Derek Montgomery Photography >> Blog » Duluth News Tribune

Three days at Miller Park

DRock — Fri, 01 Jul 2011 20:11:49 +0000

Appleton Fox' Derek Montgomery (left) and the Brewers' Julio Machado (right)

I've been a baseball fan since the days of Gorman Thomas and Moose Haas. I even sat on the lap of the infamous Julio Machado during a Brewers picture day in the early 1990s. Throughout my time as a baseball fan, the Brewers have been my team and as long as I can remember, the Brewers have generally struggled while the Minnesota Twins have excelled. This season, things are a lot different. Milwaukee is currently tied with the St. Louis Cardinals atop the N.L. Central while the Twins are 8.5 games back of the Detroit Tigers in the A.L. Central. For most of my formative years, these situations were completely turned around.

The youth movement the Brewers assembled through the ugly early 2000s have matured and are leading a team with one of the most potent offenses in baseball. Free agency has created one of the most formidable pitching staffs in the majors and for one of the first times in years, the pitching has not been a crux of this team.

This team also has tremendous personality. Nyjer Morgan is a gigantic ball of energy while John Axford has lit the baseball world up with his remarkable play this year and delighted fans with his tales of moustache mayhem. The great play by players like Rickie Weeks, Ryan Braun and Prince Fielder have also given fans more reasons to believe this is one special year.

So it was definitely fun to shoot three games between the Brewers and the Twins. Miller Park is a great place for baseball and one of the hardest places to play in all of sports. The Brewers hold a 29-11 record at home, which is the best in baseball. During my time in Milwaukee, I tried to capture a mix of action and personality and I think you will see that below. Enjoy.

Prince Fielder talks to reporters following the Brewers' 4-3 win over the Twins to open up the series.

Nyjer Morgan (left) and Rickie Weeks (right) celebrate after Morgan scored on a Prince Fielder double that put the Brewers ahead of the Twins 4-3 on Friday, June 24th, 2011 at Miller Park in Milwaukee, Wisc.

Francisco Liriano pitches for the Twins.

Prince Fielder celebrates his two-run double that put the Brewers ahead of the Twins 4-3 on Friday, June 24th, 2011 at Miller Park in Milwaukee, Wisc.

Corey Hart (left) and Ryan Braun (center) listen to manager Ron Roenicke during Sunday's game.

Nyjer Morgan gets into it during the singing of "God Bless America" during the Brewers 11-1 victory over the Twins on Saturday, June 25th, 2011 at Miller Park in Milwaukee, Wisc.

Joe Mauer hits a single during the Twins 11-1 loss to the Brewers on Saturday, June 25th, 2011 at Miller Park in Milwaukee, Wisc.

Yovani Gallardo pitches against the Twins.

Ryan Braun celebrates with his teammates after scoring against the Twins.

LEFT: Nyjer Morgan @TheRealTPlush does his thing before a game against the Twins. RIGHT: Braun walks toward the dugout after striking out against the Twins.

Nyjer Morgan reacts after Josh Wilson's catch in the stands was ruled an out ending an 11-1 Brewers victory over the Minnesota Twins Saturday, June 25th, 2011 at Miller Park in Milwaukee, Wisc.

Yovani Gallardo pitches against the Twins.

Prince Fielder (right) keeps Joe Mauer (left) close to the bag during a game between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Minnesota Twins on Saturday, June 25th, 2011 at Miller Park in Milwaukee, Wisc.

Yuniesky Betancourt gets some congrats from Jonathan Lucroy after Betancourt hit an inside-the-park homerun against the Twins.

The Brewers' Casey McGehee was tagged out at home by Minnesota Twins catcher Joe Mauer during the opening game of the series on Friday, June 24th, 2011 at Miller Park in Milwaukee, Wisc.

All eyes are on John Axford as he works in the series finale Sunday, June 26th, 2011 at Miller Park in Milwaukee, Wisc.

Prince Fielder swings against the Minnesota Twins.

LEFT: Carlos Gomez celebrates a homerun against the Twins. RIGHT: Prince Fielder smiles after knocking in two runs with a double to put the Brewers up 4-3 against the Twins.

Nyjer Morgan can't handle a deep fly ball that bounced off the wall.

Corey Hart celebrates his homerun with teammates during an 11-1 Brewers victory against the Minnesota Twins.

John Axford pitches a scoreless ninth to cap off a sweep of the Minnesota Twins on Sunday, June 26th, 2011 at Miller Park in Milwaukee, Wisc.

Grandma’s Marathon 2011

DRock — Sun, 19 Jun 2011 16:17:53 +0000

For the fifth year in a row, I covered Grandma's Marathon from behind a camera for the Duluth News Tribune. It was an awesome time and this year, the weather was unlike any since I've been up here. Instead of humidity and sunshine, runners were greeted with rain and near perfect running conditions once the races started. Temperatures in the upper 40s and 50s along with a persistent tailwind helped half marathoner and Ethiopian Derese Deniboba Rashaw shatter the course record by two minutes finishing in 1:02:19.

Also different from year's past was a photo finish in the full marathon. Kenyan Christopher Kipyego edged past Ethiopia's Tekly Deneke by 0.2 seconds to improve upon his 2010 runner-up finish in the same race. Both Kipyego and Deneke's finishing times are listed as 2:12:17. Typically the winner comes in 30-45 seconds or longer ahead of the runner-up.

Sorry folks you won't see any photo finish photos here or pictures of a course record being shattered. For the second year in a row, I was asked to cover the start and portions of the course up to 40th Avenue East and London Road. That meant lots of fan photos, people cheering, trying to stay dry, drinking beer, doing keg stands, that type of thing. Basically find action, capture action.

I absolutely love this race from a photographic standpoint and from running it. Back in 2003, I ran the race and left Duluth thinking how in the hell do these people get up those streets downtown in the winter. Little did I know, the race would become an annual part of my life and hopefully I'll run it again one day, but in the meantime, I'm having too much fun capturing it with a camera.

Here are a few of my images from Saturday's race...

Runners take off from the start of Grandma's Marathon Saturday morning in Two Harbors.

Denny Jordan of Roseville, Minn. bundled up to stay dry before running Grandma's Marathon Saturday morning in Two Harbors, Minn.

LEFT: Dan Falbo of Eagan, Minn. stays warm and dry before by using a variety of bags before the start of Grandma's Marathon. RIGHT: Jered Nyquist of St. Cloud, Minn. attempts to stay dry Saturday morning before the start of Grandma's Marathon.

Runners pass the intersection of Homestead Road and Scenic Highway 61 Saturday morning during Grandma's Marathon.

LEFT: Jen Houck, a former St. Scholastica runner, finished 5th overall in the women's race. CENTER: Yihunlish Bekele Delelecha won the women's race. LEFT: 2009 winner Christopher Raabe dropped out of this year's race sometime after 13.1 miles.

A race fan holds a sign near Homestead Road and Scenic Highway 61 Saturday morning during Grandma's Marathon.

LEFT: Jill Hylla of Buffalo, Minn. cheers the runners near the intersection of Homestead Road and Scenic Highway 61 Saturday afternoon during Grandma's Marathon. RIGHT: Sara Muniz of Elk River watches Grandma's Marathon in the rain Saturday morning.

Matt Gibbons (blue shirt, center) offers a beer bong to runners along Londron Road during Grandma's Marathon Saturday morning.

Numerous runners stopped for beer, keg stands and beer bongs near the intersection of 40th Avenue East and London Road Saturday morning during Grandma's Marathon.

Tanner Skillings (right) of Minneota, Minn. gets a beer bong from Matt Gibbons (left) while running along London Road during Grandma's Marathon in Duluth.

More beerbongs!!!

Derek Ingvalson of St. Louis Park, Minn. does a keg stand with the help of some college students along London Road during Grandma's Marathon in Duluth.

From left: Ray Skoglund, Jim Collette and Barb Collette stand along London Road with over 200 trolls they put out on the curb to wish the runners good luck Saturday morning during Grandma's Marathon in Duluth.

Frozen Four Semifinals :: UMD vs. Notre Dame

DRock — Sat, 09 Apr 2011 01:02:11 +0000

Growing up, I didn't know much about hockey other than what I read about the hockey cards I collected in Beckett Hockey Monthly. My favorite player was Brett Hull and I couldn't get my hands on enough Eric Lindros and Pavel Bure cards. I watched the occasional hockey game on television, had a University of Wisconsin hockey jersey in elementary school and attempted to skate once when I was seven. That's what I knew about hockey after growing up in a western Wisconsin town focused on wrestling during the winter months.

My favorite hockey player and former UMD Bulldog, Brett Hull.

So it would seem like a snowball's chance in hell that I would end up living in a hockey crazed town shooting dozens of games a year and slowly, but surely figuring out why everyone is so crazy about this sport. I'll admit it's hard for me to really get into any sport that I can't directly participate in. I don't know how to skate and the next closest thing that I can get involved in, Broomball, isn't quite the same. Despite all this, I've been keenly watching this year's University of Minnesota Duluth men's hockey team. They started the season on a tear earning the top ranking in D1 college hockey back in November before fading a bit in the second half, but they got hot at the right time.

After dispatching Union 2-0 in the first round of the NCAA tournament, the Bulldogs faced top seed Yale for a spot in the Frozen Four and outgunned the lesser Bulldogs 5-3 to advance to their first Frozen Four since the 2003-04 season. Not since the 1983-84 season have the Bulldogs advanced to the NCAA finals and that is the only time in school history they've done that. I'm sure UMD fans haven't forgotten that game either. The Bulldogs lost a 5-4 decision in four overtimes to Bowling Green. Ouch.

This year UMD will face Michigan in the finals. Winners of nine NCAA hockey championships, the Wolverines will be looking to push that number to double digits. However, UMD will be looking to bring home their first ever NCAA hockey championship. If that happens, in this city obsessed with hockey, it would truly be a momentous occasion. Think rioting in Detroit after the Pistons won their NBA title, but instead replace the fire with Mojakka and people starting the fires with Duluthians singing "We Didn't Start the Fire..." Ok so there is not going to be any rioting here, but if they can repeat a performance like the one illustrated in the photos below, Duluth is going to be a happy place for quite some time.

UMD goaltender Kenny Reiter (right) and Wade Bergman (left) watch a puck Reiter deflected sail over the head of Notre Dame's David Gerths Thursday evening during an NCAA semifinal hockey game at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn.

UMD goaltender Kenny Reiter deflects a Notre Dame shot Thursday afternoon in the NCAA semifinals at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn.

UMD players line up during the playing of the national anthem before their NCAA semifinal game against Notre Dame.

UMD students Matt Morris (left) and Andy Fondrick (right) cheer on the Bulldogs during introductions before the start of their NCAA semifinal hockey game against Notre Dame Thursday afternoon at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn. Fondrick is a freshman at UMD while Morris is a junior.

UMD's Kenny Reiter watches Notre Dame players celebrate after they scored a first period goal Thursday evening during an NCAA semifinal hockey game at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn.

UMD's Justin Fontaine (right) couldn't get his shot past Notre Dame goaltender Mike Johnson (2nd from right) Thursday evening during an NCAA semifinal hockey game at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn. UMD's Jack Connolly (2nd from left) couldn't put the rebound in while being defended by Notre Dame's Stephen Johns (left, 28).

UMD goaltender Kenny Reiter looks around during a break in action.

UMD's Kyle Schmidt (right) celebrates his first period goal in front of Notre Dame's Kevin Lind (center, 25) and goaltender Mike Johnson (25) Thursday evening during an NCAA semifinal hockey game at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn. Schmidt's goal tied the score at 2-2.

UMD's Kyle Schmidt (left, 7) celebrates his goal with teammates Thursday afternoon during an NCAA semifinal hockey game at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn.

UMD goaltender Kenny Reiter (left) blocks a shot from Notre Dame's Ben Ryan (2nd from left) while being defended by Justin Faulk (25) and J.T. Brown (right, 23) Thursday evening during an NCAA semifinal hockey game at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn.

UMD's Kenny Reiter was beat by Notre Dame's Calle Ridderwall in the third period to cut the score to 4-3 in favor of UMD.

UMD's Trent Palm (right) battles Notre Dame's Nick Larson (left) for the puck Thursday afternoon during an NCAA semifinal hockey game at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn.

UMD players celebrate with Mike Connolly (center) after his first period goal put the Bulldogs up 3-2 over Notre Dame Thursday afternoon during an NCAA semifinal hockey game at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn.

UMD's Brady Lamb (bottom) and Notre Dame's Riley Sheahan (top) got tangled up on the ice during their NCAA semifinal hockey game at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn.

UMD's Kyle Schmidt (top, 7) and J.T. Brown (bottom, 23) pursue Notre Dame's Riley Sheahan (middle, 4) Thursday evening during an NCAA semifinal hockey game at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn.

LEFT: UMD's J.T. Brown celebrates his first period goal against Notre Dame during an NCAA semifinal hockey game Thursday afternoon at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn. RIGHT: UMD's Jack Connolly (left) celebrates his second period goal with teammate Justin Fontaine (right) to put UMD up 4-2.

UMD's Justin Faulk (right) kept the puck away from goaltender Kenny Reiter (left) and from Notre Dame's Nick Larson (center, on ice) during an NCAA semifinal hockey game Thursday afternoon at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn.

TOP: A UMD fan reacts after the Bulldogs went up 4-2 against Notre Dame. BOTTOM: A UMD fan reacts after Notre Dame cut the lead to 4-3 shortly into the third period.

UMD players Justin Fontaine (37), Kenny Reiter (35) and Mike Connolly (22) celebrate their 4-3 victory NCAA semifinal victory over Notre Dame with team manager Dale Haagenson Thursday evening at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn.

Three days of protests in Madison

DRock — Wed, 16 Mar 2011 18:56:41 +0000

It happened in an instant. Protests exploded at the Wisconsin State Capitol after Senate Republicans removed fiscal provisions from Governor Walker's bill that stripped most collective bargaining rights from most public employees. For weeks, the bill had been stalled by 14 Senate Democrats who had fled the state to avoid voting on the bill. However, with the fiscal provisions removed, the Senate Republicans were free to pass the bill and send it to the Governor and that's what they did. In seconds, Twitter and Facebook lit up and thousands of protesters stormed the Capitol. That's about the same time I got the call from News Tribune reporter Brandon Stahl asking if I wanted to come down to Madison to help cover the unfolding events with him. It was a no-brainer. Less than an hour later we started our six hour journey to Madison.

A little background. Wisconsin Governor Walker is cutting local aid to cities and counties along with schools on levels never seen before in Wisconsin. He believes these cuts are necessary to finally balance a budget without fiscal and accounting tricks used by previous administrations. Part of this process is stripping the collective bargaining rights from public employees so that they can only negotiate on things such as salary. Asking the public employees to pay more for their pensions and health care will bring those employees more in line with what the private sector pays says the Governor and stripping collective bargaining rights will give the tools municipalities need to combat the impending cuts. Union workers and Democrats say this is a way to bust unions while delivering a powerful blow to Democrats' fundraising sources.

I had been following the protests for a couple weeks and really wanted to go down there. The first week of the protests I was in Las Vegas at WPPI International. The second week things appeared to be dying down and then this happened. We arrived in Madison early Thursday morning and got to work. The first day was the longest and most chaotic. With an estimated 600 protesters still in the building, they had to be cleared for security purposes before the Assembly met to approve the amended bill. Most of them were holed up in the antechamber blocking access to the Assembly chamber. After a couple hours of intense negotiating by Capitol Police Chief Charles Tubbs and with no end in sight to the protestors' plans to block the chamber, Wisconsin State Troopers began forcibly removing protesters one-by-one. This went on for over an hour until the antechamber was clear. There was a lot of yelling and angry shouting, but no violence.

The trick to walking through 80,000 tightly packed people is to walk where it's really muddy. I'm sorry shoes.

The second day was the calmest and the only big item on the agenda was Governor Walker performing a ceremonial signing of the bill in front of the media. After he used his 26 pens (no exaggeration) to sign the bill, he addressed the media for about 30 minutes before leaving. The entire time he was in the conference room addressing the media, hundreds of protestors gathered outside to scream and yell. At this point, it was time to send images back to the newspaper and then prepare for what was supposed to be the largest rally yet.

We got up early Sunday and made our way to the Capitol only to find the press room locked. At 8a.m. when the doors to the Capitol opened, protesters began taking up spots in the rotunda and making their presence known. At 10:30, tractors began a parade around the Capitol square driven by farmers supporting the union workers. From the early morning until early afternoon, people kept entering the Capitol square until it was shoulder-to-shoulder in the streets around the entire square. The 14 Democratic Senators were also supposed to make their return to the Capitol and march around. That happened at 2pm and started at the Inn on the Park.

This was probably the most chaotic part of the day for me by far. Thousands of people wanted to put their hands on these Senators and shake their hands and give them props. The police were only able to open a path about 15 feet wide for them to march and on each side were police and other security. It took them about 45 minutes to walk around the square and the entire time I was walking backwards running into police, protesters and tripping backwards over wheelchairs. At one point, I was walking backwards and turned around and immediately ran into the Rev. Jesse Jackson. With a giant smile on his face, he shoved me aside. Not everyday that happens. He walked along with the 14 Democratic Senators until they reached the State Street side of the Capitol and each gave a fiery speech. When all the speeches by the Senators were done, it was time to file and begin the trip back to Duluth. I was supposed to get a lot of images of Sen. Bob Jauch (D-Poplar) as he is in the News Tribune's coverage area and I was pretty happy with what I was able to come away with of Jauch and everything else during a very chaotic day.

It was a long three days, but definitely fun to be back in the photojournalist mode covering a historic news event. Enjoy.

Farmer Joe Mathers of Fitchburg, Wisc. waves a flag while driving around the square of the Wisconsin State Capitol Saturday morning in Madison, Wisc.

Assembly minority leader Peter Barca (D-Kenosha) holds a lighter to the a book containing the laws of the congressional procedure while accusing Assembly Republicans of running amok of those laws Thursday afternoon at the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison, Wisc.

Union protesters march around the inside of the Wisconsin State Capitol Friday morning before Gov. Scott Walker signed his budget repair bill in Madison, Wisc.

A protester refuses to get up after being hauled out of the room outside the Assembly chambers by the Wisconsin State Patrol Thursday morning at the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison, Wisc.

LEFT: Wisconsin State Patrol officers pull a protester from the room outside the Assembly chamber before the Assembly convened Thursday morning at the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison, Wisc. RIGHT: Protesters stand outside the Wisconsin State Capitol Saturday afternoon in Madison, Wisc.

Representative Andy Jorgensen (D-Fort Atkinson) yells at Representative Joel Kleefisch (R-Oconomowoc, not pictured) about his vote for Governor Walker's collective bargaining bill Thursday morning at the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison, Wisc.

Wisconsin State Patrol officers pull a protester from the room outside the Assembly chamber before the Assembly convened Thursday morning at the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison, Wisc.

Democrat representatives Jennifer Shilling (D-La Crosse, middle), Donna Seidel (D-Wausau, to the left of Shilling) and Sondy Pope-Roberts (D-Middleton, furthest right) attempt to fist bump a protester after they were hauled out of the hallway leading to the Assembly speaker's room Thursday morning at the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison, Wisc.

Angry protesters shout outside the Governor's conference room shortly after Gov. Scott Walker signed his budget repair bill Friday afternoon at the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison, Wisc.

The gallery erupts into shouts of "Shame! Shame! Shame!" after Assembly Republicans quickly voted to approve Governor Walker's collective bargaining bill Thursday afternoon at the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison, Wisc.

Fred Clark (D-Baraboo) high fives supporters after assembly debate over Governor Walker's collective bargaining bill ended Thursday afternoon at the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison, Wisc.

Wayne Neis (left) and his wife Pat Neis (right) of Benton, Wisc. show their dismay after Gov. Scott Walker signed the budget repair bill into law Friday afternoon at the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison, Wisc.

A copy of the budget repair bill awaits signatures from Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker Friday afternoon at the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison, Wisc.

Surrounded by supporters, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker signs a copy of the budget repair bill Friday afternoon during a ceremonial bill signing at the state Capitol in Madison, Wisc. Immediately to Walker's left is state Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald.

Surrounded by supporters, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker signs a copy of the budget repair bill Friday afternoon during a ceremonial bill signing at the state Capitol in Madison, Wisc.

Wisconsin State Capitol Police Chief Charles Tubbs (2nd from right) convinces protesters Neporsha Hamlin (left), Yaman Amer (2nd from left) and David Vines (right) to leave the Capitol peacefully Thursday evening in Madison, Wisc.

LEFT: The Orpheum on State Street in Madison, Wisc. makes light of the protests at the Wisconsin State Capitol. RIGHT: Lissa McLaughlin of Madison, Wisc. attempts to put a shirt over the statue of Civil War hero Hans C. Heg during protests at the Wisconsin State Capitol Saturday morning in Madison, Wisc.

Protesters in cow costumes spell out "Solidarity" while walking around the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison, Wisc. during protests over Republican Gov. Scott Walker's budget bill.

The Rev. Jesse Jackson made an appearance at the protests in Madison, Wisc.

From left: Wisconsin State Senators Jon Erpenbach (D-Middleton), Julie Lassa (D-Stevens Point), Bob Jauch (D-Poplar) and Tim Carpenter (D-Milwaukee) wave to supporters minutes after exiting their vans and stepping onto the Capitol square for the first time 22 days Saturday afternoon in Madison, Wisc.

Senate minority leader Mark Miller (D-Monona) reacts to supporters after stepping onto the Capitol square for the first time in 22 days Saturday afternoon in Madison, Wisc. Miller and 13 other Senate Democrats fled the state to stall a budget bill by Republican Gov. Scott Walker that stripped most collective bargaining rights from public employees.

The Rev. Jesse Jackson (center) marches with Senator Fred Risser (D-Madison, right) after Risser and 13 other Senate Democrats stepped onto the Capitol square for the first time in 22 days Saturday afternoon in Madison, Wisc.

Wisconsin State Senator Bob Jauch (D-Poplar) walks through a crowd of supporters to cheers and applause after stepping onto the Capitol square for the first time in 22 days Saturday afternoon in Madison, Wisc.

Protesters flood the Capitol square on Saturday afternoon during the third week of protests against Republican Gov. Scott Walker's budget repair bill that would strip most collective bargaining rights from most public employees.

Protesters shout during speeches outside the Wisconsin State Capitol Saturday afternoon in Madison, Wisc.

A large crowd estimated at over 80,000 gathers on the square outside the Wisconsin State Capitol Saturday afternoon to listen to speeches by Senate Democrats and to protest the passage of Republican Gov. Scott Walker's budget bill in Madison, Wisc.

Hey you guys!! Holy Mary Mother of God, Look at that… the tall ships are coming!!!

DRock — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 06:19:35 +0000

A couple of weekends ago, an armada of tall ships descended upon Duluth for the Tall Ships Duluth festival. I photographed their arrival for the Duluth News Tribune and Minnesota Public Radio. Throughout their time here, I could not stop thinking of various "Goonies" phrases. The two that came to mind the most were Sloth's infamous "Hey you guys!!!" and the Sheriff remarking "Holy Mary Mother of God, Look at that..." at the end of the movie when One-Eyed Willie's ship finally finds the open sea.

The event was a big deal for the city. Two years ago, three tall ships came to Duluth and so did an estimated 125,000 people to see them. Many waited hours in line to get a tour and if you weren't in line by 10 a.m., chances are you weren't getting on the ship. At one point, the line to tour the ships stretched over a mile. The problem was much less of an issue this year since there were nine ships instead of three.

During their five days in Duluth, they were the talk of the town. Whether it was the traffic, the crowds in Canal Park or the constant reminders of one of cinema's greatest movies of all time in the Goonies, the tall ships left an impression on everyone.

The U.S. Brig Niagara sails through the Duluth ship canal toward the Aerial Lift Bridge during the start of the Tall Ships Duluth festival.

James Smith reaches for some oil to apply to the Pride of Baltimore's mast while the entire crew performed general maintenance on the ship ahead of Duluth, Minnesota's tall ships festival. The ship was docked at Loon's Foot Landing in Superior, Wisc.

Chief Mate Alan Morse sands near the bow of the Pride of Baltimore II while it was docked at Loon's Foot Landing in Superior, Wisc.

People get out their cameras and photograph the Pride of Baltimore II as it sails through the Duluth ship canal toward the Aerial LIft Bridge.

The U.S. Brig Niagara approaches the Aerial Lift Bridge through the Duluth ship canal during the start of the Tall Ships Duluth festival.

People line the roof of the Paulucci Building before the start of the Tall Ships Duluth festival.

The U.S. Brig Niagara approaches the Duluth ship canal on its way toward the Aerial Lift Bridge during the start of the Tall Ships Duluth festival.

Helicopters fly by the U.S. Brig Niagara during its entry under the Aerial Lift Bridge in Duluth, Minn.

The HMS Bounty sails under the Aerial Lift Bridge during the start of the Tall Ships Duluth festival. The HMS Bounty was in the movie "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead's Man Chest."

Lili Carranza (left) uses her brother Jack Carranza (right) as a prop for taking a photo of the approaching HMS Bounty as it neared the Aerial Lift Bridge during the start of the Tall Ships Duluth festival.

Duluth's Aerial Lift Bridge can be seen behind the sails and masts of the U.S. Brig Niagara during the Tall Ships Duluth festival in Duluth, Minn.