With the probability of precipitation, cloud or wind greater than ninety percent, it was obviously the last place to capture mountainbike treasure in shimmering light. The DIRT 100 photo shoot More likely to be blinded by horizontal rain and lost in the mist, it was a risk. And you know what, we were pumped at the prospect, thinking that whatever it was, it was real and that it was what riders have to deal with. Galvanised by the task we were about to take on we headed to Blannau Ffestiniog.
Storm Abigail and the remains of ex-hurricane Kate doubled the average rainfall numbers as we finished off the last of the product shots. Then, on the 5 December Storm Desmond broke the UK’s 24 hour rainfall record in the middle of us shooting the video element. Literally the 2016 Dirt 100 was shot in the eye of the storm.
By coincidence Subaru were shooting a new car with the ‘Stig’ nearby. With over thirty people and seven vehicles they were part of a huge production team, and they kindly invited us to lunch at their mountainside canteen. Us being two blokes, a flash, tripod made of half a ladder and 79p car boot surveyors tripod. In a slate quarry established in 1760 by Methusalem Jones and eight men, we began shooting, backlit by a warm winter glow over Cnicht and the Moelwyn’s. Subaru were taking it expedition style whilst we were going the alpinism route.
