What is RideShots.cc?

RideShots.cc is the marketplace for photographers to offer on-location 📸, drive-by photos directly to riders 🚴. It works like this:

1. Photographers publish their schedules at iconic locations like Stelvio pass, Mangart, Alpe d'Huez, Großglockner, etc.
2. Riders pass these photographers while riding.
3. Photographers capture stunning action shots, making riders look as fast as Tadej Pogačar🚴.
4. Photos are uploaded to the platform for processing.
5. Riders find and purchase their epic shots on the platform.

The Idea

I remember seeing beautiful photos on Facebook of my former classmate riding his bike. In action, looking like a pro. No doubt about it. The quality was just amazing, pure action.

Months later, I learned how he got them. Fascinating story.
One day he rode over Jezersko (a beautiful mountain pass between Austria and Slovenia). In one corner, he passed by a photographer with a fancy camera. He shrugged it off, thinking it was all sort of random. The same thing happend on another sunny day, similar spot, same fancy camera guy. This time, his curiosity made him take a U-turn to speak to the guy. After some small talk, the photographer gave him a business card with his email address.

They exchanged some emails, with my classmate sending over some info like where and God knows when he rode by, then sending over some of his photos for the photographer to make sure which photos actually belong to him. Some watermarked photos were sent back, and an envelope of cash followed, until finally, the rider received all his beautiful shots.

… then I remembered I cycled over the Stelvio pass twice and I passed by photographers with a sign advertising their service. I googled them and found the website… yay!
Next thing, I'm trying to remember a date when I was riding. Easy peasy. I opened Strava, searched for "Stelvio", and got two results… not like you can ride "TdF hills" every week, anyhow.

Good, but then I needed to figure out the time I passed by the photographer, as they put all their photos publicly on their website and place them into folders like 10:30 - 11:00 to make it easier for riders to find. The problem was, and still is:

• A: You're not sure what time you started,
• B: Even if you know, you're not sure where the photographer (or photographers) were when you passed by, … especially since these are 2-hour-climbs for mere mortals.
• C: Each folder has a pagination of 10+ subsequent pages you have to scroll throgh.

In the end, I couldn’t find my photo, and so the story of RideShots.cc was born.

Why me?

Ever since I can remember, I have been fascinated by beautiful things that are typically at the intersection of art and technology.

I made my Flickr account in 2006, took photography classes at the University of Ljubljana (lectured by Darko Slavec), and even made some money as a photographer for a few years.

But after a while, I realized that I just don’t have what it takes to capture great photos – at least not the kind that Jared Gruber or Alen Milavec take.

I think I was more drawn to the technology behind photography. At the same time back, I started building websites – a craft I still enjoy. These days, we call them apps, products, or SaaS, as "building websites" carries a junior connotation. But the thing is, I'll always seek opportunities to be a junior at something.

Building RideShots.cc feels like a great opportunity to do just that. I have a technical know-how, a love for the outdoors, and an appreciation for all things beautiful. I'm not fooling myself this is all it takes, but I'm excited to learn what it takes.

Why now?

At Turtl, I’ve built great teams, systems, and processes that can now run without me. Sort of like a parent who raised their kids and now they can live their own lives. Hopefully, even better ones.

In the last few years, especially with the advent of modern AI tools for developers, I realized how much I missed building things and how much fun it is to build things when you have rockstar interns helping you (named Cursor and Claude). Long story short, I decided that building RideShots.cc would make a great funemployment activity.

A few more objective reasons why building something like RideShots.cc is a good idea:

• There are an estimated 2.3 billion cycle tourism trips in Europe every year with a value in excess of €44 billion, according to a 2012 study commissioned by the European Parliament.
• Platforms like Strava report over 100 million registered users globally, with 1.8 billion activities uploaded annually.
• 14.455 participants climbed the Stelvio pass in just one day (31. 8. 2024).

The photography industry is undergoing significant changes due to the improved smartphone cameras and the rise of social media platforms like Instagram. These shifts have created unique opportunities in niche markets like sports photography where iPhones just don't cut it (sorry, Apple). With a growing demand for high-quality images and ❤️, RideShots.cc is perfectly positioned to meet both the supply (young photographers) and the demand (riders looking for epic shots).

Oh, and my daughter is soon reaching an age where I'm no longer constantly exhausted from sleepless nights. This also means I can stare at my screen for ~20 minutes in one go while the likelyhood of her hurting herself is slowly, but surely converging to zero.

Why here?

RideShots.cc is being built from Slovenia, a small country in the heart of Europe. It's also a home of the riders like Tadej Pogačar, Primož Roglič, Matej Mohorič, and several thousands of us – the weekend warriors. We are the nation of cyclists. Other folks – looking at you, Croats – make fun we visit places not to relax, but to cycle up every hill we can find.

Slovenia’s location is a big plus too: just a short car ride away from iconic cycling destinations like the Alps and the Dolomites, including famous passes like Stelvio and Grossglockner.

While Slovenia’s small population of just over 2 million can make it challenging for young photographers to start a career, RideShots.cc offers an easy way to earn money from their hobby and turn their passion into profit.

Closing thoughts

As cyclists, we have the opportunity to form lasting memories riding the same roads as professional cyclists do on Tour de France and other races. What if we had access to the same photographers who take photos of Tadej Pogačar?

RideShots.cc is exactly that! Instead of capturing your lasting memories with a low resolution selfie, you can have your photos taken by a skilled photographer.

Photographers wanted!

RideShots.cc is looking for photographers who want to capture riders in their moments on iconic climbs and popular routes. Contact us or visit RideShots.cc to learn more.