VOD on Pinkbike today is of Justin on his blackmarket killswitch filming out in Kamloops and Kelowna BC. If anyone reading this is ever coming to BC look at your airport on the map, most likely Vancouver international, and plan a road trip to the Okanogan. It’s not all about Whistler, the valley has 2 lift access hills Silverstar/Vernon and SunPeaks/Kamloops. This video shows only the Kamloops bike park on Rose hill but the terrain is diverse and fast, you’ll be in awe if you go and you can still squeeze in Whistler if you backtrack through Pemberton to Whistler on the back roads.
Casey Groves has discovered Pilsner in this video, by next year he will be either killing it on the bike or that guy hanging in the park with his shades on. Nah he’ll be killing it as usual.
I found this shot on the web and I cannot believe the ingenuity and progression displayed before me. All jokes aside this is is an epic display of what can be done when you put your mind to it.!
And lots of progression this Canada Long weekend weekend on the bike as well! I spent Canada day up in Whistler at the Camp of Champions and was in awe at what I saw. Montgomery pulled a 360 body varial he dubbed the California roll and now everyone who wasn’t there is debating if it was the first but rest assure it is the first on a 26.
Here was my angle of it all…
I wish that I caught it on film but Greg was hitting the jumps with his hands backwards on the bars… wrist out. When I asked him why he is riding like that he just said “I’m bored”! He went through most of his tricks like that and landed everyone
This film is by Eric Peterson of Faultline, he is getting all the camp footage and carnage as it happens.
I’ll caption this shot for everyone… “My name is Mike and I just did a California Roll, WTF have you done?”
Camp coach and Straitline factory rider Alan Hepburn
Alan again but this time he’s spicing it up on his Unicycle.
Camp coach and Straitline Factory rider Jack Folgelquist was right behind Alan throwing tricks.
Jack smiles a lot and if you watch him mid air he is perma grin.
Watts, Hepburn, Montgomery, Dyer, Cho Cho and Ryan Berrecloth somewhere out of frame. Mr Groves had to leave for Goatstyle, in fact everyone is heading to Goatstyle next week to earn a spot at Crankworks.
The man behind it all Ken Achenbach. He owns a backcountry cat skiing firm and runs a SKI/BOARD/BIKE camp in the summer aka my new BFF.
Found this thread and Kens response to player haters after viewing the video below. Sums it up pretty good.
“It's pretty classic how every thinks you get "Sent" to COC. Kids actually beg all year to come to camp and when they get here they ride from sun up to sun down because it's their dream to come to camp. It's why we work so hard to make every day absolutely insane. Coming from a single parent family without two cents to rub together I know how hard everyone works for the money that camp costs, whether you are rich or poor. It's my dream to enable people to ride in an amazing place, ride amazing bikes and meet amazing people and make friends with them. Give them the opportunity that I never had. So I can understand the "F that 2 grand" I can also understand the "I want that and I will do whatever I have to do to come to camp." I collected bottles, shoveled snow, and mowed lawns to get the things I wanted. Things taste the best when you work for it and 99% of the kids that come to camp work for it. Be it getting good grades, doing chores or slaving as a dishpig. That's why camp is so fun. Everyone here wants to be here. I'd kill myself if I ran a camp where people get "Sent" We teach riders to Send It! Bored kids go to the mall. Smart kids go biking. Ken”
Straitline Factory riders Alan Hepburn, Casey Groves and Jack Folgelquist doing some evening sessions at the Camp of Champions compound after a day on the hill.
I am heading up to Whistler this Friday, sadly missing Hepburn and Casey who are off to the Goatstyle comp in Creston but Jack will be there and so will the jumbo 365 stunt bag!! I am out of my air cast but I am thinking about putting it back on just to experience that airbag, too cool to be true.
Ps… the Freeride bc bike park in North Saanich is open and ready for summer.
I was talking to Eric Peterson of Faultine today and checked out his website where I saw a refreshing video from this summer in Whistler of the Spaniard, Xavier Raventos or “CHO CHO” for short!
This kid is REDONKULOUSLY fast and he uses our Straitline levers and pedals for what they were designed for… Whistler runs!
The rest of these videos are from Eric as well, I had him send me all his summer links from Camp of Champions since he documented the entire summer up on the slopes who else can supply proper “Ode to Whistler” vids in a pinch!
Camp A
Camp B
Camp C
Camp D
Gereth Dyer - Air Dome
Casey Groves - Snakes the Boneyard weeks before Crankworxs
And possibly the most important video Faultine has and will ever make… The Straitline Bear Bell Public Service announcement!
Not shot in Whistler at all I just look for excuses to tie this video in, it was done on a very generous budget of $60 dollars in Guerillabear suits and Eric worked for Break Levers and world wide fame!
For all of you who just hear about BC and our beautiful surroundings check out this guys photo blog I found on BC and a bit of Alaska- close enough! And after visiting Europe where they have cut all the trees and eaten all the animals I can understand why people get so excited seeing a whale or a bear, BC is pretty sick place to live and ride but not the best, plenty of places in the Alps that will make your jaw drop!
Know a little plug for our little know Bike park www.freeridebc.blogspot.com we have been hiding it until it has fully completed so that people see it and go WTF? We just secured a fund raising grant from The Rotary club along with a few municipal awards for bridging community health with such a ambitious project! So we will make a announcement in the Spring inviting all levels from Pro DJ riders to Olympic XC hopefulls to coem and ride it for free!
We have been involved with Camp of Champions since pretty much their first Season opening their bike camps. I spend more time on Skype laughing then I do getting anything done business wise with these guys, just take a look above at this years t-shirt design!
We are involved with the camp for one reason… an excuse to go to whistler more often! If I had a second reason it would be because it is just all about fun and riding a bike. No attitude or lame attempt to push a coolness factor, everyone is just hanging out with no agenda but to ride.
Eric Peterson, the man behind our April fool prank videos now hangs with camp all summer capturing the vibe, take a look.
Bonus factor to camp is that our factory riders, Casey Groves –Transition Bikes- and Alan Hepburn- Banshee Bikes are coaches alongside head coach Gareth Dyer so the kids get to watch pro slope style riders in the air dome and on the trails with them.
But it isn’t just for kids… If you look at the size of their ski and snowboard camps you get the idea of where the bike division is going, and if you are attending Crankworks this year it is going to be hard to miss COC and Straitline because we got something brewing…
Count how many time Ken says Adult week of Camp of Champions in that video… lol.
I just got back from Whistler and hanging out with Camp of Champions where Casey Groves is a coach along with our Aussy phenom Alan Hepburn!
The camp is sick, there is no point hyping it up with words but when you get there they have a 40 ft half pipe inside a tent with Redbull providing the beats on the outside it is over the top.
Eric Peterson of Faultline Media is now the Camps videographer, you may know of him from our last April fools prank, the epic classic “Bear Bells” video.
Eric sent us this snippet of Casey Previewing the upper course of the 09 krankworks course.
Some of you may know we have been involved with Camp of Champions since they started their Bike division but what few may not know is the other half of COC.
Besides being the funniest guys out there who honeslty do not give a shit, they have their own private glacier at Whistler! I don't even have a private parking stall yet WTF?
You have to check this snowboarding video out to get real grasp at what the camp is all about, skiing biking boarding you can do it all in one day!
Okay today is Friday! And on Fridays, I am not an all star in the office, I tend to twirl in my chair or wander the floor asking the guys, "what's that?", "Did you make it?", "What are we doing for lunch?", "Dennis, why don't people put helium in their tubes instead of air?" and that is a very good question I know.
So I sent Jay and Keith at Banshee a sick shot of our boy yesterday Alan Hepburn testing the new drop at the Whistler air dome. Jay is so motivated and fast he already blogged it better than I could ever do. So why even try.
And I avoided yet another task! Learn from me and have others do the work for you kids!
And no, Straitline does not support or condone this following message but we do have a sense of humour and are still laughing! Send your hate mail if you must.
Picture that's me on a Friday and behind me is Jay! Changing the title to Banshee would be better!
