Dozer
01-11-2007, 06:14 PM
We've all seen his awesome MTB videos and now we can find out more about the man himself. Ladies and Gentlemen, meet Olly1oo6!
http://forums.farkin.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=85803
Who are you?
My name’s Oliver Smith, just turned 20 and I’m a full time Uni student studying Law / Marketing at club Mac. I live in F-town; my local park is on record as being the smallest, worst, most ghetto skate park in Australia, but we all love it so much.
Why did you become a member of Farkin?
I became a member of Farkin after lurking for a few months. I decided to post a recent 10 stair to flat that I was momentarily proud of, and introduce myself to the wider community.
What riding styles do you partake in?
My riding focus at the moment is on street and park, purely because I have built up a 24” bike. Most of the time though, I divide my riding between pretty much every single discipline.
Most memorable MTB moments?
My most memorable moments definitely come from a nice huck, some fun senders, stuff like that. I think that’s the part of MTB that gets me the most stoked. I also love downhill, but I’ve only ever ridden downhill on a HT, and I’ve done it for many years. Soon I will be making the transition to a proper DH bike, and will be spending many more hot summer days building up my local trail, Black Betty.
Favourite trail?
Definitely our local trail. We’ve spent so much time on it, and its still only half done. Seriously, its awesome fun.
Favourite section of Farkin?
Trail Building! Probably because I whined for the section and then it ended up becoming a reality, so that made me pretty stoked. It’s great for some serious inspiration. Phat Vids comes pretty close though.
You’ve travelled to some fairly distant places in your time. Give us a list…….
Germany
France
Switzerland
Austria
Thailand (does the airport count?)
England
Singapore (who hasn’t)
I’ve also been to Tasmania, but only stayed a week and then went back to Australia
http://forums.farkin.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=85805
Most people on Farkin know you for posting the odd video. Tell us more……
I started getting a bit more into it after making a short video for my HSC major back in 2005. For those of you who want to know, I got 42% for it. After that I spent a lot more time thinking about video, and what people really want to see, so I decided to make an experiment, Perspective 2, which would tell me a lot more about how people react to different riding scenes. From that I’ve learnt a lot, and here I am! In reality I don’t spend nearly as much time behind the camera as you’d expect. First and foremost I spend what bit of free time I have riding, and occasionally whip out the camera for a few months and get serious.
How do you see the Aussie MTB film business?
At the moment I think there’s a pretty big void in MTB films, and that’s production values. As much as I realise how fun it is to watch race videos, I sometimes wish the Aussies would get a bit more serious and make a full blown NWD budget movie. After all, mountain biking is srsz bizness. Having said that, all productions have their place, and I love watching the fastest Aussie rippers smoking it down trails in Earthed, Between the tape, Hypnosis, Illusionary Lines and Sam’s creation, Compression. For someone his age, it’s a ripping piece of work, and I hope the most recent Farkin video comp will encourage a lot more people to get out and give motion picture a go.
What do you do with your time away from bikes?
Apart from riding and filming and all that crap that goes with it, I spend as little time as possible going to uni, where I find Law actually is quite fun. I used to spend a lot of my weekends in the city clubbing, mostly with Dim who is the biggest club whore in Sydney. I don’t do it as often anymore, but I really miss the scene. It’s just that I hate watching my bank account drop by about $150 every Sunday morning.
What is the stupidest thing you’ve ever done?
It might have been sitting in the boot of a Holden Jackaroo with one of those dog cages locking two of us in the back while the drivers maching it down the sketchiest patch of dirt in Wagga Wagga, just to see if he could make us bounce as high as that kid in the bus video.
It might have been, on a similar scale, with 6 others in the back of a mate’s ute (open, unsecured) at 3am, totally baked (including the driver) clicking past 100k’s down a straight with one of those huge road ditches, and trying to score some airtime in a VS Commodore.
It might have been pulling out onto the Pacific highway with a nice cloud of white rubber right in front of a police pursuit car.
It might have been shuttling up Oxford Falls by hanging on to the side windows of the car (with occasional oncoming traffic; and swerves to avoid it).
It might have been telling an unnamed member of the opposite sex “Well, now you’re going to have to pay for that drink” (I really regret that, I was an asshole, I deserved to be shot in the face, and don’t ever say that to anyone ever) luckily she took it as a joke (which it was).
It might have been when I was six, we got asked to choose an occupation that we would like to become. I chose doctor. In the text giving reason for such decision I wrote: “Because I did hear Doctors earn more than a hundred dollars a day!” I got grilled for that one at home. As I recall, Mum, rather exasperatedly asked me why I didn’t put what the others put who wanted to be doctors. They had all written: “because I like helping sick people”. I simply told her it was because I wasn’t lying.
Finally, it might have been trying to stumble 200 metres in the snow back to the lodge after schnapps night at the Sundeck. (Just don’t pass out kids!)
That’s about as much as I can remember at the moment.
Tell us about the riding scene in Sydney from your perspective.
At the moment I’m busy making a short for this actually, but the reality is that we are still in the stone age back here. As much as I hate stereotyping Canada, they really have their stuff made. We need to move on from what we have into a better community of riders. Not necessarily bigger, but if we can push the council toward supplying more MTB parks, if we can build structures that last for many decades and if we have avenues catering for every different riding style I think we’d be doing really well. At the moment we’re in a tough spot. We’ve lost a lot of great riders to BMX, which isn’t really a problem, but I hope for the sake of MTB that some come back, and enough people can see the difference between the sports to bring about some progression down under. The city ride is a classic example. We really need to bring those things back. The riders are there, we just need the motivation. We need to be able to find new places to ride, and things to try.
The trails in Sydney are definitely some of the countries finest. The Grove and Red Hill show what many years of dedicated building can achieve. I still think we need more, its not enough just to rely on two people, and their minimal crew of helpers to maintain these places. Too many kids are turning to parks because they’re lazy, and don’t realise the satisfaction of building your own stuff. I think we’re on our way though, and it’s great to see some younger initiative. I’m so happy that the trail building section got approved, and I think it’s really inspired a lot of people to build.
I also think, after seeing the recent developments at Oxford Falls, that there is a desperate need for slopestyle trails in Australia. We might not have the best dirt, but the huge expansion of places like oxford has shown we need some places to cater for that. It’s great to see, and I hope it continues maybe legally in the future.
In terms of people deserving of some serious credit, I’d say a huge props to ALL the people I’ve ever filmed over the years. Their tolerance and helpfulness has meant my sanity; Chris and Ben, Alex, Tom, Alan, Travis, Nick, Dim, Dave, Dale and Josh. Props to everyone who used to come on those awesome Sydney city rides; Dale, Rod, Mark, Nicho, Naz, Matt to name a few. All the builders of all the trails; Dave, Dale, Matt, Mark, the Oxford falls builders, the *other trails* and all the Awaba, Ourimbah, Lithgow builders and race organisers. Props to all the F-town homies, Shaun, Josh, Jeff, other Mark, Alan, Travis and Dim. And super props to all the other people I ride with, you’re all madc*nts!
Tell us some useless info that we need to know about you!
I’m half Prussian
My laugh appears in the movie Aquamarine
http://forums.farkin.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=85804
I'm sure we'll be seeing and hearing a lot more from this young fellow. Good luck with it and thank you for doing your bit for the Aussie MTB scene!
http://forums.farkin.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=85803
Who are you?
My name’s Oliver Smith, just turned 20 and I’m a full time Uni student studying Law / Marketing at club Mac. I live in F-town; my local park is on record as being the smallest, worst, most ghetto skate park in Australia, but we all love it so much.
Why did you become a member of Farkin?
I became a member of Farkin after lurking for a few months. I decided to post a recent 10 stair to flat that I was momentarily proud of, and introduce myself to the wider community.
What riding styles do you partake in?
My riding focus at the moment is on street and park, purely because I have built up a 24” bike. Most of the time though, I divide my riding between pretty much every single discipline.
Most memorable MTB moments?
My most memorable moments definitely come from a nice huck, some fun senders, stuff like that. I think that’s the part of MTB that gets me the most stoked. I also love downhill, but I’ve only ever ridden downhill on a HT, and I’ve done it for many years. Soon I will be making the transition to a proper DH bike, and will be spending many more hot summer days building up my local trail, Black Betty.
Favourite trail?
Definitely our local trail. We’ve spent so much time on it, and its still only half done. Seriously, its awesome fun.
Favourite section of Farkin?
Trail Building! Probably because I whined for the section and then it ended up becoming a reality, so that made me pretty stoked. It’s great for some serious inspiration. Phat Vids comes pretty close though.
You’ve travelled to some fairly distant places in your time. Give us a list…….
Germany
France
Switzerland
Austria
Thailand (does the airport count?)
England
Singapore (who hasn’t)
I’ve also been to Tasmania, but only stayed a week and then went back to Australia
http://forums.farkin.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=85805
Most people on Farkin know you for posting the odd video. Tell us more……
I started getting a bit more into it after making a short video for my HSC major back in 2005. For those of you who want to know, I got 42% for it. After that I spent a lot more time thinking about video, and what people really want to see, so I decided to make an experiment, Perspective 2, which would tell me a lot more about how people react to different riding scenes. From that I’ve learnt a lot, and here I am! In reality I don’t spend nearly as much time behind the camera as you’d expect. First and foremost I spend what bit of free time I have riding, and occasionally whip out the camera for a few months and get serious.
How do you see the Aussie MTB film business?
At the moment I think there’s a pretty big void in MTB films, and that’s production values. As much as I realise how fun it is to watch race videos, I sometimes wish the Aussies would get a bit more serious and make a full blown NWD budget movie. After all, mountain biking is srsz bizness. Having said that, all productions have their place, and I love watching the fastest Aussie rippers smoking it down trails in Earthed, Between the tape, Hypnosis, Illusionary Lines and Sam’s creation, Compression. For someone his age, it’s a ripping piece of work, and I hope the most recent Farkin video comp will encourage a lot more people to get out and give motion picture a go.
What do you do with your time away from bikes?
Apart from riding and filming and all that crap that goes with it, I spend as little time as possible going to uni, where I find Law actually is quite fun. I used to spend a lot of my weekends in the city clubbing, mostly with Dim who is the biggest club whore in Sydney. I don’t do it as often anymore, but I really miss the scene. It’s just that I hate watching my bank account drop by about $150 every Sunday morning.
What is the stupidest thing you’ve ever done?
It might have been sitting in the boot of a Holden Jackaroo with one of those dog cages locking two of us in the back while the drivers maching it down the sketchiest patch of dirt in Wagga Wagga, just to see if he could make us bounce as high as that kid in the bus video.
It might have been, on a similar scale, with 6 others in the back of a mate’s ute (open, unsecured) at 3am, totally baked (including the driver) clicking past 100k’s down a straight with one of those huge road ditches, and trying to score some airtime in a VS Commodore.
It might have been pulling out onto the Pacific highway with a nice cloud of white rubber right in front of a police pursuit car.
It might have been shuttling up Oxford Falls by hanging on to the side windows of the car (with occasional oncoming traffic; and swerves to avoid it).
It might have been telling an unnamed member of the opposite sex “Well, now you’re going to have to pay for that drink” (I really regret that, I was an asshole, I deserved to be shot in the face, and don’t ever say that to anyone ever) luckily she took it as a joke (which it was).
It might have been when I was six, we got asked to choose an occupation that we would like to become. I chose doctor. In the text giving reason for such decision I wrote: “Because I did hear Doctors earn more than a hundred dollars a day!” I got grilled for that one at home. As I recall, Mum, rather exasperatedly asked me why I didn’t put what the others put who wanted to be doctors. They had all written: “because I like helping sick people”. I simply told her it was because I wasn’t lying.
Finally, it might have been trying to stumble 200 metres in the snow back to the lodge after schnapps night at the Sundeck. (Just don’t pass out kids!)
That’s about as much as I can remember at the moment.
Tell us about the riding scene in Sydney from your perspective.
At the moment I’m busy making a short for this actually, but the reality is that we are still in the stone age back here. As much as I hate stereotyping Canada, they really have their stuff made. We need to move on from what we have into a better community of riders. Not necessarily bigger, but if we can push the council toward supplying more MTB parks, if we can build structures that last for many decades and if we have avenues catering for every different riding style I think we’d be doing really well. At the moment we’re in a tough spot. We’ve lost a lot of great riders to BMX, which isn’t really a problem, but I hope for the sake of MTB that some come back, and enough people can see the difference between the sports to bring about some progression down under. The city ride is a classic example. We really need to bring those things back. The riders are there, we just need the motivation. We need to be able to find new places to ride, and things to try.
The trails in Sydney are definitely some of the countries finest. The Grove and Red Hill show what many years of dedicated building can achieve. I still think we need more, its not enough just to rely on two people, and their minimal crew of helpers to maintain these places. Too many kids are turning to parks because they’re lazy, and don’t realise the satisfaction of building your own stuff. I think we’re on our way though, and it’s great to see some younger initiative. I’m so happy that the trail building section got approved, and I think it’s really inspired a lot of people to build.
I also think, after seeing the recent developments at Oxford Falls, that there is a desperate need for slopestyle trails in Australia. We might not have the best dirt, but the huge expansion of places like oxford has shown we need some places to cater for that. It’s great to see, and I hope it continues maybe legally in the future.
In terms of people deserving of some serious credit, I’d say a huge props to ALL the people I’ve ever filmed over the years. Their tolerance and helpfulness has meant my sanity; Chris and Ben, Alex, Tom, Alan, Travis, Nick, Dim, Dave, Dale and Josh. Props to everyone who used to come on those awesome Sydney city rides; Dale, Rod, Mark, Nicho, Naz, Matt to name a few. All the builders of all the trails; Dave, Dale, Matt, Mark, the Oxford falls builders, the *other trails* and all the Awaba, Ourimbah, Lithgow builders and race organisers. Props to all the F-town homies, Shaun, Josh, Jeff, other Mark, Alan, Travis and Dim. And super props to all the other people I ride with, you’re all madc*nts!
Tell us some useless info that we need to know about you!
I’m half Prussian
My laugh appears in the movie Aquamarine
http://forums.farkin.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=85804
I'm sure we'll be seeing and hearing a lot more from this young fellow. Good luck with it and thank you for doing your bit for the Aussie MTB scene!