The Year in Photos: Our Favorite Images
Photographs: John Buenaventura, Clay Parker Jones, Daghan Perker, Scott Rettino, Matthew Vandivort
Over the course of 2019 we shared hundreds, possibly thousands of images from a number of different team members via the Journal - covering everything from crits to cross to gravel. As the year winds down, we asked several of our photographers to dig into their libraries to pull out their favorite images from 2019.
Scott Rettino
I shot a bunch of different events throughout 2019 (my first full year with TBD) and it was so hard to just pick a few of my favourites. Well here they are from gravel to road, trails to cyclocross. The only thing missing is MTB, next year hey?
-Scott Rettino
The coldest day I have ever had on a bike, Rasputitsa 2019. I managed to snap this shot just as the snow heavens opened and before Matt’s Ricoh died. The Ricoh has since risen but I’m still cold.
The day after Rasputitsa, Clark treated us to some beautiful gravel roads and leafy trails. This shot wasn’t staged at all, Clark just always looks excellent on/with a bike.
Rolling back to Brooklyn after a super long day on the bike. This was the first time I had ridden on this road and gave me a “woah I live in NYC” moment as the skyline appeared.
Rolling back through Grand Central after a long ride and transfer.
Nittany Day 1 - the rain started coming down just as the Women’s 3 race started. Clem’s intense focus on the stairs really makes this shot.
Matthew Vandivort
As usual I spent a good chunk of the year shooting bike races from the sidelines. Grant’s Tomb Criterium in early March and the Zach Koop Memorial Criterium in May were two particularly memorable days where I spent more time shooting than racing. By the time Nittany Lion Cross rolled around in August I managed to balance shooting and racing a bit more evenly, but for my favorite images of 2019 I decided to lean heavily on photographs from the bike. Because as much as I love the time and space associated with off-the-bike shooting, some of my favorite adventures of the year took place on two wheels and the only way to properly capture them was with a point and shoot in my jersey pocket.
In late March I tackled the Hell of Hunterdon with Lisa. Our fitness may have been a bit lackluster for a long day in the saddle, but we had an absolutely beautiful day (especially for late March!) and loved both the route and the entire vibe associated with this event. This particular photograph was probably captured about two thirds of the way through the day (Hell of Hunterdon and a Better form of Bikes)
When I first helped bring the Zach Koop Memorial Crit back to the race calendar, we were blessed with several years of spectacular late Spring weather. More recently that blessing has turned into a curse with regard to the weather. Though even by recent standards the absolute downpour that hit the 2019 edition of the race was something else. The only good news is that the downpour generated some incredible photographs. (Zach Koop Memorial Crit: the Introduction)
As a first time participant in D2R2, this year’s event caught me a bit off guard, especially when it came to gearing where by 1x 48T chainring was anything but adequate for the conditions. But the beauty of the course also surpassed my expectations, making for one of the most memorable rides of my year. This particularly photograph was captured early in the day, well before we resorted to our flasks to help cover the last few miles on tired legs. (D2R2: harder than I expected, more fun than I imagined)
In a year of trying new events, including the Hell of Hunterdon and D2R2 from above, there was one event that was more eye opening than any other: Critical Mass NYC. While my photographs from that night lack the beautiful wide open landscape of a gravel event or the fast paced action of a road race, it was a very special night getting to experience safety in numbers on New York City streets. It was really unlike any NYC bike ride I have done in my prior 14 years living in New York City. (Why You Should Come to Critical Mass)
Every fall I make sure to get in one proper leaf peeping ride. This year was no different, even if a bum hip meant that I had to keep the ride duration to a meager 12 miles. Thankfully the fall color didn’t disappoint, even if the mileage was short. (Fall Leaves and Car Free Streets (And Trails))
John Buenaventura
Although I’ve been with TBD since it’s inception, I have been a reluctant photographer while racing. I find it difficult to capture images with the added pressure of racing. In addition to that, as a photographer by trade, I’m a bit like that chef that rarely cooks at home. This fall, after a long hiatus, I dipped my toe back into the CX waters. At an out of town race weekend, having no pressure to run home to take care of life’s chores, I grabbed a teammates camera at a CX race and captured a few pics after my race.
-John Buuenaventura
I love this shot from the Cat 3 race at NOHO. I The light was perfect, fall foliage in full bloom, and Patrick Frank of UVM Cycling/Competitive Edge Racing at the front of the race seemingly unflustered.
Northampton UCI Elite - It’s interesting to see the different athletes attitudes the start of races. Some are fidgety and are checking equipment and clothing, others are focused and in their own world while, some are cracking jokes and seem totally relaxed.
Super Cross Cat 3 - This was an afternoon race and the sun started to finally peak out from behind then clouds, drawing long dramatic shadows with the field starting to string out. This course was harder than it looked on paper.
Super Cross - Curtis White’s bike throw falls short. Seeing Stephen Hyde and Curtis White give lots of time from their busy schedules to race alongside the kids made me a fan for life.
Daghan Perker
I have shot more than 50.000 frames in 2019. It is always hard to choose the favorites. Here are some shots that make me really happy when I look at them.
- Daghan Perker
Spring ride with the team towards Rockland lake. This day was the first day we could ride without any leg or knee warmers.
The best ride of the summer where we headed up to Peekskill and got off course a million times.
Looking for fire hydrants on a really hot day in New York City.
Instead of fixing my flat on 9W in the sun, I ran a mile - in my road cleats - to the Market and changed my tube under the AC chatting with my teammates.
Little dip in the water is earned after the first day of the cross camp.
A crab made Travis dance.
Seb is ded.
Tom is riding through a field of wild flowers on his cyclocross bike.
Clay Parker Jones
This was my first “full season” of trying on purpose to take passable photos of bike races, bike people, and bike stuff. Somehow I managed to pick photos that all came from one lens – Fuji’s XF 50-140, which I got from Seb for a pair of Zipp 303 tubs. Thank you, Seb, for these photos.
This was from a cold and wet day at Orchard Beach (see Matt’s photo, above), and of a “friend of the program,” Alex Buchmann. I picked this frame because it captures the post-race thing so well. And just how soaked-through everyone was that raced that day.
Gabe and Kacey really know how to put on a show – it’s almost like they designed this corner to be photogenic. Orange smoke-bombs in the background, Emily having a Great Time™ just behind Cullen, Cullen splashing his way through the beer hand-up…captures the vibe. Also check out Cullen’s hand-written number plate. Pro as hell, buddy.
Trevor’s such a good guy. He takes so many great photos of all of his friends – he had to make my selection, here. I love this shot for a couple reasons – first, because you can make out his focus behind his lenses (get it?) and because you can see just how many people were in the background. Not a single one of those spectators came back for Day 2, which was a cold, rainy disaster of a day. Type III fun.
JB saw the light this year, and came back to ‘cross. This was the first picture that I made on purpose all year, and it turned out! Cool.
A New York City based cyclist and sometimes photographer. Part adventure rider, part crit racer, and fully obsessed with an English bulldog named Winifred.
Instagram: @photorhetoric
E-mail: matthew@tobedetermined.cc
