My first trip to Snowshoe

[highrevs]

http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/pbhighrevs/070525-snowshoe/_DSC4899.jpg

A group of us from the Re:cycles bike shop went to Snowshoe, WV over Memorial Day weekend. This was my first trip to Snowshoe during the summer and I had heard tons of hype surrounding this place. I tried not to build up any major expectations or buy into the hype. I watched a few race videos and saw a few photos, but I kept hearing stories that painted a different idea than what the intarweb had to offer.

I had the pleasure of riding a ‘07 kona coiler deluxe. I did a little set up the night before swapping tires and setting suspension sag. There was a little rebound damping dialing left to do, but I had a good base set up until I rode on trail a bit, I thought anyway.

http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/pbhighrevs/070525-snowshoe/_DSC4897.jpg

After arriving around midday Friday we set up the condo and geared up for our first run of the trip. The guys I went with had a tradition of running a certain two trails as the first descent on any Snowshoe trip. So far I had heard about an eight foot skinnie at the trail head, but that was pretty much it. So off we go on my first descent at Snowshoe.

The coiler felt awesome. More travel with better suspension than my dawg, plus a much more relaxed cockpit. I had (maybe) 30 minutes seat time with the coiler and was not too sure what to expect as far as trail conditions, but I was stoked none the less. So we get lift passes and head to a trial head on the basin side. The five of us gathered at the trailhead and someone said “here we go, A to H”. Then I notice the sign with the letter “A” and I followed there lead.

I will admit my first run at snowshoe pretty much put the fear in me! I will suggest that if you are new to gnarly DH, then riding A to H on the basin side is not the first run at Snowshoe you should make. The top of A was insanely steep and nothing like I had seen before… and that is really all I remember about that run. I made it, but whoa…

Anyway my fist descent at this place made for a run I’ll never forget. After I recovered from the shock of riding the craziest sh!t I’ve ever seen, I managed to find myself a little flow on some of the “mellower” trails. I was pretty stoked on trails like M, O and D and of course there is lots of good stuff on the west side.

So there are no photos from my first descent, but I did take some photos on the basin side and during other parts of the trip. Enjoy!

Wheeliemert showing a little excitement upon our arrival
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/pbhighrevs/070525-snowshoe/_DSC4808e.jpg

a place we hung out and had a few beers throughout the trip
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/pbhighrevs/070525-snowshoe/_DSC4811e.jpg

had a little urban sesh one evening
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/pbhighrevs/070525-snowshoe/_DSC4818e.jpg

http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/pbhighrevs/070525-snowshoe/_DSC4828e.jpg

trekbro doing his thing… chillen
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/pbhighrevs/070525-snowshoe/_DSC4810e.jpg

chris getting stylie on the hip at the top of the basin side
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/pbhighrevs/070525-snowshoe/_DSC4859.jpg

enjoying the views and the company
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/pbhighrevs/070525-snowshoe/_DSC4866.jpg

saw these guys when going for coffee one morning
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/pbhighrevs/070525-snowshoe/_DSC4873.jpg

gastro rippen a fun section of M on the basin side
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/pbhighrevs/070525-snowshoe/_DSC4887.jpg

gnarly sections of B
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/pbhighrevs/070525-snowshoe/_DSC4891.jpg

http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/pbhighrevs/070525-snowshoe/_DSC4892.jpg

(the photos don’t do the steepness any justice)
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/pbhighrevs/070525-snowshoe/_DSC4900.jpg

couple of nice berms (still on B)
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/pbhighrevs/070525-snowshoe/_DSC4918.jpg

http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/pbhighrevs/070525-snowshoe/_DSC4937.jpg



After this shot above and while standing at the top of G… the sky fell out. So it was a fast, haul ass down G to get to the shack at the base of the hill. I had the concern of keeping the photo gear from getting wet. I rode G faster than my first time, even with the added weight of my photo gear on my back. (I forgot to take any sort of rain gear out that day)



the rain stopped for a little bit while we were down by the basin
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/pbhighrevs/070525-snowshoe/_DSC4943.jpg

so then these four and i wondered back to the fire fox
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/pbhighrevs/070525-snowshoe/_DSC4962e.jpg

for more beer
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/pbhighrevs/070525-snowshoe/_DSC4970e.jpg

a few stories were swapped
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/pbhighrevs/070525-snowshoe/_DSC5004e.jpg

http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/pbhighrevs/070525-snowshoe/_DSC5008e.jpg

some day dreaming went on
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/pbhighrevs/070525-snowshoe/_DSC4978e.jpg

I was stoked I had new shades
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/pbhighrevs/070525-snowshoe/_DSC4815e.jpg

Later we hit up a little more urban
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/pbhighrevs/070525-snowshoe/_DSC5095e.jpg

[forest gump]I like this one alot[/forest gump]
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/pbhighrevs/070525-snowshoe/_DSC5128e.jpg

This guy always looks good in front of the lens
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/pbhighrevs/070525-snowshoe/_DSC5133e.jpg



Our last day of riding was muddy as hell due to the rains the day before. I made two runs down the west side and said some thing like ~screw this… :reaching for energy:… I’m too tired~. :D
I felt spoiled after riding for three days with dry conditions and the wet was just too crazy for my tired beat up body.



just something I saw through the window on the way home
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/pbhighrevs/070525-snowshoe/_DSC5152e.jpg

self portrait
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/pbhighrevs/070525-snowshoe/_DSC5160.jpg

So… these are my ramblings and photos from a recent trip to ride bikes and… well… drink beer.
-robert seth

[manimal]

wow robert! insanely cool pics :thumb: i've got to get up to SS sometime, looks like a blast.

[Quo Fan]

Nice shots. I like the grainy urban shot.

[TreeSaw]

:thumb: Excellent photos! We hit SS a few years back for an awesome weekend of riding. I'm thinking we need to get back.

[splat]

WOW , those are some nice shots!!!

[MMcG]

excellent photos and report! You took some really great shots. I like the one of you guys standing with your reflections mirrored in the puddle. Nice job.

[Castle]

Dude! Those shots are great! Thanks for puttin em up....

you heading back up to the shoe anytime soon?

[narlus]

nice shots, i really like the feel of the two night/urban shots.

[dirtydirtysouf]

nice pics....................:clapping: :clapping:

[stoneysnake]

thanks for the report. that was great.

[highrevs]

Dude! Those shots are great! Thanks for puttin em up....
you heading back up to the shoe anytime soon?

Thanks for the compliments everyone. I was really stoked on several of the photos.

I hope to spend some more time up there this season. I might get up there for blues, brews and bbq in September. I heard that was a good time. I think it would be fun to go up for the race events, but I'm not sure I'll have the funds for it. So I guess, no set plans yet, but i'll be back for sure.

[bizutch]

my favorite was the puddle photo.

[Basher]

Very nice pics. I briefly met the guy on the Banshee with the black Shiver, very nice rig. Also like the shot of dude sportin the Spectrum gear at the bar.

[highrevs]

Very nice pics. I briefly met the guy on the Banshee with the black Shiver, very nice rig. Also like the shot of dude sportin the Spectrum gear at the bar.
That's was Merritt (the dude in the first image), who is also the the owner of Re:cycles. I've known him for long time and he's a super fun guy to go on a road trip with.

he also has a transition double with a double barrel
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/pbhighrevs/070525-snowshoe/_DSC5100e.jpg

[manhattanprjkt83]

holy christ best snowshoe ride report ever...no doubt.

[SK6]

Its amazing to me how a picture rarely does a trail or course justice. That section through M is pretty gnarly! Great shots!!!!!!!

[narlus]

That's was Merritt (the dude in the first image), who is also the the owner of Re:cycles. I've known him for long time and he's a super fun guy to go on a road trip with.

he also has a double barrel
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/pbhighrevs/070525-snowshoe/_DSC5100e.jpg

i checked the exif on that...'flash did not fire'...how'd you get the grass so bright, that low?

[highrevs]

i checked the exif on that...'flash did not fire'...how'd you get the grass so bright, that low?


The flash was on a small tripod to my right and triggered by a pocket wizard.

[ridiculous]

thats awesome! youve got some sick photography skills.

[bluebug32]

nice photography! :thumb:

What lenses were you using?

[ATOMICFIREBALL]

That place is nice & sticky green..Nice natural terrain. Good photo's.
Trekbro got a haircut...eh ?

[brungeman]

Robert,

you know that I am (as well as many others around here) a big fan of your pics from some of our other conversations in other threads... you have not let me down... Manhattan emailed me early today to tell me to check out your post... since most image hosting sites are blocked at work I had to wait till I got home... again, I had been reeling in anticipation! You came through big time! thanks for the write up and as always, great pics!

[highrevs]

Again thanks for the compliments. Some times it’s hard for me to see past the technical flaws in my photos. Sometimes I get too hung up over what it is wrong with an image, but I’m starting to find my groove and understand what types of photos make me happy. It feels pretty dang cool to be able to make an impression with photography.

nice photography! :thumb:
What lenses were you using?
I used a nikkor 50mm/1.8 and the 18-70/3.5-5.6 kit lens.

That place is nice & sticky green. .Nice natural terrain. Good photo's.
Trekbro got a haircut...eh ?
I was thoroughly impressed with SS and I never asked why trekbro cut his hair, but yeah he did. :D

Robert,

you know that I am (as well as many others around here) a big fan of your pics from some of our other conversations in other threads... you have not let me down... Manhattan emailed me early today to tell me to check out your post... since most image hosting sites are blocked at work I had to wait till I got home... again, I had been reeling in anticipation! You came through big time! thanks for the write up and as always, great pics!

Too cool! I’m glad I didn’t let you down. I was really hyped on several photos in this batch. It had been a few weeks since I shot anything bike related, so I was kinda looking for something on this trip. I can’t wait to see some prints.

[brungeman]

did you do any adjusting of the white ballance? your shots are really well saturated, and I have not started messing with the WB on my D50... but now that I have more time I will start the process of fine tuning and shooting more. I am also going to pick up the 50mm 1.8 as well :thumb: although most places are out of stock and backordered:disgust:

[highrevs]

did you do any adjusting of the white balance? your shots are really well saturated, and I have not started messing with the WB on my D50... but now that I have more time I will start the process of fine tuning and shooting more. I am also going to pick up the 50mm 1.8 as well :thumb: although most places are out of stock and backordered:disgust:

Usually I just use the full sun or flash white balance settings when shooting out side with flash. Indoors is where the white balance stuff gets tricky. You can end up with so many mixed lighting conditions.
Ex.
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/pbhighrevs/070525-snowshoe/_DSC5011e.jpg

For indoor stuff with extreme differences in color temps (and if I’m really chasing an image), I’ll try presetting the WB off of something white in the dominant light source affecting the frame… Also if you shoot RAW you can make color temp adjustments after the fact. As far as the color saturation it’s all about nailing the exposure and a color correction PP. Hope that helped some..? Oh and I’m sure you’ll like the 50mm/1.8.

[Summit]

That makes me want to get into photography. Incredible photos man.

And I can't wait to get out to SS...only about 5 hours away now that I moved from the west to lovely Ohio. Hoping for sometime in July!

[bizutch]

And I can't wait to get out to SS...only about 5 hours away now that I moved from the west to lovely Ohio. Hoping for sometime in July!


bring golashes. :thumb:

[Wndrckr]

Again thanks for the compliments. Some times it’s hard for me to see past the technical flaws in my photos. Sometimes I get too hung up over what it is wrong with an image, but I’m starting to find my groove and understand what types of photos make me happy. It feels pretty dang cool to be able to make an impression with photography.

Nice shootin'. It's those not so perfect shots that get under your skin and a desire to get it right the next time where you'll learn and improve dramatically. And definately stick with what makes you happy. :thumb:

[brungeman]

Usually I just use the full sun or flash white balance settings when shooting out side with flash. Indoors is where the white balance stuff gets tricky. You can end up with so many mixed lighting conditions.
Ex.
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e108/pbhighrevs/070525-snowshoe/_DSC5011e.jpg

For indoor stuff with extreme differences in color temps (and if I’m really chasing an image), I’ll try presetting the WB off of something white in the dominant light source affecting the frame… Also if you shoot RAW you can make color temp adjustments after the fact. As far as the color saturation it’s all about nailing the exposure and a color correction PP. Hope that helped some..? Oh and I’m sure you’ll like the 50mm/1.8.

right on... def. helped! :thumb:

[Transcend]

Fantastic shots.

[highrevs]

Nice shootin'. It's those not so perfect shots that get under your skin and a desire to get it right the next time where you'll learn and improve dramatically. And definately stick with what makes you happy. :thumb:

Thanks for the encouraging words, from every one. I am really stoked on the responses I’m receiving from this write up. It’s been very confidence inspiring.

right on... def. helped! :thumb:
Cool, I’m glad I could help!

Fantastic shots.
Hell yeah, thanks man! Getting a little nod from the Pro’s is always good stuff.

:cheers:

[Hyper]

what camera+lenses are you using highrevs ?

[highrevs]

what camera+lenses are you using highrevs ?

I used a nikkor 50mm/1.8 and the 18-70/3.5-5.6 kit lens.


^^^those lenses a Nikon D70s, a couple of flashes and a pair of pocket wizards are what I used on this trip.

[untitledsince89]

this thread definetly made my day better
awesome shots! as always

[narlus]

what camera+lenses are you using highrevs ?

if you are using firefox (and really, who still uses IE?), i highly recommend installing the EXIF viewer plug-in available, if you are curious about exposure settings and other camera details (assuming that they are existing in the photo).

[Konabumm]

those are some fly ass photos

[mattmatt86]

Damnit, Im kinda worried about riding my Imperial there next weekend.

[manhattanprjkt83]

yeah shooting with a flash on full outside white balance on sunny days usually works out really good for me...

[manhattanprjkt83]

Damnit, Im kinda worried about riding my Imperial there next weekend.

you should be lol, it's pretty rocky and what not i rode a doc a few times and got a bit beat up...still fun.

We will be there on sunday will you?

[V-Dub GTI]

Damnit, Im kinda worried about riding my Imperial there next weekend.

Just rent a FS. They might have their new rentals by now. Anyone know for sure?

[Lumagent Morple]

Damnit, Im kinda worried about riding my Imperial there next weekend.

Don't worry man, I've been there a couple of times on my Imperial. It's a little slower at times, but that's a capable frame. You'll have a blast.

[amish_matt]

I'll be down for my first time on the weekend of the 30th. Looking forward to a good time on my new Morewood.

Where's a good place to stay at Showshoe?

[TrekBro]

My first time in Snowshoe too and it was awesome, but the guys told me that years before it was better, actually I was expecting to do some dirt jumps and more wooden features than those in the trails but there was nothing else. anyways it was great.



That place is nice & sticky green..Nice natural terrain. Good photo's.
Trekbro got a haircut...eh ?

yep man isn't summer already and is hot! :eek: