Kyle Cowling from Vurbmoto.com just released this little gem of one of my favorite riders-Brody Wilson. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_A7AkwJYj4&feature=player_embedded
Brody is one of the future legends of FMX if he keeps on his current track!
ARF Offers FREE MEDJET…
THE ATHLETE RECOVERY FUND OFFERS FREE MEDJET MEMBERSHIP
The Athlete Recovery Fund (ARF) began over three years ago with the mission to assist professionals in BMX, Skate and FMX with financial support with the costs that insurance does not cover after a severe injury.
In that time we have learned a ton of information that had to be experienced not taught. Medjet is a membership program that arranges “hospital of choice” medical evacuation and repatriation during personal and business travel – both domestically and abroad. There are zero restrictions for professional athletes and adventure-related activities – likewise no costs to a member for Medjet services in time of need. . As athletes travel all over the world for competition and demos ending up in a hospital that doesn’t live up to the care they expect at home can be a terrifying issue.
The support that ARF has received from the athletes who donate through their prize purse at the Dew Tour, event organizers who donate cash and offer areas for activation and awareness, the brands in action sports who have donated and the public support is pushing ARF towards our long term goals.
ARF is offering an opportunity to 100 pro’s in BMX, Skate and FMX a free one year membership to Medjet. A basic application needs to be filled out at www.athleterecoveryfund.com and the free membership is on a first come first serve basis for those who qualify as a professional. There are no health questions for membership. The benefits include domestic and international medical transfer, translation services, transport of a non/injured family member or business associate with member, commercial and private transport options, legal referrals and much more.
Some exciting fundraising opportunities we are working on now include Hard Rock Hotel & Casino donating $1 for every Monster Energy purchased from the Dew Tour in October up until Nov. 13th, a collaboration effort with DC shoes set to release summer of 2012, and our third annual viral video drive to raise $100,000 thanks to Ball Park all you have to do is watch the video at www.supportARF.com.
If you are a professional (paid) athlete in BMX, FMX or Skateboarding do not hesitate. Apply today at www.athleterecoveryfund.com and select the button for Medjet Application. All applications will be verified for legitimacy and you will be notified once we hit the first 100.
Additional memberships will be available at the expense of the member under the discounted ARF group rate.
Continued support is crucial as athletes are much better off now than when we started but we have much to overcome still.
Athlete Recovery Fund Mission Statement: To provide professional athletes in BMX, FMX and Skateboarding with financial support after a severe injury and granting funds for rehabilitation, equipment, long-term disability and educational scholarships.
General Tire Moto Report
Still all quiet mostly around the moto world. Teams are testing, Nuclear Cowboyz are ready to rehearse and most of the industry is hunkered down getting ready for 2012. There is no rest in this business!
The Athlete Recovery Fund, founded by former BMX pro Alistair Cooke, has just announced that it has purchased 100 memberships to Med-Jet International Medevac Coverage. It is offering these up to action sport athletes on e a first come first served basis for only $175 a year- a $50 savings over the normal rate! For more info go to the Athlete Recovery Fund and get all the details. Look for more insurance options for action sports competitors to come soon!
The R.A.D. Awards are right around the corner and Lance Coury, Rich Kearns and Kyle Cowling are nominated for “Sickest Viral Video”and they need your help to win! Peep the video here Sickest Viral Video then head over here to vote for the win! Caution to snow bound riders- this will make you want to ride very badly!!
Metal Mulisha shredder, Derek Garland, loaded his beard and running shoes up and went to Sin City to participate in the Las Vegas Rock ‘n Roll Marathon last week. He ran the 1/2 in momory of his buddy Jeff “Ox” Kargola and finished in a time of 3:55:36! Runners don’t really run against each other for place, but against thier “PR” or personal record. This was Derek’s first half marathon so this is his
new PR! Nice job Brother!
The Nuclear Cowboyz are setting up the stages in an arena in Florida to get ready for rehearsals. The tour starts in 2012 and look for some updates from rehearsals, updates from the riders and a look at thier schedule coming in the next few weeks. Go to www.Nuclearcowboyz.com right now if you can’t wait and get your tickets quick. It’s an awesome show (seen it three times) and I know as word gets out, it will start to sell out!
FMX is still working hard over in Europe where they don’t have to compete with Thanksgiving Holiday dollars and they can get riders signed on who are usually busy. Last weekend the show featured Remi Bizouard, Petr Pilat, Dustin Miller, Blake Williams, and Scott Murray on double flip duty. The site is in Polish- but I do know that 12 year old phenom-Cesak Matej- came out and jumped. Doing my research now- follow that name. You can do it the easy way and just look at pictures from Ricky Monti and EXPN and pretend you were there and understand the Polish language!
Other little tid’s
-Drake McElroy is going to be talking about and showing some of his custom one off bikes on Drakes Passage on FuelTV- watch every episode so I don’t have to tell you which one. You won’t be dissapointed. Drake and I talked a little about vintage customs a while back and he knows his stuff-so your Dad might be interested too.
-You can still pick up Jim McNeil Memorabilia like shirts and stickers at www.mcneilapparel.com I just got my shirt yesterday and it not only is a great way to show my support for a buddy- its a nice shirt too! REMEMBER-this is the only official outlet (and the stores listed on thier site) and any others you find are fakes.
-Do you ride a mountain bike or run/cycle for fitness? If you do, you probably need good socks to keep blisters and moisture away. Those can get pricey but NLZWear.com (www.nlzwear.com) has awesome socks in plain and cool designs for really cheap. I picked up a few sets the other day and after one ride found they are just as comfy as my socks that cost twice as much. Full review coming soon. If you go- tell them Freestylemx.com sent you.
-Jeremy “Twitch” Stenberg stepped up to the plate and recognized his roots by holding an Amatuer FMX Contest on December 18th at Pala Raceway. he picked up where the AFMXA left off and we plan to be on hand.
General Tire Grabber Moto Report
General Tire makes tires for champions and they make a tire for you. From asphalt gripping performance tires to dirt eating off road tires to the commercial hauler you carry it all in, General has you covered. Visit them at www.generaltire.com to pick yours today and see the huge success from Baja 1000 this year!
Welcome back to another weekly kickoff here at Freestylemx.com-You New Source For News in the New Moto Era. Today we launch the “General Tire Unleash The Fury” report which will replace the Brraap Up! Report and get you the grip on all the haps out there. I want to personally thank them for all of their support this year. We run the Continental’s (owner of GT) on the motor coaches, General Tires on our ramp trailers and hauler trailers, GT’s on all of our vans and even have been sporting Conti’s on the dirt scooters too. Heck- Marc Burnett beats the hell out of their off road stuff all around Baja in his Class 6 Ford Truck. We did over 175,000 miles on all of our Generals this year- what will you get?
I hope your Thanksgiving was good and you were able to be like everyone else and get a jump start on shopping with Black Friday. Jay Schweitzer of Powerband Films had plans on his new vid “Black Friday” featuring tons of FMX from the Metal Mulisha and more being ready to go for you to stuff stockings with, but some snafus with crooks put him behind. I plan on finding out how things are going and when it will be available-but judging from some buzz- it will be really soon!! Here is a fine little teaser from the cool kids at Transworld MX- BLACK FRIDAY
Speaking of videos, at some point in your life you probably have made a little vid of you or your buds, edited and added some music and shared with the world on You Tube. Did you know that you may have committed a serious crime? Okay- how serious is really up for debate, but the SOPA (Stop Online Piracy Act) is going to provide us an answer soon. Seems the hitch is making money. EXPN has a pretty interesting take on this over HERE and I can pretty much bet I will be writing about this in the future if it looks like it will affect the “hobbyist” world of vids.
Endurocross wrapped up for the year and Taddy Blazusiak mopped up the series and proved once again his prowess in the gnar is pretty much unbeatable when he is on his game. In 2011, Taddy has become the AMA Endurocross Champion for the third straight time by winning all rounds, won X Games 17 Endurocross Gold, won the Euro indoor enduro series and winning Erzberg which is considered one of the toughest outdoor enduro races in the world. Probably not surprising is the fact that he did it all on a Factory KTM, which has been a leader in off road motorcycle racing since the seventies with Penton. What might be surprising? He did do it on KTM’s 350SX after Taddy said the two smoker was developed out as far as she would go. Those are interesting words as it appears the four stroke is now moving into another favorite spot of two stroke technology where light weight and agility is important.
Javier Villegas Indy Flip
In FMX news- The Night of the Jumps took flight again for two nights/rounds in Poland last weekend with Remi Bizouard on the hunt for series leader Javier Villegas. Both riders qualified with 370 points to lead the field, but Remi was able to keep Javier at bay both nights to take the wins and cut the championship points deficit to 17 with one round remaining. Final round is December 17th in Sofia, Austria where the champion will be crowned. Look for some insight from Javier as we try to find out what he has planned to make sure the overall goes to him in 2011!
Want to win some cool gear and look like Nate Adams or Justin Brayton? Well now is your chance and all you have to do is take a pic that is moto related and send it in for voting. MotoSport.com and One Industries have joined forces to give some nice stuff away. Our frineds at Racer X have the LINKS
Now looking at the weather- lots of you east of the Mississippi River are not riding this week, and probably not next either! What to do-WHAT TO DO!!!!??? Watch these vids that were sent over by our own fitness jack Patrick Schooler to stay in the MOOD! This is the last episode- but watch the others too!
That’s it for this Monday- got some more? Need everyone to know? Send it to me here!
Letter Bag
FROM THE FREESTYLEMX.COM MAILROOM…
From Sila in Oregon-Im turning 14 and since I saw your tour at Lane County Fair, I’ve gotten into freestyle mx. All I want to know is how much it costs and if its possible. Thanks.
Hi Sila-
Glad you caught the show in Eugene, Oregon- I really hope we go back soon because the shows and fans are awesome there! Riding Freestyle is a blast and here is how you do it.
It costs some money to ride safely. Safe is the key word because it costs a LOT MORE to do it unsafely! Okay-assuming you know how to ride decently and are ready to get a bike that can handle FMX you can spend around $3000 for a clean and reliable machine. If you don’t have a quality and good condition helmet, boots and gloves you will need those too. Then you have to ride and ride and ride and ride. All that practice makes you good, which makes you safe, which means you don’t fall and break stuff that costs more money all the time. But it also costs to maintain your bike, buy gas and parts, and the time you will spend taking care of it all and earning the money.
But if you are smart-you can save lots of money. Make good friends at the local motorcycle shop, maybe offer to sweep floors and clean for parts or gear. A good relationship with your shop saves $$. Buy used bikes and gear, take care of what you do have and think before you act. I know your parents probably told you all this in relation to school or your chores-but I hate to say it, they are right and it will always be the ones who work the hardest and smartest will go the furthest!
Thanks for the question and Happy Holidays from Freestylemx.com!!
Monster Energy Kawasaki Explodes!!
Unit Rider and Austrailian BMX getter, Dane Searls, remains in a coma after seriously injuring himself jumping froma balcony to a pool. Unit Riders helped create a fund to help out with the costs of recovery. Unit is pretty big in the southern seas and sponsor US rider Brody Wilson among others.
Watch Ryan Villopoto’s Monster Energy KX450F Kawasaki blow apart in this video courtesty of ESPN The Magazine.
Jeff Ward Racing has chosen Josh Grant to pilot thier Kawasaki KX450F in 2012 for both AMA SX and MX. More here courtesy of Racer X Online.
FMX and Speed and Style expert Mike Mason got a little love from Bel-Ray Lubricants according to his Twitter. Nice to see companies support FMX right now.
Do you like words? How about digital media? Good with them? Like and know a lot about BMX? Call these guys- they need YOUR HELP.
Enjoy Thanksgiving, and drop in here every now and then through the weekend. We all need a place to get away right? In Law Saf Haven right here! Follow us on Twitter and Facebook and let us know if you are riding or racing and where!
AMA Supercross 2012 TV Package Announced.
AMA Supercross 2012 TV Package Announced. Read about it at www.supercrossonline.com and set your DVR’s!!
Brraap Up Report! 11-21-2011
Gobble Gobble Gobble!!
Typically this time of year gets a little slower in the moto news department. FMX is all but shuttered for the season with the exception of Nuclear Cowboyz rehearsals. Moto has riders recovering from off season surgeries, seating in to new teams at private test facilities and getting fit for 2012. Add in Thanksgiving this week and everyone is going under the radar.
Not Bryce Hudson though. The FMX upstart has been flying high and the industry is taking notice. I just talked to him this morning and he told me about the new deal he just inked with One Industries. “They said they saw some footage of me, heard good things and we put a deal together” says Bryce who rides a KTM 250SX and just snatched up a KTM 350 four stroker for FMX. “It’s a gear deal but they also do 661 and Sunline so I am getting some parts support and grpahics too”. Bryce has really started to make waves in the last half of the 2011 season and that played a key part in getting this deal . Look for more from Bryce later this week.
In Europe FMX is still in full swing with Night of the Jumps just finishing up a stop in Ostrava, Austria this past weekend. Javier Villegas, who leads the series points with 156 leaving going into Poland this weekend, finished second to Remi Bizouard who now sits second in points with 135. Remi used an old school Sideshow to Side Saddle Lander and some new trickery in the One Hand Hart Attack Flip to beat Javi by ten points on the night. There are three rounds remaining and the title is not won yet. You would be surprised who does not know this, but Europeans don’t celebrate Thanksgiving Day so they do FMX instead. The Night of the Jumps rolls into Poland for two nights this weekend then to the final stop on December 17th in Bulgaria.
"Is that enough look through for you judges?"
Chad Reed won his first race weekend after ten weeks off in Genoa, Italy Supercross this past weekend. The Honda mounted Two-Two Motorsports owner/operator beat out Team Geico Honda’s Justin Barcia who has been pocketing some nice holiday spending money overseas this fall.
The Baja 1000 was this weekend closing out the Score International Off Road Racing Series for 2011 too. The Pro Bike class was tight on the podium with the finishers within about 16 minutes of each other-which is pretty tight considering 650+ miles and 14 and some change hours racing!
Pro Motorcycles
1. Kendall Norman, Santa Barbara, Calif./Quinn Cody, Los Olivos, Calif./Logan Holladay, Buellton, Calif., Honda CRF450X, 14:14:25 (49.51 mph) (Class 22)
2. Shane Esposito, Lake Elsinore, Calif./Robby Bell, Menifee, Calif./Steve Hengeveld, Flagstaff, Ariz./Bobby Garrison, Hesperia, Calif./David Pearson, Panaca, Nev., Kawasaki, KX450F, 14:24:55 (48.91 mph) (Class 22)
3. Colton Udall, San Clemente, Calif./David Kamo, Caldwell, Idaho/Timmy Weigand, Valencia, Calif., Honda CRF450X, 14:31:10 (48.56 mph) (Class 22)
On the industry side of the house: Skullcandy, maker of bitchen’ gifts for your ears is suing a company who is infringing on the Skullcandy logo. Read more here.
Saddle Up!!
Well unless you live under your tool bench, and you have no internet in your shop you know that legendary FMX rider Jim McNeil passed away while riding on November 6th, 2011. Yesterday was his funeral service here is Phoenix, Arizona and I wanted to thank all the people who came out to celebrate Jim’s life and accomplishments. This wasn’t a “celebrity” event that the funeral goer’s attended because it was the place to be. Nearly everyone who came was there because Jim had affected them in some way, and many more of you were there in spirit-so thanks.
But the title of today’s article is referring to getting back on the horse that bucked you off and giving it hell again-so that is what we do. Lots of stuff going on for the off season I got to say. Baja 1000 is this weekend, the silly season of Supercross and Motocross is on like Donkey Kong and manufacturers are starting to roll out the new goodies just in time for old St. Nick to come berm blasting your chimney this year. Out of the gate and shifting into second….
First a quick shout to our mates on the gate over at EXPN.com- Leyba has assembled a formidable army of scribes that have been getting some coverage of late, the latest being the “Official, official” retirement of Greg Hartman after his big get off in China last year. Hate to see Greg stop riding, but I am pretty sure we have not seen the last of Greg. Peep that here EXPN
Heading over the AMA land and the upcoming Super and Moto Cross seasons, looks like all the major players have a seat and will spend the holidays getting fat, working it off, getting fat again, working it off, getting the bike ready then its Anaheim and the Supercross opener on January 7th. You can head over to SILLY and read what they know and then make your preliminary picks for the year.
My take on a few of the choices? Monster Energy Kawasaki is the one to beat. They are on known equipment, with known riders, with current Numero Uno’s on a couple bikes under the tent- with health and a little luck-champions again. Who is going to challenge them? Indoors will be Chad Reed on the Two-Two Motorsports team and he will be on the red bikes again-so most of his prep will be physical and mental. Trey Canard is back on the Honda factory effort and should be quick too. Struggling in 2012? KTM-I love the great pumpkins, owned a couple once, but even with Ryan Dungey on board, wins will be few and far between this year. I hope I eat my words because Dungey has finally started to grow on me as a rider, but this year will be a development year for him. If anyone can put the KTM on the top of the box next Miss Supercross this year it will be the hardest working man in MX. James Stewart will struggle. Many say he will be fine going back to a familiar ride in the Yamaha, but this time it is with a new team (Joe Gibbs Racing-JGR) and after a whole year off. We’ll see!
Red Bull is up to the end of year hi-jinx again- here is a vid to get you all hot and bothered for New Years NO LIMITS.
The Baja 1000 takes place this weekend in Mexico and caps the 2011 SCORE season. Our own Marc Burnett is running in Class 6 and is in line to snag the class championship in his Monster Energy-General Tire Ford and will solo drive the entire distance with a freshly broken collarbone. Good luck Buddy! On the bikes Kendall Norman, Santa Barbara, California and Quinn Cody, Buellton, California on the No. 1x JCR Honda Racing Honda CRF450X will attempt to defend their overall from last year.
That’s about all for now- keep up to date with the motorsports players on our Twitter feed @freestylemx where we sort through the crap to bring you the best.
-Cory Stem
Jim McNeil Funeral Service Details
Jim McNeil’s funeral service will be held on Wednesday November 16th, 2011 at CCv-Christ’s Church of the Valley. The address is 7007 W. Happy Valley Rd. Peoria, AZ 85382 from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. All friends and family are welcome. Please share this information with those who may find it useful. Thank You
