I bet you guys weren’t aware that they’re filming a movie about the life and loves of one Johny “Prolly” Watson. The film is called Get Pitted! and oddly enough stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt as John Prolly. I guess they wanted to go younger instead of having Donal Logue play our favorite redheaded Viking.

Ok I’m actually pulling your leg, there’s no movie about Prolly in the works (However EA’s Prolly’s Pitted 2011 is totally real), but Joseph Gordon-Levitt is currently in NY filming a movie about bike messengers called Premium Rush. I guess JGL opted not to use a stunt rider a few days ago when he went through the back window of a cab which he then documented the aftermath via video on his Tumblr.

So why the hell am I posting this? Well one it gives me something to tease Prolly with and two because gives me the opportunity to post about Joseph Gordon-Lovitt’s brother’s Tumblr…

JGL has a brother named Dan who has his own tumblr called Burning Dan and, well, Dan is very much a psychedelic warrior. Here’s how Dan describes himself:

I travel the world teaching people to spin fire and be who they want to be. I’m a Flow Artist, performance photographer, swashbuckler, computer programmer and internet citizen bent on saving the world with panache.

I’ve performed on broadway, naked oil wrestled an albino and a porn star, started a school, been in a hurricane, taught a room full of 100 black people to dance, stood on an erupting volcano and built a pillow fort on an airplane. I helped build hitRECord.  I seek to inspire and be inspired in every interaction with everybody I meet. Especially you.

That’s right he taught a room full of 100 black people to dance. Again he taught a room full of 100 black people to dance. WTF!?!? Wait another choice quote from his blog…

Today, I was on a bus in a frontish row and a family of black people tried to get on the bus. The only open seats were behind me in the back. The family felt like they couldn’t squeeze past me to the open seats behind. So I moved to the back of the bus so the black family could have my seat near the front.

I am “Danny, champion of the civil rights.”

His blog is full of so much unintentional hilarity that I wouldn’t be surprised if it all wasn’t some elaborate act, but somehow I doubt that.

Yes, this is a post about MTBs or as they like to call them, Big Bikes. One of the misconceptions about fixed gear kids is that we only choose to ride fixed all the time. Sure, a lot of people have a “fuck brakes” and “no gearz” mentality, but the reality is, those people probably never rode mtb or road bikes before. Ever.

While fixed and track bikes might be the gateway drug into cycling for a lot of people there’s still a big population of cyclists that appreciate all forms of riding. This video, entitled Fractura de Bennett really hit home with me, making me want to buy a DJ bike for sure! If it’s not your cup of tea, check out my friend Alan’s recent bike porn overload post on Cycling WMD. Wowzers.

Philly Mix Tape 5 from Drew Leshko on Vimeo.

It’s been a busy week in the world of fixed freestyle. Countless web edits surfaced this week, all showcasing the various riding styles from all over. First up is the 5th Philly Mix Tape. Watch Tony Fast and others keep Philly’s fixed scene alive.

Our next edit mixes track bikes with ‘tarck’ bikes. Buffalo’s VéLOrue coming through with another teaser for their forthcoming project.

Steven Jensen was in LA this month and got to ride with all the southern California fixed freestylers. Pegs are huge on the west coast right now.

Michael Chacon mixes some of the older, spinny fixed freestyle moves with the more modern-day BMX-influenced tricks. He’s got a super smooth style.

Last but not least is a quick web-edit from Sam Erickson of Milwaukee. Antonyo and Kris spending their midwest summers the best way possible, on the bike!

Oh lord, what have I done. If you’ve been following fixed freestyle for long enough, you’ll know what we have been getting heckled since the beginning with one command: GET A BMX. While this may not be a BMX to the purists out there, it’s damn close. When Sunday first introduced their Model C as a BMX with it’s Plus 4 geometry, the BMX industry shuddered with indifference. People were torn. Is it a cruiser? Is it a BMX? Why 24″? Well, a cruiser’s geometry is traditionally very slack. Longer wheelbases and a slack head tube angle. Jim C wanted to change that so he took the exact geometry from his BMX line and made it accommodate 24″ wheels. The end result is a BMX bike with bigger wheels.

Every time I hop on a BMX, I feel so scrunched up. I can’t throw it around without hitting my knees on something. Even on the longest top tubes, it’s just too small. Now, with the Model C, I have a bit more room and I’m totally comfortable throwing it around. Sure, I may be selling out to some people, but as Coalesce once said, “sometimes selling out is just called waking up”. Does that mean I’ll be putting my fixed up for good? Hell now. I still love riding my fixed gear, my track bikes and my road bikes. Bikes are bikes and each offer a slightly different experience.

Many thanks to the Sunday team!

“ATL Get Pitted” Preview from Wish Atlanta on Vimeo.

This has been a long time in the making. Atlanta-based streetwear shop Wish teamed up with my homies at No Brakes ATL to get together on a 3-year anniversary race. Because they love Мишка so much, they asked us to work on a little collaboration project with them. Enter the “Get Pitted” Georgia peach iconography of the DART line.

To help promote the event, Wish put up this nice little “ATL Get Pitted” preview video. Solid background guys! Now everyone go to the event this weekend and get pitted!

For me, one of the biggest rewards of being a bicycle blogger is traveling to various cities and diving into their culture. In some cities, the culture is spearheaded by one body or shop. When you go to San Diego, the cycling scene has been sparked by none other than Velo Cult. Sky and the team prove that no matter where you are, you can ignite passion in cycling. Southern California may not strike you as a region rich in bicycles but that’s because you’ve yet to enter the cult.

Ever see that show Horders? Sure you have. It’s all about people who collect relentlessly and refuse to discard anything. While the team at Velo Cult isn’t that bad, you can see a certain degree of passion in their ever-growing stock and personal stable.

Like any bike shop, regardless of clientele, doing repairs is what keeps them afloat. I always say that you can tell what kind of shop you’re in by the bikes in the repair stand. Whether it’s a cruiser with a flat or a carbon fiber road bike getting a new groupo, what’s in the stand tells a lot about the work the shop is known for. Take this beauty for example. Pure Italian steel.

Hanging from the rafters like pieces of art, the collection at Velo Cult is inspiring enough to make even non-cyclists appreciate the soul craft that went into constructing them.

I love Eddy Merckx bikes…

The Campagnolo tool set is a collector’s holy grail. No one did it better than Campy and still, to this day, the Campy tool set is one of the most sought-after pieces of cycling history.

When I stepped into the cult, they offered me their version of Koolaid.

Just look at that mechanic’s area.

The guys are also working on a book that’s filled with, um, bike porn.

Here’s Moose, the shop dog. He guards the guys from the delinquents. If you’re diggin on these photos, check out more at my blog and my Flickr. Thanks to Sky and the crew at Velo Cult for showing me around!

Mishka is always in Ollie Magazine. Whether it’s one of our DART riders in Tokyo or some NYC shenanigans, we’re always getting coverage.

In this issue our boy Marco shreds at Shiokaze and Kevin Sparrow from Cog magazine and I took a ride in some choice summer apparel pieces. Big ups to our favorite Japanese / US connect photographer Takuya Sakamoto!

As I mentioned in my Bicycle Film Festival week recap yesterday, the guys from Thrashbike were killing shit on their “big bikes” (26″ MTB). Not only did they bring out a ton of ramps for their jam, but a grip of media was there documenting it. One of the better videos from that day was put together by Ya Don’t Understand. They hit on just about everything (minus the backflip). Fixed, MTB and BMX all riding together. That’s some NYC love right there!

This past week brought riders from all over the world to NYC for the 10th annual Bicycle Film Festival. Like all small-time sports (or hobbies rather), most of these riders have met each other at one point or another. Putting everyone in the same city at once is like caging wild animals. Not even Manhattan could hold everyone down!

The first order of business on everyone’s mind was “RIDE!”. Everyone was stoked to be around people who they’ve shared blog space with or who they’ve interacted with online but never met. Here’s Jakob Santos doing a bar hop on a French Barricade.

Jokes were had…

Photo by Josh Diaz

Thursday night, things officially popped off. Here’s Jakob Santos, once again killing it with a massive 180 at the Peel Sessions. He cleared the whole thing!

Photo by Chris Lee

Pitted, so pitted.

Photo by Chris Lee

We had an awesome time with a rad crowd of people!

Then we headed over to Bushwick Country Club, our standard spot where Tony Fast made friends!

I don’t think we stopped drinking all weekend. Some people like Justin Taylor were thinking of innovative new ways to drink in public.

Photo by Matt Lingo

After seeing some bicycle films, we all headed to the afterparty where Luke tried to attack me.

… and Tony made more friends.

Come Saturday, we all headed over to the street party. It was a day for BMX, big bikes (26″ MTB) and fixed. The dudes from Thrashbike and Post brought out ramps for people to shred.

The big bike guys stole the show!

Photo by Zach Hoffner of Zlog

But the fixed riders still killed shit. Here’s Tyler Johnson doing a double barspin on the quarter. Dude was an animal!

Photo by Matt Lingo

After the street fair on Saturday, we all headed over to the Brooklyn banks where Congo threw down.

Photo by Takuya Sakamoto

Saturday night, our own Stareyes killed the BFF afterparty with a mix of screw, crunk and dubstep bangers.

Photo by Takuya Sakamoto

Everyone was getting down!

Photo by Tod Seelie

Come Sunday, we were all dead. It was an exhausting week and we all had one more thing to do: attend the world premiere of Empire. Both shows sold out quickly but that didn’t keep people from sneaking in! The guys did a great job and we’re all awaiting the DVD this fall!

Well, another year of the Bicycle Film Festival came and went here in NYC. There are more cities on the schedule, so check and see if your city is on the list!

The 2010 Bicycle Film Festival wrapped up last night in New York with a screening of Empire featuring many of our friends working behind and in from of the camera for the film. I have to be honest I was starting to think Empire was going to turn into something like Dr. Dre’s Detox because of all of the release delays, but it’s finally done and we’ll have more about it soon I’m sure.

The reason for this post however, was to draw your attention to the photography of Matt Lingo. We’re used to seeing our favorite riders photographed in action, But portrait shots? Not so much. Well Matt did just that, taking the opportunity that BFF provided by bringing so many of the people making cycling what it is, to one place at one time.

Judging from the pictures I see John Prolly and Tony Fast were twins or rather teammates during either all or part of the BFF. Head over to Matt’s site for more of these portraits, which hopefully aren’t everything he shot, but merely a small sampling.

Those of you waiting for a BFF recap from Prolly, I’d hit up his site in the meantime until he decides to grace the Bloglin with his presence.