1 THE BEST RACES IN THE WORLD WILL BE SAVED!!!
STRIKE~~~ posted,
ROB MCKENDRY III posted this!!!
2010 Madison County Gravity Fest
Apr 13, 2010
Living in New York has been a dramatic change for me, but I didn't make the move without knowing I would miss my days riding the mountains of Colorado. There are no mountains to ride or friends to share the endless amount of turns I enjoyed for so many years. Writing a list of things I miss would require a box of pens. That all will shed perspective on just how wonderful the person is that I moved here to join. She has put up with the constant reminders of how much I miss my friends, downhill skateboarding and Colorado. She also listens to my long-winded stories (sometimes more than twice) about races and rides gone by – hills and races that will never be skated again and what it took to get there. With the arrival of spring, and my latest bought of depression due to the flatness of my environment, my girlfriend suggested a trip to Munnsville, NY. It's only two hours away and for all the times I flew standby, quit my job or slept on the ground for this sport, just hopping in the car to go to Munnsville seemed like a session of easy, needed therapy.
For those of you who don't know about Munnsville, this little spot south of Syracuse is home to the Madison County Gravity Fest. Not only is the Gravity Fest one of the longest-running downhill skateboard races, it's also perhaps the largest event on the East Coast. Riders from all over the world plan their racing season around this one weekend in order to come to NY and enjoy the outpouring of hospitality by the local community. The most recent MCGF held was in 2008, not to be the last.
I can't get most of the facts straight and will probably be wrong from the start, but I think Madison County Gravity Fest was my first Pro-class event. I had raced in 2001 as an amateur and Extreme Downhill International (EDI) was then the organizer. EDI had separate classes in place to keep the younger, more inexperienced riders together as not to bruise the egos of the pros. Really not a bad thing to keep the newbs to themselves for many serious issues, but realizing that the amateur final that year was made up of Chris Chaput, Tom Edstrand, Jim Ziemlanski and Will Brunson makes me laugh. The race that year was on Rocks Road in the Town of Eaton, and standup was not the focus of MCGF. Streetluge took precedence then and half of the pro standup field were lugers. The courses were luge-style hills with steep grades and high-speed sweepers requiring little braking. As a standup rider, I'm not sure I even used slide gloves then. Mark Golter won the standup pro class that year and I could tell the rest of the order, but most of today's riders unfortunately never met so many of the guys I used to look up to in speedboarding.
As we pulled into Munnsville this past Monday, I became excited to see the sign announcing "Home of the Gravity Fest." I could recognize buildings (mainly the convenience store where I would spend the entry fee I didn't have on beer.) I thought at any moment, I would run into other skaters … somebody else had to be here already. Not this time though. There were no cars covered in stickers and packed with skaters trying to find the ATM, and it was safe not to worry about camping away from the bonfire.
As we drove up East Hill Road, the stone wall with its caveman-like art of lugers painted on it came into view. (Apparently past civilizations rode this hill.) Just above the wall is the American Legion Post 54 and the pavilion that had been a shelter for so many events. With all the past years of autograph sessions, award ceremonies, riders tweaking their stuff and late night parties I was surprised to find only one Kebbek sticker in the vicinity. Fitting though, given the history of Ian and Kebbek's support of MCGF. I walked around the entire area hoping to find a wheel or glove, or maybe a bearing, but I guess we picked up pretty well. There were still a couple of beer cans but I think the inline guys left those. The old school bus that riders would sleep in during the rain was still there, but not a sticker on it. But next to the bus, half-buried in a pile of wood – probably to be burned at MCGF8 – was a large metal sign painted with checkered flags and Madison County Gravity Fest written on it. Finally a sign…literally! Also in this pile of miscellaneous debris was the podium. I thought of standing on it, but like so many other trips to Munnsville I found it hard to get to.
I felt it was my duty to walk into American Legion Post 54 and have a can of Budweiser as I had done so many times before. Upon my arrival, I announced I was there for the skateboard race. It got quiet for a second and I got some odd looks from the old timers, so I had to explain myself. After letting my new old friends at the bar know my past with their town, we talked about the road and some other reasons MCGF has been postponed. Basically, the county had reworked the road for water drainage and it is now up to the county to fix it. The road is damaged in the only spot that matters: Crash Corner. There is a wheel-eating crack about two feet wide on a spot most riders today pre-drift (damn kids.) I put my leathers on for a run. Seeing that 90-degree turn with no hay bales and oncoming traffic …and the aforementioned crack…made one short run enough.
The town of Eaton and Rocks Road – the original MCGF hill – is only 6 miles away. The hill, as I remembered it, was a roller coaster ride: a mellow start, and then dropping a sweeping right into a steep left. You could have your guts against your ribs in a short distance. I also remember a long straight run out. Riding this hill again after eight years seemed very different. One of those "it was bigger when I was a kid" feelings. In 2002, MCGF Rocks Road was probably the fastest I had ever gone, maybe mid-to-high 50 mph. It was a very thrilling experience back then, and one of the infinite reasons I continue to do this. On Monday, I had great tailwinds and the speeds were in the 50s just staying in my lane, cruising. Riding the hill years later was sheer joy and my face hurt from smiling. In 2002, I was nervous and wondering "what the hell am I doin'?" With a lot more miles under my helmet over the years, riding is different, but doing it for love has not changed.
MCGF will be back. Really, there's just one crack that needs repairing, so if the county doesn't do it maybe I'll mix up some concrete and go patch it.
See you on the hill.
Photos from trip to Munnsville
MCGF 2002 results
Position / Rider Name
1 Golter, Mark
2 van Bommel, Dane
3 Bryant, David
4 Sherlock, Mike
5 Dread, John
6 DeKeyser, Brent
7 Freeman, Darryl
8 McKendry, Robert
9 Rogers, Dave
10 LeBlanc, Robert (danger bay starting man)
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MUNSVILLE IS BY FAR THE BEST RACE IN THE EAST AND ONE OF THE BEST ALL TIME RACES IN THE WORLD!!!!
ROB III IM SO FUCKIN PUMPED YOU LIVE THERE AND CAN FILL THE TOWN AND RACERS FULL OF ENERGY.......... MIX THAT CEMENT!!! TALK TO THE TOWN!!!! HOLD THE MOTHER FUCKIN RACE!!!!!!!!!!
THANKS FOR THE WORDS!!!!! WERE WAITING TO HEAR MORE UPDATES!!!
THANK YOU!!
2010 April 15 3:38 PM
Smitty in Florida replied,
Hey Rob! Good to hear. Keep us posted via Coast...I am in Florida now, and a trip to NY for volunteer support is not out of the question.
How far is Munnsville from Rochester?
Smitty
2010 April 15 4:38 PM
Eric in Whistler replied,
This is an awesome story. Thanx Rob! Great memories from this race.
2010 April 15 4:50 PM
revyrider replied,
right on Rob,get it going again,have heard great
things about this race,would love to come do it