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8.29.2008

Rain on Me

I'm Anarchaotic. That means, .... I don't know. I sort of follow the rules, that make sense. I sort of bend a lot of them, and somehow I find a few of them I just break, all the time. When the clouds roll in, full of rain, I look up and smile. I like to ride in the rain.





I let some air out of the tires, twist in the toe spikes and pull on my favorites socks, and get out and ride. Not on any of those fancy MTB trails that we have got around here, but out on the seldom used spots, that I won't destroy with my POWER BREAKING big corner slide outs. I dig into the mud and drive the pedals, looking for the BOG of my Dreams to churn up. The harder the rain the happier I am. I just sprint into the next corner that much harder, O'off camber turns that are the friend of mine. I just want to ride, and ride. In the end everthing gets a good squirting off and thrown on the ground. I drip through the house and hop in the shower with a cold beer.










8.26.2008

Ahhhh......what a nice day for a Bike ride



When I was a kid my bike was the only way to deliver newspapers,escape the Ol'Man's wrath,or just coast a mindless cruise.
Now I'm not a bike enthusiast mind you,and the only Armstrong I care about plays a horn,but I do dig that Frame,Chain,and two Wheels.
It's simplicity is the perfect vechile for Kustomization.As a young-teen I would test engineering boundaries by adding hacked off forks to my home made Chopper (with car steering wheel of course)
And just yesterday I painted my Tires with White latex house paint for that Top-of-the-Century look.
"The Newspaper route has years been over,
and the Ol'Man's wrath has mellowed to clover.
The paint on my Tires is just about dry,
what a nice day for a mindless bike ride."

8.25.2008

My first clinic

After 6 years of racing cross I'm throwing out my cross knowledge to the world. Should be a lot of fun. Hope all can come. Punch and pie will be served!

CROSS CLINIC

Where: Reservoir Park, Phoenixville, PA (corner of Franklin Ave and Fillmore St.)
When: Every Thursday starting Sept. 4th at 6pm. Sessions will last an hour or until we can’t see what we’re riding on.

All are welcomed from seasoned vets to the never saw a cross bike ever. Sessions will be progressive, start off slow with the basics to honing technique at speed.

This is open to anyone so please spread the word. Any questions please contact Nick at shafevip@gmail.com.

Hope to see you all on Sept. 4th!

8.23.2008

An Important Note

I have a fever. Its Dengue Fever. I crave music, new music, new sound, ugly, loud, soft, whatever, it just has to hit that spot. http://www.myspace.com/denguefevermusic Dengue Fever's sound does what rock and pop always does well, it pulls together familiar structures and adds something new, and gives it all back to us in their way.
It seems they have been around for a couple of years, and just played in Philadelphia, how did I not hear about them earlier? Check out the documentary on them, would be cool to catch. http://www.sleepwalkingthroughthemekong.com/

Holes







Some of the best places to ride, sorta take some getting to. And getting to them usually takes a little exploring.



I'm a polite trespasser. I'm just looking to connect the paths, trails and roads, to each other and ride across the area I live in. Its surprising how many quiet, beautiful, scenic areas we have that are not for the public. There are islands of land that no one uses. Old railroads, the back of industrial parks, along highways. No use to anyone, but fenced off to the public. My frontier.




8.16.2008

Our Road Race

The First Cheyney Challenge Road Race
Presented by Human Zoom Cycling & Chester County Velo
Cheyney, PA. Sunday, September 07, 2008


The Course starts at Cheyney University in Thornbury Township, PA. The 10.1K course is made up of the classic Chester County roads. including the famous Glen Mills Hill. With a grade ranging from 2% to 8%, this 1.5k climb will allow strong riders to up the pace/pain. The course definitely is suited for all-arounders & resembles many ‘Classics’- style courses with a lot of personality, containing a little bit of everything–long flat sections, a nice climb and a technical decent. The finish is a flat, fast, long sprint to end the day.

Registration is now open at: bikereg.com http://www.bikereg.com/events/register.asp?eventid=6974

8.15.2008

On End.












We need a Mohawk. I’ve seen the Mustaches, the Fu Manchu’s, the big ole’ pork chop side burns. I wanna see a Mohawk. Out from underneath the helmet it would come. The owner exhausted from racing, covered in dirt and grime, and sweat. Proud it would stand, like the middle finger. Who could own such a thing? Who could live up to Darby Crash, Mr. T, Joe Strummer, Wendy O Williams, Robert De Niro (taxi driver)? There must be someone out there racing, living on the edge, with the thick locks, and personality to pull it off. And a swift boot to the ass for the faux-hawked.

8.10.2008

Demon at Large

If your bicycle racer on the East Coast you’ve seen Kevin Dillard but most likely not before his camera has seen you. His love of the bicycle and the camera has been combined into a web site, http://www.demoncats.com, which features photography from various cycling events primarily but not limited to those categorized as Alleycat races.
While the races themselves are like a calliope on a whirling carousel, it’s clear upon viewing his photos that Kevin is passionate about people, especially the faces of individuals in the heat of competition, the faces of the exited spectators, and those on the periphery caught in a contemplative moment.
Given the cliché that a picture is worth a thousand words the Demoncats site is a dictionary of Kevin’s photographic talents but there is little information about him. So I emailed Kevin some questions hoping to understand his approach and feeling for the art he clearly loves and shares freely.

Do you have a gut feeling when you snap a photo?

I don’t know if it's a gut feeling, because I actually think a lot about what I photograph before I shoot it, even the race shots.

What kind of face do you like?

I like all faces, all colors, sizes and shapes. I look at the personality of someone, what they are thinking right now. Are they happy or sad? But the most important to me is a person’s eyes. Like they say, it’s the window to the soul.

What are your thoughts about color vs. Black and white Photography?

Color and B/W are great. I love them both. Depending on the photo a B/W, if done well, can stop you in your tracks. I'm not there yet. I use B/W for the 'Mary Jane' gallery because I think B/W shows more emotion and depth with fewer distractions so you can see the person as they really are.

Any photos you took that you look at and say wow?

There was one photo that I said WOW, but it wasn't after I saw it on screen. It was before I shot it. I was at The April Fools Alleycat race in Philly 2 years ago. I asked this couple if I could take their photo. They walked to a brick wall without me telling them and he stood there and looked right at me without smiling with his hands cupped in front and she turned to a profile looking at him without direction from me. I stood stunned for a second, than I took the photo. I framed that photo so I can see it every day. I think that one photo is why I love photographing people more than anything else.

What are your thoughts about formal races as opposed to the more urban ones?

Formal races are great when they are in cities where there is more to photograph than just the race. Office Parks suck. Urban races like Alleycats can give a photographer a hard-on, because there is a lot going on. There is more diversity in urban races, not just in race, but the way people dress, neighborhoods, and good shit like that.

Do find there is a difference in the people who attend either?

Yes there is a difference. Like I said before the urban races have more diversity. I went to Harlem last month for The Harlem Classic and the diversity was amazing. When I go to a local races not so much but I love finding diversity anywhere. There might be skinny black guy standing next to a muscular white dude at an office park race or a woman wearing huge white 50's sun glasses getting ready for her race. Everyone is different that’s what makes life great.

Do you actually know a demon cat?

No, I don't know any Demon Cat other than the one haunting our Nations Capitol Building from which our name is from but there are some Ferrell cats in my neighborhood that are pretty evil.
Thanks Kevin for coming from behind the camera and expressing your thoughts about your process and the kinds of settings and people that motivate you to take the photos that you do. I know Human Zoomers who have been captured by your demon lens and they love those photos.

8.06.2008

NEED HAIR NOW!




Top Ten Hair Bands and songs

1. Poison "I want Action"
2. Cinderella "Nobody’s fool"
3. Skid Row "18 and life"
4. Ratt "Round and Round"
5. Motley Crue "Home sweet home"
6. Winger "Headed for the heartbreak"
7. Dokken "In my dreams"
8. White Snake "Still of the Night"
9. Great White "Once bitten twice shy"
10. Stryper "To Hell with the Devil"




Hey all when Dlowe asked me to do a top 10 Hairband list I thought NO PROB!!! But then when I go to do it and I realized that there is hair, glam, metal, so many categories! So I enlisted a good friend, went and got some black streaks(which I found out were called LOW LIGHTS) in my hair and got tickets to the Poison show in Bethlehem. Well it was one hell of a show. I feel soooo back in the can of hairspray now. thanks D Lowe!!
Honorable Mention:
Mother Love Bone( they are glam not grunge)
Hanoi Rocks
Kixx
Warrant (come on Cherry Pie!! Sooo good)
Def Leopard

This is the best Hair Band out (they get it) Go to you tube and check it out.
by Anthony

Sand riding

My Sand Pit



I’ve been doing my Wednesday work-outs by myself. Getting back up to speed on my dismounts, shouldering the bike, running and remounting. It’s starting to come around.
Tonight I met Chad and Caitlin for some skills and technique drills. We did the usual drills, then with kid like anticipation, headed over to the Sand pits. There is a lot of sand in cross racing, so it was good practice and quite fun, bombing into the pit at full speed, motoring through, with the tires a churning and the bike getting all squirrelly. The best was flying down hill at full speed, dismounting, making the corner and running with the bike back up the hill and out of the pit. A little spinning around the drives for a cool down, some nice chatting, and another step closer to racing.

8.02.2008

Stoner rock Intervals



Weed means nothing to me, but oh thank God, how it fuels the passions of distortion in others. The heavy riffs, the puff, the inhale, the singe of the fuel, the cloud from the composer’s lips creates a new soundtrack for my next interval. The shorter my interval the more intense and heavier the chords need to be, with my quest for motivation, mayhem is the only thing that pushes me to my full commitment. Denser, more wha-wha, a blitz of drums, please. My need steps across the line and I have to get more from the music. I pull out all the stops, and go to that small island of Japan, to visit BORIS, one of its crazy giants of sound, shimano’s nemesis, the loudest, distorted propelling mayhem.
I dreamed last night that I was tied to the rock and the birds came.


When I was rinding my bike to where I was going to do my workout, I saw the birds again. They did not mock me or laugh, they ate, ignoring me. I got to work, and the music did its job, and now I am a bit faster, a bit tougher, and moving a step forward in being prepared for my cross racing this year.