Like Father Like Son....

My astrophotography bug has rubbed off on the old man. He's down in Australia, and owns a very nice 10" Dobsonian. Anyway, recently he brought a new camera, a Canon Powershot G10. So, he was mucking around the other night and managed to take the image below.

























Method used was holding the camera by hand against a 10mm eyepiece and simply shooting. It's a funky way to take an astrophoto but for beginners, it's "bloody great" to use his words.

To him I say, "Ripper shot, mate!"

Image Details:

• Bintel 10" Dobsonian
• Canon Powershot G10
• 1/320 second
• ISO 80
• f2.8
• Mild post processing im GIMP by his sneaky son
  

TEST

MS-150: Check!

Beauty! I've completed my first MS-150 ride. The first day was hell~ish. We left Houston at around 6:30 am, joining a massive, rolling, multi-colored sea of bike helmets and jerseys. The morning was fine, and we booked it to the mid-way lunch point in no time at all (about 50 miles in). However in the afternoon, the winds picked up from the NNW, and as we were headed in that general direction, it made for a shocker of an afternoon. I later found out the head winds were around 20-25 MPH! I was zonked by the time I reached the finish line at La Grange, at around 3PM, my right leg was cramping like mad. The finish at La Grange was great as folks lined the streets and welcomed us with high fives and cowbells!

The second day was MUCH better. The winds were not as strong as expected, and I was able to join different pace lines to help break down the resistance of the wind. Due to my right leg problems I had little faith in my performance for the second day, but once I got rolling I felt pretty good and just decided to finish the ride as quickly as I could. I only stopped about three times, including lunch and two rest stops. I crossed the Austin finish line bang on 1PM to a massive crowd of cheering supporters who lined the streets. It was what it must feel like to come across the finish line at a major European race. It definitely felt like a bit of a hero moment, actually, and I was rather chuffed with myself for finishing the ride and not killing myself in the process.

My wife and her riding buddy did very well as well. They suffered on the first day like the rest of us, but crossed the Austin finish line on Sunday at a good pace and should be proud of themselves.

There were around 13,500 cyclists in this one, and I think that makes it the biggest ride event in the US. There were several accidents, two of which I saw and they were quite nasty. Thankfully nothing serious is being reported on the news at this time. Overall, the ride was very well organized and supported, with rest stops full of food and drink every ten miles or so. The lunch stops were great, with sandwiches, ice cream, fruit and other snacks available to all riders. A big thumbs up to the ride organizers!

I'm happy with my performance. Although it's not a race, I did push myself a bit and attacked most hills standing up. I also rode much more strategically on this ride, utilizing pace lines where I could while pulling other pace lines when the chance arose. I'm starting to enjoy that sort of riding. I didn't feel at all exhausted when I reached Austin, just a bit sore in the legs and shoulders. Maybe I've crossed a new threshold... The best feeling of all, though, was knowing I'd done something good for a worthy ride. Along the route were people who suffered from MS cheering on the riders. It was great to ride for them.

Looking forward to next year...

Killing Myself This Weekend

This weekend, my wife and I are taking part in the MS-150 charity bicycle ride from Houston to Austin. That's about 180 miles, or 290 kilometers, over a two day stretch. I have been doing some training but not too much. I just need to get on my bike and do it. Sadly, the wind forecast has 10-12 MPH near-headwinds. That's really not nice! Otherwise sunny and around 80 degrees or so. Wish me luck!

Rosedale Ride 2008

I took part in the Rosedale Ride this past weekend. Weather was great with minimal wind, maybe 4MPH. I haven't done much riding lately because I've been encouraging my wife to get in as many rides as she can prior to her attempting the MS-150. Anyway, the ride was just great. I've always been keen on trying to get decent times on the metric centuries and I did fairly well this time around. Total ride time, including rest stops, was 3:54. Total saddle time was 3:25. So, I managed to shave about one hour of my last attempt a month ago. The ride was relatively flat so I should be too chuffed with myself, but I'm feeling like I am in good shape for the MS-150 next month.

Conquer the Coast - Corpus Christi 2007

This weekend, my wife and I traveled down to Corpus Christi, Texas, for their 4th annual "Conquer the Coast" endurance ride. We originally signed up for the 25 mile ride, as my wife had just purchased a new road bike and we wanted her to be comfortable, but she told me she wanted to do the 65 mile ride instead (the only other option apart from an 18 mile time trial).

We got into Corpus at about 9:00pm and made the registration book just before they closed,upgrading to the 65 mile ride for an extra $10.00 each. No worries. Then, back to the hotel for an early night before the ride.

At 6:30am on ride day, I was awoken by a massive clap of thunder! Lovely... A major storm had hit the area, and roads were being closed down. Even the local Naval Air Station had closed down, which was supposed to be part of the 65 mile ride. We got in touch with someone at the starting area while we were still at our hotel and the decision was initially made to delay the 65 mile ride for an hour. We ate some of the hotel's free continental brekky, then another call - 65 mile ride canceled, 25 mile ride still on! My wife and I loaded up the bikes onto the car real quick and headed to the start line.

We were still getting sorted out at the start line when the ride started. We joined in the back, and for the most part had an okay ride. It rained through the ride a fair bit, and we got utterly saturated. At the turnarounf/half-way point, we took a quick rest for drinks and snacks before heading back to the start/finish line. Shortly after that point I came across a lady who was having issues with a flat tire. I stopped to assist, telling my wife to continue and I that I would catch up. Thirty minutes, a broken tube valve and impossibly tight tire to put back on the wheel later, and I was off again. I hooned past everyone to catch my wife, averaging about 33 km/h, but couldn't reach her. I crossed the finish line just fine, picking up my finisher's medal and meeting my wife for some free pasta and beer!

Because we had left the kids with their grandparents back home, we could then enjoy a relaxing afternoon and evening in Corpus. We toured around a bit in the car, and enjoyed a nice seafood dinner at Landry's too. After that we hung out on one of the piers drinking coffee and watching the local fisherman.

The next morning, it was rather nice! We awoke to sunny skies and gentle winds coming in from the Gulf. With a few hours to spare, we popped on our bikes and rode another 25 miles, just for fun. Despite the two flats I got en-route, it was a very nice ride and took our weekend tally up to 50 miles! Not a bad effort!

Next year we'll be back, and the coast shall be conquered!