D. Brent Miller

February 29, 2016

Tall Stacks Festival

CINCINNATI, OH—It was a fortunate timing that my wife and I were relocating to the Cincinnati area in the fall of 2006. I was in town looking for apartments and potential studio space for my photography business, when I happened to cruise to the downtown area to take a few photographs of the riverfront only to discover the Tall Stacks Music, Arts, and Heritage Festival was underway. The festival was held every three or four years with a gathering of river boats.

I grabbed a few photos and then continued on with my mission.

Unfortunately, 2006 was the last Tall Stacks Festival. There were additional attempts to hold the festival in subsequent years, but the economic times and lack of sponsors prevented the festival from happening.

See you on the highway.

Brent

February 28, 2016

Ohio River at Flood Stage

Cincinnati, OH—The Ohio River flooded in March 2011. I drove to Eden Park to see what it looked like from an observation point high above the river.

This was just over flood stage, not nearly as bad as the Flood of 1937, which was more than 25’ above flood stage.

See you on the highway.

Brent

February 27, 2016

V-Strom and Givi Luggage

Riding season is just around the corner, and I hope to do much of my Ohio River Towns photography project on the motorcycle. So, I needed to equip the bike with sufficient luggage to make it utilitarian.

I have always liked the Givi brand of motorcycle luggage. They are rugged and good looking. Secondly, I love the way you can use the same mounts to put different bags on the bike. Below is a great example of how that looks. First, the bike without bags.

You can see the new engine guards and the luggage mounting racks on the rear. Next, is the set of smaller bags I purchased when I first bought the bike. Givi E-22s. These are great for around town and running small grocery errands. I have used the smaller bags to go camping, also.

What about a top case? I decided to go with the Givi Trekker series of bags. The 52-Liter top case will hold a lot of stuff like camera gear and audio equpment, and it doesn’t look too bad with the E-22s—just a slight difference in styling.

Or, how about riding with just the top case. Many do. Without the side cases, it’s a narrower profile.

For the bigger loads, such as motorcycle touring and/or extended camping, the full set of Trekkers will do just fine—52L top case and 33L side cases, better known as panniers.

That’s some serious load-hauling capability. Still, it’s best not to try to carry everything. Think backpacking or minimalist motorcycling.

See you on the highway … along the Ohio River.

Brent