I don't know what's with all the page views from Singapore. I'm now in the second big wave of page views from there, there have been about 21,700 views total from there. Either someone has linked to me there, and it went viral, and they all have mobile Safari, or something weird is going on. I'm not sure. Even all those views are something screwy, that still puts this blog at around 148,000 views. Either way, thanks for all of you who check out my posts.
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Texas Pro Flatland was the official American Freestyle Association video for the flatland part of the Austin, Texas AFA Masters contest in 1987. This is the third BMX video, of six, that I produced and directed for the AFA in that year, with Unreel Productions video editor Dave Alvarez editing, and him and Don Hoffman guiding me through the process.
Austin, Texas. It was a hot bed for great music going back into the 1960's. The bars on 6th Street were a scene for a long time before people from other parts of the country ever heard of it. Then came Michael Dell, selling computers from his dorm room, and creating Dell Computers. Then came more tech companies. Keep Austin Weird as a motto. The South by Southwest music festival. That morphed into SXSW music/tech festival. Now it costs about $6,000 or so to rent a treehouse for a week on Air BnB. Well, now the real estate market is tanking in Austin, after soaring to astronomical levels in recent years. That's what Austin has become known for over the last few decades.
But way back in 1987, when BMX freestyle was just starting its first peak of popularity, Austin was already a hot city for freestyle. Robert and Ruben Castillo lived there. I think the Ninth Street trails were there already. That's what I knew about Austin when we flew down there for the AFA Freestyle Masters contest, the third of six comps in 1987. As the editor of the AFA newsletter (and all around AFA roadie), I flew there with Bob Morales, his girlfriend at the time, Suzy-Q, and his sister Riki, who also worked in the AFA office. It was storming when we all got to the hotel the Thursday night before the contest, as I recall. Bob parked the rental minivan under the little roof, and went in to check into our rooms. As Suzy, Riki, and I were sitting in the minivan, Haro pro Ron Wilkerson opened the driver's side front door, hopped in the driver's seat and kidnapped us.
The next day, we got up early, got some breakfast, and headed to the arena to get everything ready for practice, and the contest on Saturday and Sunday. A couple of guys who were not freestylers, and didn't have kids that freestyled, ran the local contests in Texas. The Patterson brothers kicked butt at supporting the local freestyle scene and putting on contests. One was a competitive water skier, and both were really cool, down to Earth, hard working guys. They also built the first really solid, steel framed quarterpipe, which became the official AFA ramp at this contest. With the Patterson brothers running the local AFA scene, and doing a lot of legwork for the Masters contest, we knew it would rock.
My main personal memory of this contest was going riding one of the nights with some locals and some of the riders I knew, downtown on 6th Street. After getting a jam circle going there, one of the locals suggested we go into one of the bars for a couple of beers. We all piled our bikes around a street sign, or some post, and locked parts of the bikes together, then headed into the bar. We had two or three beers, and sat there as some really good blues band jammed in the small bar.
After an hour or so, we headed back outside. I told the local guys, "Man, that bluesy guy on the guitar, with the big hat, that guy was pretty good." They laughed, "Pretty good? Dude, that was fucking Stevie Ray Vaughn." I had no idea who Stevie Ray Vaughn was, but I learned I liked the blues that night. About a year later, one of his videos went into heavy rotation on MTV, and the rest of the world who didn't know about him got to hear his music. Then he died tragically in a helicopter crash in 1990. There's now a statue of him in Austin down by the river.
On to the AFA Masters contest. Nearly all of the top riders were there, and it was a solid contest, one that changed BMX freestyle forever. I produced and directed this video, which sounds much cooler than it was, but hadn't watched it for about 35 years, until the other day. The video cameraman was Don Hoffman, who founded Unreel Productions, the Vision Skateboards video company.
In the intro, we see Frank Scura, BMX industry guy, brother to rider/inventor Brian Scura. I remember Frank most from the Odyssey "Cowboy" ad, and just being a funny guy at events. Frank is doing his Joe Isuzu impression (popular car commercials at the time), trying to get Don into the contest. Obviously they were just goofing around, since no one knew at the time if this footage was ever going to be made into a video. When editor Dave Alvarez and I went in to edit the video, he pieced their skit together, with some cool clips of various riders. In those short clips we see several riders. FREESTYLIN' magazine assistant editor (and my former roommate the year before we made this video) Mark "Lew" Lewman, does the rollback to stylish slide around. We also see Dave Voelker doing his super fast 360 bunnyhops, which I always thought were really cool. We see Mongoose pro Rick Allison with some crazy Miami hopper balance moves, and Dennis McCoy with some classic combos, along with several other riders.
My only real instructions for this video were to show all the pros whole runs. We had enough time so I could show a little bit of amateur highlights. We see three of the really young kids, doing hard tricks, then a few others. Then we see Plywood Hood, and York Pennsylvania rider, Kevin Jones, who was still fairly unknown to most riders around the country at that time. The time ends on Kevin's run with an elephant glide combo.
Then he sets his bike up, after time runs out, and pulls up into a locomotive, a no handed version of the backyard, the first popular scuffing trick, which got really popular at the previous AFA masters contest in Oregon. That's the first time the locomotive was ever done in a national contest. He not only scuffed the locomotive a long ways, but he began to glide it, something no one outside of York, PA had ever seen before. That blew our minds as riders. It was so far ahead of the current progression of tricks. That trick changed the direction of BMX freestyle flatland forever.
BMX freestyle became a "follow Kevin Jones sport" for the next three or four years. When Don points the camera to all of us riders up in the stands screaming (yeah, I was in that group watching), that was real screaming, we were really that psyched. The judges had no idea how hard, crazy, and innovative that trick was, but all of us other riders did. We'd seen bits of the locomotive in the jam circles, but when Kevin did the locomotive in this contest, the entire direction of BMX flatland changed in that moment. The one wheel forward rolling tricks took over as the prime direction of the sport, and Kevin Jones and the Plywood Hoods led flatland for years to come. Yes, it really was that big of a deal in BMX freestyle.
Then I added in some footage of Rick Moliterno, still an amateur then, because he was another guy who ripped, but never got enough magazine coverage, mostly because he was a Midwest guy, and the magazines were all in California. So I gave him a little footage in this video. That's followed by a little fun with Industry guy McGoo getting Craig Grasso to breakdance for the camera. Grasso was always down to get weird and have some fun. Lew chimes in, doing the beatbox for Grasso's breakdancing set. Then Don Hoffman does a quick interview with John "Dizz" Hicks, CW rider and master of the wedge ramp.
Then we move on to the pros. Chris Lashua, East Coast pro, then riding for Mongoose, starts things off. This is not his best run ever, but he does a solid backwards wheelie into a decade, and some really cool flail boomerangs, among other tricks. Following Chris is the favorite of the day in pro flatland, Haro pro Dennis McCoy. Dennis throws down a really solid run, rapping to his mixtape the whole way through. Some of my favorites in his run are the I-hops into a Miami hopper, a fire hydrant into a cherry picker, and his super fast footwork and front end combos.
Another Mongoose pro, NorCal rider Rick Allison is up next. He puts in a solid run as well, with his step-up, step-down, step back up surfer being a favorite, and his unique Miami hopper variations. R.L. Osborn, one of the original innovators of BMX freestyle, riding for General, is up next. My favorites in his run are the unusual walkaround variation, the backwards rubber (grip) ride, which he invented, and his upside down backwards wheelie in a circle.
Robert Peterson, another pro from San Francisco's Golden Gate Park scene, follows R.L., riding for Mongoose at this point. Bert goes through his standards, including a one hand version of The Peterson balance trick, and several other balance tricks, including a stomach stand. He's followed up by Fred Blood, riding for General. OK, Fred was a pro roller skater who got into freestyle, and he got a lot of crap, and this is not his best run ever. But he lands a rollback into decade and a solid double tailwhip, among other things.
The next rider in pro flatland totally surprised me, watching this video again after 35+ years. Rich Sigur is known mostly as one of the top early skatepark riders. Here he's riding for Vision Street Wear, and throws down a solid flatland run, with plenty of style. He pulls off a solid backwards infinity roll, which very few people did well, and a cool front wheel spin to tailwhip combo, among his other tricks.
Following Rich we have flatland legend Woody Itson, riding for Diamond Back at the time. Woody always showed up with a solid run. Highlights in this run include the super power move of a rolling L-sit straight into a press handstand, his pedal picker to upside down back to pedal picker, the super long glide boomerang, and then the pedal picker to side picker to backwards pedal picker.
From Woody we head back to NorCal with Skyway pro Maurice Meyer. And the sound cuts out, I have no reason why. My favorites of his run were the one footed G-turn, the backwards framestand, and a no footed front wheel spin. From NorCal roots we head down to San Diego's only representative in this pro flatland class, Dave Nourie. Longtime Haro pro, Nourie impresses us with a cherry picker into a pedal picker (on a freewheel, which is nuts), a bunch of combos, his unique balance combos, and a stomach stand.
Those are the highlights of this first AFA Masters video from Austin, Texas, the capitol of Texas and of weird. That was one fun weekend for everyone involved. Dennis McCoy won pro flatland. You can see the top five at the end.
Austin stayed weird, and built upon the already solid BMX freestyle scene there. In later years Terrible One, aka T-1 entered the picture, there is Empire BMX distribution company there, and Jimmy Levan bunnyhopped the church gap in the 90's. BMX freestyle was already strong in Austin before it became the tech geek mecca and everything that's happened since. What about the old guys? Ruben Castillo is still riding, and Robert Castillo has a posse, just sayin'.
A couple of last Austin references. This movie, and others you're more familiar with, like this one and this one, were made by a director who got his start in Austin. One night at a bar in Austin, a casting director met this guy, talked over drinks for a couple of hours, and hired him to say about three lines for that director's movie. That little gig launched his movie career. Fucking Austin man. It's always been kinda batshit crazy, which is why so many people love the place. Well, except people from the rest of Texas, but that's another story.
BTW, the shot of Kevin Jones doing the locomotive made it into Joe Kid on a Stingray, at 2:19. I'm pretty stoked on that since, only 50 or 100 of these videos sold.
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It's 7:00 am, Monday morning, August 21, 2023, as I begin this post. It's the day after Tropical storm Hilary slammed into Southern California, and the Baja California peninsula in Mexico. This is the craziest footage I've seen so far, from Mulege, Mexico. Mulege is on the inland side of the Baja peninsula, on the Sea of Cortes, about 200 miles north of Cabo San Lucas. So it was still a hurricane at that point.
Hurricane Hilary was a Category 4 hurricane at it's peak, in late August of 2023. It downgraded to a Category 1 hurricane about the time is made landfall, on August 20, 2023, on the northern Baja California peninsula. It further downgraded to a Tropical Storm by the time it hit San Diego dead on, and quickly surged north into Orange County, Los Angeles, with particularly heavy rain in the inland desert areas of Southern California. This was the first tropical storm to hit Southern California since 1939, over 80 years earlier.
Officially, there has been only one death from Hurricane/Tropical Storm Hilary, and that was a person in Mexico who was trapped in a car that got washed away.
In addition to the Tropical Storm, a 5.1 earthquake hit during the storm, centered southeast of Ojai. I personally felt that earthquake, quite strong, in Sherman Oaks, about 35-40 miles away from Ojai. I felt one or two immediate aftershocks. There were at least 13 earthquakes between 3.0 and 3.9, in the Ojai area, as well as the 5.1 magnitude quake, on Sunday afternoon, (8/20/2023). The hashtag #hurriquake became a thing on social media.
This 19 minute documentary by Jonathan Petralama, below, is amazing, especially considering he put it out on Monday, after the storm. There's footage from the beach area in Orange County and Long Beach, to almost to the Mexican border, and back up to the Palm Springs area, including the Interstate 10 freeway closure. These guys did a great job capturing the effects of Hurricane turned Tropical Storm Hilary as it hit Southern California. Again, this is the first tropical storm to hit SoCal in 84 years.
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Screenshot of Hurricane Hilary, the first hurricane to head towards Southern California in about 80 years.
It's 2:58 pm, on Sunday, August 20th, 2023. We just had a 5.0 earthquake, only the second solid shake I've felt, since I made it back to California in 2019. This quake was centered southeast of Ojai, which is about 35-40 miles west-northwest of where I am, in the San Fernando Valley. I'm in a little coffee shop type place where I can work on the laptop. I'm drying off from getting pretty wet at a bus stop earlier, in the rain from Hilary.
The first tropical storm in 80 years hits, just downgraded from a Category 1 hurricane this morning (a Cat 4 at its peak), and we just happen to have a solid earthquake during it. Gotta love California.
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In this video from August 2023, Jay Martin interviews macro-economics analyst Danielle DiMartino Booth. Danielle, along with Stephanie Pomboy, are my two favorite macro-economics analysts these days. They come at things from somewhat different angles, but have come to very similar conclusions about the current economic picture.
In this recent interview above, Danielle DiMartino Booth tells us what the actual data is saying. Things are slowing down on a global level in the economy, and it's not a question of if we will have a recession, it's a question of how deep it will be and how long it will last.
That's what the actual data is telling the people who look into the data. That's what Danielle DiMartino Booth does. She actually worked at The Fed for nine years in the 2000's, into the Great Recession. Her job was to analyze the entire economy for the Dallas Fed president. Now she does the same work for private clients. Here's her website, QI Research.*
In this recent interview, near the end, Danielle explains that she, personally, doesn't have any money in stocks right now. Short term (6 month and 1 year) U.S. treasuries are paying over 5% annually, and so are money market funds. A lot of the smartest investors are putting their money in "cash" (T-bills or money market funds) right now, and just sitting on the sidelines as this recession approaches. This is what the term, "T-bill and chill" means. Park your money on the sidelines, wait and see if stocks are going to drop substantially, see if The Fed will raise interest rates one more time, or pause and hold for a while. Wait and see how the collapsing real estate market in China will affect U.S. markets. Wait and see if the struggling commercial real estate market and U.S. banking crisis plays out. By sitting on the sidelines now, with so many potential issues growing, investors can avoid potential losses in stocks, and still get a return above inflation, in treasuries or money market accounts. Then they can also be ready for any other great opportunities that may come along in the next 6 months or a year.
This next recession is the one that will wipe out a huge chunk of Generation X's retirement savings. I don't want to see that happen.
If you have money in stocks, does the "T-Bill and chill" idea make sense for you right now, with so many uncertainties in the financial world? Only you can answer that. But I wanted to throw this idea out there, for any of you that it may help. If this idea appeals to you, listen to the interview with Danielle DiMartino Booth above, and talk to the financial pros in your life, and make the best decisions for your personal situation.
* Not a paid link
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Big Bike BMX podcast interviews Large Ray (in 2022). While I never really talked to Large Ray back in the day, he's one of those characters from 1980's BMX freestyle that, much like me, stumbled into the national scene, and got to know all the top pros and industry people of the day. I remember Bob Morales, of the AFA, telling me about Ray's smoke bomb flatland run and how the crowd went crazy. He was around a lot of the freestyle hijinks of that era, and has a ton of great stories to tell. If you were an 80's BMX freestyler, this is a great podcast to watch.
I'm currently doing one of my Sharpie drawings of a top 80's freestyle pro, for another Old School BMXer. Since my drawings take 40-45 hours each to draw, I like to listen to any content about whomever I'm drawing when I'm working. Well, I couldn't find a podcast of the guy I'm drawing yesterday, but this Big Bike BMX podcast with Large Ray popped up in the YouTube results, and I had to check it out.
It's freakin' hilarious. It also totally reminded me of how I somehow stumbled into the BMX industry. One year I was a kid in Idaho totally into this weird, new sport that nobody had heard of, and two years later I was working at a couple of magazines, and met all the top riders and industry people of that era. It still blows my mind that all that happened. That kind of thing doesn't happen in mainstream pro sports. You don't go from being a basketball fan to hanging out with Lebron, and Steph Curry, and a bunch of other top pros. It just doesn't happen. But it can happen in BMX and skateboarding, and the action sports world. That's part of what makes these sports so fun to be a part of, at any age.
This interview with Ray brings back all that crazy, goofy enthusiasm we had back in the day. And I love the part about the "Amish" kids. I was laughing my ass off. Anyhow, just watch the podcast when you can.
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A week ago, few, if any, people across the United States knew who Oliver Anthony was. Then he uploaded an incredibly heartfelt song about making a living in America these days. And this song, "Rich Men North of Richmond," caught fire. It had 8 million views already when I first listened to it yesterday, it's got 9 million this morning. Just listen. Maybe you feel a lot like Oliver does. I know I do. This is a GREAT song.
There comes a time when the working people on the far Left, and the working people on the fear Right, and all the formally working people trying to make a living again, realize they're all pissed off about the same basic thing. It's just getting too hard to make a decent living as a reasonably honest American.
There are no "elites." There are only a bunch of bought and paid for douchebags, politics, both sides of the media, who've run up TRILLIONS of dollars in debt to prop up their benefactors. The working people of America, on both sides, are just damn sick of the douchebaggery. That's why this song struck such a chord with millions of people in a few days.
Bogger's note: It took me about an hour to write this quick post, because my wifi was being throttled back to keep me from promoting this song. I couldn't get Blogger to load, and then couldn't get YouTube to come up. That's one of many douchebag tactics these days to keep certain ideas out of the media, and to discourage blogger, writers, and people who think and share certain ideas. I first heard of this song on the Wealthion YouTube channel, of all places.
For those of you who haven't looked at a map, Washington D.C. is north of Richmond, Virginia.
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In this video, Chad Powers, owner of Powers BMX bike shop and museum, gives a tour of his amazing collection of BMX bikes, components, clothing, magazines and videos. The Powers shop and museum is located in Richmond, Virginia. If you're into BMX, and get near Richmond, go check this place out. You can buy from the Powers BMX website here.*
All of us who got seriously into BMX at some point, remember the bikes, media, and unique frames, forks and components of that era. It's like the cartoons you watched as a little kid, that first period of being into BMX gets imprinted on you. Years later, when you see a bike from that era, or an old set of cranks or handlebars at a garage sale, or find an old video or magazine from that time, it takes you right back to your early days of BMX stoke.
In the weird journey of my life, I landed in Richmond, Virginia, more down and out then usual, in August of 2018. I had never been to Richmond, I didn't know anyone there, as far as I knew, and I had $3.50 in my pocket when I got off the Greyhound bus. About three weeks later, much to my surprise, Former FBM owner Steve Crandall called me up, and said, "Hey, meet me at Powers Bikes this afternoon, I'll help you out." I figured out where the shop was, which at the time was on the side of this big, old industrial building, where several companies manufactured different products. When I got there, Steve wasn't there yet, but I met Chad Powers, who is one of the coolest guys in BMX.
I wound up staying in Richmond for about eight months, and made several trips to Powers during that time. Both Steve and Chad helped me out a lot personally while I was in Richmond, and I really thank them for all their help. But that first day, the shop looked like this high roofed place, more a small warehouse than a bike shop, with dozens and dozens of bikes hanging high up on the walls.
When Chad found out I was a former BMX industry guy who had worked at BMX Action and FREESTYLIN' magazines for a short period of time, he led me into a back room with dozens of binders of magazines. Much to my surprise, he asked me to sign my first published article, which I wrote as a freelance guy, for FREESTYLIN'. The article covered the AFA Masters freestyle contest in Tulsa, Oklahoma, in the spring of 1986. It appeared in the August '86 issue of FREESTYLIN', with the iconic cover featuring a tiny photo of a new ramp rider, Josh White.
My article wasn't great, by any means. But it just happened to be the article that Mat Hoffman's first editorial photo was in. The industry didn't know who Mat was then, and I had to call around to find out his name, after editor Andy Jenkins said they had a great photo of some young kid doing a no footed can-can, which only two people could do then. They didn't even know Mat's name for the photo caption, but I mentioned him in the article, and he was in the results, winning 14-15 expert. That contest was amazing for me, and seeing the magazine took me back to the weekend that launched me into the BMX industry, and changed my whole life. So that's my personal story of Chad's collection taking me back to my own beginnings in BMX. It's done the same for many other riders before and since. It will be a trip down memory lane if you visit Powers BMX.
Back out in the main part of the shop, which was more of a small warehouse packed with stuff, I saw a bike way up high that looked almost identical to my first bike. I told Chad about it. It happens to be the bike Chad points out in this video, a 1984 or so Skyway T/A, with red Z-Rims and a red pad set. I didn't realize, until watching this video, that finding that bike cheap started Chad's collection. Yep, I had a pad set on my "freestyle" bike, because I was still racing when I got that bike. Chad pulled it down that day, and I got a photo with the bike. Here's me in 1985, on my second BMX bike, and the first frameset I bought new.
Yes, it's a really dorky photo, shot by my co-worker, Vaughn Kidwell, at the Boise Fun Spot, the summer of 1985. I learned a bunch of Robert Peterson style balance tricks over that previous Idaho winter, since I couldn't ride outside much.
While I was in Richmond, Chad told me of his dream to get a bigger shop, and actually be able to have a BMX museum, with his huge collection of bikes, components, jerseys, clothes, magazines, and other things BMX. When I was about to leave the area, he told me he was looking at a new building. So it's great to see this video of Chad taking the time to give a tour of the huge collection displayed in the new building.
For all of you old schoolers and mid schoolers out there, if you have some BMX stuff that's cool and vintage, and you'd like to put it somewhere that lots of other BMXers and see it and appreciate it, think about donating to the Powers BMX museum. Again, if you're into BMX, and wind up near Richmond, Virginia at some point, go see Chad and the BMX museum, you'll be glad you did.
Here are a couple of photos I shot at the BMX DIY World Championships jam in 2018, put on by Steve Crandall and Chad Powers, at Powers BMX's old location.
I had been away from the sport for so long that I don't know who either of these riders are. If you do know, hit me up on Facebook or email, and let me know.
* Not a paid link.
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Think this meme is a bit much? The Fed's own report from this spring, 722 U.S. banks are bordering on insolvency. Six U.S. banks have already gone out of business this year. ( My meme)
For over four years, I've been rambling on about "this next recession." Why? because this economic downturn is going to change the world, and our lives like no recession we've seen. This is the recession that will wipe out a big chunk of the retirement savings of my people, Generation X. I've written a lot more on that subject elsewhere, like here. So I've started a new blog looking at side hustles, gig jobs, small businesses for the 2020's, and the economy and recession in general. Basically, what's happening economically, and ideas to survive the next two or three crazy years, and beyond.
The new blog is called Small Business Futurist. It got banned from linking on Facebook and Instagram on the 2nd or 3rd post, which is always a good sign. If the powers at be censor a blog from sharing before it really starts, then it means I'm on the right track. Here are the links to some of the posts so far...
Lifers... A short documentary on the Old School BMXers from Belfast that are still riding
today.
I first saw Will Smyth at the very first King of Dirt Jam, in Palmdale, California, in 1987. I can't remember if I actually talked to him that day or not. A few years later, in the early 1990's, after BMX "died," he stayed at our apartment while on holiday, on trips to the States. I got to know him then. When he started Dig BMX magazine, I was one of many who wrote some articles for those early issues. Design-wise, Dig was the coolest BMX magazine since FREESTYLIN'. Content wise, those early issues had the feel of a zine, but in a really cool, full color magazine, with killer layout and design.
I got contacted a couple months ago to contribute a little bit to one of the articles in a new magazine, aimed at the Old School BMX crowd... the lifers. I was told the name, Greystoke. It sounded like a cool idea. I was more than happy to send in a bit of text on the subject. Later on, I found it was Will Smyth, the crew from Dig BMX, along with lifelong rider and industry guy, Scott Towne, doing this project. I knew this was going to be something special, and have been waiting for it to come out.
Dennis McCoy, blowing minds at age 20 (he should have beat Woody), and more than three decades later at age 52, and at age 56. He's got to be part alien, or part Yoda, or something. Legend. Lifer.
When I sat down to write this blog post, I looked for some old video of Will, or some of the other U.K. riders, from the early 90's. Much to my surprise, I found the short documentary above. Even better. Far from sunny Southern California, across a continent and an ocean, in Belfast, lived a crew of BMX riders as hardcore as any guys, anywhere. From the crew that brought us Dig BMX in the 1990's, now comes Greystoke, as the original Generation X BMXers ride through middle age, now in their 40's 50's, and even early 60's. Once BMX gets ahold of you, it doesn't let go. As we all learned decades ago, action sports are lifestyle sports. Into today's 21st century world comes Greystoke BMX magazine. Check it out, and pre-order here: Greystoke BMX.* They have some merch, too.
Blogger's note- 8/2/2023: I live a weirder life than most these days. I had a few rough days before when I first sat down and wrote this blog post. I wrote this post while in a really frustrated mood. Last night, I kept thinking about it. What I wrote just didn't sit well with me. So I re-wrote the post this morning. I wasn't trying to piss anyone off yesterday, I just wrote when I was in a bad place, when I was far more sarcastic than normal. I haven't checked any comments yet, I just rewrote the post for my own reasons.
* Not a paid link.
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