In this video, I’ll be playing with the brand new GoPro Hero MAX 360 camera! I wanted to ask the question, is this possibly the best motovlogging setup ever? With the ability to mount the camera in one place on the motorcycle, but be able to choose any angle of view within 360-degrees, it just might be! However, is the exported resolution of 1080p worth the sacrifice? And is the added complexity of editing 360 video worth the headache? Check it out and let me know your thoughts in the comments below.
I’m stressed. I’ve been going non-stop from dawn till…well…REALLY LATE. But I’m getting very close to having everything buttoned up for the Moto Photo Mexico Adventure to begin tomorrow morning.
One big item to check off the list was FINALLY publishing Ep4 in the series! In this video, Jason and I showcase all my camping and travel gear, as well as how I store it on the bike for these fun trips.
Tomorrow the adventure begins!!! See you in the next video…
The next installment of Moto Photo Mexico is here! This one is all about the electronics, gadgets, and technology that I’ll be bringing with me on my adventure. Only 4 more days to go!!! 🙂
Episode dos of the Moto Photo Mexico Adventure series is out! This one is all about the farkles and fittings that have helped transform Trinity, my Honda CB500X, into the perfect bike for this amazing trip!!! 🙂
Last year several friends and I started planning an epic motorcycle adventure. We were to fly to Morocco, rent Honda XR250 enduro bikes, and explore that amazing country for two weeks. When those plans fell through, I shifted my sights to a NEW journey! We’re calling it the Moto Photo Mexico Adventure!!!
I say “We” because I’m so excited to be partnering with my good friend, amazing photographer, and incredible video editor, Jason from Docent Prodigy. Although Jason isn’t able to ride with me on this trip, he’s going to be working with me to produce daily moto vlogs of my epic journey, which we’ll be sharing on YouTube. He’s a fun guy with an amazing gift! Working together on this is going to be amazing. But I’m even more excited for our NEXT collaboration, when he will be able to join me out on the road!!!
In addition to Jason joining me in the post-production department, I am so grateful to his lovely wife, Erica, for letting “boys be boys”, and to my beautiful bride, Cami, for all her love and support. Cami will be holding down the fort and keeping up with our clients while I’m away. We couldn’t do it without you two!!!
As most of you know, I’m no stranger to living and traveling abroad. Having lived most of my formative years in a remote mission station in The Democratic Republic of Congo, AFRICA, I’m well accustomed to roughing it, and indeed feel quite at home in the third world. In fact, I seem to get an itch every few years to return to that simpler way of life that exists outside the realm of American commercialism, politics, and overindulgence. For example, in 2012 I went backpacking solo across Belize and Guatemala for two weeks, riding the “chicken buses” along with the locals, discovering incredible wildlife, and exploring the amazing Mayan ruins along the way.
Saying I’m super excited about this new Moto Photo Mexico trip would be an understatement. A ton of planning and preparation has gone into it. I have so many incredible friends who either live in Mexico, live along the route I’ll be taking through the southern US states, or have ridden their motorcycles in Mexico. Everyone has been so selfless with their guidance, and so generous with their hospitality. Many of them have even invited me to stay with them along the way. Others have connected me with their relatives and friends in towns I’ll be visiting. It has truly been wonderful to see this outpouring of help, encouragement, and support! (Speaking of which, if you live along the route I have planned in the map, and would like to reach out, I’d be delighted to connect with you!)
The ultimate final destination, and one of the biggest goals of this journey, is to finally see the millions of monarch butterflies that return to Mexico each winter from their long migration up through the United States. It’s been a bucket-list item for me for quite some time! I’ll be arriving at the pinnacle of this mass migration. I’m so excited!!! There are of course so many other incredible sights I’m looking forward to seeing and photographing. From the Cave of Swallows (which is the largest pit-cave in the world), to the spectacular waterfalls along the foothills of the Sierra Madre Oriental mountains…from the old historic mining towns, to the glorious architecture of the Spanish colonial cities…it’s all going to be amazing!
However, I am most looking forward to meeting the incredible PEOPLE of Mexico! Everyone I’ve told about my journey (at least everyone who has never lived outside the U.S.), has stared at me like I’m NUTS!!! Their comments range from “why on earth would you go down there” to “are you bringing a gun”. Seriously?!? I personally believe there are two sides to every country…the political side, and the people side. What we see in the news here in America is all about the political side of things. How would you like to be judged as an individual by what people in other countries see on their news station every night? School shootings, police brutality, the social media ramblings of our leaders…you get my point? We forget that the “people” of every country, of every tribe, of every place on earth are no different than we are. “People” all around the planet have the same hopes and dreams we do. All they want in life is be healthy, to be happy, to fall in love, to raise a family, to have a good job, to enjoy life, and be a good neighbor.
My hope is that this video series will be fun, will be entertaining, will be educational, but more importantly, will show that people everywhere are full of goodness and kindness. I hope you’ll Subscribe to the channel and follow along. It’s going to be a WILD RIDE!!! And I’d love to share it with you. 🙂
After spending the weekend camping and enjoying the company of other wonderful motorcycle junkies at the Horizons Unlimited Travelers Meeting in Appomattox, VA, my friends and I spent 3 days riding the entire length of the Blue Ridge Parkway!
The famed scenic highway, which is America’s longest linear park, runs for 469 miles from Anon, Virginia to Cherokee, NC. Linking Shenandoah National Park to Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the Blue Ridge Parkway is also America’s most visited national park.
My good friends Scott, Kristi, and Steve were kind enough to join me on this bucket-list quest to ride the entire parkway from start to finish. We broke the trip up into 3 day so that we could enjoy the ride, and stop to take in the beautiful views. This is the first installment of our 3-part series!
GEAR FOR THIS VIDEO:
Sena 10c Pro – https://amzn.to/2MeHemo
Sandisk Extreme 32GB MicroSD – https://amzn.to/2CkeGDs
GoPro Hero 7 Black – https://amzn.to/34CUJEP
Sandisk Extreme Pro 64GB MicroSD – https://amzn.to/2OyASRr
GoPro Session 5 – https://amzn.to/2RP7Jnv
Sandisk Extreme 64GB MicroSD – https://amzn.to/2SWX4o8
GoPro Suction Cup Mount by Smatree – https://amzn.to/2D8StcT
DJI Mavic Pro – https://amzn.to/2OzDYoq
Sandisk Extreme Pro 128GB MicroSD – https://amzn.to/37MVFbH
Samsung S7 – https://amzn.to/2AMr3rU
Joby Gorillapod for Smartphones – https://amzn.to/2CkcLie
Rode VideoMic ME – https://amzn.to/2W80Mgw
HJC RPHA Max Helmet – https://amzn.to/2SW1eMT
As a professional photographer, I’ve been particularly keen on the Sena 10c series of Bluetooth communicators for my helmet.
The reason for this is because they are the only ones on the market that integrate a camera into their design! This not only allows me to get all the normal benefits of a helmet communication system while I’m out on my motorcycle (intercom communication with other riders, FM radio, Bluetooth connection to my GPS, Bluetooth integration of my phone for listening to music or making phone calls, etc.), but also to have a built-in action camera!
Not only can I use the camera to capture photos of beautiful scenery, funny street signs, and general snapshots to remember my adventures…but it also allows me to record video and time-lapse sequences. The video is particularly useful for several reasons, especially because being a fully integrated unit, I can record narration and audio with that video. This makes moto-vlogging, or creating YouTube videos about my adventures really simple to do. But in addition to that, I use it as a dash-cam to protect myself in the event of an accident. Using a feature within the camera called video loop mode, it’s constantly recording the view in front of me, and the actions of the drivers around me. If I’m ever cut off on the highway, or have a distracted driver not see me and run me off the road, I’ll have video evidence of the incident.
Previous generations of the Sena 10c series have been lagging behind current action camera technology from the big contenders like GoPro. The original 10c only recorded in 1080p. The 10c Pro (which I reviewed here last year https://youtu.be/SnRGDZgZDP4), upgraded that to 1440p (2.7K). However, I’m excited to FINALLY have my hands on the new Sena 10c EVO, which has 2160p (4K) quality!
The Horizons Unlimited Virginia 2019 event took place at the Holiday Lake 4-H Center near Appomattox from April 25th – April 28th. It was a record-setting event, with the largest turnout yet!
“Whether you’re a seasoned veteran with wisdom to share or a complete novice hungry for ideas and guidance, it doesn’t matter if you ride a motorcycle, a bicycle, or drive an expedition vehicle… Horizons Unlimited meetings are for everyone who dreams of adventure along the road less travelled.
Some people value Horizons Unlimited events for what they learn from the unique line-up of presenters. Some people value the chance to discover new products and services at the trade stands. Some people value just kicking back with a beer among old friends and new.
Most people enjoy a little bit of everything, and everyone goes home fired-up for adventure with a smile on their face.”
Many thanks to Sue & Grant Johnson, for founding this amazing organization, to Steve Anderson for orchestrating the Virginia Travelers Meeting, to Steve’s merry band of organizers, including Linda Pearce, Jim Truesdell, Robert Stransky, Sharon Truesdell, Charlie Pearce, Lloyd Messner, and Annette Stout, to all the fabulous presenters including keynote speaker Sam Manicom, to Tom Asher for the off-road training, to all the camp staff, to the many fabulous volunteers, and of course to each and every awesome attendee!!!
Here are a few photos from this fantastic weekend for you to enjoy, tag, share, and download. Thank you so much to Sue and Grand for trusting me to be the event photographer again this year!!!
I bought a cheap Chinese-manufactured exhaust off of eBay. IT WAS THE BEST $100 I’ve spent on my bike!
The slip-on exhaust muffler looks like a knock-off of a popular high-end Akrapovič brand. Akrapovič is a market-leading manufacturer of premium exhaust systems for motorcycles and performance cars. Their products were WAY out of my price range.
I had resigned my fate to keeping my OEM exhaust muffler…until I found this cheap clone. I knew there was a chance it could be a useless piece of junk. But for less than $100, I figured it was worth testing out. I was pleasantly surprised!
The product I purchased was this “CBR500 CB500X CB500F Slip on Mid Pipe Link Exhaust Muffler Pipe with DB Killer” from an eBay seller named mgod_motor: https://www.ebay.com/itm/123452619440.
Part of my decision to order from this seller was because, unlike others selling similar “look-alike” products from China, he is located in and distributes his items out of Kentucky! Thus, shipping was fast and free. Plus, there was no chance of the items getting held up in customs, or me having to pay a duty tax on them.
Before the sale, I had several questions that Jason at mgod_motor was very helpful and responsive with. I also appreciated that this item included the two key parts that I would have to order separately from other retailers, the Middle Pipe and the Exhaust. I was very pleased with the transaction. And the product arrived very well packaged.
Removal of the old, and installation of the new, was relatively simple. The hanging hardware on the new one was a bit tight. Luckily, my good friend, Mike, who is much more mechanically inclined than I am, helped me with the install. We got it all put together in about an hour, and were out riding with goofy grins on our faces shortly there-after.
I’ve made quite a few upgrades and additions to my Honda CB500X, especially with regards to carrying my camera gear to photo shoots. Now that I’ve been riding with the Ebay Exhaust for about a month, I can honestly say it was one of the best $100 I’ve spent on my bike! The deep, throaty growl has completely transformed this compact motorcycle’s personality. Yet at the same time, it’s not so loud that it’s offensive to my friends and neighbors.
This morning Trinity and I rode over to my friend Mike’s place. He helped me swap out the old OEM exhaust for a smaller, lighter, and throatier aftermarket slip-on I had ordered. The new exhaust is basically a knockoff of a popular product by Akrapovic. Click Here for a link to the item.
The retailer is out of Kentucky. So the exhaust arrived in just a couple days. Installation was a breeze, except for the fact that the Givi pannier rack I had previously installed made fitting the final bolt into place REALLY tight! Since I carry a lot of heavy camera gear in the panniers on my way to photo shoots, I was advised to find ways to reduce the weight of Trinity’s *ahem* rear end. One of the biggest weight savings was replacing the OEM battery with a new lithium ion one last year. The new carbon fiber exhaust saves at least half as much in weight over the old factory steel can. So the weight is much more balanced now. Plus the new pipe sounds great. I’m very pleased with the addition!!!
After the install, Mike, Stacy, and I went out for a celebratory brunch at Madra Rua Irish Pub. Then it was off to a beautiful Sunday afternoon ride… 🙂
