The 4th and final episode of the summer and we spend our week at the Queenstown Mountain Bike Festival. Literally too much stuff going on to cover everything but we pick up Australian rider Christian Tucker who competes in the Super D against JC. Then it’s downtown for the Teva Slopestyle and a little tease for winter at the end. Not long to go until there’s snow! Thanks for good summer!

We’ve been waiting for this Teva Slopestyle clip of Haimona’s to drop all week, considering half the footage was filmed by us. Anyhow it’s here, and you can find out why you need to be in Queenstown for the WHOLE of the Bike Festival next year! Check out Luke McCombie’s tuck no handed front flip at 1:00. INSANE!

Tim and Kelly pack some serious heat into this next level clip. WATCH IT NOW (in HD)!

Hop in a jetboat, strap your bike on the back and step into the shoes of Kelly McGarry. Kelly heads out to ride some lesser known freeriding spots around the Queenstown Lakes District, from dense native forest to steep scree lines, drops and road gaps along with a jump park session in the mix. Kelly demonstrates why he’s so versatile on a bike, and why he chooses the shoes on his feet.

Director / D.O.P / Editor – Tim Pierce
Assistant / B Camera – Bel Jones
Motion FX / Colour Grade / Sound mix – Lindsay Horner

Music:
Artist: Reid
Track: Fall

The boys at Reason Films have just released the latest installment in their MTB version of Diaries Downunder. In this episode Kelly and Josh head out Skippers Canyon way in search of virgin terrain and get a bit of a history lesson from Josh Clark. They find some big scree slopes and then head to the Red Bull Roast It jump comp in town. Enjoy!

Teva rider Sam Dueck stomps a T whip off the boner

Teva burst on to the MTB seen last year with the Links and Pinner shoes and haven’t been sleeping at all. A killer international team is backed up here in New Zealand by a number of rippers, one of which is none other than multiple Spoke cover dude, Kelly “McMassive” McGarry.  Well Kelly, trail builder extraordinaire Tom Hey and Teva are joining forces to bring us New Zealand’s first ever slopestyle comp! Full press release below. Oh all the photos are from the last year’s Teva Games in Vail and I’m pretty positve that Kelly and Tom will be able to bring us an even better course!

With the great summer that Queenstown has been having, the Teva crew decided they really needed to get a piece of that action. So when we saw that the team at Southern Traverse were putting on a massive Bike Festival in April a universal yell of “JUNKET!” was screamed and plans were hatched for the inaugural Teva Slopestyle competition.

Mini Shred Anthony Messeres owned it with this dumped three whip (he was only 15 at the time!)

With our overtly enthusiastic Teva teamrider, Kelly McGarry, and his good mate Tom Hey (Queenstown Bike Club President) already on the ground in Queenstown we knew it wouldn’t be hard to put together a world class jump line. Kelly and Tom will be designing and building five hits constructed from a mix of wood and dirt, which is likely to include quarterpipes, flat walls, big hits, step-ups, step-downs and a unique finishing feature for the Teva Best Trick finale. We’re also exploring the idea of a shark / crocodile pit but expect issues with the OSH guys.

Paul Bass gets it done with this stylish three

The cap is currently being passed around the office to see how much prize money we can pull together but rest assured it will be big enough to get people putting their bodies, if not lives, on the line and we’ll release details of the prize pool very soon.

Expect backflips, whips, can cans, supermans and more than enough of “what the hell was that?” as the competitors go head to head trying to win enough money to buy the bar for the Teva After Party.

This is an open event for both local and international competitors so potentially this is great chance to stand next to your hero on the roll in and tell them how good you are!

Mike Montgomery signed with Specialized cause of tricks like this... Dumped!

Some outtakes, and b roll from a spot produced for Skyline Gondola and Queenstown Bike Park.

Filmed by Tim Pierce & Bel Jones
Edited by Bel Jones

So if you haven’t seen enough of Kelly or the deep south yet JonTV has dropped another clip to whet your appetite and get you on a plane before the snow arrives. Jon has let the 4 minute web clip rule go out the window with this one, but I can honstely say it’s worth it; it’s one of the best clips to drop from New Zealand this year. Would have been nice to see a few more faces in the mix, but definitely worth a peep.

The Diaries Downunder boys have just dropped their second episode and this one features ex-World Cup shredder Nathan Rennie and hair farmer Kelly McGarry (who seems to be in EVERYONE’S clips at the moment) and some ginger lad called Si. We pick a perfect morning to take Kelly McGarry, Nathan Rennie and Josh Clark Heli Biking with Vertigo Heli tours, thanks to Glacier Southern Lakes Helicopters. A 45minute descent down to the Gibbston Tavern; Ex downhill racer Nathan Rennie also gives us a rundown on his new project; Lower45 Bike Camps. Thanks for watching! diariesdownunder.com for more

Tim Pierce just dropped this banga of a clip that makes you want to get straight on a plane and head to Queenstown.

So I’ve been travelling the last few days with no Internet access so have been sitting on a few updates. Jon Bokrantz brought us that cool little clip about the Outside Sports pump track a few days ago and here he introduces the start of his new JonTV web series.

“A video series with the single purpose of creating joy for people riding bikes, by portraying races, events and sheer mountain biking, my goal is to put a smile on your face and make you pumped on riding. Light hearted and heaps of fun, simply a lot like mountain biking itself!

After a massively successful first summer of public service in Scandinavia, Jon Television is back for another action packed season from the paradise that is New Zealand. The second episode features Maxime Bruneau, a Frenchie who has returned for his second season in Queenstown. We hit up Fernhill Loop, Wynyard and PLÄP – trails that showcase the variety of riding in Queenstown as well as Max’s preferred type of shredding. There’s also a guest appearance from none other than Mr. McGazza himself!”

Enjoy!

Pictures by: Anne Myrte Joon
www.annemyrtejoon.com

It’s been a huge year for Teva after unveiling the new Links MTB shoe. Designed by freeride legend Jeff Lenosky, these are the most functional and best looking MTB shoe on the market and have had loose lips sinking ships all over the world.

A few months ago we thought it was only prudent to send a couple of pairs to local New Zealand legend Kelly McGarry for testing and approval just to make sure that they would stand up to some proper freeride bashing by a Kiwi. The feedback we got was that they are most definitely “sweet as”. Which, if you’re not familiar with Kiwi slang, translates into a three thumbs-up endorsement (we’re not big on down-under hyperbole).

From there it was only a matter of putting two and two together and when we approached Kelly to make things a wee bit more formal it was a no brainer for him.

“I’m stoked to be on board with Teva for 2012. The shoes are rad and work really well when I’m on my bike. I’m also excited about some of the new products they have in the pipeline for next year!”

We’re stoked too. Kelly is a living embodiment of our “Living Better Stories” motto, with an energy and enthusiasm for getting out and amongst it that would make Bear Grylls need a lie down.

A few weeks back Justin Leov sent us a little teaser clip of the pump track he was building for Outside Sports. Well this weekend just passed saw its official opening and the folks at Outside Sports put this funny as little clip together. Oh and if you’re visiting Queenstown, the pump track and rental facility is smack bang at the base of the Gondola. For more details check the full press release below.

“It all seemed like a pipe dream and now it’s here! The Outside Sports Ride Demo Centre is in place and the Monster Energy pump track, designed by Justin Leov, is packed down and ready to roll.

Test ride the bike of your dreams, hang out and hone your skills on the pump track or drop in for a formula one style pit stop; bike repairs by pro mechanics that will get you back on the trails in no time.

Located near the bottom of the Skyline Gondola in Queenstown NZ, the new centre is a great addition to the rapidly expanding mountain biking scene. Some top end downhill bikes, as seen on the World Cup circuit, are available to test ride up in the Queenstown Bike Park. The Bike Park is a network of singletrack winding down 500 vertical metres of swooping corners, techy roots, shapely doubles and smooth highways into the centre of Queenstown.

The lineup of bikes for the demo fleet includes the Specialized Demo 8, Turner DHR and even 2 Commencal 24 Supremes which are great for younger riders.

Jim Hawkridge, Outside Sports Bike Manager said, “It’s so exciting that there is somewhere you can test these bikes in their element before you commit to buying one. You can really experience how the bike handles in all sorts of terrain and find the bike that suits your riding style best.”

Even if you’re not in the market for a new bike you can still test ride one of these high performance machines. The bikes are proving popular with Queenstown’s tourists and one said that “riding such an awesome bike up Skyline was phenomenal and made my trip. The bike was amazing and I didn’t want to give it back.”

The Ride crew threw a pump track jam which pulled in an awesome crowd. Kelly McGarry and Conor MacFarlane were among the keen riders pumping around the new track. The highlight of the event had to be the mini bike being hucked around the course… hilarious!

There’s going to be plenty going on at the new site all summer so head down and check it out!”

Well after today’s excursion to Chris Beverland’s recently revamped jumps (See Red Bull Back Yard Digger post here) I can’t say much, although we did turn out of the town after about only 50m of it… but it was an all right 50m. After the extended crew arrived—Kelly, Chris, Brook “Bulldog” MacDonald, George Brannigan and Lewis Jones—everyone started pretty promptly. Once again Chris’s epic location did not disappoint and we were lucky enough to be graced with amazing weather all day and a next level sunset. I won’t bore you with a blow by blow, but it’s worth noting that the boys “got er’ done” and here’s a little gallery courtesy of Cam Ferguson. On Your Bike kicks off tomorrow so you can expect an update from both the pump track and the show sometime in the next 24 hours. We’ll also be dropping a bit of Twitter love…

Kelly tables a flip

Lewis gets his shoulder buzz on...

Chris skips a whole corner

Kelly gets lazy with a table and only uses one hand

Chris drops a text book tuck no hander

After leaving Wellington at 3am this morning for Hamilton, I rendezvoused with Kelly McGarry and ABD’s John Oldale and Chris Beverland at Claudelands. The spray paint was laid down and Dave, the world’s best Bobcat driver (well maybe as good as Tom) got to work. By 5pm we had the thing mostly dialled, and were just waiting for the lime and dirt to dry/harden. By Saturday things should be all good. So if you’re around Hamilton get down to the On Your Bike Expo and throw out a timed lap, there’s $250 on the line for the fastest man and fastest chick.

This year at the Wide Open Product Launch we tried to bring back the old Wide Open Dream Track sessions.
Hopefully this can grow over the next few years.