Motorcycles - Page One
My love of motorcycling began when I was about 12 years old. Growing up in the rural South provided plenty of opportunities and space to enjoy off-road riding. I have distinct memories of taking a friend's father's 250cc Kawasaki street bike through fields and over small jumps. As a teenager, I dated a young man who raced motocross. That was just too cool. When he bought me, a struggling college student, a brand new Honda XR200R, what else could I do but marry him?! We've been into and out of motorcycling over the years, until a few years ago my husband, Speedy, was asked to help build a quarter-mile flat track just a few miles from our home. It wasn't long until he and our son began racing there, and I tried a few powder puff classes. I was too scared of getting hurt while racing and not being able to work, though, so it wasn't long before I retreated back behind my camera when on the track. I love riding streetbikes, though, especially in the mountains of western NC & north GA. Also, in early 2010 Speedy and I both got dual sport bikes (he has a 2008 Honda XR650L and I have a 2006 Suzuki DR650SE and a 1996 Suzuki DR350SE), and we're having a blast riding off-road again.My current street ride is a 2004 Triumph Sprint RS 955i. It is just the total package. It's got that torquey Triumph triple engine with its famous growl and smooth power delivery, and is such a blast to ride. It is vibration-free, all-day comfy, and the faster you go, the better it feels. It is just a howling good time and is by far my favorite bike to date. Prior to that, I rode a 2007 Yamaha FZ6, a great "do-it-all" 600cc street/sport with an R6 engine tuned for the street. For over 4 years prior to the FZ6 I rode a Kawasaki Vulcan 800A cruiser. The Vulcans are called "bulletproof," and with good reason. It never gave me a lick of trouble. I had a Corbin seat with a backrest on that thing and could ride for days. But when I started dragging the pegs pretty often on the Vulcan, I moved away from cruisers to standards and sport-tourers. The riding position on those is much better on the ole' bod, and at my skill level I can rail thru the mountains all day without worrying about dragging the pegs.
 Laura & Speedy at Whigg Meadow (elev. 5000') near Tellico Plains, TN |
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In 2003-2005 I was able to enjoy combining my photography with motorcycles by shooting a good bit of the races at Mid-Carolina Speedway. I'm working full-time now and no longer shooting races, but am leaving these pages up for the enjoyment of others. I'm not actively pushing print & DVD sales (as discussed below) any longer, but hey, if you see yourself on here somewhere and want a print, let me know.
In 2004 at Mid-Carolina Speedway I shot stills during the heats and video during the main., putting a handful of the best shots from each race on here, but also producing a DVD movie of each race ($20 each) which combined slideshows set to music plus video of the main. I did seven DVDs in 2004: one of The Heritage (described a little further down on this page); one with all 3 South Carolina May '04 races (Conway, Ladson & Mid-Carolina), slideshows only; and the June 19, 2004, the July 17, 2004, the August 21, 2004, the September 25, 2004 & October 16, 2004 races at Mid-Carolina (one DVD of each race containing video of the entire main plus a photo slideshow). These are still available for purchase. If I have a photo of you, a DVD case cover can be personalized at no extra charge.
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I do ask that you respect my copyright on my images. The images on this site are for your personal enjoyment only. If you'd like to order prints, please email me and let me know what you'd like. A LOT of hard work and money goes into my work, and print sales help support it. I shoot 8-megapixel digital files and have them printed on archival paper (Kodak Endura Professional) by a Pro lab. CLICK HERE for print prices and sizes.
It may be hard for you to tell from these small files how an actual print would look. These files are downsized for the web and are mere fractions in size of the originals. Let me know the 4-digit print number, and I'll tell you how good it would or wouldn't look at a particular size, and even email you a "100% crop" of a section for you to judge it, if requested.
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 Here's a look at the awesome 1st place trophies fabricated
by Dwayne Holman (#63H) for the 2005 season champions
of Mid-Carolina Speedway. The points winner of each class
was presented one of these by Henry Perritt at the annual
Awards Banquet on October 29, 2005.
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Ouch! Here's a link to the helmetcam footage shot by Speedy of the PILEUP in turn two of the Pro main at Mid-Carolina
on September 17, 2005. This is almost three minutes long
 (the talk between the riders afterwards is pretty interesting), so if you're on dialup it will work better to right-click on the link and save the file to your hard drive, then view it with Windows Media Player. |
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Mid-Carolina Speedway:
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that day - email for details!
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Click the photo below for shots of the flat track race,
show bikes, stunts, and the cemetery where the Hunley sailors were buried. I have a DVD available of these in a slideshow set to music. The DVD also contains video of the pro main event. ($20; email me if you want one).
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DAYTONA BIKE WEEK 2004
A great cure for cabin fever! Speedy took some of these:
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I have free slideshows available via email of these 2003 races at Mid-Carolina Speedway:
4/19/03, 5/31/03, 6/21/03, 7/25/03, & 10/18/03 EMAIL LAURA
Sample shots from Mid-Carolina Speedway, 18 October 2003
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Sample shots from Mid-Carolina Speedway, 20 September 2003:
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Sample shots from Mid-Carolina Speedway, 25 July 2003:
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Sample shots from Mid-Carolina Speedway, 21 June 2003:
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Sample shots from Mid-Carolina Speedway, 31 May 2003:
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A few shots from Mid-Carolina Speedway, 19 April 2003:
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Motorcycle Links:
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