Riding the Rain

Last Sunday was spent riding with the Washington ATV Association, a club based in the Pacific Northwest. They were out on a work weekend, clearing trails in the Capitol State Forest near Olympia. The rain was heavy and steady, and it was a real challenge to keep the cameras working. The 10D fogged after two shoots, and the images were unusable after that (you could see they were fogged in the review screen, thankfully, as I realized the camera was toast and put it away). The 1DS was much better, hanging tough until we got back to the trucks. I think the better environmental seals on the 1DS body paid off. That camera worked through about a dozen stops, and then it fogged up back at the truck. The equipment was soaked by the end of the day, and I had to air out my bag and all of my equipment for a day when I got back. Happily, everything still worked just fine.

Incidentally, my flash and the new 1DS weren't on speaking terms (I think the contact pad wasn't hooking up, but I still have to investigate that glitch further), which meant that I had to shoot a lot of blurs and some static set-ups in low light. The blurs came out surprisingly well. The top photo was one of the first shot without a flash, and I think the soft light gives it a much more interesting look than all the second-curtain sync flash shots you see out there these days. I also hit a few pans on the nose and kept things sharp enough to work well, which I wouldn't have bet I could do in that light. Honestly, given the conditions, I was surprised to find plenty of good images when I came home.

As I noted a few entries back, I wanted to try having someone along to help out during the shoot. Tami Inslee, a graphic designer friend, was willing to lend a hand in order to get a dirt fix. While the tough weather and narrow trails made it pretty much impossible to put her to work while I was shooting on the trail, it was great to have a camera working while I was interviewing club members. As with the Wisconsin club, that is a busy time, and having someone else free to take photos of club members, the setting for the get-together, and so on is a big plus. It's also nice to have someone to help get names. An added bonus was she got one of the best quotes of the day, from four-year-old Hannah. Hannah rides her own ATV, and when asked why she likes it, she said, "Because it's fast." Nice quote, and the help was appreciated.

Big thanks are due to the club members who came out in nasty weather to take part in the ride. They were incredibly generous with time and machinery, and went out of the way to make us feel welcome. In fact, I think we both would have frozen without some borrowed clothes. And thanks to Ron Wolf, a Wisconsin guy who did his best to send us home smashed on his homemade cherry and booze concoctions. We managed to dodge that bullet, but I appreciate the hospitality! The club is doing good work keeping our trails open, and have logged a ton of time clearing trails. A hard-working bunch dedicated to their sport. If you ride in the Capitol State Forest, you have Kathy and Joe Heitmann and the Washington ATV Association to thank.