We getting down and nerdy with this one, BMX had been rung out in the mid 80s and was left as tiny scraps, completely left for dead, all the craze kids, burner boys and superstar pros had abandoned their fad and 'grown up'. Scenes were made up, it seemed of 3 people in each, if you were lucky. In the quietest of times -1989 in a boom time of skateboarding-a vert ramp appeared in Hastings a long with a shop called Backyard skates, which sold BMX and skateboard gear-later to become known as just Backyard. This was to become the one of the epicentre's of the rebuilding process of BMX worldwide.
We talk to Mark Richards about the first videos he made at this time for the 90s Backyard jams. Mark made all the seminal videos from early 90s up to 97. We get into how everyone from that scene met, where they rode, the opening of the shop, the first filming and editing experiences, first jams and people who attended.
We tackle the first 3 vhs' here, then move on to the next more important releases in future bonus episodes.
Beyond Bottle Alley with Mark Richards by The Union Tapes
* Audio now fixed, sorry about that * Another bonus for anyone interested in where the UK scene came back from in the early 90s?
After doing a BMX 'zine for ten years (1987 - 1996) FATBMX made it on the internet. The year was 1998. Here to stay.