Jon Russell

The J3 enters the fray

2012-01-29T20:15:00.001-05:00

January I purchased a blokart. Have already made some good friends. I've committed to the 2012 Blokart worlds at Ipvanah dry lake bed in Nevada this spring.

You pay you money..you takea' you chances..

Humble beginnings starting with a FedEx delivery. Door bell rings and FedEx truck drives off leaving package propped on vehicle in garage. Strange..

Shellshock

2012-01-29T20:01:00.001-05:00

Inspection went well this weekend on Shellshock, a J/92 sailboat. Plan to hammer out remaining details of offer this week and work to transport boat to Detroit in Feburary.

Also able to take in the Chicago sailboat show with Mr Baker while in town. Good times.

Round and Round We Go

2012-01-08T22:00:00.000-05:00

This has been another unusual year for me to say the least. For a variety of reasons, I've not been actively blogging recently, but for the sake of posterity, it's probably time to do a catch up post on what happened in 2011.

In the following order:
I started a new job with an old friend - bad idea
I sold the Jeep - too much driveway space, not enough driving
I bought a sailboat - raced it with a crew of 6 all summer and quickly exceeded it's design limitations
I quit my my job and sailed some more through the summer - good idea
I bought a touring motorcycle - haven't yet done the distance touring part I've always wanted to do..next year..
I sold the boat in the pursuit of something bigger and faster - still looking
I decided to go back to work - went back to work two weeks later
I bought another DN and built a large trailer for transporting three ice boats - JMJ is now three strong
I've got another sailing project in the skunkwerks phase - more to follow

It's been a dynamic year to say the least. It's always something. Here's to 2012.

2011 Central Regionals

2011-12-31T17:42:00.000-05:00

This week was the first time all three members of JMJ Racing came together to represent for the 2011 Central Regionals. Conditions Thursday were good enough to get off five or six races in light winds in rough ice with light snow cover. Conditions were not ideal, but the event seemed to get great turnout and was well supported by a capable Race Committee. Great opportunity for us to meet other racers, and new friends were made. All three of us made it back in time to attend the TIYC weekly meeting, and applications have been submitted for membership.

Mike's boat - Nancy's Nightmare seemed to be pretty well put together for it's inaugural run, but the J2 seems to have some major bugs to be worked out, lots of ideas to pursue. It was a disappointing first outing for the boat, but as they say, it's a great learning opportunity.

We hope to meet with Ron Sherry of C2 in the coming week or so and start to dial in the boats. Our focus moving forward is to compete in formal regattas and to be competitive.

Not sure if John is gunning for second place here or saying 'now we have two boats'..

Setting up to race.

2011 Central Regional Awards Ceremony.

JMJ brings home the hardware with a respectable tenth place finish for J1, just don't ask how many boats competed in the Silver Class.

Can't wait to get out there and do it again, we hope to make the 2012 Central Regionals, which may take place as soon as the weekend of Jan 14.

KWS

2011-12-17T14:38:00.000-05:00

This week Greg and I made the trip Tuesday night to Grand Rapids to see Kenny Wayne Shepherd.

Small venue named the Intersection, great place to see an act like KWS, up close and loud.

Wasn't into the first half of the concert where he laid down some of his new stuff, but the night just kept getting better as he dug deeper and deeper into his catalog.

As always, his show closer Voo Doo Child was jaw dropping, and worth the drive.

Probably the last time I'll make an effort to see him live. Great performer, incredible chops, but he really didn't show me anything new.

Welcome Cheech

2011-11-25T11:41:00.001-05:00

This weekend Susan and I adopted a five pound Mexican midget named Cheech. He has quickly settled into our home and has immediately shown us he's got a huge heart in a pint sized package.

He follows us all around the house, and has taken to walking underneath Bender. Bender seems to tolerate him just fine, and seems more puzzled by his presence than anything else.

Cheech was rescued by the Last Day Dog Rescue from a high kill animal shelter, where he was very close to seeing his last day. We met Cheech, and his foster owner Paulette last weekend at the Novi Pet Expo. We are eternally grateful to Paulette for the work she does with the rescue organization and for the love she has given to Cheech before delivering him into our unsuspecting lives. We moved through the adoption process rather quickly so that we may be able to spend some bonding time together with him over the long Thanksgiving weekend.

It seems we quickly moved through the adjustment period, as Cheech won us over almost immediately, with his sweet personality and his devotion to his new family.

Welcome Cheech.

Maynard James Keenan

2011-11-25T11:22:00.001-05:00

Susan and I were able to get out to Masonic Temple Theater for Maynard James Keenan and his newest musical side project when he's not touring with tool.

Phenomenal concert. Music was great, the set was just incredible with a really creative story woven through the evening. The visuals going on behind Keenan while he sang were just stunning, and there was a level of intensity and energy in his music that was really great to see from a world class showman.

It's been a long time since I've been emotionally moved while watching a rock concert, but this one did it for me, and I wasn't the only one, the crowd was just absolutely amped throughout the entire performance.

I've wanted to see Keenean perform for a long time, and he did not disappoint. Can't wait to see him again.

The Guitar Event of The Year

2011-11-10T23:04:00.001-05:00

And it certainly was.. Every time we see this guy he gets better. He put on a phenomenal show. This guy has truly gone global.

2011-09-07T12:21:00.000-04:00

It's been an interesting summer to say the least.

Visit to family in California late August.

Torrey Pines, CA

Susan with her parents in San Clemente, CA

chuckn' calea. We both stepped on a manta ray.

Hang Ten

Labor day in Harbor Springs

Petoskey, MI

Celebrating a family tradition on the fourth

2011-07-05T22:30:00.001-04:00

Shared another 4th of July in Harbor Springs with family. A tradition our family has shared, without exception, for as long as I can remember. All the usual summer fun, with a new activity added this year, zip lines. Great time of year for family to come together, enjoy northern Michigan and celebrate the holiday.

U2 360

2011-06-27T13:43:00.001-04:00

East Lansing, Spartan Stadium.

Wow, what a concert. It's a Beautiful Day.

Allegra

2011-06-15T22:35:00.000-04:00

Summer is off to a good start with Allegra.

Here is a photo taken during the Catalina Fun Race last weekend. With Gary and Joey on the boat, we were even able to fly the hornet..

Next race is the Leukemia Cup July 9, should be a full day with great friends and good fun.

Iron & Wine

2011-04-15T16:10:00.000-04:00

Was able to get out with old time friend Brian last night for Iron & Wine.

Concert was a bit slow in places, but it also had some real highlights.

I think I reached the conclusion last night that's the more hard driving stuff that translates best to live performances. I found my mind wandering when they got into more abstract smooth jam sessions.

Great to catch up with Brian, glad to finally see I&W come through town, but probably my first and last time to see them live.

Hawaii

2011-02-27T14:10:00.001-05:00

Susan and I took a trip to Hawaii last week, great to get out of the cold and regain some perspective.

Day 1 Travel -Waikiki Oahu - Hilton

Day 2 Oahu - Rented a car and explored the island. Got all the way around the island to Dillingham Airfield for some ridge flying and it started to rain as we entered the parking lot - bummer.

Day 3 Travel - Oahu to Maui - K'anapali

Day 4 Maui - Explored West Maui

Day 5 Maui - Mt Haleakala - 10,000' in Hawaii sun => sunburn

Day 6 Maui - Rest day

Day 7 Maui - East Maui - Road to Hana - long day, rough road, it's a rental..

Day 8 Maui - Sail trip to L'nai

Day 9 Maui - Explored Wailea area, beach lunch - $40 for a coconut, pineapple and mango at a roadside stand - tourist tax I guess

Day 10 Travel - Maui to Oahu to LAX to DTW 18 hours travel time door to door + 4 hr time change = long day

2011-01-02T19:26:00.000-05:00

The J1 went up against some of the best in the DN fleet today and delivered solid last place finishes. The J1 was able to follow the fastest boats around the course with style and grace, while keeping a safe distance behind.

The J1 at the line next to seasoned veteran Mr Bruce Barnard.

Total Distance: 10.50 km (6.5 mi)
Total Time: 16:09
Moving Time: 14:43
Average Speed: 38.97 km/h (24.2 mi/h)
Average Moving Speed: 42.75 km/h (26.6 mi/h)
Max Speed: 74.43 km/h (46.2 mi/h)
Min Elevation: 247 m (810 ft)
Max Elevation: 270 m (886 ft)
Elevation Gain: 22 m (72 ft)
Max Grade: 2 %
Min Grade: -5 %
Recorded: Sun Jan 02 12:29:13 EST 2011

Mr Harte laying down a sun set champagne cruise hot lap.

Ice Boating

2010-12-26T19:02:00.000-05:00

Today John and I brought home the J1 and sailed it on Walled Lake for a couple hours.

It was really great to see Bruce out on the lake sailing his DN. We did a couple laps together and had a few high speed passes. Conditions look good for tomorrow, and we're going to try it again.

Ice Boats

2010-12-19T11:09:00.002-05:00

Sunny, 20 degrees and 20 knots out of the south west. A perfect day for ice boats. My old buddy JGH called and invited me to a mutual friends house who had some DN's set up for the day. What a great time.

Addendum to this post - Team J&J is a GO.
http://jandjracing.blogspot.com/

Hendrix Experience Tour

2010-11-28T22:10:00.002-05:00

Last week was the Hendrix Experience Tour. I was disappointed in the performances compared to last year. A few glimmering moments, but also a lot of mediocre ones too. Even a couple songs by Living Color that were down right bad - just really off.

Highlight of the night, as always, was KWS laying down a scorching 15 minute rendition of Voodoo Child. In my opinion, his performance was so far above the rest of the other nights performances it made me wonder what the future of the tour will become.

This week Rolling Stone gave the new Hendrix unreleased songs box set four and half stars, I'll have to pick it up. Supposed to be a lot more unreleased stuff coming too.

Amazing we still pay tribute to a rock legend who passed 40 years ago. His music still seems as relevant to me as anything else out there.

Lake Superior Circle Tour

2010-11-28T21:42:00.029-05:00

2,000 miles in 6 days.

I've always wondered what was up there.

The trip exceeded my expectations.

Fri - DET to Sault St Marie ONT
Sat - Sault St Marie to Rossport ONT
Sun - Rossport ONT to Grand Marias Minnesota
Monday - Grand Marias Minnesota to Bayfield Wisconson
Tuesday - Bayfield Wisconson to Munising Michigan
Wed - Munising Michigan to Harbor Springs Michigan
Thursday - Harbor Springs Michigan to DET

Superior Northern Shore

Native

Ice Road Truckers

Big Superior rollers were crashing just feet from my cottage one night, which freaked out Bender. By the next morning, he was body surfing like a pro.

Despite having all my luggage in the thule box, and preparing a nice area in the back, he spent most of the trip looking out the window from the passenger seat, typically covered in snow, sand or surf..

Pictured Rocks, Munising MI

It was a great trip, despite the fast pace and late fall season. It was a good exploratory adventure to do some recon for a future visit with friends or family. Definetly worth a revisit with more time and daylight.

Looking Forward

2010-11-12T11:02:00.000-05:00

Today I resigned from Compuware. A lot of mixed feelings. Some days are more poignant than others.

CO

2010-09-13T18:09:00.000-04:00

7 days - 1800 Miles.

Day 1 - Denver, Vail to Aspen

Day 2 - Aspen to Ouray

Day 3 - Ouray, Telluride

Day 4 - Ouray to Silverton

Day 5 - Silverton, Durango, Mesa Verde National Park to Monument Valley Arizona

Day 6 - Monument Valley Arizona to Pagosa Springs

Day 7 - Pagosa Springs to Leadville

Day 8 - Leadville, Breckenridge to Denver

For several years my family had a place in Breckenridge. I never got there enough. Most of my time was always spent in Summit County, and usually in the winter. This week Susan and I took a good run at seeing as much as possible in 7 days.

Highlights, where to begin. The entire trip was a highlight, and it was a beautiful time of year. Trees were turning color at altitude, crowds were down, and the weather was perfect, mid 70's in the day, high 40's at night. With this trip, we decided to see as much as possible, at the expense of being able to dwell in any one place to explore deeper. I would have liked to do more hiking, biking, fishing, wheeling, etc, but we decided to use this trip as a reconnaissance, to find places we would like to come back to further explore.

I was deeply envious of all of the guys on bikes canyon carving the beautiful roads, on everything from 70's era Goldwings, to the BMW's, to the sportbikes and even to the big Harley guys scraping the rails around the tight corners, with a rider on back. And to the travel rigs, with toys on the roof, maps all over the dashboard and a months worth of supplies in the back of their car. I would really like to take some time and see this state properly, we blew through just so many areas that I could have spent weeks.

Highlights - If I had to pick a couple, coming over Black Bear Pass in a Pinzgauer, nose hanging off a sheer cliff as we negotiated a switchback, while looking down into the Telluride Valley, exploring the Tomboy Pass area. The drive through Arizona and Utah desert - Valley of the Gods, Monument Valley, Mexican hat, what a strange environment, watching entire weather systems roll through, as far as the eye can see from the vantage of a high plateau, the countless National Park gravel access roads, I wonder where that one goes..

It was an inspiring trip.

An Evening with the BLACK CROWES

2010-08-26T22:20:00.008-04:00

The Crowes absolutely blew me away. This would be their last time through town, as they recently announced that the band will be breaking up at the end of their '10 tour. This was a must see show for me, as the Crowes were the first band to really show me how great a live performance could be.

Susan's sister Cathy was in town for the weekend and she accompanied me for the night.

The crowd was totally into the show and it really felt like the Crowes elevated the nights performance to give the audience their finest farewell. It was a three and a half hour, two set show that spanned 20 years of great music. The second set included some serious solos by each of the band members. Easily the best show I've seen the band put on. They are just such a great live show, known as one of the best in all of Rock and Roll, and I couldn't agree more.

The band came out for one encore song. I had huge hopes for what they would lay down, but unfortunately, they played 'I Ain't Hiding' a Discoey little number, very divergent from their musical roots, off their latest album. Thier encore song choice was a huge disappointment to me, as well as the crowd, as you could just feel the energy on the floor go flat. You could even hear people grumbling about it as they were finishing the song, and as we all streamed out of the show.

Despite the disappointing encore, this show was easily one of the best shows I've ever seen. The music was just so great, and the fact that it would be the last time I would be seeing this band perform made this a very special night of music. I really did not want the nights performance to end, the Crowes will leave a musical legacy that will not easily filled.

The Black Keys

2010-08-18T22:20:00.001-04:00

Saturday night Susan and I got together with Ben for the Black Keys downtown at the Fillmore. They did a great, but short set with some dull moments in the middle when they did some of their new stuff off their latest album. They brought out a piano player and another guitarist for the new songs, which was weird, I really like the vibe just the two of them put out together, additional players on the stage just diluted it for me.

It seems that the years on the road since the first time I saw them has mellowed them a bit, which I guess was inevitable. I think every time I've seen them now it's been in a bigger venue. We sat in the balcony at the top of the theatre, which probably did'nt help either. They're not quite as raw and in your face as I remember them, and as the venue grows, they become less and less accessible, which to me was always a part of their appeal, just standing at the base of the stage, watching these two guys just play their heart out, knowing you just witnessed something special..

It was great to introduce Ben to the Keys, and I'm not giving up on them yet.

The Fillmore ceiling

Allegheny River - Warren PA

2010-07-27T18:21:00.000-04:00

Jon and I were able to get away for the weekend to meet up with his brother Chase in PA for a weekend of paddling.

Saturday we did 23 miles on the Allegheny River. A nice wide shallow river with a good current. We were able to surf some of the eddys at the top, but the river widened out and slowed down as we moved down river. Near the bottom, Jon picked the wrong path and had a nice overland excursion as a result to get back to the big water. We hit it on a day after a big rain storm, so the river was quite muddy, zero vis.

It was a nice river to say we 'bagged', but I'm not overly anxious to do that same stretch again, the city of Warren did not have too much to offer either.

Overall a nice weekend getaway, plenty of laughs anytime we get together.

Mr Enzo finalizing travel details with the absent brother.

Harbor Springs 4th of July

2010-07-18T12:42:00.004-04:00

Last week I was able to get in some R n R during the GM shutdown. Susan and all of the family were up for the first half of the week, through the fourth, then Bender and I stayed up for the remainder of the week.

I was able to get in Drummond Island, Beaver Island and some quality time at Wilderness State Park.

Thuggy B gettin' his swim on.

While on Drummond Island, I was able to find by memory the cottage we owned in the 70's. This area has changed quite a bit in the 30 years since we built it. I remember looking out on the Lake Superior frontage and the private lake behind the cottage. Now it's a rock quarry. This place was miles back in the woods with no one near by, now there are houses leading all the way up to the place. As a young kid, I remember engaging in unsupervised activities like shooting an arrow straight up into the sky to see where it would come down, and hunting frogs with my first 20-gauge. I also remember snowmobiling miles and miles across the North Channel in frigid temperatures with wind swept features and large crevasse that would send the sled into the air unexpectedly.

We sold the place to a guy who robbed a bank to pay for it, and he was planning to make the place his hide out. He was caught shortly thereafter and we got the place back.

Bruce Point Drummond Island.

I Spent the remainder of my time on the island on a remote beach accessible only by two track, hours from the road. It was a really nice location, but next time I try for this destination, I will bring a map, and a GPS and a cell phone without a dead battery, and a tow strap with an emergency kit, and more water, and I will tell someone where I'm going... Funny how 30 years later and I'm still engaged in sketchy activities in the backwoods of Drummond Island, just like when I was a little kid.

Beaver Island

It was a mistake to come come here by foot and without a plan. The island was just not accessible to me and Bender by foot, and we ended up making a quick walk through town and getting back on the Ferry for an earlier trip back home. I did find some great kayaking and diving opportunities I hope to pursue before the end of this summer.

Overall a great trip and my first opportunity to spend a few days with the dog.

Buffet - Matthews Combination

2010-06-25T17:08:00.003-04:00

This week was a big concert week, definitely the biggest of the summer for me. Buffet played Tuesday night and Dave Mathews played Wednesday at ~~Pine Knob~~ The DTE Musical Center.

Both were great shows, Buffet primarily for the party vibe he lays down, and Matthews, as always, did not disappoint. As usual, he threw out a two-and-a-half hour, high energy, wall of sound with non stop hits that just kept building in intensity throughout the night. I don't know any other artist that puts so much of himself into each performance, and the crowd responds in like fashion, even for a Wednesday night. Really a great show, made more significant because DM announced that they would not be touring in 2011, so it may be a couple of years before I see one of my favorite bands perform again. The only thing that could have possibly made it any better would have been a guest appearance by Bret Michaels

Great electrical storm during the second half of the show that added to the excitement, but left me standing in the pouring rain next to my car for an hour and a half after the show waiting for the traffic gridlock to clear before making my way home.

It was great being able to plug into Ben's party, it was a great group of friends, enjoying a party that spanned two nights. It was a big energy commitment on my end to make it work, during a very critical week at work. Was it worth the energy? I'm not sure, probably not. Would I do it again, probably.

I guess that's the point - Life is what you make it. It was a great opportunity to connect with friends and enjoy some really great music, even when you have pay the price..

Silver Lake Sand Dunes

2010-05-24T12:48:00.003-04:00

Saturday Ben and I traveled to the Silver Lake Sand Dunes. The dunes were a place that Bryan and I used to go as a kid with our dad, but that was a long time ago. Not much has changed in Silver Lake.

Since buying the Wrangler last summer, I have logged a total of about one hour off-road, which is pretty pathetic. I set my goals for Saturday pretty low. I wasn't sure we were going to be able to get onto the dunes, as I had heard that the line queues up very early to get onto the dune, and the park had instituted a reservation system to limit the number of available daily slots. I decided that if we could just learn the process for how to get onto the dune, the day would be a success and we would be ready to go for the next time.

After stopping in at the local buggy shop, we decided that the dunes would be accessible for us today, and we put the gears in motion. One ORV flag and five state park checkpoints later we were in the pits deflating the tires. One final checkpoint (that makes a total of six) and we were ascending into the dunes behind an H2 with more visible chrome from the backside of his rig than the total value of my ride. Before we even reached the dunes, we drove past an F-150 that was already stuck in the sand. I started to wonder how long before we buried my stock TJ with street tyres and no shovel or tow strap..

10 psi

After a couple of slow warm up laps through the dunes our confidence started to build and we took on most everything the dunes had to offer, steep sandy hills, mud pits, and some high speed descents down the hills.

According to Ben, the original mystery machine was a 1966 Chevy SportVan.

These guys were having as much fun as this looks. The two guys in the front were all smiles and strapped in and holding onto the roll cage, however the same could not be said for the single back seat passenger, from our vantage point it appeared he was loosely coupled to a milk crate. Every time they blew past us, they threw a thumbs up while wildly laughing - good times.

The TJ's first run at greatness.

The first run at the hill was a failure, due to a missed shift, which resulted in a long humiliating roll backwards down the hill. All subsequent runs were a success, not bad for two city boys. The capabilities of the Wrangler, even in stock form really impressed me.

The quote of the day came from Ben when I was describing to him some of the unique qualities of drifting sand to watch out for while motoring, and his response to me was, 'So are you saying that you know how to read the Sand ?'

The day was great fun, we managed to keep from getting stuck, and watching some of the other characters out on the dunes was highly entertaining.

Top of the sand pile

After a few hours in the sand, we had enough. After re-inflating the tyres and a quick pass through town, we decided to head down to Grand Haven for dinner before heading home.

A unique marine fog layer lent itself well to some artsy photos.

It was a great day - tons of laughs and high adventure, while laying a solid foundation for good times to come.

Canada Creek Ranch

2010-05-03T21:47:00.009-04:00

This past weekend was a boys weekend at Bryan's property up north - just Bryan, Mitch, dad and I. I think this was the first time we did a boys weekend. Saturday was a busy day, as we had to be back down in Detroit Sunday eve to celebrate my parents 40th anniversary.

Saturday consisted of trout fishing on the lake opening morning, brook trout fishing on a blue ribbon stream, pike fishing on another lake, shooting at the gun range and a photo safari in the outback. Mitch scored the tri-fecta for the day with a brown, brook and a pike.

dad and Mitch

WD40

gun range

Air time

Safari time

We did about thirty miles of two track at dusk looking for game to shoot. I really enjoyed teaching Mitch about photography, and talking with him about things like shutter speed, aperture, ISO, lighting, subject, composition, etc. He's off to a great start, and it's so great to see him take to such a creative hobby at such a young age.

We rode in the back of the pick up and shot elk, deer, partridge, fox, porcupine and the sunset together. We laughed as we shot pictures of rocks and stalked turkeys in the prone position across fields only to realize it was a stump.

I look forward to sharing this hobby with him for a long time to come, and Bryan's property is a great place to explore the outdoors through a rod or a gun or a lens.

The Church

2010-04-19T22:29:00.012-04:00

Last night I was able to get out with Brian to see The Church come through Ferndale. The band was on a 30 year reunion tour, playing a song from each each album, in reverse chronological order. The first set started out a little a bit slow, but the energy kept building through the night as they got deeper into their music, with a great acoustic guitar jam finale.

Good times.

Marty Willson-Piper Nightjar Print

Ferndale

Banff Mountain Film Festival 2010

2010-04-12T14:04:00.007-04:00

Last night was the 2010 Banff Mountain Film Festival in Ann Arbor. Ben and I were able to get in the first paddle of the spring up the Huron River and catch a nice dinner outdoors before the film. It was a great spring day.

Another outstanding night of inspiring, thought provoking stories captured on film. There are just so many ways to lead an inspired life.

First Ascent: Alone on the Wall

USA, 2009, 24 minutes

Directed and produced by Peter Mortimer and Nick Rosen
After gaining international climbing renown for his landmark free-solo of Moonlight Buttress (V, 5 .12+, 9 pitches) in Zion National Park, Utah, in April 2008, 24-year-old Alex Honnold moves on to his next big challenge: the first free-solo of the Regular Northwest Face (VI, 5 .12a, 23 pitches) on Yosemite’s Half Dome.

Kranked — Revolve
Canada, 2009, 11 minutes
Directed and produced by Bjørn Enga
People’s Choice Award for Radical Reels, sponsored by Mountain Culture at The Banff Centre
The coolest human-powered adrenaline tool ever invented — the mountain bike? Revolve blasts in cinematic glory from the French Alps to the lush coast of B.C., incorporating dirt jump, trail, freeride, slopestyle and downhill.

MedeoZ
France, 2008, 6 minutes
Directed and produced by Guillaume Broust
Filmed in the Mont Blanc range, this short features six different mountain sports: climbing, skiing, snowboarding, speed riding, paragliding and BASE jumping. A photographer wants to take one shot showing all the sports, instead of taking separate photos of each sport. It takes a lot of work!

Mont-Blanc Speed Flying
Best Short Mountain Film, sponsored by Mountain Hardwear
France, 2008, 10 minutes
Directed and produced by Didier Lafond
Six speed riders fly from the upper slopes of Mont Blanc down to Chamonix in one continuous 10-minute shot, filmed in Cineflex.

Project Megawoosh
Special Jury Mention
Germany, 2009, 4 minutes
Directed by Minh Duong
Produced by Nikolas Hannack
Bruno Kammell, a German engineer, works to perfect the world’s tallest human water slide.

Rowing the Atlantic
USA, 2009, 26 minutes
Directed and produced by JB Benna
A few years ago, Roz Savage gave up what for many would be an ideal life (husband, great job, big house), picked up a few pairs of rowing oars and a boat to go with them and set off across the Atlantic Ocean — alone — in a rowboat.

Signatures: Canvas of Snow
USA, 2009, 16 minutes
Directed by Nick Waggoner
Produced by Ben Sturgulewski
In Japan there is a cultural connection to the different signatures of our terrestrial home — a sense that the rhythm of fall, winter, spring and summer influences the rhythm of the person, their energy, their riding style and the lines they choose. This special edit features skiers, snowboarders, a photographer and a noboarder who are each in tune with this connection to winter and the environment they ride in.

Take a Seat
Special Jury Mention
UK, 2009, 46 minutes
Directed by Ed Stobart, Dominic Gill
Produced by Lucy Wilcox
Dominic Gill’s mission is to cycle the 32,000 kilometres from the northern coast of Alaska to the southern tip of South America, on a tandem bike, picking up random strangers on the way. A gripping tale of two years and two continents, full of extraordinary characters and incidents.

Mark V

2010-04-04T17:59:00.002-04:00

After a long dusty day on the trails, nothing satisfies like a Mark V.

I have been walking by this old beer can in the woods all winter. I had an idea it was really old and somehow recently unearthed. I finally brought along my camera one day to capture it in it's native habitat, well sort of, I did prop it on a tree branch facing into the sun to improve the shot.

After some web research, I've determined that it may not actually be that old, as far as I can tell the brewery was out of Pittsburgh PA, and went out of business sometime in the 80's.

Even more dissapointing, ebay has a bunch of these up for sale in like new condition, unopened, for around $3 bucks. Oh well..

Fighter Pilot & Monk

2010-04-04T00:12:00.000-04:00

This week I spent two evenings with a Fighter Pilot and a Monk. Two men with very contrasting backgrounds with very similar views on life. They provided some very inspiring ideas to contemplate around karma and being grateful - it's all in your mind.

Doing lots of walking in the woods with Bender.

Benders first day in the water last week - he learned to swim and made friends with a swan.

So glad spring has arrived.

@trip

2010-03-05T16:39:00.002-05:00

I've wanted a GPS data logger for a long time, I've just never gotten around to investing the time to find the right one. I did some research lately and found a great unit, and it comes with integration to a web site where you can upload and manage all your trips. I couldn't be happier with this little logger, it gets GPS signal acquisition almost immediately, and works just fine when thrown into a chest pocket of my jacket.

With the walks I've been taking lately with Bender, I figured it was time to start logging my trips. I find it's a great way to help bring a new perspective to some of my activities, and I can also start accumulating distance totals this way, by activity.

I'm really looking forward to logging my activities, and I think about all the logs I've missed out on capturing over the years..

Here's a short walk I did today with Bender..

I got the shot..

2010-02-07T16:26:00.001-05:00

I fall through the ice at least once a year. Today I fell in as I was taking this shot, saved the camera, came out wet up to the waist. Bender just watched me go in then tilted his head as we were standing and looking at each other eye level.

Training Day

2010-01-31T20:19:00.003-05:00

Today we started bird training. I have discovered there is an AKC Field Trial area within 15 minutes from our home at the Highland Lakes Rec Area. It's really a beautiful area, just made for hunting. I'm astonished that in 12 years of living in the area, I've never been to this state park, we will be back again soon. It was a beautiful sunny evening with a late winter sun, that just made the entire area light up in gold, shame I only had my camera phone.

We didn't kick up any birds, but we definetly smelled a few, gotta start somewhere. Next weekend we'll go hang out at the Detroit Gun Club to get used to the sound of a shotgun.

Welcome Bender

2010-01-05T16:13:00.001-05:00

Sunday, Susan and I were happy to welcome Bender into the Family. This all came about rather fast, but we couldn't be any happier. Bender has the sweetest disposition, and we instantly had a soft spot for him with his bent tail and the name the breeder had endowed upon him. So far, he's been non stop laughs and has not committed a single act of defacing the house. We've got big plans for Bender.

Benders Grand dad was a four time National Field Trial Champion. Here he is flexing his chops with his new mom.

Bender picking on his mom - Oldsquaw Mexacali Rose

A Very Black Keys 2010

2010-01-05T16:05:00.001-05:00

Friday, New Year's day, Susan and I road tripped to Chicago to see the Black Keys perform. The show was sold out, so I posted a want ad on the Chicago Craigslist the day of and we had two tickets, just a little over face value not 20 minutes later.

It was a good excuse to spend a weekend in Chicago, the show was great, despite the single digit temps and white out conditions in both directions of the drive. There were a couple of restaurants we really wanted to try while in the city, but they were closed for the holiday. None the less, there were pleny of interesting places to explore on the North side of Chicago.

I was struck by how similar the buildings, general industrial decay and overall feel the North side of Chicago has to Detroit, the difference being, there is a vibrance to the old run down city that Detroit just doesn't share.

We tried to shop the following morning but it was just too cold, and we had an afternoon appointment on the way home we didn't want to miss.

A Walk in the Woods

2009-12-06T20:42:00.002-05:00

This weekend, Keith and I were able to get out early Sunday morning for a sunrise photo session at Proud Lake, it was great to discover parts of the park I've never seen before, and so close to my house.

It was nice to get out into the woods for a walk. I've left General Motors and I am now at Chrysler. The transition has been stressful, and I don't see the workload letting up any time soon. It was nice to have a quiet weekend enjoying the outdoors with friends engaged in a hobby I enjoy.

HDR

Fungi

Phish

2009-11-23T21:57:00.001-05:00

Did a down and back to Cincinnati with Chris to see Phish Saturday night.

I'm glad I had the opportunity to see the band perform live...once.

Just about exactly as expected, lots of smoke, hippies and glow sticks.

Outdoor summer music festival seems like a better venue to see this band perform. Seats weren't great, music did not overwhelm me, but the hippie smoke and crowded conditions did..

A day at the Zoo

2009-10-18T13:19:00.010-04:00

It can be fun pretending to be a wildlife photographer.

From the Amazon Rain Forest

To the Canadian Rockies

To the wild Jungles of Congo

All for the price of admission to the Zoo on an otherwise cold and dreary October day in the D.

Great Lake Swimmers

2009-08-30T15:10:00.008-04:00

Young girl just outside the line for the show

Saturday Night was the Great Lake Swimmers at the Ark in Ann Arbor. What a great, intimate, acoustic venue to hear world class musicians. It's been a very long time since I've been to the Ark, and I will be looking for more shows out of there in short order, it's just a great place to see artists perform up close.

The Great Lake Swimmers are a relatively new band to hit the national spotlight, and they reminded me a lot of the Fleet Foxes, with less harmony and more banjo. The GLS has that new sound that seems to be emerging as the rocky edgy whiny folky music. Some of their stuff I really enjoyed, and some of it left me flat, not really soaring or evoking a strong feel either way. The first set was very mellow, which left me with an initial impression of disappointment.

Tony Dekker opened the second set with three solo acoustic pieces which was the highlight of the night for me, that seemed to create a very intimate connection to the audience. The rest of the band came out for the second half of the set and the tempo was noticeably more upbeat, with a couple of songs off some of their older albums.

I really enjoyed the nights performance, but did not love it. They seemed to have a few moments of brilliance, with a lot of music in the middle that sounded alike, and just not moving enough to say it was great.

A very moody, mellow, even melancholy sound out of the boys from Toronto. They've really been getting a lot of buzz lately, I'll be interested in following their ascent. I don't see their sound appealing to the masses, but I do see a niche 'Neil Young' type crowd that would really connect to their music. Some really strong messages in their lyrics, delivered in a very subtle tone.

Tonight I was able to smuggle a camera into the show, with the bands permission, which gave me a chance to try out a new 35mm lens I just picked up for this very purpose.

Lake Winnipesaukee

2009-08-18T20:04:00.001-04:00

Weekend was spent on Lake Winnipesaukee in New Hampshire with Chris and his boys. A lot of water skiing, hiking, and catching up. We get together about once a year, and really enjoy the time together. It was great getting to spend some time with Chris's boys as well.

Chris has invited me to his cottage for the last five years, and it was great to finally pull off a quick get away. Chris has a beautiful property on the lake, and this week he is closing on a second property right next door for his growing family of five.

Chris is a great host, and I know this was the first of many years to come sharing time together on the lake.

Las Vegas

2009-08-14T12:15:00.007-04:00

Last week Susan and I travelled to Las Vegas to celebrate Charlie's 70th Birthday.

It was a nice opportunity to visit with family, however it seems there is never enough time to do all the catching up.

Most of my time was spent off the strip with Peter, while Susan spent her time visiting with the girls. Peter, Juliana and I spent one full day paddling the Colorado River from the Hoover Dam down, a total of around 20 miles in a mixed current and flat water trip. Very dramatic scenery in the river valley, a couple hundred feet down below the desert floor, and hot, very hot. We could have spent days exploring the caves and box canyons along the river, but we stopped only three or four times in a very rushed fashion. Some interesting Indian artifacts along the way as well. We really just scratched the surface.

The next day was spent exploring the Red Rocks National Conservation Area with Peter then walking the strip with Susan to see some of the new stuff since we had been there last.

It was good to see everybody, but not enough time.

Fleet Foxes

2009-08-06T01:32:00.001-04:00

This was my MUST SEE concert of the summer. Right up to the point when I forgot that they were coming in concert..

Susan casually mentioned they were in town tonight as we were settling in after a long day. After much coercing on my part, we were on the road and eastbound with a distant destination. The Royal Oak Main was packed tonight, and we made it just in time, I was so pleased to find tickets were still available, and wouldn't be surprised to find that the show sold out.

They had me from the first chord, and the entire set just soared. Just beautiful music, with both a power and a subtlety in their songs. Very deliberate and thoughtful performance. The sound was as clean as I've ever heard out of the venue, and I could tell they put great care into the sound quality, with three full soundboards distributed between the audience and backstage.

A great night of music, this is a band we will be hearing more from in the coming years, very devoted and talented musicians for a bunch of hippies.

' Cause that's the way we roll

2009-07-30T19:43:00.005-04:00

Weekend was spent with Jon, Garret and Ethan in his coach on the Thunder Bay River west of Alpena. The plan was to get some big paddles in, but the weather did not cooperate, as it rained on and off the entire weekend.

We managed to get in a small paddle Sat afternoon, with black skies and lightning behind us all the way down the river. Sunday, for a host of reasons, was less productive than Saturday. I had never heard of the Thunder Bay River before this weekend. It was a muddy river with some very remote stretches, and a light current.

With a little luck, we may get in another weekend yet this summer, and we will try for the Au Sable, which was our original destination last week.

My favorite line of the weekend was when Ethan asked our shuttle driver which side of the bridge is better to drop in on, and he replies, well if you drop in on the up river side it's a longer trip.

As we were rolling out Sunday night, a nice old couple next to us came by to say good bye, and let us know they were going to miss us. They also told us that there there was a rumor buzzing throughout the camp site that we were a rock band up for some R&R with all our toys and loud rock music.

I can't imagine how that rumor got started.

DMB

2009-07-29T11:38:00.016-04:00

Last night was DMB at the DTE. I was able to meet up with Bill for some tailgating before the show. Bill and his wife Christine were with some friends from the neighborhood, who were celebrating the night with Julie. Julie is a huge Dave Mathews fan, and this will be her last show. Julie has terminal cancer.

Through some hard work by neighborhood friends, Julie was able to meet with Dave behind stage before the show, and she was given the opportunity to request a song.

The show was everything I had expected it to be, the touring saxophonist Jeff Coffin (from Bela Fleck & the Flecktones) even played a couple of songs with both an alto and a tenor sax at the same time, never seen that before.

About half way through the show, the band played an extended version of Warehouse, and the band just went off on an extended jam. I could only imagine what Julie was experiencing, as the band elevated the night's performance and the crowd's intensity, as they put their full energy into the song for her. This was her moment.

I feel fortunate to have been invited into this circle of friends on this special night, and to have had the privilege of meeting Julie.

This was Julie's night.

Lyle Lovett

2009-07-18T06:37:00.012-04:00

Last Night Suz and I saw Lyle Lovett at the Meadowbrook Music festival. Lovett was introduced to me by a great friend, and I have never had a chance to see him perfrom.

I have just one of his albums, that Chris gave to me many years ago. Suz really loves that album, and last night we discovered he is just so much more of an artist than as we knew him.

Lyle shares his stage with another 10 musicians that really put out both a full and intricate sound at the same time. The focus of the night was constantly shifting between Lyle performing in more of an intimate story teller style to conducting the performers around him in a big band country blue grass gospel blues music style.

It was really funny to look over and see Susan bopping her head to a little bluegrass ditty with a big smile on her face.

He really is an entertaining performer, and absolutely worth seeing again. He's a very thoughtful performer with great subtlety in his guitar playing and voice. We really needed to be close to appreciate his talent.

Suz and I arrived late to the show, and were lucky enough to pick up some great seats ten rows back, front and center. The tickets were left at the box office by a couple that couldn't use them, so we scored them for free.

A great way to spend my birthday, the fact we had such great seats at no cost, and Susan really enjoyed the performance made the night just that much better.

I think my favorite part of the night was the knowledge that Lyle is a huge Ducatista!

4th of July

2009-07-11T15:17:00.012-04:00

Once again this year I was able to get the first week of GM shutdown off.

Susan and I decided to drive the Lake Michigan shore line and see some areas we've never had a chance to explore. Last week I picked up an old Jeep Wrangler. I spent the first couple days of my break fixing small items and installing a new sound system to replace the head unit and speakers, which were completely blown out. While at Murray's picking up some items, I ran into an old friend with a YJ. He noticed my front fender was crooked where the previous owner hit a deer. He says "here, we can fix that right now" and we both started lifting on the drivers side fender for all we were worth. When we determine that was not enough combined lifting force, I continued to pull while he began delivering a karate style side kick to to the fender from the opposite direction, and it was enough to do the trick, we moved the bumper a good 6" back into place.

Susan and I started counting the Jeeps we've collectively owned just since we've been married, and we came up with nine. Considering my dad worked for American Motors when I was growing up, there was probably another 50 - 100 Jeeps in my family back in the 70's and 80's.

As a kid, I remember getting Jeeps stuck on sandbars 100 yards out from the shore, or getting stuck in sand miles from anywhere in a Canadian Military live ammunition area. Once, we completely destroyed a brand spanking new Grand Cherokee Orvis edition in the Silver Lake Sand Dunes. That was like a $40k truck. Another time we hooked a cable to the front axle to pull bushes out of front lawn. The bushes didn't move, but the entire front end of the Scrambler became dislocated from the frame.

It was a brighter time in the era of American Automotive, and each new mess was a badge of honor. This was back when Jeeps came standard with massive knobby rubber, and locking hubs, and no seat belts in the back, and had only one real purpose, driving off road. The AMC big wigs were regularly taking the trucks past the design limits to see how capable their products were. It was a time of large profitability and executive egos. What a different time it was, when you thought the future could only get brighter.

By Wed eve the truck was ready to go and Susan had taken off the rest of the week. We drove to Muskeegon in the evening, and planned to make our way up the coast, ending in Harbor Springs with family, as we have done together for the last 20 years on this holiday weekend.

Thursday morning we drove right past Rothbury as cars were beginning to queue up for the weekend. I really wanted to go to the event this year, but my time off is just so precious, and has to be planned with military like precision and timing. Sleeping Bear Dunes National Park was a highlight of the drive, and we spent several hours hiking in the hills and along the shore. Thurs eve was spent in a nice B&B along the Grand Traverse shoreline.

Sleeping Bear National Park

The time in Harbor Springs was as nice as usual, and we were able to watch the fireworks this year with friends.

Little Traverse Bay

Susan and I were able to get up and see the chapel we were married in on top of Boyne Highlands. It's probably been ten years since we've been up there together, and it was nice being there, nothing has changed.

Chapel Cedar Shake roof - 35 yrs old

It was great fun taking Mitch out on the trails behind our house in the Jeep. We would climb a hill so steep that all you could see was sky out the windshield, then the front end would abruptly pitch downward as we crested the top of the hill, and start down the other side. It was all new experience to Mitch, and it was the first time I ever saw him sit quietly in a car and just take it all in. You could see the discomfort on his face, not really sure if everything was OK. When we were done and getting out of the car, he started to feel confident again being on solid ground, and then he asked me, do you think we could get the Durango up that hill? That's my boy.

Emma on the other hand, just wanted to plug in her iPod into the stero and listen to Hannah Montana as loud as I was willing to play it, as we boldly blazed though the trails, a sight to be witnessed by anyone else lucky enough to be out on the trail that day.

It's funny how we pass on our traditions to the younger generation.

It's been a difficult year for the family so far with everything going on in the economy, and particularly in automotive. It was great to come together and enjoy each other as we do each year this week.

Kennsington to Hudson Mills

2009-06-21T22:18:00.004-04:00

This morning Jon and I, Ace and Gary did an eight mile paddle down river. Great trip, lots of people on the water right now, it's really great exploring new sections of the river each week.

Plans are in motion for a wknd trip in July.

Project Bandaloop

2009-06-21T21:25:00.005-04:00

Saturday night Brian and Kelly invited Susan and I down for a DSO event featuring Project Bandaloop. A very interesting combination of dance, climbing and rapelling on a vertical plane, set to the music of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra.

I think the DSO could have selected a better venue than the side of a lit parking garage for the event, but it was really well put together none the less.

It was great to catch up with Kelly and Brian over dinner before the show. It's funny how the more things change, the more they stay the same. The important things in life are not that complicated.

APBA Boat Race - Walled Lake

2009-06-17T19:38:00.003-04:00

Sunday, Jon and I met early and paddled Walled lake. We paddled around the boat course, then stayed around to watch one of the smaller classes run after we pulled out of the water.

Jon and I walked the pits before they closed it off and I took some photos of the boats on trailers in very early morning light.

I think we had more fun people watching as we did watching the race.

Going nowhere Fast..

Bayside put on the event for the second year, the racers all say they love the event and hope to come back next year. This was Baysides sponsored boat, not sure how it did.

Officicial event welder.

Hydroplane enthusiast.

Carrie and family, we were great friends four jobs ago, it was great to see her, not much has changed for either of us.

Red Bull Air Race

2009-06-14T22:04:00.004-04:00

The Red Bull Air Race was in town this weekend, and Friday I didn't get a lot of work done, as my office desk in the Ren Cen is right on the river.

Jason came down for the afternoon and we took alot of pictures. Jason said he burned through 10 memory cards, at around 100GB of pics. I didn't take quite that many, but I did do some substantial damage, the trick is to get a picture of a plane blowing through a pylon, so you just fire away at at 4fps. No luck this year, but I did capture a cool pic of Kiss watching the airshow from the Windsor side.

It was great to see Jason, and I really enjoyed watching the time trials Friday on a beautiful day in the D.

Kiss on the marquee.

Kirby Chambliss, the top US pilot.

Dead Weather

2009-06-13T20:55:00.012-04:00

I've wanted to see Jack White perform for the last 10 years. So when Susan casually mentioned Friday evening that she heard that The Dead Weather was putting on a 'secret performance' tonight at the Magic Stick, it did not take much capitulation to cancel our Red Wing finals plans and promptly start driving in the direction of downtown Detroit. No advance purchase, tickets sold only at the door.

Referred to in one article I read as Jack Whites other other band, this is a side project he's started with members from the Raconteurs and lead singer Alison Mosshart from the Kills. It's been twenty years since Jack White has had a chance to go back to his musical roots and first love on the skins, and he did not disappoint.

The opening act was some good ole boys from Kentucky, The Cotton Tail band I think, and these guys had a definite White stripes sound. They were very entertaining and we hung in for most of the set. We bailed with a song or two left and opted to watch the last few minutes of the wings game on the patio, and give all of our senses a rest before the musical assault I knew lay before us.

Man these guys were good, from the moment they took the stage everyone knew we were going to be in for a really special night of music. The Dead Weather was clearly polishing their act before they explode onto the musical scene with the debut of their first album, and Jack chose his home crowd to bestow this musical honor.

I can only characterize their sound as louder and grittier and more raw than that of the Stripes or the Raconteurs. Jack White was clearly in charge of the band from behind his kit, and even from behind the mass of amps and drum parts and performers, he had a big big stage presence. My first thought was, this guy his huge, with a big 6'6” frame and massive biceps and a wiry, wild head of hair he really commanded attention. He just wailed away on the drums throughout the entire set, and played a big part in the vocals as well.

While Mosshart put on a truly gritty rock and roll female lead performance, it was just a bit over the top girl power for me. As I watched her perform, I just kept thinking, it just seems like female rockers just don't age that well. I couldn't think of a single midlife (i.e. old) female rocker that still commanded real rock and roll respect. Surprise of the night for me was the sound put out by lead guitarist Dean Fertita. This guy just layed down the sound, he also assisted the band with keyboards in a very White Stripes reminiscent sound.

Highlight of the night for me was easily when White ascended from his drum kit and took center stage as an assistant handed him a funky looking guitar. The crowd just took it over the top and he quickly responded with an aggressive blues rock solo that only took him a matter of seconds to break a string. He continued playing his guitar and battling the broken string without missing a beat, which just added to the drama and entertainment value of the performance. It was really awesome to see White behind a guitar, even if it was for just one song. White managed to exceed my expectations, seeing him perform live.

The band has an aggressive and unique sound, it was exactly my brand of music, and I really hope to see it catch. Susan was totally into the performance, and in particular lead singer Mosshart's pouty aggressive rock style. She's usually a good barometer for the quality of the night's show, and we both agreed, this was far and away, the best show we've seen together in a long long time. The fact it was a night veiled in secrecy, in a small, great venue, and so early in the bands history made the night that much more special for us. I would classify this evening as having the rare opportunity to wittiness the early formation of a super group, coming together with all their immense individual talent, and the sum of their musical contributions being somehow better than the parts. They were just that good.

In a bit of irony for the evening, this was the first show where I decided to bring down some of my camera equipment. I was told I couldn't bring in the camera on the grounds it was 'professional' equipment. When I finally stashed my gear back in the car and made my way in, the first guy I bumped into was carrying the same camera I was just told to leave behind. We talked and joked a bit, and I learned that Andrew is a contributor to a really cool local music and culture blog that I will most definitely follow.

So while my attempt at capturing this special event was a failure, I learned to stash my gear in Susans purse in the future, and I discovered a great new source of information on the local Detroit music scene. Not a bad trade off in the end.

I witnessed several people photographing the event with high end gear and big flashes, so I decided to take one crummy shot with my blackberry camera phone just to remember the event by, which came out just absolutely terrible. Oh well, live and learn..

Derek Trucks Band

2009-06-10T11:07:00.000-04:00

Man I love discovering artists I've never had a chance to see perform. Derek Trucks had been on the radar for a long time, I've just never had a chance to see him play. Late yesterday afternoon I discovered the DTB would be in town that night, and I didn't hesitate. With my encouragement, Susan joined me last night at the Royal Oak Music Theatre.

We had a nice dinner at one of our favorite Royal Oak spots and made it into the theatre about half way through the opening act. I can't remember her name, but her Soul Blues performance did not leave much of an impression, and the sound seemed entirely off, just a jumbled mess of guitar, percussion and voice, none of which stood out. The crowd didn't seem too dialed into it either.

I had really high hopes for Derek Trucks and he did not disappoint. Derek has a very clean and deliberate style of play that reminded me of Eric Clapton; however he played with a slide bar the entire night, which gave his entire performance a characteristic 'slidey-oscilating-vibrato' sound. While the night was primarily rooted in a blues sound, he wandered through several unique soundscapes including a jazz fusion funk jam out that completely lost Susan for fifteen minutes in the middle of the show.

The band included a rich set of characters to include a flamboyant Detroit born drummer, a Rastafarian bongo / rhythm percussionist, a keyboard / flutist and a short greasy bass player that was playing the largest bass guitar I've ever seen. The band is joined by vocalist Mike Mattison, who had a really interesting voice, but lacked a certain energy or stage presence. Together, they put out a unique sound, with a hard to define, almost improvisional / world music vibe. Susan and I agreed the band had a really solid sound, but they were all foreshadowed (by volume and spotlight) by the lead guitar, and they were never really granted their rightful freedom to explore their musical space. The sound seemed off to both of us, where the lead guitar just stepped all over the rest of the band, and in particular the vocals, which we could barely hear. I wasn't sure if this was by design or just a bad night for the sound man.

It was a great set backdrop with excellent lighting and effects. I found myself wishing that I should have brought a camera.

Derek played an efficient and business like two hour set, with several guitar solo highlights, lights dimmed, all spotlights trained stage center, smoke machine turned on high, building momentum and energy and sound into a blues guitar frenzy. Susan mentioned that she kept waiting for the performance to end because on several occasions it sounded like he was building to a show finishing crescendo. I could see it was getting a bit exhausting for her, so we finally retreated from the front row to a table in the back for a diet Coke and a chair in time for his encore of two or three songs.

If I had to characterize the night, I would say it was really good, but not great. There was nothing in Derek's sound that I had not heard before, and it seemed to lack that certain something you can't explain that just sends the audience over the top. Susan and I also agreed that a lot of the music sounded alike, and seemed to go on longer than it really needed to. What Derek achieves in crazy guitar talent, he seems to lack in rock star charisma, and to me, it showed through in his performance. It just seemed to lack a certain quality that makes you drop your jaw and stand in awe as you take in the sound. I found myself watching the performance more objectively than emotionally and saying, wow, this guy can really play the guitar, but I was never really pulled too deeply into the musical experience. There seemed to be a lack of soul if you will.

All of this may be a bit nitpicky however, as it was a very entertaining performance, and he definitely had a few moments of WOW, just not enough for me to call the night a totally over the top guitar jam performance.

I would definitely see him the next time I have a chance, I may just lower my expectation a bit, and try to dig a little deeper into appreciating the music, rather than just standing and waiting to be blown away.

Memorial Weekend

2009-05-30T14:27:00.000-04:00

For the second year in a row, we spent the Memorial weekend in the Smokey Nountain National Park. This year we brought all of the family with us.

Great time fishing with Bryan and hiking with the kids. The kids had never seen a tourist trap like Gatlinburg before, and we lit it up on earthquake rides, bumper boats the Hollywood Cars Museum and fudge.

Next year we may try it again and go big on the hikes, or we may look for another National Park as a destination

Bryan and Mitch on top of Clingmans Dome, Mt Mitchell to the East, highest point in Eastern US.

Bryan and I have this same photo from when we were kids. This fiberglass bear has been here for at least 25 years.

Room for two more

2009-05-10T08:01:00.002-04:00

Saturday Jon, Ethan and I did a nice paddle from Hudson Mills to Ann Arbor. A little over three hours and 12 miles. One great set of rapids, and lots of small stuff to surf in.

Just as we were getting back to the put in spot with the boats it started to poor.

We've got a local map all marked up with some ideas for trips, it's been a great start to the summer and I'm really looking forward to what we have planned. So far Jon and I are five for five weekends in a row with the boats. Ethan will be a great addition to the group, he's got great enthusiasm for the sport, and will push us to do further distances and drive further to find new spots. New sport, new friends, I couldn't be happier with the decision Jon and I made to buy boats this spring.

The funny part is, not three summers ago, I put an old perception boat and some old paddling gear out by the side of the road with a 'Free - Take' sign on it. It lasted about ten minutes. For a bunch of reasons, I just wasn't using the boat. I have found this to be true so many times over, with just some subtle changes in my patterns, like how and where I store the boat, having some friends to share the enthusiasm with, being less distracted by other pursuits, I have transformed the activity into something I really enjoy.

This morning, Ben is coming out to see what this is all about, and we will join Ethan and another friend at a spot near my house.

Early morning paddle

2009-04-25T11:47:00.001-04:00

This spring Jon and I bought kayaks, with a commitment to try and get out at least once a week.

We had a great session last week, early morning. Susan expressed some interest in the sport, so last night we bought her a kayak as well. We bought her a boat about twice as fast as mine, which will help, but it's going to take her some time to develop the strength to keep up some pace.

In the past we've had some terrific paddles together renting kayaks in places like Maine, Northern Michigan, and just down the street, so it was an easy decision to bring her into the sport.

Susan and I took a shake down cruise this morning and it went really well. Some really nice wildlife just minutes from our home, it's great to able to enjoy it from the water.

Banff Mountain Film Festival

2009-04-10T08:08:00.004-04:00

Last week Jon, Ben, Mike and I attended the 2009 Banff Mountain Film Festival in Ann Arbor.

A great collection of short films, and it was great to get a couple of good freinds together.

Link

Ireland

2009-03-28T14:01:00.009-04:00

The last week in March Susan and I traveled to Ireland for a week with our parents, back to the motherland for both families. A wonderful trip, with very warm people and spectacular scenery.

Seven days was not enough time to see the country. We would have really liked to see the north where my family is from, but renewed social unrest had us changing our travel plans.

Blarney Castle

Tarbert, IRE

Skibbereen, IRE

Southernmost point in Ireland

Steelhead are running

2009-03-24T19:00:00.000-04:00

Sunday Bryan, Bill and I fished the Pere Marquette River. Steelhead have just begun running. It seems we may have been a couple days early.

Bryan knows the river so well, not alot of fish, but a nice float down the river none the less. So nice to finally be getting outside again.

This was a beautiful little Rainbow..

fishin'

New Friends

2009-03-09T09:44:00.000-04:00

Sent from family in California. Michaela & her new friend in an early morning visit over the weekend.

Ice Boats \ Ice Kites

2009-03-02T20:55:00.007-05:00

Sunday the conditions were right on the lake for fun. Sunny, clean ice and big wind. I packed my trainer kite, skates and some cold weather gear for a couple of hours on the lake.

While out on the lake I saw Bruce ripping it up in his DN, so I made my way over to his place and talked for a while. He had lost a critical part on one of his hot passes across the lake and was packing it in for the day. I was disappointed, as I had brought along my big camera to get some shots of him and the boat.

As I was packing up my gear to leave, there were a couple of guys putting together some ice boats so I stayed around and took a couple of photos. They could see I had an interest, so they invited me to go out for a ride in a two place boat.

Wow, it's hard to describe that kind of fast. We were across the lake in under a minute at over 90 mph. Ice chips flying everywhere, the wind just howling and my teeth absolutely frozen from the massive smile my face.

After a couple of high speed runs, we brought the boat in for a thaw out session. Dave was kind enough to offer up one of his smaller boats, and invited me take it out onto the lake. Man what a blast. I followed behind him out onto the lake and had it up on two runners within a few minutes. While not nearly the same kind of speed as his big boat, it was an absolute riot none the less. I played around for another twenty minutes before bringing it in for the others.

A huge thanks to Dave Barry for graciously sharing his equipment, time and knowledge with me on a day when he could have selfishly spent the time playing in the wind. I really appreciated his willingness to expose me to the sport and share information.

Very very tempting. It's such a short season, but so much fun. Add Ice Boats to the list..

DODE"S DIAMOND. Crazy Speed.

This guy was hauling on skis, faster than I've ever seen anyone on a kite. Even when he put the kite in the neutral position, it took him 100 yards to stop with a 20" rooster tail of ice behind him as he came to a ski chaddering hockey stop Giant Slalom style.

I would say he was overpowered for the conditions with a 6M kite, but he seemed like he was in control and stayed at if for hours, crazy conditioning.

BLITZEN TRAPPER

2009-02-22T11:57:00.011-05:00

experimental folk rock

Brian invited me out to Magic Stick Friday night to hear a band he's really been into lately, Blitzen Trapper.

Band had a great sound and huge versatility. Very talented group, playing a wide range of acoustic, electric, harmonica, keyboard, melodica, bird whistle music. Dillion was the first name that came to mind, but they were so much more than that.

They had some stuff that I really liked and some stuff that seemed down right off to me. It's so refreshing to hear a band that is willing to really explore their musical space, and these guys certainly did that. I could see these guys getting big, the crowd loved them, and I did too, they had a great sense of humor and really put on an entertaining show.

It was so great to see Brian and catch up on life and music.

Another Day in Paradise

2009-02-20T14:51:00.002-05:00

I had a camera with me today in my laptop bag, so I stopped for a scenery shot in between meetings.

Walking to lunch today, Bill and I concluded this may be one of the reasons GM is loosing money right now..
I guess non employees don't have to use the door.

BB King & Buddy Guy

2009-02-17T10:22:00.002-05:00

Last night was BB King and Buddy Guy. Wow, what a disappointment. BB is clearly in a state of career where he's simply relying on his name to draw the big crowds. He hardly played his guitar at all, and just seemed to yammer on all night about whatever entered his mind in his characteristic story teller delivery.

About half way through his performance the crowd was turning downright irritated, with several calls for 'Come on BB and Play Lucille'. BB would engage the crowd's cat calls with nasty responses, and it was becoming down right uncomfortable.

Last night I realized that BB was well past his performing prime, and it's time for him to turn it in. The only song of notable mention was off his latest album, titled 'Keep My Grave Site Clean', which he certainly deserves given his monumental career, I just wish he would fade away gracefully in the meantime.

It was great for Mike and Elaine to have an opportunity to see BB perform; I just wish they could have seen him when he actually played the guitar. The closing of the show was also unusual, as BB was in the middle of yammering on about nothing, the house lights not even up yet, and the crowd just seemed to sense it was time to go, as everyone stood up and put their coats on and filed out, even as he was still sitting on his seat talking, with his handlers quickly running out to stand him up, as they sensed the show was over. I've never quite seen such a dynamic at the end of a show before, and it was a very uncomfortable ending for all involved.

It's quite remarkable he's still able to get out on stage every night at 83 years of age, and I have no doubt he'll go out like all the other blues greats, on the road, playin' till the day he dies.

Buddy Guy pulled out his regular set of tricks, but very clearly held back out of respect for BB. I was disappointed Buddy didn't come out and play a song with BB, but I'm not sure it would have even worked given the little music BB actually performed last night. I don't think he would have made it through half a song with Buddy.

Other notable event this week, Susan and I attended the Detroit Blues Society Annual Meeting on Saturday evening, which turned out to be a blistering Blues Jam session that went late into the night with all of Detroit's Blues Royalty checking in for a couple songs each. Of special interest was Alen 'Big Al' Grebovic of the Broken Arrow Blues Band. Man, this guy had some crazy blues guitar licks. We crawled out of there close to 1:00am with the gig still going strong.

Final Exam

2009-02-15T13:44:00.006-05:00

Last week was final exam week.

This winter I took a photography class to better understand the capabilities of my camera. I really enjoyed the class, and learned a little bit more about camera settings and good composition than I knew going into the class. I think what the class did most for me was to send me into some new learning trajectories.

What struck me most about the class was the capability to alter an image in Photoshop. Providing you have an interesting subject, a good composition, have not blown out the exposure and have an image in focus, there is really no limit to the changes you can impose on an image in post processing. It was a bit disheartening to have the veil of reality lifted.

Sunday the class met at the Detroit Zoo for a field trip. The assignment was to take our two best photos, apply the photo editing techniques learned in class, and send them into Prem for critique in the final class. Prem is a really gifted photographer, with mad Photoshop skills. Very technical, he was a GM engineer that had enough of the rat race, and turned his interest in photography into a very successful business.

Here are the two photos I submitted for critique. For the most part he was kind to me; I have a lot to learn.

Background layer with heavy contrast applied to the water.

Simple crop and adjustments to sharpness, saturation and contrast. This one was the crowd pleaser for the night. With a subject like a polar bear, how can you miss? I couldn't believe how many people submitted photos of bushes, and roof lines, and abstract photos of a frozen marble water fountain. We were at the zoo for Christs sake.

The class was a very positive growth opportunity for me, and has exposed me to a couple key areas to focus on. In addition to a fresh stack of photography books taller than I possibly have time to read, I will be looking to hook up with a local photography club to continue my learning. Next big photo op, Ireland, and I'm doing everything I can to be ready.

The Trews

2009-02-13T11:56:00.012-05:00

Stock Photo

Billed as a Canadian Alternative Rock band, these guys had some pretty hard driving stuff. Great versatility with some nice acoustic and harmonica stuff in the mix.

These guys definitely had real musical talent and collectively kept the energy and jam vibe high throughout the entire two hour set. The band had a deep bag of stage flair. The drummer laid down a very impressive solo, where he kept egging the crowd on to beg him to play faster. He'd point at the crowd with his drum sticks and then throw out a thumbs down on the noise level, wow now that's old school.

The keyboardist would take a break from his 88's to flail away on his cowbell, with wood splinters flying everywhere, chewing through a stick every other song or so, throwing the mangled remains into crowd.

The highlight of the night was definitely the lead guitarist, throwing down some blazing licks, some may argue a bit over the top, but irrefutably blazing. His gimmicks included fancy behind the head playing ala Jimi Hendrix, more than a couple front and center, stage left, stage right, stage left and right solo spots standing right on the edge of the stage, topped off by a most impressive reverse drum stand jump with a big 'splits in the air' move I haven't seen since the likes of Diamond David Lee himself.

Great list of guitar moves here.

Vocalist-guitarist Colin MacDonald seemed to be the creative force behind the band, with a charisma that puts him clearly in the lead slot.

While it was all a bit too much for my taste, it was a solid rock concert by any standard, and they had the substance to back up the style, so it actually worked, just a little too much flair for my taste.

These guys had a couple of songs I really liked, and I will probably pick up their latest album No Time For Later, which came out early last year. It would be hard for me to single out their style, as they had a quite a diverse and creative mix of music, but I heard some Cold Play, 3 Doors Down and even a little Crowes in their sound. They're competing in a tough space for fans, there's a lot of good music in this space, but these guys seem to hold their own quite well, and I really hope to see them cut a niche for themselves and make it back to Detroit in a bigger venue. I'd definitely see them again.

Strangely enough, this was my first visit to the Magic Bag in Ferndale, and it's a really nice venue. The crowd was chill and we got a great table right up front behind the small standing area. Met up with some great old friends that I haven't seen in years, and love music as much as I do. Music is the glue that keeps us together. Great friends, great band, great night.

Mini Motard

2009-02-08T10:20:00.004-05:00

Made a trip last weekend with Ben to see the Mini Motards run at a local indoor go kart track.

Considering picking up a bike. A Honda CRF50 with the 88cc big bore kit really rips, and looks like a ton of fun on the track. Great way to stay sharp on a bike through the winter months. I just need to reconcile my self image as a motor sports enthusiast, these guys do look a little silly crammed on a kiddie bike. Especially the dude with the Smurf racing leathers and helmet fur.

Papa Smurf battling for the hole shot.

Apex Entry

The Black Keys

2009-02-01T17:27:00.028-05:00

Man, I like these guys more every time I see them.

Susan and I arrived early enough to see the opening act, The Other Gals, which was unfortunate because we cut a nice dinner short to see them. The forgettable four would have been a more suitable name for these scruffy twenty-somethings. Three guitars and a dopey looking drummer.

I've never seen a band sound more unoriginal than these guys, zero creativity. Everything they played had a striking resemblance to The Killers, The Stokes, Coldplay, etc, etc, etc.

These guys seemed pretty talented in their own right, which only served to magnify their keen skill in mimicking those that came before them.

Crowd was not into the set, and I even heard a group standing next to us name the same three bands as a clear influence. We gave each other the nod and all just laughed.

These guys just killed it. The Buffalo Killers is a band I've known about for years, but never had a chance to see them play. I can't believe how much I liked these guys. One part Jam Band, two parts Southern Rockers with a knack for harmony.

One critic labels them a garage blues band with amazing chops and commendable restraint. I don't know what garage blues is but I like it, they have a sound not quite like anything I've heard since perhaps the days of Cream. From songs like Let It Ride, to Get Together Now Today, I was feelin' these guys down deep.

Here's another critical review of the band, and I couldn't agree more with this guy:

"The Buffalo Killers sound like the bastard sons of the James Gang and the Black Crowes. But like both bands, the Buffalo Killers come by their sound naturally. It's organic, dripping with down home funk. It's groovin' - oozing with soul, draped in grittiness and filled with tasty, but not overwhelming guitar licks." - Willy Wilson/Real Detroit Weekly

This is a band I will absolutely see again, and what makes music so great to me. It's so exciting to discover a band I've never heard before, and be just totally blown away by a new sound and the vibe their puttin' out.

The Black Keys.

What can I say, these guys have a raw and aggressive sound that just takes a hold of the audience and sends them over the edge for two and a half hours of violent guitar flailing, drum bashing and raw rock and roll. Not sure what else I can say about them besides see this band first chance you get and see for yourself.

They pored them selves into a two hour set, then did a brief two set encore with Your Touch and I Got Mine.

The first ten rows of the house were a non-stop mosh pit, which I was not entirely prepared for, especially with Susan in tow. People were bouncing off us through the whole night, and we had a Henry Rollins lookalike in front of us jumping nonstop, three feet into the air, throughout the entire concert.

I don't know if I'm gettin' too old for the front row, or it was just a particularly nasty crowd, but we had more than a couple of tense moments trying to hold our ground. Next time, we might just have to sit in the balcony with the old timers.

Ice Show Car Show combo

2009-01-27T20:30:00.058-05:00

Saturday was a fun day with family.

Ice Moose.

Ice artist with mad Dremmel skills.

Team Okinawa. Seems like a long way to fly for the Plymouth Ice Show, although what do I know about the politics and interworkings of the Internatianl Ice Sculpture scene.

things to come?!@#$

Mitch Approves of the Dodge Charger, although no one on the floor could tell us if that was a functional hood scoop, I guess we know the answer.

Born of Jets.

Rollin..

Let's hope for no shoot outs in the middle of show this year.

How do you explain to a ten year old why Lamborghini does not need to provide glossy brochures to sell thier cars.

Because if you have to read a brochure, then you're probably not really in the market, and then all Lamborghini has done is to water down thier marquee image with cheap glossy hand outs proliferating the masses..

He did'nt get it.

Shortly after this shot, Mitch and I were reminded of the golden rule, lookie, no touchie.

Last of a dying breed..

A sad state of the times..

Sunday Sunset

2009-01-27T19:18:00.048-05:00

This past week I started a photography class. The teacher is really a gifted photographer, and I'm really enjoying the class so far. This weeks photo assignment was aperture settings and exposure. As I stood on my lake Sunday evening with a tripod, this scene showed up for just a few minutes, long after the sun had set. I had already packed up and had to race to get everything set back up for the shot.

I wish I would have insisted Susan join me for this session. When I asked her to join me, she wanted to come but was lacking the motivation to brave the cold, and I was lacking the motivation to insist. It was a really special few minutes watching the sky light up as a stratus layer moved in totally unexpected.

Urban Flair

2009-01-24T14:01:00.016-05:00

For Sale:

Gently used 1988 Ford F-150 flare side. Orignal paint & interior.

Options include:

turbocharger intercooler air inlets (w\turbo delete option)

tasteful cobra badging and chrome accents

dice sold seperately

Asking price: $4,000 USD or 56,096.80 MXN pesos

15 below

2009-01-19T11:50:00.002-05:00

bird contemplating the meaning of the word cold

cold feet

BIRDS of PREY

2009-01-08T18:41:00.011-05:00

This morning I was sitting in a meeting at the Compuware building when I saw a bird in a full dive blow right by the conference room window. I jumped over to the window and looked down to see a Pigeon dead on the ground. From what I could tell, a falcon struck the pigeon right out of the air. I then saw a second falcon circling as a pair, as they closed in on their prey and landed next to it to observe their kill. They pecked and tossed the bird a bit then took off, taking flying swipes at the bird until one of them had the bird in their claws and the pair flew off. I could see they were using the parking structure elevator tower as their high perch (top right corner of picture).

It was really an unexpected and remarkable site right in the middle of Downtown Detroit. It was awe inspiring to see such a raw act of nature taking place right at eye level, five feet from where I sit, in the middle of a mundane business meeting. Other than those in my meeting, who I excitedly stirred to the window to watch the event unfold, I wonder if anyone else in the building witnessed the act, it was truly amazing to watch at such close proximity.

The bird was just stunning, as it dropped straight down out of the sky with his wings pinned back, and prey directly in his descent path.

From Wikipedia:

The Peregrine Falcon is often stated to be the fastest animal on the planet in its hunting dive, the stoop, which involves soaring to a great height and then diving steeply at speeds commonly said to be over 322 km/h (200 mph), and hitting one wing of its prey so as not to harm itself on impact.[4] A study testing the flight physics of an 'ideal falcon' found a theoretical speed limit at 400 km/h (250 mph) for low altitude flight and 625 km/h (390 mph) for high altitude flight.[43] In 2005, Ken Franklin recorded a falcon stooping at a top speed of 242 mph (389 km/h).

view out the meeting room window

Later this same day I missed my second photo journalistic opportunity as I was sitting in the GM building on the 40th floor and a flat black Chinook military helicopter flew right by me down the Detroit river. Another truly awesome sight to behold at eye level, the entire building reverberating by the twin rotors.

From Wikipedia:

The Boeing CH-47 Chinook is a versatile, twin-engine, tandem rotor heavy-lift helicopter. Its top speed of 170 knots (196 mph, 315 km/h) was faster than utility and attack helicopters of the 1960s and even many of today. Its primary roles include troop movement, artillery emplacement and battlefield resupply. There is a wide loading ramp at the rear of the fuselage and three external-cargo hooks.stock photo - deliverin' some hurt

It's nice to be reminded sometimes there's real life going on all around me as I sit in my sterile office environment in a daily time warp of ground hog day proportions. Meetings, emails, unexpected crisis, fix crisis, meeting to explain crisis to customer, email others to make sure crisis does not happen again, repeat next day.

As I type this I am am having dinner waiting on a friend for a Wings game tonight. From where I sit, I see three helicopters in very close proximity hovering over Joe Louis Arena. I wonder what's so important about getting a shot of a roof of a hockey stadium it requires three multimillion dollar bell helicopters, but I just know those guys are having fun up there.. Today is a day I truly miss flying and wish I could slip from the surly bonds of earth.

High Flight
by John Gillespie Magee, Jr.

Oh, I have slipped the surly bonds of earth,
And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;
Sunward I've climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
Of sun-split clouds...and done a hundred things
You have not dreamed of...wheeled and soared and swung
High in the sunlit silence. Hov'ring there,
I've chased the shouting wind along, and flung
My eager craft through footless halls of air.
Up, up, the long, delirious burning blue
I've topped the windswept heights with easy grace
Where never lark, nor even eagle flew.
And while with silent, lifting mind I've trod
The high untrespassed sanctity of space...
...put out my hand, and touched the face of God.

2009 International Motorcycle Show

2009-01-04T18:19:00.014-05:00

A great way to kick off the year, I always want five new bikes coming out of this show. Highlights for me this year were the new Harley V Rod for raw torque, Yamaha FJR 1300 for sport touring across the country, the Desmosedici for MotoGP performance in a street bike and everything on display by Roland Sands (especially anything with Ape Hangers).

Spent time with so many good friends this year at the show, highlights were photographing bikes with Keet, seeing Ric in from St Louis, Tim and Arien always a show tradition and taking in the show more thoroughly than necessary with Mike. Today I realized I have so many friends that ride, it's just such a rich community of good people with endless opportunities for rides and building great relationships with others.

Goal for this year is to foster some new relationships and get in some longer overnight rides to see new sites.

Couple of unique photos and favorite bikes..

Triumph.

I guess that's one way to spend 30 grand.

V Rod, Muscle.

Indian. Functional Front Fender Light?

Roland Sands take on Cafe. Two stroke Honda? Can you say wheelie machine?

DESMOSEDICI !

King of The Hill.

Custom Art commemorating 2007 Ducati Moto GP Championship.

Pure Absurdity.

Christmas in Northern Michigan

2009-01-02T20:38:00.013-05:00

Holidays were spent in Harbor Springs with Family. It seems to be the one time of year we're able to all come together for a few days and enjoy each others company. Time was spent Skiing, exploring the Upper Peninsula and Snowmobiling.

St Ignace, MI. This was a 60 degree day, which put a hamper on our plans to visit Drummond Island, a place my family had a cottage when I was young. Visibility came down to about 100 yards with fog so we just turned around with another 60 miles to go.

Hessel, MI.

Crazy looking dog. He was barking like mad at me and acting very aggressive, I got down to take his picture and his tail went between his legs and he took off as quick as he appeared. Very strange behavior.

Lower & Upper Tahquamenon Falls, Paradise, MI.

About a one mile hike to the lower falls, as the access roads are closed in the winter. Susan and I made the hike and got really lucky with the conditions. We were the only ones back there without snowshoes, but we came on a day with about three feet of hard pack snow so we made the trip without much trouble. The falls are set in a State Park that has some really unique and remote costal terrain, but it's a big trip to get there, even from Harbor Springs. Really need at least a week to explore the area.

For the Upper Falls, my dad and I did a big hike on a closed trail with conditions deteriorating. By the time we got about a half mile down river to set up for a nice shot of the falls up stream it was a complete white out with big wind. It was a wet heavy snow and trees were cracking all around us. He was underdressed and his feet paid the price.

Nubs Nob

Emma, Bryan and crazy yellow jacket hat guy.

Bryan going big and comin' up short.

Mitch - Airwalker.

Too much of a good thing

2008-12-21T15:47:00.040-05:00

Wind 25, gusts to 30 @ 270.
temp 7
Walled Lake

Last night the forecast was Game On. I loaded up the rex and was suitably prepared for the elements with a new snowboard and the Ranger 12M.

I pulled up to the lake and quickly reassessed the situation. To many elements. Gusty conditions and negative windchill had me second thinking the plan.

Instead I pulled out the camera and did some experimental shooting with a new macro lens and aperture settings. Next experiment is color saturation.

Results.

Macro lens, no software correction.

The bluegill slayer.

Center in focus, perimeter out of focus. Artistic, or cheap lens? You decide?

Ernest Shackleton

Drifter

2008-12-19T21:07:00.018-05:00

Today we got the first big winter dump with over 12" recorded.

This morning I quickly assessed the road conditions and determined that I would not be driving into work, however it would serve as the first good opportunity to explore the 'real world' lateral adhesion limits of the Subies WRC influenced AWD system.

I was so pleased to find that the car just tracks through a foot of snow without any trouble, even with a lousy all season Bridgestone.

I made my way to the local winter driving conditions test track, which in my case is an unfinished subdivision with nice wide streets and (almost) no (visible) obstructions. After about twenty minutes of drifting the abandoned roads, I had a giant smile on my face and a good level of confidence in driving near the control limits of the car. Nothing like having to run the wipers on high 'cause your kicking up a ten foot wall of fresh pow off the front tyres!

Plenty of fun, and lots of learning with regard to piloting the WRX through a high speed controlled slide. Without a doubt, this is the 'funnest' car I have ever owned. It's just so versatile, and capable in all conditions, yet it serves as a stealthy 25 mpg econobox commutermobile for my daily 100 mile grind.

Overall driving impressions in heavy snow..

When in doubt, GAS IT.

Black Crowes

2008-12-08T20:09:00.013-05:00

Crowes are back! At least in my mind they are. There has been a lot of talk the past few years that the Crowes are finished. Wow, what an awesome concert Saturday night at the Fillmore Detroit.

The Crowes were one of the first bands to show me how great live music can be, and they did not disappoint Saturday night. Chris seemed totally into the music, and they pulled out a solid two hours of their best stuff. What an inspiration to see such a great band close up playing a rock solid set list non stop. Rich sounded terrific on the lead guitar, there's been talk of his weight, but he looked great to me.

It's been seven years since their last album. There has even been chatter that attendance is down on this tour, but you would have never known in Detroit. Main floor was packed and the crowd was totally into the music, I managed to negotiate my standard second row back, stage left spot in a very heavy crowd. I spoke with a couple super fans near the front, wow truly humbling.

Chris and I stayed downtown for the night, and he seemed to enjoy the concert as much as I did. I was disappointed for not insisting that Susan come down for the show. I even had aspirations to follow them to Toledo or Grand Rapids Sunday night to share the experience with her, but they were in Chi town, so I'll have to wait another year to share with her truly one of my favorite bands. They have a really cool vibe, with Chris at the helm, that emanates in their music, I wouldn't even try to describe. They played a couple of songs off Warpaint that sounded pretty good live, but it was Soul Singing that really stood out for me on the night, it's been stuck in my head for the last two days.

The Crowes are one of those bands I'll see every time they make it to Detroit, and I really hope they're not anywhere near finished, they've got just so much to offer, with outstanding material and an enduring style all their own.

Photo courtesy NY Times, the blackberry just wasn't cuttin' it.

Snow Kite - Day 1

2008-12-08T19:55:00.005-05:00

Saturday was day one for snow kiting, it's gonna be a steep curve.

Wind 12, gusts to 16 @ 180.

temp 20

Mini Skyline - New Hudson

The leading edge inflatable is alot more difficult to set up and keep flying, but it has a huge advantage in durability, and I need that right now, so I'm going to continue flying the Ranger, keeping the T3 tucked away safely for winter.

After an hour of untangling bridle lines and scratchin' my head, we have lift off. Seems to need at least 12-15 mph wind to fly, even more for real power.

Opening Weekend

2008-11-21T23:28:00.030-05:00

John invited me out to the Gun Lodge to hunt opening weekend. I have spent several of the past years at John's for opening day. It's a tradition I very much look forward to with my oldest of friends. Bryan took a doe on our property up north.

Contemplating nature.

Gun Lodge Buck Pole.

House on 8 mile that has been unoccupied for several years, but always illuminated at night.

John celebrating Maverick's 1st birthday, Sat Nov 1.

Gov't Mule

2008-11-12T22:51:00.020-05:00

Musically overwhelming, acoustically overbearing and just plain loud. What else would you expect from a jam band? The crowd was a healthy mix of dead heads, regular Joe's and nouveau socialites who came out on this Tuesday night to experience the Mule on their Kinder Revolution tour and keep the scene alive.

As I arrived early to see the opening act Back Door Slam, there were more than a couple guys duct taping their musical recording apparatus to anything they could find bolted down. These guys clearly knew the routine and were hopefully contributing to the bands vast body of recorded musical accomplishment otherwise known as Mule tracks.

Back Door slam was a power trio that I imagine was very much in the tradition of the Mules early roots. Three young men showcasing heavy handed blues rock guitar playing, putting down a solid set of mostly original music. The band and lead guitarist Davvy Knowles have received a lot of positive press as of late and I could see why.

Warren Haynes came out for the last song of their set and totally elevated the bands performance to a higher level. It was clear that Warren was graciously sharing his Mojo with this youngster, helping to pass along the musical torch and leave a lasting legacy with the up and coming generation of talented guitarists. The band was just coming off tour with Kid Rock and now they're on tour with one of the greatest jam bands around. These guys are getting some tremendous exposure right now, and I expect I will be seeing more of these guys in the years to come as they further develop into their own.

Waiting for the Mule to start, I struck up a conversation with a fan who said she had seen the band somewhere in the neighborhood of 30 times over the years, and strangely enough I believe her.

My expectation for the concert was high. This is a band I've tried to see live for the past several years to no avail. The bands chemistry mainly revolves around supporting Warren Haynes explosive guitar playing. Warren set off on a barrage of songs with an endless string of guitar solos, proving in my mind the axiom that sometimes less is more.

The sound was great, and the playing was truly spectacular, however in some ways it was just too much. The band just kept throwing big sound at the crowd, like they were pegged at level ten the entire night. They played for about two hours, took a twewnty minute break, then came back out and got right back at it in a marathon of music. Somewhere in the second set Matt Abts took off with his famous drum solo, finishing off the bit with no sticks, but bare hands to the skins and cymbols bohemian style, now that's dedication to the art.

Very seldom do I leave a concert early, but I finally threw in the towel some time after 1:00am when the band was showing no signs of slowing down and I was just completely spent. As I made my way out of the theater and to my car, I realized that the parking lot attendant had also given up for the night and went home with a parking garage still full of cars, that's the first time I've ever seen that happen.

I think I'd like to see Gov't Mule next time in their true element, a big summer Music Festival like Bonaroo or Rothbury, with hordes of amped fans in the hot sun and dirt. I almost wonder if the Royal Oak Theater is just not the right venue for a band that plays larger than life like the Mule does.

Definitely a great concert, but somehow it was just too much for me to comprehend all in one night, standing front and center right next to the man himself.

-- Set List --

Set 1
Bad Little Doggie
Streamline Woman
Don't Step On The Grass Sam
He Ain't Give You None
Kind Of Bird
Left Coast Groovies
World Of Difference
Almost Cut My Hair with Davy Knowles

Set 2
Thirty Days In The Hole
Fallen Down->
The Other One Jam
She Said, She Said->
Tomorrow Never Knows
Painted Silver Light->
Drums
Lola Leave Your Light On
Mule

Encore
Take Your Hand Out Of My Pocket* with Jim McCarty
Let It Rock with Jim McCarty and Johnny B.

The Stills

2008-11-07T15:48:00.009-05:00

Tuesday night new friend Chris scored free tickets to the Magic Stick theater downtown to see the Stills. The Magic Stick is a great venue for live music. Great vibe and a lot of music (and bowling) history in the building. The Stills put on a decent show with a lot of flamboyance in their stage set up and their playing. Their music sounded heavily influenced by the likes of a Joy Division or Echo & The Bunnymen. They also reminded reminded me of the Doves, with a song full of snare drum antics. Their style was heavily reminiscent of the 80's post punk scene.

Wikipedia says the Stills played to a crowd of almost 300k in Montreal earlier this year, which was in great contrast to this show, where they entertained a total of maybe fifty or so hearty souls who ventured out on this election night.

While they had a couple of songs that kept my attention, nothing really stood out, and there was a familiarity to their music I just couldn't get past. I wasn't sure if these guys were out ahead of the curve or if the future of music was looking at this band in the rear view mirror. Then again, who really knows where music is going next.

An enjoyable show overall with a new friend, I'd see them again in the right venue if they had something new to offer.

Oh yea, other notable events that happened on this evening, a new president was elected to great joy of the crowd.

Fall Ride

2008-11-01T19:05:00.017-04:00

This morning I took off on my bike with no real destination in mind, taking advantage of one of the last warm sunny Michigan days.

I rode North and East on a string of roads I would have no other reason to be on besides the pursuit of curves, hills and no traffic. About four hours into the ride I ended up in Port Huron, which is as far East as I can go without a passport. Lots of cool sites and countless small towns you would never know existed.

Some Sights along the way..

No Trespassing signs everywhere, what's that about. I just wanted a fall barn pic.

Team Toro.

The original Duely.

Seen better days.

I wonder which one would be more fun to drive?

Rat Rod, I've always wanted one of these..

Hendrix

2008-10-27T20:11:00.019-04:00

Saturday night was the Hendrix Experience show at Fox Theatre downtown with Susan. A one month, 19 city tour that ends in Jimi's hometown of Seattle WA. Jimi's late father, Al Hendrix, was the original event organizer, with a goal of preserving Jimi's musical legacy.

I don't even know where to start with this one. Jimi Hendrix has always been one of my all time favorites, for his pioneering funk\blues\rock style, the amazing improvisational guitar licks and the sheer power in every one of his songs. No one ever knew where Jimi was going to take you in a live performance. His Jam sessions were truly legendary.

What better way to pay tribute to one of rocks biggest legends than to assemble the top tier of the world’s greatest guitarists and put them on the stage together playing their own interpretations of Jimi's songs. That just begins to describe the evening’s performance.

From the experience Hendrix tour website:

Featured artists who will be performing music written by and associated with Jimi Hendrix include blues giant Buddy Guy, contemporary guitar greats Jonny Lang, Kenny Wayne Shepherd and Eric Johnson, Cesar Rojas and David Hidalgo of Los Lobos as well as Aerosmith’s Brad Whitford.

Hubert Sumlin, the Mississippi-born guitarist who worked with both Howlin' Wolf and Muddy Waters as well as the Memphis-based Eric Gales, Mato Nanji of Native American roots band Indigenous are also part of the tour as is Chris Layton, the legendary Double Trouble drummer who rose to fame backing Stevie Ray Vaughan.

Most remarkably, Mitch Mitchell (drums) and Billy Cox (bass), the same Jimi Hendrix Experience rhythm section that played behind Hendrix at such landmark rock festivals as Woodstock and the Isle of Wight will return again to celebrate the guitarist’s enduring legacy.

The entire night was just overwhelming. The show kept getting better as the night went on. Bigger and bigger guitar greats kept showing up on stage laying down Hendrix songs one after another in just absolute jaw dropping performances. They would put down one or two solo songs then play together in various combinations trading off on lead guitar, with some piano solos thrown into the mix. It would be impossible for me to try and characterize the night or bring special attention to a given performance. They were all truly outstanding performances, not a single down moment the entire night, and unlike Jimi’s performances which were often plagued with technical difficulties like blown amps and busted strings, the night went off flawlessly.

Just to name a few, there was Doyle Bramahal II with a very mellow and clean set. Eric Johnson with his characteristic technical and flowing style. Johnny Lang, who just absolutely shredded one song for 15 minutes non stop then set down his guitar and walked off the stage. KWS elevated his playing to a performance level like I've never seen, just non stop, taking each song higher, and every time you though he was done, he'd go on for another twenty minutes and pick up the intensity level another notch, turning in a truly notable Voodoo Child to finish off his set. There was the showmanship and immense musical talent of Buddy Guy, always a crowd pleaser. Another one of Jimi’s original influences Hubert Sumlin laid down a Hendrix track like no 90 year old I’d ever seen before, this guy could barely walk.

This really only scratches the surface of the nights performances, I really would'nt even know where to begin with this one, only to say that it was absolutely awe inspiring to see so much musical talent on the stage in one evening, clearly all performing at their highest personal levels, paying special musical tribute in their own way to one of the greatest rockers of all time.

The final song of the night was Hey Joe, performed by KWS and Buddy Guy. This was the final song played by Hendrix at Woodstock, and it would be hard to describe the impact on the crowd. You could just feel that the crowd knew it was the last song of the night and the final highlight of the evening.

After witnessing Saturday night’s performance, it was clear that all of the performers on stage felt truly honored be a part of such a special tribute to Hendrix, and in the presence of so many other world class performers. I would imagine that it's a big honor to be a part of this tour, and I really sensed that the performers knew it and brought their 'A' game. They all gave praise to Jimi for his pioneering style and for the influence he cast in their own musical journey, all except for Buddy Guy. Buddy would say in a round about way that he taught Jimi everything he knew, and watching his performance Saturday night, I believe him. How a man that age can light up a stage and a crowd like he did I'll never understand. Saturday night really is as close as I'll ever come to the Hendrix Experience, and I was truly grateful to have the opportunity to see Buddy Guy perform one more time.

Thinking back on the night, it would be hard to find an analogy to describe the legacy and style that Hendrix has left on modern music. His songs seem as relevant, powerful, original and entertaining today as they ever were. There is transcendence in his music that is still alive and well today. That said, I really wish I could have seen Hendrix perform at Woodstock..

From what I can tell, Hendrix visited Detroit twice. Very cool Concert Review here, providing interesting perspective on the music scene of the 60’s and 70’s .

Satriani

2008-10-14T15:51:00.010-04:00

Last Thursday I travelled to the Royal Oak Music Theatre to take in Joe Satriani. His performance was on par with my expectation which is to say completely over the top, 100mph and loud. Leslie West and Mountain opened the show, with some of their great classics like Mississippi Queen.

Widely considered one of the most talented guitarists ever to take the stage, Satriani did not disappoint. Joe started the show as expected, with the fog machine completely filling the air, as he walked out onto the stage, completely shredding it right out of the gate, with his opener I just Wanna Rock. It struck me how effectively he took control of the audience with his playing, bringing the crowd higher and higher, then setting them down only once or twice throughout the night, only to raise the energy level even higher with his playing, bringing the crowd to a frenzy. I could see looks of amazement around me in the crowd.

I was able to work my way to the front of the crowd to watch the performance and to take in the nuance of his playing. Even at full throttle, Satriani plays with a controlled, deliberate and intimate feeling unlike most. Stu had a great Bass solo in the middle of the concert where he just went off across a diverse musical soundscape to include even a favorite Zep tune of mine. A great backdrop of LED lights set in a black curtain kept up with the tempo of his music. Leslie West came out at the end of the show and did an improvisational Jam with Joe, trading off leads for a nice ten minute session. It was cool to see them play together, their styles matched nicely, as Joe played with a duplicate copy of Leslies famous guitar.

Looking back on the nights performance, it was cool to see a musician have such a direct connection with the crowd through their playing. Frenzied sound poured out of Joe's guitar which just took control over the crowd.

Keet was able to join me for the concert, and he too was blown away by the performance. We really enjoyed catching up and talking music as we planned to get together for more soon. I've got some great shows to go yet this fall.

Leslie West

Photo credits to Imagesbygene

R&R up the A1A

2008-10-01T11:23:00.005-04:00

Susan had a conference in Orlando last week. I joined up with her mid week as her conference was ending and we spent a few days travelling up the Florida A1 inter costal. We had no definite plans other than traveling north and stopping when something looked interesting.

We drove South from Orlando late into the first night down to the coast so that we would have more of the cost to travel up and explore. We stayed in a dive of a city in a dive of a hotel the first night, and as the sign would tip us off, there was no longer a Seafood Restaurant or Happy Hour at our poor hotel, it had clearly seen better days..

The first day we made it all of 50 miles up the coast before reaching the Kennedy Space Center. Here you can see the the Space Center with the the two Space Shuttle launch sites and a five mile long runway for the Shuttle.

View Larger Map

I took way too many photos of Rockets.

The Rocket Garden. A collection of historically significant rockets.

A Space Shuttle motor. This thing had a nozzle about the size of a shower head.

Space tourists. Hanger used in the '70's for Atlas Rockets, and for the next generation of space vehicles currently being built/tested, which are really big rockets (RBR's). Next generation space mission is to send people back to the moon. This hangar can hold the Empire State Building four times over, each star on the flag is over 8' wide. Look close and you can see buzzards thermaling over the roof.

This is the facility where they are assembling the Not So International Space Station (NSISS). You can visibly see the space station at night when it tracks over your house.

http://spaceflight1.nasa.gov/realdata/sightings/

The two remaining shuttles have a total of 10 missions remaining between now and 2010 when they are retired. I'm speculating this is the biggest and fastest glider ever to fly.

From Wikipedia: The orbiter's maximum glide ratio/lift-to-drag ratio varies considerably with speed, ranging from 1:1 at hypersonic speeds, 2:1 at supersonic speeds and reaching 4.5:1 at subsonic speeds during approach and landing.

I couldn't resist.

Susan standing at the business end of an 'un fired' Atlas Rocket, the most powerful vehicle ever built.

Visiting the Space Center was absolutely fascinating, the only operational space center in the world that allows visitors, highly recommended.

The next few days we traveled further up the coast stopping in the cities of New Smyrna, Daytona and St Augustine. We found the drive up the coast to be very beautiful, but all somewhat the same, with lots of hotels, high rise apartments and condos, and a general sense of deterioration all along the coast. We were amazed by the number of multi million dollar homes along the coast, and even more amazed by the number of those homes up for sale. We reached the conclusion that the lack of, or extremely expensive home insurance may be the reason.

We both could not get over the idea that the entire stretch of coast we drove was so exposed and venerable to a hurricane. Perhaps our consciousness has been raised over the events of the past several years, but when you travel a place such as this, you come to appreciate how damaging a storm could be, and how devastating it would be for the people in its path.

Daytona Lighthouse.

NOAA weather Reporting Station.

Air Force Beach just south of Kennedy Space Center.

Daytona.

The last day we toured St Augustine, which is the oldest city in the United States, founded in 1565 by the Spanish. There were several areas of the city that were several hundred years old, with a fort that protected the city from pirates and other conquering civilizations like the British.

The Peacekeeper.

Flags which have occupied the fort.

A great trip overall, we had some very nice accommodations on the beach and some terrific meals. The Dynamic nature of the trip served us well. Susan has another conference in Miami in December and we'll probably do it again this time going south.

Upgrades

2008-09-22T21:10:00.007-04:00

Saturday I visited a local tuner to talk about my goals for the car, 300hp. I was impressed with his shop and gained confidence in my ability to reach my power goals. I was able to watch him run an STi on the dyno and gain 50bhp in tuning alone. I'm considering doing the work myself and using his shop if I get over my head.

This weekend I also upgraded my camera capabilities with a Nikon D40. I've wanted a DSLR for a while, but have just never been able to justify it. I scored a great deal on Craigslist for a brand new unit. After charging the battery and spending about 5 minutes with the book, I switched the camera to AUTO mode and stalked some local wild life to experiment with the camera.

Lunch

Parker

The McNealy Minute..

2008-09-18T09:07:00.010-04:00

This morning I rode up the elevator with Scott McNealy. He looked out the elevator window as we rode up to the GM CIO's private floor and asked me about Ford Field and Tiger Stadium off in the distance. I thought about asking him something witty, like hows your golf game coming along, as he is ranked among the best of executive golfers.

Instead, I just played it cool and said welcome to Detroit. When he got off I asked the only other person in the elevator, do you know who that was? That was Scott McNealy. She looked at me quizzically for a minute then asked, who's that?

"He's the Chairman of Sun Microsystems, and he invented the Internet", I said. She paused for a minute of thought, "oh", then went back to her text messaging as I stepped off the elevator on to my floor.

It was a brief encounter with greatness, but inspiring none the less, and a great way to start off my work day. I'm not sure the elevator woman shared my enthusiasm. It's funny how people can sometimes share a common experience and have such different reactions.

Maybe she'll google his name and learn something today..

Titan Tennis

2008-09-13T09:39:00.004-04:00

Thursday night I attended a dedication of the new tennis courts at the University of Detroit.

They also introduced the members of the new men's tennis team. It's been 14 years since U of D carried a men's team, and I was a part of that last team my senior year in '94. I'm really looking forward to supporting the new men's team.

The Orbitsons & a Saturday afternoon Car-B-Q

2008-09-07T18:09:00.008-04:00

This week my my buddy Sir Tim Duvalier called to solicit help from the ranks of his Ducati brethren. Tim was shooting a video for his band the Orbitsons and he wanted to incorporate a scene with a group of Ducati motorcycles. I joined Tim and Aaron to the shoot location, which was a muffler shop in a cracked out neighborhood on the east side of Detroit. Another five or so club members showed up on their bikes as well.

After some stock motorcycle footage, the big scene was to be all the bikes parked to the side while the band played. The muffler shop owner wheeled over a stripped out '79 caprice classic and proceeded to stuff it with newspapers and several gallons of gasoline. As the riders looked on, we all started to feel a little nervous about the proximity of the bikes to the car. Tim moved his bike out of the shot first, then everyone ran for their bike too and moved it as fast as they could before the car was lit. The one exception was a huge black guy who just happened to be rolling by on a purple Harley and decided to get in on the shot. As everyone wheeled their bikes away he was like, what's the problem man, it's not like the car is going to blow up or anything. It really appeared as if he had more experience with torching cars that anyone else there, including the guy who threw the flaming stick into the gas filled car.

A few seconds after we moved the bikes they torched the car and the band started playing and video cameras started rolling. About half way through the song, the Detroit city popo showed up, then shortly after the Detroit Fire Dept. They were good enough to let the band finish the song before extinguishing the car. The entire scene was very sketchy, but highly entertaining. I have to believe some sort of laws were broken, but I didn't stay around long enough to find out.

What struck me the funniest, was that with the one exception of the guy on the Harley, nobody seemed to have the least bit of interest in the blaring rock music or burning car as people drove by on Gratiot, or even walked right by the shop. People just seemed to take a casual glance at the flaming car and just kept on walking by, like it was an every day occurrence or something..

Big props to the band for playing on in the face of a burning car about ten feet from their face and police and firemen running around like the keystone cops right behind the burning car. Really looking forward to seeing how it turns out.

Tawas

2008-09-05T09:13:00.011-04:00

Susan and I headed to Tawas with Mike and Elaine for a holiday weekend kiteboarding session. We knew the weather looked marginal, but scored a really nice cabin on the lake so we committed to the weekend. Unfortunately, we missed great conditions Saturday and it just didn't blow hard enough Sunday or Monday. Mike brought Sea Doo's so we enjoyed time on the beach instead. The plan was to use the Sea Doo's as recovery vehicles after we got down winded. Despite the lack of kiteboarding it was a great weekend with new friends.

The Fun wagon.

Tawas Lighthouse, no wind..

Lighthouse lens

Lighthouse steps

Still no wind.

Mike & Elaine, Tawas SP.

Hard Lessons, Blues Traveller, Rusted Root

2008-09-05T09:06:00.004-04:00

Friday night was a night of Jam Bands at the Pontiac Arts beats and Eats, my kind of music.

The Hard Lessons opened the main stage Friday night, it's good to see they've grown in popularity since I had seen them two years ago at the same venue. They seem to be emerging onto the national spotlight as one of Detroit's newest bands. The vocals seemed a bit off to me, but plenty of great original music, and always entertaining to see live. Last time I saw the band, Augie hit his head pretty hard on the stage ceiling performing a David Lee Roth style jump off the drum stand onto the stage. This year, the antics continued when he performed a 7' jump from the main stage to the stadium floor, he landed pretty hard and sort of did a para trooper drop and roll method, it looked like it really hurt.

Blues Traveller was up next and they put on a great show. Lots of popular songs, improvisational drum solo's and guitar riffs. I was disappointed that they didn't play a few of my favorites, but it was great to see them live again as it had been at least ten years since I've seen them last.

The headlining act was Rusted Root, and they really blew the roof of the place. I'd never seen an audience so amped for a concert. This was the first time Susan or I had seen the band and we were really impressed. Great music, great performances. Really big sound with four guitarists, two drummers and a female percussionists \ vocals. They seem to me like a band that was once on the verge of greatness, but never really totally turned the corner. A couple of really big hits, but just not enough to sustain them as a top tier band. Really solid performance, I'll try to make it out to their show next time their in town.

Corvette Racing

2008-08-29T11:26:00.003-04:00

The Compuware Corvettes were in the lobby earlier this week and drew quite a crowd. As I was pulling out of the parking structure after work, I almost had a head on collision with this car as they were rolling it out of the building and the car got away from them down the curb.

From the American Lemans Series website:

The most successful team in the history of the American Le Mans Series, Corvette Racing looks to further enhance its endurance racing legacy in 2008. The two-car factory effort will lead a pioneering effort by campaigning on cellulosic E85 as it enhances the Series’ platform of alternative fuels. The winner of the last seven GT1 championships, Corvette Racing has posted a record 61 class wins, 44 1-2 team finishes and swept all 12 rounds in the 2007 season. Corvette Racing’s stable of drivers have excelled on the international sports car racing stage with a combined 13 American Le Mans Series championships, 17 Le Mans victories and 22 class triumphs at Sebring. Working in conjunction with GM Racing engineers, Pratt & Miller is responsible for construction, testing, development and trackside support for Corvette Racing.

Edgar Winter, Joe Bonamassa, Kenny Wayne Shepherd

2008-08-25T11:04:00.015-04:00

Sunday night Susan and I had tickets for Joe Bonamassa Kenny Wayne Shepherd at Freedom Hill. Edgar Winter opened up the show, which turned out to be a pleasant surprise. He played a couple of his classic monster hits, and displayed his big musical talents. Despite his odd physical appearance and strange demeanor, he was a real crowd pleaser, getting a couple of standing O's through his five or six song set. He has a massively talented lead guitarist, who showed just a glimmer of his talents by keeping up with Edgar in a guitar duel of sorts. Edgar would vocalize an 'impromptu' guitar riff, then his guitarist would duplicate the riff with his guitar. As the jam session built, Edgar kicked off a mind numbingly long and complex set of vocal rhythms. It appeared the guitarist was defeated, as he watched in disbelief. After a long and dramatic pause, the guitarist set out to replicate Edgars vocalizing, slowly growing in intensity until it reached an all out shred, taking it totally over the top to the crowds amazement. It's hard to tell if the jam session was all rehearsed or improvisational, but it gave the impression of spontaneity, and there was no denying the raw talent of his guitarist. Wow, what else can you say about Edgar besides a true rock pioneer.

Joe B was next. As he was not the headlining artist, he played a very limited set, just starting to settle in. The playing was outstanding, just disappointing it was not longer. It appeared he was really holding back, perhaps not wanting to steal the show. I guess you could say he kinda called this one in. No real highlights, just very solid playing.

In very efficient fashion, KWS was up next. They started by playing some of the older singles. The show started out a bit slow, raising fear that the routine of the road was wearing on him. He finally turned it up about half way through the show, revealing he's as exciting as ever to see live, just pouring music out of his hands in a very cool and effortless manner. Tonight Susan and I decided the lead Singer Noah is a bit cheesy, using dramatic hand gestures, microphone stand spinning and crowd pointing as excessive flair in the absence of a guitar in his hands. Highlight for me was a slow blues tune near the end of his set. I was disappointed that Joe B did not come out on stage and play a song with KWS.

As many times as I've heard KWS close the show with Voodoo Child, it always leaves me in complete awe. His command of the guitar and ability to crank hard driving straight ahead Jimi Hendrix into the crowd is a sight you have to experience to appreciate. It was really a special evening of music, my only regret is not sharing it with some friends that have never been exposed to these artists or this particular brand of music. Susan and I had a great night.

Saturday Tawas

2008-08-25T10:36:00.004-04:00

Saturday I travelled to Tawas for Kiteboarding. There was a kiteboard race going on during the day so I decided to stay on the bay side to stay out of everyone's way. This turned out to be a bad decision. The air was very turbulent and gusty. After a couple of sessions ripping it straight down wind, I made the long and difficult walk of shame back to the lighthouse for a rest. Between my exhaustion (from the upwind walk), and signs of impending weather, I opted to pack up and watch the last hour or so of the race.

Today was the first time I got comfortable handling the kite and the board at the same time. I also learned that it's a better idea to just reel in the kite and walk it back rather than try and fly it when you have a long walk back up wind. Other mistake I made was to be indecisive on where I was going to set up. The indecision cost me about an hour of walking in knee high water, carrying all of my gear. Lot's of work ahead of me trying to figure out how to stay up wind.

I bumped into some friends, then it started to pour. Brian had an event at his shop, then we were off to the bluesfest, and local establishments, it was a great night with new friends.

Sunday morning I opted to leave early after breakfast rather than kite. The weather was calling for low winds from the north, coupled with an uncomfortable nights sleep in my car and plans for a concert Sunday evening, I don't believe the day ever developed.

Friday Flyday

2008-08-25T10:06:00.004-04:00

Friday afternoon I met up with John Harte to do some flying with the Tuskegee Airman aircraft out of Detroit City Airport. After departure from City airport, we flew over Belle Isle, which was setting up for Grand Prix, over down town, then down the river to Grosse Ile for some touch and goes. It was great to get back up in the air with John on a beautiful summer night. Lots of beautiful homes and big boats all around the airport, which used to be a Naval Air Station. George Bush Sr. dumped a Corsair into the river on a training flight here many years ago.

Life's been busy

2008-08-14T23:34:00.006-04:00

Last weekend I went to Tawas for the first session with my own gear, met and made some great friends, lots of laughs. Had a great time with my new friend Dr Chris as we shared a kite and the learning experience, as we were both at exactly the same place in the learning process. Wind blowin' hard both Saturday evening and all day Sunday. Sunday we kited in 25 kts with a loaner 9 meter from Brian in the pouring rain. There were no lodging accommodations to be found in Tawas, so I slept in the car right down on the water with a terrific nighttime view of the city. When I woke up in the morning Chris had parked his car right next to mine, as he had the same problem I did finding a room.

Sold the beemer for the second time this summer, both times to Todd. He took delivery earlier in the week and seemed really happy with the car. He seemed to be sympathetic to my work situation earlier this summer. I brought home an '08 WRX this evening, got a great deal on a new used car, put big money down and have a ridiculously low payment. Would have liked to buy more car, but it's just not where I'm at in my life right now.

Alot of turmoil in my decision as the '09s will be putting down big power, firmer suspension and have some terrific styling improvements, price to be released in another week, cars to begin hitting showrooms in late Sept. Time will tell if I made the right decision, I just couldn't pass up the deal I received, leaving plenty of $$$ for upgrades and snow tires.

The rex

another interesting week..

2008-08-05T22:31:00.002-04:00

This has been an interesting summer.

Last week I purchased Kiteboarding gear. Over the weekend Susan and I were able to visit with new friends Mike & Elaine. They were kind enough to have us over to their lake house and serve us a wonderful meal with the warmest of hospitality. We had wonderful conversation and truly feel as though new friends were made this weekend.

After our visit with Mike and Elaine, Susan and I continued onto to Toledo to see the Black Keys in Concert. Susan really enjoyed the concert. Susan and I had our first date 19 years ago this summer at a Toledo concert. The black Keys always put on a great show, lots of energy, with plenty of hard driving, straight ahead blues\rock songs. This was the third time I've seen them and not the last.

This morning I received word that the GM project is back on, after three months of 'proposal writing', or sitting in a conference room with a team of highly skilled technical professionals waiting for GM to make up their mind.

If the weather holds, I'll be travelling up to Tawas this weekend to receive more kiteboard training.

There's still plenty of summer left and lots of stuff yet to do.

Don't stand so close to me

2008-07-27T20:05:00.003-04:00

Last night Susan and I travelled to the DTE Music theatre for the Police. We didn't have tickets, and managed to score some lawn seats for half the face value. We were as far back in the audience as possible, and ended up sitting next to some kids that would not shut up. About half way through the concert we decided to bail, neither of us were feeling it. Between the lethargic rendition of all our favorites, and the annoying crowd, we just weren't into it.

We got stuck in construction traffic on the way home that set us back about an additonal three hours, so all in all, it was a ten hour outing for about five Police songs, for nostalgic sake. Thank God we only paid 20 bucks a ticket..

more summer events to come, this was just a warm up.