s/3 i c e l a n d 4 d o w n s u b s ta n c e v o l 3 w i n t e r 1 0 / 1 1
s/ 3
4down substance vol 3 introduction ‘Substance’ as a project for us has always evolved, and this year it is no different. It started it’s life as a tri fold poster, moving into catalogues grouped by brand one year, product the next, and even a poster slotted in between those. We are not satisfied just going through the motions of placing product, description, price on a page to feel like we have achieved something. As we said this time last year ‘if we are to continue putting something out in print when information is so current on the internet, making this catalogue had to be something that would be enjoyable’ Well, we took it one step further this time, and made a ‘catalogue’ without any product in it whatsoever. We started planning this whilst on a Fit trip to Finland, motivation was high and we knew the catalogue deadline wasn’t a million miles away. It started by speaking to Daniel Benson about shooting all the photos and working on some ideas, and taking a select crew of riders on a trip somewhere a little off the beaten path to see what we would end up getting, seemed to fit in with what we wanted to accomplish. "Israel, Majorca, Ibiza, What about Iceland?" (he said in a brash northern accent) and that was that, a few weeks later we were on a flight heading into the relative unknown hoping to fill the pages you are about to flick through. Between our own website and all our brands websites and catalogues, information on our products is more readily available than ever before. We too were young once and could not get enough of scouring pages and circling products in adverts and catalogues, but we feel that is already taken care of with those websites and catalogues already available. So what follows is more of an insight into what we really enjoy doing, who we support and what they run. Getting on the road, travelling, riding and constantly moving forward is more of an appeal, and hopefully just as interesting for you the reader, as pages of products that will be dated within a month or so of this being printed. Thanks for the support, and for all the latest information on our products and our family of brands please go to 4downdistribution.com.
Marv Fit / A bike co
Coxie & Newrick S&M
s/ 3
firsts iceland FIRST MEETING WITH A PRO RIDER At King Of Concrete in Southsea some time in the 90’s, I had a head on collision with Joe Rich’s sternum in front of my new girlfriend whilst walking into the tuck shop to buy a Pot Noodle. FIRST ALBUM PURCHASED I think it was ZZ Top: Eliminator.
FAVOURITE ICELANDIC SNACK? A delicious sweet called the Turkish Pebber.
FIRST SPONSOR A shop in Fareham called Action Bikes. They were actually a pretty good hook-up!
DID YOU DRINK THE EGGY WATER? Only after I added orange segments to counteract the disgusting smell.
FIRST HANDRAIL... AND WHAT were YOU WEARING? Woolston, near Southampton. It was the second stage of a kinker leading into a subway. I had to roll down the first flight to get to it. Great idea… I was wearing a black S&M beanie, green Lord hoodie, big baggy Little Devil jeans, and that day I had some Dan Price inspired wooden beads on and a great big chain wallet. Haha!
DID YOU COMPLY TO THE ‘NAKED SHOWER’ RULE AT THE SWIMMING POOL, OR SNEAK THROUGH WITH SHORTS ON? I cheated the rule on the way into the pool, but displayed myself on the way out.
FIRST ROADTRIP LOCATION I went on a weekend trip to Gravesend with my friend who had just learnt to drive, and two other guys. We rode an indoor skatepark and watched Scott Malyon killing it with a ponytail. We slept in an industrial estate car park wrapped in cling film, I can’t remember why. FIRST BAD SLAM When I first started riding I used to dig and ride at Skelly Woods trails in Fareham. I used to get bullied into riding the big lines from a young age, and this was where all my first bad crashes happened. FIRST PHOTO IN MAGAZINE Ride UK Issue 29: June July 1997. I had a photo doing a suicide double barspin in Slades Bowl at the Slades Farm Jam.
james cox
what was your FAVOURITE AWESOME POWER OF NATURE in iceland? Northern Lights. Saw them whilst sat outside having a cig, Dean was the only other person to witness it.
BEST THING ABOUT ICELAND? Seeing a part of the world like nowhere else I’ve ever been. It’s such an awesome place. When we went sightseeing, everything I saw was pretty breathtaking. Hot rivers, endless pits full of boiling water and steam, volcanoes, geysers, the list goes on and on. Oh yeah, and taking a Honda jazz into the wilderness, that was pretty funny. WORST THING ABOUT ICELAND? Either the weather or the smell of the place. I don’t think I could get used to the smell of sulphur every day. THOUGHTS ON ICELAND BEFORE GOING? I didn’t think there would be anything at all to ride. I expected more snow. Underestimated the awesome power of nature too.
FIRST BMX My first ‘proper’ BMX was the Haro Shredder Deluxe. Because it was deluxe, it had see-through grips and Gyro cables. Alright!
THOUGHTS ON ICELAND since COMING HOME? One of the most fascinating countries I’ve ever visited, and I was glad I got to do it with such a good crew. I wish we could have stayed longer! The street riding was surprisingly good too, as was the nightlife - absolute insanity… I’d recommend it to anyone as a really cool place to go.
FIRST CONTEST AND PLACING First contest was the Slades Farm Jam that I mentioned in the magazine photo question. I entered B Group bowls and came 4th.
TOP ICELANDIC TRAVEL TIP? If you see a large pony-tailed man called Ricky in any nightclub in Reykjavik, avoid him, he has a knife.
"I don’t think I could get used to the smell of sulphur every day."
Coxie S&M
Worse than the Big Market
There was a huge amount of pub talk/ beer banter leading up to my trip to Iceland. In response to me mentioning that i was going there, it would usually result in an amazing over exaggerated fact or epic tale from a ‘friend of a friend’. Some of my personal favourites were along the lines of. ‘Yeah, so and so said that Bjork was drinking in the same pub as him every other night! like it didn’t even matter! like it was nothing!’ ‘so and so said that they walked up a set of stairs in Iceland only to realise half way up that the stairs had blue light rays emitting from their core and were made entirely of ice! something to do with geothermal energy apparently?’ ‘Dave caught a glimpse of Sigur Ros galloping
through the streets of Reykjavik under the glow of the Northern lights on horse back! Iceland’s supposed to be amazing dude’! Blah blah blah... I shrugged off the majority of these unbelievable elements but couldn’t shake the picture that had formed in my mind of Iceland being some kind of magical, beautiful, mysterious fantasia? On landing in Iceland the view from the aeroplane window told a different story. Miles of black jagged rock being thrashed by relentlessly harsh wind and rain put a smile on my face. The landscape bared more resemblance to Scotland or even ‘Mordor’ the realm of the Dark Lord Sauron from the fictional story ‘Lord of The Rings’. Mordor is described in The Lord of the Rings trilogy as ‘the black
land’ or ‘a terrible land of darkness and fear’. With its measly 4 hours of light in December, jagged landscape and erupting volcanoes Iceland seemed the perfect match in reality. My first day there was spent in absolute awe. Wandering around in heavy rain admiring the mountainous landscape and black thunderous clouds that engulfed us. This I found far more exciting than the Disney style toy town that had previously been projected into my mind via the medium of ‘Chinese whisper ‘in the local pub. On my second day in Iceland I began to notice and pick up on a strange ‘American stuff’ fascination Reykjavik seemed to be involved in. Everywhere I'd look there would be a classic piece of the American
"They would probably be expecting some ridiculous out of this world fact or story about my stay. In my response I'd say that I met a drug dealer who carried a knife and I was poisoned by a packet of American style hot dogs." dream. This would come in the form of Chevy’s, Harley Davidson motorbikes, monster trucks, hot dogs, Hollywood movie references. We would even hear snippets of English on the radio now and again shouting out things like ‘America Style’ and ‘New York City baby’. This was quite bizarre and unexpected yet pretty funny. Funnily enough, it was a packet of American style hot dogs that lead to my downfall on the third day.
may have to experience it again at at some point in your life. My encounter only lasted 24 hours but left me in a weakened state. A shell of a man. It was also pretty embarrassing getting it from a novelty packet of hot dogs with a pathetic little sausage shaped cartoon man winking at me on the wrapper! Something hardcore like uncooked chicken would have been a worthy cause. American style hot dog poisoning was a joke!
Being hit with a dose of food poisoning is the devil’s work. It’s a classic holiday wrecker. Most people have had it at some point in their lives, some worse than others. Your first encounter always leaves you with a fear of all foods you may have eaten that day and also the fear that you
A day or two later I started to regain my strength and began to enjoy and be amazed by the natural wonders of Iceland. The food poisoning seemed like a distant memory and I could now laugh about the whole experience. I pictured myself back home in a scenario where I'd be the one being asked
to describe my visit to Iceland. They would probably be expecting some ridiculous out of this world fact or story about my stay. In my response I'd say that I met a drug dealer who carried a knife and I was poisoned by a packet of American style hot dogs. That would soon put a dampener on Iceland’s enchanting Mystique! Ha. Being honest though Iceland is a very beautiful and incredible place. Not in a weird magical story book kind of way but in a very raw, awesome, overpowering, natural way. I feel very privileged to have been able to visit. Just watch yourself dowtown Reykjavik on a Saturday night. It proper kicks off. Worse than the ‘Big Market’! -jim newrick
bengo Fit / A bike co
Tom Blyth FBM
s/ 3
firsts iceland FIRST MEETING WITH A PRO RIDER Was Taj at Backyard 95. My friend was losing his shit about meeting him; it was just around the time that his signature Hoffman frame was coming out. We ended up cornering him so my friend could have a go on his bike. I'll never forget he had this red case with little red riding hood on it. FIRST ALBUM PURCHASED Tape cassette of Will Smith ‘Boom Shake Shake Shake the Room.' FIRST SPONSOR Haro Bikes. FIRST HANDRAIL... AND WHAT were YOU WEARING? This rail in Southampton near the docks. I know I had a Base Brooklyn wind breaker on and my chain had broke so I had to get pushed into it. FIRST real ROADTRIP LOCATION Probably that '95 Backyard Jam. FIRST BAD SLAM I hung up front wheel at these down hill trails we had. Ended up in a heap on the next take off and bruised my ribs real bad. FIRST PHOTO IN MAGAZINE Bar spin fly out of course. FIRST BMX A bright orange Townsend. FIRST CONTEST AND PLACING I think 3rd in C group bowls at one of the Southsea Easter jams.
what was your FAVOURITE AWESOME POWER OF NATURE in iceland? The Gullfoss waterfall. FAVOURITE ICELANDIC SNACK? Didn’t really have one though I did enjoy watching Coxie eating this one chocolate bar. It looked like a load of already chewed chewing gum covered in chocolate. He seemed to really like them. DID YOU DRINK ANY OF THE EGGY WATER? Nah, just had to deal with it every time you had a shower or brushed your teeth. Soon got used to it. DID YOU COMPLY TO THE ‘NAKED SHOWER’ RULE AT THE SWIMMING POOL, OR SNEAK THROUGH WITH SHORTS ON? Just went with it man. BEST THING ABOUT ICELAND? Getting in a river that was as warm as a bath. WORST THING ABOUT ICELAND? Egg. THOUGHTS ON ICELAND BEFORE GOING? Always been somewhere I wanted to go. THOUGHTS ON ICELAND since COMING HOME? Would like to go back at some point. TOP ICELANDIC TRAVEL TIP? Don’t forget your camera charger.
"Just went with it man."
ashley charles
ashley charles united / bicycle union
s/ 3
firsts iceland FIRST MEETING WITH A PRO RIDER Bike '98. Met the lot, but chatted to Jim Reinstra. He had an interview on Props 13 (the first video I ever saw) and no one else really knew who he was so he wasn’t getting mobbed. He was so stylish at riding mini. I asked him how to pronounce ‘Tao’, a Standard Bikes frame at the time. FIRST ALBUM PURCHASED ‘Ignition’ by The Offspring. They were my favourite band when I was a kid. Obviously they suck now but Ignition is still good. FIRST SPONSOR Hate. FIRST HANDRAIL... AND WHAT were YOU WEARING? Comet rail in Newbury. I didn’t know anyone who had done a rail before so I was bricking it. Seven stairs with a mini kink. Base Brooklyn hoodie, cream Airwalk jacket, Mecca jeans and some Etnies too. FIRST ROADTRIP LOCATION Barcelona FIRST BAD SLAM Northcroft doubles, tried to jump the big set and sailored it to the max. Nosed it into the back on the landing and KO'd myself briefly, through my Poor Boy beanie.
what was your FAVOURITE AWESOME POWER OF NATURE in iceland? The waterfall we tried to get under. FAVOURITE ICELANDIC SNACK? Camel lights. DID YOU DRINK ANY OF THE EGGY WATER? Loads. DID YOU COMPLY TO THE ‘NAKED SHOWER’ RULE AT THE SWIMMING POOL, OR SNEAK THROUGH WITH SHORTS ON? Yeah, it was liberating. BEST THING ABOUT ICELAND? Ricky. WORST THING ABOUT ICELAND? Off Licenses closing early. THOUGHTS ON ICELAND BEFORE GOING? Was excited but didn’t think there would be anything to ride. THOUGHTS ON ICELAND since COMING HOME? Fucking amazing! A place everyone should go to so much to see and do. TOP ICELANDIC TRAVEL TIP? Swimming shorts.
FIRST PHOTO IN MAGAZINE X-up to fakie in the (first) photo issue of DIG. FIRST BMX Schwinn Predator. FIRST CONTEST AND PLACING KOC amateur, very nearly last.
marv
"...tried to jump the big set and sailored it to the max."
Marv Fit / A bike co
firsts iceland FIRST MEETING WITH A PRO RIDER: Does Benny L count? Didn’t really say anything to him. Just thought I was around some sort of BMX god. FIRST ALBUM PURCHASED: Eminem - Marshall Mathers LP (CD). FIRST SPONSOR: Nike 6.0 Flow. FIRST HANDRAIL... AND WHAT were YOU WEARING? Rail hill church rail - black DCs, blue jeans, cream T and glasses. FIRST ROADTRIP LOCATION: Dub Soulatour, Paris. FIRST BAD SLAM : A feeble on a 4 stair down ledge on the Liverpool waterfront. My back peg hit on the way up and my front tyre missed the ledge, so I landed in a tooth, went straight over the bars and knee’d the cobbled floor. After sitting down for five minutes I couldn’t walk properly because it had swollen so much. FIRST PHOTO IN MAGAZINE : Low Profile - Dig Mag 65, doing a whip down tunnel banks 5 stair. FIRST BMX: All rust chrome Diamond Back, knocked together with all rusty old parts. FIRST CONTEST AND PLACING: Nike 6.0’s Standby Barcelona - 2nd
what was your FAVOURITE AWESOME POWER OF NATURE in iceland? The natural hot spring water streams that you can kick back and chill in on a cold Icelandic day. FAVOURITE ICELANDIC SNACK? I wouldn’t say I had a favourite but they had some funky tasting honey cheerios. DID YOU DRINK ANY OF THE EGGY WATER? Didn’t dare, got burnt by it once or twice though. DID YOU COMPLY TO THE ‘NAKED SHOWER’ RULE AT THE SWIMMING POOL, OR SNEAK THROUGH WITH SHORTS ON? Shorts off, towel round. BEST THING ABOUT ICELAND? Standing under 200-300ft waterfalls was definitely a highlight for me. WORST THING ABOUT ICELAND? Currency exchange. Does paying 380.00 ISK for a 1.5L bottle of 7up sound right to you? THOUGHTS ON ICELAND BEFORE GOING? Didn’t have a clue what to expect, I couldn’t imagine much riding to be happening really. THOUGHTS ON ICELAND since COMING HOME? So many crazy things in such a small place plus street's pretty good too. TOP ICELANDIC TRAVEL TIP? Waterproofs will be needed.
BENGO "Does paying 380.00 ISK for a 1.5L bottle of 7up sound right to you?"
s/ 3
bengo Fit / A bike co
s/ 3
firsts iceland FIRST MEETING WITH A PRO RIDER: I don’t really remember, probably either Ben Hennon at Ape or Ben Manuel at Upton, something like that. I remember Ben Hennon’s dad picking me up off the ground once after I ate shit doing a one handed x-up over the Ape jumpbox... FIRST ALBUM PURCHASED: I can’t remember for sure but I think the first album I bought was the Black Album by Metallica out of my mum’s Britannia music catalogue, that was a CD. Before that I think the first single was either Axel F by Clock or Stay by East 17 which I bought for a girl at Christmas! Both were on cassette. FIRST SPONSOR: My first real sponsor was Attila but Cottingham Cycle Centre helped me out a bit before that too. FIRST HANDRAIL... AND WHAT were YOU WEARING? My first rail was in Welton in an old lady’s back garden, it was high and clamped and down about 4 stairs. Safe Nath and me trained it and I landed really front heavy and nearly went over the bars. FIRST ROADTRIP LOCATION: The first of the revived backyard jams in Hastings maybe? FIRST BAD SLAM: Don’t remember... FIRST PHOTO IN MAGAZINE: Was a bermslider air at the now defunct KC stadium skatepark on a red fit, shot by Ricky Adam while shooting my Sturdy Wrists for Dig, it must have been in 2003. FIRST BMX: GT performer 48 in chrome.
tom blyth
FIRST CONTEST AND PLACING: I haven’t ever entered a real contest, I beat Gaz Wilson in Best trick at a jam in Driffield once by 540ing the volcano. He was riding for Felt and he won the actual jam but I won best trick and got a Hoffman frame and he won a pair of Felt pegs!
what was your FAVOURITE AWESOME POWER OF NATURE in iceland? Probably the big waterfall that tried to crush Dean when he challenged it! FAVOURITE ICELANDIC SNACK? I bet everyone answered putrefied shark to this one... Erm, probably the marzipan bar or the 25 quid pizza I accidentally bought on day one. DID YOU DRINK ANY OF THE EGGY WATER? Ha, nope... but I checked every drop we came across to see if it was hot or not. DID YOU COMPLY TO THE ‘NAKED SHOWER’ RULE AT THE SWIMMING POOL, OR SNEAK THROUGH WITH SHORTS ON? I tried to sneak through with wet shorts on but got chased out by Angry Mop Man. BEST THING ABOUT ICELAND? Awesome power of Nature. WORST THING ABOUT ICELAND? Smelled of egg. THOUGHTS ON since BEFORE GOING? Probably nothing to ride, expensive, loads of hot blonde Scandinavian girls kicking about, Aurora Borealis. THOUGHTS ON ICELAND AFTER COMING HOME? Loads to ride, expensive (but cheaper than it used to be), awesome power of nature, stuffed Puffins everywhere, girls weren’t all that in my opinion though. TOP ICELANDIC TRAVEL TIP? Rent a car and get out into Mordor whatever you do!
"I tried to sneak through with wet shorts on but got chased out by Angry Mop Man."
Tom Blyth FBM
james Newrick S&M
firsts iceland FIRST MEETING WITH A PRO RIDER: Jamie Bestwick at ‘Bug Jam’ when I was fifteen. I didn’t have the bottle to talk to him so I sat on the grass 10 feet away from him and watched as he ate an apple. FIRST ALBUM PURCHASED: Either Cypress Hill ‘Temples of Boom’ or Snoop Dogs ‘ Doggy Style’ I think? FIRST SPONSOR: Lord Clothing. FIRST HANDRAIL... AND WHAT were YOU WEARING? My first proper handrail was in a Morrisons car park. It was really polished and fast from kids sliding down it in their school uniforms. It was maybe about 12 stairs? Really steep with a nasty kink and a narrow run up. A real mean fucker, I got down it in an accidental feeble wearing a yellow Fox hoodie. FIRST ROADTRIP LOCATION: Another Morrisons related answer. I quit my first part time job working in the fresh food shelf stacking in Morrisons to go to Rampworks in Liverpool. FIRST BAD SLAM: Landing on my head at the trails. FIRST PHOTO IN MAGAZINE: I think it was doing a back rail sprocket stall in an indoor park. One of the Coombes brothers took it and it featured in Dig with the caption ‘it’s only rock and roll but we like it’! FIRST BMX: A double top tube Amaco I found on some grass in a council estate. FIRST CONTEST AND PLACING: I think it was a mini ramp comp at Ape skatepark. I placed second. Or it could be a bunnyhop competition in Washington against the Giant mountain bike team. I won that one.
what was your FAVOURITE AWESOME POWER OF NATURE in iceland? The second waterfall we visited stood out as the most awesome for me. FAVOURITE ICELANDIC SNACK? Turkish pebber? DID YOU DRINK ANY OF THE EGGY WATER? Yes I did. Imagine having food poisoning and having no choice but to drink water that tastes and smells of egg! DID YOU COMPLY TO THE ‘NAKED SHOWER’ RULE AT THE SWIMMING POOL, OR SNEAK THROUGH WITH SHORTS ON? I sneaked through. BEST THING ABOUT ICELAND? It’s stark yet beautiful, stunning scenery. WORST THING ABOUT ICELAND? American stuff fascination. THOUGHTS ON ICELAND BEFORE GOING? Bjork, magical, northern lights, buildings made from ice, cold, beautiful, hot rivers. THOUGHTS ON ICELAND AFTER COMING HOME? I’d definitely go back. It’s pretty much unspoilt apart from the love for American stuff and Reykjavik’s drinking problem. I'll let them off for that though considering beer was banned until 1989. They’re just catching up. TOP ICELANDIC TRAVEL TIP? If you bump into a tall guy called Ricky with a mullet and Cuban heels he may seem like a good laugh at first. He is in fact quite dark and dangerous.
"Turkish pebber?"
james newrick
s/ 3
james Newrick S&M
bengo Fit / A bike co
bengo Fit / A bike co
iceland 4down s/ 3
s/ 3
4 d o w n di s t ri b u t i o n . c o m