12 posts tagged “photography”
The Coolest Place We Never Went Location: 498 9th St, San Fransisco, CA
This is just a little ditty of a tale starting with an early morning train ride from Bako to San Fran to pick up a car. I had not taken a real train ride before, and I do not know if it was because it was early or just because that is the way it is, but there were not a lot of people on board.
The gentleman manning the dining car slept most of the way and when I asked him for a Red Bull he said he was out and then reached under the counter and gave me one of his. Cool.
Walking between the cars, that is pretty freaky though.
The train took us most of the way and then a short but ride dropped us downtown.
I was fascinated by some of these shapes....
The main thing I wanted to do was have lunch at Moto Java...
Of course they were NOT OPEN....even though they said they would be!
Good Mural Though!
And, BTW...we could use your contributions to the Road Show Asthma Walk Team.
The easiest way to contribute is to go to
Clicky on the banner at the top which will take you directly to the American Lung Association page.
Just Do It....
Thanks
BMWeerman...out
Ok, that is the nasty stuff. Once we got onto the pier the staff was extremely accommodating and friendly. The boats were clean and in good working order and the maps and instructions provided were excellent. It is truly an experience not to be missed if you can just get past the entrance.
Once out on the water it is a true feast for the senses. Since the speed limit is five knots for all vessels the only turbulence is that created by the wind. And there are some amazing vessels on the water. Actually make that a plethera of amazing vessels in the harbor.
Many restaurants line the channel and have access from the water. It is not unusual to see large yachts maneuvering their way to "park" at one of the dining establishments there
Another couple of interesting attractions in the harbor is the world famous wedge for surfing and the giant Catalina Flyer which carries 500 passengers a day between the harbor and Catalina island.
There are not many day a year in that neck of the woods when one would run into bad weather either. And even if one does encounter bad weather most of the units are convertibles, or in Duffy Speak, Surrey tops
The cool thing is that Duffy's go so slow and are so easy to operate that anyone can get the hang of it wih five minutes instruction and five minutes practice Although 5 knots seems awfully slow it really is abou the right speed to see the harbor.
Of course Newport Beach Harbor is famous for its week-long lighted boat parade during the Christmas holidays. The parade originated in 1908 when Venetian gondolier, John Scarpa illuminated eight canoes and his gondola, the humble beginnings of what is now an intense competition, costing thousands of dollars. It was officially sanctioned in 1919. If you can make it down there on that week it is well worth the trip.
It is a trip well worth the time and money for a special occasion and I would highly recomend it.
For the latest information visit
A couple of days ago I was vistiting my brother in Newport beach and the sky suddenly cleared. We had a glorious day putt-putting around the harbor. I have put together a little slide show about it. It was my first attempt at using the Beyond Show softway so please for give the flubs0. They will get better.
Listen to our podcat at:
for the whole story.
Thanks
Bmeerman.
As many of you already know, on May 14 of this year I succumbed the cumulative effects of several days in the high-desert and drove my BMW1100RT off the road with horrific results. That is old news to anyone who knows me or follows this blog.
What is less known is the amazing experiences I had on that ride prior to the crash. I haven't written a lot about my experience of that journey, instead I went back to my old art form of music and made an effort to express those experiences through that medium.
This podcast features full-length tracks from the entire album with explanatory material during the intros and outros. Nevertheless, I would like to take this opportunity to add some more information about each composition.
Lines in the Sand
1) Sunrise in the Mirror. That particular phrase is one of my favorite pieces of imagery from Neil Peart's book Ghost Rider. For me there is nothing like heading west into the desert at dawn with the day rising up to meet you from behind. I would like to thank my long-time friend and ace musician Michael Ferenci for contributing the guitar and bass tracks to this tune.
2) The Red Road. I was firmly on my way east on I-15 marveling at how far out the hype for Las Vegas begins. The slab outlines the northern edge of the Mojave National Preserve for many miles, and I desperately wanted to visit, but I was commited to making Durango, CO before nightfall. I thought I had made it safely past the preserve when at the last moment I spotted "The Red Road." The road was literallly bright red from the local materials mixed in the ashphalt.
I simply could not pass that up. Once on the road I saw glimmering at the top of a small desert hill the dot of a town. "I will go only that far," I told myself. It was as far as I needed to go. I had discovered the delightful little town of Nipton, Ca. and I was hooked.
3) Under Stars. If you have ever spent the night in the desert you will understand this tune.
4) Among Giants. The next day, after a late breakfast, I pointed the Beeemer even deeper into the desert to explore the Mojave National Preserve. It is high-desert, almost alien terrain created by both volcanic and tectonic forces. The remnants of ash-cones and the upthrustings of rock are truly remarkable and huge. One feels as if one has entered the land of the giants.
5) No Mans Land. After exploring the desert sancurary I headed east along one of the more barren stretches of Route 66. It is truly a "No Mans Land."
6) The Ravening Sun. This is a very different and strange tune. My attempt at musically creating the detrimental and hallucinatory effects of extended desert exposure. For me this signals the beginning of the end.
7) Off The Edge. Due to an egregious navigational error I ended up that night in Page, AZ rather than Durango, CO. The next morning I succumbed to the heat and at 100 MPH drove the big BMW off the road into a rocky field.
8) Beemer Babe. Many of you will recognize this as the them music to Road Show. It was originally composed for my lovely wife, "The Wrench Wench," and is dedicated to her for sticking by me through a long recovery
The Picture Book
As an experiment I put the photography and story of this journey in a picture book/comic book format available for free viewing at.
http://www.highslab.com/lines1.html
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for much, much more.
We Need You!
We are always on the lookout for contributors to Road Show Magazine.
If you have something to contribute e-mail
You can also contact us at the podcast at...
Thank and ride safe.
Beemarman and crew
Location: Griffith Park, CA
Yesterday, on something of a whim, we jumped in the truck and headed south to check out the Griffith Park Sidecar Show. We knew where Griffith Park was, but had only a vague idea of the whereabouts of the show. Fate was kind t because as we neared the exit for the park a motorcycle with attached sidecar appeared in front of us.
Not a hard guess where they were going. Sure enough the old game of "follow that sidecar" soon led us to the Crystal Springs Picnic Area and a sea of classic, unusual, and just downright bizarre sidecar rigs.
The show was started almost by accident by Doug Bingham 36 years ago. Bingham is owner of Side Strider, Inc. and the first event was held just on the suggestion that he and his customers get together for a picnic. When over 40 rigs showed up Bingham knew he was on to something.
Since then the show has grown to include 300-400 entries and thousands of visitors each year.
Richard Williams poses with his Vintage BMW sidecar rig which has original paint and stripes.
Some entries were wilder than others..."calling Buck Rogers."
Please see the photo gallery for many more pix of the event
Last week we released episode 50 or The Road Show Motorcycle Podcast
Which means, amazingly, we have been "on-the-air" for almost a year.
At the same time my new album is almost done. It sort of harkens back to the late great '70's in that it is a concept album chronicling the journey I have been on these last few months. The songs are modern, but the concept of string a number of disparate elements together to tell a long form story has not been with us for some time.
This is not the album cover but it is a general concept of the feeling of the album.
I have also included an mp3 file of a tune called "Under Stars" which is on of the very different things on this collection.
Most importantly, however is we would like to invite you to the double birthday party, we just don't know when or where yet.....sooo will keep you posted.
Enjoy.
Cameron
www.highslab.com
I finally got around to putting the materials together from my last ride and here they are.
I am a little downhearted today because the guys in the Beemer club are giving me a hard time about this rebuild.
Usually it doesn't bother me but today it does. Anyway, here is the video.
Today the seat lock still would not budge although in jockeying around back there I must have knocked out a pound of red-desert clay. There was not a lot of time to work on it this morning beause the home-health nurse was coming and I had to have my IV and by the time that was d ione it was too hot to work outside. There is a heat wave going in in Bakersfield right now so it gets to be over 100 degrees early in the day and it is very easy to get dehydrated in the garage.
Being frustrated at the rear of the bike I switched to the front and did manage to get the windshield off even though I had to drill out one of the bolts because the impact had tweezed it so bad.
4:20 PM Same day...
Braved the heat to see what I could do with the back lock again. Then it occured to me it did not really matter what happened to the side fairings so I was able to pull them off. As I was doing so a kind of desperationg came over me to just somehow get the bike looking better, as if that would ease the pain somehow of these last three and a half months
David Robertson is the owner and propieter of the website:
In his own words:
"Welcome to BestBikingRoads.com, the motorcycle routes knowledge base for Motorcycle Travel. Using this site you can search for the best sport touring and Motorcycle touring roads in your area and for motorcycle holidays, then enter your favourite roads to see how they compare with others."
Send your articles and suggestions for the Road Show Magazine to: editor@roadshowmagazine.com
BMWeerman's Ghetto Garage
This week I polled a who's who of the world riding community for their list of the top 20 things you need to know to ride around the world. Below is an abbreviated compilation of their answers.
Learn the local language: The leading advice of everyone I spoke too. Whether or not you get it right or wrong a few sincere attempts at speaking the native tongue will take you further than anything else. Know bike Maintenance: A close second was knowing your bike and how to maintain it at least to some degree Plan well but be ready to improvise: The longer and further away you are from home the more likely your are going to need to be flexible. Emergency Evac Insurance Pack--then take half out Get trained Know how to navigate Buy medivac insurance Have paperwork in order Be Healthy Smile Research where you want to go Be security conscious Bend the Rules Self Care Know Political Situation Use Dummy Documents-Keep the real ones locked away Carry your patience Let others know where you are Just do it.
Road Music
Last summer while interviewing Tim Mayhew of www.pashnit.com he made the comment that, to him, each road has a theme and that is how he would structure his writing. It occured to me at that time that maybe roads could have songs too, so since that time I have been working on an album called Road Music. A few samples of which you can hear here.
