Share the Road...

 

We've all seen those signs when out driving/riding.  I go on the assumption that those signs refer to cars being considerate of bicyclists on the road.  Of course, that means that bicyclists should also be considerate.

I got out on the CTX this morning.  Monsoon rains are predicted the next 5 or 6 days, with the heaviest supposed to be tomorrow and Friday.  It was decent out this morning, so I grabbed a 360 camera and headed out.

And on to the reason for the title of this post.  I came around a curve and there was a bicyclist.  In my lane.  Coming right at me!  I am all for "sharing the road," but that is taking that phrase way too far.  No, I don't have a photo.  Yes, I was able to swerve around him.  Yes, he was messing with a phone.  No, he wasn't paying any attention to where he was on the road.  Yes, he may have crapped himself a bit when I just missed him.  Because I was paying attention.

I do have some photos along the way...

 Other than the dumbass bicyclist, it was a great ride: very little traffic and the temp was still in the 80s this early (104º for the forecast high today).

I stopped at the top of the mountain to re-hydrate.  I took a few photos with my phone...

Pretty hazy; still a lot of dust in the air.  Air Quality Alerts today.  The image below is looking towards downtown; can't see any of the buildings.  A lot of brown in the air.

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We got the van out to take for a lunch out.  This is a happy boy...

 I truly enjoy being out in the van, even if we aren't going anywhere particular.

When we got home, there were a couple items waiting for us (both from Vine)...

 

 Hanging with my gnomies - notice he is on a motorcycle and holding a camera.  Joan finds interesting things on Vine.  The other item: an LED softbox...

You can tell by the warm color on this, that the light inside the softbox is adjustable for color temperature.  It came on set for incandescent light, but is a couple button presses to get to daylight.  I don't do a lot of "talking head" YouTube videos, but this will be handy when I do.  Nothing like the industrial strength lighting I used to use back in our studio days, but this will work.

 

This is a test...

 

No, not a test of posting on the blog - I kinda have that down.  Looking through some FAA drone info, I see that a "TRUST" test is still required to operate a drone in the US; even the light-weight, under 250 grams, drones.

The Government requires TRUST??  Shouldn't that really be the other way around?  Yes, I agree with you completely, and you get 20 bonus points for asking that question.  And for the record, TRUST is The Recreational UAS Safety Test.  And for the record, UAS is Unmanned Aircraft System.  Yes, the Government likes acronyms or initialisms. 

This TRUST requirement is for recreational drone use.  If you are getting paid for the use of the drone, you need to get a Part 107 commercial license.  If you use drone footage on YouTube and your channel is monetized - yep, you need that license.

Does everyone comply with these rules/certificates/licenses?  Probably not.  The fines and potential jail time should not be taken lightly.  I have no idea how vigorously the FAA polices drone usage.

There is no cost to take the test, but you have to score 100% in order to get that TRUST certificate (that you print out yourself, after taking the test online).  From what I understand, you can keep taking the test until you score 100%; I have no idea if there are different tests or if the same questions are asked with subsequent tests.

I took this test back when I bought a DJI drone some years ago.  I took it again today - no downside, since there is no cost; I wanted to see if anything had changed as far as regulations and requirements.

 

Since we have been "shopping," Joan pointed out that some manufacturers advertise that "no registration or licensing is required" when you buy one of these under 250 gram drones.  Not really accurate information.

"And how much is 250 grams, Jim?"  Thanks for asking - yes, we live in the good ol' USA, and we use pounds, miles, and furlongs.  "Furlongs??"  Well, yeah, for horse racing; but, I digress.  250 grams is .55 of a pound.  About what your iPhone weighs.  I find it quite impressive that these drone manufacturers can make something that flies, has a 4k (or better) video camera, rechargeable batteries, a bunch of flight modes, and can be controlled with your phone.  Or without, in the case of these "autonomous" drones (the ones that can follow you, without a controller).

Things have changed a lot since I bought that first Yuneec 4K Q500 drone (back in 2015)...

 That thing was a beast compared to these more capable current camera drones.  There was nothing subtle about that drone - it was large and loud.  Things have changed.

 

Happy Labor Day...

 

We are happy to not be traveling at the end of this holiday weekend.  Being retired means we can pick our times to get out and about.  That said, we did make a run to PetSmart this afternoon... and traffic on the surface roads between us and PetSmart was light.

I spent most of the day doing research - yes, for the new model HoverAir drone.  It has been out for a while, so there are plenty of videos on YouTube.  In typical internet fashion, there are some YouTubers who have put together good information on this drone... and even more who do an "unboxing" and "let's use it without looking at the operating instructions."

Jim, you mean someone on the internet is wrong?? 

 Oh, that hardly ever happens.  (insert HUGE sarcastic emoji here)

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More Monsoon Weather...

Not a haboob this time, but localized thunderstorms, with gust fronts ahead of them.  Gusts in the 50 to 60 mph range around us.  South Mountain disappeared for about 20 minutes in the blowing dirt in those gusts.  Thunder happening around us right now, but the radar looks like the worst of it will go north or south of us...

As you can see in that screenshot above, a pretty good cell moving over Phoenix, and a "ground stop" at Sky Harbor Airport.  A Severe Thunderstorm Warning for us for the next half hour or so.

Looking at the week ahead forecast, it looks like a chance of more of the same happening each day for the next 5; with the biggest chance of storms on Thursday.  'Tis the season.  Monsoon Season, that is.