Gear Review: Oakley Canopy

Wearing glasses has always made wearing ski goggles uncomfortable for me. I have lots of problems with fogging and my face hurts from having the my glasses squeezed against my temples all day. When I was looking for goggles this year I looked at several different OTG (Over The Glasses) models, but most of them look like they haven't been updated since the late 1970's. When I found out that the Oakley Canopy, while extremely stylish, also were made to be OTG I was psyched. I wouldn't have to look like a grandpa this year. The Canopy is a new addition to Oakley's line of great goggles this year. 

Oakley Canopy

I do have to say that I never really imagined myself wearing Oakleys; I've always associated the brand with a certain type of person, one that I would like to think I am not. But maybe that applies more to the sunglasses than ski goggles. I still can't really imagine spending $160 on a pair of sunglasses that I would lose or sit on. 

But these goggles are by far the most comfortable goggles I've ever worn, but perhaps that's not saying a whole lot. I've never really invested good money in goggles, usually going for the cheapest I could find. For years I wore a kids goggle I found for $15 at a ski resort. I have no clue how I got my glasses in side them. And I thought fogging was just something you had to live with. Funny how technology solves a multitude of problems. 

The Oakley Canopy goggle is full of great technologies designed to enhance the user's experience. The oversized goggle's frame is light, comfortable, and low profile maximizing the space for the lens. It fits great around the nose, and the triple layer foam and fleece lining that keep contact with the face is comfortable all day long. Hidden spaces in the plastic of lens allow your prescription glasses to fit in the goggle without putting pressure on your temples. I'm loving being comfortable in them. The shape of the goggle and the articulating outriggers fit easily with most helmets as well (Oakley says their ventilation works better with Smith brand helmets than Smith's own goggles).

The real technologies are in the lens. The dual lens keeps the cold air on the outside and the warm air on the inside which reduces the chance for condensation and fog. In the chance that there is fogging, the "F3 Anti-Fog" coating absorbs the moisture on the lens. Really the only problems I had with fogging were on my own glasses and as soon as I got moving the goggles brought in enough cool air to eliminate it. I should figure out a fix to my glasses fogging...

Oakley's HD Optics keep the picture extra sharp and keeping the thickest point of the lens in the center eliminates any distortions you'd normally get with a lens this big. Oh yeah...this lens is BIG. You won't miss any tree or mogul unless you are blinking. 

I'm psyched to be wearing these Oakleys this year.

Gear Review: Smith Variant Brim

They've been recommended for a while, but I didn't really want to buy in. And every year they become more pervasive; now helmets are everywhere on the slopes. After a bad accident last year where I found myself flying through the air, screaming to myself, "PROTECT THE HEAD!" I thought maybe this is the year I should join the masses. 

What should a helmet be other than a bucket that holds your brain in when you smack something harder than your head? It should be light so you don't think about that fact that you're wearing a brain bucket. It should be comfortable and fit well in variable conditions, and it should keep you warm. But the Smith Variant Brim also wins on style; it doesn't hurt that you look pretty good wearing it. 

Smith Variant Brim

The Variant Brim has channels on the brim that pass air through it keeping heat from getting trapped and sending fog into your goggles. It gets its name from the vents on the top that can be opened and closed depending on how much air you want passing through the helmet. So far on days that are around 10ºF I've kept them closed, but I imagine it will be useful in late season. The Boa® fit system keeps the helmet fitting tight on your head, and you can change the size if you want to include a beanie underneath on extra cold days. If you're really into your music on the slopes you can get Skullcandy ear pads to replace the standard ones.  

Overall I'm happy to wearing a helmet this year and glad to have the Smith Variant Brim protecting my noggin. 

New Website Design

Hey guys, I just finished a new design for my website. Please let me know what you think. I'm excited to have bigger images and a much better navigation system. www.dscottclarkphoto.com

Running at Marshall Mesa

I always enjoy shooting running. It always tests my limits and, well, my equipment's too. It's not slow and precise like climbing where I can pick my shots carefully. With running it's all about timing. It also reminds me of why I want to replace my 5DMkII....autofocus. 

When coming up with ideas for shoots, a lot of times the most difficult part is deciding on a location. I'd driven past Marshall Mesa several times and always found the landscape intriguing. Since I didn't really want to go too far for this shoot, it seemed like the ideal place. Plus I got in a climbing session at nearby Eldo immediately afterwards.

Patagonia Men's Advocate Lace Plaid Shoe Review

I love this shoe. And that's saying a lot; I have a lot of shoes. 

Patagonia Men's Advocate Lace Plaid Shoe
Photo from Patagonia's website

I have many shoes for many different purposes, but when I need to grab just one for most things this is it. The Patagonia Men's Advocate Lace Plaid Shoe is meant to be a an aprés climb (or pretty much an aprés anything) shoe. It's super super lightweight, foldable, packable and very surprisingly durable.

I've worn the hell out of this shoes since January, and I love it. I use it for everything from my everyday around the town shoe and some light running. But as an approach shoe is where this shoe excels. The sole is incredibly thin and I even took out the minimal footbed, so my foot is protected just by the flexible rubber sole. In the trend of minimalist shoes, this is about as minimal as you can get without going barefoot. I love how my feet feels the trail, and the rubber sole grips to rock impressively well. And being so light weight and flexible you can easily clip the shoe to your harness for multipitch climbs or stuff them in your pack and never notice they are there.

I've bouldered V4 in them, and in them I've dragged myself through waist deep snow at the top of Redgarden Wall in Eldorado Canyon in February (Not the best idea). I have been incredibly impressed by their durability: when I first bought them I didn't know how well it would hold up, but after 8 months of extremely heavy use they are still kicking it strong. The Patagonia Men's Advocate Lace Plaid Shoe gets a strong recommendation.

2012 Summer Teva Mountain Games

I know I am quite a bit late in posting this, but better late than never, right?

The last weekend in May I went to the Teva Mountain Games in Vail. The town of Vail transforms into a sports mecca with events held all over the streets (and rivers);  stupidly fit (or beautifully fit) people are everywhere. Athletes from all over the country come to compete in strenuous competitions for little more than recognition and well, competition.

It takes me a bit to get situated, the layout of the games is pretty spread out. To get from the climbing to the Kayaking areas is quite a hike.

The cross country mountain bike races take off and I wonder up the mountain to find a great vantage to shoot. The riders do a few laps around the course gaining and losing thousands of feet of vertical.

One of the difficult things about the Mountain games is that multiple events are going at the same time. It is impossible to be at all of them. I leave the cross country mountain bike race and wonder through town to find these bikers practicing for their race through the streets. Moments after this shot the sky let loose, drowning out many of the events for a couple of hours.

Alex Puccio

The climbing area is under a protected stage and so the semi-finals continue. Here, Alex Puccio sends her problem that gets her to the finals.

The 10k trail run at 9,000ft somehow went an extra mile. Runners were exhausted and understandably so. I was exhausted from hiking up the mountain to stand in one place for an hour photographing the crazy people as they ran past me. Doing anything at elevation is harder, and it was impressive seeing so many people push themselves to their limits. But the course was harder than many expected.

This year the water was so low in the creek that they had to "create" rapids and try to control the flow of the creek. But people still had fun. In this sport called Kayak Cross, which is a kayak race mixed with American Gladiators, competitors race each other down the river and battle with "8 Ball" kayakers ro reach the finish. Even without quality rapids, this is a lot of fun to watch. I'd imagine it would be a lot of fun to participate in until you get a bow of a kayak in your teeth.

This guy showed the crowd the proper way to float down a river if you ever left your boat.

The two-man rafts had to race both the clock and another team, going around obstacles to reach the end.

One of the many highlights of the Teva Mountain Games was the Gibbon Games, a slackline trick competition. Competitors bounced, flipped, stalled and twisted their way to pleasing the judges and the cheering crowd. It's quite impressive to see people do flips on a two inch slackline that us normal ones can't do on solid ground. One of the best tricksters in the world is 14 yr old Alex Mason from California. He might be a little small for his age, but knows how to command a crowd. And a slackline.

You might recognize this bunch of curly hair, especially if you imagine the dude in a Toga. This is Andy Lewis, aka Sketchy Andy, who performed alongside Madonna in the Superbowl. 

Mike Payton, from Colorado, is ranked #4 in the world and has won several world championships.

FiveTen is a huge supporter of the sport and makes shoes specifically for it.

The Games were a blast. Plenty of parties, plenty of music and entertainment, and plenty of shwag. And I got to see a lot of my friends compete and can't wait to go back to the Winter Games in February.

I'm trying to catch up on posts...I am WAAAYY behind. I have a lot of content to share. Till then.

Lifestyle photo shoot with Sierra Designs

Many many moons ago I did a shoot for Sierra Designs' lookbook. I think it's finally time to share some of the work. I had a lot of fun with the whole team and look forward to working with American Rec again.

 

 

   

I'm going to get this out of the way.

I've been a bad blogger, most of this year. It's been a strange year, work wise, and I haven't had a lot of time to update this. But I need to make it more of a priority. Right now I'm doing a number of jobs, from working at a ski shop in Boulder, to substitute teaching at a private school and shooting Google Business Photos, all while climbing and shooting outdoors regularly. I've been busy.

Happy Fall everyone.

A Photo in Trail Runner Magazine - Finally!

I found out through Facebook that I had a photo published in Trail Runner Magazine. Not only was it published, but it's a two page spread with a write up about the photo on page 5 of the magazine! I had submitted the photo to them way back in February. They had told me it would be published in the next couple of issues, but nothing had happened for months and I forgot about it. 

So, finally, here it is: 

Trail Runner Magazines can be found in running specific stores and some Barnes and Nobles if you're interested in locating a copy.

Abby & Chance Wedding

I think this has been the longest interval between posts since I've started this blog...life has been bit crazy, but I haven't forgotten about you. I've been shooting a lot and getting out into some great climbing areas. There's a lot I wish I could share with you, but some companies have asked me not to yet.

Last month I had the pleasure of shooting a friend from high school's wedding. Abby & Chance were great to work with. I never knew that Lafayette, IN was so nice! I have to say I was impressed.

Here are a few selections from this wedding.