The Most Casual Contest | UCI BMX Freestyle World Cup

In July 2023, I travelled to Brussels, Belgium to film a FISE / UCI World Cup contest for Our BMX. 12 days prior to departure, I tore ligaments in my right ankle while working on my next self-filmed video part. This was the exact same injury I sustained on my left ankle 11 months prior while also filming said video part.

I had to make a tough decision on whether or not to go to Brussels. With advice from my physiotherapist (who doubles as my father-in-law), I chose to stick it through. For 3 days I stood on my foot in an aircast, climbed up and down the ramps, ran across the event grounds to charge batteries, and panned a camera. Filming BMX ain't glamorous.

A memorable story usually has an arc of adversity connected to it. I find that's often the case with filming BMX. A trick that took 10 minutes for me to land on camera typically feels less rewarding than one that I battled for 3 hours. Likewise, filming a BMX event under perfect conditions feels less rewarding than one with some challenges along the way. Does this mean I enjoy physical and mental pain? Not necessarily. I guess I'm just a sucker for a good story.

Enjoy 5 minutes of professional BMX riding filmed by a man in an aircast.