26 Feels Old.

You'll Never Ride It? Periodicals Rack, Free to Good Home.

2011-12-20T22:54:00.000-08:00

Left anonymously in the laundry room a week ago. I need a bigger fingerbike.

Lists.

2011-02-10T23:39:00.000-08:00

Found this multi-page improvised pocket journal in one of my old camera bags this weekend. It's an index of stuff I had in mind to shoot for bmx is cute and didn't want to forget--things I spotted from the highway or in strange neighborhoods that I knew my memory would have no way to catalog, as well as various other video-related creative inspirations. I think the list happened partly as a manifestation of how little time I had to ride during the last semester of my senior year of college. It's satisfying to mentally check off all the spots that did get revisited and ridden before we left St Louis for Chicago, whether or not the particular trick worked out.

It's also cool, six years later, now happily pegless and a father of two, to feel freed from the psychological compulsion to toss my body down every rail that crosses my field of vision. (A related list would be the running spreadsheet I started in 1999, intending to document all the rails I ever grinded, but that file was lost in a 2002 hard drive crash.)

For the record, St Louis has the richest, most stress-free geographical density of street terrain of any place I've ever lived or visited.

Everyone has a list like this, right?

Portland Bridges: The Web Video.

2011-01-19T19:06:00.000-08:00

Caleb and I had a blast collaborating on this project across the span of the continent. I'd get an idea while driving to Seattle in the middle of the night and pull over at a rest stop to send him a three-page text. A couple days later, he'd email back with his responses, make some aside about feeding the sheep, and link me to a revised version of the video. That said, for all the thought and work we put into it, it's a very simple video.

Hope you enjoy.

Filmers/editors/riders: Caleb, Ben, DBZ, and myself.

1/11/10.

2010-11-03T07:13:00.000-07:00

The Silent Web Video.

2010-10-15T07:00:00.001-07:00

I already have one, two, three active blogs in addition to this one, and it's a daily struggle not to start more. One idea that I've so far resisted would be a dump archive of web videos featuring the sounds of riding, the single most important choice made by an editor in my opinion.

The soundtrack-less "718trailer," embedded below, would be filed under "very well done."

As seen on the Holeshot blog (and a lot of other places, too). DVD available at Dan's.

Of course, I'd like to add that bmx is cute. did it three years ago (to less impressive effect).

Stranger than...

2010-10-07T08:31:00.000-07:00

On the Burnside drawbridge, waiting for a passing tugboat, observed this fellow bicycle commuter talking to the air. BMXers will immediately identify the clear Odyssey Twisteds.

Point and Shoot: Nick Morris.

2010-09-17T14:24:00.000-07:00

Lateral gap to handrail, care of Nick Morris, two Thursdays ago. (Caleb Evenson raccoon eyes in the background.)

Is it any wonder that Nick's broken wrist has yet to heal?

Improving on Perfection: Breakfast on the Bridges adds Bacon.

2010-08-27T23:27:00.000-07:00

It just seemed like the right thing, to inaugurate Ben's first day back at work since the birth of his beautiful son Gus with donut holes and coffee on the Steel bridge. The sizzlin' fresh pancakes, sausage patties, and non-vegan bacon were an unfathomable surprise quickly embraced.

All props to the profitless BonB crew.

We loitered for a half hour or so, discussing work and bikes: Caleb is happily unemployed again, and assembling a touring bike for a winter voyage; Ben complained about commuting via bmx ("It's half the speed, and twice the work!") and resolved to get his road bike functional before Monday; and I smugly called attention to my new collapsible metal pannier basket, a twenty-dollar purchase which keeps the messenger bag off my back and doubles my investment in the sixteen-inch machine.

We finally parted ways for what I assume were excellent Fridays all around.

Point and Shoot: Portland Summer Thursdays...

2010-08-14T23:26:00.000-07:00

Summer street rides have been going well for over a month now, but this was the first night of the season that the camera left my jeans pocket. Two shots:

Allen Burger, smith up the Lincoln High driveway ledge, bar height and then some. Good grief.

Visiting from Philly, Dan Bob, nose-to-180, waterfront warmup.
...

Portland summers start late but go forever. Check the Thursday night photos from late August and September of last year.

See you at Lovejoy Fountain, 9 o'clock, Thursday!

Chest hair like a lumberjack.

2010-08-10T22:36:00.000-07:00

Re-blog this:

deebodude, via the 217.

Moose carcass. Bears. Trails at midnight.

2010-07-21T20:31:00.000-07:00

It was almost two years ago to the day that I first voiced my appreciation of the Alaska riding blog No Bikes, in a parenthetical side note to a post about the Ukrainian ghost town of Pripyat.

The frequent anecdotes and photos offered glimpses of a tight-knit bmx scene in the midst of mountains, wilderness, wildlife, and frontier culture, and always left me hungering for more. With the release of No Bikes' seventh video, Burn This, that hunger has been finally, finally satisfied.

In addition to the full length video, rider / filmer / editor / photographer / blogger / husband / financial actuary Aaron Gates found the time to re-edit the footage into a surprisingly legitimate documentary, called The Hinterland, offered as a bonus item on the dvd. My recommendation: buy this $5 dvd right now, and watch the documentary immediately. Give that time to settle, and then watch Burn This.

Offered online are two standout scenes from The Hinterland. Enjoy.

T minus:

2010-07-08T20:26:00.000-07:00

Worst-Organized Bike Rally on the Planet--Right Here, Thursday.

2010-06-29T08:13:00.001-07:00

Let there be no confusion.

If you came out for the street ride any of the last three weeks, you probably scratched your head, doubted you were in the right place, and eventually went back home, disappointed.

Our apologies. We can all explore the miscommunications in person, in depth, this Thursday, at the first successful street ride of the Summer.

This oughta be the one.

The Google aerial.

STREET THIS THURSDAY. FORECAST IS CLEAR.

2010-06-23T13:39:00.001-07:00

You'll Never Intern It: Ian Moult Drops Science.

2010-06-21T22:28:00.000-07:00

Alleged Norco factory pro Ian Moult bomb-dropping the [world-destroying] Large Hadron Collider, where he is, according to the always blogworthy Gnarwhale, a summer intern:

Heck of a bullet point for your CV.

SUMMER THURSDAYS ARE BACK.

2010-06-15T07:49:00.000-07:00

DBZ and I have some stuff planned for the season. Stay tuned...

Ben Piff Spring iPhone Dose.

2010-06-15T05:54:00.000-07:00

I feel like Ben calls me with a trick-by-trick report every time he gets back from riding, but this video came as a total surprise. Following up on last year's excellent Summer/Fall edit, Ben brings his usual mix of clever spots and trick-list bike-control jibbery. Bonus points for the super filthy lens.

Micro-slantpad.

2010-05-30T20:44:00.000-07:00

As the clouds pass: Memorial Day weekend solo sesh in Medford, Oregon; shot w/digital point&shoot and pocket tripod; edited w/Windows Movie Maker on Mother-in-law Jane's laptop.

Sacred Spots Revisited: David Joy Clears the Pizza Fence.

2010-05-15T15:26:00.000-07:00

Ten years after Jeremy Davis called out the line, David Joy makes it count.

Matt Reckless photo.

As seen in the opening clip of Pizza's ./blueprint part, if you need a reminder...

Nice work, David.

...

June 6th edit: I thought it relevant to add that Joy cleaned the "triple-life rail" (aka the "longest rail in Oregon", and seen bucking a number of pros in the ./blueprint credits) in a web edit from last year:

Celluloid Dump.

2010-04-23T21:33:00.000-07:00

Been sitting on this for a while, gathering, scanning, and uploading a small pile of non-digital media for what appears to be April's only blog post.

Presented in reverse chronological order:

Shot by TJ Henderson, circa 2006:

Bottom bracket grind at my alma mater, Washington University in St Louis.

Bros.

Canadian nosepick by TJ Henderson in Des Moines, Iowa. Shot by Bobby Altiser.

...

These black & whites came off a roll of film that sat undeveloped in my glove box for four years. Shot with my Pentax Spotmatic.

Young wives Tika and Jaime, with the Nikon D50 and Sony TRV950, respectively.

Huge sub box, huge film grain, Ben gets first marks in Clayton, Missouri, Summer 2006. Sorry for the faulty exposure, expired film, and/or bad Costco processing, Ben. This would've been a great shot.

...

Shad shot this Reed College tree-ride-to-fence-grind for Dig just before I left Portland in early 2003. (The photos never ran.) Double hoodies and massive cuffs date the pics, but the bike itself would see few updates over the next seven years.

Regular.

Opposite.

...

Lastly, another b&w shot of Ben from my Pentax, late 2001. That's our old backyard in Everett. Ben reps an o.g. Kink tee shirt, DK SOB, and 45t Threshold sprocket.

...

Off the topic of film photography, but still on the nostalgic tip, is the first video I ever made (with editing assistance from Cousin Paul), shot in October of 2001. If anyone is aware of it intact online somewhere, I'd love to know.

Almost nine years later, pegless and brakeless, I still feel pretty well represented by it.

Gravity-Powered.

2010-03-24T01:06:00.001-07:00

The "Gravity Powered Vehicle mini craze" was long dead by 1988, but I'm not surprised to find the mantle raised again and burning brightly in Portland, Oregon, 2010, just ten blocks downhill from the Zoobomb pile.

Saturday night, my cousin Trey and I happened upon this fellow parked at Voodoo Doughnut, and I instantly identified his custom "GPV" as a DK SOB.

"It was the heaviest frame I could find," hippie Clint explained (as per the gravity-powered premise).

Although it's a confusing sight at first, the bike is sitting right-side-up, with a seat welded to the chainstay wishbone. The handlebars underneath turn 90 as knee rests, and you can see disc weights hanging down below.

The handlebars (SBC 4-piece Strips) also turn 90 but remain inverted, with curved tubing tack welded in place for additional hand positions. (Also note the vintage S&M Ditchforks.)

Clint says he stopped riding bmx around 2001, and after we waxed bmx-nostalgic for a few minutes, asked if I knew of anyone selling a complete bike for cheap. "Nothing too light," he said. I said I would put him in touch with someone who might be able to help and took down his email address.

(Caleb, I'm looking at you.)

...

Two nights later, Trey and I were out on another late ride when the red foldie suddenly fell apart in Trey's hands. He avoided crashing, but I confess that his look of bewilderment was priceless, as the bike slow-motion folded in half beneath him. Serendipitously, we were just then directly in front of Voodoo, and so were Clint and his taxi, reggae gently bumping. He was quick to offer his help and the use of his tools. The confusing repair took our combined concentration more than ten minutes to work out, bending and hammering and furrowing our brows, everything finally slipping together effortlessly in one fabulous aha moment. A cotter pin from Clint's tool bag clipped it all permanently in place.

The satisfaction of the experience was palpable, not to mention the value of Clint's tools, the cotter pin, and not having to walk a bike home. We expressed our gratitude and insisted on tipping him a few bucks, against his protests.

bmx is cute.

2010-03-18T06:47:00.000-07:00

Our lighthearted street riding magnum opus. The full dvd is now online. Thanks once again to everyone who put in work on this.

I think Ben still has a couple of dvd's. If anyone wants a hard copy, feel free to hit us up.

St Louis riders: Joe Albanez, Justin Bukowitz, TJ Henderson, Ryan Johnson, Chris Jones

Seattle riders: Shay Schiefelbein, Andrew Longstreet

Portland riders: Darus Albon, Dustin Anderson, Daniel Hamlett, Caleb Ruecker, Ben Piff, Tony Piff

Project: Free Bike.

2010-03-11T06:33:00.001-08:00

Caleb and Ben approached me with a radical proposal in November: would I accept the gift of a complete, custom, modern bmx bike, to replace my unreliable-but-unkillable warship built at the peak of the heavy bike trend almost ten years ago?

36 lbs. Details here.

I did not say "Yes" immediately, for a few reasons. Firstly, I was uncomfortable accepting their generosity. My bike's fabulous obsolescence was due financially not to lack of funds, but to my paralyzing aversion to spending--and it didn't seem fair to accept for free what I could honestly afford. Caleb and Ben countered this point by assuring me it would be done at approximately zero expense, just drawing parts from the existing local surplus, since basically any change would amount to an upgrade and a savings in weight. They also pointed out that, furthermore, while I might be able to afford the upgrade (certainly a free one), the true roadblock was my own inertia and lack of time. And they convinced me that they would enjoy the project and the opportunity for an act of service.

After some deliberation, I handed over my bike and what spare parts I had laying around with the instructions to use, keep, sell, or donate it all. I just wanted one complete bike and no more extra parts taking up space in my closets. I resolved to detach completely from all expectations and embrace whatever I received, which was hard at first, but then thrilling. I told Caleb and Ben that the most important thing to me was that they have fun.

I am amazed. Here is the breakdown:

Frame: Caleb's 2004 S&M Stricker, mountless, 20.5"

Before (stream-of-conscious paint pen & sticker job):

After:

Castillo Bars from DBZ. I think the orange spray over maroon is genius.

Redline Device fork. Blue spray over navy. Also genius.

Solid headset, circulating through Caleb's friends since 2003.

Odyssey Griswald grips. I bought these new at Goods and love them. They're the thickest grips I've ever seen. Designed by Ben Ward.

Shadow Attack front-load stem. Caleb did make the disclaimer that he wasn't sure how I would feel about running a Shadow Conspiracy product. He was right to wonder, but I just find it funny, and I like how it resembles the old Death Neck. I think the bolts are hollow.

Profile 180's. So pleased--I secretly hoped Caleb would keep the orange and black.

My old Cielenski pedals.

KMC 510 HX chain. Pieced together from spare links by DBZ. I think it's the chain endorsed by Sean Burns, which makes me feel safe.

Shadow Crowgora sprocket. 30t. Another Shadow product??? Yep, and it's even purple.

Metal Bikes Pivotal seat & post. I think DBZ was going to give these to me out of pity, but he actually made me trade him a pack of Newports for them.

When my Kink Empire was stolen in 2002, I was able to build 90% of a replacement bike out of spare parts from the garage of old riding buddy Dave Brown. That makes this Primo Viking seatpost clamp the oldest part on the bike. Years later I sawzalled it in half.

Front tire: Fit FAF.

Rear Tire: Odyssey Plyte Path.

Rear Wheel: Poverty 48H 10T cassette laced to Alex Supra E-lite.

Front Wheel: Crupi high-flange 3/8 36H laced to no-name single wall. It's a race wheel, so I guess pegs are out of the question. I'm fine with that.

28 lbs. The seat is ever-so-slightly lower than it was previously, and the bars have been pushed forward in line with the fork, and neither is changing. My only plans are to grind down the axles and possibly trim the seat post.

See also: video footage of the new bike, posted last week (via Caleb's blog).

Thank you, Caleb. Thank you, Ben. Thank you.

Wings Like Solid Concrete.

2010-03-02T23:38:00.000-08:00

Item #1: DBZ shaved his head, quit drugs, and has undertaken the project of blogging a complete list of aesthetic influences (assumed NSFW).

Item #2: Caleb, too, is blogging, and reportedly filming for a DBZ web video.

Item #3: The first documentation of me on a bmx since January over a year ago--rode bikes and filmed with Caleb last Sunday. I really can't believe what we found:

From Caleb's blog:

Bad weather makes for good web edits.

2010-02-04T07:32:00.000-08:00

This week, three dope videos from our very closest homies. If you haven't seen them already:

Ben Piff: iPhone Bro-Cam Edit.

Video nerds Ben and Caleb rode hard street all summer, putting Caleb's 3ccd's to careful good use. We've yet to see the "serious" footage, but here's everything else Ben did this summer, filmed with his iPhone, by whomever happened to be around at the time. The lighthearted, low-res results are surprisingly satisfying and beautiful. I'll take credit for suggesting the song.

Caleb Evenson: "Study of a Spot."

An easygoing, unpretentious "concept" video that is fantastically successful, thanks to Caleb's humility, sincerity, and choice of setting. Yes, this is where Bruce Crisman pulled the fakie ruben wallride.

TJ Henderson: The Man, The Myth, The Legend.

From the 217 blog. Four pegs, two brakes, a gyro, freecoaster, trucker hat, and denim cutoffs put to full use, as usual. I always used TJ as a selling point for the bmx is cute dvd, but frankly, this renders anything he was doing back then pretty much obsolete. TJ's bag of tricks continues to swell. Love the way this finishes.

Pocket Journals.

2010-01-17T12:36:00.000-08:00

In my systematic quest for the perfect pocket journal, I bought the smallest size notebooks available from every brand I could find. Two years of hard testing later, here are my conclusions.

...

Moleskine Plain Reporter Notebook.

3-1/2 x 5-1/2, black only, $12.00.

I bought three different Moleskines, but this is the only one that saw significant use. The Moleskine dimensions are pretty good for a back pocket, and the slick, fake leather binding slides in and out easily. For writing while standing up, the Reporter sits nicely in your hand.

I'm not crazy about the Moleskine paper, which is thinner and yellower than the other brands, but I cope. Moleskine does a sketchbook with different paper for drawing and painting, and elsewhere on the internet you can find artists hotly debating the technical performance of paper under various media. All I really have an opinion about is how well it works as journal in my pocket.

I liked this one a lot initially, but after a while the cover started wearing badly, at which point I retired it. I assume the other Moleskines would wear in the same way. See photos below.

Other features: elastic closure band, expandable pocket.

...
Moleskine Japanese Album.

3-1/2 x 5-1/2, black only. $9.60.

One continuous, zigzag-folded page. I really love this and am saving it for use as a future travel journal. One reason I think the Moleskine Reporter Notebook wore out is that I took too long filling it up. But when travelling, I journal feverishly, filling pages like I'm on meth--I could fill this up in a few weeks before it had the chance to fall apart. Also, I feel like the continuous page would be conducive to obsessive, stream-of-consciousness documentation, a la Kerouac (or something).

And the paper is thicker and more durable, almost card stock.

Other features: elastic closure band, expandable pocket.

...

Moleskine Plain Notebook.

3-1/2 x 5-1/2, black or red,$12.00.

Not much left to say about Moleskines, but this one does come in red.

Other features: bookmark string, elastic closure band, expandable pocket.

...

Sparco Brand Reporter's Notebook.

4-1/2 x 8, $21.30 for a pack of twelve.

The newspaper where I interned in 2008 had an unlimited supply of these. They do make you feel like a journalist, but what a hassle to use! Thin cardboard; ugly lined paper; floppy oversized dimensions that won't fit in any pocket. At least the cover folds back out of the way, which none of these others can do.

...

Hand-Book Travelogue Journal, Pocket Landscape.

3-1/2 x 5-1/2, many colors, $7.99.

Many artists swear by these sketchbooks. Even if you're just journaling, it's a tactile delight pulling an inky pen across the thick, toothy, bright, buff-colored paper. The construction feels robust and high quality.

But it's just a little thick to carry in your pocket every day. My wife eventually appropriated this one for Markie, our two-year-old daughter, who gets to put a sticker in it as a reward for using the potty.

Other features: bookmark string, elastic closure band, expandable pocket, reasonable price, many colors and configurations, including square!

...

Derwent Faux Suede Journal.

3-1/2 x 5-1/2, black or tan, $7.95.

This measures exactly the same dimensions as the HandBook brand sketchbook above--that is to say, a little thick for my pocket. I also doubt the durability of the faux suede cover.

And yet I really, really like this one. The tan suede with black details looks and feels great, construction is high quality, and the paper is extremely white (pickier artists may find it a little smooth). It's a smart, classy package. No surprise that my wife took it as her own. This would make a great gift.

It has the same bookmark string, elastic band, and expandable pocket as all the rest, as well as a second pocket inside the front cover. Reasonably priced.

...

Homemade Journal.

I used to always carry a folded sheet of paper in my pocket to jot down ideas and questions throughout the day. During my foreign study in college, I used this technique for journalling, and came home four months later with a crammed folder of embarrassingly disheveled paper scraps.

Later, after I got married, perhaps thinking my journalling habits could benefit from a little formality, I started fashioning staple-bound books out of card stock. I liked the DIY project, but these never fared well under prolonged pocket use.

Not particularly durable or pretty, but inexpensive and fun to figure out. I've made these in all sorts of sizes and arrangements. I didn't measure this one, but you can see that it's about as long as the pen. These were the inspiration for the pocket journal search.

...

Pentalic a la Modeskin Book.

3x4, many colors, $2.95.

The Pentalic has emerged as my journal of choice. 3x4 is approximately the size of my wallet--absolutely perfect.

It's crazy that Moleskine, HandBook, and Derwent aren't already doing their own 3x4's. The Pentalic construction and materials are unimpressive, compared with these other brands (though the paper is still thicker than than Moleskine paper). You can see in the photos below that the book is actually in separate pieces now. That's not normal wear--Markie did it--though I don't think she could tear apart a Moleskine, Handbook, or Derwent with the same ease. It bugged me at the time, but I've forgotten to care, since it just doesn't seem to matter. The elastic band holds everything together and I never think about it.

The cheap rubber cover is extremely durable and is showing the nicest patina of any of these books.

Other features: bookmark string, elastic closure band, expandable pocket, impossibly low price, many colors.

I'm ordering a bunch more of these Pentalics soon, in a variety of colors. With a new one that isn't falling apart, I have a plan to let it replace my actual wallet, with just my few cards and I.D. tucked into the pouch.

The pocket journal catches most of my stray thoughts and questions, as an aid to my unreliable memory, but I've fallen out of the habit of journaling seriously for the sake of posterity or nostalgia. When that inclination comes back around, as I know it will, the other journals will find use at my bedside or in my backpack.

They won't go to waste.

Mobile Full Pipe w/Skylight.

2010-01-07T06:25:00.000-08:00

I don't mean to clutter up the blog with a bunch of You'll-Never-Ride-Its, which I always feel are a little too easy, but hey, click to go frickin huge:

Via BLB.

You'll Never Ride It V: The Elusive Bank-to-Steam-Engine.

2009-12-30T10:51:00.000-08:00

via Just a Car Guy

Railway snow plows. I had no idea. But of course.

Here are a couple dozen photos from various corners of the internet. Riding-wise, the outdoor museum pieces could probably be located and sessioned with minimal detective work and a cheater-board (Ten bucks paypalled to anyone with photo or video documentation), though that's not really so important.

Just some amazing images to contemplate.

Happy New Year. Click to go big.

via Scenes and Things

via The Railway Snowplow

via Sciencepunk

via rogerdodger's panoramio

via Pirate Johnny's Flickr

via My New England Life

via lewiston-ut.org

via tnrdfilm.com

via bohemianj16's Flickr

via Laramie Historic Railroad Depot

via MichelleDormer's Photobucket

via Atchison Rail Museum

via PaulSid's Flickr

via Marsh49's Panoramio

double-edged!

via Northeast Railfan

...

Post-script: some worthy Youtube:

Get Jason Levy on it.

Sounds vs Soundtrack, Revisited.

2009-12-27T22:11:00.000-08:00

"A video with no music whatsoever"? Hat tip to InTheGnar for Brandon Westgate's music-less part from the Zoo York video State of Mind:

...

Except it's not his video part at all, just the leftover clips. Hence the title "Extras." But thanks to my ignorance, that's how I watched it, foolishly thinking that the editor consciously, intentionally crafted this strangely epic thing, and I hope I kind of tricked you into watching it the same way, and I hope you enjoyed it as thoroughly as I did.

I mean, isn't it absolutely riveting?

For comparison, here's the actual video in its entirety. Westgate's part starts at 1:30. It's quite good, I guess, but seriously: I find the hushed patter of urethane wheels on brick infinitely more foreboding than the squonky cliched guitar riffs of Magic Man.

New Piff Blogs Worth a Click.

2009-12-08T09:06:00.000-08:00

Blogball: Ben is slowly documenting all the vintage Toyotas he has owned over the past few years. I believe he is now driving Corolla number seven.

And on a related topic: Old Parked Cars, my new photoblog, with contributions from Ben and Dad.

On Antelope Street.

2009-10-14T23:11:00.000-07:00

The wide, winding industrial corridor that runs along the St Louis riverfront is pocked with dozens of odd little isolated residential spaces. A typical micro-hood might consist of just a single block of run-down domestic structures, flanked on all horizons by cyclone fencing, smokestacks, and grandfather zoning clauses.

During last summer's visit, Dad and I were on just such an urban sightseeing outing, when we happened upon what appeared to be a freight train cutting past a row of homes, directly through their tiny front yards.

We found it a baffling, inconceivable sight, and the rest of our day was infused with a sober feeling of wonder. Back at Mom and Dad's, I googled away furiously but could find absolutely no reference to front yard train tracks, in St Louis or anywhere.

So, a few days later I returned to photograph the scene and talk to residents, and I wrote up a little article, which I submitted to the RFT. But I didn't have an existing freelancer's agreement with them, or the seasonal time peg was getting tight... For whatever reason, suffice it to say, I didn't hear back, and the piece never ran.

But it's a unique story, and a piece of St Louis history that I'm proud to have documented. Here it is.

...

On Antelope Street

It could probably be said that the shotgun homes on Antelope Street were never intended to last a hundred years. The Baden neighborhood houses were built for railroad and factory workers in an era when plumbing and insulated walls were regarded as luxuries, but over the past century, residents have maintained and improved the structures, adding on bathrooms, installing ductwork for heating and central air, and covering peeling lead paint with vinyl siding. The trees have grown up tall and sturdy. Perhaps the only things that have not changed are the railroad tracks cutting squarely across their front lawns, and the freight trains that rumble through their yards every day.

Homeowner Amber McClain, 25, stands barefoot in the leafy shade, hands on hips. She says, nodding toward the tracks, “People come over, they ask, 'Are those active?' Yeah, they're active!”

Husband Dan, 26, crouches to assist their one-year-old, Vance, toddling in the grass. “Sometimes,” he says, “a train comes through at thirty miles an hour, and I'm like Slow the eff down!” The tracks bend smoothly into view from the North, thread through the front yards for two blocks, and then abruptly whip South again. Dan continues, “They gotta slam on their brakes right there, 'cause it's such a sharp turn.”

The only space for cars is beyond the tracks and across the street. Amber recalls a recent time that she was unloading groceries with her mother-in-law, when they heard the train approaching. The conductor saw them frantically hurrying, and he politely brought the train to a stop. Says Amber, “He was like, 'Go ahead, finish what you're doin'.'”

Says Dan, “Usually if it's a regular one, he'll toot the horn, we'll wave.”

“Loud Mouth honks his horn all the way down, Ding Dong just rings his bell,” jokes Dolly Osborne, 75, recalling some of the regulars.

Osborne's daughter Phyllis adds with a chuckle, “Sneaky Snake doesn't blow his horn or ring his bell.”

A train rolling through at proper speed might take twenty minutes to pass; other times, trains will freeze on the tracks for hours at a time. “You gotta crawl over or under them,” says Erin Thurber, 42, shrugging her shoulders. For what it's worth, she says she tries to be careful. Thurber has never been late fork work.

“They sit there and park for hours,” chimes in Erin's boyfriend John Skilker, 45, gesturing with his blue-kozied Busch Light. “What if there was an emergency? We can't make the railroad do a damn thing.”

Dan McClain points out the fire hydrants, all located beyond the tracks and across the street. “There's nothing emergency vehicles could do,” he says.

According to Dolly Osborne, who has lived here since the 1970's (and who at one time owned as many as three of the homes on Antelope), there remains an unfulfilled commitment from the railroad to relocate the tracks. “They're supposed to be fifty feet,” she says. “That ain't no fifty feet.” From front door to tracks looks about half that distance.

John Spilker dismisses the notion. “I doubt the railroad's gonna do a damn thing,” he says.

In the late nineties, Antelope residents had the privilege of witnessing a full derailment in their front yards. Ron Fry, 43, a longtime Antelope resident now living in Sparta, Tennessee, was with his son in the living room when it began. “We heard this real bad noise, a grinding and banging. Then I saw [through the windows] that the train was off the track, and it was moving fast. I told my little boy 'Run, run to the back of the house!'” The cars piled up on both sides of the track in a scene of utter chaos. Ron describes freight cars driven into the ground, “embedded” and “buried” in the dirt.

The Railroad acted quickly, sending out an expert crew with specialized heavy equipment. “They took up all the track, all the ties, replaced the whole thing,” says Fry. “Worked all night long. Next day they had the train up and running.”

A lamppost was knocked down, and the street had to be repaved, but no one was injured in the accident. Fry claims to remember a local boy losing both legs to a train sometime in the 1950's, and another man who was killed, (“My grandfather had to shovel him off the tracks,” he says) but recalls no human injury in recent decades.

A deep groove cut into the ties by a broken axle is visible today, running the entire length of the block--a reminder of the statistical inevitability of mechanical failure.

Residents do criticize the railroad companies constantly, but at times it's clear they regard living with the tracks as a sort of privilege.

“I actually kind of like it a little bit,” Spilker says thoughtfully, smiling as he puffs a menthol cigarette. He quips, “Had that earthquake a while back, just figured it was a train!”

“I enjoy it,” says Amber McClain. “We don't care till the whistle blows at 1 am... Only thing that concerns me is when the boxcars come by--I worry that some hobo is gonna' jump off the train and steal my baby.” She laughs and then mentions the time two train-hopping stowaways happened to disembark on Antelope. Dolly Osborne invited them in and hosted the young travelers for two weeks.

“They didn't have anywhere to go, and Dolly will take anything in. She's the type to take in strays,” says Erin Thurber.

Osborne explains, “They was running away from home, but they was alright. Everybody got along good... They had a little puppy... I think they just needed to get away.” Osborne and her daughter managed to get in touch with the girl's parents. “We took 'em back to Chicago,” she says, “and their parents came down from Michigan and got 'em.”

Erin Thurber tells of a time another unusual train came through. “We heard a funny horn and came out.” Passing by was the Barnum & Bailey Circus. “It was a special yellow train, and it had all their equipment. We were waving and one guy flipped us off. You could smell the animals.”

You'll Never Ride It IV: Epic Spot Sniped by Fixies & Sk8-Lugers.

2009-10-05T11:55:00.001-07:00

You probably saw the fantastic pics of this gigantic hydroelectric reservoir posted on that Slovenian fixie blog back in June. For the record, I'm not so much annoyed by the fixed gear gnar-dog antics , as I am jealous of their amazing spot. (Though I confess that I did chuckle at the bmx bullies tearing up the comments section.)

With nothing original to add, I refrained from blogging about it.

Yesterday, however, I saw the spot again, featured in a YouTube video on the Skate & Annoy blog, and decided to make a quick post.

Suffice it to say, if you dislike William Spencer, you're going to hate Almir Jusovic. (I adore them both.)

I don't think there's anything intended as ironic in here. Truly, seriously, unfashionably original. Lots of wonderful sketchy spots; reservoir roll-in is the ender-ender.

...
Related: You'll Never Ride It I, II, and III.

Sacred Morning Ritual.

2009-09-30T22:56:00.000-07:00

Even though they were out riding until midnight the night before, Ben and Caleb still showed up for Friday's 7:15am Breakfast on the Bridges.

Caleb was, as usual, all smiles, despite having torn his kneecap open just seven hours earlier. Ben was a little grumpy.

Love these guys.

Stranger than...

2009-09-19T00:02:00.000-07:00

"Excuse me," this fellow says, approaching me on the city sidewalk this morning. "Could I ask you a favor? Take my picture and email it to me, so I can update my resume?"

I thought he might have been homeless--sweaty but clean, lugging all his worldly possessions in a huge duffel bag and fanny pack. His forced smile seemed troubled and harried; perhaps sleep-deprived.

I pondered the randomness for a second and then obliged.

"Okay," I replied. "Sure." Since I had my camera in my jeans pocket (as I pretty much always do), it was a convenient request.

"Oh man, thank you," he said. "Maybe a close up, then a full length body shot, then one without the bags?"

"Yeah, no problem."

He added, "How bout a profile shot?"

The stranger reviewed the pics, expressed his approval, and then wrote down his email address. When I asked his name, he simply added the initials M.A.

I told him I would send them off in a half hour. And I did. A quick google search for his email address turned up this expired Portland Craigslist ad, still lingering in the search engine cache:

EXCLNT. DRIVER 4 LONGER DELIVERY TRIPS clss C
Date: 2009-07-18, 5:29PM PDT Reply to: snappersnufflufugus@netzero.net. I'm looking for a driving job, something that takes me out of the portland metro ...

Feels like a true, sad mystery. Glad I didn't blow him off.

Hope the photos help him.

A new Thursday flyer from DBZ.

2009-09-16T13:17:00.000-07:00

(It's a reference to this.)

Come ride bikes.

Foldies.

2009-09-14T00:05:00.000-07:00

These dorky little bikes are unbelievably fun and even somewhat practical.
When Jaime (my wife), in search of a simple bike with upright riding position, purchased this black folder a few years ago, I became immediately obsessed with it. The tall handlebars, high center of gravity (almost directly over the rear axle), twenty inch wheels, and narrow wheelbase create a geometry that is addictively nimble and comically twitchy. Carving and swerving produce wonderfully pronounced g-force sensations; because you're sitting straight up, the full force is transmitted squarely through the seat, not the leg or arm muscles.

It is bliss.

Minimal: just a front brake cable and coaster brake.
Fenders, rack, kick stand.

But scarcely a week had passed before Jaime wisely forbade me from riding her bike. (She caught me practicing front brake endos in her mother's driveway.) I would have to get my own.

The red bike was cherrypicked from the cluttered yard of a rural junk sculptor, who was delighted to get twenty bucks for it. The handling is even more squirrelly and thrilling than Jaime's bike, for one major reason: sixteen-inch wheels.

The fundamental circus bear ridiculousness is further enhanced by the bike's generally rickety condition; the complicated folding mechanism, with its countless pivots and connections, is incredibly creaky. You can clearly feel the frame flexing beneath you as you pedal. On two occasions, I've accidentally folded the bike in half while riding.

(Note the black bike's single, sturdy hinge.)
The final reason the red bike is so great is its utterly practical three-speed hub. (Jaime's bike has a one-speed coaster brake.) After a little research, I got the shifting dialed in, and the thing climbs mountains like a ski-lift.
...

Post-Script: A Little Story:

My teenage brother-in-law Trey and I have been systematically exploring Portland's nether regions late at night. The foldies are so easy that we basically just pick an interesting spot on the map and ride.
Trey on the left.

One recent evening, we were exploring the sprawling, paved, industrial peninsula on the Willamette River's East bank called Swan Island, hoping for a closer view of the massive cargo cranes looming in the distance. At the dead end of a winding road, we came upon a bewildering construction site. I stood on a bike rack and propped my camera on the fence, trying for a stable shot down the gaping maw of a strange, alien war vessel.

As I hopped down, security approached. "Taking pictures of anything in particular?" he asked.

"Just trying to get a decent shot of that crazy ship," I answered.

"That's a navy ship," he responded. "You definitely can't be photographing that. I'm supposed to take your camera from you now..."

But he was overpowered by our wholesome, innocent faces. "Aww, I guess it's alright," he said. "Have a good night."

We pedaled away, glowing with victory and a sudden ravenous hunger. Hit up the Voodoo Doughnut maple-bacons on our way home.
Immediately googled "FSF 1" and read all about it. The thing is awesome.

I feel pretty comfortable posting these pictures up, since it's not, in fact, classified...

Thursday Night Street Ride #5.

2009-09-11T12:12:00.000-07:00

Mob. [Piff photo]
Dances with wolves: Tony Tuominen... [Caleb Ruecker photo]
...and Nick Morris. [Piff photo]Ruecker, DBZ.Ben Piff, proper damn clicked. [Ruecker photo]
Nick, PGE Park. [Piff photo]
DFG rolls in. (Play structure previously noted here).[Ruecker photo]
Richie Johnson jam-whips the worst bank in Portland. [Piff photo]
Brad Barker, wallride from flat to flat. Five minutes later he Wasson wallrode from the bank, over the post, and back into the bank, first try. [Piff photo]

Ruecker, Tony.
The night is young. [Ruecker photo]

And it's still summer.

The Fabled Sk8/Sno/Srf One Day "Hat Trick."

2009-09-08T09:02:00.000-07:00

Willamette Week writer Shawn O'Bryant hit powder, 'crete, and sea in a single frickin' day.The project, chronicled here.

O'Bryant's blog about Portland skate spots, here.

NoBikes in Portland.

2009-09-06T10:55:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, after a morning of heavy rains, the sun came out and dried the pavement, and we went downtown to meet up with out-of-towner Aaron Gates and crew.

Aaron runs the incredible Alaska riding blog NoBikes. He relocated to Connecticut recently, where he's starting work as a financial actuary, but that didn't stop his summer roadtrip through the freaking Yukon and down the West coast, in hearty NoBikes style.

Poached these photos at an hour-long Arvey wallride sesh.
Aaron in green, Richard Gregory from NZ in white.
Andrew Lazaruk, flatty.
CJ Evans, un-turn.
Parking lot.
Caleb Evenson, background.
Caleb, foreground.
Nate Delp, Tony Archibeque, Andrew Lazaruk, Aaron.
Aaron, Caleb, Ben.

These clips are going to NoBikes video #7, which--as I understand it--will take the form of some kind of roadtrip documentary, heavy on the bears, mountains, and wallrides.

Epic.

Ben Piff vs Eggs Benedict.

2009-09-02T13:04:00.000-07:00

Ben's been riding the crap out of no-bikes-allowed Ed Benedict Skatepark, occasionally busting out the iPhone to film a little web video. Today's edit is particularly good and casual.

Alley-oop feeble across the axle-high sub!

Thursday Night Flyer.

2009-09-01T20:53:00.000-07:00

I never expected to see Ruecker in white denim. But I get it. I guess.

This week marks the fourth Thursday night street ride in a row. Summer 2k9 will be one for the ages.

The rendezvous point.

Fresh spots welcome.

Street Jam Recap.

2009-08-22T16:24:00.000-07:00

Nice turnout Thursday night. Whole buncha kids I'd never met, shredding and having a blast. Good spots, great vibes, beautiful night. Once we got the mob moving, I didn't notice anyone hanging on the sidelines. At least two broken chains, but no flat tires, no run-ins, and no significant injuries.

I only broke out my pocket point-n-shoot when I wasn't riding, which wasn't very often, so this is a pretty lazy documentary. Help with names for these photos would be appreciated.

So. Briefly:

This driveway is one of the smoothest natural flyouts in the city. The goal here was to catch a branch in one's mouth:

DFG.

Crash.

Mikl "Yellow Helmet " Baranov.

Nick Morris from Southeast was grinding everything. This Lincoln High classic has approximately a bike length of runup.

Pallets...
...Made our way to the Pearl District towards midnight. Dalton Holt from Olympia sent the gap of the evening. (Dalton has a little blog here.)

And at another historically significant Portland spot we challenged Yellow Helmet Baranov to wallride over a bike.

Nothing beats Portland in the Summer. Kids are riding hard.

THURSDAY. STREET RIDE. PORTLAND.

2009-08-18T04:09:00.001-07:00

I'm just hoping my tires stay inflated. Map here.

All credit to DBZ.

A True Story.

2009-08-07T11:35:00.000-07:00

My first published piece ever, from Dig #52, May 2006. This blog post prompted by an excellent bmxboard thread...

Click image to zoom in and read.

Caleb Evenson's Roadtripmobile/Home.

2009-07-04T07:42:00.000-07:00

Since his return to Portland in early June, our good friend Caleb Evenson has (as previously mentioned) been living out of a nondescript minivan, parked on various Southeast neighborhood streets.

He was rooming at DBZ's in December, when a surprise rent increase effectively evicted the entire household. The unemployed South Dakota native returned to the family farm to work, save, fire out a semester of college, and outfit his future home on wheels.

Caleb traces his love for the minivan to a storied 1994 Plymouth Voyager that accumulated 212,000 miles and two cracked blocks before being laid to rest. This one, a 94 Dodge Caravan with 105k, is "just a baby, practically," he says.

Caleb intends to find employment at some point, and then housing. Until then, he seems to be living rather comfortably on about five dollars a day (he estimates), showering at friends' houses. I crossed paths with Caleb at the June bmx video night, and we shot these photos:

Lantern, found in an abandoned meat packing plant; still running off the original battery.
Sleeping quarters. Two bikes. Super 8 camera. Must say, I find that bedding almost irresistably inviting.
21st century nomad. You'd expect to find a laptop computer stashed somewhere in here, but you'd be wrong.
Tailgate.

Side view: pink hubcaps handed down from minivan 1.0; limo tint windows; stray plywood bookshelf.
Stealth.

Bridge, Bike, Coffee, Bliss.

2009-06-27T14:17:00.000-07:00

It was over a year ago that I read (and blogged) about an ingenious union of mankind's three most magnificent achievements: coffee served to commuters riding bikes across Portland bridges.

Also, there are pastries. And it's free.

The recurring event is called "Breakfast on the Bridges,"and it happens from about 7am to 9am, on both the Hawthorne bridge and Steel bridge, the last Friday of every month, and every Friday in June. Over and over, Ben and I made plans to investigate, but it seemed like something always came up, or we'd simply lose track of plans made a month in advance. But we resolved to make it happen one of these June Fridays.

Friday before last, we succeeded. It was awesome and easy, and we'll be doing it regularly from here on out. Definitely. Here are some photos and a quick report.

The Hawthorn Bridge coffee station sets up on the West side of the river, at an amply wide section of the Westbound sidewalk. No booth, no card table, just some air-pots perched on a concrete barrier. We failed to notice what brand of coffee was being served, but not that it was dark, hot, fresh, and utterly satisfying. Chose from a selection of non-disposable ceramic mugs. Here, Ben follows protocol and helps himself.

Pastry box.

This is bmx rider Caleb Evenson, who recently moved back to Portland. He is a hippie but does not smoke pot and does not stink, even though he currently resides in a minivan, to be documented in a future post. (Here it is. -ed.) Caleb is drinking cider in this picture.

We lingered at the Hawthorne station for twenty or thirty minutes, enough time for a couple of leisurely coffee & pastry rounds; lots of people-watching; beautiful chilly Portland Summer morning. (Note long sleeves on all parties.) Swished our cups in the rinse bucket and headed off to ride a little street before my 9am professional obligations.

Briefly hit up the Steel Bridge coffee station, down on the pedestrian level, East side, but took no pics. Another good scene, but our appetites were satisfied, and we were eager for some bmx. Hit up all the good spots on the East Bank Esplanade, got good and sweaty and sore, snapped just this one photo. Ben wallrides from flat over the 2-foot chunk for no reason. Hawthorne bridge in the background, Caleb silhouetted on his kooked one-speed.

Ben and Caleb discussing cameras. (A bunch of smart little videos on Caleb's vimeo page, btw.)

Detail: Caleb's ride.

After I took off, Ben and Caleb filmed this. A productive morning on all fronts.

I'm going to go heat up some afternoon dregs now, and think up a title for this post.

Li'l Sk8punx in the Park.

2009-06-23T23:25:00.000-07:00

Monday evening, witnessed a gang of adolescent skaters sessioning the three-stair in the park, in observance of Go Skateboarding Day. As they paused to discuss the next spot, slouching fashionably in their defiant pre-teen glory, a spontaneous game of "hide-and-go-seek tag" broke out on the adjacent wooden play structure.

For a full twenty minutes, they played like innocent, unselfconscious children.

Proud Day for Our Unkillable Volvo.

2009-06-19T16:47:00.000-07:00

To Grandmother's house we go, December 2008.

I had big plans for our 1992 Volvo 240's 200,000th mile. Wanted to go for a scenic drive up the Gorge, document the numbers rolling over, snap a portrait of family+car, dramatic vista in the background or waterfalls or something. But we had errands to run, and the miles just kept coming.

At least I anticipated it. Shot this shaky, unfocused, unremarkable home video yesterday.

For the record, we were actually passing directly over this, just as the 199,999th mile appeared;
...

Related:

Previous blog posts featuring the rig;

Bmx brickhead Jeff Z's defgrip interview and 240-peppered blog;

Youtube deathrock Volvo drifting;
...

See you at 300k. Markie darling--fourteen years from now, this is the only car you'll be learning to drive.

Pro Bro Coffee Time!

2009-06-12T01:51:00.000-07:00

I'm not breaking any news, reporting that Kevin Porter and his wife Chelsea recently opened their own coffee shop in "North Center Chicago." Just really freaking psyched about it, even though I don't live there any more. I used to walk past the cafe Half & Half daily on my way to the train, and I would often notice a totally bmx'd-out fixie chained in front, but it never ocurred to me that KP himself was inside pulling shots. My loss for not bothering to investigate.

Image by David Leep, poached from Defgrip.

I once blogged up all the bmx coffee references I could think of and concluded that there wasn't really a coffee culture to speak of in bmx. But I suppose it's just that consumption happens at the time when cameras are put away. That's the nature of coffee; that's why a good cafe feels so authentic and personal.

This is very, very good.

The even bigger headline smeared across the blogosphere is Porter landing his first energy drink sponsor, elite Chicago micro-roaster Intelligentsia. (Not coincidentally, the beans of choice at De*li*cious.)

Bike photo borrowed from Dig.

Not sure how I'd feel about a Starbucks colorway, but KP's Intelligentsia bike looks downright dignified.

Recalling The Endless Roadtrip.

2009-06-10T00:55:00.000-07:00

Unfathomably fantastic story on Adam Schnellenbach's blog, recalling from memory a forty-day road trip his junior year, in 2002.

The blurry, oversaturated photos are the perfect complement to Schnell's ranting, unpretentious nostalgia. Possibly the most intimidating unparagraphed block of text I've ever seen.

A shining example of how blogs are enriching the world.

I miss you, Schnell, and think of you often.

Bike & Destroy dvd inches towards completion.

2009-06-06T08:04:00.000-07:00

A post last week on the Bike&Destroy news page suggests that the comically overdue Seattle scene video might be nearing completion. Is it possible? The trailer below was pretty mind-blowing four years ago, when locals Davey Watson and Mike Hoder still just faint blips on the national bmx media radar.

On the whole, I think the trailer itself has aged really well, filming-wise and editing-wise; some of the clips now qualify as filler, but most of the bangers are still impressive. And I'm thrilled by the chosen title--The Blurry Years--and the idea that this video might take a historic perspective. That's not really something that's been attempted with a bike video, that I can think of.

I, for one, would be happy to sit through Hoder and Watson's old throwaway clips, not to mention footage of underground legend Andrew Carpenter, who had already quit riding by the time anyone outside the Washington State knew his name.

Can't wait. But I will.

DBZ.

2009-05-03T23:53:00.000-07:00

The man known as DBZ must be one of the oldest, saltiest, non-professional bike riders on the internet. His disturbingly dark sense of humor rarely fails to offend, and every detail of his fascinating life story seems to have a sordid, bmx-related edge. These things, coupled with a relentless penchant for self-deprecation, have made DBZ a kind of cult hero, among a certain group of riders.

DBZ's North London Cockney is faint but noticable; he smokes, on average, a pack of Newports a day; he is featured in Dig issue 3 feebling a ledge; he owns an AK-47 and rides a Hoffman Taj; and he was once a habitual crack user.

Meet bmxboard's most beloved curmudgeon.

Your chances of happening upon this scene, shot on the back steps of MFP, are actually pretty good, since Portland has now banned smoking inside bars. Scroll to the end if you don't already get what this photo is referencing. Shot by Caleb Ruecker

...

What's up with the handle "DBZ"? Why don't you use your real name online? How many of your online acquaintences know your real name?

DBZ was my tag as a shitty teenage graffiti writer. It's an abbreviation of one of my aliases, and it pre-dates Dragonball Z by a couple of decades. It's short and easy to remember--as good a name to use online as anything else. Plenty of people know me as DBZ in everyday life as well, even when they know my given name.

But I remember buying a stem from you online some years ago--you wouldn't even give me your name to write you a check. I had to make it payable to your lesbian roommate. Why all the secrecy?

I didn't have a bank account, man. I talk about a lot of potentially criminal or felonious shit online, and we live in a climate of fear and finks. I've had the Department of Homeland Security at my house before, and it's not a good feeling to be on the end of the hook.

Age? Years riding? List the places you've lived, and what you did there.

I'm pretty old. I've been riding BMX on and off for about 27 years at this point--ever since I saw "E.T." I grew up in north London and Bristol in England, had a pretty stock dysfunctional childhood punctuated by a few years in catholic boarding school, then spent a long time on welfare and seriously getting into amphetamines and street riding.

After visiting a friend in Bethlehem, PA, in 1997, I decided to move to the States to escape the welfare mentality I felt I was becoming part of in Britain; "Dole culture". I was also pretty close to schizophrenic at the time, doing a lot of drugs and getting jumped on a regular basis in my neighborhood. I was just over it, and still am. I moved to Portland in early 1999 on account of having met a few people from here in London; I'd also heard of the Burnside skatepark, and was really into the whole Kill Rock Stars/post-Riot Grrrl bands that were around at the time. I met Rich Hirsch at a bike store downtown, got a job as a janitor at a diner and ordered my first T-1 Barcode from Trend, having sold my old Holmes to get my ticket. Moved into a really sketchy house in southeast, started drinking whiskey in the daytime whilst watching Jerry Springer, then riding high speed lines on 82nd Avenue. Had sex with a lot of weird women and started using heroin because, well, everybody else did and it didn't seem like a big deal. Never enough to get a habit, but a lot. All kinds of awful stuff went down in that house, "The Horror Hotel" ...I started to write a book about it, but got right over the idea once I started reading it back to myself.

Things fell apart after that, so I went back to London for a few months, fucking hated it, came back to Portland and got married. Settled down for a few years working as a cook and waiter, then became a raging crackhead. The straight life just didn't agree with me, and unfortunately that's how it manifested. A bunch of bad shit happened all at once, culminating in the death of my father, getting divorced, and ending up in the psych ward after taking an overdose. Went back to London again, hated it again, and flew back to New York. Made my way down to Asheville, North Carolina, then Austin, and bounced around between those two for a couple of years. Drugs, sex and BMX. Finally got sick of selling plasma to buy a fifth of Old Crow, living in sketchy punk houses, eating at homeless missions and sleeping on couches, so I packed up and followed a friend back out to Portland. Got a job at a bike shop, rented a big house in St John's, and started leading a slightly more stable life.

It's startling to hear about an older rider that never raced or jumped dirt. Who were the riders of influence in your formative days?

Stuart Dawkins and Ian Morris doing handrails in old British skateboard and early BMX magazines like BMX Now!, Read And Destroy, and the first issues of Ride UK blew my mind. I'd always wanted to skate, but have never been able to manage even an ollie on a skateboard. The combination of the two set off something inside me, and I lost all interest in school, work, going to the acid house parties of the time, or anything much beyond collecting welfare, eating potatoes, living in squalor, and buying bike parts from Stu's mail order shop, Backyard.

My friend Tim Goldie was a huge influence--he had always been really into street riding, not to mention a lot of the esoteric shit I was into, like Einsturzende Neubauten, William Burroughs, Mark Rothko, and Skyway TAs, so we started writing to each other a lot. We sent some really odd shit in the mail, and it didn't always get delivered. He encouraged my getting into veganism and the ALF too, which lasted almost fifteen years. I've still got some of the shirts he used to make, a surreal blend of graf designs and abstract expressionist art that he called Ceramic Rabbit. He showed me a copy of a BMX video called "Smart People In A Car Crash" by an old Southbank BMXer named Dave Slade, and I realized there was a tangible form of expression in street riding for how I perceived the city in my own existence.

I met Sandy Carson through Tim as well; it was kind of demoralizing riding with Sandy, because he's always been really fucking good--the motherfucker just jumps like a flea. He dubbed me a VHS copy of a bunch of old S&M and Homeless videos at the time, so I'll tack on Dave Clymer, Keith Treanor, Chase Gouin, Mike Griffin, James Shepherd, Ed Koenning and Chris Moeller.

Describe your bmx tattoos.

I got a T-1 logo tattooed on my arm by a friend in '98 because I was so into that whole deal at the time when the company started. I got the Empire crown tattooed inside my right wrist recently, because Tom and Tina have always treated me so well that I wanted something to show my respect and appreciation for them. Apart from that, I've got *B*M*X* on one arm to offset the negativity of having *F*T*W* on the other. I'd be covered in tattoos if I had the money for them, but my disposable income usually goes towards cigarettes, bike stuff, and bar tab.

I recall a description of a Drinky Crow neck tattoo you had designed for yourself. Are you still planning to follow through on that one?

The tattoo's going to say, "Do Not Resuscitate.” It's the last part of my three point plan to become a modern Portland BMXer: cellphone, slammed seat, neck tat. I'm totally getting it, as soon as I move into my new apartment.

You have a cellphone now?

Yeah, a thirty dollar pre-pay from Fred Meyer. I already kind of hate it.

Despite your online reputation, you're actually quite charming and approachable in person. How real is DBZ?

Everybody has dark shit in their life, I just find it interesting to openly talk about it instead of pretending it doesn't exist. I guess I am pretty fucked up by most people's standards though, so I do try to be a decent human being on a day-to-day basis. Once I'm deep enough into a binge or a blackout, however, I can be an awful, horrible, destructive black hole of a person.

When we talked at MFP a couple months ago, you'd quit drinking. How'd that go? How would you describe your relationship with drugs? How much do you smoke?

I just quit for a month to get my tolerance back down, and because I'd started blacking out a lot. A break is never a bad idea; "Moderation in all things--especially moderation". I'd describe my relationship with drugs as amicable... apart from crack. That shit will fuck you up. I smoke a pack of Newports a day and I drink like a fish--two relatively manageable vices.

I was expecting you to say something a little more critical of drugs there.

Well, shit. Drugs will fuck your life up if you let them. I did, and it was my choice. I don't believe in the 12 Step model of addiction that absolves you from responsibility, or the current medical establishment's idea that addiction is a disease. It's a fucking choice. Every time I put a crack pipe to my lips, I had the thought that I could not do it, but I did anyway. Most drugs are used because they're an easy answer to a problem, whether it's self-medicating for some problem in your life or just relieving boredom. Easy answers are never good answers in my experience... but I enjoy getting fucked up way too much to ever completely abstain; an easy way of making it feel like something profound and life-affirming is happening, consequences be damned.

Ever been arrested?

In London, a lot. I've been taken to the sobering station at Hooper here in Portland by the police a few times, but never arrested--I don't really fuck around with anybody packing heat if I can help it.

I just learned today that you're "homeless" for a month. I presume you'll be sleeping on couches, not camping in the park in the middle of winter, right?

Yeah. Some Beaverton asshole bought the house I was living in and jacked the rent up by $300, so I'm waiting for an apartment above the bar to get renovated. It may be a while, but I've got plenty of friends to stay with, and I've become pretty fucking good at couch surfing over the years. Do the dishes, play by their rules, and don't stay anywhere longer than ten days.

I'm really psyched on living closer to downtown again, because it means I'll be able to get a lot more stuff done and tend to a lot of neglected friendships. St Johns is a long fucking way from the rest of Portland if you don't have a car.

Yeah, it'll be nice to have you living farther South, but I can't fathom what will be the effect of living directly over your favorite bar.

I think it's actually going to massively improve my quality of life. I'm pretty sure that at the very least I'll get laid more often.

Describe your personal riding style and bike setup. What happened to the green Hoffman Taj? How much do you ride these days?

When I did ride a lot, I'd just pedal at shit and fucking jump. Sandy Carson always said I only ride in straight lines, which about sums it up. I like going fast. Dirt and trails weird me out for some reason, but I love mobbing around broken down industrial areas and finding sketchy gaps to haul ass at. I love grinding shit as well, but still haven't managed a handrail; I fucked my face up on a park rail fifteen years ago and have been phobic ever since.

To be honest, I barely ride any more. I rode a few days this last summer, but I'm really out of shape: my lower back is really fucked up, inflexible and constantly in pain, and I get out of breath pretty easily. Regardless, bike set-up is something I'm completely anal about: shoulder-width bars, tall front end, strongest chain money can buy, usually a Gyro even though I can't do barspins or tailwhips, a chainstay brake so dialed it feels like a hydraulic disc brake, over 100psi in the tires and thick-ass chromoly steel pegs. I just got another Barcode frame, and I'm calling it my retirement bike--the frame I'll be riding until I can't ride any more, which will probably be pretty soon if my back keeps on getting worse.

The green bike, the Green Bastard™, was partially a pre-SPRFLS "fuck you" to what I didn't like about the way bikes had become in the past five years, but also just how I'd wanted to set up a dream bike ten years ago. It was a fucking tank, but tracked in a straight line like a bulldozer. The only decent ride I ever had on it was tripping out on mushrooms at Pier Park last summer, doing corner pocket airs and alley-oops and just rallying it around the middle bowl. I've still got the frame, and I'm in the process of building it up again right now. The Holmes frame didn't work out too well, and the Green Bastard™ is too infamous to not have around. I sliced my knuckle open on the sprocket teeth today whilst installing the bottom bracket, so I smeared my own blood on the words "HATE" and "DIE" on the downtube. I'm really fucking excited about riding it again.

You got a Barcode? What year is it?

I bought a 2008 from a guy on BMXboard who broke his leg. He asked me if I wanted it because he got FBM to move the mounts from the seatstays to the chainstays, and he even got it powdercoated black for me. I still need to send him a fifth of rum and some other crap to express my gratitude--it's fucking rad. Caleb Ruecker gave me some old EBCO bars for it which I'm really stoked on as well. It was originally called the DEATH HAMMER when it was built up with a Moody/Hickerson, but I think the new frame warrants a new name. All my bikes seem to suggest their own names after a few weeks of riding them.

What are your goals for life, short-term and long-term?

I really don't fucking know. I haven't allowed myself the luxury of long term goals since I got out of the psych ward four years ago--I'm trying to concentrate on making the present work out as well as it can. The stability of living in the same place for a few years has helped, but I find it hard to really believe that I can do much more than try to steer my fate, rather than dictate it.

I want a Fuck You—That's Why shirt. Are they still available?

No. That was a Rusticle-only project, limited to 52 shirts numbered with death cards.

Russ B.

You designed a similarly-inspired shirt for Fremont, and I recall a creepy My Little Pony graphic of yours, which was posted on the Odyssey blog, and I know you do a lot of other art-fag stuff. Did you go to art school?

I studied Graphic Design for four years in London, and another few years at community college in Portland. I've always been into typography, calligraphy, design, and image manipulation because the tools to do it were always around--my father was a photographer. I made a Jimi Hendrix cassette inlay with felt tip pens, magazine clippings and a light box when I was about eleven that I still have to this day... I just never enjoyed even the thought of using those skills to make a living. It's what I do for fun and for personal satisfaction.

The My Little Pony unicorn three-way was a tattoo design I drew for myself--I'd call it mildly pornographic more than creepy. It came out really shitty, and that tattoo artist was a fucking chump. I've got plenty of great designs that turned out badly as tattoos though, so I'm not too bothered.

The Fremont shirt came out of my obsession with the movie Apocalypse Now, and lifts a graphic from an old Death Cult 12" EP and text from Michael Herr's book Dispatches. Herr wrote most of Willard's narrative for the movie. I've had a morbid fascination with the insanity and horror of the Vietnam war ever since I first saw photos by my father's friends Don McCullen and Tim Page... probably at the age of ten or eleven.

Any creative projects in the works currently?

Yes. Once I have my own apartment again, I'll be doing a shitload of graphics for BSD, building a jungle gym for my cat, figuring out what weird shit to paint on the downtube of my new Barcode and a couple of other projects that I don't want to curse by talking about too early.

What's your connection to BSD? It's not a company that most American bike riders are thinking about, but you have seem to have a fanatical devotion to them.

I went to the King Of Concrete contest at Southsea in England with the whole Team Sano crew in 1993. They had a rental van they drove down from Scotland and picked me up with Tim Goldie, and it was basically a week of getting totally fucked up and riding a lot. The whole Standard Army was in country as well, so I got to meet Joe Rich and see him ride the vert ramp at the old Leigh-On-Sea skatepark--right before I knocked myself the fuck out on a mini, slipping out of an abubaca. I even did some filming for the "Sleezy Rider" video that Grant put together that year.

The whole Scottish crew were just a lot more fun than most English riders, and didn't mind that I was a speed-addled half-queer fuck-up with pink hair and a shitty bike. I've stayed in touch with Grant Smith ever since, and I'm always down to support anything that friends try to get going to continue the fun and freedom I've always gotten out of BMX.

Tell us about the shop where you work.

It's a bike shop. It's one of the bigger ones, but the only place that knows shit about BMX in Portland apart from Goods. I'm a service mechanic, and it's the easiest job I've ever had after spending most of my life in kitchens and the food service industry. It feels good to help out kids who might otherwise get ripped off or treated like a waste of time by other places. Whatever--it's a job, it's indoors, and I don't leave smelling like onions or squid.

You told me you used to feel uncomfortable supporting Goods' competition, but then Shad said not to worry about it. What's that story?

I just wanted to make sure that nothing my shop was doing with BMX was going to cut into his business, because Goods is clearly more beneficial to the scene than some big road and mountain bike shop that barely understands BMX in the first place. We just talked a little about what brands we were carrying, but it was pretty apparent that Shad isn't really worried about it. I support what he's doing 110%, even to the point of buying shit from him at retail rather than ordering it through my shop, but I think Goods has already carved out a unique niche in Portland that can only grow. Now with the Lotek store open in Old Town, I'm really excited about the scene here. We're going to start having a BMX movie night at the East End bar as well, showing old videos like ./Blueprint and hopefully stuff like the old Homeless and Infection videos. It'll pretty much be a VFW for all the grizzly old BMXers in town, as well as anyone else over the age of 21 who feels like putting up with a bunch of drunk dorks getting excited about other dorks wrecking themselves on bicycles originally intended for sidewalk use by pre-teen children.

East End Video Night poster, by DBZ.

This seems like a distinctly un-DBZ question, but can you describe your perfect day?

Hmmm. It'd have to be summer. Wake up at dawn, cook an enormous fried breakfast, drop acid, drink a shitload of coffee, ride Lincoln City skatepark until dark without getting kicked out, get drunk with all my bar friends at MFP, eat a cheeseburger and a bunch of ecstasy, play bass for Poison Idea or Turbonegro at a show downtown, have anonymous sex with a random attractive woman in the bathroom, then go home and fall asleep with my cat.

I like that your perfect day starts at dawn. Are you a morning person when you're not hung over?

Fuck no. I hate mornings.

Whom would you like to thank?

Everyone.

...

Postscript/Update: The above Q&A took place this winter, just as DBZ had commenced the temporary couch-surfing venture, waiting to move into his new apartment. The landlord strung him along, renovated the apartment, and ultimately gave it to someone else. I was working to get this blog post off my hard drive and posted online, when DBZ sent this email today:

"I just got over a really bad case of pneumonia, which gave me cause to think about my current situation. The bank cut my credit to nothing a few months back, leaving me unable to cover a deposit on a place any time soon, and my job makes me tired and unhappy. That, on top of four months of homelessness, has led me to the decision to liquidate all my belongings besides what you see in the backpack picture, declare bankruptcy, and head for sunnier climes.

I'm going to spend the summer in Portland, then head down to Austin. Not much more of a plan than sleeping in the park, eating at the missions, and riding. Three days with a 104 degree fever made me realize that all I really care about is staying warm and riding BMX, and I'm sick of working, drinking, and drugging away the years I have left. It's always been a see-saw between stability and seeking an enjoyable life for me, with no success in the middle of the road."

Vagabonding, DBZ-style. Click to go big. Photo by Shad.

Clymer. Roots.

For the Love of Quad Rounds.

2009-05-03T21:54:00.000-07:00

By my count, Ben is on Corolla #5.

I would say that 1980 represents a distinct aesthetic peak for headlight design.

Beautiful. Psyched. Way to go, Ben.

Mini-Ramps Slain by Illinois Man.

2009-04-11T16:09:00.000-07:00

The217 put up this fantastic little web video of our favorite granite worker TJ Henderson, shredding coping, deck, and tranny like it's 1994. I take it Skanks is the name of the skatepark.

Bmxboard loves this guy.

For the Grandparents.

2009-02-05T07:44:00.000-08:00

Been working on this for a while. New video of our beloved daughter Markie, eighteen months old.

Click the button in the bottom right to go full-screen...

The Bins.

2009-02-03T02:55:00.000-08:00

In earlier chapters of my life, I spent a lot of hours here. Visited last night for the first time in a while and shot some photos, something I've wanted to do for years.

"The Bins" is the colloquial name for the massive Goodwill outlet store just beyond Portland's southern border. It's where items that fail to sell in the store get a last shot before being routed to the third world as a corporate tax write-off. You rummage through the blue bins and pay for most items by the pound. It's just the kind of rare, cool, grimy, authentic place that can never stay unknown for long. For Portlanders, the place is old news, but I've not heard of another place like it anywhere. Up until a few years ago, the facilities were housed in a comically run-down warehouse, with a permanent homeless encampment on the banks of the creek that ran by the parking lot.

The new location shares the same pricing structure, but gone is much of the original charm: it's safe, well lit, clean(er), and organized. Still, it's an unusual place, worth visiting for people-watching or occasional good deals.

Books go fifty cents a paperback, a dollar for hardbound. That price seems steep to me, because not five years ago, the prices were half that. Here, Jaime digs for kids' books. It's mostly just Bibles, cookbooks, textbooks, Danielle Steele, and John Grisham. But good stuff trickles through.

After a while, the bin is removed and another is wheeled in, sort of like turning a compost heap. Folks line up in anticipation...

... Then start throwing elbows. Pretty weak photos, I admit. But they're the only photos I've ever seen, since cameras aren't allowed inside.

Many hardcore shoppers seem to be immigrants, looking for scores that can be flipped for a profit. Some come every day. I've never taken it too seriously as a place for necessities (What do I need anyway?), but my cousin Paul and I were, for a time, obsessed with hoarding other people's personal ephemora: photos, journals, home movies, letters, etc. Last time I moved away from Portland, I took two full cardboard boxes filled with the lives of people I'd never met. Eventually I took the time to weed through it, photographed everything, jettisoned all but the meatiest pieces. I think I sent someone's orthodontic retainer to bmxboarder DBZ in the mail. Paul still possesses, to the best of my knowledge, probably the most impressive score: a private vhs sex tape of two homely biker wives.

Looking for that kind of junk was always a pretty relaxed venture, just sifting through the detritus.

For a decade now, the fellow below has been the arch-nemesis of the record collectors in my family. A regular fixture at the Bins, he gathers up all the desirable vinyl in the entire building, loads his cart, and then listens to each album on a portable record player brought from home. According to family musical authority Gary Kyle and his sidekick, my uncle Tim, the guy makes no purchase decisions until listening to every last item in his cart.

Click this last image to go big. Solid State.

I don't know if he's a businessman or recreational collector. But it seems like kind of a dreamy life to me. He didn't mind having his picture taken.

Mainstream media coverage here, some interesting reviews on Yelp.com, and a blog post from my cousin Connor.

Reviewed: Summer Sundays by Ryan Hoey

2009-01-31T07:28:00.000-08:00

Another late review for a video that's already kind of out-of-production and probably available to watch online; but my intentions with these reviews are more historical than anything. What I mean is, Google "Summer Sundays by Ryan Hoey," and nothing related to the video comes up. Even if projects like this are underpromoted and fall below the radar, I think it's worthwhile to acknowledge them and document that they existed.

And I think that as the growth of the internet and proliferation of web videos renders old fashioned plastic less relevant, the ever-rarer bookshelf-archivable media will only be more valuable and cherished. These reviews are an expression of my appreciation for stuff that takes up space.

I don't really read reviews, unless I'm not planning on seeing the film or reading the book, since I can't stand having any aspect of it spoiled. All I want to get out of a review is, very minimally, whether or not the piece is worth going for. Once I've seen or read the piece, I often seek out reviews, sort of like extending the experience.

So.

No spoilers on this blog.

Here's what I got from Hoey in the mail:

The video, two Laffy Taffies, two Mike Jonas stickers, and a Ride poster of Bruce Crisman from his halcyon X-Games days--so great! My wife cares little about bike videos, but she was wholeheartedly psyched on the candy, still moist and chewy. I think the dvd graphic and sticker on the jewel case spine make for a nice little package.

(Btw, this poster is priceless. Check the camper sporting the Girls Are Evil shirt, crazy low bars, and 990 brake stiffener. And bracing up the picnic table appears to be none other than the late Colin Winkleman.)

Hoey referred to this as his "trails video" on bmxboard, so that's what I was expecting. It is mostly trails, and I think it's safe to say that the dirt jumping mindset is fundamentally different from that of all other kinds of riding. As "legend" put it in this thread, "Trail riders are just a different type of people... not as hungry." This video is not about tricks, and it's not organized into rider sections (a tired, pretentious editing format anyway, in my opinion). It's just a bunch of unknown Long Island guys boosting some massive dirt jumps in the woods, and having a lot of fun.

Mike Jonas gets his own four pegs brakeless street section, which really comes out of nowhere and is a great break from the dirt. I like the guy, and he deserves his own sticker. You'll like it, too. Still, I kinda wish the video had been 100% trails.

Hoey said he just made this video to give away to friends, but he'll probably flow one to anyone that asks. Go RSS his blog and shoot him an email. Mike Jonas blogs, too.

...

This Fourth-of-July web video is newer than the Summer Sundays dvd. Think of it as a trailer for Hoey's next project. Click through to watch in high-res.

who is jesse dewlow?

2009-01-28T00:31:00.000-08:00

I stumbled upon this little web flick last night on a blog called the front. So weird and casual, I wonder if I'm supposed to be enjoying it this deeply.

Despite my enthusiasm, you should probably lower your expectations.

Jesse Dewlow is a familiar name, and Google tells me he had footy in Ruff Draft, but I don't remember any of it. I like his style and tricks, but it's the editing choices in this video that really get me: the quiet, unconventional music, the audible bike riding sounds and white noise, the multiple long takes, the crashes, the spots, the ironic windows moviemaker effects and slow-mo... It's funny but honest, precisely the emotional nuance that I try to live my own life by, but which I've all but given up on in the bmx world.

The mention of a "Toronto edit" in this post, from June, seems like a reference to the above video, which was posted in August.

Made my evening. I'm gonna watch the video again and hope that this post doesn't make me sound like a stalker.

nonstop critical acclaim for bmx is cute!

2009-01-27T01:00:00.000-08:00

That's an exaggeration. But Mike from Greece (the European country) did write me this note today:

"hello tony! i just got the dvd, it's very nice! it has this friendly touch, kind of reminds me the sessions i have with my friends here in greece, the good times and the bad times! well that's bmx, and it's definetely cute! keep on shredding man you and your friends also, thanks, take care!"

Glad you enjoyed it, Mike. Thanks.

The video also got a strange but favorable review in this month's Ride:

Thank you, Ryan.

I haven't yet tracked down a hard copy for my archives, but the whole mag is available online through a nifty service called Zinio. Sorry about the small text. Click through to the Zinio page here, and you can zoom in for a larger view.

...

Related post: "The dvd gets its first review. (And I respond.)"

two old men playing in a fountain.

2009-01-21T20:40:00.000-08:00

Got to ride with Ben yesterday for the first time in forever. Had a satisfying session, driving from spot to spot. Snapped a couple lazy photos.

Wallride, Ben Piff.

I'll send a free dvd to the first person that explains the historic significance of this spot. Email me if you know.

...

February 7 update: Aaron Gates, TJ Henderson, and Ben Ward all knew the answer: this spot was tricked by Lou Rajsich in the classic Portland video ./blueprint. Spot the armpit-high green subrail in the background of the pic above, and then watch Lou hit it up:

Since Aaron already has a copy of the video (as do TJ and Ben), I sent a disc to Aaron's friend Shawn instead.

Btw, the white frame Ben Piff is shown riding here (A Sunday Wave2, I think) came courtesy of Ben Ward's generosity. I remember years ago when B-Dubbs gave me a pair of Mosh pedals, because he was amused by some curb-to-wallride I did. That was a great day.

...

Took some video with my digital point-n-shoot at the very end of the session. Ben did a crankflip, and I enjoyed myself, even with a broken chain.

I overdid the color-correction trying to compensate for Vimeo's compression washing out the colors; kind of an old Shine video effect, as Ben put it. Makes the wintry day pop.

and the award for least controversial bumper sticker goes to...

2009-01-16T10:32:00.000-08:00

Spotted one of these driving the other day.

No nazis?

No shit.

($4.95 + shipping)

Let it suffice to say that, in my opinion, bumper stickers are not a sufficient substitute for a personality.

January 23 edit! Thanks to Red and Jonny for alerting me to the cultural significance of the logo: "It was the logo for an arm band that came with the original 45' of the Dead Kennedy's song 'Nazi Punks Fuck Off'."

Aha. Wikipedia backs up the story and gives us this image. A quick, interesting read.

nostalgic must-reads from the hamilton blog.

2009-01-15T08:25:00.000-08:00

A tip of the hat to Defgrip for bringing this to everyone's attention. Stephen Hamilton, after making his personal Youtube debut last month, is now blogging like crazy.

bank to civic!

Well over a hundred frenetic posts in less than a month, many just one line or nonsense poetry. Which is fine.

But don't miss this gem: a copy/pasted email from Ed Docherty, detailing editing choices for the Hamilton's fantastic FederalBikes part, circa 2004. It reads

>Hey,
> There's a rough section on the server. There's still some work to be done
>to it but I thought I'd let you guys check it out to see how we're doing.
> Firstly, there should be the noise of a camera motor drive running over
>the
>photos at the start. I recorded some earlier but it turns out my camera
>didn't capture the audio?!?!? The mic's taped up cause Dean hit it one time
>when Edd borrowed it, so tomorrow I'll try and see if I can get it working
>again.
> Secondly, there's a 2 sec gap near the end. I could make the clips longer
>on each side of the gap to fill it in but it kinda fits well with the
>music.
>I'll figure something out...
> There's a tyre slide on a bench that Steven wants in there but it's
>probably on the tape with the new Corey stuff. We can figure out what to
>drop and replace with that. Maybe the manual to abubaca from Austin?
> Maybe we could chop the front wheel 180 at the end of the line at the
>pier
>in SF to make some room? What do you think?
> There's a kinda subliminal riddle thrown in there. Before the Prague
>pyramid stuff it flashes up - What's round at both ends and high in the
>middle? Then after the clip it flashes up - Ohio. I thought it'd be kinda
>cool cause you'd have to do frame advance on your dvd player to read the
>question. Just some thing different...
> Oh yeah, reasons for some stuff :-
>
>I put the footplant before the manual to nosewheelie up and down in Prague
>cause it kinda fits together - Steven footplants then next clip the kid
>kicks at the camera
>
>I put the rail hop to bank in Austin and the hill bomb together cause the
>music at that part is kinda going down scales. Plus, it's a fairly quiet
>part of the song so you hear the audio on the hill bomb good.
>
> I'm really psyched on the way it's looking.
>
>Here's the info to get to the server...
>
>Address: ftp.backyard-online.com
>User Name: backya
>Password: bobby1
>
>Steven, to upload stuff you might need this program called Fetch. I'll
>attach it to an email and send it to you next.
>
> Alright, let me know what you think.
> >Ed

For the record, I thought it was awesome, Ed.

Click through for the original post. Youtube below. Hamilton video part discography here.

bike check: one, two. one, two.

2009-01-11T09:24:00.001-08:00

I know these photos were taken in 2006 or 2007, because that's our old Chicago apartment building. But I can't be surer than that, because 2006 is the last time I bought a bike part. This is exactly the bike I'm riding today, except the rusted spots have continued to bloom.

Frame: Metal Kizz. Apparently this was Jeremy Davis's personal rig for a short time. I paid eighty bucks for it in 2002 (I think), after my Kink Empire was stolen. Most of this bike is the same charity parts, actually. There are temper tantrum hammer dents in the down tube, presumably inflicted during a difficult bottom bracket installation. I may cut the mounts off.

The forks came off a Hoffman Dirty130 complete. Paid twelve bucks. I don't tend to bend forks.

Castillo Bars. I fell in love with low, narrow bars at age sixteen and haven't run two-piecers since the stock bars on my Mongoose Decade. More on the four-piece fascination here.

S&M Redneck. This was originally part of a Holmes custom complete, built in the bike shop where I worked in 1996. The kid never liked the way the bike handled, and he soon quit riding altogether. The stem design is so old that it's not even gyro compatible. Very pointy corners. Blue face plate is from the quill Redneck that I once ran on my 1" Standard Shorty. I'm planning to switch to an Odyssey Elementary at some point.

Profile SS Cranks (bent).

Pedals: Odyssey JC's. I like these a lot.

Chainring: TreeBikeCo 36t. Still straight, even after shearing off the bashguard.

Seat/post/clamp: Mangled GT plastic with the nose cut off. This was the original seat on my Shorty, I think. Unearthed it in a tool box a few years ago. Primo Rod post and Primo Viking two-bolt clamp, cut in half. These parts are the weakest link in my setup, and I hate them. I'm planning to switch to some kind of Pivotal.

gSport Vandal hubs. I never cared the name gSport or Vandal, but I've been passively obsessed with G's products for some time. These hubs have double-thick flanges to resist damage from grinds. A sensible design choice, but I hardly even grind any more. 48 spoke.

Peg: I threw away all my rusty metal pegs a few years ago, in anticipation of Plegs. But I got impatient with Odyssey R&D, and one day when I was in the mood for hang 5's, I dug this ThickBikes plastic peg out of a tool box and installed it. It's been there ever since. When I originally bought these, the shop only had one pair for sale. If they'd had two pairs, I would've taken both. But I never could stand the asymmetric look of two white pegs, so these didn't get used much beyond the first week. If you want to grind aluminum rails, they do work really well. I think I paid $45 for the pair. Crazy. (This photo taken today.)

Tires: Ruben up front (love it), Odyssey Path in back. The Path is comically bald at this point, but I just keep duct taping the inside whenever I find a new thin spot. The technique is so effective that I wish I'd never started.

Rear rim: Sun Big City. I can't believe the durability of this rim, and it has completely eliminated pinch flats. It was originally black but is oxidizing towards a shade of copper. I kinda like it.

Front rim: Hoffman Highroller, from the first batch of Taiwanese Gack wheels, circa 1996. Still somewhat round. I'm not entirely comfortable with the ugliness of the flaking chrome. Whenever a new flake starts to go, it makes a whizzing sound in the wind.

...

On a related note, I recently acquired a good condition Standard Trailboss frame in exchange for a beat-up old Holmes--actually, the very same Holmes the Redneck came from, mentioned above--and I'm contemplating what to do with it. I don't know if I want to switch all these rusty old parts over or just build up a second bike with new modern stuff. I wouldn't mind sacrificing ten pounds of excess metal, and I don't have any kind of artistic or political commitment to old technology, really. But the Kizz just keeps on running, and the accumulated memories just keep growing. I guess that's called nostalgia.

...

Recent, related, excellent items you've probably already seen:

Taj recalls all his bikes
and
Russ recalls all his STA's.

virgin terrain.

2009-01-09T09:21:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, as an alternative to dealing with scattered showers and slippery pedals, I went out with my camera and a cup of coffee to photograph some spots around my new hood that, to my knowledge, have never been approached by a bike. I post these images for two reasons:

1: The simple pleasure of spotting an obstacle and picking out lines.
2: The fantasy of seeing these spots taken care of by another, better, ballsier bike rider. Both these spots are in the Portland suburb of Oregon City. Hit me up if you need help finding them.

Gap, over the rail and across the chasm. Definitely do-able, just a matter of speed and commitment. Decent runway and landing, all things considered.

If, instead of hucking the gap, you were to descend the stairs...

...you'd find yourself in the Willamette river.

Never seen this setup before. Grinding into the water appears physically impossible at first glance, due to the right turn at the top of the stairs and the monstrous dimensions of the rail. But I think there's a chance. Examine the picture below. See that little flat platform halfway up the middle stage? There's actually more than a bike length for run-up, and the rail is just over axle high there. It's possible. A second cool line would be to drop from the pipe into the bank and hop both rails into the river.

Next location: ledges. Get your steel pegs.

Seventeen steps, thigh high. I'll probably go back and hit this myself on a dry day. Gap to ledge ride to gap across the walkway into the shrubbery. This ledge on its own wouldn't warrant a blog post. But it's got a little brother around the corner...

...94 mossy steps. Start your feeble...

... Emerge from the trees, hop from grind position up onto the ledge, and gap to the final 17-stepper.

Reviewed: Yo Guy! by Brian "Crossbar" Histand

2009-01-07T20:55:00.001-08:00

According to this bmxboard thread, the cover art for each Yo Guy! dvd takes "about three minutes." I haven't concluded whether that is fast or slow, but it's cool to think that this disc spent three minutes in Brian Histand's calloused hands.

You've seen the trailer, right?

The trailer and the cover art should give you a fair idea of what to expect: this is a straightforward rock-and-roll scene video, with emphasis on quality riding and not on elaborate production.

Ten bucks, shipped anywhere. Buy it.

It's hard to believe that in such a tight crew of non-professional riders there can be this much variety: the ratio of street, park, and dirt footage is pretty much perfect, as is the ratio of tech, smooth, and burly riding. The burly moments made my joints ache; Histand assured me he does have health insurance. That he would let his poor mother watch the video blows my mind.

My [constructive] criticism: top-notch riding needs top-notch terrain, and too much of the video felt like it was filmed in the suburbs (as I think the trailer shows). Don't settle for a 540 down stairs at some featureless elementary school--find a stair set in a location with some kind of character. Please!

That said, I'm psyched as hell on these guys producing a bangin' dvd while holding down jobs, school, and family. When time is scarce, it makes sense to quit exploring and just start riding. Can't fault somebody for that.

I won't be surprised if this video leads to some serious sponsorships. Histand could use a pair of cranks, I'm sure.

To order Yo Guy!, paypal ten dollars to mrgoose33@yahoo.com.

Here's the Yo Guy! MySpace.
...

Btw: interview with Histand and another review at NoBikes.

brake pr0n monday.

2009-01-05T09:33:00.000-08:00

This is how you shoot bmx with a macro. Looks like TJ Henderson got a new lens for Christmas.

What a fantastic image. More at The217.

And on the same day, Ben Ward, of pdxbmx and Odyssey, posted this image of the new Flatware fork and brakes.

Actually, I confess, I'm not quite sure exactly what's what here. But the setup looks tight, and Od'sey HQ looks like a bmx paraphenalia fantasyland.

Familiar Manifestations of Other People's Cabin Fever.

2009-01-05T09:12:00.000-08:00

Ha!

Following two similar posts in a row here, this appeared on the Deliverance blog last night.

Creativity's gotta go somewhere. At least his posts are somewhat bike relevant.

(Cute kid.)

bilding.

2009-01-02T08:09:00.000-08:00

As predicted, here's another tower of blocks, assembled over the course of a very lazy New Year's Day.

I didn't quite use up all the blocks in the bin. Perhaps the next one will be taller. It's pretty satisfying when the tower gets high enough that you can just stand and build at eye level.

Snow day.

2008-12-19T22:09:00.001-08:00

I liked my first tower better, but it fell down. That red triangle block in the bottom right was on top of the green rectangle but got knocked off while I was taking the picture, I guess.

There will probably be more of this stuff.

Lobsterspine = the Real Steven Hamilton?

2008-12-19T07:39:00.000-08:00

The video below, reportedly edited by Steven Hamilton himself, has been viewed almost eight thousand times since its internet debut two days ago. Responses to the video on bmxboard, the Come Up, and T.V.O.'s Life? were split, tending either towards strong disappointment or strong enthusiasm. The comparisons to mid-90's LSD-influenced video producer Ells Bells seem absolutely appropriate.

There are eight more Hamilton-related videos from the same Youtube user, Lobsterspine, some of which are measurably easier to watch, and none with more than eighty views to date. These include parts one through four of some project called Inception 2. If I understand correctly, Inception was the name of Hamilton's high school video project.

Inception 2, part two. Trails down a fricken' gully like nothing I've ever seen! Where is this? I guess it goes without saying that footage of Ted Van Orman is always great.

Parenthetically, here's the only evidence of Inception 1's existence that I'm aware of:

It would appear that Lobsterspine is Hamilton's personal account, or that of someone close to him. I can't think of another pro whose mind is better suited to Youtube as a creative medium.

...

Related: The Complete Steven Hamilton Youtube Discography

Flashy

2008-12-14T11:08:00.000-08:00

Cool post from the hard-working boys at Street Phire, detailing a clever, low-budget radio slave mod. A satisfying read, even though I've never shot with off-camera flashes. When user ingenuity trumps planned obsolescence, I always smile.

Also recommended: the Street Phire "My Bag" galleries, which document the contents of camera bags of different bike riding photographers and videographers. I like how Robin Hunter's particularly exhaustive bag check even mentions which items have Nikon or LowePro printed on them.

Reviewed: Four Corners by No Bikes

2008-12-14T02:43:00.000-08:00

The No Bikes crew released Four Corners almost a year ago, and they're well into production of their next video, so it's fair to say this review comes a little late. Four Corners was already out of print when I first contacted Aaron, but he sent me a burned copy with a No Bikes sticker and a cover collaged from tourism brochures. Awesome.

Two trailers for Four Corners:

The trailers represent the video fairly well: solid riding from kids you've never heard of, riding spots you've never seen, peppered with the occasional pro throwing down burly moves at some familiar skatepark. For the record, that shot of Travis Sexmith's table air is one of my favorite clips from any video ever.

It's tastefully edited and well filmed and paints a fantastic portrait of the riding scene in Alaska. Good vibes. No bike throwing. I want to go there.

There's a ton of great trails footage, which kind of feels like the heart of the video and the scene, but nobody has brakes, and the dirt footage is balanced by equal parts street riding and park. (Way too much park footage, in my opinion, perhaps the result of trying to get a clip from every single rider in Alaska.) The highlight of the video for me was Matt Lindsey's part, self-filmed via tripod in what appears to be Russia or China or perhaps Hawaii??? It left me pleasantly baffled, seeing all the incredible communist architecture so unlike anything in the states, including axle-high ledges that might rouse Joe Tiseo from his grave.

Alaska bears no resemblance to California or NYC or any place in my mental catalog of bmx images, and yet there are kids there putting in work, and that's what I love about this dvd. Check this ancient Youtube gem. A comically rickety portable ramp, set in places that seem absolutely arbitrary, but not (apparently) as any sort of joke. I'm just so happy that it's all real.

Four Corners is chock full of this stuff. Watch the No Bikes blog for progress on their next video, which I have been told will document some of their wilderness riding excursions, which gets me really, really psyched. I invite you to hassle Aaron for a copy of Four Corners with a custom cover. I don't know if he'll say yes.

...

December 19 edit: updated with an excerpt from Aaron's response to this review:

One of the things I try to do with all my videos is be as inclusive as possible. Scene videos, to me, aren’t just putting together the best tricks from the best riders in town. Back in the day we always had local contests to bring people together; since video is the new medium that we “measure” people’s riding by, I think the scene video is often missed as a scene building tool. Videos give everyone something to work together on; I try to shoot with as many people as I can and get anyone involved in production who is interested in that kind of stuff. This year I got to plan three awesome trips to shoot for this video, and got to know more Alaskan bmxers, there’s really nothing else I could ask for from the process. So yeah, I was trying to film everyone in Alaska, glad you noticed….

We are very happy that Alaska is as unique as it is. There is plenty of stuff to ride up here, and even more to see and experience (where else can you ride trails after midnight). I wish more people would be curious enough to come up here. Rooftop and the Samurai guys had the right idea, but I don’t think they really found any of our spots. I would never want to come up here again if one quarter of the spots I rode was the Wasilla skatepark.

I made a trailer for the next video, but have to add some audio clips in with Steve before it’ll go online. Look for it in the next couple weeks. Ryan Hiebert has been working hard on the team video as well, so get pumped for that (if you haven’t been reading this blog for long, there will be a documentary about riding in Alaska and a team video featuring all of our friends from her, BC and anywhere else).

Pumped.

The dvd gets its first review. (And I respond.)

2008-11-30T01:22:00.000-08:00

A million thanks to the NoBikes blog for their kind review of our video. Please go there and read it. Since someone has now finally voiced a public response to the video, I feel comfortable saying something about my own creative intentions.

St Louis, 2006. Photo by Atika Piff. The sub rail has since vanished.

My main goal with the project was to create a video with an authentic vibe that would not give the viewer a chance to get bored. From watching a million bike videos over the years (and a million skate, snowboard, inline, and motocross vids, too), I'd come to the conclusion that the videos with the most lasting appeal were not necessarily those with the most advanced riding and definitely not those that portrayed riders as thrillseeking rockstars.

My personal favorites showcase the personalities of the riders and what they put into their riding, not just their tricks set to music. Sometimes a rider's strong personality seems to be revealed through his riding, as with Steven Hamilton, Ralph Sinisi, Mike Aitken, Troy McMurray, Ian Schwartz, Jim Cielincki, Bob Scerbo, Vic Ayala, Jeremy Davis, Jimmy Levan, Lino, Charlie Crumlish, the Enns, or Taj, to name but a few. (It's no coincidence that these are all guys I feel I could get along with outside of bike riding.)

Other times, it's achieved through the tasteful choices of filmers and editors. I can't, for the life of me, fathom why, in 2008, a producer would choose to include footage of a rider flipping off the camera. It's not merely lame--it's a fake gesture that, in my opinion, reveals the rider's discomfort in front of the camera. And I think those moments make the viewer uncomfortable and ruin the possibility of a good vibe. (More rambling thoughts on flipping the bird in this old blog post from 2006.) That Aaron would say our video has an "excellent vibe" means the world to me.

Chris Jones chain hop. Clayton, Missouri, 2006. Photo by TJ Henderson.

Beyond the simple goal of good vibes, I also had an editing/directorial/format concept in my head that I'd been waiting forever to see used in a mainstream video. I finally realized I'd have to create it myself if I ever wanted to see it. As Aaron wrote in an email to me, "I really liked how the music kind of took a back seat to the riding/background noise in a lot of that; not sure if that was your intention but it was definitely rad."

The sound was very intentional, and I'm psyched that Aaron noticed.

I recall watching some snowboard movie that was all shot on 16mm film. The cinematography was beautiful, but the only audio was the musical soundtrack. Then there would be a couple of 3ccd video clips mixed in, and those shots would have sound, and I would get a sudden surge of adrenaline at how comparatively real those moments felt.

Another time, Terry Gross was interviewing the director of The Bourne Ultimatum, and he talked about the work of the sound engineer. He described how important it was for the different international shooting locations to have their own distinct atmospheric sound character: how does a gunshot sound different, say, reverberating through crisp, empty, arctic air, versus through muggy jungle tropics, versus through angular, concrete cityscape? Sort of like thinking about the warm and cold tones that you have to deal with when color-correcting.

Those two experiences (the snowboard video and the interview) altered my awareness of sound, and when I started editing the video, I was thrilled by the raw aural textures of our bike riding footage. For a time, I even fantasized about making a video with no music whatsoever. But I figured that kind of conceptual art project would require a professional level of riding and some serious video-making clout in order to make sense. I think All Day did something similar for its intro--an extended montage of night-time lines, one clip from each of the Animal team riders. Really great, really well done. Not available on Youtube, that I'm aware of...

Since I didn't think I could pull off a video without music, I opted for tracks that were mostly pretty mellow, mostly without words--more like a film score than a music video, maybe. And I'm satisfied with the result.

So, when Aaron of NoBikes describes bmx is cute as "different," I hope people don't take it as a euphamism for "weak." And I don't believe in trying to be different for the sake of being different. We just made the video we wanted to make, a video that (I hope) represents bike riding authentically.

Thanks, Aaron. Glad you found it worthwhile.

the humble bmx is cute trailer:

Low-fashion skate kicks inspired by He Who Walked On Water. Yours for the price of shipping.

2008-11-21T00:31:00.000-08:00

'Tis the season, I guess.

I acquired this pair of skate shoes from my cousin Connor, who inherited them from our cousin Mike, who purchased them in the spirit of irony from the now defunct gospelshoes.com, circa 2003 as I recall. Mike (not a skater or bike rider) wore them around on occasion. Connor never did. I intended to use them for riding, but there's just no way I can swing a size thirteen. So they've sat in my closet for a year, and now I'd rather have the space.

If any bike rider would like to have these, just paypal me the shipping cost, and they're yours. Email me to sort out the details.

While I'm not fundamentally opposed to Christianity or organized religion (I'm a practicing Baha'i), I am amazed and amused by the bald-faced commercialization of sacred things. I'd like to meet whomever designed these shoes.

"So," I'd say. "You stamped the Lord's name on a product destined to be smeared with mud and dog shit. How reverent."

Closure...

2008-09-13T23:17:00.000-07:00

After September 7th's post, I never saw Grasshopper on my car again. Tonight, as I sat on my patio, exploiting the wireless signal from some unknown neighbor, drinking coffee and getting lost in the depths of Wikipedia, this little fellow happened upon my screen. I set the computer down gently, ran and got my camera, and snapped this.

He's still there, antennae twitching, as I write. Young guy, looks like.

I Admire Your Tenacity, Young Grasshoppa.

2008-09-07T21:23:00.000-07:00

Snapped this on my commute home Friday.

Perhaps you're familiar with these grasshoppers that have an incredible bright green color when they're very young. The entire body--eyes, head, abdomen, legs, antennae--is the same unreal color, like a delicate toy cast in plastic. (Their blood is green, according to Wikipedia.) Well, I spotted one chilling on the trunk of our car last Wednesday, as we headed out for errands. When I saw what appeared to be the same grasshopper on Thursday morning, I assumed that it was one of the original's cousins, maybe just attracted to the warmth of a dark-colored car.

Driving home on Friday, I was shocked to see the same grasshopper again, this time clinging to my side-view mirror, safely out of the wind, and I concluded that this was no coincidence. I spent the entire drive fumbling with my camera's exposure and flash, hoping to get a decent shot before he was inevitably gone, voluntarily or involuntarily. He appeared (Could it be?) ever so slightly larger, and a slightly less vibrant shade of green. "Wow, he's growing up fast," I thought.

I shared the pictures with my wife and visiting in-laws at dinner, and we all found it an amusing story.

We didn't drive anywhere on Saturday, and I didn't see him or think of him when we were running errands this Sunday afternoon. But we went out again tonight, and my wife and I thought of him, theorized what it all could mean, thought how ridiculous it would be to see him again. Jaime asked where on the car I'd seen him at the different times, and I told her it didn't seem like he had a particular favorite spot.

Not thirty seconds later, I shrieked when I saw him clinging to the windshield, resisting the 40 mph headwind. I slowed to a manageable 35 mph, Jaime narrated his every move, and I tried to focus on driving safely.

"Oh no, he's facing the wrong way, the wind is pulling at his wings!" she said. "Okay, he's turned back around....He's licking all his feet."

"He's licking his feet?! He licked all six feet?"

"No, just four... He didn't lick the back two... Okay, he's licking the fifth one now, he just needs to get the last one... Okay, he's got the last one, are you going to pull over?"

"Yes, there's a pull-out just ahead."

"What are you going to do? You know you can't help him," Jaime said, guarding the integrity of the symbolism.

"I know, I know. I just want to get another picture of him."

We pulled off, got out of the car, and tried not to startle him. He was still for a minute while I fired off a dozen pictures, and then he made his way across the top of the car to the rear windshield, where he stayed put.

Feeling a little better about that location, and with nothing left to do, we shrugged our shoulders, got back in, and resumed our outing.

As you can see in the final picture, his color has definitely changed. The green is almost completely gone. Soon I expect the yellow to be replaced with the dull brown/gray of maturity.

I will be inspecting the car regularly now and updating the blog daily until I'm sure he has left for good.

This must be how Tony Soprano felt about the ducklings in his swimming pool.

...

Grasshopper was a nice catalyst for a blog post.

I haven't posted in over a month, for reasons that are, ostensibly, good. I found work as an editor for the handbook and internal documents of a local health care management organization. Soon after starting there, I landed the news internship I'd been praying for at a well regarded alt-weekly, here in Portland. So I'm writing a ton, and loving it, but it doesn't leave much mental energy (or time) to apply to the blog. Furthermore, I'm studying for the GRE's (September 28th is the big day!), researching PhD programs and the possibility of moving, and trying to be a better husband and father, in support of my wife pursuing her professional and personal goals, and in support my own desire to be a less selfish person.

From one angle, all that logistical stuff should be wrapped up in a couple of months, and I could be feeling freer, riding the little bike more, blogging more. From another, I know that life tends to get more complicated, and I may never really feel "less busy."

Anyone else familiar with this sensation? My wife and I talk about the concept of "motion" all the time. Our life seems to follow a pattern, where we periodically end up complacent or stuck, not sure which goals we are working towards. Then one little event happens to energize us, and all of the sudden, life is crazy and flying by. And it's not just "I need a different job," and I start looking. It's like, when the motion kicks in, every aspect of our lives--professional, educational, creative, spiritual, emotional, personal, family--starts changing and advancing.

Thanks for reading. More on grasshopper tomorrow.

You Love Alaska.

2008-08-04T22:19:00.000-07:00

Great write-up of an unconventional bmx road trip on the NoBikes Blog. As usual, I wish there were more pictures.

My new favorite crew?

TRICKS

2008-07-29T06:26:00.000-07:00

From the 217 blog. Spotted here on bmxboard last night.

TJ reminds us that there's more to bike riding than just gaps, grinds, and manuals.

Like most of the people who responded to the post, I, too, would have picked a different song for the edit. But this is the same type of stuff that gets used in all the 217 videos, so I guess it's what they're into. The music was not nearly as bad as I expected, after reading everyone's responses and before clicking the link.

DDX responded to the video, "I hate freecoasters," a sentiment generally expressed in reference to the legions of stripped seat Ian Schwartz clones. Not to put too fine a point on a very dead horse, but I call DDX's attention to TJ's four pegs, 2 brakes, and gyro. TJ's freecoaster is, if anything, a midwest Moliterno/Friemuth reference.

...

While we're talking about tricks, I'll mention the Fresh Fish trailer, which turned a lot of heads this Spring, and which I'm sure you won't mind watching again.

The opening bangers belong to Andrew Longstreet, from Everett, Washington, another longtime friend of ours. Andrew's dirt jumping roots are obvious, and if you find his clips kind of "funny," you'll probably dig Andrew's sense of humor. I think this kind of riding illustrates the simplistic inadequacy of the tiresome Style Vs Tricks Debate. Andrew's footage is interesting and wonderful not because of the tricks or the style, but because of the context.

Still haven't heard where to get a copy of Fresh Fish. Is it out yet?

...

Andrew and TJ both have clips in our video, which you should probably purchase. (Buy Now button at the top of this page.) While you're deciding, check out the clip of TJ and Ben in the March 9 Bikes and Coffee post. Then go try to spot young Andrew in the 2003 DailyGrindCrew web video, discussed in last year's July 30 post.

You'll Never Ride It III: Pripyat

2008-07-19T08:23:00.000-07:00

Spot the crumbling hubba:

The Ukrainian city of Pripyat has been a ghost town since 1986, when, bullseye downwind from the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, its entire population was evacuated in a span of 24 hours--50,000 people, one suitcase each. Everything else remained as it was left, a perfect time capsule coated in fallout. Three decades without human influence have given nature the opportunity to begin reclamation of the land.

Wikipedia reports that background radiation is at a safe level now; sometime around 2000, looters began clearing out the city's apartment buildings. "Nothing of value was left behind," Wikipedia states. "Even toilet seats were taken away."

Archaeologically speaking, it's too bad that the time capsule has been violated; or perhaps it's good news that Ukrainian entrepreneurs are tapping into these long-frozen assets. The city border is still controlled by the military, but tour companies are being granted access. I don't suppose that a bmx bike would be allowed inside. Maybe if you greased the appropriate palms.

How hilarious/cool would it be to hop that fence with a crew of friends, bikes, and camping gear, and explore the silent city, cruising down streets and sidewalks, carving around the trees and weeds pushing up through the pavement? I bet much of the city feels like utter wilderness.

...

(BTW, on the bmx+camping tip, check the NoBikes blog for photos of their excursion to a remote spillway in the Alaskan wilds. Wish the write-up went into greater detail. I'd be interested in the non-riding photos, too.)

...

Doubleset.

MACBA ledge.

Pool.

Not actually a missile.

Put some tiremarks on Lenin.

...Too many amazing Pripyat images to choose from. Here are handful from around the internet.
[Nuclear] Winter.

1970.

Amusement.

Chernobyl in the distance.

Lastly, some Pripyat YouTube:

The Complete Steven Hamilton Youtube Discography

2008-07-15T10:09:00.005-07:00

This has been a good week for fans of Steven Hamilton. His fantastic part from 2004's The Day is Over made its way online a couple days ago, and just last night bmxboard's Alistair Heely uploaded the full 2005 Tip Plus video The Family. (Clips below)

Everyone appreciates Hamilton for his unconventional peg-free approach to street riding, not to mention his casual hucking of monstrous gaps. But for some reason his effortless bike control and clean style are overshadowed by the motowhipping likes of Aitken and Hawk. For style, that's my personal top three, probably, with Hamilton on top.

I think it's significant to note that none of the three is taller than 5'10. Aitken and Hawk are small men that have always ridden huge frames and handlebars, and I think this visually striking jockey-on-stallion effect is one reason they look so damn good flying through the air. Hamilton, by comparison, rides a flatland frame and more "medium" bars, and he could be even shorter than the other two guys. The allover smallness makes his wheels look huge in a way that I find really satisfying, and, furthermore, he seems to have an exceptionally large bunnyhop. But his pop is so natural that I've never heard anyone comment on it.

And Hamilton comes across as a real guy, thanks to his smile, unaffected demeanor, and penchant for a good hoody. Here's the text from his Dig issue 42 interview, archived on Tunney's excellent blog. (the full thing w/photos! --Ed. 11/16/09)

Of course, there hasn't been video footage of Hamilton in a couple years. After leaving the limelight, rumors circulated that he had fried his brain with drugs and stopped riding. Then, in a 2007 issue of RideUK, Hamilton reappeared with a cover shot and a dozen excellent, sponsor-worthy photos (lots of gaps and even a handrail with pegs!) and the most memorable interview of all time. He seems to have gone voluntarily insane and now lives in a parallel psychadelic world. (You can read the RideUK interview online now.--Ed. 9/13/09)

I was disappointed on one level (bye-bye striped shirts), but pleased to find that the new Hamilton is just as real as the old one, escaping the annoying outward trappings of hippiness in favor of an apparently authentic schizophrenia. Sunglasses at night? Intentionally mismatched gloves? A bike covered with seaweed and twigs, painted over with gloss black spraypaint? Keep this stuff coming, please!

It might be said that the "crazy drugged bike rider artist" thing was pioneered by the Gonz, but, by contrast, Hamilton doesn't seem to care whether we notice or not. As always, he's doing his own thing, living his own life, and it feels like a privilege when we get access.

Along with every other bike rider alive, I'm hopeful that we'll see video footage soon, and Hamilton's Phoenix-like return will be complete.

Here's all the footage of Hamilton that I'm aware of. If you know of more, I hope you'll share.

The video part that made Steven Hamilton a household name, from AnimalBikes' Can I Eat?

From the old Ohio video A Day Late and A Dollar Short.

Steven's first part ever, reportedly, from a video called Inception, which I know nothing about. Packed with bangers and striped shirts.

From the Federal video. Last two clips are heart-stopping.

From AnimalBikes' All Day.

The complete Orchid roadtrip video Step On It. Lots of Hamilton footage. Ridiculous clip at 6:40.

Tip Plus's The Family, complete video. Steven's part starts at 21:53.

And, finally, his recently uploaded part from Elliot Van Orman's The Day is Over, 2004. Perhaps my fave video part ever. When this song gets stuck in my head, I don't mind at all.

...

July 18 Edit: Two additions. Fresh Hamilton footage, Go Skateboarding Day, June 2008. From Skavenger.

And thanks to aaron for bringing to my attention the really good skapegoat 2.5 web video, from March of this year, which includes some recent footy from Ham. Bonus: a bunch of brakeless riding from Ralph Sinisi!

...

July 19 edit: From the Animal site, , in response to this blog posting:It really is nuts to see Hamilton kill it and I promise you all he is not done. Hamilton has been in the area for the past few weeks puttin in some work for the next Animal Video.

...

December 9 edit: The internet has yet to make sense of this Youtube gem from late October. Who is this video's intended audience? There's a lot going on here, none of which makes sense...

...

December 19 edit: This vid, edited by Hamilton himself, appeared on the Animal site the other day. See Lobsterspine = The Real Steven Hamilton? for more.

...

December 31 edit: More classic Hamilton 1.0 footy in a web video from Peter Adam. Just the title "World Travels" is enough to make me feel something. Thanks for the heads-up, Sam.

...
September 13, 2009 edit: In addition to his blog and YouTube account, Hamilton is actively posting high res stuff to Vimeo (to avoid Youtube's music copyright filter, presumably), rendering much of this blog post discography redundant.