FreestyleXtreme Magazine Issue 18 | Page 80

bike up and I could see the bone sticking out against the skin , and knew then that it was broken . I rolled down to the base area on my bike and just sat there chilling and collecting my thoughts before I got an ambo to the hospital .
I spent a night in the hospital and they managed to manipulate it back into place enough , but I ’ ll see a specialist when I get home . It ’ ll be a minimum of six weeks so I ’ ll load up on milk and try to stay optimistic about it .
What did you think of the Rotorua course ?
It was amazing . It ’ s so nicely tucked away into the woods that you never feel any wind , the dirt is incredible , the lips are sick , and it flows so well from one jump to the next . It just ticks all the boxes and is such a great McGazza legacy .
Nice . Did you watch the finals or were you still in hospital at the time ?
Yeah , I got out to watch the finals . I was really impressed with the level everyone was riding at . Nicholi Rogatkin ’ s runs were just spectacular , but it was a shame Brandon Semenuk didn ’ t land his run , as everything he does is just so perfect . It definitely sucked not being able to ride myself though !
Oh , I could imagine that would ’ ve stung ! Slopestyle has progressed so fast the past few years . Is it a challenge to keep up with it and the tricks everyone ’ s doing ?
Progression-wise the tricks have got insane . There ’ re world firsts being done as a common occurrence and by mid-pack guys . At the same time , I think the judging has improved a lot . It ’ s more measurable and it seems to be more about overall impression rather than dropping one or two banger tricks in your run . I think that ’ s changed the game a bit , as style , consistency and variation play a bigger part than just having one trick that no-one else can land .
What ’ s your favourite trick to throw down ?
Even though it just took me down , I ’ d have to say 720s at the minute . I had loads of trouble with them a while back and lost them completely , but now I ’ ve got them figured out . I started landing them about 18 months ago , but the learning curve has been about taking them to bigger jumps and putting them down everywhere . You can force errors when you spin slower and the shape of your rotation matters a lot more as you can get off-balance when you ’ re in the air for longer . It took a while to figure that out , but I ’ ve got them sorted … well , I thought I had until a couple of days ago !
Hahaha . You ’ re also known for your Double Backflips . Do they still scare you , even though you ’ ve had them mastered for several years ?
Oh , they ’ re not a trick I f ** k around with . They deserve respect , to be thought about , and to be planned properly . I only really do Double Flips in the final rounds of a contest , and only if there ’ s a jump that I feel confident I can land one on . I usually know early on in a contest whether there ’ s a jump that will work , but don ’ t actively hunt one out at each contest to try and force the trick ; that ’ s when you get into trouble .
How would you describe your riding style ?
Aah … I ’ ve never been asked this before ! I come from quite a trails background and learnt to ride on steeper , more technical jumps than a lot of other riders , so I try and be as precise as possible . I ’ m very critical about landing a trick well , not landing it half sideways or with pedal slips . Amplitude is where it ’ s at as well : for me going high is as good as doing tricks .
Tell us about these local trails you ride . The Woburn trails have a pretty amazing reputation .
Yeah , me and my twin brother Jono found out about the trails when we started racing BMX , so we started going up there on weekends and evenings . During that time , there was a lot of building going on and the jumps progressed as we did . u