Jump For joy

JD Swanguen hovers above the Enterprise skatepark at Woodward. Alan L. Davis

Following the 2003 Big Bear NORBA National, a group of downhillers, mountain crossers and street riders besieged a compound of junk cars, oil pumps, and dirt jumps in Santa Clarita, California. The casual dirt jump jam session, organized by Atomlab’s Mike Flaherty, offered an alternative to the race-heavy focus of the NORBA circuit and was well received by the riders.

“As this sport evolves, everything has become so focused on results. You take a look at sports like surfing and skateboarding—results are only part of it. With this event I wanted everyone to be able to get together to ride and get exposure without worrying about measuring up to something,” said Mike Flaherty, Atomlab's founder.

Three years later the event has grown and is now called the Atomlab Super Session. In 2005 the Super Session was a wild road trip that zigzagged across southern California, from Valencia to San Diego to the Southern Sierras and back. Although everyone enjoyed the varied locales, they agreed they’d rather just ride their bikes than in the back of a van. So for 2006, Atomlab’s Super Session was simplified with less driving and no contest—but that doesn’t mean it wasn’t any fun.

For the second year in a row, the riders visited the Woodward West training camp in Tehachapi, California. About two hours northeast of Los Angeles, Woodward West is one of the premier alternative sports training grounds on the West Coast. Since opening up to 26-inch wheels two years ago the compound has schooled riders in almost every discipline of mountain biking—from street to dirt jumping to freeride—as well as skateboarding, BMX and even gymnastics. The place has a cement skatepark, two outdoor wooden skateparks, an indoor skatepark with foam pit and resi ramp, dirt jumps and a new mountain-cross and freeride course. The main campus covers 19 acres and the surrounding hills, which are home to the downhill and freeride courses, add another 70 acres to the mix. It’s the perfect environment to let forty progressive mountain bike pros run free.

Even without an official contest, a few prizes were awarded to riders who stood out from the crowd. JD Swanguen (Atomlab) was awarded ‘Best Overall Performance’ for his smooth brakeless style with creative transitions and incessant riding. Guy Marsh (Tonic) won ‘Most Creative’ Performance, as he was riding a unique brakeless 24-inch wheeled frame with 32-inch handlebars that aided his ability to do wild turn downs and tuck no-handers. He caught more air than just about any other rider, save for a brief appearance by the “King of Vert”—BMXer Jamie Bestwick—and always had a huge smile on his face. A rider who we first saw last fall, Andrew Taylor (Versus), won ‘Best Flow/Smoothest Performance’ for consistently hitting huge airs all weekend.

In addition to the three awards, a few other riders delivered notable performances. Trek’s Cam McCaul landed a big front flip on the resi ramp. Atomlab’s Joe Perrizo tossed a few backflips on big doubles right off the bat, as well as survived a huge 50/50 case on the same set. Black Market’s Adam Hauck proved he jumps and whips at the top of the class with tailwhips and handplants on anything that didn’t move. Kona’s Andreu Lacondeguy rode like a dirt jumping machine that never stopped smiling. Jim “Hacksaw” Severt was the event’s proudest papa as his kid Peanut, riding for Eastern Bikes, progressed enormously since last year.

“The Super Session was a lot of fun and tons of new guys killed it. I liked last year’s because of the variety of different spots. But this year’s was a lot easier logistically and just as much happened. Woodward rules!” said Carter Holland, Black Market Bikes owner.

All in all, the 2006 Atomlab Super Session was a huge success and a lot of fun. Next year’s Super Session is already in the works, scheduled for early December.

Make sure you check out the complete 2006 Super Session image gallery HERE.

CONTACT: 661.284.2807, atomlab.com; 661.822.7900, woodwardwest.com