news, fool!
for 2006
By Jason Ryan

December 23rd, 2006

BIKES ARE NOW ALLOWED IN REED SKATEPARK!

Swear to God, no bullshit.  I talked to Terri Palmberg, Mesa's Park Maintenance Supervisor yesterday and confirmed that Reed Park Skate Court has changed to Reed Park Wheels Court and now allows bikes.  She said this has actually been in the works for about 5 months.  I'll get more details on this later, but for now, get out to Reed, get on your bikes and ride!  Everybody have a Merry Christmas, aiight?!

December 19th, 2006

Ah, yes.  The Impetus of Cletus is finally out, as you may or may not know.  I've been revamping the site lately and I've got a new page that tells where the DVD can be purchased, so that's nice.  When you stop by the bike shop during your Christmas shopping, keep in mind that a hot, fresh copy of The Impetus of Cletus makes an incredible gift.  Whereas you can't really get away with gifting your old lady a pair of TI pegs or 12 butted handlebars, you could get her a motion picture that she'd enjoy for years to come.  Oh yes, she will enjoy it.  The Impetus of Cletus is far more palatable than most BMX videos to those who don't ride, because its' main goal is to entertain, not to be a strict cockumentary of the latest, trendiest tricks being turned.

Hey, speaking of The Impetus of Cletus, a Tucson premiere is still being planned.  Will Bissell and I were trying to get something going a couple weeks ago, but it fell through, so stay tuned for a premiere down Tucson way after the holidays.

Hmmm, what else?  Goodyear.  Goodyear Skatepark is officially opening on January 13th, 2007, after the grand opening ceremony.  Goodyear parks and rec was going to do a soft opening, but decided against it so the grass that surrounds the skatepark would have a chance to grow.  I'm not too happy about it, especially because right now I'm out of school like a lot of you kids, and I've got a lot more time to ride.  At least it'll be open in 3 and 1/2 weeks, so I guess that's not too too far away.

I've got a fair bit more work to do on the site, so check back frequently for updates.  Lates.

November 6th, 2006

It really is so nice to finally be able to post this poster up here.  Kore Bike will be kicking down stuff, as well as Tragic Co., Big Sexy Wear, and a few other companies to be announced.  Alls I gots to say is--good times will be had by all.

I also finalized the R-rated version premiere of The Impetus of Cletus for the 21 and over crowd.  It will be held at Giligin's in Scottsdale at 8:30 pm on Saturday, November18th.  So's you can get your ride on out at the Fort that day, then reel it in and get your drink on and your premiere viewing on at Giligin's that night.  Be sure to arrive at 8:30 pm or before, else you might not get in, as the place gets pretty hoppin' on Saturday nights.  Rich Scottsdale sluts!  Yeeeeaaaaaah!!!

Here's a map:

October 30th, 2006

The Impetus of Cletus is done, fools!  Now I'm just arranging for duplication, so it'll be about 3 or so more weeks before it's out.  I'm working on doing an all-ages premiere of the PG-13 version soon, and it looks like I'll be having the R version's premiere at an alcohol distribution establishment on Saturday night of the Fort contest.  Oh yeah, by the way, the Fort McDowell contest will be held on November 17th, 18th and 19th out at......The Fort.  You can peep yourself a flyer at http://www.bmxonline.com/bmx/photos/oversized/0,15740,1228488,00.html
Keep coming to the site for definite times and locations on The Impetus of Cletus premieres.

It's finally going to happen, and it's about time, eh?  After a very unhealthy delay in the Chandler BMX park development due to a flood control survey that should have been finished months ago, the groundbreaking will take place.  On Monday, November 6th, at 5pm, Chandler will officially break ground on the Chandler BMX park, located at 450 E. Knox Road at Espee Park.  Don't try to Mapquest Espee Park, because it's not on there.  Just go to Knox Road and head east of Arizona Ave. and there it is.

Here's an article by Ty Young about what's going on with my little neighborhood concrete BMX/skatepark here in Tempe:

http://www.azcentral.com/community/tempe/articles/1028tr-bmxpark1028Z10.html

In Gilbert news, a new website has sprung up that is clowning Gilbert Mayor Steve Berman, and I like their steez.  Check it out at http://www.goodbyeberman.com/, and check out this article about the site, too:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15402754/

If you'll recall, when I interviewed him about kids being chased, maced, and arrested for riding their bikes in Freestone Skatepark, Mayor Berman told me, "The children of Gilbert are well taken care of.  We don't provide horses for kids, either."  The website's kinda joking around, but we really need to get this clown out of office next election.  Seriously.

And to end on a bright note, here's some more of C-los's eye candy for ya from Goodyear, which is slated to open in December, with the official grand opening taking place in January.

September 30th, 2006

 Be sure to check out this article about Tempe Police Chief Tranter giving up his post:  http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/0921tranter0921.html

You know, it sure is a shame that Barb Carter hit this guy up for so much special treatment for herself and her son, Colby Carter (Chief Designer for Site Design Group, for those not already in the know).  From all reports, Chief Tranter was a good guy and a good public servant.  Ultimately, he is responsible for his decisions, but I think we can all agree that the sooner we get Barb Carter out of office, the better off Tempe will be.  By the same token, I am convinced that the less business cities give to Site Design Group, the better off our concrete skate/bikeparks will be.  Concrete skate/bikepark designers play a huge part in determining the ultimate quality, flow, and enjoyment of the park by users.  Many of these designers, such as SDG, have made it a point to work to keep bikes out of concrete skateparks by hiding truths and flat-out lying to cities when it comes to the "bikes in skateparks" issue.  If leaders of these companies lack integrity, their products and service will surely lack integrity as well.

In Goodyear news, check out C-Los's new pics:

While I've got you here, let's talk about Goodyear a little bit.

Max Krause and a few other riders attended a meeting held by Goodyear Parks and Rec a few weeks ago.  It was just a little meeting to set the rules of the park, and Max said it went very well.  Parks and Rec is saying they'll be soft opening the park in December, and then they'll have a grand opening in January.

I just want to remind everyone how very important it is that everyone gets along in the Goodyear park when it opens.  Everyone needs to show mutual respect and use proper skatepark etiquette at all times.  Frankly, I'm not overly worried about the bike riders.  We all know that this is our first legal concrete in the Valley and we all want to keep it that way.  I am concerned, however, about the 30-40 year old babies that skate who are convinced that somehow Goodyear is "their" park.  It is NOT their park.  The Goodyear City Council has decided this park is for skaters, bike riders, and inline skaters.  No one group has any right to claim exclusive rights whatsoever.  I anticipate that some of these older skaters (namely those involved with AZPX Skateboards) mean to cause trouble with bike riders, based on their many prejudices.  If you don't believe me, swing by the message board at www.azpx.com sometime.  If any bike riders are given any problems by any one of these grossly immature skaters, it is up to the bike rider to be the bigger man, because we obviously can't expect them to.  Don't feed a conflict.  Don't argue.  Don't fight.  Call the police if someone is getting out of hand, and let them handle the situation.  I know it's a little strange to expect a 14 year-old kid to act more maturely than a 42 year old man, yet this is the situation we find ourselves in.  Let's do this right.

August 30th, 2006

Yeah, yeah, no updatey long timey.  I've been crankin' hard on this video and just haven't had time.  I just got all the rest of the sections to Aaron at Pipeline Audio for the final audio mix, though, so I'm inches away from finishing this bitch.  Premiere dates to come soon.

In defunct skatepark news, the Fountain Hills Church park is no more.  It's pretty much all in a big green dumpster now.  Bum-diggity.  Well, what can you do?

 Actually, it's already been done.  I'm glad we saw the ultimate demise of private parks coming a long time ago and started working on getting the cities to provide places for bikes to ride.  That's Goodyear below, and it looks like it's still on schedule to open in a couple months.  And if you've been hearing rumors about bikes not being allowed (as the city council voted) or some other meeting to decide on bikes in the skatepark....Don't believe that bullshit.  I've heard nothing official of the sort and if I did, I'd tell you.

July 21st, 2006

This past January, I e-mailed all the candidates that were running for Tempe City Council except for Len Copple.  Here is what I wrote to each of them: 

Hello XXXXXXXX,

My name is Jason Ryan. I am a Tempe resident and the President of the Bike, Blade and Board Coalition, a group that advocates for the needs of BMX bike riders, inline skaters, and skateboarders throughout Arizona. Tempe has provided well for the recreational needs of inline skaters and skateboarders since opening the Tempe skatepark, but BMX riders are outlawed there. Tempe Parks and Rec Director Mark Richwine has told us that it will be realistically SEVEN years before Tempe can open a BMX bike-friendly concrete park. Meanwhile, an extensive Portland, OR Parks and Rec discussion paper came out in June of 2005 that affirms that BMX bikes can use concrete parks with no danger to other users OR the park, something we at the 3BC have known all along. Also, the Tempe risk management's opinion is they have no problem with bikes riding the Tempe Skatepark in separate sessions from skateboarders and inline skaters. The discussion paper, and our history of dealings with Tempe can be found at: http://www.psychicflyingmonkey.com/The3BCpage.htm

Mark Richwine and the Tempe Parks and Rec Board have refused to acknowledge the revelations of this discussion paper, so we are looking for support from council members to vote to allow bikes in the Tempe Skatepark, as it should have when it first opened. If we can count on your vote, our organization will be more than happy to endorse your candidacy, and we will hold a rally for you at a bike shop in Tempe before the March election. The website that hosts the 3BC page, www.psychicflyingmonkey.com, gets an average of 120,000 hits a month, with an average of 5,500 visits a month. Your endorsement would be posted on the site news and in the Tempe section of the 3BC page. You can count on at least 100 Tempe bike riders, parents and supporters voting for you if you support bikes in the Tempe Skatepark. We will absolutely not endorse Len Copple, as he has sided with Barb Carter in not allowing bikes in the skatepark.

Looking forward to hearing from you,

Jason Ryan
President
The Bike, Blade and Board Coalition
Producer, Monkey Trainer
Bearded Lady/Psychic Flying Monkey Pdctns.

Barb Carter found out what I had written to all the candidates, and it has recently come to light what she wrote to one of them concerning my e-mail.  Here is Barb's e-mail below:

XXXXXXXX, 

Don’t even respond to this guy.  Go to his web site and see what a nut he is.  Hugh promised them two years ago to let them have access. Then Hugh set about calling for an independent study of our park.  It was done, and the study said not [sic] bikes for a variety of reasons.  I have a copy of the study if you want it.  This should not be an election issue, so don’t respond.  Go to the park and take digital images of the damage done to the concrete from the metal pegs of the bikes.  Bike parks need bigger radiuses, different copping [sic] and denser concrete.  Site Design, whom Colby works for, designs both bike and skate parks, but rarely together.  It is a risk management issue as well…can’t mix the two.  Then if you have separate times, you have to hire staff to manage it, and that wasn’t in the plan from years ago.  The final point is that there is permanent damage caused by the bike pegs and other metal parts that doesn’t hurt the bikers ride, but seriously hinders the skaters [sic] and inline skaters [sic] ride.  I have been around the industry for 20 years and have a clue, that is why it hurt so much for the Council to side with Hugh.  I started working with the skaters in 1996 to help them navigate through the city bureaucracy.  The first meeting, there were 300 skateboarders and 3 bmx riders.  In the last five years urban bmx riding has increased in popularity, but there are still 10 skateboarders to every one bmx rider.  Bikes can ride on any terrain on their pneumatic tires, but skate wheels need concrete.  The bmx bikers are aggressive to get what they want, and they break into parks all over the country, and Jason Ryan promotes hostility and aggression, while young skateboarders are afraid to go to parks when there are bikers present.

Just say that the issue is resolved, and the full council agreed with the independent study that was done…end of story.  In the meantime, Colby has designed a park for Chandler, bmx only, and one in Peoria.  They are coming, but these guys want it all and want it all now.  The skaters have been skating on wooden ramps on asphalt parking lots for years, being patient, and respectful of the process that municipalities must go through.  You can go back through the records to see how many years the proposed park in Tempe went on the unfunded list.  Parks and Rec members like Bob Lofgren, Mel Kessler, Dan Arredondo etc. will all tell you many of the same things I have just told you. 

Confidentially, I am working with a private developer to give land so that we can do and [sic] urban plaza for both uses.  I shouldn’t do anything for the bikers like Jason Ryan, but I am doing it for the other young kids who aren’t 32 yrs. old and a pain in the ass.  He needs to grow up and work within the system, and quit with the Gestapo tactics…then maybe people would listen and promote his cause.  In the meantime…the bikers should wait patiently like the skaters did for 15 or 20 years. 

The final point he makes about our risk management saying that it would be o.k. if they used it at separate times, is a fallacy.  One, if bikes are allowed at all, they will come anytime they want, unless you have a full-time park ranger there.  Two, the damage to the copping [sic] and the concrete will cause injury to skaters when their wheels hit the holes of missing concrete or they get cut on gouged metal copping [sic].  When that happens and we have not taken measures to repair the damage, then we are liable and it becomes a tort case because we were negligent in not repairing the damage.

 Sorry this has gone on and on.  The guy pisses me off.  Colby has many studies showing the the [sic] opposite of what Jason Ryan is saying.  Even the study from Oregon is not very conclusive favoring joint parks.  Jason Ryan is a bully, and no elected official or staff should be intimidated by him, and as for the votes he says he can deliver…Hugh only got 56% of the vote against one candidate…I got 68% of the vote against 7.  Jason Ryan called for everyone to vote against me on his web site….he was vicious.  Guess it maybe cost me 10 votes.  Who cares.  Do what is right and in the best interest of 80%.  Go by the skate park this afternoon and see for yourself.  It is the most used single park amenity in Tempe, other than Tempe Beach.  Kids are there 24/7, 365 days a year.  We are getting our monies [sic] worth.

Barb

Now I’ll go through this letter and share my thoughts on each part.  Barb's text is in white, and mine is in red. 

XXXXXXXX

Don’t even respond to this guy.  Go to his web site and see what a nut he is.  Hugh promised them two years ago to let them have access. Then Hugh set about calling for an independent study of our park.  It was done, and the study said not [sic] bikes for a variety of reasons.  I have a copy of the study if you want it.  This should not be an election issue, so don’t respond.  (I love how Barb commands the candidate not to think for themselves.  One of the best things about the election process is that new candidates and newly elected officials bring to the forefront issues they and their supporters think are the most important.  This keeps governments on their toes, and helps to hold them accountable to the governed.  It seems Barb doesn’t respect this as much as I do.)  

Go to the park and take digital images of the damage done to the concrete from the metal pegs of the bikes.  Bike parks need bigger radiuses, different copping [sic] and denser concrete.  Site Design, whom Colby works for, designs both bike and skate parks, but rarely together.  (Site Design designed skateparks for Oklahoma City, Lake Forest, CA, and Prescott, and none of them have bigger radiuses, different coping, or denser concrete than the Tempe Skatepark.  And yet, somehow all these parks are working out wondrously for both bikes and skateboards.  They all report that their parks seem to require hardly any more maintenance than a skatepark that doesn’t allow bikes.) 

It is a risk management issue as well…can’t mix the two.  Then if you have separate times, you have to hire staff to manage it, and that wasn’t in the plan from years ago. (So what if a change wasn’t in the plan!  Instead of punishing kids for recreating and creating conflict, CHANGE THE PLAN.)

  The final point is that there is permanent damage caused by the bike pegs and other metal parts that doesn’t hurt the bikers ride, but seriously hinders the skaters [sic] and inline skaters [sic] ride.  (Permanent damage.  Huh…Sounds like a maintenance issue.  Skaters grind.  Bike riders grind.  GRINDING by anybody does not improve the condition of any skatepark.  That is why they must be maintained.   And they most certainly can and should be maintained.  I’ve seen damage in skateparks that had to have been from skateboards.  I’ve seen damage in skateparks that had to have been from bikes.  I’ve seen damage in skateparks that had to have been from construction mistakes.  I’ve seen damage in skateparks that I can’t figure out what the hell caused it. SKATEPARKS MUST BE MAINTAINED REGULARLY)  

I have been around the industry for 20 years and have a clue, that is why it hurt so much for the Council to side with Hugh.  (So the city investigated an additional use of the skatepark, to get more bang for their buck and to possibly provide a positive solution to an ongoing problem, and that hurt Barb?  It was the very least the city could do.  And I do mean the very least the city could do.) 

 I started working with the skaters in 1996 to help them navigate through the city bureaucracy.  The first meeting, there were 300 skateboarders and 3 bmx riders.  In the last five years urban bmx riding has increased in popularity, but there are still 10 skateboarders to every one bmx rider.  (Hmm, is that a fact?  I did a little research, and it turns out it’s not a fact.  The SGMA, the world’s largest sports product association, reports in their newest Sports Participation Topline Report that in 2005 in the U.S. there were 11,382,000 people participating in skateboarding, and 2,480,000 people participating in BMX bicycling.  If my calculations are correct, that means there are 4.59 skateboarders to every one BMX rider.  But why confuse the issue with the facts?) 

Bikes can ride on any terrain on their pneumatic tires, but skate wheels need concrete.  The bmx bikers are aggressive to get what they want, and they break into parks all over the country, and Jason Ryan promotes hostility and aggression, while young skateboarders are afraid to go to parks when there are bikers present.  (This reminds me of something.  Dr. Martin Luther King’s famous Letter from Birmingham Jail was addressed to a group of white clergymen from Birmingham, Alabama that had openly criticized him for helping to organize “untimely” protests and breaking laws that kept blacks from using public facilities.  The clergymen pegged King as being “hostile” and “aggressive”.)

Just say that the issue is resolved, and the full council agreed with the independent study that was done…end of story.  In the meantime, Colby has designed a park for Chandler, bmx only, and one in Peoria.  (SDG has not designed any bike park for Peoria.  Peoria has refused to do anything for bikes.  Peoria park rangers actually target BMX riders and harass them while they’re in the skatepark parking lot, identifying them as troublemakers by stickers on their vehicles and BMX bikes in tow.  Beware of the thought police!)  

They are coming, but these guys want it all and want it all now.  The skaters have been skating on wooden ramps on asphalt parking lots for years, being patient, and respectful of the process that municipalities must go through.  (Really?  Then why are skateboards banned from downtown Phoenix?  Why was “Skateboarding is not a Crime” such a popular slogan back in the 80’s and 90’s?  Most skaters are hardly angels, just like us criminal bike riders.  Both skaters and bike riders want a place to ride, and neither group tends to wait until someone says, “Yes, you can ride here.”)

You can go back through the records to see how many years the proposed park in Tempe went on the unfunded list.  Parks and Rec members like Bob Lofgren, Mel Kessler, Dan Arredondo etc. will all tell you many of the same things I have just told you. 

Confidentially, I am working with a private developer to give land so that we can do and [sic] urban plaza for both uses.  I shouldn’t do anything for the bikers like Jason Ryan, but I am doing it for the other young kids who aren’t 32 yrs. old and a pain in the ass.  He needs to grow up and work within the system, and quit with the Gestapo tactics…then maybe people would listen and promote his cause.  In the meantime…the bikers should wait patiently like the skaters did for 15 or 20 years.  (I’m not even going to dignify this name-calling with a response.  It’s beneath me.  I will say that waiting 15 or 20 years for a place to legally ride is completely unacceptable, and I will NOT lie down and wait.) 

The final point he makes about our risk management saying that it would be o.k. if they used it at separate times, is a fallacy.  One, if bikes are allowed at all, they will come anytime they want, unless you have a full-time park ranger there.  Two, the damage to the copping [sic] and the concrete will cause injury to skaters when their wheels hit the holes of missing concrete or they get cut on gouged metal copping [sic].  When that happens and we have not taken measures to repair the damage, then we are liable and it becomes a tort case because we were negligent in not repairing the damage.  (Wait a tick!  In her first paragraph, didn’t Barb mention “damage done to the concrete from the metal pegs of the bikes” at the Tempe Skatepark?  If this is true, then Tempe is already liable and could have a tort case on their hands for not repairing damage, regardless of where it comes from.) 

Sorry this has gone on and on.  The guy pisses me off.  Colby has many studies showing the the [sic] opposite of what Jason Ryan is saying.  Even the study from Oregon is not very conclusive favoring joint parks.  Jason Ryan is a bully, and no elected official or staff should be intimidated by him, and as for the votes he says he can deliver…Hugh only got 56% of the vote against one candidate…I got 68% of the vote against 7.  Jason Ryan called for everyone to vote against me on his web site….he was vicious.  Guess it maybe cost me 10 votes.  Who cares.  Do what is right and in the best interest of 80%.  Go by the skate park this afternoon and see for yourself.  It is the most used single park amenity in Tempe, other than Tempe Beach.  Kids are there 24/7, 365 days a year.  We are getting our monies [sic] worth.  (I wonder if Barb will get 68% of the vote in the next election?  Something tells me she won’t.)

Barb

June 15th, 2006

Damn, time flies when you're shooting and editing your ass off!  Check out this article from the Tucson Citizen:

I think my favorite parts of the article are Chris Miracle's comment and that permission pool.  Somebody gotsta put me up on that shit next time I head Tucson way!

I

May 25th, 2006

I'm stoked to say that Tempe has just replaced a bad councilman with a good councilwoman.  Onnie Shekerjian won the runoff election against Len Copple by a pretty good margin.  Thanks to everyone who voted for Onnie.  She'll do a great job for us in Tempe, and a new, bike-friendly concrete skatepark is on her list of to-do's.

Speaking of Tempe City Council, check out these articles from the Arizona Republic and the East Valley Tribune:

You know, we just could not get a break here in Tempe.  BMX riders fought to be allowed in the Tempe Skatepark from the very first public input meeting in 1998, all the way to the grand opening of the park in 2005, and we're still fighting.  In light of all this news about Barb and Colby Carter, and these allegations of not only misuse of power but CRIMINAL ACTIVITY, is it really so hard to believe now that Barb was behind bikes being banned from the Tempe Skatepark?  Everyone knows that Colby is an avid bike hater.  That's no secret.  Why he harbors such hatred for kids who ride bikes is beyond me.  Maybe a group of rabid BMX riders once rode over a crop of his prize marijuana plants, crushing the buds with their knobby tires.  I don't know.  All he had to do was say, "Mommy, I don't want bikes allowed in my skatepark."  At this point, is it really so hard to believe she said, "Yes, Colby, I'll keep those nasty kids out of your park, don't you worry.  Now go apply for some more federal housing money and I'll make sure you get it instead of that family with 5 kids barely making it down the street."?

In Glendale news, Rex talked to Mike Gregory with Glendale Parks and Rec, who said that the bid for construction will go out within a month, and excavation should begin within 60 days.  Glendale will be trying to build the whole park as planned at 28,000 square feet, so that's a big relief, because things were sketchy there for a while as far as the size and what would get built.

In Tucson news, Mike Hines started a new My Space group to get the city to provide a public, legal place for BMX riders to ride.  See how you can help at http://www.myspace.com/tucsonbmx
Also, an obviously old school rider named John Dale has started a site that is helping get a place to ride in Tucson as well, called www.redendo.com 

Let's hear it for the old school, fools!

May 13th, 2006

The election for the last Tempe city council seat is this Tuesday, May 16th.  You can still vote early if you so desire at the Tempe Public Library (located on the Southwest corner of Rural and Southern) anytime it's open.  I'd like to encourage everyone, especially bike riders, skaters and inline skaters to all vote for Onnie Shekerjian.  She supports positive activities for youth and a high quality of life, and she supports building a new, bike-friendly concrete skatepark in Tempe.  Visit www.electonnie.com to learn more about Onnie Shekerjian.  If you have any questions at all for Onnie, call her up!  She's totally accessible and more than willing to talk about any issue.

Sunday on Central got cancelled for this year by the City of Phoenix because of all the light rail construction on Central.  Who cares?  We're going to do this shit anyway.  Sunday on Central starts at Hooters at Arizona Center at 11 AM on Sunday, May 21st.  Leave all your whining, pissing, moaning, elitist, cliquey, coolguy bullshit at home and come ride some skreet with a bunch of other heads just because you like to ride.  Costumes are not only welcomed, they're strongly encouraged.

In Flagstaff news, the grand opening for their new BMX park will go down on May 27th, from 9AM to 1PM.  For more info, visit this site that a mountain biker up there put together for the park--www.webweevers.com/bmx/

  Tommy Logan put together this online petition to get the Tucson City Council to build a bike-friendly skatepark: www.petitiononline.com/bmxpark8/petition.html

  Get on over there and suh-poht! 

April 21st, 2006

This Sunday, starting at 1PM, at Indian School Park (located at NE corner Indian School and Hayden Rd. in Scottsdale) there will be a fundraiser for a fallen Arizona soldiers memorial.  Jose Yanez is setting up his ramps and there will also be a flatland jam with ground riders coming from all over Arizona.  There will be a BBQ, kegs, and a DJ as well. Minimum donation is $5.  Like Fat Albert say, "Yeah, yeah, yeah, gonna have a good time!"

Early voting has begun in Tempe.  You can vote at the Tempe Public Library (located on the Southwest corner of Rural and Southern) anytime it's open.  I'd like to encourage everyone, especially bike riders, skaters and inline skaters to all vote for Onnie Shekerjian.  She supports positive activities for youth and a high quality of life, and she supports building a new, bike-friendly concrete skatepark in Tempe.  The official election day is Tuesday, May 16th.  Visit www.electonnie.com to learn more about Onnie Shekerjian.

Kore Bike Industries is holding a video premiere at the shop (NW corner Scottsdale Rd. and Curry Rd. in Tempe) on Friday, April 28th at 7pm for the new Props Megatour 5.  The event is sponsored by Greasy Comb Distribution, Proper Bikes, Stolen Bikes, and Props.

Brent Sprute, the owner of Thrill Zone, sent me this flyer for their new comp in Tacoma, WA.  It's a ways away from AZ, but there's lots of fools as come to this site that live closer to Washington than I do, so go to this comp if you can.  This guy's doing it right, and it should be a killer time.

April 4th, 2006

If you live in Tempe and are still not registered to vote, click here to register online.  The run-off election between Onnie Shekerjian and Len Copple will be held on May 16th.  Voter registration closes April 17th.  There are also voter registration forms at Kore Bike Industries in Tempe.

Christ Church of Fountain Hills is now opening their skatepark every Saturday, from 2 PM to 6PM.  This isn't just a few 2 foot kickers and a grind bar, either.  They have a 5' mini ramp, a few 5' hips, a 5' street spine, a 7' quarter and more.  The park flows really well and it's free!  All BMX riders, skaters, scooter guys and inline skaters are welcome.  Here's a map:

Check out Ty Young's big article on the "bikes in skateparks" movement that ran on the front page of the B1 section (Valley and State) of the Arizona Republic a few weeks ago:

In Phoenix news, as if it wasn't bad enough that Councilman Greg Stanton totally blew off working on providing a place for BMX bike riders to ride in Phoenix, now a policeman is on duty at Paradise Valley Skatepark every day, all day.  This wasn't something that parks and rec came up with, either, and it's not funded through them.  This came from Councilwoman Peggy Neely, and this is regular city money that's paying from $40,000 to $50,000 a year for a cop to babysit the skatepark.  What an incredible use of taxpayer money.

March 21st, 2006

This is obscene!!!  Here's what one of the 7 riders who got a ticket wrote on the message board on Monday, March 6th:

Yea shit went down at the AJ park yesterday. 3 cops, two park rangers, a 20 minute chase, 7 bikes taken away and 3 charges each.....bikes prohibited, interfering with park ranger duties and the best one Dangerous Acts! because we were airing out of the quarters and harassing little kids yeah whatever bunch of bullshit.

This is so wrong, words just can't express....

I'll keep you updated on this situation.

In Tempe news, the Tempe City Council election was held last Tuesday.  Turns out one of our candidates, Ben Arredondo, is in. So that's very cool. But Onnie Shekerjian (who is totally down to build a new bike/skatepark ASAP) ended up 50 votes behind Len Copple (who is against building a new park and against The 3BC and our whole movement) Neither of them got 50% +1 so there will be a runoff election between Onnie and Len in May. We have about 3 weeks to get people registered.  Voters have to be registered before 30 days prior to election day.  Registration forms will be available at Kore Bike so any Tempe resident can go in and register. You don't even have to take the form in, we'll do that for you. Then all you gots to do is vote for Onnie in May.

There are another couple things we can do to help get Onnie elected: 

We can write letters of support for Onnie to the newspapers.  If you need any help, please e-mail me through the link on the homepage. 

Also, Onnie will be walking neighborhoods with volunteers to get people out to vote.  Again, e-mail me if you can help. 

Let's make it happen, people!  Ready.........BREAK!
 

March 8, 2006

Sorry for the short notice, but we just got this finalized yesterday.  Kore Bike Industries (located on the NW corner of Curry Rd. and Scottsdale/Rural Rd. just North of the 202 freeway) will be holding a showing of the history of BMX documentary, "Joe Kid on a Stingray" this Saturday, March 11th at 6 pm.  Also, the 3BC will be hosting an election rally for the Tempe City Council candidates that support kids who ride BMX bikes.  "Joe Kid on a Stingray" is a must see for anyone who rides or used to ride.  I've been riding for 21 years and I learned tons of things I never knew about BMX'in. 

If you're under 18, try to bring your parents or someone from Tempe who is of voting age.  Come show that support!  The election is Tuesday, March 14th.  And whatever you do, don't vote for Len Copple.  He has consistently voted and spoken against kids who ride BMX bikes, and in a candidate's forum hosted by the Arizona Republic, he even called this site "disgusting".  So let's do this town a big favor and get rid of Barb Carter's prized toadie, 'cause he's screwin' up the joint!

In Flagstaff news, that crazy basin BMX park I've been talking about is finally open!  You can peep some pics of it and directions to it at http://webweevers.com/bmx/bmxbikepark3.htm

Ryan Letcher, Steven Mueller, and some other crazy mug already jumped the 28 foot over-the-bowl gap.  Which one of you fools is next?

Foolishly, the park does not allow skateboards or inline skates.  So now the cops will be ticketing skaters at the bike park and bike riders at the skateparks.  Yeah, that makes lots of sense.

Rex talked many times with Kirk Haines, Director of Peoria Parks and Rec Department, years ago when we started the 3BC.  Rex reported that Kirk was favorable towards bikes, and bikes would be allowed in Peoria's next skatepark, provided BMX riders showed up for the community input meetings.  I love how Kirk acted in his Arizona Republic interview as if he never heard of BMX riders wanting to ride skateparks in his life.  Here park rangers are hassling people that pull up into the parking lot with a bike on a rack or in the back of their pickup, and Kirk knows nothing about it.  Here park rangers are harassing people, making accusations that they're going to ride the park, just because they have BMX-related stickers on their vehicles, and Kirk knows nothing about it.  Here park rangers are acting as thought police, and violating civil and constitutional rights every day, but Kirk is completely ignorant of it.

I was stoked to see how many skaters and bladers instantly sympathized with us that day.  A good few of them came outside the park and asked for signs and even wrote up their own.  This truly is a Bike, Blade and Board Coalition.  These guys don't like to see their friends at school bullied around and discriminated against by authorities at the skatepark.  They want BMX riders to be allowed to ride along with them.  I love what Rudy Baranko, Prescott Parks and Recreation Assistant Director told me a few weeks ago.  He said (and I'm paraphrasing) that he is happy that they allow bikes in the Prescott Skatepark, because skaters, bladers and BMX riders are getting along very well, but he is especially glad bikes are allowed, because it teaches kids to get along with each other, which they'll have to do wherever they go, whatever they do, for the rest of their lives.

Peoria can go on believing Site Design Group's baseless claim that bikes can't work in the skatepark, but that doesn't mean it's true.

Peoria can keep bullying kids for thinking about riding the skatepark with their bikes, but that doesn't mean it's right.

The Peoria protest illustrated so perfectly Albert Einstein's quote that the 3BC has fully embraced: 

"When others are oppressed, no one is truly free."

February 19, 2006

 Click here to see the West Valley View article about how the February 13th Goodyear City Council Meeting went.  Page down to A5.

We're in, boys!  This really is the culmination of all of our efforts these last few years.  I want to thank all the riders for coming out, but if you've helped with this effort at all in any Arizona city, you can take credit for this victory as well. 

This park will be open in just a few months.  I recommend that if you're going to be grinding on the pool coping, put on plastic or aluminum pegs, then you can't possibly do any more damage to it than what skateboards do.  You can always just melt or hammer some pvc onto your pegs, too.

I'd like to clarify Rob Antoniak and Georgia Lords' position on the bikes in the skatepark issue.  They weren't against bikes in the skatepark, they just wanted guidelines to be established for the evaluation of the skatepark after a couple of months. 

In Flagstaff news, Flagstaff city staff was propagating the notion of the BMX park opening on the 15th of February, but it turned out not to be true.  I am in touch now with Mindy from Flagstaff Parks and Rec and she is going to let me know when there's a set date.  She said they have to get a few more things ready, and it will be a few weeks. 

I also spoke with her about the usage of the BMX park.  She said it will be bikes only.  I made sure to let her know that the 3BC advocated that the park allow co-mingled use of bikes, skateboards, and inline skates.  Mindy said they couldn't allow skateboards and inline skates in the park because their insurance wouldn't allow it.  Flagstaff is not self insured as most cities are.  Flagstaff gets its insurance through an insurance pool, and the insurance people call the shots on stuff like this.

In Glendale news, we're hearing the Glendale X Court will be opening in April or May.  Archon does have the contract, and groundbreaking should begin any day now.  The park isn't going to be as near as big as it was originally planned to be, and it's not looking like we're going to get the sick flow bowl the riders helped design.  The cost of concrete and construction has shot up in the past few months, and the park had to be shrunk drastically.  It might just be wedges and ledges, but we will get to ride it.  As long as this is just phase one, that's all right.  We'll definitely be pushing for a phase two with that rad flow bowl.

February 3, 2006

Alright, good stuff here.  The "bikes in the Goodyear Skatepark" issue is officially on the Goodyear City Council Meeting agenda for Monday, February 13th at 6 pm.  The council members will be able to ask us any questions they have and we will be able to respond since we're on the agenda.  Once again, we need all riders, parents and supporters to come out for the meeting.  I can't emphasize enough the need to have parents there.  Council members respond best to those that are of voting age.  Don't let your parents skip out on helping you kids get a legal place to ride them bikes!

Here's an article from the West Valley View that came out a few days ago:

The Bike, Blade and Board Coalition would like to announce our endorsements for the upcoming Tempe City Council election.  Three seats are available, and there are five candidates.  We are fully endorsing Ben Arredondo and Onnie Shekerjian for Tempe City Council.  We believe they have the best interests of all Tempe citizens in mind, including bmx riders, skateboarders, and inline skaters.

For more information on Ben Arredondo, please visit www.BenArredondo.com, or e-mail Ben at ben@benarredondo.com or call him at 480-966-3084.

For more information on Onnie Shekerjian, please visit www.ElectOnnie.com, or e-mail Onnie at Onnie@electonnie.com or call her at 480-831-2733.

This, of course, leaves one more City Council seat for someone to fill.  I don't know who would be best for the third seat, but I would recommend that you DON'T vote for Len Copple.  He has expressed no interest whatsoever in providing a place for bmx riders to legally ride in Tempe, and it appears he has actually worked against bikes being allowed in the Tempe Skatepark.

The Chandler Bike Park design is finalized, and here it is, in all its glory.

They're saying January '07 for an opening.  Good times.  Really good times.

January 21, 2006

Here's some New Year news to be happy about:  Chandler Parks and Rec will be holding a meeting to present their (basically) finalized Chandler Bike Park design to the community.  It will be in the Senior Center (across the courtyard from the downtown library) on Tuesday, Jan. 24th at 6 pm.  Here's a sneaky peek:

I likes.  I likes a lot.

For the record:  Bikes DO NOT have to have "the right pitch and arc on the ramps" they ride as SDG's Lisa Saylan's grossly uninformed opinion would indicate.  Bikes can ride on anything!  Bmx trick riding began at the same time that skateboard "trick riding" began in the early '70's in swimming pools.  These pools weren't designed to accomodate this or that size of wheel, they were designed to hold water!

Case in point:  For years, pro bmx riders and pro skateboarders have competed at the highest levels on the EXACT SAME ramp courses in the most prestigious annual competition in the world, the X Games, and in countless other competitions as well. 

And while it is ideal that skateboarders and bmx riders have plenty of room to maneuver, it is NOT "needed".

In Goodyear news, check this article from the West Valley View:

As you may have guessed, the 3BC will again be going to Goodyear City Council on January 23rd at the Justice Facility (686 South Litchfield Rd.) at 6 pm.  The council is going to be discussing the issue of bikes in the skatepark, and I think we'll be able to answer many of their questions.

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