Wheel deal
Now Playing: Arcwelder: The Hope

The wheels of a BMX bike are my favorite part.  It seems like I am always lacing wheels for something.  Last night I laced up this prototype Primo hub that I had lying around for my flatland bike.  I got the whole thing laced, then remembered that I had some issues with the axle nuts fitting on for some reason.  I fucked around with Primo jewels (one of the best inventions ever if they just weren't so damned heavy) and in the end, unlaced the wheel and cut the hub in half with an angle grinder to make sure I never made that same mistake again.

   Here are some pics of wheels from my "collection"

These are on a Webco monoshock bike from 1976 or so.  They are 2.125 rims and 105 gauge spokes, so they are burly.

Araya 7bs with hi-flange Campagnolo hubs.  Works of art.  1976.

 

Bendix "red stripe" coaster brake with gold Weinmann rims.  Smooth as silk.  1976.

Cast aluminum MX60 mags with a sealed bearing hub.  This is one of the first sealed bearing applications for BMX.  Circa 1977.

Another Araya 7b with a Campy Hub.  This one is on a Redline Proline, vintage 1978.

Super Pro rims, Shimano Freehub (the first cassette hub), Mathauser brake pads, Dia-Compe brakes, Cheng Shin tire, Two Wheelers Super Pro frame, 1978. 

These are Araya 7c rims and a Suntour hub from 1979.  There were polished to perfection by my good friend Jeff Venekamp and are bolted to an RRS frame and fork.   I really just wanted to show the shine.

Webco magnesium mag wheels on a Webco bike, 1977.   There were lots of "mag" wheels for BMX around this time, but Webco made the only true mags, made from magnesium. 

     Ted Van Orman is working on another issue of his print mag, Life? and has some super nice T shirts available.  Check it all out here.  

   Ted is recovering from knee surgery and has been making trips.  His most recent adventure took him and his girl up the coast of the pacific from  SoCal to Whistler BC.  Living it!  Ted sent these pics over.  One is Degryse and one is of the mystery trails with Ted's bud Brett shredding.  Thanks Ted.  Nice to hear from a legend....

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

there are so many of you, used to be just one
Now Playing: Jawbreaker: Gutless

Man, I haven't "lost" a post in a long time.  Until just now, that is.  Dammit. 

    It was just my usual bitching about the weather and a photo of myself.   There is a foot of snow on the ground here and it is miserable.  The roads were chaos today and my wife got into a minor, multi-car traffic accident.   She said at least it was entertaining to watch one person after another fall on their asses while trying to walk around (that's how icey the roads were).  She's okay and that's all that matters.

     I did a piece, for lack of a better word, about Bicycle Motocross Action magazine, which you can check out here if you're so inclined.

    I  rode Kzoo last night with Sean Newton Photography, Luke McGarry and Jeff Degryse, who recently moved back to Kalamazoo.   Jeff and Luke are amazing to watch.   I haven't ridden with Jeff in while but he has only gotten better.  Rattiest bike ever, with skills that are  unparalleled.  Both those dudes are so good, yet so unique in their approach to riding.  Very refreshing.

     Here's a photo from warmer times.  Austin, Texas, 2004.  Nice.

 

 

Loosing it
Now Playing: Fletcher: You're a Tramp and I Own Half This Fucking Town

Tomorrow is the first day of spring and I couldn't be more excited about it.  It has been a long, brutal winter. 

      There is a website all about Kalamazoo bands from the 90s.  I guess there is a website for everything.  Anyway, they recently added free MP3s from one of my favorite bands, ever...Fletcher 

      The production is a little iffy but I love these songs.  So good.  

  I got a big box of  Snafu parts the other day and it allowed me to build up another bike.  I built a very patriotic front wheel with my nice new Snafu hub and I built an Odyssey freecoaster wheel up.  That freecoaster has so much play that it's hard to ride with, but I want to try it out and see what I can do.   I have a Poverty freecoaster on my flatland bike and it is awesome with very little play and very consistent engagement.   If you've tried out a freecoaster you know they can be tricky.  If they engage while you're rolling backward, you will eat shit so fast.  It's happened to me so many times.  

      It's crazy how obsessed with BMX I am.  I spend hours in the barn at night, tinkering with my bikes and riding the ramps or just doing roll-backs.   When I first built up the new freecoaster bike it didn't have brakes and riding that in a cluttered barn was a bad idea.  You should see what I went through to piece together these brakes.  If you have a couple hours and we can talk in person I'll explain it.  I'm already rambling deep into "Who Fucking Cares" territory with this post.

      I rode the Dowagiac cement park last friday for bit.  It was still a little wet but it was great to ride outdoors.   I ate shit really hard while skating but it was a good time.  I can't wait to ride Grand Haven, Charlotte and all the other parks while I'm out on the road.  Besides spending time with my family it's what I truly look forward to.

   The comment on the post below from Jeff Tabb about how is mother secretly threw away his Born to Lose tee shirt is awesome.   I got a lot of comments about that shirt from random people myself.  One time I was ordering food and this young dude who was taking my order said "No one is born to lose, you're not born to lose" like giving me this self-esteem pep talk.  I just laughed. I didn't even know what to say.  The best thing was this dude who bought a Born To Lose shirt from Albes for his pregnant wife.  

Five Year Plan
Now Playing: Pogues: Sunny Side of the Street
It took me a while to get it together, but the 5 Years Of Deliverance slide show is finally done.  If I would have waited much longer, it would have been the Six Years of Deliverance slideshow.  Click on each photo for anticdotes, quirky notes and bullshit. 

 

whatever
Now Playing: Notorious B.I.G.: Juicy

 

Kzoo sesh that I forgot was going on....   (Sean Newton awesome photos dot cromwell)

Jeremy Ball, tweaked and geeked.

Kyle Kling...dude, fuckin'

The White Lotus 

Luke McGarry

Jerome tabled like he ain't got none

Levi Brown more than doubling the height of the little street spine.  There is a pro skater named Levi Brown as well.  What are the odds of that?

Benny Baker in what may possibly be my favorite photograph of all time.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Rad 180
Hey now.   The Modern contest went down last night and it was pretty awesome.   Sean Newton took some amazing pics (he can even make skatepark photos look great) and you can find them by clicking on this pic of Dane Wild...

   The results, I believe, go like this:

Intermediate Best Trick:  Jordan Van Dorne (360 off the deck of the six foot quarter and a bunch of other rad shit)

180 Long Jump:  Dane Wild (Luke McGarry went further but couldn't pull the rollback).    Ben Fisher took scariest incident by breaking is forks off.  It was terrifying, but he was okay.

High air on the 3 foot mini:  Luke McGarry

Advanced Best Trick:  Eric Nyler  (I think I messed up his name).  He did the sweetest quarter to quarter gap to manual to 180 down the euro.  He also did a wall ride to whip, a glorious tail whip disaster and a bunch of other good stuff.  Ben Fisher took second with a whip off the top of the wall-ride and lots of other stuff.  Trevor Thompson took third with lots of wild stuff, including a huge wall ride over the the window to the mall (it would be right in the center of the "D" in the above pic.   

    Sean's pics are totally sweet, but here's one I took of the 180 comp. 

   Dk, Duo and Etnies came through with lots of prizes, I kicked in some Deliverance gear and almost everyone left with something.  Everyone got to ride a lot (including me), which was key and injuries were at a minimum, despite the unfortunate occurance of Dave Moon's chronic shoulder dislocation.   I feel for you, Dave, I went through the same thing and it sucks.

   Thanks to Sean for helping out, as well as Pat Ellis, Bob Hammond, Trevor Thompson and Jason Burnton.  Ya'lls nice dudes. 

      Here's a pic from the window of the Brown Trout Hotel in Boyne Falls, Michigan, where I spent most of last week.  The screen makes it look a little goofy, but it was nice to wake up to before standing around all day in the freezing cold all day....

    This is kind of weird.  It's a shot of the DVR for our cable.  I found this while doing a search for "motocross".

    How crazy is it that the listing is under "Bicycle Motocross"?   The cool thing is the show is actually the FBM Ghetto Comp, so it's good viewing, but who, besides my nerdy, kooky ass, calls it "Bicycle Motocross"?   Is what is.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

TPS reports

 

If I had a million dollars...
Now Playing: Jawbreaker: Accident Prone

 

 

 

This is real.  This is a friend of mine that works for Etnies.  He loves Vegas and apparently Vegas loves him.  I'm stoked for him. 

      I finally rode my bike today.  At Modern in GR.   I really miss the old Novi Modern days but the GR park is fun.  It was the best I've felt in weeks.   There is nothing better to me than riding BMX bikes.  Even at my advanced age, there is no feeling like floating, sliding or spinning a BMX bike.  It's magic.   I feel blessed to have discovered BMX at an early age and that I'm still able to enjoy it.  I feel bad for people that quit or worse, never started.

 

back in black
Now Playing: explosions in the sky: first breath after coma

   I painted my bike, put on fresh Duo grips, changed my flat and dialed my bike in.  It had been awhile since it got any love.  I can't wait to ride it.  It's like 15 degrees here, so I don't think I'm even going to ride the barn yet....

 

Would you be mad...
Now Playing: Jawbreaker: Fine Day

...if you found out the writer of your favorite blog had another blog that was even more personal and introspective?  I was, but then I read all the entries and I was stoked.  The dudes portrayed on that site are the real deal.   Living it, you know?   I'd like to think that I live it but I really am just lucky that I get to experience a lot of stuff because of my job.  Driving to Austin in a weird van pulling a trailer filled with plastic jugs of alternative fuel is living it.   Leaving home with no clothes and just buying ratty gear at thrift stores along the way is living it.  I'm a wuss.  I like thrift store clothes but I have to wash them before I wear them. 

      My work is finally calming down a bit and I'm happy about it.   I haven't ridden my bike since I filmed that video three weeks ago.  My bike  has a flat tire in the barn and has, I assume, since that night.  That is pathetic.   "Yeah, I used to ride, but my bike is all messed up and I haven't had time to fix it".    I've heard the lame excuses so many times and they make sick.   MIne is isn't an excuse, it happens every year during this time.  I have a birthday during the same non-riding period and that's extra depressing.  No need to worry though, I'm a gonna fix that tire tomorrow and get back at it.  We have a jam coming up in two weeks at Modern in Grand Rapids, too...

 

One of my oldest and dearest friends, Jeff Venekamp, took his sons to the track and Jeffrey came out with the gold!

Jeff and I go back to the early 80s and Jeffrey is the first of my friends' from the old days whose kids who have started racing.  I'm proud of the boys.  I know Jeffrey's brother Cullen is no slouch either and although he pretends that he doesn't really ride any more, big daddy Jeff still has the first straight pull of a 15 year old, not to mention tons of style.