Richard McGibbon Photography

Dec

2016

B24, Base in Bright

Once again the Thule B24 has rolled around put on by Base in Bright down at the beautiful little Victorian town of Bright. Nestled in the Victorian Alps Bright is set up for the biker with trails running everywhere to suit all levels of skill.

The threat of rain kept the numbers lower than expected but considering the forecast the turnout was great and certainly not a the small race it was when it kicked off 4 years ago. The weekend started out at the Bright Brewery with a track stand contest and a few beers while metres away people were casting flies into the water to chase the trout.

Saturday lunch saw the race get underway. First out were the solo racers then followed 15 mins later by the esprit d’ corps category. I shot a bit along the river then headed out to the new section of track called Tombstone. By all reports this super-flowy section went down a treat and everyone who came down were all smiles. Basically though, all the track was new as the course had been reversed this year to accommodated taking in Tombstone.

Early Sunday morning around 1am, I had just about dozed off in the back of my car when the sky lit up and the heavens opened with a bang as a thunderstorm rolled in. I felt pity for those still slogging it through the night. Some pretty torrential rain fell over night but by morning it had eased back a bit. A constant rain fell through the sunday at times becoming heavy again. I was rather helpless as first my lenses started to mist and then I saw moisture forming inside the camera itself. Not much to do but keep shooting anyway.

By the end of the races those who were still out on track came back plastered with mud but still the smiles would not leave them. I have long wanted to shoot a few portraits after a muddy race like that and I got more than my fair share of mud-encrusted faces after the race finished up

Sam Moffitt took the win with his first 24hr victory and Courtney Henry took the win in the female solo category with her 3rd ever mtb race.

If you have an event that you would like covered swing on over to Outer Image and touch base with us so we can work out how best to suit your needs

: Fly fishing on the Ovens River in Bright

: Overlooking Bright

: The Thule B24 mountain bike race in the Victorian Alps around Bright

: Inside the great marquee

: The Thule B24 mountain bike race in the Victorian Alps around Bright

: The Thule B24 mountain bike race in the Victorian Alps around Bright

: The Thule B24 mountain bike race in the Victorian Alps around Bright

: The Thule B24 mountain bike race in the Victorian Alps around Bright

: Night on the pumptrack

: Cruising Angel Alley

: Early morning light

: Down by the river

: The Thule B24 mountain bike race in the Victorian Alps around Bright

: Solo Female winner Courtney Henry

: All mud and smiles

: The Thule B24 mountain bike race in the Victorian Alps around Bright

: Sam Moffitt, the Solo Male Winner

: The Thule B24 mountain bike race in the Victorian Alps around Bright

: Empty Trails of the next day

: Rain in the mountains

Dec

2016

The Urban Adventure

One of the more unique events on my calendar with Outer Image is Paddy Pallin’s Urban Adventure Race. It is an adventure race that takes place through the heart of Sydney. Competitors race around the CBD and surrounding suburbs doing various events and challenges. collecting points.

The events and challenges that I shot were only a small part of it. They included indoor climbing at Sydney University, slot car racing where competitors had to complete 3 laps of a circuit in under 25 seconds, frisbee golf at Centenial Park, a short sack race, dance lessons where it was all about the style and even price check shopping in the Paddy Pallin store in the city. A little bit of something for everyone.

The race attracts all types of people from some serious racers out for a day of fun to families with small children taking on their first adventure race. It’s definitely one to keep an eye out for next year especially if you would like to dip your toes into the world of adventure racing.

If you have an event that you would like covered swing on over to Outer Image and touch base with us so we can work out how best to suit your needs

: And they are off…..

: Route checking

: Orientation at the Urban Adventure Race

: Climbing at The Ledge at Sydney Uni.

: Maximum Adventure’s Paddy Pallin Urban Adventure Race through the streets of Sydney

: Sack racing.

: Frisbee golf in Centenial Park

: Last of the dance lessons.

Dec

2016

Harrison Dobrowolski: Enduro MTB

I went up to the Blue Mountains and met up with Harrison Dobrowolski, one of the young guns on the Australian Enduro circuit. Harrison has been ripping it up on the tracks and walking away with the goods in the races. This last year he took out the Under 17’s Superflow Enduro series winning it outright. More recently, he stepped it up with his first foray into the Elite category for the Superflow Enduro Championships at Ourimbah and finished up on the podium again. Definitely one to keep an eye on in the coming years.

I met Harrison at his place in Katoomba and he showed me around one of his favourite trails in the mountains, No Friends near Mt Victoria. It’s a great flowy little trail with some really cool features. It would be quite a challenging trail in the wet as it runs down a small waterfall and along a steep slope under a prominent rock-band.

If you are an athlete looking to pump up your profile or portfolio, or you represent a company or brand looking to promote your athlete, get in contact and we can work out how to get the best images to support you..

: Only a trickle in the dry.

: Some great features on the No Friends trail

: Young gun Harrison Dobrowolski on the No Friends trail near Mount Victoria in the Blue Mountains.

: Young gun Harrison Dobrowolski on the No Friends trail near Mount Victoria in the Blue Mountains.

: Young gun Harrison Dobrowolski on the No Friends trail near Mount Victoria in the Blue Mountains.

: Young gun Harrison Dobrowolski

: Young gun Harrison Dobrowolski on the No Friends trail near Mount Victoria in the Blue Mountains.

: Into the ferns near the bottom.

: Young gun Harrison Dobrowolski on the No Friends trail near Mount Victoria in the Blue Mountains.

Nov

2016

Aiden Varley: Downhill MTB

I had a bit of a shoot with downhill mountain biker Aiden Varley after the Thule B24 a couple of weeks ago. We cruised around the hills of Bright, checked out a few different spots and tried out a couple of different ideas that I had floating around in my head. Unfortunately Aiden’s downhill rig was out of action so we shot with more of a lean towards enduro. Also, after shooting for almost 24hrs out of the previous 36 I was more than a bit shattered and vacant-headed. It sort of made those ideas of mine a bit blurry. Never the less we still got a few shots.

We did a short shoot on the new Hero track which is looking amazing. Its has some great views around the top section before ducking down into the pine forests. Then we headed to a simple little trail called Sycamores which led through a beautiful little stand of, yes you guessed it, Sycamores. Next time we meet hopefully he will be back on his big DH rig and I shall be a bit more on-point and focussed.

If you are an athlete looking to boost your portfolio or a company or brand looking to promote your athlete get in contact and we can sort out how I and my imagery can best help you.

: Aiden Varley on the Hero trail at Bright

: Aiden Varley on the Hero trail at Bright

: Aiden Varley on the Hero trail at Bright

: Aiden Varley on the Hero trail at Bright

: Aiden Varley on the Hero trail at Bright

: Aidens in the mist

: Under the canopy of Sycamores

: Under the canopy of Sycamores

: Aiden Varley making a creek crossing in Bright

Nov

2016

Pace Athletics Run Club

I’m always up for a quick shoot somewhere. It gives me the chance to play around with my lights and get some practice in. Each Tuesday evening the Pace Athletics Run Club meets at Manly.

I have managed to get down for a couple of visits now and have been shooting them on what is known as Snake Hill. I went down for a quick visit again last night. There is quite a few familiar faces in the group that I have seen from shooting races like the Coastal Classic and Rafferty’s Run with Outer Image. The group is led by Matty Abel, the owner and head coach of DBA Runners. So if you are looking to getting a bit more active or polish up a bit on your running fitness be sure and get down there and join in the fun. You never know I might see you there next Tuesday.

You can check the full gallery from the afternoon here but for now here’s a couple of shots to whet the appetite.

: Pace Athletics run club going through the paces on Snake Hill at Manly

: Pace Athletics run club going through the paces on Snake Hill at Manly

: Pace Athletics run club going through the paces on Snake Hill at Manly

: Pace Athletics run club going through the paces on Snake Hill at Manly

: Pace Athletics run club going through the paces on Snake Hill at Manly

Oct

2016

On the Local Trails

With no races booked in this weekend I decided on a quiet weekend at home. I didn’t realise the East Coast Titles were on at Greenvalleys MTB Park which would have been fun but sometimes a bit of downtime is needed anyway. My relaxation however usually involves getting out and taking photos somewhere. This weekend I kept it close to home. I took myself out to the local trails and caught up with the local crew that I hadn’t seen for a while.

The guys were doing shuttle runs up and powering it back down the track. I found myself a nice location and shot them as they went on by. Each lap they did I changed it a bit and found another spot. It’s a great little corner with plenty of features to shoot all within a stones throw. But a note, be sure and take your mosquito repellent. There seems to be a great swarm that lives around there. I also managed to find a tick chomping down on my leg. Bug season is upon us!!

I find getting out on the local trails is a good chance for me to practice playing with some lighting setups. It also helps me to just keep my eye in. I find it amazing how quickly I start to get rusty if I don’t go out shooting a particular sport on a regular basis. One of the things I am trying at the moment is to step away a bit from using my flashes. I love using my flashes and they certainly have their place but I am always aware that I use them at times to an excess. So one of my projects at the moment is to try and define to myself when to use them and when to go with out.

Here’s a couple of shots from the morning. Some more can be found in the galleries here

: Weekend Sessions, Mona Vale

: Greg Miles on The Rock

: Weekend Sessions, Mona Vale

: Weekend Sessions, Mona Vale

: Matt Ward sends it into a corner

: Weekend Sessions, Mona Vale