As described in my last post, I recently traveled from Connecticut (CT) to the Arrowhead Bike Farm in Fayetteville, West Virginia (WV) to vlog their Trials and Tracks bike trials competition. My goal was to show what it’s like in general to travel to a trials competition – not only the actual riding, but the people, the vibe, and the overall experience. I also wanted to highlight this specific event, as it was the first trials biking competition hosted by David, Travis, and the Arrowhead Bike Farm. Hopefully my series of videos will encourage other riders to travel to a competition, or even host one of their own.
While the above goals focus on serving the trials community (and frankly, anyone else who might become interested in trials), I also had a personal goal to dive in and get some practice in developing other styles of video beyond just the trials riding edits. In other words, I’m learning how to tell an interesting story. Hopefully this latest experience will help prepare me for the next bike trip to the Bentonville Bike Fest in June 2022, which I also plan to vlog.
Part 1: Travel from CT to WV, meeting the hosts, and final setup
The first half of part 1 of the series provides a short glimpse into van life as we drive and camp overnight. The second half includes interviews with event hosts David and Travis, as well as some of the things that go into preparing for a trials competition.
Part 2: Competition day!
Part 2 in the series covers the final event preparations for the event, as well as the event itself. The event includes the trials riding, but also some additional events that I’ve highlighted. It also includes more interviews.
Part 3: Short scenic MTB ride, reflections on the event, and trip back to CT
In the third and final part, Tony and I take a brief mountain bike ride to a scenic overlook with a view of the New River Gorge Bridge before heading back to CT. We both provide commentary on the event – all positive!
Update: I have also posted the more lengthy trials competition videos that highlight all of the riders in each of the rider classes.
3 Comments
Experimenting With Crowdfunding - This Is Bike Trials! · September 22, 2023 at 2:49 pm
[…] steadily. The breakthrough, however, was my decision in 2022 to travel to trials competitions in West Virginia and then Arkansas for the sole purpose of creating videos (I was injured and could not compete), […]
Interview With Owen Fields - This Is Bike Trials! · October 20, 2023 at 12:02 am
[…] Trials Championships – Youth and Sport classes. I first met him in 2022 at the 1st annual bike trials competition at the Arrowhead Bike Farm that Owen mentions in his interview. I was immediately impressed by Owen’s balance and bike […]
Interview with Jen Everhard - This Is Bike Trials! · January 5, 2024 at 12:04 am
[…] is a frequent contributor. Then I had a fun surprise when I met her and her husband Jason at the Arrowhead Bike Farm’s first trials competition in 2022. That was a really fun experience, because I had only interacted with her online previously. I […]