Categories
Event Photography Skiing Sports

2013 Stowe Derby

Order Prints

2013 Stowe Derby photos are available online and indexed by bib number. Find yourself,order a print to relish the day. Or find a friend and order a print to mock their crash!

Another Stowe Derby is in the books. Congratulations to everyone involved! We were lucky enough to get some snow in the week prior to the race and conditions were nearly perfect. Warm weather on race day even made it a pleasure to stand on a mountain side for hours at a time!

My day starts with checking in and heading over to the short course start. This year, the scenery was beautiful as the first few hundred yards of the course came through the tree-lined Stowe Recreation Path. The fresh snow on the branches makes for an ideal backdrop.

2013 Stowe Derby, Stowe, Vermont (30)

 

 

2013 Stowe Derby, Stowe, Vermont (29)

 

While I’m shooting the start, Tawny gets settled near the end of the course. Some years, this vantage point provides a beautiful mountain backdrop, but this year we were socked in up on the hill. You can’t win them all!

2013 Stowe Derby, Stowe, Vermont (28)

 

 

2013 Stowe Derby, Stowe, Vermont (27)

 

After shooting the start of the short course, I head to the top of the mountain and get settled on turn one.  The mountain was really quiet this year and I could clearly hear the “boop, boop, boop, boop, beep!” of the starting bell. Many of the first racers came flying around the first corner with apparent ease. You have my admiration.

2013 Stowe Derby, Stowe, Vermont (26)

 

 

2013 Stowe Derby, Stowe, Vermont (25)

 

 

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Others had some trouble navigating the ice down the center, the powdery ruts along the outside, or the divots from prior competitors’ falls. You have my sympathy.

2013 Stowe Derby, Stowe, Vermont (23)

 

 

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I think the photo below is my favorite position. I seem to capture one of these every year. This one scores a perfect 10.

2013 Stowe Derby, Stowe, Vermont (20)

 

 

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As usual, spirits were high and most of the people that fell popped right back up with smiles on their faces. I especially liked the tutu troop’s costumes this year! A fun splash of color on a grey day.

2013 Stowe Derby, Stowe, Vermont (17)

 

In preparation for the classical start, I headed down the toll road a little ways to one of the more popular corners. When I arrived, it looked like many more people went over the edge than normal, but the patroller on scene said he felt it was about normal. Stowe Ski Patrol did a great job at padding the trees and saplings in the landing zone, though, and even coached skiers through extracting themselves from a difficult position. Props to them.

The classic skiers seemed to have it dialed through the corner.

2013 Stowe Derby, Stowe, Vermont (16)

 

 

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Well… some did, but if you didn’t clean this corner don’t feel bad — you’re in good company.

2013 Stowe Derby, Stowe, Vermont (14)

 

 

2013 Stowe Derby, Stowe, Vermont (13)

 

This is Ray. He suffered some equipment issues… he broke the duckbill off of his boot while warming up at the start! Never the less, and with the assistance of a little electrical tape provided by a liftie, he started and finished the race. (Did I mention he’s skiing on his grandfather’s Bonna 1800 skis?)

2013 Stowe Derby, Stowe, Vermont (12)

 

Back in near the finish, skiers always round this corner and start looking for the finish. You’re almost there!

2013 Stowe Derby, Stowe, Vermont (11)

 

 

2013 Stowe Derby, Stowe, Vermont (10)

 

More equipment failures, apparently. This is dedication, though. He’s not walking to the finish, he was running when he passed Tawny and running when he arrived at the finish line about 1k later. How long did you run?

2013 Stowe Derby, Stowe, Vermont (9)

 

The nice part about being down here is that people will wander about and sometime stay to chat for a few minutes. Some people are just out to walk the dogs and others are in town on vacation, only learning of the Stowe Derby from their waitress at breakfast.

2013 Stowe Derby, Stowe, Vermont (8)

 

Hey wait – I recognize you!

2013 Stowe Derby, Stowe, Vermont (7)

 

When the action is over on the mountain, I head to the finish to catch some relieved looks as people round the last corner and cross the finish line. This guy had a mob of kids pushing him to the finish.

2013 Stowe Derby, Stowe, Vermont (6)

 

 

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2013 Stowe Derby, Stowe, Vermont (4)

 

Careful! Just a few more yards! (He stayed upright)

2013 Stowe Derby, Stowe, Vermont (3)

 

 

2013 Stowe Derby, Stowe, Vermont (2)

 

 

2013 Stowe Derby, Stowe, Vermont (1)

See you all next year!

If you’re looking for photos of yourself, you can find them at http://benjamindbloom.com/stowederby. You can search by your bib number or just browse the whole pile of photos.

 

Categories
Music

Hug Your Farmer: 50 Years of the Rolling Stones

Hug Your Farmer returned, last Thursday, with a tribute to 50 years of the Rolling Stones. A who’s who of musicians rallied to raise money for The Vermont New Farmer Project, which provides assistance to the next generation of Vermont farmers. Thanks for a great night of music! I’m already looking forward to the next one.

(UPDATE: Links to videos at the end of this post)

 

 

Brian Cadoret was at the event and, as he often does, he’s posted a few recordings of the show:

Thanks, Brian!

Categories
Sports

USA Triathlon Nationals

On Sunday, August 19th, 2012, the USA Triathlon Sprint Nationals came to Burlington, VT. I was busy for the Olympic distance race the previous day.   Around 8am, I was able to open my front door and wander onto my porch with cup of tea to enjoy the bike leg. The wheels really hum when the riders are coming down the street at 25MPH! For about 2 hours, our road was a constant stream of cyclists on their out-and-back route. It was fun to cheer them on and see them pushing so hard. I couldn’t help but grab my camera and take a few photos.

I hadn’t seen these before. Looks like a great way to speed up transitions. How well do they pedal?

My favorite competitor, below. (No relation, however..)

These are only some of the photos, you can also visit the full gallery of Sprint Tri photos.

Categories
Music

Vermont Festival of the Arts: First Annual Community Picnic

To kick off this year’s Vermont Festival of the Arts, Haywire and The Grift were invited to Lareau Farm to play for the first annual community picnic. People showed up in droves, spreading their blankets around the great back yard of the inn. The fires were lit, the ovens were cranking out American Flatbread, and the bar had local beer. Kids were playing frisbee and badminton while the bands started.

Haywire started the evening off with a great set of music.

 

Then The Grift took the stage with a high energy mix of covers and original music.

 

 

 

Early in the evening, the dance floor was empty, but as the night went on it got crowded. I don’t think this girl was complaining in either situation – she was trying to get the party started here and continued to dance to every song until the end of the night!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As dusk arrived, the clouds got thicker and the announcement was made that the fireworks would go off a bit early.

 

Enhanced with a few flashes of lightening, Northstar Fireworks put on a good show in a slight drizzle.

 

 

 

 

 

The grand finale went off just moments before the skies opened up and drenched anyone still outside the pavilion. No matter, though,  The Grift kicked up the dance music again and the party was hopping. A little rain wasn’t going to dampen anyone’s spirits this evening.

 

Categories
Music

Burlington Discover Jazz Festival – The Necessary Means at Nectar’s

The first week of June is a great time to be in Burlington. It’s the week of the annual Burlington Discover Jazz Festival which brings together international and local musicians together to play at a variety of venues around the city. I love walking down Church Street during the festival; every block you can hear different sounds drifting out of the windows or on outdoor stages.

This year, The Necessary Means played at Nectar’s as a part of the festivities. Ray Paczkowski and Russ Lawton (Soule Monde) opened.  If you haven’t seen these two play together, you’re missing out. It’s hard to believe that two people can produce such a big, full sound. I kept looking around to see where they were hiding all the other musicians.

Burlington Discover Jazz Festival - Ray Paczkowski at Nectar's (June 5, 2012) (1)

 

After a quick stage reset (it’s gotta be hard always moving around that big Hammond organ) the Necessary Means came on and didn’t disappoint. Their Facebook page describes their sound as “70’s horn funk meets modern jam jazz” and that about nails it. Longtime Grift fans will recognize a few songs as solo riffs that have been turned into full fledged, standalone art. What strikes me every time I see these guys play is that in addition to sounding great, they’re all having fun on stage.

Enough words.  Enjoy the photos — and maybe put on a few tunes while you’re scrolling through them.

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Burlington Discover Jazz Festival - The Necessary Means at Nectar's (June 5, 2012) (9)

 

 

Burlington Discover Jazz Festival - The Necessary Means at Nectar's (June 5, 2012) (10)

 

 

Burlington Discover Jazz Festival - The Necessary Means at Nectar's (June 5, 2012) (11)

 

 

Burlington Discover Jazz Festival - The Necessary Means at Nectar's (June 5, 2012) (12)

 

 

Burlington Discover Jazz Festival - The Necessary Means at Nectar's (June 5, 2012) (13)

 

 

Burlington Discover Jazz Festival - The Necessary Means at Nectar's (June 5, 2012) (14)

 

 

Burlington Discover Jazz Festival - The Necessary Means at Nectar's (June 5, 2012) (15)

 

 

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Burlington Discover Jazz Festival - The Necessary Means at Nectar's (June 5, 2012) (18)

 

Burlington Discover Jazz Festival - The Necessary Means at Nectar's (June 5, 2012) (20)

 

 

Burlington Discover Jazz Festival - The Necessary Means at Nectar's (June 5, 2012) (21)

 

I found the secret sauce to Daiki’s awesome percussion. Coconut Juice.

Burlington Discover Jazz Festival - The Necessary Means at Nectar's (June 5, 2012) (22)

 

 

Burlington Discover Jazz Festival - The Necessary Means at Nectar's (June 5, 2012) (23)

 

 

Burlington Discover Jazz Festival - The Necessary Means at Nectar's (June 5, 2012) (24)

 

 

Burlington Discover Jazz Festival - The Necessary Means at Nectar's (June 5, 2012) (25)

 

I recommend picking up their album, “Click” from CDBaby. It’s only 6 bucks as a digital download.

 

There are still a couple more days of music. Who’re you going to see?