Category: Video

Don’t Fuck With Our Happiness

So a few weeks ago some scumbag fucking tip-rats stole a bunch of DH bikes from myself and a few of my flatmates. That sorta thing will generally put a bit of a dent in your day, especially while you sit around stewing about how you’d like to put a little more than a dent in the perpetrator’s skull. Luckily it’ll take a fair bit more than some low life to fuck with the happiness around here, so the boys grabbed their dirt jump bikes and hit the park for a bit of a hardtail shred session. I should make note that I don’t make an appearance in this video, not only because I don’t own a DJ bike, but also because riding one in the bike park is fucking crazy and I’m too useless for that shit.

Enjoy!

Oh Yeah!

Here’s a video that gets me absolutely stoked on life. One that serves as a reminder of the pure joys of riding. I’m sure Ben and the other BnC dad crew will appreciate it.

I love the attitude that kids can have towards doing fun stuff. I was working at the ski fields over winter and the groups of stoked kids in ski school would always leave me feeling good about life. I remember one tiny kid ending up going backwards down the run and it was the greatest thing that had ever happened to him. He busted out the hugest grin, then started laughing uncontrollably and yelling “I’m going backwards! Look at me going backwards! THIS IS THE BEST THING EVER!” at the top of his lungs. Thinking about it now still brings a huge smile to my face.

I’m working with the MTB crew at the gondola in Queenstown this Summer and already there are kids heading up the hill with their mums and dads, getting amped on mountain biking early in life. There are kids who are riding bikes too small to hang on the gondola cabin bike hooks, yet they’re still out there riding the trails and having a mad time.

I can sometimes get a bit grumpy with myself when I’m riding, especially if I’m not feeling as smooth or confident as I like. I think it’s at those times that it’s worth considering videos like this and just remembering to just enjoy being on a bike, ’cause it’s bloody rad.

EXTREME MOUNTAIN BIKING

I have to admit, I get a little tired of the endless parade of mountain bike films with ponderous narratives talking about the journey and the connection and the trail. They’re generally accompanied by obnoxious soundtracks and a bunch of guys doing huge tricks that are a little hard to relate to when you struggle to clear a 3′ tabletop. The self-styled kings of the extreme world, Redbull, are about to release another one of these slick-as-black-ice epic-fests called Where The Trail Ends. That’s generally the point where I admit to myself I’m lost and turn around to try find my way home, but apparently these guys get into boats or helicopters and go camping. Here’s a bit of a behind the scenes look at it all. I’m sure it’ll be a good watch, but will it really be anything new? We can only hope.

 

Personally, I want more mountain bike films about trail riding and epic adventures that don’t require a hundred sponsors and an open account with the local helicopter pilot. Mountain bike films that reflect what riding is about for the average rider who’s hitting trails on the weekend, or exploring their extended backyards with their mates. Maybe something a little less extreme?

Line of Sight

If you’ve been following along here for a while you’ll know I’m a massive Lucas Brunelle fan. His helmet cam alleycat footage inspired me to build a fixed gear bike and encouraged me towards stupid antics in traffic. Watching his videos gets me just as pumped for riding as the highest budget 1080p flying-camera mountain bike films. Safe to say I’m pretty excited seeing the trailer for Line of Sight, a new film about Lucas and his cameras. Check it out (and some info I ripped from Spoke Mag’s website)…

Line Of Sight is a rare view into underground bicycle messenger racing which has become a global phenomenon. For over a decade Lucas Brunelle has been riding with the fastest, most skilled urban cyclists around the world while capturing all the action with his customized helmet cameras to bring you along for the ride.

This is bike riding like you’ve never seen before, in gripping first-person perspective through the most hectic city streets, on expressways in Mexico City, over the frozen Charles River, under the Mediterranean Sea, across the Great Wall of China and deep into the jungles of Guatemala.

Directed and Edited by Benny Zenga, Line of Sight is 60 minutes of the best Lucas Brunelle footage, with titles by Futura 2000, plus extras, outtakes, and a 40 page art book featuring photography and spoke cards from a decade of Alleycat races around the world. Get the DVD at: lucasbrunelle.com

“Lucas Brunelle goes for it. If you want to see what it’s like to play a live game of ‘frogger’, on a bike, with only one life, check out Line Of Sight.” – Mat Hoffman

Outsiders

You’ve gotta love the way cycling crosses borders as if they don’t exist.  You wouldn’t really imagine Bali would have much of a DH scene, but this little video an old friend recently posted on the Good ‘Book definitely proves otherwise. Regardless of where you are in the world, you can usually find a decent hill and a bunch of mates to ride down it with.

Bobby plays in an awesome Balinese punk rock band Superman Is Dead. They’re some of the most amazing, friendly and psyched-on-life guys I’ve ever met and they definitely know how to have a good time.

Parenting Advice

While Ben’s been rolling on gravel and wallowing in the wet stuff, I’ve been doing a fair amount of sitting around whinging about the season. There’s a week of shredding the gnar coming up at Perisher, but my current bike fix generally comes in the form of pixels or video frames. Still, it’s cold and wet out htere, so bugger it.

There are a few BnC members with offspring, so I think it’s only fitting to post up a short video from Mark Weir, showing the true and proper way to train up your future bicycle champion.

Motown Soul

Check out this trick video of Sean Walling from Soulcraft building a custom frame. Beautifully filmed and edited, with a very nice result at the end.

FROM STEEL: The Making of a Soulcraft from michael evans on Vimeo.

I dunno about wherever the rest of you are, but down here in Hobart it’s absolutely shitting down. With the Spring Classics happening (or happened) and the paths and roads swiftly filling with mud it only seems fitting to throw the knobby tyres back on the ‘cross bike after its summer romance with the slicks. While the high-stacked excuses of grocery shopping, a blocked nose, absolute driving rain and darkness are doing a fair job of keeping me off the bike tonight, I’m swearing that the rest of Autumn and Winter won’t see it continue. Mud’s for riding in, and if it ain’t muddy for the next few weeks I’ll be a surprised (and dry) man. So throw on some merino, grit your teeth and get amongst it. And if you spot a slow moving brown mess somewhere out there, be sure to offer me a cup of hot chocolate or a pint of something delicious.

And is anyone organising a cyclocross series in Southern Tasmania yet?

Mega!

I’m a bit of a fan of the ol’ Mountain Bike Race. You know the ones where you have to ride up steep hills and down steep hills on the same bike. The ones that aren’t DH races or XC races, but fall somewhere in the massive space between the two disciplines. The kind of races that test skills and equipment and usually end with lots of dirty people standing around drinking beer and talking shit. The races that are as much about celebrating the fine sport of mountain biking as they are the winning riders.

Don’t get me wrong, I don’t actually race ’em myself, but it’s good to know they’re out there. Stuff like the Downieville, 4Queens & naturally the Mega Avalanche events. We even had the Wellington Super-D in Hobart earlier this year.

Here’s a little video from DirtTV, featuring footage from the latest Mega Avalanche. Enjoy.

Chasing Stuff

A good six months ago I put in an order for the cycling film 24 Solo. It was out of stock at the time so it went on back order. Four months later it hadn’t arrived so I followed it up, only to be told that some muppet had lost the master disc and they couldn’t actually press any more DVDs until they found it. Idiots.

The same people are making the following cycling film, so I’m hoping that no one kooks it this time and I might actually be able to watch it. It looks orright…