Biking / other activities thread!

Everyone around here is sick. My coworker who sits closest to me just called it. Doh.

I have more GoPro footage but I should really stop just using VideoPad and learn how to properly color correct it like pros do.

I thought I might have throat cancer even went in and got some scans. At the time I was using those nicotine chews and something in the brand I was using was causing my throat to swell. I quit using nicotine chews and I was fine.

My first group ride with the GoPro. I slept through the last time this group met in December so I was determined to go this time. 35 degrees so some people bailed but we still got about 30 to show up.

They are doing them weekly now starting with this one.

I have the full ride exporting right now but that's gonna be a while.

EDIT: I finally figured out the best video settings I think. This is 30 fps but I think I'm going to drop down to 24 fps. I was doing 60 fps at first but at 4k that just takes up so much space and so much time to process. People tend to like the "cinematic" look of 24 fps anyway. Even on YouTube this footage looks great at 4k

The last couple days have been an adventure in terrible software. Like I said above the PC version of VideoPad exported a 62 gig file but I clicked the wrong button and it was all out of order.

I found the same version of VideoPad on my Mac M1 and all the files and redid the video. For some reason it took _16 HOURS_ to export the 4k 1 hour video. That isn't a typo. Then it gave some error about the folder I selected no longer exists. If it was something important I would have laughed.

So this time I made the export folder my /user/downloads folder on my Mac where I know it won't ever disappear. I ran it again. This time it took almost a full 24 hours to export a 1 hour 4k video. My Macbook Air didn't even get hot. It was only using 20% of the CPU. Anyway after almost a full fucking DAY it finished a 27 gig file

VideoPad is considered a joke software in the video editing community. I bought the full version because for simple edits it was quick and easy, at one point I put in my YouTube info and then I would edit a clip and click Upload and BAM! New PUBG video on my channel.

Its a lot less useful software moving into the 4k realm.

Anyway the makers of VideoPad don't support the Apple Silicon natively so they don't make full use of their CPU and don't use the GPU at all.

For fun I downloaded a copy of Divinci Resolve for my Mac:
www.blackmagicdesign.com/products/davinciresolve

Unlike VideoPad it supports Apple Silicon AND GPU acceleration.

I loaded up my files picked high quality and hit export using GPU acceleration. In 40 minutes I had a 24 gig file that looked the same as the 27 gig one. I think I am going to switch to Divinci Resolve for good.

I used Handbreak in the distant past but VideoPad/Davinci are fully fledged video editing suites and not just "I wanna convert/join a couple of files". Back when I started putting crap on YouTube I downloaded a copy of Sony Vegas and it was waaaaay too complicated for what I was trying to do with my YouTube channel. Putting copies of my gaming sessions online for friends.

Sony Vegas is used in big budget movies. I settled on VideoPad because it was very quick and easy to use and at 1080p and 10 minute tops videos VideoPad was plenty performant.

However now that I have a GoPro I am working on footage that is 1 hour+ and 4k. Gigs and gigs of data. Even the 64-bit verion of VideoPad isn't up to the task.

They are also sneaky, when you buy VideoPad that only gives you a license for the current version when you bought the software not for life which is a scumbag move.

DaVinci Resolve has a different UI that I am not used too yet but its completely free, and supports GPU encoding.

VideoPad is like a Geo Metro you have to pay for vs DaVinic Resolve which is like a 4WD SUV & its free, which would you use?

I accidentally posted the wrong video earlier. I need to pay closer attention cuz I honestly didn't see that coming.

Also imo 30 fps is the sweet spot, I think 24 fps looks kinda choppy and grainy and 60 fps is excessive.

I was going back through this thread and found this lol, this was my first ride back from COVID. Man I was so messed up and exhausted still. I kept up just fine in the flat and downhill sections but going up that huge hill I was dying in heat and post-COVID exhaustion, I was actually dead last on the hill and that isn't normal for me. The sweeper for the ride was giving me the side eye a little like "Uh you OK buddy?" and I told him it was my first ride back from COVID and I was testing negative and he was like Oh yeah right that explains it. I had ridden with him before but not in this horrible shape. I honestly should not have gone. Like my coworker said it took him about a month to get his energy back. About the same here.

Slept like a rock that night. Would have taken and army to wake me up.

On the plus side, during my mid to late 30s I did have a lot of back issues and had to wear a back brace just to make it through work and I remember growing up anyone that I knew who got back issues they never seemed to recover but knock on wood my back got better and I haven't had an issue in a good four years - it was so bad the last year I had back issues that I couldn't even run the skidsteer and now I don't even remember where I put my back brace...I'm lucky my back seemed to have naturally healed, I thought once its bad, it's bad forever. Even riding ATVs all day not one back issue.

I had something like that 10 to 12 years ago, jaw pain for about two days. Very painful. I went to the Dentist and he couldn't find anything. He said it could be a root dying and, if so, the tooth would need to be pulled. But the pain went away after two days and never returned. Maybe just a tooth shifted around and pinched a nerve. 

Looks cool but bet its expensive. ofc a ton of companies working could drive down the price with economy of scale but if there is more profit to be made in traditional drive trains there is your answer

I have a vegan friend I have thought of going vegan for general health concerns people swear they feel way better after doing it.

I rode my bike outside for the first time in months and just 5 minutes of moderate pedaling wore me out. Gonna have to ease back into biking.

A friend of mine started a group ride, a lot of people have been showing up, it meets every Sunday. Todays ride the start was like a 1 minute ride from my front door. Nice.

I had every intention of going.....then when I got up today it was 18 degrees. Naw, I don't really have the proper gear for that. I could have soldiered through it but id rather not be shaking like a leaf lol

I got a pair of insulated Eddie Bauer pants and they are amazingly warm and look professional enough you can wear them in an office environment, great pockets too. $75 but worth it.

I also got a $6 pair of insulated workout pants at a local thrift store which was pure luck. New I bet they were $50+

Also the ride I missed today just posted pics and looks like it was 6-8 people total who showed including the ride organizers. When it was high 40s between 75-100 showed. 18 is too low for most people it seems