Archive for September, 2007

The grandadmobile

Hello interweb. Got back to my car parked outside a friends house the other day to find this. He said he didn’t know who had done this, which I fully believe, have to find the buggers…lovely start to an update.

4 foot spine, do the maths…

John is an amazing bicycle rider who has just started his last year of school, but has also found the adolescent joy of drugs. Let’s hope he sticks with BMX too.

Callum sweet tabletop

This looks like it’s in a twist, but isn’t. This update will just be an accululation of random photo’s and ramblings from the past few weeks. My flash equipment has been playing up which results in below par photography, but this is sorted now, and I shot some stokers for another update this evening.

Another angle

Callum just sprayed his bike white with baby pink wheels, looks too good. Not stoked on the technicalities of the photo, but am on the stunt.

Get your flair on John

I’ve been trying to save as much money for Aus as possible, which happens through the week, but shits the bed come Friday night. Cheap cider helps the cause. Learn about the greatest beverage this side of the moon here
.

Bad Boy Bike

It took local hobo BMX bandit BB (standing for Bad Boy) a whole day to do each wheel with coloured paper. Worth the effort? You decide. Supported in the background by my friend of many years Adam’s
graffiti.

Wafting

Coasting

Skimming

There’s three photo’s from Winchester that my friend Eddie took of me when we visited a couple of weeks ago. Not the best of photo’s, just stoked to go that high and fast really. First time through back line since summer 2006 was pretty scary stuff, but the best fun ever. Check theshovelload
for more Winch madness.

Mini sending the eagle

Mini is 12 years old I think, and rides a 16 Inch bike with no brakes and bent bars. Have it. Much like young John of earlier in this article(is that what this is?), let’s hope he sticks with kids bikes too.

Next big thing in bmx

I train him regularly to ensure he turns into a tweaker that only does bike movers and the occasional limbless trick. He will one day become a trail boss.

Gymnastics is gay and crazy

The picture explains everything, crazy kids. I have updates from fun days out that may include actual stories coming some time soon, Bournemouth weekend just gone being one of the good times. Been working a lot lately, not had much time to update, but will do again soon. Same old story I tell every update. At least I’ll have good photo’s to show you lovely people when the autumn kicks in and evening park sessions aren’t possible. Adios.

Here’s a pictures of Chaz on grove hip during the recent Aversion trip ‘trails trip’.

One of my mates from uni (Ed) has moved down here for his gap year placement thing and so went out in Oxford. Deceided to go to Parkend and bumped into not only a bunch of people I havn’t seen since end of school but also the Annex crew who were celebrating Revel’s birthday. Random night.

Walked back to Ed’s house in Heddington and it took a lonnnnng time and there was a huge hill too, but it was a fun mission. We tried chatting up some Japense girls but couldn’t understand what the hell they were saying. They said they were in England in London so I guess they got a bit lost or something…

I went swimming the other day as part of my effort to get the old shoulder back into riding shape and I think I have pulled something cause it hurts a fair bit now, no doubt all will be well in a few days. Spoke to Jim on the phone who was up at our new house in Cardiff, apprently the shower was leaking for years and one of the walls fell down so that’s a bit exciting! Hopefully will be fixed when we go back there in about 2 weeks time.

Duncan from Farnborough has made himself a nice little website so check that out. Also Agenda BMX have made a couple of good zines which are worth having a read through.

Two a breast

Last weekend the Aversion trails trip got well and truly splendid. On the Monday myself, Ollie Gun and his buddy Tom decided to split off and take up Dan’s offer of a shindig up Brighouse. These photos are an accumulation of evidence of this statement.

Barlow driving, Dan second carriage

These photo’s didn’t come out to great. I forgot my flash equipment, which meant ISO 400 and high apertures getting rinsed out fully. Stayed at Dan’s house Sunday night with some Northern monkeys from Newcastle. I’m rubbish with names, so we shall call them PJ and Duncan. Both PJ and Duncan were full on awesome chaps.

Choo choo

The jumps were riding amazing, so I found it hard to tear myself from my bike. The day consisted of lots of trains, which are always fun, especially on mint jumps with awesome people.

Ollie Gun wafting

Brighouse has the best chilling area ever, including a dialled BBQ. We hit up some sweet food, and it turned to quite a session, with a busy BBQ all day and lots of people eating, drinking, riding jumps and being merry. This hip is the jump before last in the most ridden line, the back line, and is really fun. Some guy on an FBM was boosting the shiznit out of it.

Kent wafting

Last weekend was the first time I’d ever met Clarke and Kent, and we saw them all three days of the trip. Kent was adamant you wouldn’t catch him spinning jumps, but definitely boosts everything in his way.
Mike Hill and Kent rode the big line all the way through that day too. The last jump is huge, about 24’ x 7’ with a massive flat bottom before. First time Mike sent it, he was pumping the roots on that flat ground, nose dived the shit out of it and came in perfect. Amazing whilst really scary.

Unknown brakeless moto

It’s really good to visit northern jumps, because different rules seem to apply. You rarely see straightened hair, there’s less kickouts and there’s definitely not a version of Timmy laying in the woods in Will Hermann’s sleeping bag, looking like Worzel Gummage…

Ollie boosting

Ollie loves these jumps as much as I did, they’re too fun. I like the lighting on this picture of him tucking, although flash would have helped on the rider. Forgetful never got anyone anywhere, or something. The lighting looks like dawn. I’m really pleased with the saturation of tucks, bar tweaks and just straight jumps in this update. For me, that is the essence of riding jumps that I’ve loved since day one.

Rich Barlow coasting through

This is from the lighter area at the start of the lines, and gives a little view of a small number of the sets on offer. The hip in this picture is one of my favourite jumps of all time, so much fun and amazing for tables, really steep lip and lander. The lip shows just how smooth the jumps are, that jump is like glass. Honestly the smoothest surfaces in an English woods. Plus I’ve always been a great fan of greenery all over the jumps.
Many thanks to Dan for putting us up Sunday night, his amazing power shower, the wonderful day on Monday and for building some of the best jumps in the world. I have photos from different places to update with so expect a few over the next week or so. If that’s an offer you can refuse then you’re quite plainly bonkers. Good day to you sir’s and madam’s.

Craig moto air

So it’s once again been a bit of a wait since the last update. Since last time, the Aversion trail trip has been and gone. Fun times were had by all, it was especially good to see all those guys that I don’t see very often, and see some new mud lumps. Chertsey it definitely the best woods I’ve ever visited.

Aerial

Been taking an odd photo or two lately, not a lot though really, I suck. These ones of Craig are pretty crazy, front high moto airs that young Yak would be proud of.

Front footjam

Hope Local is better from hurting himself doing one of these last saturday morning. Lovely boy is Local. Murray jam last Sunday was a treat, I didn’t shoot any photo’s but you can see some on this fine site from Ed and in many other places. Was really good to hear Martin talk about what was going on with Steven, and to know that money donated was going to a much needed cause. Lost his house and everything, bloody greedy American regime.

Spot the crack

Also saw the Cheltbmx boys, including the lovely young ragamuffin that is Tom Higgins. He didn’t make it for festivities that evening in the end due to a bunch of messy bmx kids being unorganised. Best times. The other guys with Aversion headed to Chertsey Monday, whilst myself and Ollie Gun headed up to Leeds to ride Brighouse and have some seriously rad times. More on that in another update.

Tom Goldburg wheelying

Been seeing a lot of Aidan lately, the ‘orrible little bugger…it’s actually been delightful, just like Hornton Hill, only now we have the times of our lives riding foot high wooden driveways not lines of jumps. How times change. On this day, Aidan also lost his car keys, which were with his spare key, costing him ALOT of money to have the car relocked. That was really rubbish.

Gregg semi circling

Gregg can go fast backwards, here he even does it in the air. New PA woods dvd should be with Joe soon, if there’s any copies left hit up the book, the last video was ridiculously good. It even managed to make the usually jovial Aidan depressed that he didn’t have jumps that crazy, so there’s something nuts about these videos for sure.

Richy P, dominating MC

Hopefully going to ride my mud lumps today for a little while. Went to a gig with loads of screaming bands last night, Eddie and I ballroom danced and did the robot in a big goth pit, got pretty beaten doing it, think the kids were stoked. Some other kids didn’t believe me that I wasn’t on drugs, said it was either that or ADD, must be the latter.

Suuuuuuperman

My cheap flash receivers have become ridiculously temperamental and don’t work a lot of the time, which is really bloody annoying. Decent equipment to be invested in when I get back from Oz and NZ. 60 days to go. Brighouse update some time soon if I get me ass into gear. Going to road trip it somewhere tomorrow, possibly Croydon way. Lots of fun being off the ground rhythmically over piles of mud in woodland areas. Byeeeeeeee.

I just wrote a really good update and managed to close the window and lost it… Stoked on that! Anyhow I will do another one the same because I am nice like that.

On Sunday last weekend went to the Alianos jam to help make Stephen Murray walk again and what not. Were soooooo many people there. Fair play to all the guys who had shaped up Alianos, nuff work had been done since I was last there. Everything looked super dialled in.

Max Wood flow yo.

Max is too wild. He whipped the last in the big line at Chertsey the next day. Jump is about 7ft tall and about 22ft long. Did it twice. Media of that soon I guess then. He also did a couple of 360 whips at Alianos but I can’t really remember. Any way yeaaaah Max.

Un-known Old school no-hander. I am useless at remembering who people are. Sorry about that. Leave names in the comments if you know them. Maybe win a prize?

One of the Fortes (I think) Ross from Epsom (cheers Lima) Overclicked turndown

Unknown Flowing through bottom half of trails, probably Clark or Kent.

Unknown Will ‘Herminator’ (cheers Louis) 360 mid set. Redbull sorted the event out pretty good. Had all sorts of fancy sound systems and a DJ who played gangster rap in the true trails style… There were a bunch of hot girls milling about, dunno if they were to do with Redbull or just cause the Alianos are so P-I-M-P.

Un-known 360 last set.

I had written more before, but I managed to lose it all so sorry about that. Remember to save stuff I guess is the moral there. I have loads more photos than this from the Jam and also from the road trip. They might be up on here soon. Louis wants to do an article or something so maybe go somewhere better, but we shall see.

It’s all about DJ reckless from Nothern Line records. Click here to download a podcast of it. Basslineeeeeeeeeee

The Jam was pretty successful I reckon. Stay strong Murray. This update took a week to do because I have just started a new job phoning people up and getting information out of them. Also doing work experience at a publishing company in a few weeks taking photos of rockstars and cars (maybe). Then back to Cardiff for my final year of University on the 24th of September or so. Going to be amazing, can’t wait.