Are There Similarities Between Punk Rock Photography and Bike Racing?

Are there similarities between shooting a punk rock gig and racing a bike? Wait…what? punk rock photography and bike racing?! I admit it’s a rather odd topic to be writing about. Will people even care about the comparison? Well I think it’s interesting so I hope you can give it a read.

To begin it does help to be a punk rock photographer and a bike racer? It definitely helps for this blog! They are two of my life passions. Both are very therapeutic because it allows me to escape from the painful realities in my life. It helps when “the mental pain brigade” decides to stop by and say “Hey fucker I am going to mess with your mind all day long.” Plus both are a ton of fun!

At a gig, I am totally focused (no pun intended) on capturing that shot and being completely immersed in the sounds and visceral experience that is live music. It’s the music and the frenetic activity of the band and the fans. It’s the insanity of the fans, especially if am not taking pictures from the photo pit. Lots of bodies, sweat the occasional kick to the head when someone does a stage dive, and of course, the comments from people behind me telling to fuck off because they can’t see. Sorry, it’s not my concern that you were born short. It’s no different when I am racing my bike. I am totally focused on the wheel right in front of me. It’s the raw energy of the speed and frenetic movement of racers going should to shoulder at twenty seven miles per hour. And yes, there are the occasional comments like “What the fuck are you doing” and “Get the fuck out of my way!” From a visceral standpoint, it's the sound of rolling wheels, the shifting of gears, the pain of the lactic acid invading your quads, and the tunnel vision that occurs when you are going full gas until you can’t…It really hurts!

Now it’s time to go into the details:

The Equipment

Photography and bike racing can cost a shit ton of money and as you get better, the amount of money you spend continues to grow. Back when I was a punker in high school, I was not flush with cash so I could only afford a couple of rolls of film per gig. A roll of Kodak 400 speed black and white film costs around $5. In today’s dollar that comes out to a little over $13. Add in a home film development kit for my bathroom, the paper, and the chemicals needed to print my photos, it ends up costing a lot of dough. With the camera, I started with a borrowed point and shoot camera. It took good photos for but not a punk rock gig. I had to move up to the big leagues with a 35mm camera. I started with my former stepdad’s older 35mm. It made a huge difference. Then I got my own camera for my birthday. It was a Minolta 35 XG. It was an awesome camera.

Ask any professional photographer, they say “It’s all about the glass”. They mean the lens. The more you spend the better you can get. Also, thank goodness for digital photography! No more darkroom and the smell of the chemicals. No more having to reload film and no more “fuck I am out of film!” Back then you had 24 to 36 opportunities to take a shot. Now I can shoot as many as I need. My current camera setup is a Nikon D750 with a 24/70 2.8 Nikon lens that costs around 3 grand. Add in a 70/300 lens, which I need, it’s another $1000 bucks. This is one expensive hobby but totally worth the investment. It’s a craft that I can enjoy until I am dead.

Let’s go to bikes and bike racing. I started with by older brother’s hand me down Trek with a granny crank (if you are a cyclist you will know what one of those are). Like my point and shoot camera, as I got more into racing my bike, I needed to up my bike game. My current bike cost around $4,000 and it’s not a top of the line bike. It is a Van Dessel “Motivus Maximus” carbon fiber frame. Tires which are the equivalent of film are $80 a piece and need replacing every few months. My wheels were a bargin at $1,000. Wheels are my “lens” and lighter you want, the more you will need to spend. Add in bike computer, racing fees, racing kits (bib and jersey), helmets, maintenance, and a bunch of other stuff you need for training and racing, the costs continue to rise. If one wants to go with a super high end race bike, expect to pay at least $15k. It’s the same with a camera. A high end setup will cost you close to the same. But here’s the thing, if you are slow on a bike, a $15,000 bike won’t do shit because you will still be slow. With photography, if you don’t have an “eye“ for shooting a gig, a $10k or $15k setup won’t matter either…you will still take shitty photos.

My Van Dessel “Motivus Maximus” with SRAM Force group set, Vision TLR 40mm wheels, and Vittoria Corsa tires

Slam Pit/Circle Pit vs Criterium Racing

A big group of people shoulder to shoulder, lots of sweat, the chance of hitting the deck, the potential for broken bones, people doing stupid shit, fast, intense, and thrilling. Is that a slam pit back in the day or a bike race? It could be both. Think of it this way…put a group of alpha males who are slightly off their rocker and give them a free ticket to a Black Flag gig in the early 1980s or give a bike racer a free race entry and the outcomes could be very similar. Today’s “circle pit” and criterium bike racing have more in common than the slam pits from back in the day because they both go around in circles. One thing I notice in today’s circle pit is that if a person goes down while going around in circles, people pick them up. In a bike race, if you crash everyone keeps going around you without a second thought. There is a lot of shoulder bumping and very close quarters trying to move up. In the photo pit when it is packed with photographers, one has to slide into places while not bumping into others. If there is no photo pit then it’s a free for all with bodies flying all over the place and getting pushed in all directions. You are also packed together like sweaty sardines. Either way, you have to be strategic so that you can get the shot. In bike racing, it’s the same. You are packed together and going fucking fast and bodies and bikes flying around when there is a crash in front of you. You also have to be strategic to position yourself to conserve energy so that you can get a good finish. I don’t race to win or shoot photography to sell to magazines. I do it to try my best, not crash, not take shitty pictures, and have a fucking blast while doing both!

The Rush

The final comparison is “The Rush”. The excitement of getting to the venue to see a band. That injection of adrenaline when the band comes onto the stage. The assault on your senses when the music starts. That sound and the sensation can elevate one’s heart rate close to “racing levels”. The music causes people, who may be quiet and introverted, into raving lunatics who go stage diving and run around in the pit like their hair is on fire. Bike racing, with its speed, intensity, and controlled chaos, is very similar. A quiet and reserved bike racer, as soon as the whistle blows, can transform himself into a speed freak who will take ridiculous risks to move up in the peloton (the cycling equivalent of the pit). When I am done shooting a gig, I am tired and sweaty. I can even have a sore arm from holding up my camera all night. When I pass the finish line at a race, I am usually drenched with sweat, my thighs are on fire, and my brain is fried from the insanity. The one thing I do say to myself when I am done with either is “That was fucking awesome and I can’t wait to do it again!”

This is the best part of racing is being with you teammates. It’s the same with shooting a gig…it’s hanging out with your fellow photographers!

If you have made it through this blog, I thank you for taking the time and appreciate your open mind.

Are There Similarities Between Punk Rock Photography and Bike Racing?

Greg’s World + Pennywise