FATBMX Your Online BMX News Resource Since 1998

Name: Harold “McGoo” McGruther

Occupation: I’m the founding partner at Revolution Advertising, a creative services agency that caters to the BMX and motorcycle markets. We’ve been working on BMX accounts big and small since I founded the agency in 1991. In ’99 my partner Bill and I founded SNAFU with my old friend Sherry Shu in Taiwan. More recently our agency launched an online media resource for the underground chopper scene called ChopCult.com. 

Name: Tom Ritzenthaler
Occupation: I build BMX tracks. For the UCI and the rest of the world
Hometown: Blacklick, Ohio

For BMX people reading this, you're the official track builder for the UCI. What tracks have you worked on in 2010 to gvie people an idea of what you do and how much you travel building tracks?
Tom: Tracks this year, well shit, there was alot really. Alot of trips to Singapore (JR Olympics), Switzerland, Sweden,  Colombia (loved

Name: Paul de Jong
Hometown: Aarle-Rixtel, The Netherlands
Occupation: Owner Paul's Boutique BMX and PURE BMX Distribution

You've been running a BMX shop for almost 15 years now, how is that going?
Paul: Very good, it's better every year even with the crisis going on, experience is not paying the bills but it saves a lot of wasted money.

Name: Mike Laird
Hometown: Greenville, USA.
Occupation: Pro rider / ECC Metal
 
Rider or welder, what comes first for you today?
Mike: A couple of years ago it would have been rider, but today I'd say it's 50/50. They both pay the bills and I love them both in different ways.

Trying to make the Wednesday deadline for these Workshop Wednesdays can get hectic. Like any deadline can. Eddie Cleveland was on a FIT tour during the week and just got back home. With an hour to go before Tuesday turned into Wednesday Eddie went typing on his iphone to make sure I got the text to go along with the photos that he had sent before he left on his BMX trip. These FATBMX "Workshop Wednesdays" have been turning out great thanks to the BMX riders who also create stuff in their garage. And Eddie Cleveland knows all about that.

Being a pro rider do you have enough time on your hands to screw around in the garage working on bikes?
Eddie: It's not too hard to find time to mess with the bikes. I usualy do it at night.

Do you live together with like-minded people or who all helps

Name: Michael van der Lee
Hometown: Elshout (The Netherlands)
Occupation: A student with too much spare time

You're working on cars, motorcycles, bicycles etc, but what do you prefer?
Michael van der Lee: You might think by seeing the pictures that I like beachcruisers, but I actually don't haha. You'll never find me riding a beach cruiser. They're just fun to make, because it's so easy.

Name: David Harrison aka Spooky Dave
Occupation: head welder/manger of the machine shop
Hometown: Meridian Mississippi

You have been with FBM for a while now, when did you start?
Dave: I believe I started working for fbm in 2000 so that would be 10 years now. Wow where has the time gone.

Weren't you building mtb's before that?
Dave: Before working at fbm I was working for a company called Spooky Cycles out of Brewster Ny. At Spooky they were a mtb company and did some bmx but not much till I came along. There I got trained to build anything from mtbs, road bikes and bmx. I worked under Frank the welder (ftw) who is one of the best frame builders in the world according to the mt bike hall of fame.

Has welding BMX frames always been "your first love" over 

Name: Billy Griggs
Hometown: Anaheim California
Occupation: Design and Prototyping at Razor USA . Custom Bicycle frame builder on the side.

After a successful BMX career, you ended up working at GT's prototype workshop, is that correct?
Billy: Yes. It was a great way to transition out of full time racing and develop the skills needed to build my own frames. 

Name: Ugo Geneste
Hometown: Lacanau (near Bordeaux), France
Occupation: So many things, I do some renovation you can see many examples here, kitchens, gates, etc... and I'm a developer/webmaster. I manage actually 9 websites (I do everything with my own systems)

When did you start building your own frames?
Mr. Zug: I really start to work on prototype since 2001 with fork and 

Name: Perry Petermüller
Hometown: Munich, Germany
Occupation: BMX and cars :)

You've created a nice workshop there, with couch, TV and some nice cars. Are you living there?
Perry: No I live at home, it's just my garage.

It looks like there are a couple of projects going on at the same