lance sowing his oats... but... to talk about inappropriate behavior for a father of three?
well... riding and racing bicycles... that is not his misstep
oh yea... Kate Hudson and Sheryl Crow
MAN! LANCE IS A STUD!
Lance should market a LIVESTRONG... oh... nevermind.
4.29.2009
Laguna de Paron... Peru
it was a short tour...a mini tour...
really nothing more than a ride to a destination
there was not much planning
nearly all the information that I found was inaccurate
my language skills did not help with the process
laguna de paron
www.huaraz.com
the air was thin and cold
the water was certainly colder
had I known of the myth of the healing powers of the water I would have climbed in
not sure how I would have warmed up again... perhaps it is best that I did not
the ride to the lake was a long climb
the ride down was a scream
maybe I will glance at some pictures from the trip for a more detailed story
Fermin Sanchez... that was the name of the ranger at the station by the lake at the top
it was a short tour... yet the trip to Peru was a month long
bringing a bike had its hassles yet offered a variety of freedoms as well as an assortment of memories
Cupcake Ride getting some press in the NGS Blogs Thingie
Cupcake Ridehttp://blogs.nationalgeographic.com
some great shots of Sol... scroll down for the best of the best
gwadzilla archive
where is gadget?
no gadget sighting in recent times
where is gadget?
where has he gone?
what is he up to?
GADGET IN THE GWADZILLA ARCHIVES
where do they go... what happens to them?
batman...where is he?
what is he up to?
has he found other work?
has he left the area?
the word on the street is that there is no work
no one is making any money
the recession has hit the messenger industry
maybe this slow in work has sent batman seeking work elsewhere
not so timely... but funny just the same
this cracks me up...there are a whole mess of these
http://current.com
Sarah Palin jokes get me every time!
basket bars...
basket bars... saw this on BIKEHUGGER!reminds me of the old one piece mountain bike handlebar/stem that worked so well creating a triangle that held a kryptonite lock
hmmmm.... maybe KRYPTONITE would do well to enginer a come back of that sort of design
so many people ride with their lock dangling from their handlebar as they ride
give them that same convenience with a little more safety!
http://unbreakable-bonds.blogspot.com/
words...
it is saturday morning...these images were put here waiting for words earlier this week
but what word should I put on the page
do I go on about my depression caused by my rib injury
the ribs are sore
but worse than the soreness is my inability to do so many things that I want to do
yes I can ride my bike... but only at a lesser intensity
definitely not on dirt
last weekend I missed the Maryland State Championships at Greenbrier... oh well...
it is not so much the State Championships as the race itself and what the effort of racing and competing does for me
to exert myself and to put myself on the line is a good zap to the system
it clears my mind and refreshes my soul
F)CK! I just sneezed! F)CK THAT HURTS!
the rib injury goes unnoticed until it reveals itself
sneezing is worse than coughing or laugh
coughing and laughing suck
but sneezing expands the chest in such a way that the injury is made fresh again
I question my choice not to go to the
doctorpartially due to American Guilt... the thought that I can not miss any more work
missed the Monday after the Baker's Dozen... then had a dental appointment the following day
for some reason I thought that that was too much
my post work rides have been infrequent
the times on the bike have been short and low intensity
the injury has robbed me of a certain level of ambition
I have lost a desire to attack
I must get that desire to attack back
this idea never developed
oh man... listening to Fort Knox Five
listening to Fort Knox Five
oh man... I forgot how much this music rocks
time to put this cd back to the front of the rotation!
www.fortknoxrecordings.com
gwadzilla FK5
youtube
and of course
FUNK FOR PEACE!
4.28.2009
Bells of.... some new tracks on MYSPACE
BELLS OF there are some new tracks on MYSPACE
http://www.myspace.com/bellsoflawrencemcdonald
and well... some classics as well
thoughts on a wake is well worth listening to
THE COLLECTIVE...
http://www.thecollectivefilm.com/we all loved watching Danny MacAskill in INSPIRED BICYCLES
that film was definitely inspired by THE COLLECTIVE
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