Falls City

The Story

"Once upon a time at the foot of a great mountain (Black Rock Mountain Bike Area) there was a town (Falls City) where the people known as "happy folk" lived. Their very existence a mystery to the rest of the world (who mostly just rolled through town on their way to the trails) obscured as it was by great clouds." : "Then one day... strange folk arrived in the town. They came in camouflage, hidden behind dark glasses. And no one noticed them..." This song by Gorillaz reminds me a lot of how the local freeride/downhill community kind of descended on the town of Falls City - drawn to the area by the Black Rock Mountain Bike area trails located just 3 miles west... I've wanted to put a video together with this song as the backdrop, and I finally did. Shot some HD footage May/June 2007 at Black Rock and also in Falls City, and here is the result. (And no, there's no issues between the "city folk" at Falls City and the riders... in fact, the town love to see riders... They want to do more to invite more to come visit.) Stop in at the local grocery store or grab a burger at the bar/grill... That does a lot to help show support for the local town! The other message this video has is this... I believe that the city of Falls City could re-invent itself if it choose to... instead of declining under dependence on logging operations. Instead, they could "mine the rich seam" of what recreational mountain biking opportunities have to give - cooperating with Oregon State agencies to develop a mecca in the heart of Willamette Valley.

The Story

Memorial video of Wade Waddell shown December 15th, 2006 in his memory at local theatre pub followed by (with permission) ROAM by The Collective. This video features photos of Wade taken during 2005 and 2006 at Black Rock trails (Falls City, Oregon) and includes helmetcam footage of Banzai Downhill trail and also Basic Training area (which he helped build and was the trail manager for). Local rider. Local trail builder. Friend. Father. "Do more. Whine less!" He will be missed. But never forgotten. Wade served on the board of directors for the Black Rock Mountain Bike Association. http://brmba.org

The Story

shot with Sony DVR70. wide-angle. This is why we built Basic Training. Video taken almost one year to the day after we started digging BT. These are just some of the builders enjoying the fruits of their labor!