What: Formula DRIFT Pre-Party at Lucky Strike
When: Thursday, July 19, 2012
8:00 PM – Till Close
Where: Lucky Strike
700 Bellevue Way NE Suite 250
Bellevue, WA 98004
Info: 18+Over w/valid I.D.
Category: Behind The Scenes
Behind the Scenes – Life of FD Staff
[VIDEO] Formula DRIFT Insider 2012 Ep.6
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ueNSbTcSA68[/youtube]
[VIDEO] Team Hyundai Formula Drift Recap — Round Four Wall Speedway featuring Genesis Coupe
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKg4IfrKEnE&feature=youtu.be&hd=1[/youtube]
GoPro® Celebrates Launch of Wi-Fi BacPac™ and Wi-Fi Remote with Short Film: “New York City”
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6JI0wUyH7q4[/youtube]
World Renowned Skateboarder, Ryan Sheckler, Captures Personal “Streets of New York” Experience with 50 Wi-Fi Enabled GoPro Cameras.
HALF MOON BAY, CA (June 4, 2012) – GoPro, maker of the world’s most versatile cameras and producer of some of today’s most engaging online programming, has just made it easier for people to capture professional quality content during any activity. The company officially released its much-anticipated Wi-Fi BacPac™ + Wi-Fi Remote Combo Kit, allowing people to control multiple GoPro cameras at a time using either a smartphone, tablet, or the included waterproof Wi-Fi Remote.
Additional features include live streaming video from GoPro cameras to smartphones, tablets and directly to the web via a soon-to-be-released software update. The Wi-Fi BacPac attaches to the back of GoPro cameras to Wi-Fi enable them. The waterproof and wearable Wi-Fi Remote can control up to 50 GoPro cameras at a time from a range of 600’ (180m).
“GoPro makes it easy for people to capture immersive and engaging footage of themselves during their favorite activities,” said Nicholas Woodman, GoPro’s founder and CEO. “The professional quality content our customers are capturing is inspiring them to use several GoPros at a time to document their experiences from multiple perspectives…something you’d normally see only on professional production shoots. A new era of ‘personal production’ has begun and Wi-Fi-enabling our cameras gives GoPro customers even more creative control to capture some of the most meaningful content in the world: their lives. Plus, live streaming video from your GoPro to your smartphone or the web is extremely cool and opens up so many new ways to use a GoPro.”
When considering how to celebrate its new product launch, GoPro asked its team of sponsored athletes for their idea of a dream video production that would involve them controlling all of the cameras on the shoot. World-renowned skateboarder, Ryan Sheckler, had the idea to skate an area of New York City that he’d always dreamt about, documenting his experience using the new Wi-Fi Remote to control 50 GoPro cameras positioned along his path.
The resulting short film, “New York City”, documents a “day-in-the-life” skate from the top of the Manhattan Bridge through Chinatown, finishing at the entrance to the storied Lower East Side skate park – considered by many to be the mecca of street skating. Along the way Sheckler captures not only his inspired skating but also the sites, sounds and color that are NYC. As with all GoPro releases, the film was shot entirely on GoPro cameras:
“This is something I’ve always wanted to do,” said Ryan Scheckler. “To skate through a part of New York City that thousands of people ride through every week, feeling the energy of one of the original stomping grounds of street skating. That I finally got to do it and document it with the support of GoPro is awesome. I’m already thinking of my next project and hopefully this inspires other people to realize and document their own creative ideas.”
The Wi-Fi BacPac + Wi-Fi Remote Combo Kit is now available for $99.99 on GoPro.com and at retailers across the U.S. and Europe with availability expanding globally. A future software update will enable live video streaming to the web directly from a GoPro camera. Additionally, a free, soon-to-be-released GoPro App will enable GoPro cameras to live video stream to – as well as be controlled by – iOS and Android smartphones and tablets.
“New York City” debuts today on GoPro’s website, GoPro’s Facebook Page as well as on The GoPro Network. The GoPro Network features some of today’s most engaging programming, showcasing the world’s top professional and consumer generated GoPro-captured content.
About GoPro
GoPro makes the world’s most versatile cameras, enabling people to capture immersive and engaging photos and videos of themselves during their favorite activities. GoPro’s HD HERO line of wearable and gear mountable cameras are used collectively by more consumers, professional athletes, and video production professionals than any other camera in the world. Based in Half Moon Bay, California, GoPro’s products are sold in over 80 countries worldwide and at GoPro.com.
Guest Blog: Shift to Top 32 by Jacob Leveton
Shift to Top 32
by Jacob Leveton
One of the greatest competition changes made by Formula D over the years was the shift from top 16 to top 32 tandem back in 2009. This shift has doubled the opportunities for up-and-coming drivers to compete in tandem competition side-by-side against the biggest names in the sport, as well as shaken up points structure. Qualifying for the tandem battles used to be reserved for the experienced and elite, with the occasional rookie making the field. Now, the majority of the drivers at any given event will be proving themselves in a judged tandem battle on Saturday, not packing it up early Friday evening. Because of that additional experience, names like Odi Bakchis, Ryan Kado, Matt Field, and Walker Wilkerson are quickly rising up the points standings.
As part of earning Rookie-of-the-year honors, Odi was interviewed for the 2012 Fan Guide. One of the questions we asked him who he gets excited to tandem against. Odi mentioned that he would prefer to get paired up against a top-10 driver because he knows he will learn something new in those tandems. Last year, Odi faced Dai Yoshihara (Long Beach), Vaughn Gittin Jr (Atlanta), Rhys Millen (West Palm Beach), and Joon Maeng (New Jersey) in his first four top-32 tandem battles, all of them ended in a losing effort. After Bakchis finally won his first tandem battle in a tight matchup with Robbie Nishida in Seattle, he was rewarded with a rematch against Gittin Jr. The experience of the first 5 rounds would finally pay off in Vegas where Bakchis was able to defeat Otto Graven, Justin Pawlak, and Toshiki Yoshioka before falling to Rhys Millen in the Final 4 and losing to Matt Powers in the consolation matchup. Odi’s run of success in Vegas almost single-handedly earned him the Rookie-of-the-year honors.
This year’s rookie class is looking to be the biggest one to date. As a result, you may see some unexpected names winning a few tandem rounds. Two rounds into this season, eight different rookies have made top 32 and fifteen more have made a qualifying pass. Daigo Saito is undeniably the most well-known rookie this season, but don’t sleep on the rest of the rookie class. Back in 2008, Michihiro Takatori used a 2nd place finish in Atlanta and a pair of 4th place finishes in Vegas and Irwindale to earn the Rookie of the Year honors. Also in that rookie class, a pair of drivers by the name of Justin Pawlak and Pat Mordaunt ran as privateers, trying to prove their abilities. Fast forward a few years and both Pawlak and Mordaunt are driving with some of the best teams in the series.
In 2009, the first year in which Formula D expanded to top-32 tandem format, we caught an early glimpse of how awesome the tandem battles can be in the round of 32. Mike Essa had a great battle with Tyler McQuarrie, unfortunately not having enough to move past the Falken Tire 350Z. But the most exciting tandem battle came between 2nd qualifier Dai Yoshihara and 31st qualifier Pat Mordaunt. Pat put on four stellar runs, two in the original battle and two more in the one-more-time battle, to knock out Yoshihara’s Discount Tire IS350. Entering this year’s event, it seemed that it wasn’t a matter of if there would be first round upsets but who they would be.
If the names Dai Yoshihara, Chris Forsberg, Tyler McQuarrie, Ken Gushi, Darren McNamara, Robbie Nishida, and Conrad Grunewald ring a bell, they should. Between them, they have 10 event wins, 16 other podium finishes, and 2 championships over the last 3 seasons alone. In any given event, any of these drivers could be in the top 8 or beyond. However in Atlanta, this was the list of drivers who were watching Top 16 opening ceremonies from the stands, eliminated in the round of 32. Just a few short years ago, today’s FD freshmen and sophomores were looking up to these drivers. Now, they’re ranked higher than them in the points standings. All thanks to top 32 tandems.
