Yesterday my roommates and I rode our bikes out to the beach, while the sun was shining and there was a break in the rain. I spent most of the day riding along the shoreline, utilizing the hard packed sand to do tricks in the thin glass water. I’ll have more pics of the day up in a bit, but for now this photo of my bike will have to suffice.

Here’s a sneak peek at a little something the guys over at GRIME have cooking up. I don’t want to say too much just yet. I’ll leave it to them to fill you in with the details. But from what I’ve seen they look solid, and they feel great. Bar height seems to continue to rise, and I don’t know where it’ll end up. What do yo think, how high is too high?

Here’s a look at some of the footage I shot of Mike Schmitt filming for Shredwell 2 on Day 1 of his stay in San Francisco. Mike can shred just about anything, and is always looking for innovative ways of riding spots. Check out more below. Read more

This shot really goes to show the lengths riders have to go through to hit certain spots. Ripping on that pole so hard to bend it out of the way just enough to squeeze by. If you ever feel uninspired at a spot, take a look around and see what objects you have to work with. It’s amazing how this simple down rail can turn into a kicker to up rail, just with the help of a guard rail and traffic cones

The days of the “Keo spin” being the epitome of Fixed Freestyle is quickly fading, and is being replaced with a new age of fixed tricks. Riders have begun to push not only what can be done on these bikes, but their design as well. The classic trick list of Keos and bigspins have been replaced with feebles and barspins. I miss the days of popping up no hand wheelies, doing pole jams, and spending all night riding something as simple as a basketball court with my friends. The only thing I won’t miss are flats, but besides that, What do you miss most about riding track bikes?

I remember going through tubes, and entire patch kits on the daily when I ran 700′s, but as rare of an event it is riding 26′s, flat tires are an inevitable part of riding bikes. Flats are the easiest way to put a damper on your day, and completely ruin a session. And with daylight savings in full effect, the amount of usable light to film with is dramatically shortened. Making it hard to get in a full days work unless you’re up and ready early enough to catch the good light. Here’s a screenshot of Mike fixing a flat from coming up short on an up rail. When is the last time you found yourself w/ a flat?

Caught this picture the other day of Mike checking out San Francisco’s famous Clipper Ledges. With rounded corners, and a shear drop on the other side, there have been plenty of people who have been worked at this spot. Mike was lucky enough to ride away unscathed hitting both hubba’s back to back. You’ll see the clip of the action either in the next Wheel Talk or Grime edit. Stay tuned.

Caught this photo of Scott Horton riding the dirt jumps hidden inside Golden Gate park the last time he stayed w/ me in the city. I remember back when riding dirt jumps on fixed was unheard of. Bike geos have progressed to the point where riding dirt has become a more common part of the sport. People are beginning to explore new options w/ their new and improved off road capabilities. Taking the bike to places nobody has before and pushing the scene in ways nobody ever thought possible.

SADIO has had a Mike T Schmitt signature “Rocky” top load stem in the works a while now. Here’s a photo I took of Mike’s Rocky the other day. Still no word on when they’ll be available, but I can’t wait to get my hands on one.

Matt Rice from Deal With It SF shot this killer photo yesterday of Mike getting creative filming me doing a wall tap 180. Sometimes the person filming ends up pulling some moves to get the shot. Whatever it takes. In this case it took Mike scaling a wall, holding onto a pipe, and dangling from a loose electrical wire.

For the past few days I’ve been riding + filming w/ my good friend Mike Schmitt from the GRIME. He’s been staying up in San Francisco, and we’ve been rolling around and hitting everything that SF has to offer. I enjoy riding w/ Mike, because he has a truly unique style of riding and is always in search for those creative tricks that only work w/ the spot. Be on the look out for a ton of fresh new content from Mike.