Thunder By The Bay

The first weekend in January typically is when Thunder By The Bay occurs in Sarasota. Thousands of motorcyclists descend upon downtown. Although this is the 14th annual event, it's the first time I've attended.  Let's take stock of the event:

The bikers couldn't mask their excitement to be in Sarasota.

They admired motorcycles...

...and strolled around downtown.   (I'm quite certain I was the only one in Ralph Lauren (turquoise tennis sweater) --- but no one seemed to notice or mind.)  

We all made our way to lower Main Street where a large stage was erected....

....and The Boneshakers, a Sarasota cover band, belted out some awesome Loverboy and Journey songs.

I stopped bopping and singing long enough to capture this shot of the drummer wailing "Doooon't Stop Belieeeevin!"  Great stuff!  If you happen to be in the Sarasota area, Thunder By The Bay is still going on tomorrow.   Check out the schedule of events, which includes a blessing of the bikes at 9 a.m.  By the way, I bumped into two loyal followers, Martin and Pat, who immediately inquired if I was going to post Thunder By the Way on SDP.   How nice is that?!  Great seeing you.  And, thanks for sending so many people to SDP.  (I'll mention it during my annual review with management.)

Bird on a High Wire

Excluding the Photo of the Year, it's been quite awhile since I've posted a bird photo. I spotted this handsome red shouldered hawk along the "Hawk Corridor", which is what I'm now calling a portion of Fruitville Road. On this journey, I encountered 9 red shouldered hawks in a 2-mile stretch. Bird bonanza! In other ornithology news, a bald eagle has taken up residency near Ed Smith Stadium. I first noticed him a couple of weeks ago sitting atop the third base lights, and then, the other day he buzzed right over my car when I was driving by the stadium. Each time I've returned camera in hand, but he's proven to be elusive. I think I'm going to grab my new Christmas binoculars, long lens and tripod and head out early in the morning to find him.

Frost & Fog

For those who think it doesn't get cold in Florida, I offer this photo.   I was on my way to work yesterday morning when I noticed this blanket of frost on the ground and steam fog rising from the pond.  Temperature:  a chilly 34 degrees.  It's not every winter day you see this sort of thing in Florida, so I couldn't resist pulling over for a quick pic (even though it meant parting from my toasty seat warmer).  Fortunately, I had a camera on hand since I recently decided to store an old point-and-shoot in my car for unexpected photo opps like this one. Also, luckily, this cold front blew in after my friend from Michigan left, otherwise I suspect he'd be requesting a refund from the Chamber of Commerce.

Plaza Art

This oversized sculpture sits outside Plaza at Five Points right along the Five Points roundabout in downtown.   I'm not exactly sure what it is, but I like it, as well as the water feature.  The flagpoles you can see through the sculpture are in the middle of the roundabout...and just beyond that is the Zenith building.

Collegiate Spirit

There's nothing quite like a college football game! In my last post, I mentioned I attended the Outback Bowl, convenientally located in Tampa less than one hour north from SDP Headquarters.  It was a great venue. The game itself...well...all I can say is 'WOW'.  I've endured many Michigan State football nailbiters, but this one one takes the cake (or perhaps in this case the bloomin' onion).  MSU pulled off a come-from-behind victory (down 16-0 in the 3rd quarter) to win in triple overtime.  What I love about this Spartan team is their never say die attitude and Spartan spirit.  After blocking a field goal to win the game, the players celebrated on the field and made their way to the MSU fan section where, beaming with pride, they sang the Spartan fight song.  Fight!  Fight!  Rah team fight!  Victory for MSU!  What a sight to behold.  (By the way, I was so caught up in the moment I'm amazed any of my pics are in focus.)

So Far So Good

So far, 2012 is shaping up quite nicely here at SDP Headquarters!   During the long holiday weekend, two good friends visited from Michigan and Texas.  Of course, we stopped by St. Armands Circle, where we spotted Neptune clutching a handful of fading balloons from the New Year's Eve celebration the night before.  It was such a fun, unexpected sight, I immediately thought it was SDP-worthy.  We also went to the Outback Bowl in Tampa yesterday to see my alma mater, Michigan State University, take on the University of Georgia.  More on that as soon as I recover from my team's heart stopping triple overtime victory. (Hopefully, within the next day or two.)  Go State!

Photo of the Year - 2011

Happy New Year!  After much discussion, the SDP staff selected this as the 2011 Photo of the Year: a great blue heron with a fish head which had been tossed into Sarasota Bay by a fisherman.   What a fun capture!  As for my personal favorite for the year, which wasn't posted on SDP, here it is: Roger Federer on Centre Court at Wimbledon -- amazing!  I hope everyone has a safe, healthy and prosperous 2012.

This is the first theme day of the year for the City Daily Photo community.   Click here to view thumbnails for all participants