As much as I love the colours of winter light the season's weather also means that not all the shoots I try to nail can happen. This week just gone was no exception. I had planned it well – a whirlwind tour of the North Island to shoot some mountain biking, some beach time and city images before a couple of days of meetings in Auckland.
There was no wriggle room in my plan. If it all went well I'd have a handful of happy clients and a bunch of cool photos for this edition of Box of Light. To add a little extra pressure, I even had 2004 Junior Downhill MTB World Champion Scarlett Hagen along to shoot with. She can ride the wheels off any bike and had her brand new GT Sanction along for the trip. What could possibly go wrong?
Well, I'm endlessly optimistic, but Jim Hickey's replacement was spruiking rainfall. Lots of it. He wasn't wrong. It was particularly concentrated on the trails we'd planned to shoot. We waited it out as long as we could before pulling the pin. Scarlett's bike didn't even leave its cardboard box. Some salt in the wound: the surf was flat. We climbed Mauao just to get some oxygen in our lungs and to change our perspective. It worked. Always a great space up there.
We retreated to Auckland beaten. But the dice were still rolling. We returned to our rental car the next morning to find the rear window smashed and Scarlett's $6000 mountain bike missing. It seems some things just aren't meant to happen ...
Maybe it's the optimist in me, but I feel like we're a few steps closer to a win now. Here's some.
See you at the beach ...
PS Scarlett recently launched a new mountain bike and cycling skills development business called BikeSchool.co – she's a star with riders of all levels. Check it out if you want to have a bit more fun on your bike.
Proudly supported by:
