Hoopty Lists

This clip is the outtake footage from Todd Lyons in his JNCO days, around 2000.  If you watch the first couple of things he tries here, you'll get a good idea of what he looks at as possible on a BMX bike.

This is a bit after the P.O.W. House days, but it involves two of the House's craziest riders, Dave Clymer and Todd Lyons.  I went with a group of the HB guys to watch a 1995 contest at the Moreno Valley Skatepark.  In those days between the old concrete skateparks of the 70's, and the public ones built in the 90's and 2000's, Moreno Valley's wooden park was about all there was in Southern California.  I think it was a 2-Hip comp, because most of the top riders were there.  There was a small wooden pool off to one side, and I noticed Dave and Todd standing on the deck pointing to different parts of the park, conferring about something.  I hopped up where they were to see what they were doing.  Both guys had small pieces of paper and pens.

One of the other guys asked what they were doing.  "We're comparing hoopty lists," one said, I think it was Todd.  "You're doing what?  "We're comparing our hoopty trick ideas, what we want to do to end our runs, making sure we don't try the same thing."  The three or four of us there looked at the lists.  "Dave, your list says 900... you can't do a 900."  "Well," Dave side, "You know, I'll just spin 'til I hit the ground."  We all started laughing.

I can't remember what Todd ended up doing.  I think Dave launched off the side of the mini and into the baby bowl 15 or 20 feet away.  Like airplane pilots, Dave had the attitude that any landing you walk away from is a good one.  I think he completely missed the little bit of transition, and landed sideways in the middle of the bowl.  Todd did something similar.  But as I recall they both got out-hooptied by Mat Hoffman, who launched off the vert ramp deck and slid down the wooden handrail of the steps.  Sort of.  Everyone who rode limped away, a couple of them with a few hundreds bucks on a check.

Then we all headed to the S&M Bikes warehouse back in Santa Ana where some punk band played.  Might have been Supernovice, I can't remember.  In any case, someone found a bunch of inch thick foam padding in the dumpster from some other business.  So we had a foam pit slam pit... but not that much foam.  It was a damn good time, though.

Check out 32:00 in that clip above.  What?

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