Words: Drew Bennett
Cinematography: Drew Bennett & Matt Jones
Photography: Matthew Delorme
BTS Photography: Cody Wethington & Luke Patton
Athletes: Stephanie Ignell & Joel Brideau

My forehead pushed into the airplane window as the clouds parted and we descended over Seattle. Green and blue hues stretched out over the horizon and a thin layer of clouds cut through the Olympic mountains west of us. If you live in the arid American West, you never forget the first time you fly into the Pacific Northwest. It’s a region and ecosystem teeming with life and it leaves a lasting impression on you. Seattle may be a concrete jungle, but it’s also intertwined with nature everywhere you look. Lakes and canals border high-rises. Vines and ferns break through the concrete in a constant fight to thrive in a place where humans have dramatically altered the landscape. But our journey would take us far outside the boundaries of metro Seattle, to a place with no stop lights that’s only accessible by boat or plane.

An hour-long ferry ride would take us through the San Juan Archipelago, a group of hundreds of islands between Vancouver Island and the continental mainland. Our destination, Orcas Island, is the largest of the San Juan Islands and bears a distinct horseshoe shape. We were there on assignment to create a launch video for the newly designed Pivot Trail 429 mountain bike. Orcas Island is an incredibly unique and beautiful place. Within the San Juan Islands, it has the most year-round residents and offers both the highest point of elevation, Mt. Constitution, as well as some of the most varied mountain terrain. Coast Salish communities inhabited the island for generations and written records describe just how incredibly abundant Salmon, shellfish, and deer were. The Lummi Tribe would strategically travel around the archipelago based on the season and what food sources were available. With a close relationship and understanding of the local ecology, they developed an innovative fishing technology known as reef netting, a technique still used by sustainable seafood cooperatives today. In more recent history, local citizens and land managers have realized the importance of keeping Orcas Island protected from unchecked development. Currently, a large number of nature preserves protect more than 19,000 acres within the San Juan Islands, some of which have become public land.

With over 5,000 acres of dense, dank forest, Moran State Park sits as the largest track of public land within the archipelago. Back in the 1930’s, the Civilian Conservation Corps under Roosevelt’s New Deal would work for years to improve infrastructure and trails, and ultimately build a road to the top of Mt. Constitution. This paved road has been a huge part of the appeal to mountain biking on the island. From September to May, when the trails are open to biking, riders from all around the region flock to the park to shuttle up its steep grade. And after a few loamy laps among giant, old-growth conifers, it’s easy to see why. Three hundred year-old trees surround a mountain lake that sits just a mile from the sound. Over 200 species of moss flora blanket the island. Vistas in any direction only reveal more wilderness, more mountains, and more islands. In time where development and urbanization are the norm, the forests on the island give you a ticket to step back in time, to experience temperate landscapes in a more natural state.

It’s no surprise that Pivot decided on this location for the launch video. When they approached me about the project earlier in the year, I was thrilled to be able to film in such an incredible location, but I knew there would be inherent challenges. Rain, wind, short days, and incredibly low light canopy forests would all have to be taken into consideration. Also, due to seasonal closure, we’d be filming in December, one of the more wet and cold months on the island. From our initial conversations, we knew this project had to be different than your normal shred edit. Not only did we want to retain a high production value, but the focus needed to be on how the environment was experienced, rather than just the product itself. For many people, myself included, mountain biking is about the experience of going to these incredible places, and showcasing that experience was at the center of our creative efforts.

Pre-production for this campaign would involve extensive scouting and planning ahead of time. I created detailed flight plans with sectional charts that would have to be approved by the State Park System before we could fly the drone. We’d be filming with two different camera systems, a Red Dragon 6k on tripod and handheld, and a Sony A7S III on a gimbal. The recent release of this camera and increased bit depth would allow for it to be paired with the Red. Using this small camera on a gimbal was essential to moving quickly and getting dynamic and fast paced shots to accompany the more static shots of the A camera. To say I was impressed by the performance of the Sony would be an understatement. It’s a bomber, weather sealed camera that just continued to perform, despite the cold and wet conditions. The files captured were mind blowing, with a huge amount of dynamic range and latitude for grading. The Red, on the other hand, would require a lot more attention and protection. An umbrella was on deck at all times to keep the upper vents protected from rainfall. And the extreme low light under the canopy of trees would sometimes create a situation where I had to push the ISO so high that the files just fell apart. But when the light was adequate, the camera performed incredibly. All of the time lapses in the film were shot on the Red, as well as the motion portraits of the athletes. The Red has this advanced color science that just makes skin tones look amazing. Ultimately, the footage used in the final film would be about 60% from the Sony and 40% from the Red Dragon.

We’d be working with two local athletes, both incredibly competent and creative with their riding styles. From my understanding, Pivot Cycles has made the conscience decision to seek non-professional locals to ride in many of their bike launch videos. A direction I think that allows for more authenticity when it comes to showcasing how these bikes perform. Over the course of 3 production days we’d use every ounce of available daylight to capture the assets needed for the launch. A Mercedes Sprinter van would be our transportation for gear and bikes as well as our shelter when downpours became so intense that shooting just wasn’t possible. We went into this project knowing that we’d face adverse weather conditions, but I don’t think I truly understood just how wet it would be. Everything just stays soggy, and it takes an immense amount of work combined with a miracle to keep expensive camera equipment from the same fate. That combined with the low temps makes shooting both logistically and physically challenging. Hands never truly warm up, batteries seem to constantly drain, and our camera lenses accumulated condensation. Both of our athletes were troopers, but asking them to dive into technical terrain when conditions were subpar made for lots of hard crashes.

After days of searching for blue skies, we learned that there was a shimmer of hope in the forecast. Yet as we moved around the mountain, we would get quick glimpses of the clouds breaking, and then immediately be socked in again. We had already gotten so many great clips, so at this point capturing some beautiful light would be a huge asset to the final edit and really bring together the story we were trying to tell. We’d see portions of the mountain that looked like it was in the sun, make a collective decision to move there, only to be under cloud cover again. Finally after relocating multiple times we decided to try the lookout one last time. Just as were all second guessing the time we had wasted chasing the sun, it happened. Just an hour before sunset, the clouds parted, the fog rolled out, and we were rewarded with some of the most beautiful views I’ve ever seen in my life. I launched the drone, hit record, and captured what would the final scene of the film.

Three months later, as I reflect back on the production, I realize I’m beginning to understand what separates successful shoots from those that fail to deliver. You can have the best equipment in the most incredible locations, yet the defining factor of success always boils down to the humans involved. Surrounding yourself with a hardworking and dedicated team that can rally together and weather the storm will always be the most important variable. Gear breaks, weather sucks, and exhaustion happens. Staying present during the shoot and experiencing the natural world in all her forms is by far the most challenging yet rewarding part of my job. But with the right team, you always come out with a positive mindset. And ultimately, that’s really all you can ask for.

Behind the scenes: Trail 429 Launch

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