eWire :: Riding :: Video Reviews

The world flatland scene seems to be as strong as ever. Despite little coverage in the major magazines, it has thrived though the many flatland-related web sites as well as flatland-only videos such as Flatland Manifesto.

Diversion is Bobby Carter's addition to the flatland video magazine genre. You might ask why the world needs another flatland video magazine — I'll admit I thought the same thing — but Diversion and Flatland Manifesto are quite different, both in their strengths, formats, and style. Where FM tends to be straight-ahead "magazine" with contest footage, interviews, how-to's, and plenty of the best up-to-date flatland riding, Diversion has more of an intimate vibe to it.

Issue 1 has different "articles" — how different riders survive bad weather where they live, a small section on brakelessness, and a scene info about Norway (with the guys from The Factory), Brazil, and a few interviews. You learn a lot about other people's lives from the interview segments, which play nicely over the riding. Especially interesting was Manual Prada telling how difficult it is for people to afford a bike in his come country of Costa Rica.

Diversion is 40 minutes long, has an original and enjoyable soundtrack (not the stereotypical new-school hip-hop or Fat Wreck-style punk) that doesn't distract from what you're watching, and is expertly filmed and edited. If you've seen Bobby's other videos (such as Explorations), you can expect the same high-quality style here. He has a very distinct editing style, and he's easily one of top BMX video producers making videos.

And, by mentioning some of the riders in this video, you'll know the tricks are amazing: Ed Nussbaum, Stephen Cerra, Kensaku "Tagi" Takahata, Gabe Kadmiri, Dave McDaniel, and Menual Prado. I won't go into detail trying to describe any tricks, though Tagi's jumping from a cross-footed forward karl kruzer directly into a halfpacker — completely brakeless — really shouldn't be possible. There are also a lot of other unknown riders featured in Diversion, which is good to see: riding scenes are a lot deeper than the handful of riders getting coverage. Highly recommended video ... can't wait to see issue 2!

(Check out the Diversion web site for preview clips.)

Diversion Video Magazine

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