Page 20 of 23
| prev |
15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 |
next
Ben Hole does it again but in 3D!
Featuring Trampariders: Jack Elston, Floyd and Ash Garwood
Ben Hole:
Well someone had to do it so I thought it might as well be us, this is in 3D, shot on a loan unit AG3-DA1 from panasonic broadcast UK.
Shot at the amazing Llangennith beach on the Gower on two light wind days in early spring, with the amazing Trampa kiteboard team riding the 2011 Ozone depower foils and the awesome C4.
Supported by Ozone Europe & Powerkiteshop with exceptional music from the bubbling Rhyme Asylum, check em out!
Could it be a first…
(Watch wearing red and blue anaglyph glasses for full effect)
http://vimeo.com/23008221
I just got back from the second kite event of the year. It's in Wildwood Beach New Jersey on the East coast.
I was out there for four days. It has been a gathering for buggy riders for years and only a handful of usually attend, but i'm trying to change that. This year I was invited out to teach landboarding seminars on the beach, and it was a success. I was able to work with a few people and get them rolling around back and forth.
I even taught a guy in his 40's how to jump, and after a few minutes he was 7 feet in the air. The winds for the weekend started at 20mph and slowely worked up to about 40mph, so some of the beginners were a little timid about putting kites up in the air.
When everybody was done I was able to get a little bit of riding of my own. I've attached a few of my photos............
Good Winds!
Adam Bedinghaus
A change was in the air again for Trampa near the end of the noughties. MBS decided it was no longer in their best interests to supply accessories and there was a recognition that the Scrub parts, although good, were not really what Trampa stood for. They still continued with the hybrids, using parts from Ground Industries and more, but started looking at developing more hardware themselves. Meanwhile, boards carried on rolling out at events, try-outs and centres.
So in 2008 (having sold his house to invest) Ted bravely steered the Trampa ship through turbulent economic waters, and started research + devel
opment into the next generation of gear, determined to manufacture all the quality components they could themselves; not only decks but trucks, hubs, tyres, bindings, bearings, nuts, bolts and everything. All with the legendary Trampa attention to detail and enviable first class quality.
In 2009 Trampa held more comps and the Rem crew got a preview of loads of the new gear while it was in testing. It was frankly incredible just how much shiny new stuff there was. There were finished hubs printed with camo or dollar bills, new prototype decks with a light, super high-density foam core, and some drool-worthy prototype all-steel trucks.
Less than a year (and more road-trips & events) later, all the gear was perfected and ready to drop, bar the oft-discussed foam-core deck and body protection gear - nothing is rushed through with Trampa! The whole range was launched simultaneously (March '10) on a new Trampa website and it almost overloaded our brains with wonderful wheelieboarding options.
The new range was rolled out physically at the Ride the Hill Vert Jam in April 2010. Ted and team brought a whole stack of colour-coordinated new product for the discerning masses to test, try-out, generally look at, critique, and drool over.
Attention to detail is a Trampa standard, and everything has a seriously nice finish. One of the highlights of the latest gear is the final versions of the new trucks. Available in basic form as the 'Infinity' and in a finer, lighter form as the ‘Vertigo’ (with upgradeable titanium kingpins no less). They're beautifully crafted bits of kit and amazingly light. There are no messy bits, no weld points (like the matrix pro for example), just stunningly-milled and precision-engineered metal masterpieces.
They’ve also made everything else you could possibly need to go with a their ‘bulletproof’ deck, in a mind boggling array of colours. Just look at the different binding options for instance- 25 ratchet variants, 22 cam-lock, 6 hybrids and 11 velcro, and that's not even mentioning heel-straps…!
Of course you can get a complete setup if you’re overwhelmed by the choice.
We still dont know for fact that the decks are “bulletproof” (maybe we should get 'Top Gear' involved…), but we've never, ever seen a broken one and they are the only company that will make you a bespoke one: Flex, pop, and stiffness are all a matter of taste and as everyone is different, the boards need to be tailored to you personally with different ply thicknesses and board shape (length, plan, riser angle etc). Obviously what style of riding you plan on doing will affect it too...
Some people say the thicker decks are quite heavy, and there has been an amount of addressing this with the Holy Pro deck (which has holes in strategic places), but the heavy boards are generally for heavier riders that may break wooden decks, so they benefit. Smaller, light riders also benefit as they get some of the lightest decks around. So Trampa probably simultaneously make the heaviest and the lightest decks available on the market today!
This is especially key to the progress that’s been made in the kite-landboarding scene; they’ve always had a good presence but now the results are speaking for themselves: The Championship standings for the BKSA (BritishKiteSurfingAssociation) nationals in 2010 saw 3 Trampa team riders on the podium after 4 rounds over the year, with Jack Elston taking1st, Steve Smith 2nd and Ash Garwood 3rd. Well done lads.
2010 also unfortunately saw a burglary at Trampa HQ, but things are looking better now and Ted is looking to the future. As sales slow down due to global economic melt-downs, they're still developing. increasing the colour ranges (blues now in!), perfecting the items that didn't quite get refined enough in the first round of production (there have been a couple of minor changes to existing moulds), they’re experimenting with titanium axles in the Vertigo Hangers, and there’s also prototype protection: wrist guards, as well as new Bootie-wrap style butt-pads (developed with Diego Anderson) which are perfect for occasional riders & centres. Plenty to come then!
2011 also sees more events & comps planned; first of which is the Melbourne race series (organised by Trampa’s Ryan Slater), which is 3 comps over 3 months in Australia’s summer, two of which have already taken place- check out details here
A few facts:
Trampa have hosted over a dozen events and organised distribution for their products globally.
They have worked in true collaboration with riders, centres & companies, eg Headworx, Buff, Ride the Hill, Coastal, and more.
Each board in the Pro line-up features 206 separate parts.
There’s always rather a lot going on for Ted and this little garage industry from Nottingham.
----
To conclude, we must touch on cost. Some may argue that prices of Trampa gear require a sharp intake of breath, but we say rightly so: you’re not just buying, you’re investing.
Trampa are like the ‘Norton’ or ‘TVR’ of mountainboarding; desirable British craftsmanship bought to you with passion, care, and a bit of eccentric-looking oomph!
If you wanted, you could test drive one at mountainboard centres like Ride the Hill, Bugs Boarding, Court Farm, Out to Grass, Haredown, Hales Superbole, and Wanyi Park (Belgium), or indeed wherever you see the Trampa pimp-wagon out & about, at comps or events, with a kite, at a skatepark, centre, or on a hill somewhere, from the UK to Australia...
There you have it: choice. And probably far too much of it ;)
Links:
Main Site:
www.trampaboards.com
Trampa on Facebook:
www.facebook.com/trampaboards
Trampa Australia:
www.trampaboards.com.au
www.trampaboardsoz.blogspot.com
Trampa Team:
www.trampaboards.com/team
BKSA:
www.britishkitesurfingassociation.co.uk
And finally, here's some Trampa YouTube Vids. Enjoy!
Thanks to Ted, all at Trampa Boards, the riders and the photographers.
Trampa Boards, up close & personal: the full story!
Trampa is the most innovative, proactive and downright coolest British manufacturer out there. Here, Remolition presents a full spotlight feature all about where they came from, where they're at, and where they’re going…
Part 1
Many humble mountainboarders have lofty plans to develop their own decks or parts, yet most don’t got past prototypes. Trampa is a little different; they are not your typical manufacturer, having become a company that lovingly produces every single bit of hardware a rider could possibly need. Dan Wilson chatted to Ted and got the lowdown on this Great British company. From the beginning...
It was 2002. Rob Edgar had been developing a new kind of rigid board deck from plastic composites developed at work. He shared his idea with friends Ed Statham, Ted Orr & Jonny Richards, all boardsport fiends, and Hillbilly ATB (based in Nottingham) was conceived.
The guys used scraps of metal from a lorry factory to make the prototype moulds, and old skateboard parts were robbed for testing on their first hand cut decks. Clearly onto something special they struck a deal with Ben Bisco from TKC (Scrub manufacturer/distributor), who allowed them to utilize component parts from the reliable existing Scrub range, including wheels, bindings and trucks, to be used with the deck: The Trampa (as in trampoline).
This now-infamous “bomb-proof” deck was their unique secret weapon, made from (essentially) a fiber-reinforced thermoplastic. These legendary decks are baked liked cakes. The flex and stiffness is adjusted by laying the weave (that comes on a roll) in different directions, and by altering the number of layers. The layered material is shaped to cover the highly polished moulds, vacuum-sealed, and OVEN cooked. Later, after cooling & stripping down, they are cut to final shape using seriously high-pressure water jets, normally reserved for 1ft thick steel. This is the only way to do the job as lasers get too hot and bubble the surface, while -as anybody who’s tried it knows- metal jigsaw blades are blunt within seconds of cutting.
Decks could be cut any shape, and experimentation began, with the first boards available in two shapes with a choice ply's depending on rider weight. The crew hit the roads and made themselves visible at events all over the country, encouraging riders to try them out for themselves.
This was it: Hillbilly ATB’s patented Trampa deck had arrived on the market. Major pop and sweet torsional flex included.
The initial collaborations with Scrub came through J Bisson at All Terrain Boarding magazine (himself a keen engineer + board-builder), and before long a working relationship with G-4s ( at the time the Rolls Royce of Mountainboarding) was happening too. Trampa utilised their trucks and bindings, with wheels from Primo. ATB mag loved the boards and helped inspire the boys. Next came upgrade kits for Grass Board, Mongoose, Bio Hazard, MBS and more, and the fully-customizable nature of Trampa boards continued its evolution. They even started experimenting with NoSno parts and creating longboard decks too.
Boards featured nearly every bit of tech going, from Revo trucks to Kheo bindings. The Anarkite (board above) parts were being developed by an independant developer and Trampa forged a great working relationship. Back in 2003, the lads had started to take their products to the masses and became regular faces at events, shows & demos everywhere. Their wonky old market stall became the place to be, taking in indoor snow-shows, outdoors wind-fests, and just about every UK & euro mountainboard/kite landboard event on the calender. They met lots of new people along the way and partied like crazy with their amazing team of riders who they’d started sponsoring; In ’03 it consisted of a young, new wave of riders like Tom Kirkman, Laurie Kaye and Ollie Morrison, who were all riding prototype Trampa boards with Scrub components.
The team had an epic time, learning, riding and working together. There were European road trips, Ollie received his long-standing ‘Bomber’ nickname, Tom became World Champ for the first time (on his custom Trampa), Tom Reese joined age 17 and beat Leon Robbins, and AJ Lawson collaborated on some international Trampa missions.
With most technological developments in the sport coming from trucks & bindings, Trampa became deservedly well-known for their individual decks. With standard drilling patterns and deck size, Trampa’s personalisation of the ride was a breath of fresh air. They could offer truly custom boards, created bespoke to suit the rider’s preferences.
They also experimented with colour on the decks; it had to be a special powder-coating, and the bright glossy boards looked real good. However, it added a surprising lot of weight to the deck and, in R & D, eventually started scratching off, so was not pursued. One was even used in this Kite mag test where they chucked loads of different boards off a cliff in Devon! Needless to say, the Trampa was fine.
As they moved on, in 2005, the ‘Hillbilly’ part of their name was dropped (pure coincidence that there was an American brand with the same name!), and Ted personally took over Trampa full-time. He re-invented the ‘brand’ and started pushing the company style in a much smarter, more professional direction. Working with lots of new riders as the others moved on, they started developing new products like the Trampa Dampas which were co-developed by Mark Daniels from Kitedeck & De-x. The use of the boards with kites alongside downhill was a key factor in growth and development. They also made new working relationships with Headworx, working with the team out of Coastal, and from there got links to another affiliate, Buff Headgear. While there in 05, they also encouraged a young Tom Reese, who then beat Leon Robbins age 13!
Soon, they began to sponsor major events, and then made the decision to put on their own freestyle-based comp: The Trampa Challenge. The first one went well and the team line-up expanded with some top international riders like crazy Swiss man Marco Dahler, Aussie “Wild Boar” Ryan Slater & previous World Freestyle Champions Renny Myles & Arno VDV...
Trampa had secured their products relevance in both the gravity-powered side of boarding as well as the wind-powered market; they'd made their own decks, started their own competitions, given loads of riders the chance to be 'pros' and loads more people the chance to be riders. Yep, they'd come a real long way- both physically and metaphorically... What was next?
|
The hollidays are always crazy for the average joe, but when you are a kite landboarder it can get exceptionally complex. Mine started with a flight to Phoenix Arizona with my Fiancee Joy. Our flight was supposed to leave on at 8 pm. on the 21st, but it ended up being delayed till 4 am on the 22nd instead. Luckily I had some kite magazines, so I kept reading through them to keep myself from going crazy. While in Phoenix I was able to explore the desert, and I now have plenty of photos of cactus and the Mesa rock formation the Southwest of the United States is famous for.
Unfortunatly I didn't get a chance to go kiteboarding out there, but I saw a few bare spots in the desert that would be great for landboarding. I flew back into the midwest on Christmas morning, where I immediatly jumped in the car with my best friends the nowhereboys. It was the three of us; Jordan, Paul, and I. We had been planning a trip to the Northeast part of the US to visit the city of Boston, but more importantly to meet up with new Peter Lynn buggy team rider Todd Stevick and friends. We drove all night for 23 hours in which we got stuck in a blizzard right before we made it to Boston.
Before we headed down to Wildwood Beach New Jersey, we took an evening to meet up with a couple of other riders from the Powerkiteforum.com at a local pub. Snowkiter Chuddy and her Fiance were a riot. By this time we had been without having a chance to ride for four days and I was starting to lose my mind. Meeting up with other riders is what its all about, even on those crappy weeks when there is nowind whatsover.
Finally we made our way seven hours down to Wildwood Beach to meet up with Todd Stevick. We were also greeted with his son Corey, Rich from East Coast Kite Sports, and their buddy Scott. These guys are some of the most dedicated kiters that I have ever met. By this time it was New years eve and the wind projected for the next two days was almost non-existant. These guys drove 6 hours, 4hours, and 3 hours just to meet up with us, even in the light that there was supposed to be ZERO wind! I've never felt so awesome before, to know that guys drove from three different states just to meet us.
After we arrived Todd and Rich took us out to the beach. When we reached the water we could feel a little bit of wind on our faces. I checked my wind meter and it read between 7-8 mph. After a week of sitting inside because of blizzard conditions we all just wanted to get out there and ride. I set up my 15m charger which I only had a chance to use one other time previously.
I was having a blast power sliding on sand, which feels like sliding on butter compared to bumpy grass fields. I was only able to do about two jumps because the wind was so low. It was awesome to see so much sand on my Trampa kite deck though. I've only ever used it on grass, and I was so stoked to use it on the beach. This board turns so sharp then any other ATB i've ever owned.The thing is so light and nimble. All of the guys were wanting to test out my deck, since there aren't many trampas in the US . Most of the decks they use are older and made of wood. Rich from East Coast Kite Sports was loving it since it wasn't bottoming out on the ground like the previous boards he has used.
By the time we were done riding, the sun was out and the winter jackets were off. I was looking up and down the beach and happy to see so many PL kites in the air. The next day (Jan 1) we were able to ride in very similar conditions. I was bummed that I didn't get a chance to freestyle, but riding on a sunny beach is the best way to start a new year. Paul, Jordan, and I had to leave right away to head back home. It was only 19 hours to get home, but it isn't very comfortable when you have so much sand in your pants.
Looking forward to many more trips this year, and I'm excited to meet more riders and teach more people how to use PL kites. I hope everybody out there had a good holiday.
Ride the Sky!
Page 20 of 23
| prev |
15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 |
next