News

UK Dirt Series Update.

Interview with the organiser - Craig Teague.

Words and Questions by Seb Hejna

The UK Dirt Series is getting close now and with last minute date changes being announced and final tweaks being made to the venues we thought it a good idea to catch up with the organiser, Craig Teague, to find out more about the contest and exactly what has already gone into it and what he hopes the future the holds for the contest.

– So then Craig, you’ve been around a while, but what made you come up with the plan for The Dirt Series?

“It’s something I’ve been thinking of and talking about with Jay (Aliano) for years. There are very little trails and dirt events in Europe, let alone the UK, so I thought instead of complaining about it, why not create something ourselves.”

– How did you combine forces with Jay Aliano and Kye Forte?

“I’ve been friends with both Kye and Jay for years and we all work together doing demos and events like NASS. Kye and Jay have paid their dues and certainly know a thing or two about BMX events.”

– Putting on a few rounds and one big final event must be tough? Why not just start with a one off event? Why make it into a series?

“It’s certainly hard to get all the trails dialled and making sure dates don’t clash with other big events, but I think we have it right and it wouldn’t be a series if it had less than 3 rounds and we really wanted a series. We have 2 rounds at trails and 1 final round on a dirt course at a festival.”

Jack Griffin shreds trails and is 100% taller than you.

– How is it joined to the Park and Vert series?

“I think it just makes sense, I spoke to Zach Shaw about joining forces instead of working against each other, and he agreed. Zach is doing great work and it means everything is consistent across all disciplines, including judging criteria and points. Hopefully The Series will grow to full seasons for each discipline that will give chance for riders to compete all year and earn some money out of it.”

– How have the builds been going?

“We all have legit trails, so they have been in the works for years. At my local (Jays), we have just made a few tweaks and built a new line with a big trick set at the end, so it makes for a good show during the Jam and means more people can ride at the same time. James Done, Joe Baddeley and the Shrews locals have been working hardcore for like 4 years now, building their spot in shrewsbury. We are holding a round there simply because they are some of the best jumps in country.”

The motley build crew making it all come to life.

– Any particular stop you’re looking forward to?

“I’m looking forward to all of them, it’s been almost 12 months of work, with all of us dealing with everything from sponsors and media to local councils and a million emails and meetings. I think people will be blown away by the Shrews trails as they are rad and not many people have even seen them, let alone had the chance to ride them.”

– The summer for the UK is looking good with all The Series, The Worlds at NASS and the Mongoose Jam. Do you think things are on the up for UK BMX?

“Yeah, things are definitely improving, but they still have a long way to go. Hopefully The Series will grow year on year and we can add extra rounds at other trails. This will enable people with spots to make a bit of cash to cover things like insurance and be part of The Series. I’m excited about NASS, as hosting The Worlds in this country is sick, and I’m judging the dirt, so two reasons to be excited. I am just gutted I can’t ride any events myself, I’ve just had ankle surgery and I’m completely written off for the summer, gutted!”

“we are trying to push the sport in a sustainable direction by creating a platform for riders new and old to have an organised season to look forward to every year”

– You’ve got some big names signed up, you must be stoked? How did you manage that?

“We really have, and I think that gives us a good indicator we are doing the right thing! Our first priority beyond anything else is making it appealing for the riders. So many comps have shit jumps and are poorly run, so we wanna do something riders are excited to be part of and something they can look forward to every year. I am lucky enough to be friends with some heroes of the sport such as Nasty, Doyle and TJ Ellis so I have asked them to come. Jay and Kye also know everyone, so that has helped. Having said that, a few top riders signed up without any invitation, Leandro Moreira I think was literally the first to sign up! I think lots of people are looking forward to seeing him ride as well as the other elite riders. Bohan just registered over the weekend, which will be a right treat!”

– How do you respond to the trails guys? I know they sometimes turn their noses up to a jump contest. Why do you think that is?

“Well, we are trail riders ourselves, so we can see the argument from both sides. I think hardcore trails enthusiasts aren’t into the modern style of riding that is basically spin your bars and bike as many times as possible before you land, which seems to be the only style of riding these days. We are trying to do things slightly different by opening up our own trails for everyone to enjoy but at the same time making it appealing to the public and corporate sponsors. Unfortunately, everything comes down to money and events are very expensive and time consuming to run, so it is important we have a competition element. The other thing is, we are trying to push the sport in a sustainable direction by creating a platform for riders new and old to have an organised season to look forward to every year. It’s easy to criticise from the sidelines and behind internet comments, and there will always be people who are too narrow minded to understand and that’s fine. The bottom line is, we are spending our own time and money to bring BMX trails into the spotlight for everyone to enjoy and benefit from.”

– Do you hope this will turn into a yearly thing?

“If we pull of this year without too much stress and without loosing money, we will make it happen year on year. This year we are focusing on having dialled jumps and making sure everyone has a good time, plus everything is done professionally.”

As Craig said, they come from trails, Mark Taylor proving the fact.

– Does organising a contest like this change your perceptions of these events?

“Until you are organising a legit event, you have no idea how much work goes in. Excluding daily digging, I have been to countless meetings, sent thousands of emails, built a website and dealt with everyone from a castle manager to a plant hire company. When you turn up to a Jam or comp you don’t see the man hours and thousands of pounds that have gone into in. I am certainly learning that now, but I am stocked to be putting something back into BMX. Obviously I am part of a team and it wouldn’t be possible without all the crew involved. Including Jay Aliano, Kye Forte, Alex Edwards, Spider, Porno Mark Taylor, Joe Baddely, Jack Griffin, David Guest, Ray and Stephen and Cynthia Murray. Not to mention all our sponsors, especially Vans and Redbull, as without them we simply couldn’t do it.”

– What final words can you say to help people make the decision to come?

“If you want to ride some of the best UK trail spots that are normally invite only, then we welcome you to have a go in a relaxed jam environment with good music, food and drink. For those mad keen on stunts, we invite you to enter The Series with a chance to win cash prizes at each round and for the chance to qualify for our final event at Lakefest. We also hope lots of people come to watch, as it’s not often some of the worlds top riders come to town to put on a display. If any of our other jams are anything to go by, it should be an awesome summers day for everyone. The youths are also important to us, which is why we are holding AM comps to give the next generation of riders the chance to get stuck in. We hope you can make it. After each event we also have evening entertainment and camping, so it will make it a weekend. Depending on people interested we might run a Veteran jam session for the OG trail bosses to throw down, which will be awesome to see. Apparently Scott Edgworth is making a come back!

All the information you need is on the website and spectator tickets go on sale soon. If you wanna compete you MUST register on the website before the first round on Saturday the 2nd July. Spectator tickets for round 1 go on sale soon, numbers will be limited so get in there fast. More info coming soon. We just filmed episode 2 of the behind the scenes at Shrews trails so keep an eye out for that too! Thanks guys, and please come along to support The UK Series”