The Razor's Edge

[Wingnut]

Many ski resorts allow mountain bikers to ride down the slopes during the summer... some of it is challenging terrain too! My friends rode down Mammoth Mountain in Kalifornia, but I wasn't with 'em when that happened. We used to ride down local mountains and even some crazy steep streets on our bikes... I'm talking about freeway speed, but on narrow streets like Hillside Drive on Mt. Soledad in La Jolla, lol. We'd use my VW Bus (middle seat removed) to haul bikes back to the top and ride again... we also took turns as VW driver so everybody got to ride, lol.

Edit: These downhill bikes were tricked-out cruisers with 26" wheels, not the standard BMX circus bikes, lol.

 

[Wingnut]

I've been watching those videos, and they bring back so many good memories! I was thinking of that canyon jump I made, and I reckon it was closer to 20' in length... no lie, I am NOT exaggerating here, someday I'll make a sketch of the whole jump, as it was fairly complex. We had already dug a deep 180* berm into the embankment, like half of a vertical bowl, right? Then I noticed the nearby log, which was actually a utility pole used as a barrier between the dirt parking lot above and the embankment and bayside beach below. It was a big pole too, like 16" or more in diameter, so we built a launch ramp against that heavy log or pole... the launch ramp was set back from the edge of the embankment by a yard or so, then ya had to soar across the deep canyon berm and land on the far slope. It was crazy, and even Gene Galasso, a good rider in his own right, chickened out at first, lol. Later he pulled it off, but that yawning chasm below was kinda scary, lol.

Anyway, it's good to see some youngsters riding today and pulling off amazing stunts... that freestyle video was really good too, the footwork is INCREDIBLE! We did some freestyle riding, but we were more into track riding and vertical... we'd ride our bikes & boards in the old school skateparks after they shut down, which was heaps of fun! Some parks allowed BMX riders when the parks were still open, as long as each rider wore helmet and pads... I remember seeing good BMX riders do foot-plants on the 4' chain-link fence above the halfpipe at the Del Mar Skate Ranch, soaring high before dropping clear into the halfpipe and landing on the transition below. That was a smooth halfpipe too, no major kinks to avoid, lol. Anyway, it's almost time for me to go water, I'll be back later to plague y'all, lol. BTW, I'm gonna post more BMX and freestyle BMX videos in this thread later, we'll mix it up with various extreme sports so things don't get dull, lol. Cheers!!!
P.S. Here's another aspect of early skateboarding & BMX which modern riders don't always have to face, lol...

 

[Wingnut]

Observation: some of those crazy Parkour fools would probably make good cat burglars... no rope required!

The big question is: could they jump with a bag of loot, or perhaps a TV under one arm?

Better stick to the small stuff, like gems, currency & credit cards, lol...

 

[Wingnut]

Ya know, Bacpacker, seeing some of the crazy stuff these youngsters are doing nowadays, I can't help but think that we'd probably kill ourselves trying it, lol... that's one good thing about the Internet, we can now vicariously enjoy the ride without feeling the pain, aye? I know you & I have experienced our share of painful wipeouts, but some of the tricks and stunts these youngsters are pulling off are truly amazing. Of course, I like it best when they include some wipeout shots to keep things real, lol. Kinda like with the skate videos: sometimes they'll work on one trick all day just to get a clean film sequence of the maneuver, the rider taking a beating up unto that point, lol... better him than me!

P.S. With some of those crazy building drop-offs (similar to Baja drop-offs but from buildings, lol), ya gotta figure the neighbors called the cops, 10-4? Maybe they did, lol... "DAMN KIDS!!!"

 

[Bacpacker]

I wasn't into tricks and stunts. We mostly rode Enduro and motocross. Ridin hard thru the woods has its own risk.
So does tryin to jump a large creek feeding a lake when the lake was drawn down for winter. Stories for another day

 

[montanabill]

Here's some exceptionalism by a regular person driven to excel.

Iron Butt Rally champion Wendy Crockett, 13,000 miles in 11 days​

https://blog.motorcycle.com/2019/07...-becomes-first-female-iron-butt-rally-winner/

 

[Wingnut]

With all the hot weather, I reckon a surfing video will help y'all cool off, lol...

Big Wave Surfing

As a skateboarder, I always liked Olympic bobsledding, especially those turns where the riders get vertical!

Bobsled Video #1

Here's another video with a 4-man bobsled, these guys get vertical BIG-TIME, lol...

Bobsled Video #2

Dunno how many folks have actually died while bobsledding, but I'm sure a few have been injured or possibly killed...

Hey, they're wearing helmets, so the videos qualify for this thread, lol... enjoy the action, I'm ready for another cold one!

Edit: That surfing video was so enjoyable, I dug up another, lol... there's some overlap in these surfing videos, but this second one has some good riding too, so I'm tossing it into the mix, aye?

Big Wave Surfing #2

Those tow-in ski operators who also act as rescue personnel, their job can be dicey as well... as y'all can see in this second video, lol. A dangerous job, with so many tons of water involved! Better be quick on the throttle, lol.

 

[Chesney Richardson]

Somewhere I have a video of my husband riding the roller thing for a trash can down a big a** hill in town....was hilarious

 

[Wingnut]

I've seen those trash bin races... might have been on a 'Crusty Demons of Dirt' video, lol. On a steep enough hill, those bins will roll (and slide) pretty fast!

 

[Chesney Richardson]

I've seen those trash bin races... might have been on a 'Crusty Demons of Dirt' video, lol. On a steep enough hill, those bins will roll (and slide) pretty fast!

Yeah lol but I was talking about this thing

 

[Wingnut]

Oh, okay... did he drag an oar for steering?

P.S. Those trash bin races were still pretty funny...

 

[Wingnut]

Hey, Bacpacker! Check out these videos! I actually found 'em while searching for the stupid 'Pina Colada' song, go figure, lol... hey, at least I got SOMETHING outta that search, aye? I'm gonna mix those Pina Coladas here pronto, but first I'm gonna post these links before I get too hammered, lol. I'm not gonna wanna f#% with posting once I get a buzz on, and this way I can watch the videos again later, they were pretty cool the first time around!

Poaching San Francisco

114' Dam Jump

All that action stemmed from a search for the 'Pina Colada' song, lol... and who would've THUNK it?

TIME TO FIRE UP THE BLENDER & MIX THOSE PINA COLADAS!!! NY STRIPS LATER!!! WOOHOO!!!

 

[Wingnut]

Holy Colada!!! I've been watching those videos while savoring the Pina Coladas I made, they're pretty stiff but they're mighty tasty, lol... I just realized it's Friday, so my timing is good with the Pina Colada Par-tay Action! I get drunk enough, I might just hafta view the cheesed!ck tune video again and practice for my upcoming karaoke career, LOL...

"DO YOU LIKE PINA COLADAS?!?"

The cats will be scattering like cockroaches once I start singing, BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! A few well-placed BULLETS may help 'em gain speed, LOL. Dang, sometimes I slay myself... but this Pina Colada mix ain't bad! Probably has more calories than I really want, but then again, so does the rum, lol. That's right, alcohol actually has calories! Lol...

Where was I? Oh, yeah, Bacpacker, I hope you enjoy those videos, that Colby Raha (?) dude was born to ride, he has heaps of talent in the Freestyle MX department, lol. Funny how that entire crew in the 'Poaching' video would risk tickets or some jail time just to have fun... but it was no different in our day! When skateboarding & BMX were still CRIMES, lol.

That's one thing I've got over most of these youngsters today: I was riding vertical (boards & bikes) before those damn kids were even BORN, lol... granted, they're doing WAY MORE RADICAL $h!t than I ever did, but I'll always have that knowledge to bolster my confidence, aye? I still luv these kids for gettin' out there and DOIN' what they're doin', 10-4?

Oh, yeah, one last observation before I go watch some heller action flick on TV... I like how Colby (or whoever) stops on occasion to assess the potential for damage, lol. I liked that one line about "death if I case it!" What a classic comment, and you riders out there in cyberspace know exactly what I mean, lol. Sometimes ya gotta weigh the consequences...

ALRIGHT, YOUSE H&CL HEE-ROES, I'M OFF TO CAUSE TROUBLE ELSEWHERE... WISH ME LUCK!!!

Edit: Forgot to post shots of the Pina Colada action and the new batch of Hatch Chiles I bought today, WOOHOO!

AIN'T THEY PRETTY?!? THE PINA COLADA & THE HATCH CHILES?!? LOL... LIFE COULD BE WORSE!!!

 

[Bacpacker]

Hadnt got to watch the vids yet, but I'll catch them later. Too much crap to do right now. Enjoy that pina. Bet that'd taste pretty good bout right now.

 

[Wingnut]

I'm gonna watch those videos again, lol... "poaching" is the perfect name for setting up what are most assuredly illegal MX tricks & stunts, lol. In a way, the videos remind me of skateboarding videos... same illegality in most of the stunts.

P.S. Those Husqvarna 450s are SWEEEEEEEET!!!

 

[Wingnut]

Found a couple more Colby Raha videos, I like that kid, he has good riding style... and he draws good lines on whatever terrain he's riding, not always so easy to do. Check out these videos, including one of San Diego where Colby jumps the B Street Hill... I pulled that very same jump in my old Plymouth Arrow, blowing through the stop sign at speed and launching off the drop! That's a steep hill too! I was with a friend at the time, and we drove down that hill, then decided to go back up and make the jump, lol... we got major air in the car, some bum sitting against that chain-link fence at the bottom (righthand side) told us we got 10' OF AIR, ALL WHEELS, but maybe he was tanked on Thunderbird, lol. We flew pretty far down that hill too, and took a big bounce as well... but my hands were gripping the steering wheel hard, no loss of control on the jump. That ol' 5-speed Arrow was actually a pretty good rig, it had an excellent power-to-weight ratio... my brother added an aftermarket Weber Carburetor to it when he owned it, so it was like a little rocket, lol. A sleeper, that's for sure! Anyway, here are the two latest videos! Cheers!

Water Park

****

 

[Wingnut]

While I was looking for the Geico Caveman motorcycle ad, I noticed this video off to the side... might as well not waste it, lol, there are some really cool whips in this one!

Dirt Bikes In Skateparks/Oregon & Big Hill Jam

 

[Cascadian]

Oh I did something pretty hairy. I went all the way through the airport, got on the plane and ate my pretzels. The living on the edge part for me was forgetting to wash my hands.