Getting Ready for the ‘08 Season
February is nearly here, which means the 2008 Rochester Falconcam season is only a few weeks away! Last Friday, team members “Fal-Kenn” Martinez and Jim Pisello braved bitter cold, whipping winds, and the wrath of Mariah– as seen in the dramatic photo above– to check out the cameras and get them ready for their appointed task of bringing the Rochester Falconcam to fans the world over.
The work was far from straightforward. The team had to fight the weather while diagnosing a nagging problem that kept Camera 1 from getting power. Not only that, during their survey Kenn and Jim discovered that last year’s eyases had nibbled at one of the network cables which needed to have its insulation replaced. Another challenge was that over the months since last summer the wind had actually twisted Camera 1 around it’s mounting arm. It took some delicate tapping with a long piece of wood to get it back into place.
And then there was Mariah. She took turns circling and diving, and both Kenn and Jim had to keep ducking every time she passed by. Luckily she took a couple of breaks, which gave the two men some time to work without having to worry about getting bonked on the head! They both brought their cameras and they took a few moments to grab some pictures of Mariah as she flew close by.
It took some doing, but with a little ingenuity, a lot of duct tape, and a couple hours’ work, the cameras sprang to life! Kenn and Jim gathered their tools and retreated to the warmth of the Kodak Tower after a job well done.
The cameras will need a final cleaning before the season begins around the middle of March, but that will have to wait for better weather. In the meantime the Rochester Falconcam team will be hard at work to make sure that 2008 will be a season to remember!
-Jess
January 29th, 2008 at 2:27 PM
I love the photo of Mariah close up. “If looks could kill . . . !”
Thank you, thank you to Kodak and all the falconcam maintenance folks for providing this wonderful visual story of M&K from “afternoon delight” through fledgling. We out-of-towners sure appreciate it!
January 29th, 2008 at 2:46 PM
This is excellent news Jess, thank you for all your hard work. Fal-kenn & Jm survived the wrath of Mariah. Great pics too.
January 29th, 2008 at 6:26 PM
Yahoo! (no pun intended) I don’t know about anyone else, but once the last Christmas present was opened, I was in Falcon mode! We all cannot wait.
BTW, is that not the sweetest look on Mariah?! She is such a beautiful girl.
January 29th, 2008 at 7:09 PM
Thank you for the write-up. I truly appreciate your dedication. The picture of Mariah is very speculative !
January 29th, 2008 at 7:49 PM
What exciting news! Nice to see Mariah doing her job also!
January 29th, 2008 at 8:12 PM
love the way M. cocks her head in that photo. Great shot. Thanks for the hard work!
January 29th, 2008 at 8:58 PM
She seems to be saying “I’m still here, guys, Whatcha doin?”
Thanks for the updates-looking forward to another spring of “RFalconcam”
January 29th, 2008 at 9:15 PM
Thanks, guys, for braving the cold and wind to ensure that we will be able to view all the sights, when the cams come on! I can hardly wait! And thanks for the great photos — Mariah is such a beauty!
January 29th, 2008 at 11:24 PM
Thanks for the hard work and the pics are great!
February 3rd, 2008 at 9:38 PM
the photos of Mariah up close are terrific, can’t wait for March.
February 4th, 2008 at 9:14 PM
Looks like Mariah is checking things out for her upcoming mating season. Good luck
February 20th, 2008 at 2:35 PM
I am so excited!! My students and i cannot wait for the cameras to be up and running! What a beautiful picture of Mariah. She is absolutely stunning! THanks for your hard work! see ya soon!
February 26th, 2008 at 1:28 AM
this is great news .Thank-you guys for braving Mariah and the elements to get the job done.
March 13th, 2008 at 7:07 PM
My brother in Rochester sent me your Falconcam website last year ’07 and I look forward to checking in often from down here in Tennessee to watch Kaver and Mariah raise a family again this year. Thanks for all your hard work getting everything in working order!!! It’s fascinating and thrilling.
March 14th, 2008 at 2:22 AM
You go girl!!! Mariah will have 4 for this year hopefully more but she has had a rough winter even though Kaver is on time to mate with her. By the way what is the correct pronunciation of Kaver? I have many fellow bird fans wanting to know. Good luck to the happy, loving couple. They take great care in their children.