7 Springs Snowboard Trip: After

As mentioned before, this past weekend I headed up to 7 Springs to go snowboarding with some friends. The snow was pretty good, the weather was pretty good, it wasn't too badly crowded, but it was coooold! Thank goodness for insulated snowboard gear! So while the hillbillies were out there in soaked blue jeans, I was nice and toasty warm, and dry! I don't think I'll ever understand why people think it's acceptable to ski/snowboard in blue jeans. Anyways, MOVING ON!

My helmet worked better than I hoped for. I was a little worried before heading up there about its ability to keep my noggin warm in the almost 0 degree temperatures. Before we left I tried on the helmet with a beanie underneath, but it was an extremely tight fit, and probably would've been very uncomfortable for any extended amount of time. To my delight, I was surprised to discover that even without a beanie, the helmet kept my head plenty warm, I even opened up the vents on it on occasion to help control my overall body temperature [a feature I hadn't planned on using, but was glad it was available.] Also, the built in headphones worked beautifully, and my ears were filled wonderfully with the sounds of my snowboarding playlist.

Overall, it was a real good trip with friends, and I'm glad I was able to escape and get up there for a weekend. Now I'm realllly anxious for my upcoming trip to Colorado in just over a month! I took my GoPro camera up with me, and filmed a bunch of footage of my friends and I cruising around the mountain. I shot the video at 60 frames per second as opposed to the normal 30 frames per second, but when I tried to import the files into final cut pro, the program for some reason did not like the clips. Because of this, I had to play around with converting the file types a bunch before final cut would accept it. The end result is a video that wouldn't export at the correct aspect ratio or quality, I dont know why this was happening but for that, I apologize. Hope you still enjoy the video though!

[Snowboarding at Seven Springs]

Slow Motion Space Shuttle

Throughout the past 10-15 years or so, I've always loved watching the space shuttle launches and landings. I just think it's really cool stuff, especially when on TV they have former astronauts commenting on the launch and they let you know how fast the shuttle is traveling at certain times after take off. When landing, I've always loved the live onboard shots that the shuttle gives as it enters the earth's atmosphere and then glides all the way to the landing runway. When it touches down and finally comes to a stop, it's like "that thing just flew in from outer space!" Crazy, but cool stuff.

What even crazier is that most of today's smart phones have more computing power than a lot of the capsules and computers that sent man to the moon. Now THAT'S pretty crazy to think about. Anyways, this afternoon I found this really cool video of a couple guys from NASA taking you through a series of super slo-mo clips of shuttle launches from various angles. Really cool and mesmerizing to see this stuff so close and in such detail. If you've got an extra 45 minutes [or even 20] I highly recommend giving this video a watch. Enjoy, and never stop exploring!

[Space Shuttle Launches]

De-Bunking, Wannabe De-Bunkers

Alright, I should let you know first off that this post is going to be a little bit of a rant, and it deals with Apple's new iPhone, and the people that try and make it seem like it's not all that great. Ready? Let's begin!

As many of you already know, Apple recently officially released their new iPhone 4, and as of yesterday the first models started landing in the hands of consumers who had pre-ordered them, with the official launch coming today and long lines forming outside of Apple stores across the country. Don't be surprised to hear a lot of news about the phone today.

So I get to work this morning and fire up the computer, and hop online, and the first article I see on Yahoo's page is about 5 big problems the new phone has and why you shouldn't buy one. I was curious so I started reading. [Here's the article] I got about half way through the authors first "point" and felt he immediately lost any and all credit he may have once had. I encourage you to read the entire article, because I'm going to go through this point by point. Go grab a cup of nice cold water and we'll continue.

Gatlinburg Mopar Cruise

One of the reasons I haven't had a ton of updates lately is that I've been super busy traveling and visiting and stuff all over the east coast. This past weekend I was down in Gatlinburg, Tennessee for the 2010 ForumZ Mopar Meet in the Mountains. It was a 4 day weekend and gathering of Challengers, Chargers, 300's, a couple Vipers, etc. I've been a member of the Challenger "Z" for quite a while now and have talked to folks on there for months, and it was great to finally meet so many great people and puts names and faces together.

Even though our cars are what brought us all together in the first place, this event was really more of a family reunion that it was a car show. I've said it in the past, but folks in the automotive community and culture, are hands down some of the nicest people you'll ever meet. I had a great time down there, and already have my calendar booked for the same event next year!

I have a ton of pictures to share as well, but here's a video I finished yesterday of our police escorted cruise through downtown Gatlinburg. I borrowed another GoPro camera from a friend and mounted them facing front and back then edited it all together. We had 2 lanes stretching about 1/2 mile long. It was definitely the highlight of the trip and quite a sight to see! Lots of cheers and waves and pictures as we cruised through the main strip. Hopefully you get a small sense of that from the video. Enjoy!

[Mopar Gatlinburg Cruise]

The Colonel Hits The Dyno!

I had been waiting for a while to get the Challenger onto the dyno ever since I put the first mods on, and when a couple local folks from the Challenger Z set up a group rate/dyno day for this past Saturday, I couldn't let it pass on by.

For those who don't know, a dyno machine is basically a machine with rollers in the ground that you strap your car to, and it measures the horsepower and torque numbers that actually make it to the wheels. When you see a car advertised on TV, it will ALWAYS ALWAYS display the horsepower rating of the motor itself, and not the true numbers at the wheels [which is where it actually counts.] For instance, my car from the factory was rated at 376hp [at the motor] and would probably make around 330-335 at the wheels.

To date, all I've added in terms of performance is the Mopar Cold Air Intake and a tune from the diablsosport predator tuner [which basically remaps the car's computer and advances the timing to draw more power out of the motor.] With those added, I'm very pleased to report that The Colonel put down 345.7 horsepower and 372.4 foot pounds of torque at the wheels, pretty respectable numbers. I was also very happy to see that the air/fuel ratio was spot on, meaning the car [and tune] is running/working exactly as it should! [You can see the results in the picture up at the top] If I decide to add a catback exhaust system in the future, I'll more than likely pay to get some more dyno time and a custom tune made specifically for me by a tune shop, to ensure that everything is still running properly and safely while squeezing out as much power as possible from the engine. Enough jibber jabber though, on with the video and pics! Enjoy!

My friend Pat's R/T on the dyno

The Colonel & 1BADRT (owned by my friend Troy)

Al, Troy, and some of the other cars

My friend Tim's R/T

The Colonel all strapped down and ready to go!

It was an exhausting morning of hanging out in the sun, eating donuts and listening to muscle cars roar! Thank goodness for that 4 point harness!

Allsports GP Video

On Friday night I went racing out at Allsports with some friends of mine. Naturally I brought the new camera along and had it mounted to the top of my helmet. I didn't get a chance to edit it until yesterday, but here it is. My one friend in the blue helmet is pretty good, but he made a critical error at one point, and I made him pay for it! Consistency is key kids.

Anyway, here's the video, enjoy the carnage!

Lazy Sunday

Sunday was lazy....okay not really by most people's standards, but it was really. I headed out early Sunday morning to Wintergreen and met up with a friend [that's us in the picture] for a day of playing in the snow. Good thing I just recently purchased my nifty new camera huh?! The weather was actually great, and I think I feel comfortable saying it was the warmest weather I've ever snowboarded in. It was sunny and probably 60 degrees all day long. No jacket, no gloves, just goggles cause the snow was BRIGHT! Anyway, I didn't go crazy or anything since this was [unfortunately] my first and probably last snowboarding day this year, no need to injure myself. So I had fun cruising around, taking pictures and filming. There's a bunch more clips, but I haven't edited them together yet, so [for now] this is all you get. Enjoy!

The Colonel Goes For A Drive, In HD!

So as I mentioned here, I ordered a new HD video camera since my old one [footage seen here] wasn't not the greatest quality. And boy oh boy did I make an upgrade! The new camera arrived on Saturday, and I spent all night tinkering with it, figuring out all the settings, and yesterday I couldn't wait any longer, so I went out for a 'spirited' drive to test it out! The following video is the result.

I mounted it to the roof, just above the windshield to start, and then later on moved the camera to the passenger side door, about a foot behind the wheel well. I also mounted it on the inside of the windshield to get some footage of my driving as well, but for some reason it decided to just snap a picture instead. So I got that sweet picture [above] of me looking like an idiot. But hey, at least I know the field of vision is good, and that the camera can capture the light inside the 'cockpit' rather well. Bottom line, I am very happy with the results, it was well worth the money, the quality is really good [when viewed in HD], and be on the lookout for many more videos to come once the weather gets nicer!!

Is it bad that I'm thinking about buying a second one, so I can mount two cameras at once, and get 4 times the viewing angles?! Anyways, enjoy the awesome!

[Shot at 720p@30 frames per second. Next time I'll try shooting in full 1080p.]

New Camera

Well it was about time, I ordered a new toy. I found a really great deal on the GoPro HD Hero, Motorsports Package and had to take advantage of it before it passed me by. I bought a used helmet camera about 2 years ago from a friend for cheap, but the video quality was not the greatest, and the sound was essentially non-existant. That was the camera that I mounted to my handlebars when I raced at Blue Mountain last month.

As you can see from the video below, the quality of the new camera will be worlds better. It will allow me to shoot in either 1080p or 720p hd video, with the option of shooting at 30fps [frames per second] or 60fps [better for slow motion shots] in 720p mode. It comes will all kinds of mounts [seen above], so I can place in anywhere on my car [inside or out], on other vehicles, or a helmet. I can't wait to start playing with it, so look for some fun 'speedy' videos in the future!

Faux Tilt Shift

Recently I've been playing around with a technique that makes photos look like little miniature scenes. The original and real technique is called tilt shift photography, but those lenses are really expensive and you can make your own regular photos resemble the real style with a few simple tricks. It works best if you have a picture that has been taken from a high vantage point, as it will make the final product look like you were actually looking down into a mini landscape. Let's just go straight to the pictures before I begin rambling on about this stuff.

I took this picture Tuesday afternoon right before the snow started to fall. And yes I climbed onto my roof to get this shot.

This one was taken this past summer while down at Emerald Isle, our top balcony looking across the street. The shutter was also open for about 45 seconds on this one. It made for an interesting transition to 'tilt shift'.

And this one was taken last March when some friends came to visit DC for the day. Again, you can see how a higher vantage point makes for better results.

Fall Colors Photoshoot

Like a lot of people, I really enjoy the fall season, the colors are changing, it's much more comfortable outside, and the best food of the year is right around the corner! [Okay maybe the last reason is a more personal one, but you get the idea.] I drove my other car to work yesterday since it was still rainy and nasty in the morning, but when I got home it had dried up outside and was a little sunny as well. I noticed that the tree at the end of our driveway had some pretty decent colors going on, so I decided to pull the Challenger out, position it in the street, bust out the camera, and try to take some photos and hope for the best!

Okay, well I shouldn't really call it a photo shoot since I didn't have to go anywhere, but pictures were taken. The clouds overhead kept letting sun through then covering up again, so I had to be quick with the shutter when the sun was coming through. Some decent enough shots I suppose, esp for being right in front of my house. Overall I was pretty happy with the outcome! Enjoy.

I really liked the angle in this one.
Decided to try it in B&W as well.
Probably my favorite in terms of color.
Aaaand the other car....lonely...relegated to the sidewalk.

New Addition: UPDATE

WOOHOO!!! My new camera arrived yesterday!! I did a lot of reading before I bought it, and now that I have it, I've been doing so much more, since I can actually follow along with the words in front of me. I said it before and I'll say it again, if you're even remotely interested in photography you NEED to go a spend some serious time on Ken Rockwell's site. It's absolutely incredible how much information is on there, and the best part is that he actually explains everything in a way anyone can understand.

So I only had a minute of two to snap some pictures after I got home, before I had to head out to help a friend paint his house. But I did manage to take a few. Ironically though, I can't take a picture of the new camera.....with the new camera, so my old point and shoot got one last go around (at least for now.) Here's a few pics of the new gear:

My new Nikon D40
The mess I made unboxing everything.
Ha, yea we'll see about that.
Now we're talking!

So onward with the new pictures!! WARNING: I didn't resize any of these ones either, so if you click on the pictures, it's gonna fill up your screen....unless you have a fancy 23" Apple Cinema Display like me! :) But you should be able to tell a big difference in the picture quality regardless.

First ever picture with the new camera. Exciting subject matter right?

Picture of the mirror with me in it/Cliche/Classic/Self Portrait
I almost look good after some slight touching up!

Anyways, I have a loooong way to go I know, but I'm pretty excited about it, and cant wait to keep digging into all the capabilities of the new camera. I'm hopeful that I'll actually start to understand everything it can do soon enough, and will be able to turn out some pretty good shots. Cherry Blossom Festi.......errr Go-Kart Track here I come!

New Addition On The Way!!

....A new camera that is! Last year I went out to Colorado for 9 days on a snowboard trip. Prior to that I never owned a digital camera (I always just relied on the girls to take all the pictures) and the trip gave me a good excuse to pick one up, I think I spent around $100 or so on a pretty simple Kodak camera. It served its purpose, and has been a good camera for carrying around everywhere. Ever since I bought it though, I've found myself taking pictures of almost everything. Some come out pretty good, but most are only okay.

A few weeks ago I decided it was time to take it to the next level. I sold off all of my Xbox 360 stuff and put those funds directly towards the purchase of a new DSLR camera. I spent probably close to 12 hours reading through Ken Rockwell's site, learning as much as I could in a relatively short amount of time (the guy is a genious and has so much useful information on his site.) I decided on the Nikon D40 (pictured below) as a good starting point. It will allow me to really learn the functions of the camera, if I'm even able to top out the camera in terms of what it can do. It offers way more than what I can use at this point, but hopefully after a few months I'll start to get the swing of it.

Anyways, I just ordered it, and a bunch of accessories that you kinda need to get (camera bag, SD card, card reader, and a UV lens filter.) And now I anxiously await it's arrival! Stay tuned for details and hopefully lots of fun pictures to come!