Down Underground 4
The finals for the Down Underground Flatland Comp series is set for July 4th in Brisbane. Click here for more info & updates. Love that flyer… so good.
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Flatland Archives - Page 8 of 9 - Colony BMX
Down Underground Series – Round 3
Round 3 is coming up soon, check the flyer for details. Proudly supported once again by us here at Colony BMX.
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Down Underground Series – Round 2
I just got sent the results for the Down Underground Series round 2 which went down in Melbs a week or two ago now. Check out below to see who was hot on the day (everyone was with the damn heat down there)
It’s also cool to see a few older familiar names up there like Tony Newton, Chris Pollack & Matt Holmes… good stuff. See you all at the Brisbane event… I will have a flat bike going by then, fingers crossed.
ADVANCED CLASS ROUND TWO RESULTS
1ST……..MICHEAL HUSSER
2ND……..VINNIE PUGH
3RD……..KOICHI
4TH……..BEN MORAN
5TH……..BRETT ‘Stumpy’ MASON
6TH……..BRETT DIGHTON
7TH……..GRANT CRUSE
8TH……..TOMASZC
9TH……..RONI RAMPTON
10TH……RHYS MASON
11TH……TONY NEWTON
MIDDIES CLASS ROUND TWO RESULTS
1ST……..ANDREW McDERMITT
2ND……..JASON PARKER
3RD……..CHRIS LETCHFORD
4TH……..AUNDRA
5TH……..CHRIS POLLACK
6TH……..KIT McKENNA
7TH……..MIK DWYER
8TH……..MATT HOLMES
9TH……..JAMES COUWENBERG
10TH……WOODIE11TH……JR
12TH……MIKE BRANDT
13TH……KARL HUGHES
14TH……JASON CHO
15TH……TROY
Yo yo !!
Shane Badman checks in…
Shane Badman sent in an email with a few pics of what he has bene up to of late. Read on below…
The harsh northern winters of Europe arn’t great for riding. Living in Sweden is awesome but with snow becoming an all too familiar sight & the temperature currently around -12C during the day sometimes you gotta make the big call. So 4 airports, 3 flights & 22 hours in the air later I landed back in Australia to warm summer weather & white sandy beaches. Word.
It was a great being back in Aus. Coming back to visit never leaves you with as much time as you’d like, but we were still able to get to Melbourne for a Jam that was put on by a bunch of the locals – big thanks goes out to Paul Chamberlain & crew for putting it all together. While in Melbs I also managed to hook up with world renowned photographer Chris Polack for a shoot. Getting the job done at Imax & down at St Kilda was great with an impromptu demo going down for the locals at the beach – look for upcoming shots in future issues of Rebelyell!
So I’m back in Sweden now riding in my warehouse that I have for the winter. I’m taking care of a few projects & also planning for some of this years trips – stay tuned for further updates!
Yo yo !!
Simon O’Brien back from Japan
Simon is back from his trip in Japan & sent in this email about his trip…
I had the most fortunate opportunity to go to Japan and live for 11 weeks while being part
of a stage show at Disneyland Tokyo! Mike Daly and Matt Holmes were a big help in organising this &
we (Dan Baker, Mike Steingraber and myself) were just one part of this half hour show with all the Disney characters and many other crazy costumed people involved! We were part of a team with the inliners, freeliners and BMXers.
Big thanks to all of them because I had a great time while I was there. It’s pretty crazy to think I was in a show with Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Goofy and all the rest, doing tricks and all while they carried on dancing, good times!
While I was there I did some day trips to some cool places, thanks to my Japanese girlfriend Akane.
I really miss Japan, what a great country with an awesome culture and best food in the world I reckon!
Yo yo !!
Flatland range online at Flatlandfuel
Our first offering of our flatland range is online at Flatlandfuel now. Check out Shane Badman’s Cube frame, our Pivotal seats from both Shane & Simon O’Brien, flatland pivotal post, Colonial flatland cranks and more by clicking here now.
We also have a Colony Cube frame as a giveaway in their Holiday Giveaway promotion. Check it out now.
Yo yo !!
Flatland products update
Here are some sneak peaks of our Jam Circle Sprocket & T.L.D Stem. Both of these are shipping at the end of the month & will be available in the USA & Australia pre-Xmas with the rest of world seeing them in the new year. Both Shane Badman & Simon O’Brien have been riding these for months now with great success.
Yo yo !!
DejaVu Bars… soon.
Simon O’Brien’s signature bars are nearing completion on their first production run & here are some samples of them before they are painted. Expect these out pre-xmas in Australia & the USA & in selected other countries in the new year.
Yo yo !!
Down Underground Series – Round 1
Read the report below from Shaun Jarvis for what went down in Perth recently…
Round one of the Colony Down Underground national flatland series went down in Perth Western Australia on the weekend of the 8th of November. It was one of the best weekends I’ve ever had in my life. I was overwhelmed with excitement when riders from Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne and Launceston all converged with the locals of Perth to ride flat. The concept of this series is awesome. Riders from all over Australia travelling to different cities and competing for a year end title. Competition will breed progression. But this series is more than just competitions. It’s also an opportunity to catch up with mates that you normally don’t get to see often, ride with new riders and promote flatland to others.
Thursday night was full of excitement with many trips to the airport to collect the eastern state riders.
Friday was a good day jamming at the Perth concert hall spot. We then headed up to Kings Park for some chillin and sightseeing. Then it was off to Hogs Breath Café for a good old man up steak dinner. After dinner and a few drinks a small jam took place out side the local Game Zone on the side walk. Good to push yourself on what can be done in such a small spot.
Saturday came too fast and it was off to the infamous Scarborough Beach multi level carpark to get the competition of the weekend under way. With a solid turn out stage one got started by way of a two hour jam session with the riders scored each other at the end. This allowed riders to be more relaxed and try harder tricks. After a break for lunch stage two got underway. This consisted of two, two minute runs. This meant that riders could show how dialled they can be in a competition format. I’m not going to write about what tricks were done by who, you will have to wait for the web footage to done. I will say however that Ben Moran was the talking point of most conversations. After the comp was all done it was off to the beach BBQ trophy presentation. Check the results to see who got what. From the beach every one was invited back to my home for the after party. All I can say is that it was big night with many liquids being consumed. If you weren’t there you missed out on some good times.
Sunday morning and it was a bit hard to rise but eventually I did. Today was all about hitting new spots and showing the out of towners a bit of Perth. First stop was Cottesloe Beach. Not much riding going on but lunch was more on the agenda. Then off to Fremantle. After seeing a random priest in full robe gear skateboarding we proceeded to hit a spot with a good vibe till Roni’s tyre blew and scared half of Fremantle. We then proceeded to roll through the streets to the beach spot for some good lazy style riding as most of us were still just coming good from Saturday nights merriment. That night after seeing the wonderful West Coast sunset it was a good old fashion pizza night, again at my house. Simple and functional.
With the arrival of Monday it was time to start getting people off to airports. The Brisbane crew were first of the rank with an early start. That left the rest of us to ride down at Hillary’s Marina. Some tourist gifts were purchased before it was time to get the Melbourne and Launceston riders to the airport.
With the leaving of the last of the Eastern State riders the amazing weekend came to a conclusion. Yes there was a competition that took place over the weekend but round one of the Colony Down Underground was more than just a competition. It was a gathering of flatland riders all sharing one common bond of having the most amount of fun on a bike possible.
I would like to send a big thankyou to Colony BMX for sponsoring the series. It’s great to see such a good Australian company supporting flatland in such a big way.
Thanks also go out to Backbone BMX as well as they really put a stack of product in for prizes. Rhysty is such a champion. The world needs more like him.
And lastly I would like to thank all the riders who showed up and rode and smiled and had such a blast of a time.
See you all in January for round two in Melbourne.
Shaun Jarvis.
The trophies up for grabs.
Ben Moran & Jason Parker.
Paul Chamberlin & Brett Dighton.
Rhys Mason & Aaron Bandy.
Yo yo !!
Simon O’Brien video
Stewart Munro made up this quick little web video of Simon O’Brien riding his prototype DejaVu frame in his front yard flatland mecca. Seems Simon quite likes his new bike & the riding shows it for sure. Simon’s frame wont be out till July/August next year though but you can get his & Shane Badman’s Pivotal seat now.
Down Underground Series – Round 1
Just a reminder to all that today is the first event in the Colony Down Underground Series. Today’s event is in Perth with another 3 events to follow around the country. If you’re in the area make sure you go check it out. We have a swag of prizes to give away for this event including Simon O’Brien & Shane Badman Pivotal seats, Pivotal seat posts, Colony flatland cranks & some of our Fantastic Plastic pedals.
Yo yo !!
Colony Cube – out now
Shane Badman’s premiere signature flatland frame is available in selected countries right now. You can check out the full specs here now.
Yo yo !!
Simon O’Brien in Japan
Simon O’Brien is over in Japan for 11 weeks doing shows with Michael Steingraber & Daniel Baker. He will also have the chance to hit up a couple flatland comps while there too. They also found a skatepark near where they are staying just outside of Tokyo so Simon will be kept very entertained during his stay. He also sent me these couple of pics before he left taken by Michael Harris, thanks Michael.
Yo yo !!
Shane Badman checks in…
Shane Badman sent me an update on what he has been up too of late… read on below.
After finishing up the shows in Egypt, visiting Cyprus, Hungary & the UK, I’ve settled myself down for the moment in the south of Sweden with my lovely girlfriend Jo. We live in a small town called Staffanstorp which will be our home for the next little while. Even though we live in Sweden, we’re about 30 minutes from Copenhagen in Denmark & a few hours from Germany. Unfortunately, I’ve not come across any other riders in the area, so if there are any out there holla at me! In between learning some Swedish & riding I also dug up some footage I had lying around from around 2000. Check it out below.
comboNATION Vol. 1: Shane Badman BMX Flatland 2000 - 2001 from Shane Badman on Vimeo.
Yo yo !!
Colony proudly present…
The Downunder Ground Flatland Series which kicks off in Perth on November 8th & 9th. Check the flyer below for full details. There will be more events scheduled for around the country in the months after this first one.
Come & show your support for Australian flatland & check out these events. For more info click here.
Yo yo !!
Simon O’Brien’s DejaVu
Simon sent me the first pic of his DejaVu frame all built up with his DejaVu forks, bars & Pivotal Seat. His Colony parts list reads like this… all with various availability dates as shown.
Frame: DejaVu 18.9 (due mid 2009)
Fork: DejaVu (due mid 2009)
Bars: DejaVu (due late 2008)
Bar Ends: Konka (available now)
Stem: T.L.D (due late 2008)
Headset: Colony (available now)
Levers: Transformer (available now)
Cranks: Colonial 160mm (due late 2008)
Sprocket: Jam Circle (due late 2008)
BB Kit: Colony Spanish (due late 2008)
Pedals: Fantastic Plastic (due late 2008)
Seat: DejaVu (due late 2008)
Pegs: Plastic prototypes (no set date yet)
Freecoaster: Clone prototype (no set date yet)
Yo yo !!
Shane Badman bike check
Shane sent me some pics of his new bike he has just built up. It’s loaded with a bunch of Colony prototype parts. Looks like black is back? The Colony parts list reads as follows…
Frame – Cube (available September 2008)
Fork – Cube (no release date set yet)
Stem – T.L.D (available late 2008)
Seat – Cube (available September 2008)
Pedals – Fantastic Plastic (available late 2008)
Pegs – Plastic prototypes (no release date set yet)
Yo yo !!
Revealed… the Dejavu frame.
The frame featured a few days ago is Simon O’Brien’s signature frame, the Dejavu.
Simon’s frame will come in two sizes… 18.2 & 18.9″ with a 75 degree head tube angle & 71 degree seat tube angle. The rear end is 12.4″ with 10mm drop out slots with 14mm cutting lines.
It will come with removable brake mounts & hardware & features a built-in seat clamp with replacable nut & bolt. Spanish BB system is standard as is an integrated headset.
The entire frame is post heat treated giving it a great strength to weight ratio. The weight as tested is 4.09 lbs or 1,800 grams.
It will be offered with a lifetime warranty as well & the release date is set for early 2009.
Yo yo !!
Shane rules – rain, hail or shine.
Shane Badman just sent me an email from the UK. Read on below to see what one of our most travelled riders has been up to…
Just got back from round 2 of the Grassroots series in Southsea, UK. It was held at the infamous Southsea Skatepark, home of the King of Concrete for many years. Moving the ramps out for the day, we had the perfect marble floor underneath it for the contest. As per the UK, rain was a constant threat with the clouds finally opening up & dumping it down right before Pro finals. As people had come from far & wide in the UK & beyond, we just decided to ride in the rain instead. When all was said & done I was lucky enough to bag 2nd place – stoked!
Yo yo !!
Simon O’Brien interview
Simon has an interview up on a website that gives a different perspective of flatland & BMX in general. It’s worth checking out & you can do so by clicking here.
On another note… Simon will have his first prototype DejaVu frame, fork & bars in the next two weeks. Expect some photos once he receives them.
Yo yo !!
Shane Badman checks in…
Shane sent me an update on what he has been up too of late… read on below.
After several months of living & working in Egypt, I recently finished the shows that I was doing there & was next due in Hungary for the their annual flatland event, The Summer Gypsy Games. Along the way I decided to make a few detours & visit a few places that have always been towards the top of my list, namely Cyprus in the Mediterranean & the Pyramids.
Flying from Hurghada to Cairo early on July 13, my connecting flight to Larnaca in Cyprus didn’t leave until that evening so after a few phone calls I’d organised myself a driver to take me around for the day. It was great to see Cairo as a whole; a hugely progressive place with new buildings & construction everywhere & people rushing about their daily lives as part of any large city. The feel was very modern, but as a nation proud of its history, you often saw evidence of this through huge ancient Egyptian monuments that scatter randomly about the capital. The standout though has to be seeing the Pyramids for the first time. It is awesome to see the size and precision of them & again it makes you understand why they are referred to as one of the Seven Wonders of the World.
Arriving later that day in Cyprus, I was collected at the airport by my good friend & old riding buddy Manni Gaganis. With sunny weather all year round, friendly locals & perfect Mediterranean beaches, Cyprus is an amazing place to visit. He was kind enough to let me crash at his pimped out bachelor pad while we did a couple days of travelling, chilling & shooting some riding photos. Pics never give the places the credit they deserve, but shooting some flatland photos at a several thousand year old Roman amphitheatre is definitely a highlight of my riding career. Who said BMX won’t take you anywhere?
Next stop on the calendar is the Summer Gypsy Games in Hungary… stay tuned!
Yo yo !!
Plastic Flatland Pegs…
Here are the first peaks of our yet to be named, Plastic Flatland pegs we have in the developmental stages. We have been working on these for a while now & thought we should get the word out about them.
They are CNC machined from high density plastic & are extremely light at 75 grams each yet also very durable. They will come in either 10mm or 14mm versions & in black only at this stage.
Expect to see Shane Badman & Simon O’Brien riding them very soon. They will be out early 2009.
Yo yo !!
More from Shane in Egypt
Just recently I decided to take a day trip to the inland city of Luxor on the bank of the Nile, about 4 hours from where I currently live in Hurghada. Through a friend of a friend, I managed to get a hook-up for a driver to take me there and back for a decent price and meant that I wouldn’t have to survive the tourist buses for the day! My plan was to visit some of the ancient temples and also the Valley of the Kings – an ancient burial site for Egyptian Kings from roughly 2,500 years ago.
Egypt has a lot of similarities with Australia: they both have perfect sunshine all year round, good beaches and same type of desert landscape that continues forever. The culture is hugely different, Egypt being one of the oldest cultures/civilizations on the planet. The Valley of the Kings is immense & visiting the tombs gives you a good idea of how together the ancient Egyptians were with the story of the dead King drawn in hieroglyphs that you can still see today. Makes you wonder if anything that humans create now will still be around in 2500 years time??
From the Valley of the Kings, I drove out to visit a few other sites including Al-Bahir Temple and the Colossi of Memnon that were built about 3400 years ago. Huge and awesome, all of it built without the technology that we use today & photos never do things like this justice. The city of Luxor is constantly busy, but without all the tourists that Hurghada has so it does feel a little more “Egyptian”. Markets and Bazaars everywhere, you can buy pretty much anything you want for very little.
The trip home was uneventful, my driver constantly beeping and yelling at other drivers in Arabic and dodging the various herds of goats that are being moved along by their Bedouin shepherds. I’m hoping to next visit the pyramids in the coming weeks so stay tuned…
Talk to you soon,
Shane.
Yo yo !!
More 2009 products
New for 2009 will be our first flatland stem (or could even be used by those who like a shorter reach stem for street/ramp). It’s called the T.L.D stem (Top Load Device) & will be made from 6061T6 alloy. It will have a 35mm reach & a weight of around 220 grams.
Expect it to be available everywhere in November this year. We will release more details closer to this time.
Yo yo !!
Cube flatland frame update
Shane Badman’s signature flatland frame is getting closer to reality. Here is one that my friend Ross Lavender, is in the process of building up. It wont come in this colour but it looks pretty fresh. Ross did the powder coating himself at Lewis & Sons Powder Coating.
In Shane news… he is about to make the move to Egypt to live & will have a job doing shows on a daily basis on some luxury resort. Sounds pretty good to me.
Yo yo !!
More new products for 2009
Here are the first concepts of our first flatland stem. This is so new that we haven’t even named it yet. It’s CNC’d from 6061T6 alloy & will come with the front 4 bolts hollow with the rear two solid. It gives the ride height of a top load stem but with the easy access of a front loader due to its angled front plate design. Expect it to be very light of course & of excellent quality.
It wont be available until at least late this year but both Simon & Shane will be testing it soon enough. I guess you could even use this stem for street/park as well for those that like a shorter reach stem?
Yo yo !!
Cube update…
Here are some sneak peaks of the final sample 2009 Cube frame straight off the production lines. This picture was taken before the frame was sent over for it’s full post heat treatment. Expect these to be available in August this year in either 18.0″ or 18.85″ top tube lengths.
Word has it that the mastermind behind the Cube, Shane Badman, is headed for Egypt to live for 6 months or so. Should be a welcome change in weather conditions from the cold winter he has endured in Europe.
Yo yo !!
Shane Badman Interview
There is a cool interview with Shane Badman in the latest issue of the online magazine, Love BMX from the Czech Republic. Check it out here.
Yo yo !!
Shane Badman’s, The Cube.
Press release from Shane Badman on the Global Flat website… also check out Flatland Australia’s website too.
I joined the Colony team in October 2007 and was given the honour and opportunity to design my own frame. I put together all the things that have worked for me over the years into a design and with help from Clint Millar at Colony, “The Cube” was born. I´ve been testing it since October to now and it has been perfect in every way. It´s light, strong and fully functional. I´m riding the 18.85″TT model, but other options will be available come mid 2008. With Simon having just joined the team, together we will be designing pegs, sprocket, 2 piece cranks, stem and a flatland specific pivotal seat & post combo along with Simon´s signature bars.
A short promo video for my frame, “The Cube” can be found here
Yo yo !!
