I’ve recently uploaded some HD footage I have from my last trackday at Streets of Willow Raceway to youtube. This is all taken with a Sony HC1 video camera mounted to my gas tank. Luckily I managed to get some clean laps in before the track got crowded. This track is so bumpy that the camera mount can’t keep the camera pointed straight for more than a few laps! Oh, and I think I improved my laptime by about 5 seconds from the time this video was shot (the second session) and the last afternoon session I did.

Recently went on a trip to Bootleg Canyon and Las Vegas. I’m still recovering from my shoulder surgery, so I spent the day with Joel shuttling these lucky bastards up and down the hill.

Finally, another trackday at Streets. Last time I had this minor issue with cold tires. No way that was happening again. Stephane is busy healing so Joel and I requisitioned all his gear - car, trailer, generator, tire warmers - you name it we requisitioned it. I got one of these newfangled camera mounts for my video camera. Too bad the Suzuki gas cap is built like a graham cracker and broke while I was putting on the damn thing.

Stephane and I did a two day trackday at Buttonwillow. It was between 95 and 100 degrees most of the day, but going for two days was an interesting experience. We drove up Friday night and got to Buttonwillow at around 1am in the morning. The hotel screwed up our reservation but made good by giving us two rooms for the night. The first day was tough. It took a while to get used the heat and I had never been on the track before.

Just added some new surfing photos. Shooting against the sunset makes the color a bit odd, but not bad overall.

I managed to injure my ankle and get pretty sick right when a large swell showed up in San Diego. The weather was awesome so all I could get was vicarious surfage. The Ocean Beach Pier I’ve never surfed here. It looks like a narrow break with some nasty rocks and pier poles to watch out for. Sunset Cliffs This place was crowded. There were tons of surfers and even more sightseers.

I’ve finally finished the major work of converting the site to the MovableType blogging system. After years as ‘astronerd.net’ I’ve decided on a new name as well.

I just got back from the MotoGP race in Monterey! These machines sound nothing like any race bike you’ve ever heard. The first time I saw the MotoGP bikes drop down into the Corkscrew for practice on Saturday they were louder, brighter, more colorful and just plain more impressive than anything I expected. I had a pit pass but didn’t really make much use of it. I watched the Ducati bike do some engine revving and thought I might get a peek at Rossi in person, but that was a silly idea.

This is a faithful retelling Canadian odyssey. On Sunday we left LA at around 5:30 p.m. and headed for San Francisco. Brady’s friend John flew out and we were going to stay with him at his friends' house for a couple nights. San Francisco Lori and Sheryl lived in a converted garage right in the middle of SF. The front door was literally a hold cut in a garage door with a normal door nailed in.

Just finished another track day at California Speedway in Fontana with Stephane. This was the fourth track day we’ve done at this track. Here’s my favorite crash sequence - gotta love the legs in the second to last panel - ouch! The Speedway New Tires I ditched my Perelli Diablos for some new Dunlop 208 GPs. They seem to have a more predictable sliding, but slide more often. They also shed rubber like crazy.