I'm Gonna Break My Rusty Cage And Run

Found this very rusty tow truck located in Eagan, just off the beaten path of Highway 13. Makes me wonder if Mark's Towing is still in business.

My Daily Photo Favorites: Portland, Maine | Evry, France | Sunshine Coast, Australia | St Paul, Minnesota - on Hiatus!

Clean Up In Isle Four

From the September 1 racing night I attended with my family, I was following our company sponsored car, the number 31 car. I was just about take a photo while it was coming out of turn number four at Elko Speedway, when all of a sudden, the tires squealed, a car spun out, a minor fender bender occurred shortly after this shot. It really was a lucky shot. I was planning on a different photo, but ended up capturing this in action pre-accident. The red and orange cars directly behind it would eventually crash into the car that is not headed in the proper direction in the photo.

My 3 Daily Photo Favorites:
Naples, Florida
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Detroit, Michigan

Mini Car Display

Every time I look at this photo, it looks like these are tiny model cars. In actuality, these cars are the real thing. I made it to Elko Speedway back in August, but the race was canceled due to rain. I was given race rain checks for two dates in September. I made it to the first one on September 2nd over Labor Day weekend. It was difficult to take photos of fast moving cars in the dark. So much blur, so much movement, but I was able to get one photo that I absolutely love, today's photo. I was panning with the cars as they moved around the track. I was focusing in on the car my work sponsors, the number 31 car, driven by Mike Hanson of Turn-Key Racing. During the nights race, Mike started in the 4th position, but ended up in 6th by races end. He is in the white car in front of the pack, he was able to hold back the majority of the cars behind him during the entire race.

I'm also posting a couple of the failed, terrible pan shots I attempted trying to get one decent shot. The next race I go to, I'm going to try a few more camera settings and experiment a bit more with night, action shots. I will say, the failed photos have a uniqueness about them and they do make for an interesting shot.
 

My 3 Daily Photo Favorites:
St Paul, Minnesota - Carol's final daily photo post
Chandler, Arizona
Selma, Alabama

Up Close On Car 31

We had a first hand look at the race car we sponsor. The car is a Chevy Caprice, 355 engine. I was amazed at home much fabrication goes into preparing the car to meet the specs for the type of race it's involved in. The outer shell is original [except for a few crash repairs], but virtually everything else must be removed down to the frame. The less weight, the better. Much of the car is self created to make everything that is left in the car working with each other. There is the obvious safety equipment needed to keep the driver safe, but beyond that, there are no luxuries.

This is my favorite shot of the day. The low angle, the soft focus, and I was under the safety of tarp to keep the rain off of my camera.

My 3 Daily Photo Favorites:
Greenville, South Carolina
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Paderborn, Germany

So Long Old Friend

This week I said goodbye to my vehicle. It's been almost two weeks now that I was struck from behind while on my way to work. I had stopped for a vehicle turning left, I heard tires screech and then realized it was me who had been hit. It was a multi car crash, a van hit a car and then hit my car that was stopped. Looking at the photo, it doesn't look that bad. However what you cannot see is the frame on the left side of the car is badly damaged. Too much in repair cost, so the insurance has decided to total my car unfortunately. I'm still working on a vehicle replacement, but I'm sad to see this car go.

My 4 Daily Photo Favorites:
Trujillo, Peru
Toronto, Canada
Prague, Czech Republic
Nelson, New Zealand

Cause I Drink Alone, Yeah With Nobody Else

Yeah, the other night I lay sleepin'
And I woke from a terrible dream
So I called up my pal Jack Daniels
And his partner Jimmy Beam

My son and I were heading back home one Saturday and we pass this Jim Beam sponsored racing car driving on the streets of Cottage Grove. He squealed the tires a bit as he turned the corner. I had to see where it was going. I did a u-turn and the next available spot and went on a chase. I saw the parking lot it drove into and read the sign that said the car was on tour at a new local liquor store, how ironic. Interesting way to advertise I though. My son asked if I had the camera because he wanted to take a photo for this website. So this is his first photo he took for the Twin Cities Daily Photo. The car was only there from 4:00 to 6:00 and it was 6:07 at the time of this photo. They actually were rolling the car onto the trailer for the day, otherwise he would have gotten a better shot from outside the car.

My Top 3 Daily Photo Favorites
Mainz, Germany
New York, New York
Antigua, Guatemala