Climbing with Ray

This is a climbing sequence including my friend Ray who is also a runner. Our conversation is easily picked up by the camera. Notice how the camera's perspective changes with the transitions between sitting and standing.

The "eagle" we spotted turned out to be a very large hawk of some kind. It was barely visible in the original video, so I didn't bother to keep it in the uploaded copy. It was a spectacular sight in person, and not very far away from us.

Chasing John

This section of trail is much more interesting than the roads, with curves and a rock wall on one side. Then there are the blind "S" curves going under the railroad trestle. You never know when somebody will be coming in the opposite direction. I think I hit 29-30 MPH trying to keep up with John on this stretch. I normally keep it under 20 MPH going through here, so I guess this time it was a Category 6 race.

Speed Run with John

My friend John is like me. We both like to go as fast as possible down hills. This sequence gets rough since I'm tucked down low in the wind, so my knees are hitting my chest where the camera is mounted. My top speed is 35 MPH on this short but steep hill. Note the 25 MPH speed limit painted on the pavement.

GoPro Chest Mount

Here's a similar sequence taken from a chest-mounted camera. I like this position better because there is less wind noise, and you can easily tell that it's a view from a bicycle.

The camera needs to be adjusted when I tuck down out of the wind, then readjusted when I slow down and sit up again. You don't have to endure the constant rear-view mirror checking, and I can still turn it to the side to film pretty girls on the sidewalk.

GoPro Video - Helmet Mounted

Here is one of the first videos I recorded, using my GoPro camera mounted on my helmet. There is an interesting maneuver in traffic at the beginning that should only be done by a bike, and maybe not even then, but probably is better than what the other cyclist did. He stopped in the "through" lane to wait for the "left only" light.

In the original audio, you can hear me breathing, and you can hear the clicking of my shifter.

The video features a 30 mph run down a short path and onto the road, then a short stretch of the most dangerous part of my route; the underpass at Main Street. Motorists approach from my right side, on the far side of a concrete barrier. The only way they can see me coming is if I'm on the left side of my lane. The City of Bellevue painted "sharrows" onto the pavement, but every other cyclist I've seen stays on the right shoulder.

Don Quixote and Dulcinea

This morning my five year old granddaughter asked me to "play Barbies" with her. Then she confessed that she didn't have any "boy" Barbies (I think she meant Ken). I happened to spot my model of Don Quixote at that moment, and seeing as how he was about the same size as her Barbie dolls, I suggested that I could dust him off and play with him.

She picked out the smallest of her Barbies, and we decided to call her Dulcinea. She decided they needed to be married, and that we should take a picture of them at their wedding.

I gave her my camera and asked her to take the picture while I held up the tablecloth for a background. The photo she took is very good considering she is one day short of her fifth birthday.

Later, after a slightly embarrassing attempt to remove his clothing, she pointed out that Don Quixote is actually made from a block of wood. "So he's not really a doll."

Dave

For several years now I have been commuting by bike, and regularly see the same guy going in the opposite direction. One day last week I happened to have my camera going when I met him, so finally I have a picture of him to show my family and friends.

Meet Dave.