Spring Training for the Dew Tour

If a tree falls in the forest and the press isn't there to cover it, does it make a sound?  Maybe, but it wouldn't matter as much. So when NBC set up a mock Dew Tour FMX course at Camp Woodward, they invited the press to cover it.  And it made a sound that will echo on tv, on the radio and in print around the world until it is muffled by the sound of stomping feet at the Kentucky Exposition Center in Louisville.  It’s been billed as “spring training,” but this isn’t baseball and these guys weren’t out to shed a few pounds tacked on during the off-season.  Some of the best riders got a piece of what is to come when they padded up and took to the sculpted rolling hills of Pennsylvania.  Wallrides, quarterpipes and hips aren't just for skateparks anymore.  These riders were out to ride some never been seen terrain and make 2006 the start of a whole new era in FMX competitions. 

 

 

New faces, new tricks and new courses are what keep the riding fresh and exciting.  But until FMX Parks catch on, special considerations and preparations are going to have to be made.  Throw a 13-foot tall dirt quarterpipe with hips in on both sides and a 30-foot-tall wallride on the arena floor for the season opening Dew Tour, and watch riders ignore them for the big jumps. Put it in a wide-open field with all the time they want to get used to it, and witness some crazy new BMX style lines. Kenny Bartram was obviously making the most out of the dirt quarterpipe and hip combo. He was overheard saying, "They could take out everything else on the course, and I'd still have a lot of fun just riding the hip.” He was witnessed doing some respectable airs out of the quarterpipe and over the hip on his 225 lb. bike.  Mike Metzger was trying out some new styles by jumping up the tabletop and then backflipping out of a step down lip. Metzger was also clearly one of the only riders used to the wallride, as he has his own at home in California. Metz was showing the others the lines on that new obstacle. Ailo Gaup and other pros are working their way to Woodward to break some new ground. Expect to see more technical lines and difficult runs on this year’s course.

Speaking of BMX style, Camp Woodward just happens to be home to pro vert riders Kevin Robinson, Chad Kagy, Tom Stober, Jamie Bestwick and John Parker.  Tom was in England for a contest and Jamie is recouping from neck surgery, but the rest of the crew put on a bit of a show and gave the press something to write about. Don't be surprised if you see a picture of an incredibly stretched variation or enormous air in the sports section of your local newspaper.  Kevin gave witness to a new style of huge carving 540's and showed that he is still on the double flair (double backflip 180) mission.  Chad Kagy can and will do flat spin 540 tailwhips.  Or is it a flat flair tailwhip?  Either way it is cutting edge and dangerous.  Super man seatgrab flairs?  We mentioned it here first!  Parker threw himself around with a few new decade and tailwhip variations and is still honing in the body varial before the season starts.  What other sport has the year-round ground breaking progression as BMX freestyle and FMX?  None.  Every contest is a step up.  

  

--Sophisticated Rider