FATBMX Your Online BMX News Resource Since 1998

Eastpak has today re-launched its international website. The refreshed site went live today and represents the brand on an international level, focusing on Eastpak’s products and lifestyle offering. The cleaner fresh look of the site has been designed to make searching for news, products and information as fast and simple as possible and features such as the product finder and store locator make finding all you need to know about Eastpak a pleasure!

The site is organised into interest ‘groups’ e.g. News, Products, About Us, and uses two navigation bars that results in a fast easy to use site. 

Here we go with the: April 2006 version of the HARO news flash:

-News from the hands of Ryan Nyquist: Shiiiiiiit. I'm back on the bike now, just getting warmed and and comfortable for now. Hand is OK but not 100% so a little more time to get back top the norm and I'll be sweet. I just went on a road trip with Leigh Ramsdell down to New Orleans for Chad Degroot's wedding. Leigh and I went down on my motorcycle for the weekend. It took around 40 hours total roundtrip, and our bums and my arms were numb as hell, but it was fun and makes you appreciate how cushy and safer a car ride is.

Myself, Colin MacKay, Rob Darden, and Nate Wessel are all going on a cruise in mid April down to the Bahamas. 

The people over at Mutiny are having a RAP battle. The prize is Morgan Wade's Mutiny Captain he rode at the Metro BMX Jam and a bunch of swag from Etnies, Snafu and Maxxis. Below is what the contest entails:

Morgan just built up a brand new 20.5"TT Red Captain with all black stickers. What's he going to do with the old frame you ask? We're giving it away in a contest! But this ain't just any ol' frame giveaway, because along with Morgan's frame (the same exact one he rode at the last Metro Jam) Etnies, Snafu, and Maxxis have all thrown down. Check out the loot you could be walking away with. Since this is a pretty heavy prize package we figured a giveaway was too weak, so we makin' you earn this shnizzle. And this is how:
1) Write a rap song
2) The rap must contain the words "grill", "dinosaur", "pirate ship", "corn rows", and "kings throne".
3) Film yourself performing it.
4) Send it to Mutiny. 

Nuno Milhinhos from Portugal is doing a bike company. He's been working on the first products since November 2005 but just last week Nuno received the first prototype. The brand is dubbed Ilegal (i-legal).  They'll have 3 frame sizes: 20.4", 20.7" and 21". The chain stays have a 13,75" to 14,25" ratio. The prototype in the photo will see some little changes. They already have a website address, but it is

On April 6, internationally renowned pro skateboarder Danny Way smashed the “Bomb Drop” world record by freefalling 28 feet from the Fender Stratocaster guitar atop the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas onto a ramp below. The event, originally scheduled for April 5, was rescheduled due to inclement weather conditions. Thousands of spectators watched Way execute the drop off the guitar onto a ramp built by John Tyson and his team at VP Industries. “Despite the variables in the ramp design, once again, we managed to make this challenge happen,” said Danny Way. “This event demonstrates the continued progression of skateboarding.”

Key Facts of the world record jump:
-Freefall World Record – measured and confirmed by Guinness Book of World Records: 28’/8.53m

The Mini-FAT-JAM also had a party. Same place (OJA), different Band (The Vendetta's). Show me a place where you can buy a bottle of good beer for 1 Euro. Well, that's OJA and it's always a party there. The place got decorated with some old BMX stuff to stay in the BMX-theme. Many BMX-ers stayed for the night after the jam that day and it didn't take them long to get loose. Vendetta was the name of the bad that played that night. Although the sound was quite good, the singer messed it up. It was time to take over and a couple of people from OJA took the mic and played the instruments. Lee-Roi showed that singing can even be worse and the next move to get the party going was to throw a slick mat on the podium for a break-dance session. With so many people on the stage it was hard to even do a windmill, especially on the sound that JD Sinned (DJ Dennis) was playing at first (metal). This soon turned into some old school hiphop you don't stop until everyone on stage got thirsty again.

Justin Holt is doing a contest series in NC and Virginia this year along with his buddies Zack Rogers and Mike McQueen. They plan on doing 5 events in Asheville NC, Saulsbury NC, Cary NC, Greenville NC, and Virginia Beach VA starting in May and going until October.
-Round one will be Saturday May 13th at the Zero Gravity Skatepark in Asheville NC. This park is indoors, well built, and well ran and has had several succesful bmx contests in the past few years with great turnout.

The format for this contest is a little different. Instead of the regular beginner, expert, pro classes they are only doing an intermediate class and a pro class. Pro class will work as teams of two people riding together in heats against 2 other teams. Each team will ride for 3 minutes twice and the winner of each heat will move on to the finals. The winning team takes the ENTIRE PRO PURSE cash! no second place, no third. Judging will be done by 4 neutral judges looking for style, overall park use, skill, and ability to work with teammate.

Mike Saavedra is putting on a contest on May 6th. He wants everyone to know about the comp so we'll pass the mic to Mike:  "I thought I would take the time to send you a flyer for the comp. I also sent a few photos of the park. (PHOTOS BY BLAKE PETTERSON). I will be adding a 5 1/2 foot tall box jump, a wallride and a few other goodies to the park. Practice will be held on May 5th all day so things move a little faster the day of the comp. The 3 class's will be as flowed Grom, Sandbagger and Bigtime. Entry fees are 20, 25 and 30 for Bigtime."

The Gymnasium Ibirapuera in Sao Paulo will be the venue of the next ABBMX contest. You've been able to follow the Brasilian scene here on FATBMX thanks to Charaba and his crew. Up next is a vert comp. The date is 12-13 May 2006 and there's a R$ 10.000 Reais Prize Purse. It might not be 10 grand in US dollars or Euros but it still sounds like a lot. 

WHAT: In celebration of the grand opening of the new etnies' New York showroom, etnies team riders will spend an afternoon signing autographs for fans. etnies team riders set to appear include:

-Mike Escamilla
-Jamie Bestwick
-Garrett Byrnes
-Nina Buitrago
-Stacey Mulligan

WHEN: Saturday, April 8th, 2006 from 1:00 p.m.-4:00 p.m.

WHERE: etnies New York showroom, 29 Greene St. (between Grand and Canal), New York, NY

WHO: Anyone and everyone who wants to meet the team and spend the afternoon with etnies!