Least Most

Focused on bikes, music, art, adventure and the overall pursuit of good times.

Posts from Least:

Olives.

In case you hadn’t been paying attention, you should check out Nuno Oliveira ‘s Photo Blog, called Olive Juice, Lots of great pics…

10 photos with Chad Kagy

X Games Gold medalist, and celebrity stunt man, Chad Kagy has been a part of a group of “entertainers” doing shows for troops in Iraq, called Bikes Over Baghdad.

These 10 photos by Chad share part of that experience, and it is unique for sure.

"A Positive" - Your blood type needs to be displayed on you in case something were to go wrong. They even like to have our blood type on file as entertainers.

Apache Chopper" - the most deadly helicopter ever built was under maintenance and we got to tour the chopper. Even got to sit in the pilots seat, not much room to move around but then again it wasn't built for comfort.

"Bike Rack C-130" - We have a few transports between bases flying in C-130 airplanes so we strap all the bikes to one pallet and all our bags and boxes of product for the troops on another pallet. It has the ability to be a wild ride if you convince the pilots they should show you what the plane can do, so much fun to float off the floor for about 4 seconds... ha ha.

"Feeble Drew" - Drew B. found a short feeble grind in the back of Saddam's Ba' ath House that had no run up and as soon as you land had about 3 feet to stop before falling in the manmade ces-pool of a lake. We were told it takes 17 shots of vaccinations to clean you up if you fall in.

"Fuck Saddam" - This is the last known standing portrait of Saddam still in Iraq since all the rest were destroyed by the people after we took him out of power. We stopped by to pay our "respects" and I think I made it pretty clear what I was thinking.

"Kickflip in Baghdad" - We were able to convince the military to let us find some street spots on the base and got to ride the Flinstones Village. It's a replica of the only TV show Saddam allowed to air in his country from America and gave this facility to his grandkids after having their fathers killed. Billy Rohan found a spot on the roof to kickflip and not fall 30 feet to the bad water below.

"Palace Destruction" - Self Portrait inside one of Saddams palaces that was partially destroyed in the last war. Odd fact about this scene is that the stairs are different sizes and in a pattern that Saddam had for all his palaces. If an attacker was after him he could run up the stairs but those chasing him would trip on the random sized steps. Dude was crazy!

"request denied" - We were asked by the crew of this Apache Chopper to sign the hellfire missile so we added to what was already there... "Facebook Friend Request DENIED!"

"restricted" - We got approval from the Mayor of Camp Slayer to tour the giant palace.

"Wessel Ziggurat" - This may be the only time during out Bikes Over Baghdad tour that Nate Wessel had a chance to sit down and relax for a minute. Pretty amazing being on top of the Ziggurat outside the wire with a large military escort. Once in a lifetime experience for sure.

Dirty South

A ten year old video from men of great southern tradition, Justin Holt, the Mangler and Puck.

FBM Groundhog’s Day Jam

To celebrate the early arrival of Spring, after Punxsutawney Phil and Staten Island Chuck failed to see there Shadows, FBM hosted a jam at East Shore Skatepark in Ithaca NY. One Saturday afternoon of fun proved to be a quick remedy for cabin fever and produced this quick video and these photos… ( Video produced by Kenny Horton)

Eric Hollady- Jersey barrier wallride.

Paul, with a serious boost- Korey Kryder pic.

Ithaca High School's Alex Capalongo.

Neil Hise of Richmond Va.- Wallride.

Joel Barnett, Invert transfer.

Eric Hollady- brakeless fufanu.

Linwood Monk, Wallride transfer.

Cory Foust of Lock Haven Pa.

John Lee and Brett Diener of FBM.

Joel Barnett Groundhog's day champion.

Best Pizza in Miami

In a desperate effort to escape the brick east coast winter, our crew of Chris Fuzz Ware, Nick Bott, Steve Tassone and Jon Schimpf, rented a car and made our way down 95 to Florida for a week. With no plans except eating as much pizza and riding as much as possible in 80 degree weather, we were able to ride a bunch of amazing spots, get a bunch of footage together and make a pretty solid edit out of what we got done. We spent most of the week in and around Miami and then made a stop in Orlando/Maitland for a day on our way back up north to Philly and the freezing weather we all know way too well. Thanks goes to Derek at Orchid for hooking it up with Least Most.

– Steve Tassone

Photo Feature: Justin Luong

Intro and interview courtesy of Aaron Gates

Justin Luong was one of the first people I met when I moved out to the New England, and I consider myself lucky for that. Justin knows everyone around here, he has a crazy job, and he can throw down on a bike. Justin is also a pretty prolific photographer. He has a large portfolio that spans back at least a few years and features a wide variety of riders from around the Northeast. I asked him to share a bit of his background, along with some of his favorite photos from over the years.

Shamus Kelliher footjam @ Haven.

What’s your current setup and what got you interested in shooting in the first place?

Currently I have a Nikon D90, pocket wizards that fire a Nikon SB600, and a Vivitar 285HV, a few tripods to mount the flashes and the camera. For lenses, I have a 50mm f/1.4, 18-70mm f/3.5, and a 10.5mm f/2.8. Recently the Vivitar broke, so I will soon have two more SB600s for some extra fire power.

I got my first taste of photography from one of my roommates back when I went to college. I was never really interested in photography, I always thought some photos looked cool, but never really understood how these photos came to be the way they were. During my first year at college, I met two colleagues, Dave Damant and Mike Tnasuttimonkol (aka Mikey T). Dave was a graphic design major, and Mikey was a photo major, and boy could he shoot photos. He has an amazing eye for capturing the best pictures, even with a simple point and shoot, and he can make magic happen…I am honored to say he was my inspiration and the sole person for getting me interested in photography.

Thought this was quite a neat photo from my friend Mikey T. Doing some work with the Jabbawockeez.

Being a Californian resident, he loves the waves…and because of that, he initially wanted to shoot body boarding/surfing photos. Being that it was action photography that he loved to shoot, he of course asked if he could shoot photos of me riding my bike, since there are no waves anywhere close to Rochester, NY. As I watched him setup for shots, and watched all the work that went on behind a shot, it intrigued me…but what really got me, was the photos he would produce from them. He came through with amazing photos, and it made me appreciate photos at such another level. I would help Mikey setup in future shots, help take down flashes, and tripods (which is so helpful from a photographers point of view, so next time help a friend out if he is going to shoot you!) and I soon learned how things worked…why he placed the flashes where he did, and how wireless triggers worked. I wouldn’t understand the shutter speed, aperture, and ISO until I picked up a camera myself, but Mikey’s photos and his amazing ability as a photographer was the reason I gave it a shot and the reason I am shooting to this day.

This was one of the many photos that inspired me to try photography as a hobby. Mikey T shot this of me in a newly built olympic size pool. So many fond memories come back to me when I look at this, including a memory of a bunch of us acting as if we came from ESPN to shoot some clips in a pool so the security guard would let us through.

There’s a lot of diversity in your shots – different styles of riding, different places, and you don’t really limit yourself to shooting one group of riders. Is that something you do on purpose?

I have a goal I set for myself, where I want to shoot at least one photo of every one of my friends I ride with. I believe each one of my friends has their own style, their own way they see things, and because of that, I believe all these different photos come to be. I don’t do it on purpose, I just happen to ride with them, and think “hey that would make for a good photo.” and I’ll usually just ask them if they’d like to shoot a photo of it. Because of the diverse riders that we have in our scene in CT, I believe that diversity comes out in the photos I shoot as well.

Seth Bernard getting steezy. I pretty much sat on the sidelines watching this kid progressively get better and better. Everytime I get to ride with him he'd would be doing the most unique spins on tricks. He's got a great attitude toward riding, and I'm excited to see what kind of fun and rediculous tricks this kid comes up with next.

What kind of stuff do you like to shoot outside of bmx?

To be honest, I don’t really shoot much outside of bmx. I mainly got inspired through photos of bmx, and also got into photography to shoot photos of bmx, so that’s what I mainly do. However, that does not mean I haven’t been curious about shooting other things. The majority of the photos unrelated to bmx are scenery, and landscapes. Portraits are really fun too. People do rediculous poses, dress up in funny outfits, and have a blast. It sounds pretty childish, but photoshoots are really fun, mostly since your imagination can run free, both for the photographer and the subject being shot. I like to make some ideas in my head and try to take a photo that best shows exactly what I’m thinking of. To be able to use your imagination and recreate it in a photograph for all to see amazing.

Roommate and close friend of mine, Pauly Misbach, participating in a little fun.

Where are some of the places that you’ve traveled to, and some favorite spots close to home?

I love traveling! As far as traveling for riding goes however, I haven’t been to many places that far from the Northeast, though I am starting to bring my bike everywhere I travel. So far, I’ve been to Las Vegas, Paris, and Vienna with my bike. I’ve also been out to Woodward, a lot of upstate NY, all over New England and NYC. I will say though, that there are plenty more places in the future that my tires will be touching. That DK Golf bag was the best investment I ever made.

Pauly Misbach riding a compacter. The best thing about photography are the memories. With each shot I take, I take away something from that day. And each time I look at each of my photos, I feel like I can travel back in time to that moment.

Explain your day job. Does that background ever come into play with photo stuff? Riding?

I work as a Engineer at a place that makes Airplanes. Commercial and Military. I myself have been mostly working on the 787, which will be replacing the 747s that most airlines are using…so soon enough, you’ll be flying in planes that a BMXer has been working on. I don’t believe too much transfers over when shoot photos, mostly because photography is more of an artistic form of expression, and engineering is pretty much crunching numbers, and pretty much black and white type. The planes either fly, or they don’t. As far as engineering and riding goes…I’ve always dreamed of designing parts. I love the new designs Fly and Odyssey have done, and love how those companies are pushing innovation in BMX, and not taking what we ride as the standard. I’ve kept a few ideas in the back of my head…maybe one day we’ll see them come to fruition.

What happens if you have a shot all set up, flashes out etc. and security shows up?

I come up with an excuse fast haha. But thankfully…this hasn’t happened a lot, but it has happened before. The few times I was caught by security, they have let me pack my equipment up and leave. At those times, I really wish I got into videography instead hahaha.

Matt Horak roastin' a lookback.

On that topic, I’ve seen a few videos you’ve shot on your DSLR, do you plan on doing that more? Is it weird shooting video on a still camera?

Haha, it’s not really anything I plan to do more of, or any less of. I just thought it’d be fun to try and film an edit. As for using my D90 to film, it is quite hard seeing as the camera’s ergonomics were based off of shooting a photo, and not needing much wrist movement and freedom. I will definitely be making small edits periodically but my main focus is still photography.

Garret Serven, flowing on the streets of Hartford. I always love capturing moments like these in a photo. Something so simple, and so stylish would never have gotten used in a video edit or DVD, but in photography...you can appreciate the artistic side of bmx riding.

Do you have a process for setting up a riding shot? Is there any one thing that you always try to capture?

I would first start off with what exactly I’m trying to capture. I would look for the best angle and best way to frame the photo. If at all possible, I would try and keep the approach and landing in the shot so the viewer could understand what’s being done and from where to where. From that point on, it’s all about lighting. That’s when you will see me running back and forth from where I am shooting to where the flashes are…changing settings, and moving the location of the flashes. All that for that one moment…that one amazing moment. =)

Anthony Villani doing a brakeless fufanu on a sub box.

What are some things you’re looking forward to this year? I know you’ve got at least one trip planned….

Oh man…there’s a lot of things I am looking forward to this year. Definitely the trips and the good riding sessions that will be had. Camping trips, lake jumps, summer fires, good times with friends, and with family. I’m looking forward to seeing the capital of Connecticut possibly getting a skatepark, and seeing the CT bmx scene grow.

Don't shoot too many skateboarding shots, but I definitely am gonna try to more.

Pizza Zombies

A few pics from Jim Callahan’s Art Show.

Transition Mission

Words/photos courtesy of Eric Hennessey

Someone had mentioned that there was a town in western Texas that had abandoned hotels that might have pools at them. It’s a boring 7- 8 hour drive from austin to get there, so nobody ever drove to see if the rumors were true. We got word that there was some work for a week in a town called Alpine which was below the infamous “pool town”. We talked to the people and set a loose plan. Drive in the bus the 7 hours to alpine,TX, work for a week, and then let the search for animal chin begin.

The route we had loosely planned out

After working 5 days at a waste water treatment plant (raw sewage), we drove to “Pool Town, TX” to see if the talk was truth or urban legend. The town had one main street running through it that was littered with rundown abandoned hotels. We centrally parked the bus and started pedaling from hotel to hotel on the hunt for anything transition we could find. Most of the pools had been filled in with dirt and after about 40 minutes of searching my hopes were getting low. And then we found the first pool.

The Wet Kidney

Being filled with water, we decided to see if there was any other pools before we sank our last few hours of daylight into bucketing slimy swamp water. There was another perfect pool 2 hotels down the street. Unfortunately, the hotel was barely still open and the pool needed too much work to make it worth the risk of being kicked out before we even got it all dry. There was only 4 hotels left until the end of the strip. after the last hotel was nothing but fields and a highway. The first 3 hotels were pool-less and the 4th was a Ramada full of paying visitors and maybe the best looking hotel on the entire street, but we checked it out anyway. JACKPOT! The perfect pool. i have never seen anything like this thing. Perfect transition, perfectly dry, and a shape that i never could have imagined.

Blue Pentagon Gold

We jumped in, each took about 2 runs, and got kicked right out by one of the employees. i guess it was time to clean out the other pool. we were bucketing smelly water well into the dark with plans for a morning session.

The Bucket Toss

In the bus that night all we could talk about was the blue double pentagon pool. we decided we would go back first thing in the morning and try and get another couple runs on it. We rode that thing the next morning for like an hour! And when someone finally did come kick us out we asked “how bout a couple more runs man?” he replied “ok no problem” Also, the white kidney that we spent all night cleaning out? perfectly dry and ready to rip with no one to kick us out!

Pentagon Pocket Air

After the pools, we planned a little loop back home with a bunch of stops along the way with skateparks that we found on the “concrete disciples” website. 4 parks total. Park one was a concrete park in Pecos, TX. that was made by the local driveway company with no prior transition experience. With bumpy transitions and concrete all over the coping, this park rode more like a bad-ass ditch than a skatepark (which was awesome).

Odessa Texas

A quick stop in Odessa to ride a brand new park that was flooded with kids swarming like bees in every direction. and a 20 minute drive to Midland, TX for our 2nd to last stop.

Henny 5-0 nose grab

With plans on camping in the Midland Skatepark parking lot , the park had lights so we figured we would check it out and ride it in the morning. as we started skating around the park, an older guy was sitting at the entrance to the park and asked “hey you guys skate pools?” (little did he know we barely skated flat ground and were actually just bike riders rolling around until it was time to sleep) but we replied with “well, we dont normally but would love to try!”.

After the pools we rode in the beginning of the trip we were basically thinking that was going to be the highlight and we were just winding down on our way back to home. But Tim shocked us with what he had in his back yard. Could this really be ANOTHER pool? a perfect backyard pool?

Back Yard Pool

After the unbelievable hospitality from Tim and his family, letting us sleep on their couches and trusting us to be there alone and lock up while they all went to work was amazing. Tim told us about how much he used to dislike bike riders and by the end of our stay with him he was offering for us to ride our bikes on his perfect pool and giving us old freestylin’ magazines from the 80’s.(the pool even got matty itchin to ride a skateboard and by the end of the night he was carving over the light in the pool. not a bad first day of skating.)

Matty Going over the light

Just a typical trip with friends to see what is out there. but coming home with an appreciation for smaller things. I kinda understand what it was like for the z boys to search out backyard pools in the 70’s. it makes me just want to go and see what else is out there. its easy to get caught up in the same routine, but its the out of the ordinary that opens your mind.

Clint Reynolds 1 footed Table

Total Drag

This guy has a dog named Pizza, and does some killer graphics. More info On the web? Yes.

Hot or not?

We asked a few Least Mosters to give their 10 hot/nots for the new year. Some kept it positive, some kept it sarcastic. Get your decoder rings on…

Hat tip to the de Jong’s who’ve been doing Rad vs Lame forever.

Rob Tibbs

Hot: back rail fufs 1st try
Not: hang fives that take 104 trys
Hot: street riding
Not: street riding at the skatepark
Hot: drunk texting
Not: reading them the next day
Hot: anthem 2
Not: web edits
Hot: high fives
Not: horn bumps
Hot: cases
Not: 12 packs
Hot: flat black
Not: neon
Hot: dollar store beanies
Not: monster new eras
Hot: summer
Not: winter
Hot: sean burns doing the cemetery gap
Hotter: sean burns doing the cemetery gap four fucking times!

Steve Crandall

Hot: 4 loko
Not: Alcoholics Anonymous
Hot: Twitter
Not: Talking to people in real life
Hot: Spot finders and Google earth
Not: the thrill of the hunt!
Hot: Monster Energy Drink New Eras
Not: Wigs
Hot: Stacking Clips
Not: Stacking lips
Hot: Poaching
Not: Building your own fun
Hot: Web Vids, Blogs, iPads, tumblr, etc…
Not: This Is united, Surfin for the ugly Broads, Anthem, Holeshot, Case, JNKFD, etc…
Hot: Following the herd
Not: out of step
Hot: taking yourself too serious
Not: wearing clown costumes
Hot: the price of gas
Not: the economy

Jason Morris

Hot: dig
Not: wax
Hot: build
Not: complain
Hot: brakes
Not: sneakers in tire
Hot: kindle
Not: bookshelf
Hot: valentine1
Not: tickets
Hot: deck manual
Not: deck monkey
Hot: roth max
Not: credit max
Hot: howard stern
Not: music in the am
Hot: @empirebmx rants
Not: normal sleep pattern
Hot: less
Not: more

Derek Adams

Hot: The Mustache
Not: The Goatee
Hot: Rainbow colored bikes
Not: Pad sets and numberplates
Hot: Laptop DJ’s
Not: Playing an instrument
Hot: Copy & Paste
Not: Do it yourself
Hot: My Crew
Not: The Posse
Hot: Spicy Habanero Sauce
Not: Ketchup
Hot: Mega Ramps
Not: Mini Ramps
Hot: Big business
Not: Grass roots
Hot: Rails
Not: Trails
Hot: Reality TV
Not: Reality

Nick Ferreira

Hot: Elk Zines & Books
Not: The current state of BMX mags
Hot: Burritos & Pizza
Not: expensive food
Hot: Shitty skateparks
Not: perfectly sculpted training facilities
Hot: Scrappin bikes
Not: dialed bikes
Hot: Teenage party spots in the woods
Not: Goin to the bar
Hot: JNCO’s and Sulats
Not: Levis 511 and fades
Hot: Riding with people you have been riding with since you were thirteen
Not: jocking the “good” riders
Hot: One night camping trips
Not: Spending forever on the road. I got Law and Order/ The Wire/ things to do!
Hot: FBM Gypsy frame
Not: FBM Deployer
Hot: The United States Postal Service
Not: Email

Jackson Allen

Hot: Urban Camping (I opt for the sleeping in the camper shell of a truck, but you can get as grimy as you want)
Hot: Fancy beers in a can (Fat tire, Dales etc. Nothing wrong with bad beer in a can too, but now you can get fancy in the woods and packing your trash is a cinch. Awesome date beer.)
Hot: x-ups (always on my hot list, but I was kinda planning on doing a bunch this year. Every variation thereof is also fun. Well, with the exception of x-up rides, I think I have weak elbows)
Hot: Head lamps (My friend Mike calls them tweaker lights. You have a flashlight and both of your hands free. Perfect. Goes well with numbers one and two.)
Hot: Paper airplanes (Make sure you use recycled paper (bills, junk mail, etc.) Google some bad ass designs. Draw flames on that shit to make it go fast. Go to the top of something tall. Or have a friend throw one down a hill and try to race it on a bike. Totally worth it.)
Hot: The Least Most (it’s having a birthday. Birthdays are hot.)
Hot: Grooveshark (Not sure how this is still free. Like pandora but it doesn’t suck. You pick your music. You listen for free. It just lives on the internet.)
Hot: TRAILS
Hot: Hiking (sometimes its good to move slow)
Hot: Kiwis (the fruit. High in Vitamin C, Tasty)

So long 2010

The Least Most turns one year old on January 12th and we’d like to thank everyone who has supported, contributed, and followed us in our first year of existence. It’s been a blast so far and there is much more to come in 2011.

As 2010 comes to a close, we wanted to look back on some of the cool features we’ve run in the past year. We’ve done a short wrap-up before, so these recent features that have been shared around quite a bit:

DIY Bowl Project

I Love My Bicycle

Big Island

Jailhouse Cuisine with Paul Horan

Heroes of Dirt

Photo Feature: Byran Tarbell