Ride of the Patriots 2023

Every Memorial Day weekend, thousands of motorcyclists ride into the local area to participate in the annual ride from the Pentagon to DC. This event used to be called Rolling Thunder, but with the demise of that organization the successor ride is called Ride to Remember. The local Harley Davidson dealer organizes a pre-ride from Fairfax to the Pentagon, called the Ride of the Patriots. I’ve photographed the Ride of the Patriots several times, including today.

I’m disappointed that my favorite spot to photograph this event is not so great anymore. While expanding I-66 to add lanes, the contractor destroyed the bridge that provided a great view of the riders as they passed underneath. The replacement bridge is in the same spot, but now there’s a fence on the bridge, presumably to prevent people from throwing objects onto cars below. I’m not interested in shooting through the fence.

The next best alternative is the top of the Dunn Loring Metro station parking garage. It’s not great.

I tried dragging the shutter this time (1/400, 1/320) to get a bit of background blur and obvious motion in the wheels as I panned with the bikes. This was super-hard with my 500mm lens, and I got only a small number of usable photos with this technique. Later in the ride I switched to 1/500 or faster. 

Here are my favorites from this year’s ride.

Motorcycles lined up with spectators on the bridge

Makeup

This guy again

One of the few single female riders

Showing the flag

Were they looking at me?

Tattoo sleeve under the sleeve

She’s holding on for dear life

Cherry Blossoms

Every year, if the weather and my work schedule cooperate, I try to pay a visit to the Tidal Basin to photograph the cherry blossoms during peak bloom. This year I managed to get there on a Sunday morning. I chose this day because the previous few days were rainy and cold.

In the past, I’ve used Metrorail to get there. But this year I wanted to try a long exposure of the Jefferson Memorial while it was still dark, so I decided to drive. I got there at 5:40 AM to be sure to get parking and so I would have time to shoot the memorial before sunrise. The Park Service closed roads and even made the road out to Hains Point reverse flow so I found the navigation kind of confusing. But I found a spot near the Park Service HQ and walked around the Tidal Basin in the dark to a spot where I could shoot the memorial head-on. I got a bonus - the airport traffic was taking off to the south so their light trails showed up in my photographs.

Jefferson Memorial and Aircraft Light Trail

After I got the Jefferson Memorial shots, I returned to my car, stored my backpack and tripod in the trunk, and then went back to the Tidal Basin to walk around. It got really crowded really fast. The rain turned everything to mud and standing water. I was glad I wore my hiking shoes; I didn’t care that they got filthy and the fact that they’re waterproof allowed me to plow through puddles that most people were trying to avoid.

Nearly all of the blossoms were still white; very few trees had reached the pink phase. It wasn’t much fun trying to shoot with so many people in the way. There were several professional photographers trying to get shots of their clients, all dressed up, with the flowers and the water and the memorials in the background. It was difficult to find places to stop for a moment to shoot. Here are my favorites from this trip.

Shimano Di2 Battery Saga

The battery for my electronic shifters stopped charging. This is very annoying. I’ve only had the bike for 16 months!

My Canyon Endurace came with the Shimano Di2 system. It provides electronic shifting and it’s really cool. Shifting is always crisp; there’s no need to adjust the derailleurs or worry about worn cables. It just works. Except when it doesn’t.

The weather this winter has been unusually warm. Last weekend there was a nice day so I decided to go for a ride. It was more than a month since my last ride so I connected the charger to ensure the shifting battery was topped off overnight. When I got to the trail, I quickly discovered that the shifters weren’t working. I turned around and went home.

I spent a couple of days tinkering with the system, inspecting cables, ensuring nothing had come loose. I connected the junction box to my computer and ran the Etube software to see if it could tell me what was wrong. I thought the battery must have gone bad, but it could have been the charger, or the junction box, or a cable. I checked the Shimano web site for warranty service and the closest place was REI. So I took my bike to REI. They were completely unprepared to do the diagnostic work. After struggling with their computer for 30+ minutes they finally told me that their Di2 expert at REI in Woodbridge could help me. That’s a really long drive. I said no thanks, I’ll find some other place.

On my way home, I passed the Trek bike shop. It’s the closest shop to my house and I’ve shopped there lots of times. I didn’t go there first because the Shimano site did not list that Trek shop as a place to get Shimano service. But I decided to try my luck there. The mechanic there knew what he was doing; he had the right equipment; he diagnosed the problem (battery), got a replacement battery from another Trek store, and had my bike ready the next day. And there was no bill because it was warranty service.

In conclusion:

• That battery should have lasted a LOT longer.
• Shimano needs to get their act together with the batteries and the web sites that show where to get Shimano service.
• I like REI; I’ve gotten lots of stuff there; I won’t bring my bike there again.
• Trek in Fairfax did a great job.

By the way, I really like my bike!

Photography Progression

I've recently been cleaning up my photo keywords in my Lightroom catalog and, in the process, reviewed my photos from the Kennedy Space Center. I've been on that property five times: twice as a tourist, and three times as a guest of a NASA employee for Artemis launch attempts. Plus I've been to the beach nearby twice more. When I collected all of the photos that I've taken there, I was struck by just how much things have changed at KSC, and for me as a photographer as I've gotten more skilled. And my gear is better. Here's a self-indulgent look at the progression of KSC and me.

Launch Complex 39A in 2006

I took this photo (above) of Launch Complex 39A on June 1, 2006, when the shuttle program was still in progress. I used a Nikon Coolpix camera, shooting from the observation gantry adjacent to the crawlerway. It's not an awful picture, but it's also not great, given the harsh sunlight and the gear limitations.

Launch Complex 39A in 2009

I took this photo (above) of LC39A on April 16, 2009. Once again I was a tourist on the public tour and this was shot from the gantry. This time there's a shuttle on the pad. I shot this with my (then) new Nikon D200 and a crappy kit lens, again in harsh sunlight. It's a better photo, mostly because the gear is better.

I went back for Artemis 1 launch attempt #2 on September 3, 2022. LC39A looked like this:

Launch Complex 39A in 2022

This photo above was taken from the Apollo/Saturn V Center, so the perspective is different and the distance to the pad is much longer. It was a hot morning with the pad backlit so the light sucks. But notice the change: the shuttle launch infrastructure is gone. SpaceX uses that pad now. I shot this using my Nikon D850 with a 500mm lens while waiting for Artemis 1 to launch (the launch was scrubbed again).

Back to 2006, this time looking at LC39B, again from the gantry, again using the Coolpix: 

Launch Complex 39B in 2006

The photo above is pretty bad, given the gear and harsh sunlight at that time of day. This time there was a shuttle on the pad. Next, from the same spot with my D200: 

Launch Complex 39B in 2009

Again, there's harsh light, but the photo is better because I had better gear. Not great gear mind you, but better. When I revisited in 2009 (above), there was no shuttle on LC39B. In the three years between my visits, NASA constructed lightning protection towers at LC39B. When I went back for the Artemis 1 launch, I saw that the shuttle infrastructure was gone. NASA was back to using a tower on the mobile launch pad, similar to the arrangement that was used during the Apollo program. Here's a shot from the Apollo/Saturn V Center, taken with my D850 at 500mm:

Launch Complex 39B in 2022

This photo (above), which was taken on September 3, 2022, shows Artemis 1 on the pad. Several months later, I was in Florida once again, and I visited Playalinda Beach, which is directly north of and adjacent to the Kennedy Space Center. Here's a shot of the pad from that visit: 

Launch Complex 39B in 2023

I took that shot (above) with my D850 at 300mm on January 8, 2023. OK, what to make of this...

• I'm a space geek.
• My skill as a photographer has improved a lot.
• I've spent a lot of money on gear that I really like; good gear absolutely makes a difference.
• NASA/KSC has changed a lot with the end of the shuttle program and the transition to supporting SpaceX and the Artemis program.

There's no way I'm leaving the best shot of all out: 

Artemis 1 Launching to the Moon

The third launch attempt was the one that worked. This was taken while I was standing in the bleachers at the Apollo/Saturn V Center in the middle of the night. It was awesome!

Conowingo Dam

Every Thanksgiving weekend I go to Conowingo Dam to photograph bald eagles. But not this year: it was warmer than usual and I think the eagles weren’t migrating yet. But the Facebook group that I watch was showing a lot of activity at the dam, so I decided to go today.

One advantage of this later-than-usual trip is that the crowd was smaller. Not small, but smaller. I arrived at about 6:30 and the parking lot was half-empty. I went to my favorite spot on the rocks by the water. There were several gates open and a turbine was running all day. The wind was light and the temperature was near freezing. But the water was in a continuous wave action, splashing against the rocks much more than any time I can remember. The sky was initially cloudless, with a light overcast moving in later in the morning.

Bottom line: there was very little fishing activity. There was a handful of flyovers. There were a few chase events. And I shot one fight over a fish. So, not much to show.

It’s a bit early to be working on the nest…

Oops

One of several flyovers

Fighting over a fish

Red-tailed hawk

Skyline Drive Cycling

This morning I went for a bike ride on Skyline Drive in Shenandoah National Park. I’ve lived in Northern Virginia for a long time and I’ve been to this park a handful of times, but this was my first time riding my bike there.

I’m considering some cycling events next year in which hill climbing is part of the courses. Here in Northern Virginia, there aren’t many big hills. Skyline drive has lots of hills and it has a biker-friendly reputation. The weather is good this weekend, a bit chilly but calm wind. And the Fall colors are approaching peak. So I made the drive to Front Royal and parked just outside the fee station at the north entrance.

Fog Obscures the Shenandoah River

The first 6 miles were about 1600 feet of climbing to the top of the first hill. Or is it a mountain? Anyway I took it easy, knowing I had a lot of climbing ahead. Then the roller coaster started. It was a sequence of climbs and descents, with hardly any flat ground. I alternated between sweating climbs and chilly descents. I reached the Elkwallow wayside at mile 24, rested, ate, and started the return trip.

The first climb after the wayside on the return ride was kind of grueling, but after that the miles flew by. My speed on the descents were often in the 30s. Finally I reached the entrance station, only to see cars lined up trying to enter the park. This line extended into Front Royal for quite a long way. These were people who wanted to see the Fall colors.

I got back to my car a sweaty mess. Final numbers: 47.74 miles, 5,778 feet of climbing. That’s a new single day climbing record for me.

Artemis Launch Attempt #3: Third Try Was The Charm

Finally, it launched! This trip was unlike the previous two, in lots of ways.

After the previous two scrubs, two hurricanes delayed the launch attempt from September all the way into the middle of November. My wife couldn’t go this time because she had a work conflict. So I made the trip alone, this time flying. Because the launch window opened at 1:04 AM, I didn’t even bother with a hotel. I took an airline flight to Orlando, got a rental car, drove to Titusville, and with several hours to kill, visited several parks looking for birds. I explored the Titusville and Cocoa areas. Finally, it was time to go.

For the previous two attempts, parking was at Space Coast Regional Airport. This time it was at a warehouse. I drove up, parked, waited because I was early, and finally boarded the bus for the ride to the Banana Creek viewing location. I didn’t bother taking any shots on the pad: it looked the same as it did for the previous attempts.

Artemis 1 on the pad during tanking

It was a long wait, several hours in fact. Then there was a series of problems that the launch team addressed, leading to a long countdown hold. I wondered if there would be yet another scrub.

Finally the countdown restarted. The NASA team dimmed the lights on the bleachers. The countdown got to a few seconds left, and I held my camera up.

Artemis 1 Liftoff

The bottom of the rocket lit up, the clouds of smoke and steam billowed, and the rocket lifted off. It got brighter and brighter as the flame got longer. The whole area was bathed in orange light. As it climbed, eventually the sound reached us in the crowd. It wasn’t deafening, but it was really loud and the bleachers started shaking. I watched the rocket for about seven minutes, until I lost sight of it, already more than a hundred miles down range. Even though I adjusted my exposure settings, my photos of the rocket after it cleared the tower were mostly just long flames with trailing smoke. The rocket itself is hardly visible in the photos. Eventually the solid rocket boosters separated, barely visible in the distance.

Solid Rocket Booster Separation

A long trail of smoke was left behind, hanging in the sky for a few minutes. Finally we boarded the buses, made the drive back to the warehouse, and I got back to Orlando at about 4AM. I tanked the car, turned it in, switched to an earlier flight, and came home.

Boy am I tired! Actually I’m exhausted. But I could only sleep for an hour when I got home. But I’m sure I’ll sleep well tonight! And it was an awesome experience.