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*Liam's Wild Ride*

Glad to hear that you're living your dream out.

Someday, when Liam is internationally famous, I can look back on this pic:

/that's me sitting to the right of him

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Hey Guys,

Thanks for posting. Brent, that video is hilarious! That's me on the notorious #46 mini-motard and I think I'm riding around with David Lodermeier, former AMA 250 Outdoor Motocross contender. And yes, that's me eatin' it at the end, too, haha. I like the pictures from Daytona, and I hope to make it to that race in the next couple years, who knows?!?

In the meantime, it's time to get back on track with some of the *Wild Ride*! Someone asked about my camera equipment? Well, back before I moved out here I sold everything I had (and some stuff I didn't even know I had) and prepared to get this adventure going. Pictures of some of my weird things can be found here.

I knew I wanted to have a decent camera to help capture the moments so I started searching Craigslist to find just what I wanted. I talked to a couple barfers (like Stan23 and MackeyStingray) about my needs, and almost universally, it was decided that I could probably use a nice Canon. I read some photo forums, looked at the Barf photo threads, and set my sights on a Canon Rebel 350XT. I found one used on Craigslist (locally in Sunnyvale!!) and bought it early one morning after emailing with the CL poster around 4AM (he was at work). The week after, I started looking for used lenses and I bought a used 100-300mm lens for a hundred bucks in South City. It was definitely worth the drive to go get it. Aside from the standard 18-55mm lens, and the big lens, I also use a circular polarizer (suggested by Brad Renalds), and a UV filter. I swap the polarizer between the two lenses and I should probably scribble some reference marks on it because I never really know where it's at. I used to rely on rapid fire shooting to get some halfway decent pics, but I've been working on my technique and when you're in the right place at the right time, the good shots just fall into place. Meaning, the light has to be just right, or nothing looks good! Knock on wood! This is a photo of my "rig", which I lug around in a small shoulder bag. My back-up camera is a chubby Sony DSC-P8, which I got for Xmas a couple years back. It has taken almost four thousand pictures and still works, albeit a little slower and with less precision than it used to. It takes horrible pictures at night, is often low on batteries (though it's rechargable), but manages to record audio decently. I am definitely ready to upgrade the little cam, maybe to a Casio Exilim, but I think some additional lenses for the Canon would be even better - like a fish-eye, wide-angle, and "L" series lenses (HINT HINT HINT!). All in all, I think I do okay with what I have, I just wish technology wasn't evolving at such a rapid pace. Now I'm starting to see that my laptop is wearing out!

The *ride* is going to get a little confusing, so just stay with me and be patient today as I upload photos and travel experiences.

P.S. if you think these photos are good, you should see the high-res versions!!!

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First off, we're going to cover some more of the Qatar GP, round #2 in the series that maye well be Rossi's last.

I mentioned in the last post that when the lighting isn't right, I just can't take good photos, and for most of Thursday and Friday's practice sessions, this is what I had to work with. One of these days I'll figure out how to maximize my camera's settings to help get clearer high speed photos in low light, but for now, I'm just waiting for sunny days, sunny days :)

Ominous, huh? The foulish weather continued through raceday, with 40MPH winds gusting over the track spreading sand. It was surprising sunny during the race, though, and I even got a little bit burned after the weekend.

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Here's a nice example of some different body positions. The smaller guys definitely have to hang themselves out there to get the bike around the corners quickly, and the larger guys don't get so "head down". Note the Ducati, which as later photos will show, has a decidedly different handling characteristic to it :teeth

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Here's a few more shots. How do you guys like this style of photo montage? I would've just posted all of these separately, but that's a lot of pics! Since they are all relatively the same, I thought this might be an interesting way to show how the boys go round.

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This also seems like an appropriate time to thank my friend, Endo , for helping me with my new watermark. I'm sure by now everyone has noticed the butt-kicking logo I've added to my photos and believe me, there's more where that came from (if you go to the dance with me :) ).

Endo has been involved with computers for quite a while, and his advice and expertise have been greatly appreciated. You may remember his cool photo project from this past christmas; you can find it here.

Mostly, I was looking for a way to help identify my pictures when I browse forums from around the globe, and hopefully soon I'll be able to start posting links to the strange and amazing places that I find my work in. There's a crack team of individuals who have been helping me with the various projects I have going, and hopefully we'll have something cool to present to Barf in the coming months.

And for me? I'm just feeling lucky today, because there are so many cool things that have happened for me already, and I truly believe that there are even better times ahead. I've been so lucky to be where I've been, to meet the people I've met and seen or heard things I never expected to. I'm not sure what kind of Moto-Deity is looking out for me, but for all you non-believers, know this: God rides a Buell. It never breaks down, it never needs parts, it never leaks, and it flat out rocks! Well, that is until God got stuck singing this song . Then he forgot about riding for a few minutes.

Happy Easter Everybody!

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This Barf thread has led me to meet some interesting individuals from around the world, all connected by a passion for motorcycling. If you think rainy weather is bad, check out how my friend Matte in Sweden does it!

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Looking at the pics, you can see that some guys lead with their rear, like Bayliss or Doohan did (is it an Aussie thing?), while others lead with their elbow. Some guys use both. . . and some guys win all the races.

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I've heard a bunch of opinions concerning John Hopkin's reaction when his motor failed during the race (i.e. kicking the fairing a couple times out of frustration). As a mechanic, I've often wanted to throw a wrench when things didn't go right, so I know how he felt at the time. Personally, I think John is a really nice guy, and he's been riding the wheels off the Suzuki's for years now. Does one incident make him crazy, ungrateful, brash, and a poor sport? I don't know. I do know that he wants to win badly. See for yourself.

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My friend, Pedro Calvert, says that they're working on "Hip-Sliders". He speaks English very well, lives in the Tarragona vineyard area outside of BCN, and is dating an American girl who hails from the Sonoma vineyards outside of San Francisco.

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Man-o-man, lots of right hand shots! Might as well post a few others I have.
Here's a shot of the focus KRJR exibits before a race. Wish I had the same focus, but my hand isn't that steady, har har.

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Earl Hayden really wanted to hear the National Anthem after the race. The American one. I told him he just wanted another ride on the Honda. . .

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Despite his illness, Stoner had a strong showing. Seems like he's priming himself for the season of his life. I can't wait to see how he does later this season, particularly at his home race in Australia. Years ago, Casey's father sold everything they owned, came to Europe with his son, and bought a motorhome which they lived out of. The mobile was parked at Alberto Puig's training ranch (which includes a full size motocross track with sixth gear WFO corners) where Casey began his career in the Movistar Cup and the Spanish 125 Nationals. Fast forward to now, where he's finally shaking it up with the big boys after going to 250 GP, back to 125 GP, back to 250, then to MotoGP! And he's only 20. I haven't put my finger on it yet, but when Aussies go racing, they really GO!!!!!!!

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Compared to Casey's awesome weekend, Makoto Tamada and the Konica Minolta crew did not have much fun. James Ellison was happy to have beaten a Honda in the race (a first), and he hopes that it's the sign of things to come. I'm hoping the Tamada finds his "touch" and gets back in the thick of things. How special was it for him to win his home GP two years ago?

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Hey Liam, I like the photo montages...you might want to put your logo in each shot though (not to mention a little closer to the bikes). It would be pretty easy to crop your logo out of most of the photos.
 
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