This past Sunday was the Lou Maltese Memorial Road Race in Central Park. The weather forecast definitely looked questionably but I didn’t care as long as the temperature was above 70.

As I was waiting for me teammate Colin at 5:00 a.m. on Flushing Ave. in Brooklyn it started to sprinkle; then it started rain a little harder, and harder. By the time I got to Central Park the weather still couldn’t make up it’s mind. The ground was soaked and it couldn’t have been more humid.

The Cat 4 field was full with 80 riders and I think everyone was a little weary of the slick tarmac. If you’ve ever raced in Central Park you know that at the north end of the park there is a big downhill S turn which is dangerous in a pack even in the best conditions. Sure as sh*t, as we came through the S turn on the first lap riders began to slide out in front of me like they were riding on ice. I played it safe, allowed myself plenty of space and rode slow. I managed to stay upright but we had to of lost at least 20-30 guys throughout the race.

Riding in conditions like that you just have to suck it up and resign to be sprayed in the face the whole race by all of the dirt and water coming off the wheels in front of you. I had glasses with yellow lenses which at least kept some of the dirt out of my eyes.

Midway through lap 4 Aviv and I attacked on Harlem Hill, followed by a Foundation rider. Aviv led all the way through the climb and then peeled off and left the Foundation rider an myself on our own. We quickly broke away from the pack and worked the entire rest of the lap to maintain our daylight but neither of us had the strength and were caught at the two laps to go mark.

After negotiating the turn successfully two more times we approached the finish in relatively good fashion; the pack was together and stable. I was sitting second or third wheel and Misha was right behind me. I yelled at him to stay on my wheel and he did. Misha is a pure sprinter and I knew he had a better chance than I did at the win. At the bottom of the hill before the finish he jumped around me and took off with a few other guys. He took second place in a great uphill sprint.

Pics from the race at NY Velocity and Prolly gave me a shoutout as well for the pictures shot by my wife Jennifer Jones.

Brett and Edie, both serious cyclists from Brooklyn, chose Sugar Hill, NH as the setting for their simple intimate wedding. Friends and family traveled from around the northeast for a weekend of beautiful weather and cycling. A few days after the wedding Brett and Edie flew to Portland where they embarked on a 6-week journey on their bikes back to New York City. That’s a hell of a honeymoon! They’ll be updating their blog all along the way at www.kissingwithhelmets.com. Good luck guys.

Four months since my last post? Lame, sorry. If it’s any consolation I’ve been tweeting a lot more, which is a more accessible form of “blogging” for me. twitter.com/tha_joneses

First big update, I’m booking weddings again. I just got back from a great wedding in Sugar Hill, NH and will be posting pictures very soon. Stay tuned for the coolest cycling-centric wedding ever.

As some of you may know I shot weddings full time in Atlanta with Our Labor of Love (blog) before I moved to NYC. Now that I’m here permanently and finally getting settled I’m booking weddings on my own. Below are a few images from some recent weddings. My wedding side project is called Bright Lives. For more info go to www.thebrightlives.com (under construction).

A Pregnancy by The Joneses from Ray Jones on Vimeo.

When I found out we were pregnant, my natural instinct as a journalist was to immediately begin documenting our entire journey of bringing a life into this world. On January 18, 2009 our son Julian was born. This video is a gift to him.

http://www.raymjones.com

http://www.jennjoneshair.com

Jenn from the new KEH blog recenly wrote a post about people with photography related tattoos. I’m not sure how she learned about mine. But I sent her a pic and told her about it. And if you’re not familiar with KEH, it’s like the B&H of the South. The have an insane amount of used stuff. I’ve never been to their store though. I think it’s in Marietta or something. View the post.

In preparation for this weekends UCI Pro Tour of the Battenkill, I’m posting my recap of the Team TOMS Shoes experience in last weekend’s Pro/Am Battenkill race.

**Well we did it, survived I mean. No crashes, no injuries. And here’s how it all went down.

The six of us (Matt Bartlett, Tim Chiang, Greg Capelle, Ryan Dudek, Ellis Kim and myself) arrived at the hotel in Shaftsbury, VT on Friday night around 11 p.m. For the most I think we were all filled with equal parts anxiousness and excitement. But we tried to get some sleep. Ellis snored.

We woke up at 7 a.m.  Saturday and the butterflies were definitely fluttering. I had done quite a bit of talking to my local friends who have raced Battenkill in years past. The one thing everyone talked was the final climb before the finish, Stage Road. It’s all dirt and over 2 miles long. This was what I was most worried about. The race is long, 62 miles for Category 5 and I knew that if I was to have any chance at the podium I would need to maintain good position at the front of the pack through the final climb. But nothing at Battenkill works out as planned.

We had six riders representing Team TOMS Shoes in the Cat 5 field together. We were the largest team in our field and we knew that would be one of our biggest advantages. The biggest wild card was just how steep the climbs were going to be and how well would our legs hold up throughout the lengthy race? For many of us it would be the longest race we had ever done.

We donned our TOMS kits, loaded up with gels and water bottles and tried to prepare ourselves for the wind and cold. Forecast at the start; 42 degrees, cloudy, wind 15-20 mph. We proceeded to registration at the school in Cambridge and tried to continue eating but it was hard. We used the bathroom many many times and pinned our numbers on each other in the locker room of the school. We then went on a quick warm up ride together and headed to the start line.

We lined up and talked strategy one last time. Our primary goal was to stay organized at the front of the pack because we knew riders would start falling off the back early on and the pack would likely split. The dirt roads were numerous and the pot holes just as plentiful. Luckily everything was dry. It was a cold and windy start, the sun eventually broke through and remained but the wind was persistent and all over the place. In my small well-formed group we rotated in a tight pace line and echelon when crosswinds arose.

The first two climbs were absolutely brutal. I was totally caught off guard. I knew where the climbs were located on the course but I was not prepared for the grade of each. Our speed was in the single digits, climbing out of the saddle struggling to produce RPMs. As we predicted the pack split early on with about 20 riders out in front and the rest scattered behind with no organization. Matt and Greg were able to work together and maintain good position in the lead pack for the remainder of the race with Greg finishing 9th and Matt 12th. I found myself alone in the middle, exactly where I didn’t want to be. Tim was off behind me and Ellis alone in front. Ryan was also somewhere on his own. Unfortunately Ryan and Tim had to bow out. Ellis fought through the stomach sickness he had been battling and impressively finished the race solo.

During a relatively flat and rolling section of the course I spent about an hour bridging a gap on my own to reach a group of four riders. I recovered in the sanctuary of my new friends’ slipstream and for the remainder of the race we worked together very well and made up a lot of the time we had lost. At around mile 55 we hit Stage Road, our last major challenge before the finish at 62. It was a long stair stepper climb with unfortunate casualties forced to walk their bikes all along the way. When I finally reached the peak I was filled with relief and pride because I knew I had done it. The finish was just a few rolling hills away, with pavement all the way.

At the finish Team TOMS gathered to reflect on the brutal race and discuss where the hell we were going to eat.

View an extended gallery on Flickr.

It’s been exactly two years since the event that changed my life irrevocably. I always used to wonder about fate, if it existed, you know, how our lives unfold and what control we have in it all. If each little action truly causes a reaction in the timeline of our lives and how if we had done one small thing differently it might cause a ripple effect that could change everything.

I wondered what was the closest I’d ever come to actually dying. Maybe that time when a crash happened right behind me on the highway. Or maybe that time I decided not to walk down that street late at night after a show.

On April 8, 2008 my life changed forever when I was hit by a truck while riding my bike. I’m well recovered now, physically and emotionally for the most part. But if that accident hadn’t happened I wonder how I might be different today. I guess we all have to face our own mortality at some point its just that some of us aren’t afforded the extension of life to reflect back on our findings.

I have a family now and honestly cherish every moment I have with my wife and son. Not a day goes by that I don’t think about what happened on that cool April day. I know these are all a lot of clichés but I don’t write long winded about my experience for any other reason than because it’s an acceptable substitute for talking to myself.

This year’s anniversary is marked by two events. First, today I rode, really rode, a fixed-gear bike for the first time since my accident. I didn’t quit riding a track bike after my accident because I was scared too. Initially it was because my bike was totaled. The vintage Bridgestone I was riding when I got hit now hangs on the wall in my office. Then when I was well enough to start riding again my focus changed. I got a road bike, moved to Brooklyn near Prospect Park and started training and eventually racing. Now I’m working fixed-gear workouts into my training schedule.

Being on the bike today was amazing. I forgot how smooth and tight a nice track bike feels. A smooth, quiet, extremely efficient machine. It would be an understatement to say it was a Zen moment.

Secondly, this Saturday is the Tour of the Battenkill. A 62 mile race (for category 5) in Upstate New York that is influenced by the European classics characterized by dirt and gravel roads that comprise a good portion of the course. This will be my longest race to date and the first with my new teammates from Team TOMS. It’s going to be a great challenge and nice end to my time in Category 5. I admit that I slacked off more than I should have this winter but come on, who didn’t. This winter was brutal.

So here’s to life. Enjoy it and don’t let fear and apprehension keep from doing the things that make you happy.

-Ray

*Update* The recovery on Robinson Crusoe Island continues with the death toll now at 20. It is clear now that most of San Juan Bautista, the only “town” on the island, has been wiped out. Visit rcrusoe.org to find out more information about the efforts being made to help the people of the island and how you can help.

Tsunami Relief for Robinson Crusoe Island from Más a Tierra on Vimeo.

An 8.8 magnitude earthquake hit central Chile today creating a tsunami in its wake. The closest group of islands is the Juan Fernandez archipelago 700 kilometers off the coast of Santiago. Robinson Crusoe Island is the primarily inhabited island there and was hit by the tsunami probably only minutes after the earthquake. I spent 10 days there in Spring 2006 as part of a multimedia documentary project with UNC. I was the Director of Photography and shot the story A Lifelong Harvest. Friend and colleague, Andrea Ballocchi Coudeu has sent emails to those we know on the island but we have not had any luck reaching anyone yet. There is also a gallery of pictures from Isla Robinson Crusoe up on my website. Let’s hope everyone there is ok.

I was gratefully able to attend a fashion show this season and given backstage access. I’m not so much interested in fashion but the whole production of shows and the industry as whole does fascinate me. So I was given about 30 minutes backstage at Nanette Lepore’s show on Feb. 17 and I had a great time. Afterwards I watched the show from a seat and shot a few more pictures. You can see the entire gallery at www.raymjones.com. And check out the Bryant Park retrospective video that I also worked on called, Finding A Stage.

My wife Jennifer Jones, the hair dresser, recently made the decision to leave her salon in Manhattan to work at a brand new salon in Williamsburg. I was thrilled for her as soon as she told me the concept. Graceland is half tattoo shop, half salon with a touch of Elvis. It was meticulously designed by co-owners Corvette Hunt and Bethany Paul whose attention to detail can be seen in the inlaid shears in the floor of the salon and WWED metal letters in the bathroom. There are four stylists in the salon side and several artists from East Side Ink will be servicing the tattoo half. It’s a great move for Jenn and we’re all really excited about how much attention (here, here) Graceland has received already. Graceland is at 677 Lorimer St. in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Check it out.