Great short mountain bike edit. Lots of scenery, and a fresh approach to the video edit.

Ultramontane No.03 from nsmb.com on Vimeo.

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There is a lot of talent out there. What I search for when posting these weekly videos is to find the clip that tells us a story, that goes beyond the norm and tests the limits of what we can do.

Take Jacob Sutton here, normally a pro fashion photographer and filmmaker, he teams up with pro snowboarder William Hughes for this work of art.

 

The electrifying film sees Hughes light up the snow-covered French hills in a bespoke L.E.D.-enveloped suit courtesy of designer and electronics whizz John Spatcher. "I was really drawn to the idea of a lone character made of light surfing through darkness," says Sutton of his costume choice. "I've always been excited by unusual ways of lighting things, so it seemed like an exciting idea to make the subject of the film the only light source." Sutton, who has created work for the likes of Hermès, Burberry and The New York Times, spent three nights on a skidoo with his trusty Red Epic camera at temperatures of -25C to snap Hughes carving effortlessly through the deep snow, even enlisting his own father to help maintain the temperamental suit throughout the demanding shoot. "Filming in the suit was the most surreal thing I've done in 20 years of snowboarding," says Hughes of the charged salopettes. "Luckily there was plenty of vin rouge to keep me warm, and Jacob's enthusiasm kept everyone going through the cold nights."

 

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This is insane. This guy goes for a ride with his snowmobile and at appox 0:34 seconds in, look closely at the top middle you can see the snow cracking. In the next 2 seconds it all comes crashing down. Lucky guy, and a good reminder that we are not invincible and that we must respect the law of nature. 

GoPro mounted on hood of Polaris, sledder sidehilling triggers slide 100M above him, 1 meter deep. Pulled SnoPulse airbag backpack to stay afloat. Sled burried, sledder not.

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In Sydney we're not as lucky as the folks up in the rockies or canada who have endless custom built and natural tracks to ride on.

Yes we have a few, but the really technical ones with the big jumps are not plentiful within 1 hour of Sydney. I know I can travel to the snowies or even NZ for when the ski slopes turn into tracks into the summer months but otherwise we don't have that much.

I guess the same applies for these crazy locos (They call themselves the "Loco Freeride Association"). They wanted a big jump, they built it. 

Check out their vid? And drop me a line what's your favourite sydney mountain bike track. Cheers!

LFA from Afuera Entretenimiento on Vimeo.

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Stumbled upon this little beauty of a clip that I've instantly added it to my list of must do things before I'm 30. So what is it?

Well there's 3 cool things about this.

1. You get to go downhill mountain bike riding in one of the most picturest locations ever (Com' on it's where Lord of the Rings was filmed!)

2. You don't need to ride to the top, a Helicopter takes you there! And you get the awesome views as part of the deal.

3. It's in Queenstown, NZ. For aussie riders, that means it's a quick 3 hour flight from Sydney, cheap and easy to get too. In the summer months, accomodating in Queenstown is dirty cheap and there's a mountain (pun intended) of other awesome cool things to do, like white water rafting, jet boat cruising, canyoning, zorbing, bungee-jumping and so much more.  

Enjoy

Diaries Downunder - Episode 2! from Diaries Downunder on Vimeo.

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When it's not pouring (cause that's what summer in Sydney does now), I managed to spend a few hours over a weekend few weeks ago exploring an old favourite track of mine. 

Just a few photos of the day. Enjoy 

See the full gallery on Posterous

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Here is a guy who has some great talent and his video is fantastic. Could easily be one of the best I've seen in 2012 yet.

More importantly Mike talks about his falls as well. He reminded me of one of my favourite quotes from Batman Begins. 

Alfred: Why do we fall, sir? So that we might learn to pick ourselves up. 

His video shows that even the Pros fall from time to time, and that it takes a lot of practice and dedication to reach your goals. He's going for the championship this year, good luck to him. I'm currently more focused than ever in my own goals. They're a lot more simplier than Mike's, but we share the same lesson from Alfreds wise words. We all have our ups and downs, but I'm not going to give up. I will reach my own goals. Enjoy the vid and stay focused! 

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This guy knows how to fly! Anyone know where this course is?

Silvia - Dylan Sherrard Season Finale from Silvia Films on Vimeo.

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Going to start posting my favourite video of the week. Subject matter will ofcourse be focused around adventure / extreme - so please enjoy GoPro's Hero2 promotion video. Yes I know lots of editing has gone into the clip, but it just shows how many awesome activities there is to try.

Get out! Enjoy life and try something new.. :)

Ollie out.

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I've been busy the last few months with work, mainly travelling between London and Sydney, so haven't had time to get out much and ride, let alone post new videos. 

But I'm back and staying in what I was hoping would be a sunny and hot summer in Sydney, but we'll take it one day at a time and see what happens.

First off, the bad news, whilst I was o/s on my latest trip, my new rockhopper was stolen from my garage (don't think I even got 50 hours on it yet), along with many other pocessions of our neighbours. Not a good time for our apartment complex. Really saddens me people like this exist, so I hope for their sakes they never return.

The good news is I made the fantastic choice of paying $70/year on top of my home/contents insurance and now I'm getting the whole bike back, brand new. However speaking with my insurer they said I can opt in for store credit and use it towards an upgrade. As much as I like the rockhopper, it's a mountain bike for the casual rider who isn't so insane on the off-road elements, and still wants to ride around the park/fire trails/road from time to time.

So I've decided to go for the next bike up. The Specialized Carve Expert 29. Staying on the 29er's as really once you go 29, you can't go back. I personally feel they have far better control, you get just as fast going downhill as the smaller wheels and they just ride so well. I know it's more down to personal preference but don't rull out a 29er unless you try it. My local bike shop was kind to let lend me a brand new Carve for an hour, we got it measured and built the day before so I could spend my hour riding around the local area - actually giving it a good try out. I tried road, bike paths, a minor fire trial and even managed to fit in a few decent jumps of stairs near some corporate buildings. It's advanced frame allows for greater flexibility at the back, the thinner seat absorbs the shock of the landing even more and the superior front forks - Recon Silver TK SA SL 29 - makes sure you don't go over the front on the landing. 

Yes I know I should go for a soft tail (and yes I want too) but there are other factos in my decision, so for now I am happy with the hard. I will go full suspension one day, but that's for another time. 

That's enough for now, I've attached a photo of the bike, that's the only colour it comes in - which is cool. Could do with some red or yellow but who cares about the colour, I want to ride it now. Will post photos of it when the claim actually goes through and I get my new toy.

Cheers

Ollie out.

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"Silver Style" Weekend from Matt Butterworth on Vimeo.

This summer Silver Star Bike Park hosted a downhill race and a dirt jump/slopestyle competition with people from all around BC making the trip to take part in the contests, spectate and enjoy the mountain. Another sweet edit from Matt Butterworth.

via http://factoryjackson.com/2011/09/20/silver-style-weekend/

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Shredding the Northwest from Hubinero on Vimeo.

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Another cool mtn bike video, this time downhill!

The Wings of Downhill from Motion FIlms on Vimeo.

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Another well shot video, would love to go on a ride like this one day.

Lone Wolf Matt Hunter from Bike magazine on Vimeo.

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Check out this beautifully shot mountain bike video, (this level of filming is where I'm aspiring to get at).

Fantastically edited as well, mixed to a cool soundtrack. 

Dust & Summer from Harry Nesbitt on Vimeo.

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See the full gallery on Posterous

I've been contemplating purchasing a mountain bike for some time now. So the time came and a couple weekends ago I took the plunge and haven't looked back. Already racked up a few decent kilometres (95km), mostly on the local bike tracks in the area, just to wear the breaks in before I test it on some real dirt. 

It's been over a decade now since I purchased my last mountain bike ( I went through a stage of motorbikes and quadbikes in my teens), but as part of my fitness regime this year, buying a good bike that combined my love for the outdoors and going fast, I had to opt in for a mountain bike. I spent the last 2 months on and off researching different bikes. 

It came down to the Giant Talon 29er, and the Specialized Rockhopper 29er 

Why did I go for a 29er?

Basically came down to being able to roll over rocks at faster speed when taking on the mountain. I've ridden 26's and yes they're great but something about the 29er that just works for me. It may just be personal preference, but I am always in-change when riding and that works for me.

When it came down to making the final choice, I purchased the Rockhopper. It felt smoother, more streamline to my body and I just seemed to be able to control it better. Here are some pics of it while it's still all new and shiny, I plan to take it off-road for real action soon. 

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Dropping into a viper pit in Panama’s Camino Reale, negotiating a piranha-infested river, battling extreme conditions in frozen Siberia, eating sheep’s eyeballs … 

AN INTIMATE AUDIENCE WITH THE MAN HIMSELF

 It’s all in a day’s work for Bear Grylls, whose gripping tales of survival have become a television phenomenon. Prime-time TV adventure series MAN vs. WILD is one of the most watched shows on the planet, reaching viewers in more than 200 countries worldwide.

Now, for the very first time, the hero of MAN vs. WILD appears LIVE ON STAGE for an evening of wild discovery and dangerous entertainment. Join Bear Grylls as he shares his experiences of survival in some of the world’s toughest environments with one of his greatest fans, comedian and broadcaster Merrick Watts (Adrian Barich in Perth).

Be inspired as Bear relives some of the great escapes and sticky situations of his life as a soldier, mountaineer and serial adventurer.

Learn about the intrepid crew behind MAN vs. WILD, and the mind-boggling logistics which go into every expedition.

chance to get up close and personal with a true one-off

See breathtaking footage of some of the world’s most remote and hostile locations and find out what it is like to be parachuted in there — from the man who did it, and survived!

It’s going to be a thrilling and fun-filled evening, a chance to get up close and personal with a true one-off.

Check out the site! http://www.beargryllslive.com/

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What's the best thing about Mondays?

For many it's a great day to recover from their weekend hangover, for others it's the joy of beginning a new week. For me it's the great conversations you share with your coworkers, when you get to the office with coffee in hand (complements of single origin at Surry Hills, decent coffee).

So I just wanted to share with you my weekend. 

After a crazy week of wet weather and deadlines, I managed to catch up on some sleep (which if you knew how many hours I worked last week, is a huge WIN for me). Went for a couple runs, in which I discovered this great bush trail only a few km's from my place.

See the full gallery on Posterous

And found the free time to explore 2 new dishes, grilled seafood platter and white chocolate macadamia biscuits. 

See the full gallery on Posterous

(both took under 15mins to make and taste delicious!)

Did you guys get up to anything interesting? Let me know if you want the recipies for the above ;)

Cheers

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FitGeek Hike #01 - Grose River from Oliver Maruda on Vimeo.

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