November 23 was one of those days that cyclists dream about. Warm, sunny, and delightfully lacking in headwinds that could slow you down — and get you down. For me, it was a great day for a bike-tographic expedition to the last mile of El Tour de Tucson 2019.
The 100-mile race winner, Ulises Alfredo Castillo Soto, edged out Eric Marcotte for a first place finish. Soto won his first El Tour championship in only 3:47:56.7.
Bike-tography at the Bicycle Races
Note: I first elaborated on this topic back in 2011. Here’s an update to that blog post.
If I’m not shooting at home, chances are good that I got to the job on my bicycle. During my early bike-tographic expeditions, I traveled with a backpack.
Although it was a stylish pack, it left a lot to be desired. Three major problems:
- It moved my cycling center of gravity away from the hips and into the back. This increased the risk of capsizing. Fortunately, that never happened.
- When fully loaded, that backpack was HEAVY.
- The combination of a heavy pack and an unstable ride made for a very grouchy Martha. And that’s before we get to talking about the shoulder, back, and hip pains that don’t take long to materialize.
Suffice it to say that I’d rather be a happy bike-tographer.
Ending the Backpack Backache
So, what’s the solution? Save the backpack for photography while walking around. When on a bike-tographic expedition, let the bike carry the weight. I offer two suggestions in the aforementioned 2011 blog post.
Since I wrote that post, I’ve found a low-tech way to pedal with photographic gear – and keep it safe. Meet the Bike Buckets. I line mine with bubble wrap, which is cheap, plentiful, and great for protecting expensive equipment.