Higher Ground Hundo!

Last weekend I drove to Johnstown, PA for a cycling event run by Hope Cyclery. I had signed up for a 73 mile ride that had 8200 feet of climbing - more than I had ever climbed before. When I arrived in town I went to the bike shop and Crust Bikes was hosting a "happy hour" party. My buddy Dylan and his friend Ed showed up from Columbus - I was proud of myself for planning something solo but also glad to see familiar faces. After the party it was over to a city park to set up camp. In the morning we were off on the beautiful but tough ride. I really enjoyed the extremely challenging ride. I was absolutely whooped when I got back to camp. There was food, beer and a fire and just hanging out and talking to other cyclists was how I spent the afternoon/evening. I did not capture a lot of photos but did shoot a lot of GoPro footage - check out the video HERE. I plan to be back next year!

Bandit Cross!

A friend of the Youtube Channel was hosting a bandit cross event near Cleveland - me and a few friends rode up to check it out(it made for a 99 mile day in the saddle for me!) The idea behind a bandit cross event is that it is a cyclocross race but completely unsanctioned and with no permission asked. (not that we were disrespectful in any meaningful way). It was fun to shoot some photos and see the Joy Machines crew. I actually interviewed Jon, the organizer, on a livestream. It did make for a long ride home to Akron in the dark though!

Canton Day

Erin had an old friend hit her up about some bicycles he was trying to get rid of before moving. They were a couple interesting older mountain bikes so we went to grab them. Since he was near Canton we brought our own bikes and decided to make an afternoon out of it. We parked in Downtown and rode to a coffee shop we had heard about - Walkie Talkie - which was great. We then found our way to Covered Bridge Park, which is distinguished by a notable lack of a covered bridge, and picked up the West Branch Trail. We then worked our way back into downtown and hit a couple breweries for lunch and drinks. The day was a good reminder that you can have a lot of fun exploring close to home.

The Mom's & The Bone Zone

Ben, Brad and I went out past Kent on a bike ride - we drank a couple beers at one of our favorite secret spots. After we rode back to Dirty River Bicycle Works in Akron where The Mom's were playing an outdoor show.

What's the Cordelia?

For Erin's birthday a group of friends rode up to Cleveland to have lunch at Cordelia - a restaurant run by a friend which is absolutely amazing. I had a gig after brunch so I wasn't able to ride up there(of course I still brought my bike and cruised around a bit before they arrived). I snapped a couple photos of their arrival.

Akron Pride

It was a beautiful summer day to be out cruising around on my bicycle. It was also Pride in Downtown Akron. This was the second year they held it downtown and I think it works awesome in this location. There was a massive turnout again and I saw a ton of friends. I wasn't working this year but I had come from another event on my bike so I snapped some photos to document.

Asterisk Turn the Big Three!

Here are some images from Asterisk Coffee Bar's third anniversary party!

Working in Detroit

Babcox Media in Fairlawn hired me again to shoot their Auto Pros on the Road Series - this was season 3 in Detroit. I always love visiting Detroit and this was a really cool shoot because we were filming at a lot of the historic locations in addition to the usual shops. I was filming with my Canon R5 - mostly slow motion b-roll. These are some of my behind the scenes photos. I also had an extra day there after we were done working - which I used to ride my bicycle around a bit. I made a couple of riding videos on the YouTube channel showcasing that experience.

Free Black in Kenmore!

We rode our bike to see Free Black headline Kenmore's First Friday. First Friday is a monthly event in the business district of Kenmore - a neighborhood in Akron. Food trucks, performances, local art, vendors etc. Summer in the city.

Free Black at the Rock Hall

Micah, Ben and I rode our bikes up to Cleveland to see Free Black perform at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. The Rock Hall has had an outdoor concert series for a while but this was the first time I made it to one. We had a lot of fun watching the band in this beautiful setting with a perfect summer sunset. The late night three hour ride home in the dark was a long one - but we made it. I was really glad I lugged my camera all the way.

Codelia & Cleveland Light

We were excited to make a reservation and get up to Cordelia on East 4th in Cleveland. It is a new restaurant our buddy Chef Vinnie opened. We had had his food at other catered events and it has always been amazing - and it did not disappoint at the brick and mortar spot. We all ordered a bunch of shareable small plates - maybe most of the menu! It is 100% worth the trip to Cleveland. A breath of fresh air in the dinning scene. We went for a walk to the Lake after dinner - it was beautiful out. 

No Justice, No Peace

DC to Pitt by Bicycle

For a number of years we have been going on a bike tour around 4th of July. This year we decided to take on the C&O Trail and the GAP Trail. The C&O runs from DC to Cumberland where it changes over to the GAP Trail to Pittsburg. We spent a night in Pitt then took the early morning train to DC where we spent the night hanging out with a friend and checking out the city before hitting the trail in the morning. We were not trying to rush the trip - we wanted to enjoy the ride. We did spend three days riding the C&O and only two riding the GAP as we wanted to spend a little more time along the canal history.

1996 Team Marin

My friends and I are planning for an adventure(more on that soon) and I decided to build a new bike for it. "New" in quotes because it is actually a frame and for from 1996 - a California built, steel, Marin. The rest of the build is a mix of new and old - Shimano 9 speed groupset, Velo Orange cranks, stem and bars, Wald basket etc. There will be a lot more about this bike over on the YouTube Channel but I had to take a few images of it here in the studio.

Swift Campout

I own a number of US-made bike bags by Swift Industries and every year around the solstice they encourage people to get out for a bike-packing over-nighter. This year they had a photo contest to go along with it. Five of us set out to camp in Garrettsville but two decided to turn back. I took a ton of photos and strung them together to make a video - here are a couple of them and the video version will be linked at the bottom.

Arts Awards

My buddy Albert who owns Akron Coffee Roasters was being honored for his patronage of the arts in Summit County. I wasn't working this event and didn't want to get in the way but still did capture a few photos. It was a huge bonus to find out my highschool photography teacher was also being honored! Hadn't seen him since he turned me on to photography all those years ago.

Go Skate Day

 

Go Skate Day is on the Summer Solstice. It started in 2004 and the idea was to get more people out riding and lots of skate shops now host events. A few friends of mine had their own DIY version at the RailYard in Akron. I stopped by to hang out and drink a few beers.

June Things

Here is a little mix of images from the first couple weeks in June. This first shot is from the valley ball courts near downtown Akron while being used by Summit Sports & Social.