You can go home again

I went home for the holidays, and the bad news is that yes, indeed, Cincinnati is still a festering cesspit, Ohio sucks in general, the food was bad, the weather was worse, and I didn't get to ride half so much as I should have liked. The good news is, it's nice to be home with true friends.

Speaking of true friends, here's one of Jason Reser, shot with my portrait lens and the softbox on the D70; about 1/250 shutterspeed, handheld at f/1.8, exposure comp on the flash backed off a couple stops, and bounced the flash off the adjacent white wall. Came out nicely, for all that we were sitting under strip lights in a Skyline chili parlour:

This character happens to be my truest, best friend. I used to work for him at his bike shop in Newport, Kentucky, and he's the most generous person on the planet. I've known him since he was fifteen years old. He's helped me get bikes, sponsorships and contacts that have all stood the test of time and distance. This is one of those deals where we can go for months at a time without corresponding, then pick up the conversation right where it left off.

The rest of these snaps were taken slightly inebriated, handheld with the Stylus, mostly inside the Taft Theatre at the Over The Rhine Concert. Had to use available light as flash photog is frowned upon there. sorry they're blurry. Thanks Charley, you are a real gem for hooking us all up with tix. You're a real nerd for being so camera shy tho. What's up with ditching us at the bar, huh?

Here's a shot of Jason and his girl Sari. Thank you Sari, for letting me borrow your Barracuda, that was really awesome. I wish she'd come with us riding tho, because I was hopelessly outnumbered by the guys. It only takes 2 gals to outnumber any amount of men.


Next up, the Unimpeachable John Wiley Adams. Holy crap, when did Wiley turn into an emo boi?? I first met this kid at a crit I promoted in Mariemont, Ohio. He was in sneakers and jeans, on flats riding his dad's overly large garage bike, all knees and elbows, and having the time of his life.


One of the most talented riders ever to train half-arsed and waste his talents: Adam Fuson. He and I were joint Ohio Valley Racing Riders of The Year in 1997. A shot of him, a shot of him, taking a shot of me, then the sneaky bastard took a shot of me, showing him the shot of him... eh, it's confusing, and probably really stupid, but we were enjoying it, so that's what matters:




And here's a nasty blurry shot of Over The Rhine, jamming. Blurry was kind of the theme of the night.


I was listening to Over the Rhine fifteen years ago at Sudsy Malone's, whilst waiting for my laundry to dry. They haven't changed a bit, but one thing's for certain, you'd not fit the 2,000+ people who packed the Taft, into Sudsy's 6x6' SRO stage allotment.

I only wish I'd bothered to take the Stylus with me when Jason took me night MTB riding out at East Fork. Man that brings back some memories. It was freezing, icy and SO incredibly fun. 2 hours of slipping, sliding, laughing, crashing and flailing. The Cincy guys go every Tuesday night at 7, all through the winter. I wish my useless bike acquaintances in Boulder had the minerals to go night riding.

Yes, Virginia, you can, indeed, go home again.

Happy Holidays,

LFR