Half Steering, Half Eating Ice Cream: Will Roegge's Blog

Blog Moved...

2008-10-14T00:53:00.000-07:00

my blog has moved to www.willroegge.com/blog

Midwest Surfers DVD rip

2008-09-27T15:39:00.000-07:00

The complete Midwest Surfers DVD has been ripped and added to Vimeo. This video was shot in 2005 and edited in iMovie in a car. It was a fun project that really got me more interested in filmmaking and it was a fun way to document those who were involved. If you have a desire to make videos or short films- do it. I hope this proves it. For me, its always been about doing- make your art/craft and learn the skills necessary to make it into a career. In the 2 years since college, I've realized that following your passion and making it into a career is the only way to "work".

Midwest Surfers from Red Panda Creative on Vimeo.

Me with long hair = awesome.

VOW - Midwest Surfers II Trailer

2008-09-25T01:00:00.000-07:00

Crystal Pepsi was the same as regular Pepsi. It just lacked the carmel coloring that the regular stuff used for its soda brown color. Crystal Pepsi faded into obscurity. What does Crystal Pepsi have to do with my choice for Video Of the Week? Nothing. Except that some projects are like defective fireworks- good start but no boom. Midwest Surfers II is my defective Crystal Pepsi firework. It never got finished- except for a trailer set to Dragon Force. It had the best intentions- flips from train bridge, good wake surfing, and longboarding. It didn't have my commitment. That summer I was saving up cash to move to Los Angeles and being a robot for Enterprise Rent-A-Car. No time for video editing.

Midwest Surfers II Trailer from Red Panda Creative on Vimeo.

So with the grandest of takeoffs, here is Midwest Surfers II, the trailer for the video that never was.

Groovy Drift RC Nationals

2008-09-19T20:09:00.000-07:00

Groovy Drift RC Nationals HD from RiceBoyTV on Vimeo.

Formula Drift exposed me to RC drifting. It seemed so simple and trivial compared to the full sized counter part on the track. hmm...I remember when my interest in RC peaked- 9th grade. RC drifting looked lame.

Flash forward to August. Riceboytv tells me that we are going to be covering the RC drift nationals @ Zero One Motorsports. Great. What a waste of a day.

Wrong! RC drifting is down right impressive. Groovy Drift assembles the best RC drivers in the country to compete for the title of national champion. These cars are sick. The bodies have functional headlights, taillights, and turning indicators. ridiculous. They are also powered by high-spooled electric motors and require a great deal of skill to pilot. RC drift car setups are close to real drift cars, its important to: adjust the camber, toe, and tires for different track surfaces. Dialing in the car is just as important as the full sized machines.

I gained a lot of respect for RC drifters at the Groovy drift nationals. These guys are skilled, love what they do, and bring out a good crowd of dedicated drivers. Plus when you tap the wall- it doesn't mean days of labor and thousands of dollars in replacement parts. Plus anyone can do it. Unlike buying a 240 or FC RX-7, RC drift setups are affordable and completely customizable. We saw a few RC cars made up to pay homage to the full sized drift car and their drivers- like Riceboytv's Patrick Mordaunt's Nissan 240sx.

RC drifting is very cool and with any luck I will get my paws on a car sometime in the near future.

Scope the video coverage I shot and edited. Respect RC drifting. I do.

Formula D Sonoma

2008-09-17T10:29:00.000-07:00

My Riceboytv edit for Formula Drift Sonoma. Held on September 13, 2008.

Formula D Sonoma 2008 HD from Will Roegge on Vimeo.

Since our turn around at riceboytv for event coverage is usually 2 days. I was feeling the pinch to get this edit finished for Wednesday morning launch. When reviewing my footage from the weekend I cannot help but think about opening montage and how to grab a viewer's attention. Thats usually how my mind works. Three steps ahead and usually focused on the final presentation. For example, I had the opening montage for this edit locked down and color corrected before even starting the narrative coverage. The more I shoot with the Sony EX-1 (about 6 months now) the more I appreciate it. I was and still am a loyal Canon and Panasonic user. I've shot stills with Canon's since I was 17 and the Panasonic DVX line was the first video camera that got me hooked on video production. Previous generations of Sony Prosumer/HDV cameras were cheap feeling and the controls were poor. The image quality was lackluster and who doesn't use XLR on their pro level cameras? Mini-jack? My gripes with Sony were forgotten after a day with the EX-1. Its incredible, even better than Panasonic's HVX (All accept for color space, 4:2:0? Really Sony? HVX's 4:2:2 is more desirable) The work flow with the SxS cards is simple and downloading/converting raw m4v files from the EX-1 using the express slot on my Mac Book Pro is a breeze!

Wow, super camera nerd digression.
Let me know what you think about the edit?

Midwest Surfers III Trailer

2008-09-16T00:51:00.000-07:00

The long - awaited - underground - sensation - you've never head of - is now a trilogy.

Midwest Surfers III - Under Siege

Midwest Surfers III Trailer from Red Panda Creative on Vimeo.

Ever time the Adams brothers and I get together we usually are on boards. Surf boards, wake surf boards, wake boards, snow boards, long boards, diving boards, school boards, it doesn't matter - we are down for the cause.

While I studying film production, Chris, Nate, and I shot the original midwest surfers in 2005. We wanted to document our dedication to riding. It was a no pressure shoot. Just being ourselves and having a good time. We broke the video down like our favorite skate and surf videos - giving each of us a section set to music highlighting our best tricks and runs.

Jump to: 2008.

Packing an HD mini cam and more lenses than your optometrist - we reunited the crew in Indiana for some midwest surfing. Funny that I have to fly to Indiana to surf more, considering the Pacific Ocean is within view of my apartment. None the less, enjoy the trailer and stay tuned for the completed short film - Midwest Surfers III.

Working for the Weekend

2008-09-14T18:21:00.000-07:00

It seems like lately I've been working all of the time.

Probably because, I have been working all the time. The past two weekends have been non-stop shooting and traveling with Rice Boy TV. To give you a better idea of what I've been up to, here are some photos I snapped between rolling the video camera.

3rd & Grand, 9am Saturday September 6, 2008. Disney Concert Hall in the background. I dig the tiered roadways and dividing drop that becomes a sky-light for the roadway below.

LAPD's off-duty finest guards Vaughn Gittin Jr's Ford Mustang in the turning lane of Grand Avenue. Why is a drift car in downtown LA? Well because Bosch Spark Plugs is shooting an advertisement featuring JR's Mustang decorating the intersection with Falken tire rubber. Who says driving isn't art?

Vaughn's car between takes. In the foreground is a crane getting the overhead shot of the intersection- which is transformed into a cement canvas. Cool idea for an advertisement. Personally, I really enjoy the combination of art and precision driving. This combination is something that I strive for in my work. Trying to find the elements in motor sports that are often overlooked or overpowered by speed. The spiraling tire smoke, flickering exhaust flames, dancing tire debris, and the synthesis of driver & car. Stay tuned for more on Vaughn Gittin JR's Bosch advertisement and Rice Boy TV's coverage of the shoot.

Sunday checked out Subie Fest @ Willow Springs International Raceway. Good turn out and tons of on track action with Subaru putting fans into STi's and WRX's to test drive Big Willow track. Sweet. Also some time attack action in the heat. Also check for the coverage on Rice Boy TV in the coming weeks.

Friday (September 12th) rolled up to Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, California. Thanks to Moe @ Mitsubishi Motors we drove up in a 2009 Mitsubishi Lancer Ralliart. It was very cool to drive the Lancer Ralliart for a few days on highways, country roads, and around LA- it gives you the opportunity to further evaluate the Ralliart. Ricky, Justin, and I even had the chance to drag race the Ralliart at Irwindale Speedway's 1/8th mile drag strip. Check back soon for an update- because you will not want to miss my first drag racing experience- captured on video.

Rik and I shoot a time lapse en route to Sonoma in the Ralliart.

Seattle at 120 MPH

2008-09-05T18:23:00.000-07:00

The tachometer hit red line, up shift, the speedometer rushes past 120. The sweeping left hand turn was approaching fast. Down shift. Down shift. Fourth gear. Hold it and hit the apex then accelerate out.

Saying that the 2008 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution MR is fast, is an understatement. Its like a four door, four wheel drive jet.

Riceboytv was fortunate to be invited to the Mitsubishi Lancer Family day in Seattle, Washington and I was excited to meet my date with EVO destiny. In May I was close to buying an EVO- without having ever driven one. The EVO's reputation as a twisted turbo charged sedan precedes it. Driving it on Pacific motor speedway confirms- the EVO is a werewolf in sheep's costume. The only clues to the car's underbelly are the rear fiberglass/carbon!? spoiler and the vented aluminum hood. Minor body pieces and larger wheels are common after market parts these days. The EVO's heart and soul is its turbocharged 2.0 liter engine coupled to a 5 speed (GSR model) or 6 speed twin clutch paddle shift configuration.

These few photos are from my point and shoot, Panasonic LX-2, which shoots 16x9 native and has some great manual controls- including the ability to shoot RAW images.

The event was incredible. With an auto cross, track, and street drive sections to showcase the new Lancer Ralliart, Lancer Evolution GSR, Lancer Evolution MR, and compare all to the base Lancer GSR.

Check back for test drive videos and full video coverage on Rice Boy TV

Lakes, Dirtbikes, Biplanes - Indiana.

2008-09-02T21:31:00.000-07:00

The horizon disappeared and the field below rushed towards the plane ferociously. I was in a hammerhead. One quick kick of the rudder and the nose dove from nearly vertical climb to vertical drop. My stomach tightened and all of my senses screamed silently. The biplane pulled up and I glanced over my shoulder at the pilot, my good friend Nate Adams, words wouldn't help over the roar of the engine- so I pounded my fist into the air and tried to ease the smile from my face.

Indiana. Hoosiers.
The Midwest.
Lake Michigan.
Meth Amphetamine.

I took a vacation day and visited my friends Chris and Nate Adams in Knox, Indiana. For a Labor day weekend of wake surfing, wake boarding, boating, skateboarding, airplane flying, motorcycle riding, family cookouts, and the 3 am longboard cruise.

It was awesome. Chris was able to assemble the crew he rides with: Blake Bailey, Nick Williams, and his brother Nate to come out and surf a man made lake thousands of miles from the nearest ocean. Wake surfing is similar to wakeboarding or water skiing in that the boat is used to launch the rider out of the water. The similarities end there though. Wake Surfing is close to the back deck of the boat where the wake is the biggest. Professional Ski boats have ballast tanks to increase the wave and trim adjustments to get the rear end to sink in and churn out a massive wake. The real challenge of wake surfing is to go "ropeless" and drop the tow rope and pump off of the boat's wake. By adjusting the nose height, board trim, and one's body weight (Similar to balancing on an INDO board) a rider can literally surf on a boat's wake.

Wake surf boards are usually smaller in length and use traction pads covering a majority of their top side instead of wax. This makes for a very durable board that preforms similarly to a full sized surfboard while still providing long lasting grip and float for the sans salt environment.

We all filmed individual sections for the epic
"MIDWEST SURFERS III - UNDER SIEGE"

Stay tuned for the video in the next few weeks. Thanks again to the Adams family for their hospitality! I had a blast and you guys are the nicest people imaginable.

VOW - "Tessellate"

2008-08-26T10:15:00.000-07:00

After being told for months that I should listen to Tokyo Police Club- I continued to ignore them. In April of 2008, while looking for some new music on the Pitchfork "Forkcast" I saw the video for Tessellate for the first time. What did I do? I Continued to ignore them until present day.

Its amazing how music can meet needs and fit the mood of your life. That certain songs, grow in and out of favoritism . That one day requires a certain sound . The next something completely different. Tokyo Police Club is a band that I should have appreciated immediately- instead it fits my mood currently and I couldn't be happier about ignoring it- until now.

FD Seattle Blows up

2008-08-18T21:43:00.001-07:00

My edit for Formula D Seattle is getting exposure thanks to speedhunters and driftlive. Stoked to see people enjoying the opening montage- because I wanted to try something different. Using the overcranked footage and using an "epic" classical song to slow down the pace but not the intensity of the action- worked for me and I'm excited that others are receptive.

The edit on Speedhunters

The edit on Driftlive

Driftlive, nice new site layout and design. The gray with highlight orange works really well. Fresh update.

In the future, expect more & better. I want to push my creativity and the boundaries of what people get from the coverage I'm responsible for putting together @ riceboytv. The turn-around is time prohibitive, usually 2 editing days before its posted. So in 48 hours, err- less than that- sleep is nice, I have to organize my hours of footage from the weekend's FD event into a 5 minute edit that covers the event. Fans deserve better than that- better then waiting until October to see the Speed Channel program. Anyone with a video camera can record runs and post them on YouTube that night! @ Riceboy we need to split that difference. We have the equipment and the access to shoot high quality footage & the responsibility to the fans to deliver it fresh.

It reminds you why you put the hours in- when people compliment you. thanks!
"he opening montage of this film is absolutely stunning.... wow! Always great to see true audio visual artistry being applied to drifting. Nice work Will Roegge!" "great video, i agree the opening montage is awesome!"

"awesome video will. you're killin it right now!!!"

"Hats off to Will. That intro was nothing short of epic. AMAZING JOB."

"Rice boy tv has amazing coverage of the Fd series. Can’t wait to see the final two events."

Formula D Seattle 2008

2008-08-15T11:17:00.000-07:00

Formula D Seattle 2008 HD from Will Roegge on Vimeo.

After road tripping to Seattle, I shot for 3 days @ Evergreen Speedway. Fortunately, the northwest has incredible clouds and weather. The rain held off for most of the event- until the 2nd half of qualifying. It still made things entertaining and the good sized crowd was stoked to watch the action on their home court. This edit came together in two days. The second one was a long night while I was waiting on the flash encode and the H264 encode for Vimeo. Other than the quick turn around I am extremely happy with this video. It showcases the Sony EX-1's overcranking ability and great image quality. What do you think?

Credits:

Produced for www.riceboytv.com
Voice over by Justin Kaehler
Post event interviews by Patrick Mordaunt
Shot, Edited, and Colored by Will Roegge

Gram Lights 57D

2008-08-13T01:08:00.000-07:00

oh those Gram Light 57D's so hot right now. just so fresh. they go with white black red blue purple. Digging the Mazda RX-7 FD on top with the matching flat "highlighter" yellow sponsor decals. They look incredivle on the two Nissan 240sx S15's. Plus with sizes like 18" by 9.5 +32 offset they will fill out your 240's rear wheel well...

Seattle Road Trip

2008-08-12T21:46:00.000-07:00

On August 5th, I left Los Angeles for an 18 hour road trip up to Seattle. I was riding along with Pat Mordaunt and Adrian from BOSO Garage. The drive was split into three segments with each of us taking a leg. The northwest gets far cooler weather than Cali and the clouds are incredible- they remind me of the midwest.

We made it to our hotel by 4pm the next day and were ready to crash. We hit up a family style Asian restaurant in Seattle's Chinatown!? Pretty scrumptious, large family style portions and plenty of comedy.

Thursday was testing and practice runs at Evergreen speedway. Evergreen's big loop and small infield were utilized to make the Formula Drift course. The high speed sweeping bank into a S curve followed by a tight right turn by the infield wall. I rode along with Pat and the transition between the pavement on the bank and infield is harsh. Pat handled the course like a seasoned pro and looked good qualifying first in unseeded qualifying. This is even more impressive considering that its his third time driving the new Braille Nissan 350z. I'm excited to see how the car helps to display his driving skill for the last two rounds of the Formula D 2008 Season.

And if drifting isn't your thing- you could scope the gun & knife or rabbit show that weekend too! Just don't take your new gun to the rabbit show.

VOW- "That's it, That's All" Teaser

2008-08-04T18:37:00.000-07:00

Travis Rice's "That's it, That's All" looks like its going to be an epic film. Two years in the making and some of the most incredible helicopter landscape and action shots I've ever seen. If this teaser is any indication of the full movie- I can't wait till it comes out in September 2008. Wow. Be sure to look for the snowmobile just cruising across a lake in the middle of the teaser- bonkers.

Code Named: Cherry Sundae

2008-08-04T04:45:00.000-07:00

Code Name: Cherry Sundae HD from Will Roegge on Vimeo.
Was out at Willow Springs International Raceway shooting some testing for Formula D Seattle - Round Five. Let's call this project, Cherry Sundae. Hope you dig it.

Project 240sx- Enkei RPF1

2008-07-27T00:02:00.000-07:00

My project Nissan 240sx is about to have a serious wheel upgrade. Enkei has sponsored the car with a set of RPF1 wheels. The wheels will measure 18x8 in the front and 18x9 in the rear. With the addition of some rubber from Hankook the S14's grip will increase significantly over the stock 16 inch wheels. It will also help to fill up the wheel well and give the car a more aggressive look. The RPF1's are lightweight racing wheels and I was genuinely surprised by the lightweight of the wheel! Pictured above is my 18x9 wheel which will soon have some Hankook tires mounted on it.

Soon enough the Project 240sx will be ready for the track and some time attack events. Just as soon as I take care of the steering and look into some upgraded brakes to help stop the car. Currently the car is running stock single piston 240sx brakes in the front and the rear. When I purchased the car it was setup with larger Q45 calipers and rotors- which used a 2 piston setup. The calipers were in sad shape and were leaking brake fluid like a open faucet. Since they could not be re-build, Ricky Chu and I replaced the brakes with some used stock calipers, new rotors, and pads. Then I pumped the brake pedal as Ricky bled the air out of the lines. Slowly the pedal resumed a stiffer and higher position- from its previous place near the floor!

So far the current improvements that have been made to the project are:
-Magnacor spark plug wires
-New iridium spark plugs
-AEM short ram air intake
-DME cooling panel
-DME test pipe
-NRG Pilota steering wheel
-NRG short hub
-NRG quick release

Check back to riceboytv and my blog for future updates on the project. It will be nice to get some fresh paint, replace the dinged and peeling hood, drilled up trunk lid, and the haggard front bumper with an S15 conversion.

VOW- "Paris, France March 2007"

2008-07-18T13:33:00.000-07:00

Oddly enough, I hyped up cutting a video on my visit to Paris, France in March- then never posted it. Well after exploring one of the many external hard drives laying around with my digital life on it- I stumbled upon the completed & compressed edit. So my pick for Video Of the Week is my edit for the Paris trip 2007. Its cut to Justice's DVNO, contains hyper active sped up shots and rapid edits that were Parisian espresso educed. It covers a red open top bus tour, Notre Dame, riding the Metro and a few others tourist highlights.

Formula D Las Vegas HD

2008-07-16T15:54:00.000-07:00

Here is my edit for round four of Formula Drift at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Formula D Las Vegas 2008 HD from Will Roegge on Vimeo.

For more coverage visit www.riceboytv.com

The event went well! We missed being in the downpour of the thunderstorms each night after the event, the track didn't claim as many cars as I anticipated after seeing the setup, and with 98+ MPH entry speeds this parking lot based track was intense. Fans were a few feet from the action and Yoshioka's Toyota AE86 pulled in on all of his V8 opponents. Can't wait for round five in Seattle and the drift exhibition in Monterrey, Mexico. Enjoy the video, it was exciting to shoot and always fun to be a part of the action.

Speedhunters.com & Driftlive.com pick it up

2008-07-13T23:36:00.000-07:00

Rod Chong & Antonio Alvendia of Speedhunters recently posted my video for the Ziptied All Star Bash. Be sure to check out their site. They update constantly and have a great interface with pop up HD video content, solid photography, news, and feature car stories. I'm excited to see what these guys do next.

Also much thanks to the crew at Drift Live for finding the video on Vimeo! Peep them too. Great for the daily visit.

Formula Drift Las Vegas kicked my butt. Check riceboytv.com for the edit soon.

Ziptied All Star Bash 4

2008-07-09T10:01:00.000-07:00

Ziptied All Star Bash 4 HD from Will Roegge on Vimeo.

June 28 & 29, 2008 was Just Drift's "Ziptied All Star Bash 4" at Willow Springs International Raceway (WSIR). I was able to make it up on Sunday the 29th and shoot this small video highlighting some of the tandem runs and spins outs from the open sessions during the day. Wish I would have shot more, but I ended up taking a nap in the back of Pat's Suburban after getting sunburnt.

AEM Mitsubishi Lancer EVO X Intake LEAKED

2008-07-03T20:56:00.000-07:00

Riceboytv was able to steal some dyno data and get an exclusive look into the upcoming AEM Cold Air Intake for the new Mitsubishi Lancer EVO X. With a 16.7+ HP gain and 17ft/lbs of Torque the intake is a great addition to the stock setup. The bonus is that it doesn't mess with the intake air temperatures and keeps the boost steady- keeps you from adding a boost controller!

VOW- "Live Good"

2008-07-02T15:31:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Motionographer for the tip and the post that introduced me to this video. I love the effects and hand held feel of the music video. It really is an experimental piece and is unlike anything else I've seen lately. The band is called Naive New Beaters. Check it.

Riceboytv Mini Ramp Session & NSX Oil Change

2008-06-24T10:09:00.001-07:00

Here is a quick preview of things to come. There will be a short skate video eventually.

Here is the latest from the RBTV service manual series- an oil change on RikDaddy's 1996 Acura NSX. Shooting and editing done by me...enjoy it.

Spocom 2008

2008-06-23T22:50:00.000-07:00

(Above- right, Ryuji Miki's Mazda RX-7 & left, Pat Mordaunt's Nissan S14)
Spocom 2008. Long Beach Convention Center. What a great show. Riceboytv was out in full force. Representing the website with our tent, driver Pat Mordaunt's S14, and a full junior jib setup to shoot new products. The event coverage goes up Wednesday on the website and well be taking a look at some of the best products of the show. Mad respect to Mike and the guys at Spocom for putting together such a great event- with a good crowd, tons of show car competitors and lots of girls the event needs to go national. The east coast would eat it up.