Surf's Up! Drones for Filmmaking

As much as "drones" have been getting so much bad press lately (for military/spy reasons), we have to remember that there is usually a positive side to all technology innovation. Take the video below as an example.

Surfing is an amazing sport. Athletic. Dangerous. And stunningly beautiful. To truly capture the essence of it on film requires multiple angles. From the water surface. From the surfer's perspective. From underwater. And, yes, from the air.

Historically, this last angle has been difficult to capture, in large part because it required expensive (and loud!) helicopters and cameras.

Now, through the miracle of modern technology, a filmmaker can use a remote-controlled "drone" and a relatively inexpensive GoPro camera to capture footage that was previously extremely difficult to acquire.

Enjoy!

Frank Medrano

As part of my ongoing fitness training, I recently started focusing more on "bodyweight exercises". This is where you use only the weight of your own body to provide the resistance in strength training. In other words, no free weights.

While the common thinking is that you cannot build up large defined muscles without free weights, Frank Medrano is proof positive that it IS possible. In fact, some of the stuff this guy can do is simply amazing ... and inspirational.

NBA Christmas Commercial - 2013

This is one of my favorite commercials in a long time. Never mind the online controversy over the fact that it was shot in front of a green screen and therefore "not real". It's still very creative and greatly entertaining. Enjoy!

Human Flight Through a "Bat Cave"

It is only mid-April, but 2013 has already been a busy year for wingsuit-BASE jump athlete Alexander Polli. He kicked off the new year with a unique practice flight:



Most recently, he pulled off an historic first, flying at over 150 mph through a narrow passage in a mountainside. This dramatic feat led to this CNN feature story:

Chris Sharma

Several years ago, I was really into rock climbing, and I came across a young guy who was an emerging star in the sport, even as a teenager. His name was Chris Sharma. Now 31, he has truly become a living legend, with a long track record of success to his name. Below is a NatGeo film trailer that gives you a good idea of just how phenomenal he is. Amazing!

"Ocean Men: Extreme Dive"

Last fall I had the privilege of spending a fair amount of time in Monterey with Bob Talbot, who is a world-reknown photographer and a gifted film maker. He shared with our team his IMAX documentary, Ocean Men: Extreme Dive, which tells the story of two world record free-diving rivals: Cuban-born Pipin Ferreras and Italian Umberto Pelizzari. It is a fascinating story told through Bob's amazing imagery. You can enjoy it on Hulu or on YouTube below.

Crazy Soccer Goal

I played soccer competitively for ~25 years. I loved playing in all sorts of weather conditions: sun, heat, rain, snow, whatever. The only condition I did not like for soccer was wind. Here's a great example of why wind and soccer don't mix very well:

Absolutely INSANE Bicycle Riding!!!

I previously wrote about "Parkour" (or "free running") and how amazing it is to watch these guys do what they do in an urban setting. Well, here comes "Parkour for Bikes" ...

My youngest child is just about ready to ditch the training wheels on his bike, and my second oldest is just starting to try some small tricks (e.g., riding with no hands, wheelie, bunny hop, ramp jumps, etc.). However, you can imagine how blown away they were by this video of what Danny MacAskill can do on a bicycle. Of course, I had to remind them that he must practice A LOT to get this good. ;-)




Danny Macaskill : Next level street trials from brainchild-films on Vimeo.

Parkour: Free Running

I was recently reminded of how blown away I was a couple of years ago when I saw the following scene in Casino Royale:



Besides the refreshing throw-back to the older Bond movies where REAL stuntmen performed REAL breath-taking stunts (no CGI here!), I was amazed by the running style used during the chase sequence. It led me to research this a little, and I discovered "Parkour" or "free running." I was especially intrigued by Sebastian Foucan, the man Daniel Craig is chasing in the Casino Royale clip and one of the founders of free running.

Unfortunately, I'm way too out of shape and past my prime to be able to enjoy this new sport myself, but man is it cool to watch!

Windy Field Goal Attempt

As a sportswriter later commented, I have *never* seen a field goal kicker miss an attempt wide left and wide right ... on the same kick! 55mph gusty winds will do that, I guess.

2008 Olympic Moments: Very Very Close and ... Not So Much

As I look back on this year's tremendous moments in sports, I think the juxtaposition of these two photos show the absolute dominance of Michael Phelps (swimming) and Usain Bolt (track).

Both photos were taken at the finish line of their respective gold medal races in 100m sprints. At this level of intense international competition, these short races are normally decided by hundredths of seconds separating 1st from 2nd from 3rd and from the rest of the pack.

PHELPS DEFEATS CAVIC

At this point, Michael Phelps was just getting warmed up on the way to his historic string of 8 gold medals. However, he ran straight into a buzz-saw of a world-class swimmer in Serb Milorad Cavic, who was outspoken in his desire to derail Phelps' hopes. Phelps (left) held on to win by 1-one-thousandth of a second, relying on the same recipe that would lead to his being crowned "The Greatest Olympian of All Time": incredible natural talent, superb training regimen, and an intense desire to win at all costs.

BOLT DEFEATS THE WORLD

On the other end of the results spectrum, Jamaican Usain Bolt simply obliterated the field--and the world record--by a truly incredible margin. Amazingly, he was almost out of the frame for this photograph, making the rest of the world-class finalists look like no more than decent high school sprinters. Tall and lanky, with a long stride more suitable for the middle sprints (200m and 400m), Bolt literally "bolt-ed" to Olympic gold and into the record books, taking both the 100m and the 200m in world record times.

I have enjoyed watching the Olympics since I was a little kid, but this year's Summer Games were truly memorable.

Extreme Space Tourism

I could see skydivers (quite literally) jumping at the opportunity to "space dive" ... I'm just not sure about the ride UP!

Bjorn Borg -- In Perspective

I just watched Bjorn Borg present the champion's trophy to Rafael Nadal for winning this year's French Open. This was Nadal's 4th consecutive victory at Roland Garros, an achievement last accomplished by ... Bjorn Borg in 1978-1981.

Last year, I watched Bjorn Borg present the champion's trophy to Roger Federer for winning Wimbledon for the 5th consecutive time, an achievement last accomplished by ... Bjorn Borg in 1976-1980.


It seems to me like these recent accomplishments by two of our current eras best tennis players only serve to highlight even more the phenomenal level of dominance that Borg exhibited in his prime. After all, it has taken TWO players to pull off what he accomplished by himself.


I fully realize that Federer has also won four consecutive U.S. Open championships, which no one else has achieved during the Open era. However, I believe that the slow red clay of Paris followed just a few weeks later by the fast green grass of England makes Borg's 1-2 punch just that much more incredible.

Sports Photos

My friend Pallavi Shah is a budding sports photographer. She's getting pretty good while shadowing some seasoned pros. Check out her growing portfolio.

Life Lessons: Cal v. Stanford 1982 (aka "The Play")

I've always said that sports are terrific ways to teach (and learn) about life's most important lessons. As a Cal Bear, I have to appreciate the lessons from the wild finish to our 1982 Big Game with arch-rival Stanford:

(1) Don't ever give up on anything ... no matter how dire the situation may look.

(2) Don't ever take anything for granted ... even the surest things can disappear in seconds.

(3) You'll be amazed at what you can accomplish with teamwork, innovation, effort, and creative problem-solving.

and, most important of all ...

(4) If you're a trombone player, don't ever, ever, EVER walk onto a football field until you're absolutely certain that the football players are finished playing football!

One more lesson I've learned: the older you get, the more perspective you get. While many folks are familiar with this famous kick-off return, what's been lost to history is the way that the Stanford team had just seconds before pulled off what THEY thought was a miracle last-minute come-from-behind victory.

To emphasize these points, please enjoy the first [longer] video for proper context (and to give Stanford its proper due), as well as the second [enhanced] video (to see exactly what the heck actually happened on the field).

Enjoy these classic sports moments!