Photography by Michaels

Best Photos

My favorite Tour photos:
Levi Leipheimer and Odessa Gunn making contact after Levi won the Solvang Time Trial on February 20th.

I got this shot as Levi was reaching for his wife, Odessa, for a kiss. This was after his podium ceremony as the winner of the Solvang time trial in Stage 6. Levi had to win this time trial for it to be possible for him to win his third Tour of California. It was a big day for him. I just happened to be there to catch the moment as he shared it with Odessa.

Lance Armstrong at the Pre-Race Press Conference on February 13th.
I wanted a photo of Lance and his Livestrong bracelet. Not only did I get one, it turned out to be my best shot of the day. He had just finished answering a series of difficult questions, he paused to think about his next words.

Lance at the start of stage 5 in Visalia.

From the 2009 Redlands Bicycle Classic:
Rock hired a new driver for one of their team cars.

Floyd Landis enjoying a conversation before the start.

I love the colors of cycling!

Soigneur handing a water bottle to a rider passing through the feed zone.

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What a rush!

Covering my first Tour of California as a photo journalist was one of the most exciting things I have ever done. I learned more than I ever dreamed I would, and worked harder than I expected to (I was prepared for hard work). It was fun and stressful. We had good weather and bad. The trip was filled with adventure and christened with good luck.

My days started early in the morning. I would handle my insurance business from approximately 6am-7am, then get ready and get packed. We took full advantage of the complimentary hot breakfast all the hotels offered. We chowed and checked out, off for the day’s activities.

We had to decide if we could catch the riders during the stage or not. For many of the stages we had freeway options to beat the peloton, some days there were no alternate routes that paralleled the stage route. We had some very lucky results, and, we missed the riders a couple of times by just minutes.

Ed did the driving, trip total was 1900 miles (race routes totaled 780.5 miles). I was Ed’s navigator. I was in charge of our driving directions and reading the live race updates on my phone. We had hoped to get the race radio channel in the car, but that was not possible. Ed made sure he had media parking placards for both the start and finish for each stage. Having those in the window granted us cooperation from the police and Tour volunteers when trying to maneuver through the road closures. Many days we were pressed for time, couldn’t afford to get lost or tangled in traffic.

On the days we photographed the start, we got there 60-90 minutes early. Start times varied from 8:30am - 12:00, most stages started at noon. Maybe we would check out the media room first. Was there any food set out? Then we would wander around getting candid shots at the team RVs. The riders might be chatting with fans, the mechanics could be getting the bikes ready, there was always something interesting going on. I would make my way back to the start line, get my photo vest, or continue the candid shooting as the riders arrived to sign in, sign autographs, and give interviews.

View photos of all 8 Stages:
www.truesport.com/rzone/racereports/report.asp?recid=1087

We either photographed the race start, or we drove direct to our chosen en route location, a few days we did both. Sometimes we were on the race route, most of the time an alternate route. After the start and en route shooting, we would drive to the finish. Finish times were usually 3pm-5pm. Once parked, if we had time we would go to the media room, food and bathrooms foremost on our minds. I would get my photo vest and jockey for position with the other photogs along the road past the finish line, or along the railing to get a closer shot of the winner crossing the finish.

As soon as the riders finished, the photographers were herded to the stage to shoot the winners podium ceremony. We also attended the press conference shortly after the podium ceremony. Then back to the car to get our laptops and head to the media room.

We would start our photo work between 5-6pm. The media room was full of press from all over the world. People working to meet deadlines, calls made in foreign languages, others working silently in deep concentration, photographers discussing their photos, some had time to visit, it was definitely the place to smooze and collect business cards.

I shot between 500-1300 photos per day, which took awhile to download to my computer. I quickly figured out my routine for the media room. Get the photos downloading first, then go eat. We were fed very well!! After downloading my photos and filling my belly, I would settle in to sorting through the photos to select shots to submit to TrueSport. I would run the chosen 15-20 photos through Photoshop and add the captions. If I had insurance work to do, I got it done after I finished with my photos, or while they were still downloading. Ed and I usually spent a couple of hours in the media room.

After the work was done we drove to our next hotel. Some nights we stayed in the same town, some nights we had to drive a distance. We checked in between 8-10pm, got settled in the room, and recharged all our batteries. Now the navigation work would begin for the next day’s stage. My navigator duties included checking the map to see if there were route options for getting shots during the stage. I made sure I had the directions to the start, to any en route locations, and to the finish. Most nights we both had more work to do on our computers, bedtime was never before midnight or 1am.

Awake again by 5 or 6am, I would either get up and work on my computer, or check out race photos online from my phone while still in bed. We would eat breakfast by 8-9am. The days were full, not one minute went unused. I made sure to take in every moment. I was surrounded by my two biggest passions in life, cycling and photography. Pinch me!