It has been a little while since my last post and for that I apologize. Not a whole lot has been going on in and around old Sydney town of late due to the horrific weather we have been experiencing. Although many our fine customers have been keeping my hands busy with many a custom wheelbuild.

As you may have noticed I have stepped into the 21st century ( reluctantly I may add! ) and got myself a fancy technology phone which has the capacity to take good photos and the ability to post them online via Facebook or hipstergram. So expect many more faded and filtered pics to be coming your way.Custom wheel builds are possibly one of my favourite things about being a bicycle mechanic, your wheels are one of the most important parts of your bike and putting your own ideas and personal touches on your wheel set to make them exactly how you want them is a pretty satisfying thing. So if you are thinking of spicing your bike with some fresh hoops and hubs give me your ideas and Il make it happen for you.

I enjoy wheel building so much that I decided lacing a replacement motorized electric front hub for a customer was a brilliant idea. Let me be the first to tell you that I loved every minute of it!

Next on the agenda this deceptively sunny Tuesday are a couple of must see web videos, and when I say must see i mean it. They have each been floating around the web for about a week already and it doesn’t matter if you have seen it before then simply watch them again, you know its worthy.

Anthem II Declassified – Brian Foster from FITBIKECO. on Vimeo.

Fit – Trippin Ecuador from FITBIKECO. on Vimeo.

No explanations are needed for either of these videos, but if you need any convincing to actually click on them all I can say is prepare to be dazzled…… ANTHEM and FIT and the Blue Bloody Falcon !!!!!!!! EPIC is the only word!

Bikes and horses have more in common than you may think. First of all to ride either of these modes of transport comfortably, the use of a saddle is highly recommended. If you were in need of a new saddle for your horse then perhaps a visit to an establishment such as this would be on the cards……

The Hell On Wheels of the Horse world? Maybe! If on the other hand you are after a classy new saddle for your BMX Bicycle on the other hand, then we have you well and truly covered.

In this particular situation it may become known that S&M does in fact stand for ” saddles & horses “, the ever classic Saddles & Horses slim railed seat is back in stock and ready to add a touch of style and class to your handsome steed. If the pivotal seat system is your preferred taste and you ride your bike further than to the skatepark and back then you may be interested in of these ” Long Johnson” pivotal posts. 320 mm long and ready to roll along with you on those lengthy rides.

The second thing that riding horses and riding Bicycles have in common is the need for a helmet to protect the riders head if they are unfortunate enough to meet with some kind of accidental misfortune.

The now staple part of BMX skatepark fashion, the Protec Full cut is back and now available in white as well as black. Hooray!!!!

The most used helmet in the BMX and skate world, the Pro Tec classic is back in stock once more in all its usual colours and sizes. To shake things up a bit Pro Tec have introduced this swell new Matte Red colourway and it is lookin swish indeed.

Until bicycles and horses can be ridden together on the same level then we will just have to do what this legendary person pictured below has done…YEWWWWW

OH snap!!!! We just got a whole mess of Terrible One tees, and let me be the first to tell you that i am so damn excited about these shirts that i may just buy them all for my self!

A fine selection of threads from one of the raddest rider owned companies in the known universe and for only $39 a pop you can be certain that your money is not going towards funding Johnny Business executive’s new Ferrari, but it is going back into BMX where it belongs.

Aside from T1 being an amazing company, im not sure there are many bike company owners capable of blasting like Joe Rich…. Dang! Lets see Johnny executive bust this kind of action is his shitty Ferrari!
Just in case you needed more proof that T1 is unbelievably radical then get a load of these inspirational works of genius by sir Joe Rich himself. Do yourself a favour and watch all of these back to back…….. its raining and a bit useless outside so you may as well! Enjoy

T-1 “Let’s Didgeridoo This” Australia 2011 from joe rich on Vimeo.

T-1 ” Spanish Roast “ from joe rich on Vimeo.

T-1 “We Love Colorado” 2010 from joe rich on Vimeo.

So the first ever Hell On Wheels Inner Westside Gran Prix has been run and won in spectacular a fashion. As the sun was thinking about setting, 40 or so eager bike enthusiasts converged on the store to view the New Federal DVD .

Day quickly turned into night and the people were so eager to get the race carnage happening that many couldn’t sit still for the length of the DVD and just had to get moving. Once the sun had well and truly set we all set off on a 40 strong convoy down to the secret location in which the race would take place. I dont know about you but being amongst that many bike riders on a charge up the main drag is possibly one of the greatest things in the universe.

The on street bike parking system worked a treat for us but it was to the distaste of many a King St restaurant patron as we were taking up one whole and extremely valuable parking space.
Once at the carpark for the race, under the assumption that security would be on us in a matter of minutes, we got in, raced, then raced again then got the hell out! With every one who entered the race throwing down a fiver to add to the cash jackpot the winner would be taking home, the atmosphere was rife with enthusiasm and excitement. The racers gathered on the top level behind the chalk drawn start line ready for battle. At the bottom of 12 levels there were only a couple of riders whos chances at the money were shattered in a slippery surfaced crash. At the finish line it was North shore Fufanu expert and ex Pro BMX race Brendan Jones who rolled away with the $150, not bad for 40 odd seconds of work in a carpark at 10pm on a Thursday night! With the group still charging from all the amazing energy that was floating around, and the fact that there was no sign of any form of authority, Mr Jones put out the challenge for another race offering up a brand new pair of shoes to the winner. So back to the top the soldiers went, this time I opted to have them all run a Le Mans style start where they had to run down a level to get to their bikes before setting off down the course. This time around it was current pro racer legend Benny Hidalgo who took the checkered flag.

A triumphant Brendan Jones!

From here the large group rode the streets of Sydney till the wee hours of the morning. A roaring success of an evening! Expect a full edit from Lord John Young in the coming weeks as well as more late night riding related shenanigans very soon. Real Talk!

Do you all remember Sam, AKA Russ, AKA Hat Master Flash? Well Sam has been putting in the hours on his bike and has clocked up quite a burly reel of stunts for us to gander at. Recently whilst filming for the very edit you are about to watch, Sam had a bit of a bingle and managed to tear his ACL in a spectacular way. Armed with a single speed roadie and an ever growing hat collection, Sam is on the mend and will be shredding again soon. Check it out.

Sam Northedge-Wright pre ACL from Chris Whyte on Vimeo.

Get on Russell!!!!!

Last Friday whilst minding my own business, working away building a wheel set for a customer, I suddenly found myself on the floor in excruciating pain with blood gushing out of my head! ” What the hell just happened? ”

Allow me to introduce you all to this- a 1998 &M Next Generation Dirt Bike frame. Now, back in the days of old BMX frames were a hell of a lot heavier. They were built to with stand the abuse that the rapid evolution of riding at that time was dishing out. In the days before fancy super therm tubing & overall the higher quality of materials that we are used to today, frames had to be overbuilt so that they did not snap like stale pretzels if you cased a jump or two. This particular example belongs to a good friend of Hell on Wheels, who was cool enough to loan us the frame to hang up in the shop to show the world what a real BMX frame looks like. The next gen weighs in at approx the same amount as most complete bikes these days.

Just look at the size of those drop outs!!! The frame was perched proudly upon a ledge above the back door in the workshop area when all of a sudden it some how as if by magic it fell down, and introduced itself to my skull. After the initial shock and obligatory yelling session of loud 4 letter words, I continued on with my jobs in the workshop for a while. After removing my hat to fell the large bump on top of my head i realized my head was not only very sore but it was also bleeding like crazy! I had too much work to get on with to really get too worried about a little blood, so I stuffed my hat with tissues to absorb the blood and continued along my merry way.

After about an hour or man Dirty Paul ( who ironically rides for the very company who made the frame that struck my head ) showed up and after showing him my war wound and telling my tale, he advised me that I needed stitches and should go the the hospital. ” Hospital, but i have too much work to do here to spend 5 hours waiting to get stitched up!!” After another hour or so of trying not to think about the blood exiting my head I decided the local medical center was a better option, which indeed it was. Close shop doors a 3pm, get stitched up and have a shower at home then back at the shop by 5.30 pm…. Winner!

This is the pic that Paul took so that I could see that i did infact need to go and get stitched up. Cheers Paul.

The moral of this story is either wear a helmet at all times no matter what or just dont place heavy items on top of narrow ledges! This little incident has in no way harmed the love that I have for S&M, infact I am almost proud that this frame and not some other brands frame was the one to slice my head open. Get on Moeller you legend! To celebrate my love for the brand here are a couple of priceless S&M ads and pics of years gone by. Many of which can be found at this amazing vintage S&M blog site. Long live the shield!

A bit of a skate update for your mate. Oh my word, the rhymes and cheesy post tittles are getting far worse these days. Ok enough of that rubbish, today we have a small re stock of the ever popular Drifter cruiser boards and as usual they look absolutely stunning and even more spectacular under your feet whilst flying down your favourite hill. For only $169 you are getting a whole lot of board.

Glock Nines!!!The story behind this sweet little package is simple. A group of talented , like-minded individuals coming together to create something awesome and a little different. Good quality, fast long lasting bearings packaged in a cardboard gun made from 100% recycled cardboard and printed and assembled locally! How on earth can you go wrong with that!

As it states on the collective cos website……..” super fast & deadly! destroy everything with these cold blooded killers..” Aside from the fact that these are good bearings that come with a free tub of lube, they come in a cardboard gun for crying out loud! If you need further convincing that these are rad then you probably suck at life.

It has been a while since we saw a fresh batch of treats from Federal, and let me be the first to tell you that in their absence from the store they have gotten stuff dialled. The quality is up there with the best that the BMX world has to offer. Check the online store or all the specs and prices of these fine items.

Holy cow! Brand new are the Motion rims which look like a good choice for your next set of hoops. It is not often that a brand new and original rim design is brought to the table of the large BMX dinner party. Big bars are here to stay apparently, so why not jump on and get some bars bigger than your buddies! The Federal Drop bars are now available in 9.5 inch rises!!!!! Massive! On the topic of massive, the pivotal seat seems to have put on a little bulk over the past few months with chunky seats becoming the new thang. Federal wasted no time in creating their own quality version of the chubby pivotal seat and wrapped up in tough kevlar, these chairs are comfy!

Another fancy new Federal product is the flashy Liquid forks. Using Investment cast technology these are light and stronger your average bear.

Last of all is the new ” Gold Album ” DVD which is a doozy if I do say so. We will be showing this beauty on Thursday night in the store before our big scary downhill BMX race extravaganza. Check the flyer below and make sure you come!!!

This is absolute gold! Paul Chamberlain is some kind of legendary, mythical beast of Sydney’s inner west BMX scene. This is a tribute to a fallen Diva as well as a reminder of just how much fun riding bikes can be when you dont take things too seriously. Good one Paul, love you.

Whitney and I from Paul Chamberlain on Vimeo.

A good old fashioned DVD watching followed by some fully hectic downhill carpark racing followed by a massive silly city street ride all in the name of god times and bringing everyone together.After seeing the dudes down at the Anchor in Melbs running a few similar events, I was stoked to try something like that out. So here it is folks:

Hell on Wheels Presents The Inner West Side Gran Prix. Thurs 23rd of Feb

Meet at the store at 7.30 for A viewing if the new Federal “ Gold Album” DVD
Followed by a short ride to a secret location for the running of the first annual Hell On Wheels Inner West Side Gran Prix- an Urban BMX downhill race extravaganza.
$5 entree fee with the winner taking all! The more people who enter,the more cash is up for grabs!!!!!! So tell every one you can! Rules of the race will be explained on the night. Updates to details will be posted on the Facebook event page.

As the race is likely to only last for under one minute, and the adrenalin will still be flowing, we will continue into the city and into the night for a good old fashioned 2003 style street mission. Lets do this. Be there!!

What the devil is this, a full blown modern day BMX race bike for sale at Hell on Wheels? That is correect kiddies. I have been meaning to start stocking a little more BMX race stuff, seeing as though I am totally a super duper racer dude now , why not start the racer ball rolling with some of these little beauties

The 2012 Se PK Ripper XLP is a lot of bike for not alot of dough. Check out the full specs to see for yourself!

Aside from having all to technology of a great modern race bike, the XLP is carrying the spirit of the original and possibly one of the most famous old school BMX bikes in history. The original PK Ripper was the most lusted after bike of its time and I think SE have done a pretty sweet job capturing the legendary characteristics of the original. So if you are an old schooler looking to take that step up to a modern bike to tackle modern terrain then this could be the bike for you.

Legendary!

Alright folks its illegal bicycle street race time again!!!! Our pal Alex is at it again and has organized yet another sweet race for us all to attend and have a jolly good time at. Check out the Facebook page for details and updates. It should be a doozy , but what to dress as ….. cop or convict?

God damn its so excoitin!. Just as I am about to close up shop for the day and head off for my weekly BMX stunt activities, these big horrible storm clouds roll in and unleash their fury upon the earth and I am cheated of yet another session at the park. Dang it! However, I was instantly cheered up when I stumbled across this next little video. I was smiling the entire time it his was playing. Aaron Ross and Terry Adams have done it again. Watch it many times over and the world will feel like a better place.

The paper boy skit reminded me of this…….

Brilliant. Now to brave the crowds of foam pit warriors at monster or not? Hmmmmmm…..

It has been a while since we had some fresh bikes in the shop, I blame Christmas for that little shortage but we now have bikes coming out of every nook and cranny at the moment. Verde have been around for only a few short years and they keep looking sweeter with each year that goes by. The entry level bikes are amazing value and look every bit as classy as any high end custom mobile.

The base model named the ” Cadet ” is quite a neat little package for $399. Similar in spec to the United RN-1, the Cadet packs an almighty punch, while unlike a boxer,it is actually easy on the eye balls.

The Eon is the next model up from the Cadet and for $449 you are getting a whole lot of bike for very little cash Robbo. As pretty as a picture, look at those shiny red spokes! I suggest inspecting one of these in the flesh as it looks more like a million dollars rather that $449!

Verde also have an incredible team of shred bosses. Check out this older clip of a UK roadtrip the Verde team did back in 2010. You may recognize our good buddies Toby Forte and Will Herrmann in there getting their swirl on!

Verde BMX UK Trip 2010 from Verde Bikes on Vimeo.

Moving right along, to some fresh steering apparatus from those fabulously friendly folks at Fit.

The new improved signature bars from Justin Inman are called the O.T bars. Now O.T could stand for many things like ” only trails” or ” opposite table” or even ” owl thursdays”, the truth is I have no idea what it means, but that doesnt matter as these things are lush! 8.5 rise and 29 in width ,these are built for men, men who know that big is best, but also know that too big is just a bit silly. Get on Justin…. Well done sir.

Last but not least we have some Fit grips. We all need grips, it is just science! Try riding without them, it is not pleasant! Brian Foster and Justin Inman are both trail legends. Hailing from opposite sides of America these two know a thing or two and it shows in their grip designs. Inmans are on the thicker side and the BFs are a thinner design….. amazing indeed!