SUPer Sucking

   

  I should have an open mind about new things.  After all, being an engineer I am scientific minded and should approach anything new with an open mind until proven otherwise.  That said, I don't know what rubs me the wrong way with SUPing (Stand Up Paddleboarding), but I despise it without even trying it.  Part of my hate is probably due to it's the part extreme sport, part hipstery acronym SUP, "Hey dude, the weather's gnar outside, lets go SUPing!".  Part of my hate probably stems from it being so trendy, the types of people who do it, the people who do stupid things with it...  yoga and backcountry camping...  really? Or maybe it's the horrible mechanics involved with it.  It's basically just a super wide, thick surfboard that you paddle around with your abdomen.  The hydrodynamics are terrible with huge drag, and on top of that it is the highest wind exposure of any paddling craft.  Not to mention the equipment is ultra expensive for what it is.  

Just get a kayak, douche
 

    So, to sum it up, everything about SUPing sucks, even from an objective point of view.  I'd like to think of it as a fad that will fade away...  who knows, only time will tell.  OK, I will give it one thing - it may be fun in some moderate surf, but paddling across an open flat lake with these, or even going backcountry camping is a ridiculous idea to me.  I'd try it out but I certainly wouldn't go out of my way to do it.

Panasonic TS5 Announced

     I've been using compact digital cameras for outdoor adventures since close to when they first came out.   I don't think camera companies recognized the potential for outdoor adventure use right off the bat - they were more for going clubbing or just around town when you wanted to slip the camera in your pocket instead or dragging around a camera case for your camera.

      I went through quite a few of them, most dying a death due to dropping into water, rarely any of them retiring gracefully.  Once I dropped a camera into a puddle while backpacking on the La Cloche Silhouette trail in Ontario and spent the evening at camp taking out the micro screws on the case with my Swiss Army knife and drying it out over a tealight candle...  to my surprise it actually worked the next day!  At times, I was almost on a first name basis with the repair people at Nikon who kept continually rejecting repairs as a result of water damage and I had to buy replacement cameras.  Thankfully the industry developed the ruggedized, waterproof compact cameras a couple years back... I actually have had the same camera for 3 years now!

     I think my first one was the Konica Minolta Dimage X, then I moved onto the Nikon Coolpix S series.  Nowadays I use Panasonic TS series, the one I have right now is the TS2.  In the beginning the low light performace of compact cameras was downright terrible, and the long shutter speeds and lack of  image stabilization made for a huge percentage of blurry photos. But now the performance you can get out of a small package is astounding. 

    I have been wanting to upgrade my TS2, but have been waiting for a good reason to.  Camera companies throw a bunch of what I consider non-value added features into cameras for the sake of gagetry, and not for the sake of the prime function of a camera - to capture images the best possible.  That is what I find paramount in a camera, the image quality.  The GPS, Wifi connectivity, scene modes, and other things like that are just frilly gimmicks and I never use them.  However, one cool thing I find though is the new panorama mode you can just sweep the camera and it will form a panorama shot within the camrea - the Panasonic TS4 and other recent cameras have nowadays.  

     Digressing, Panasonic announced their TS5 launched today at CES.  It has a new type of sensor, which they say has excellent low light performance.  Excellent, that's what I, or any self respecting photographer is always looking for.  It's 16.1 Megapixels, and has 4.6x zoom, same as all of the earlier models.  It also has some extra frilly, gadgety features like NFC (near field communications), GPS, and Wifi connectivity all of which I really don't care about and wish they made a camera without these things to save some weight/size.  It is even more rugged/waterproof than ever, which is great as well.  In any case, I'm really looking forward to seeing some test photos and to really tell if it's worth upgrading from my old TS2.

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ArcTeryx Bolt AR Glove Review

     I still don't get Arcteryx naming system...  chock full of acronyms that mean something to the people that design the clothes but means nothing to everyone else, resulting in non-memorable names that are easily confused: Alpha, Beta, Zenta, Delta, Cam, Venta, SV, AR, MX...  do those mean anything to you?  I thought not.

     Anyways, I decided to write a blog post on my Bolt AR gloves.   I just looked up Arcteryx's website, and it looks like they don't sell them anymore.  But, I think they're great.  With these gloves, as with other things Arcteryx makes, they paid close attention to the fit to ensure maximum articulation and natural comfort.  These cloves are sewn curved in a natural state, not flat like may gloves, to produce gloves that are very comfortable when gripping things such as ski poles, steering wheels etc.  The Bolt AR glove has softshell material in the back for stretchyness, insulation and breathablilty.  These gloves are great for high aerobic winter activities, around town, and times when the temperature is close to freezing.  They are dressy enough to be casual wear for going out as well.  The leather palms are supple, grippy and have better dexterity than any other glove I have ever used with similar warmth.  For colder situations I use different gloves but in general, these ones get a lot of usage in the winter...  which is why I am surprised they don't make them any more - I am just glad I got a pair!