FRANKLY THURSDAY – JARNA MACKENZIE

Frankly Thursday with Jarna MacKenzie.

I know Frankly probably would work better on a Friday (Frankly Friday has a better ring than Frankly Thursday) but we’ll just give it a go. This mini interview with Queenstown’s Jarna MacKenzie will be the first in a continuing series dropping every Thursday. Enjoy.

How old are you?
28ish

Where do you live?
Queenstown until it starts snowing, then Morzine or Whistler until it starts snowing.

Who makes it possible?
Outside Sports in Queenstown, Evolution in Whistler, Mike Stylie @ Hyperformance Hardware/Santa Cruz, Patricio Fallony, The Arthurs Point massive, Secret Squirrel and my Mum and Dad. Thanks.

First bike?
My badass blue Healing BMX with red racing checkers, the best hand-me-down from my bro ever.

What can you not live without?
Good coffee (thanks Motogrill), music, bikes, ibuprofen, girls, hats, wine, cheese, friends and family.

When you’re not riding bikes you are?
Fixing bikes.
What are your favourite five albums?
Rage Against the Machine – Rage Against the Machine.
The Black Seeds – Keep on Pushing.
The Bravery – The Bravery.
The Shins – Chutes too Narrow.
The Last Waltz – The Band

What are your favourite five video parts?
“Rob’s World” from Sprung 2 or 3. Old school classic Rob Warner shenanigans.
One of the old Earthed movies (can’t remember which one). The end where Nathan Rennie wins the World Cup overall in Kaprun, drinks beers, gets covered in mud, awesome song.
Sam Blenkinsop and Justin Leov in Dunkeld, Scotland – 3focus.
Shane McConkey (R.I.P.), massive superman front flips and epic guitar solos – Claim
Ken Block, jumping his Subi at Snow Park – Mountain Lab 1.5

What’s wrong with mountain biking?

International standards that are never standard. The massive lack of product quality control. The increasing cost of everything. People who wear body armour over their T-shirt, NO! Don’t do it.

What’s right with mountain biking?
Anodised/coloured parts coming back into fashion. Sub 30lb do-it-all trailbikes. “All Lycra-elastane based tight-fitting clothing” ban. A full eight round World Cup season. Bike movies without death metal, gangster rap and hucking.

Who do you look up to?
When I was a kid, Doug Henry, raced US motocross nationals, broke his back. Came back the next season, broke both his arms. Came back the following season, won the championship!
Now, anyone who is helping to improve and grow the sport of mountain biking. Chris Ball, disqualified by the UCI from a World Cup a few years back for protesting about the extremely average Calgary track (raced in his boxers with “pants” written on his chest). Now he works for the UCI making sure the tracks are up to standard.

Ever worn Lycra?
Only to bed, it’s so slinky.

What are your vices?
See previous question.