14 Oct 2016

DIG Jam 2016 - The Full Story

You Couldn't Organise A DIG Jam In A Brewery!

Photos by Fred Murray, Ricky Adam and Alex Amato / Video by Matty Lambert / Words Paul Robinson

About 10 months ago I asked a mate if he knew of any great venues to hold a BMX jam in. One of the options was a Brewery complete with taproom. I distinctively remember the conversation going something like this, “So, how well do BMX and beer go together though really?” my friend said, “Oh really badly, but fuck it” I said. It was at that point that the first ever DIG Jam came to be, and ironically it went against all of DIG’s straight edge roots and straight to the boozy core of BMX riders.

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Seriously though, cheer up.

The North of England has always had a good sustaining diet of BMX amid up’s and downs, locational honeymoons and content overkills. Besides that, it’s always had a strong D.I.Y culture to it and one of the biggest cities to embrace that culture has been Leeds, it’s punk ethic and significant hardcore values run so deep that I was happy to organise the maiden DIG jam in my hometown.

Little Lee; the cream of Leeds, lover of chains and shell suit bottoms.

We really wanted that D.I.Y feel to the first DIG jam but at the same time we didn’t want people driving across the country and turning up at a flat rail in a field. I met up with some friends, worked together with WETHPEOPLE and linked up with supporting sponsors Cult, BSD, Animal, The Source and Etnies and together we dreamed small and drank big. Over a 2-week period we put together a street course in an incredible tight room and still had room for an exhibition from legend photo guy Ricky Adam.

Sorry not sorry.

All Alex Donnachie had to do was nose manual 180 this massive ledge and he went home with a state of the art DVD player from Currys worth £22.99.

"... it’s punk ethic and significant hardcore values run so deep that I was happy to organise the maiden DIG jam in my hometown."

- Paul Robinson

So what happened you ask? Well what happened is what happens at every BMX jam, people got loose, the AM riders went in, the PRO’s went heavy and the one and only Darryl Nau lit the place up (although he was looking a little bit ropey on this occasion, it could have been the effects of a heavily discounted presenter's rate). We love the North of England and to celebrate we had video screenings of our favorite BMX DVD’s including Attila Hit The Switch, Tomorrow We Work, Voices and NSF. Later that night we held a BMX pub quiz which was one of the most hilarious things to happen, even if a few of the pub locals didn’t have a clue what we were on about.

Darryl Nau was doing a 241 deal and we couldn't resist.

BMX is tight.

Ginner took the top prize in AM class and made sure he left some of his skin on the Brewery floor. Right after this he took his lass to Pizza Express for her birthday.

"I don’t need to tell you how important BMX events are to BMX, they help in so many ways, some immeasurable."

- Paul Robinson

I don’t need to tell you how important BMX events are to BMX, they help in so many ways, some immeasurable - I just hope that people see that life exists outside of a phone or away from a computer screen and to get off your backsides and organise something (today) that involves real human interaction. Thank you to everyone who lent a hand, hit a nail, swept a floor and thanks again to the brands that stand behind events like this one and continue to support BMX in such a core way.

- Paul Robinson

Drink responsibly.

Fat Head enjoying some laughs, weirdly he went AWOL for most of the day.

A Brief History Of Northern BMX by Ricky Adam was like a nostalgic journey into BMX in the early and mid 2000's.

That's the face of someone who has won the most inexpensive DVD player in the world.

Ben Gordan deserved his goodie bag.

Classic Northern Video's made the tap room feel like home.

Spotify = Legit.

Thankfully this was the busiest these guys were all day.

"If there are anymore Jams that a BMX pensioner with a full-time job and 2 kids can get involved in, I'm there" - Will Jackson 2016

Yakob rode well considering he slept outside the venue all night.

If you don't see the funny side of spending £28 on a giant cheque to then write £0.00 on it then you clearly don't belong in this universe let alone World. Ed Zunda Overall Winner.

"Darryl Nau was looking a little bit ropey on this occasion, it could have been the effects of a heavily discounted presenter's rate."

- Paul Robinson