Took a ride around Citi Field last night to scope out some riding spots. Not much to do but the place looks incredible all lit up and noone around. Catch a game this season!

Revisited: Hillside Trails

If you rode bmx around our area in the early 2000's you most likely heard about a spot called Hillside. Chris Paladino was the head dude down there and they were no doubt the largest trails ever in the tri-state area. The trails were plowed after about a year or two then Pali decided to rebuild "just one" of the sections just to have something to ride... that turned into rebuilding the whole place. It didnt really make sense to rebuild seeing as the city were the ones doing the plowing and eventually they would be back.... but the place went back up and was home to some of the best sessions I have ever had. The trails were intimidating but if you were a local we had the place down pretty good. Visitors had a rough time on some of the sections but in the end might have gotten through a couple times by dusk haha.

Fast forward like 5 years to today... Hillside as we knew it is now home to a whole woods worth of legal mountain bike trails. You have to hand it to whoever convinced the city of new york to allow this.... but they pulled it off. Signs are everywhere telling you whats ahead and where to go and outside on the street near the entrance is a huge map (kinda resembles one youd see at a ski resort) showing you all the trails. It sucks that our spot got plowed but at least the woods are being used now for other two wheeled riders.


I went to check the place out yesterday and I was suprised to find a little track layed out where some of the real big jumps were back in the day. What was once the same coordinates for a 35 foot double is now rollable jumps and berms. I cant lie... it is pretty fun but nothing like the olden days. I even found myself being "that guy" while talking to some young kids... "you wouldnt believe what was here like 8 years ago... lip right here... landing over near that tree... shit was huge!"... yea, at 28 I have officially turned into that older dude that shows up that noone believes.


I will def be popping in the trails every once in a while. Its still a fun spot to putt around.... I just need to get a hold of who's in charge to see if I can get the green light on putting up "just one" small section.

Hit up the new home of the Mets last night with some buddies. The stadium is incredible. The team really did an awesome job building a place that I will prob call my home field for the rest of my life. Check out the old school Riders From Hell sticker still lingering on the back of an old sign. I must have slapped that up in 2001 and its still kickin'. If you are in the area, Mets fan or not... I recommend catching a game this season.

Oh yea... after much delay the Mets Win Or Lose colorway is now being printed.

How to make a screen:

Not many people understand the prep work that goes into printing up a tshirt. Having someone email you asking to make ONE shirt can obviously be done but you have to understand the time and cost that goes into setting up the job.

#1: Start with your blank screen with the correct mesh for the job you are printing. 110 is the basic mesh count used for most jobs unless you are dealing with really thin lines or half tones. You need to coat your screens in a darkroom or quickly set them in a light safe area until they are dry.

#2: Pour your emulsion into the coater and apply. You tilt the screen at an angle and evenly coat the screen on both sides.

#3: Emulsion is a light sensitive liquid that needs to dry on the screen in complete darkness or in a darkroom. If you dont have access to a darkroom you can find any light safe area to place your screens. If you have the correct amount of airflow or fans going they should be ready to go in about a half hour. If you are using a closet or other constricted area it could take a while. Making a drying rack that is light tight can be done with some wood and dark black fabric.

#4: Each color in your design needs its own film. For example a three color print will need three screens and three films.

#5: Line up your film on the back of your now dried screen. You can secure it with clear tape. If you are printing a multi color job try to line up each film in the same general area on all the screens. This will help when you are trying to line the colors up on the press. The light source is used to "burn" the image into the emulsion. The emulsion where that the film is not covering will now harden. All exposure units are different so you'll have to figure out the right amount of time to leave the light on but most good units will have about a one minute burn time.

#6: Bring your screen to your wash out area. You can use one of those fancy wash out booths with the pressurized hoses, a power washer or any old regular garden hose will work. Hit the screen all over until your design washes out.

#7: You basically just made a stencil for your artwork. The ink will now pass through anywhere that washed out clear.

#8: Let your screen dry, tape up the edges.... and you are ready to print.

Hope that was slightly educational. All that is why the screen set ups apply to your job. Its not as easy as printing out a design and ironing it on to a shirt. That process is quick, but they look like shit and will eventually fall off in the wash. If you correctly make a screen and use the right kind of ink you have a better chance of the shirt falling apart before the ink ever comes off.

Went snowboarding quite a few times with James Horan this past winter. Shot these photos last weekend in Killington, VT and threw together a little image file. No riding pics, but James looks fresh in his "Sounds Like New York" T. If he wasn't wearing that damn Yankees hat it'd be even better. Opening day is next monday!