Style 43

NASS 2007 has been and gone but what an absolute banger it proved to be! Despite certain external sources trying to convince me to go to a gig, I stuck to my impressively sized guns and picked up Mr. Jaime Garcia Smith at 1200 hours on Friday to begin the epic drive down to The Royal Bath and West Showground near Shepton Mallet in Somerset for a weekend’s tomfoolery.

To try to write an accurate account of just how much fun I had this weekend would take up many thousands of words, need many hundreds of photos and require me to re-enact certain situations and make certain noises in order for you to even begin to understand how loose everyone got, how big everyone went and how delicious Nando’s chicken is when all you’ve been eating is lolly pops and crisps.

So, just like when you can’t be arsed to do your homework properly and you do bullet points, I’m going to compile a nifty list of the good, the bad and the smelly to hopefully make you smile, wretch and be intrigued, all at once. A bit like watching old people kissing.

Hot Wheels - Chris and Johnny kept the smiles flowing all weekend. From Johnny’s jail-bait acquiring skills to Chris’s lethal rear end and everything between, these guys were on fire.

Jason Feelan - ‘’I am so fuckin’ derrrunnnkkkk‘’ could often be heard poring from the amiable Irishman’s mouth. Jason is one of the nicest people I’ve met in the bmx world, he is amazing on a bike (see WHAT YA LOOKIN AT? and SHOOK OVER THE POND for a mere insight into his riding) but doesn’t believe it and looked like he was actually enjoying riding the course, unlike many of the folks in pro. Watch this space for more on this shredder…

Sibling Rivalry - Watching Luke Marchant is always a treat, he goes big, is smooth and seems to be ego free. Watching his brother Jack is equally dope, so when you combine the two of them in the same competition and then the fact they both qualified and rode in the same group…that’s surely some historic stuff going on right there. Sibling rivalry is the best, and both rode like absolute beasts.

The Charlatans - Since first appearing on the John Peel Show on Radio 1 way back in 1990, The Charlatans have always been able to hold their own, and were catapulted in the Brit Pop era of the mid nineties. A decade on from this, and they are still an absolute treat to see live, and I was lucky enough to be right at the very front.

Ride BMX - Having done work experience a few years ago, it was nice to see ‘em all again and to hear they had fond memories of me. They were also really positive about the site which was a real boost coming from people I have so much respect for. Tim March is a legend, Banners is a street-course photo ninja, Robin Fenlon has an invincible flash and Kellie sorted me out with garments. Top mag, top people.

Alex ‘Dozza’, T-Bag, Alex and the rest of our tent crew I can’t remember - I’m so glad we all hooked up, you lot provided me with some bizarre memories. Especially raving, raving was top. T-Bag you’re a total beast on a bike too, fuck knows how you’re so flexible in your spray on jeans. Alex slept in the car with me, sleeping in cars is shit, don’t do it. We also blagged breakfast together. And the rest, top bunch.

No Trails! - Serious let down because watching trails riders at comps is one of my favourite things. In 2005 the Forte clan built some beauties and watching people flowing through was a treat. I’m not sure why there were no trails, but given they’re the root of bmx I think NASS made a serious error by not including them, especially given the sun held out for the duration.

Phil Aller - Having just posed for a silly photo, he went straight into his run. From hitting nearly every back rail in sight to bouncing around on his front wheel, Phil was a treat to watch. In the pro finals, him and Chris Mahoney were the only riders i saw smiling. Beast.

Flatland - Day one and it looked pretty dire, given the course was sloping tarmac, half fenced off, a slap-in-the-face afterthought for one of the most difficult disciplines in the world. But come Sunday and a hall had been procured, a crowd turned up, tunes were playing and shit was going down. Raphael Chiquet was riding someone elses bike and pretty much blew me away and Sam Foakes fully deserved the win. Lee ‘’casanova‘’ Musselwhite flew in from Hollywood on his private jet to do the judging, and was on top form as ever.

James Smith - For inviting me to come. For hooking me up. For being my navigator. For pestering the JB’s. For introducing me to countless nice people. For shooting the bees, 180ing, rubbing his crotch and doing a power wheelie…during pro flatland. Amazing.

Pippa and Co. - Our unfortunate neighbours who put up with grime played at full blast all night, abuse, missiles, piss, theft and threats, yet still remained loyal to the S43 crew, so big up to them.

Aaron Sweeney - Local ripper, I remember Boxing day 2005 we went for a street ride around Brentford and he ollied off a bus stop which I thought was nuts at the time. Fast forward to 2007, and he’s still the same, sound, down to earth kid except now he is ridiculously good on his skateboard. It was weird seeing someone I’ve know as a local shredder for a few years qualify 4th in pro street skating, but it was even weirder when he won it! There’s a pre-victory interview which will be up in a few days. And I know full well that he’ll just be stoked he had a chance to skate, winning and losing are relative to him. Huge talent, brilliant kid, watch out skateboarding…

Pikies - Aside from the legions of Lotek fitted caps, Fit teeshirts and skin tight jeans at NASS, there were also a core of several hundred aggressive, obnoxious pikies wandering around giving people shit. They soured the whole weekend, culminating in a cheap-booze fuelled mini riot on Saturday night where they tore down nearly every fence there. Coupled with fighting in the music halls and starting on bmxers, they may have jeopardized the future of NASS, which is a real shame.

Huge Bonfire - It got serious when a 4 man tent was chucked on. Must have been 200 people gathered around it and the flames were licking up to maybe 20 feet. Anything anyone could throw was getting thrown. Something about fire makes you feel more manly, I got a few new hairs on the ole chest. Fire rocks. Fire, Beer, Mayhem…FBM may as well have put on NASS.

Security - Anyone who knows me will have heard a hundred stories about my run ins with various security personnel over the years. But the security at NASS this year were actually really good. No mini-hitler’s of failed-police-turned-security in site. They didn’t deserve the shit they suffered on Saturday night, and definitely contributed to make it a better festival for everyone. Mutual respect was in effect for the most part, apart from those mentioned above. Special shouts to 524 who I made coffee for, thanks for guarding my bike.

Street Course - Heard a few gripes from the riders about the course which is always a shame. Was a bit too spread out and not very skate friendly, being mainly centred (unsurprisingly) around a huge box jump. Though this didn’t stop some insane lines going off. From a photography point of view, orange ramps and dim orange lighting didn’t make my life any easier either! For me the line of the weekend was the massive, massive tailwhip gap by a charming South African gentleman called Greg riding a brakeless orange Mongoose did .

Lorenzo Reid - I remember seeing him at NASS a few years ago doing the most ridiculous gaps, eating a double sized serving of shit, getting up and doing it ’til it was pulled. He has honed his skills on a bike and was busting some serious stuff when we were just chilling with him on Sunday. Has a wicked attitude towards riding and as anyone who was at the Atilla Leeds Jam recently can testify, has some serious balls. Watch this space as well…

Relentless - Free Relentless on tap?!?! Not only was I kept quenched, but they kept my hunger at bay by having free Nando’s for riders as well. Relentless pretty much saved my life. So much more friendly than other energy drink folks I’ve encountered, and they seem to have their heads in the right place when it comes to bmx too.

Chris Woodage - Inspired me to take pictures, put up with me when I was a grommet at the Urban Games all those years ago. Also was collecting for Stephen Murray (get well soon) and his family, so massive props to him for that.

The Music - I love Maiden. I love Sabbath. I love Zeppelin. I’m SO glad that there was an abundance of classic riding songs in operation during the street, brought a massive smile to my face. And Bad Brains got a few numbers in there too. Top DJ.

Nudity - Lots of it floating about, always good to see.

Ben Hennon - me: ‘’Ben, have you got any tips on where I should point my camera, like any specific lines you wanna try?'’
Ben: ‘’Yeah, point it up there‘’ (points to the ceiling above the jump box)
Was he kidding? Was he fuck. The biggest airs over that box I probably ever will see, I need to ask him if the air is thinner up there one day. Not only did he shut down the street course, but getting 8ft+ on the Braun spine-mini in a gale is no mean feat. You all know him, you know what he can do, but nonetheless I have to say it: Ben Hennon is a total beast.

Daniel Dares - Venezualan computer-game character come to life. Watching Daniel ride is like watching someone playing Matt Hoffman’s Pro BMX, only he does even wilder tricks and goes even bigger. 360 front flips, 360 double whips, HUGE flares…the list goes on. He destroyed the street course and destroyed the Braun spine mini too. If you haven’t already heard of him, trust me, you will be very soon. Was chatting away to him in the production office (free cups of tea, life saving stuff) and he was quiet and reserved, quite the opposite to his riding but a really nice character who is definitely, definitely going to be going places.

The final 4 in pro - Chris Mahoney vs. Mark Webb vs. Ben Wallace vs. Daniel Dares. There’s no point even beginning to attempt to describe what happened. i don’t even know the results, and to be honest I’m not that fussed, because the level of riding on show was so, so high that (without sounding like a teacher trying not to hurt the fat kids feelings when he comes last at sports day) everyone was a winner in my book. Standout for me was probably Mark Webb’s downside icepick on some random pipe about a million foot in the air, because though big comp tricks are good, that was such a good line and noone else had even thought of it. Reminded me of Matt Berringer trying to stall the wall at Backyard 2003. Pure bmx amazingness.

Style 43 Honeys - All the beautiful girls who posed with S43 stickers for my girl hungry lens, thank you.

That was my NASS in a nutshell. I know I haven’t put down a tricklist or who did what on which ramp when on what bike wearing which jeans riding for who, because every other media outlet will do that for you. What I can say is that the level of UK comp riding has gone through the roof, and Ben Wallce did a 360 downside whip which is probably one of the coolest tricks I’ve ever seen, so mad respect to him for that. It’s nice to see that, at a world class level, the Brits are finally holding their own. Also some Mexican guys shredding the mini ramp, and a nipper named Daniel who was killing the ultra-clicked turndowns.

On a sad note, I think that was the last NASS ever. I heard tragic reports of 3 deaths this year, which is so unbelievably horrible considering how good the festival was. My condolences go out to all the family and friends. This, coupled with the violence and mini-riot on Saturday has (according to my source) led to the plug being pulled on NASS for ever, which is such a shame given how many people behaved themselves and had a good time.

Last thing, every bmxer is thinking of Stephen Murray at the moment, who is still in a critical state in hospital after crashing a double backflip. I had the pleasure of meeting him at the last NASS, and he was a truly lovely individual, and I and everyone else is praying that one day he’ll be well enough to enjoy bmx again.

So to conclude: NASS was astonishing, and if it was indeed the last one, it certainly went out with a bang, not a fizzle.

PHOTOGRAPHY BY HENRY KINGSTON AND A MASSIVE THANKS TO HIM AND EVERYONE IN THEM AND CAME DOWN AND HADA GOOD TIME

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