Well, this morning I got sucked into this documentary about the Pirate Bay and its founders. I have embedded it below. The doc basically covers their fight against the court system regarding their assistance on copyright infringement. The whole copyright/piracy/sharing thing is a complex but interesting topic, one that could go on forever. I understand people & industries gunning for these guys, but it does seem like an inaccurate means to an end. As one YouTube commenter said – “this is like convicting a weapon manufacturer for all the murders committed with weapons created by them. Makes no sense”

Again, this is a complex issue and I’m sure there are numerous opinions.

The film maker has made the documentary available for free, but you can also pay for it if you like. Hit up the TPB AFK site for more info, and assorted stats on people who have paid for the documentary, YouTube views etc…

Click below to watch TPB AFK: The Pirate Bay – Away From Keyboard

Continue reading TPB AFK →

James Cox knows a thing or two about producing videos. Follow those links for a refresher.

Someone like James is bound to have videos/video parts that they cherish from their years in BMX, so I got in touch with him to find out what they are and to hear what he had to say about each.

Click below.

Continue reading James Cox’s Favorite Video Parts →

Probably the best use of slow-mo ever.

Yep. This is happening.

If you follow any well known riders on Instagram, chances are you have noticed them juicing (no, not Lance Armstrong style). Photos of fruits & veggies on countertops have been abundant recently.This is all good in my book. Well… One night, something came over me and I tweeted at some dudes saying “Let’s get some juicing recipes on Defgrip. I’m serious!”, and Ben Hucke came through like greased lightning without much persuasion from me. It was apparent through the information he provided that he was all about this and knew his shit. Read below for Ben’s favorite recipe and its benefits. I’ve dubbed it “The Ben Hucke”.

The Ben Hucke:

Carrots – Known to improve vision, help lower the risk of breast, colon and lung cancer,  prevent heart disease, reduce stroke, nourish skin, anti aging effects and dental health.

Beets – Brain and energy boost, super antioxidant, anti inflammatory, cell detox, improve mental health making you feel more positive, reduces risk of skin and lung cancer. Also known as Natures Viagra! haha.

Celery – Immune system, blood pressure, inflammation and arthritis.

Parsley – Immune system, healthy heart, anti inflammatory, arthritis, antioxidants, lowers stress, anti cancer, inhibits the formation of tumors especially in the lungs, colon and prostate.

Cilantro – Metal cleansing (loosens any metals from tissue), lowers effects of anxiety, improves sleep, antibacterial/anti-fungle activity and strong antioxidant.

Cucumber – B vitamins for a quick pick me up, hydration, joint health, fresh breath, hangover cure, and fights cancers, digestion and weight loss.

Apples – Bone protection, asthma help, antihistamine, alzheimers prevention, lower cholesterol, cancer prevention of several different types.

You can add as little or as much of any of these ingredients and it’s still good. Adding juicing to my normal diet has helped me out a lot as far as feeling better, clearing my mind,  no longer have allergies, acid reflux disease is completely gone and I just have more energy in general. Juicing allows the nutrients to go straight into your blood stream replenishing your cells within five minutes, you can actually feel it happening in that time and feel yourself lift up and ready to go for the day.

In today’s society it’s hard and it’s expensive to live healthy, but slowly adding fresh juices to your diet over time will subconsciously allow you to become more aware of eating healthy and naturally craving healthy foods.

-Ben Hucke

Click below to check out my favorite Hucke edit.

Continue reading The Ben Hucke. →

Ever since I got this book at Interbike last year, it has been next to my bed ready for frequent diving into (no pun intended). It truly is full of great photos, stories and features a bunch of people (not just Dean). The fact that Dean Dickinson had the foresight to pull this off still impresses me.

Well, “You Won’t: 100 Pools Ridden by Dean Dickinson” is available now on Blurb. Read below for some info, then check the deep end (pun intended) for photos of some of the spreads.

From Dean:
TEAM SHRALP is proud to announce that YOU WON’T 100 Pools Ridden By Dean Dickinson is now available from Blurb.

Blurb is a print on demand book distributor. You can download your copy in PDF, or get your hands on an 8×10 soft cover format! YOU WON’T is dedicated to Dean’s brother in law James Schiefelbein R.I.P. 50% of the sales go directly towards the Schiefelbein family.

Continue reading You Won’t →

URBAN OUTLAW – THE MOVIE from Tamir Moscovici on Vimeo.

This is quite a bit late, so if you like cool stuff and have internet access, you’ve probably already seen this and I apologize for the redundancy. If not, here’s a 40 minute short film about a guy who collects and customizes (and most importantly, drives) vintage Porsches. Even if cars aren’t your thing, it’s also a good story about how Magnus Walker emigrated to Los Angeles with nothing and built a pretty cool little situation for himself, involving industrial loft spaces, movie shoots, rock and roll, apparel design, real estate, and leather.

If you don’t have 40 minutes, the trailer is here.

I’m kind of speechless right now.

This is so wacky that it’s genius. Flame sax? Dude. The people behind this were definitely inhaling too much Old Spice and I’m glad they did. If that’s not enough, this is the first interactive Vimeo player thing I’ve seen. At the end, the player switches into a “record” mode and you can literally record using your keypad with the Vimeo player. It’s fun and just plain amazing. FLEX!

This has been around for a bit, but I just came across it. I found a cool article about this on The Atlantic as well.

This is a good example of how to go viral.

Got an iPhone? Wanna shoot video of everything and anything and upload it directly to YouTube? Like when apps are free? Have friends who you can tape sparklers onto? Well then, YouTube Capture might be for you!

More info HERE.

It’s that time of year again when every website and media outlet puts together their end of year lists. I haven’t come across too many yet, but had fun browsing through Time Magazine’s Top 10 Everything of 2012 list this morning… Loving this Dad’s in Breif’s commercial that was in their best commercials list.

Over the last week, I’ve been blown away by 2 documentaries.

The first being “Bad 25″, which is a SPIKE LEE JOINT on Michael Jackson’s BAD album. Fan or not, this is a great behind the scenes look at the making of a HUGE album and all the things that go along with it.

The second being “Inventing David Geffen”, which is an American Masters episode on music executive/producer/all around badass David Geffen. I knew very little about David Geffen, even though he’s been behind some great stuff.

Both of these were VERY interesting, informative and featured commentary by some big names. I recommend any fan of documentaries to watch both, so moonwalk over to your couch and do so.

Click below to watch both.

Continue reading 2 Notable Documentaries →

BMXer and Photographer Nick Jones sent over a link to an incredible series of Hurricane Sandy photos that he shot in Point Pleasant, NJ where he lives. It’s tragic to see what happened along the coast and Huge thanks for Nick for sending the photos over and make sure to check out his site here. If you would like to help the victims of Sandy, here are some resources and information on what you can do. Keep reading to check out Nick’s photos.

* You can also directly help Point Pleasant and the Jersey Shore here.

Continue reading Nick Jones – Hurricane Sandy Photos →

Here’s a bunch of random photos of the damage and flooding from Hurricane Sandy I’ve come across online.

Continue reading More Sandy Photos →

So, I’ve lived in New York for two years and just made it through my second hurricane… Both, from my perspective, seemed a lot more mild than I was expecting, but this time around there was definitely a lot more damage and destruction everywhere. I am also lucky to be included in the minority of people who didn’t loose power at all. The whole night I was on my computer working waiting for the power to cut out, but it never happened. I did see the flashes in the sky from the big Con Edison explosion on 14th street, but I’m definitely surprised it never went out.

I went out for a small walk in my neighborhood this morning to check out the damage and do some top notch eye witness reporting (just like every other idiot in my neighborhood. haha). There was a bit of damage, but not as much as I was expecting and I did luck out and catch an awesome rainbow. Check out a few photos after the jump and if you live in NY and want to send your pics hit me up (harrison@defgrip.net) and if I get enough stuff I’ll get a post going with everyone’s photos.

Continue reading Surviving Sandy →

Ever thought about putting on some kind of webbed wingsuit and jumping off a mountain? Me neither!

Luckily, Espen Fadnes (wingsuit world champion) is all about it. This little piece gives you some insight from the man himself along with some cool wingsuit-ing footage.

Dangerous storms are no laughing matter, including the one hitting the Northeast right now (Sandy). Everyone be safe out there. For real.

What is a laughing matter though, are the Hurricane reporters that have to go out and report the storms, get the requisite “windy” shot, endure the elements and all the characters that show up during storms.

Shout out to Al Roker!

My desktop is a mess, so it’s time for another “on my desktop” post. Keep reading to check out a bunch of random images that I’ve saved over the past few weeks.

Continue reading On My Desktop →

If anyone’s going to Fun Fun Fun Fest in early November, you should check out the BMX/Skate demo they are putting together.

More info HERE.

We dropped some Juggalo on ya. Whoop Whoop!

Defgrip is proud to team up with Quintin on the Imprint Project — a traveling gallery of black and white photographs exhibiting the global BMX lifestyle. Featured photographers are George Marshall, Ricky Adam, Edwin DeLarosa, Jeff Zielinski and Walter Pieringer.

Those of you in the Los Angeles area, please come join us for the opening reception at the DTA store in Venice, this coming Tuesday, September 25, from 6pm to 10pm.

Click below for flyer.

Continue reading Quintin Imprint Project →

We just realized that the Defgrip crew have been on Instagram dropping super duper mega heat for a while now. Follow us!

Harrison Boyce – @harrisonboyce

Nuno Oliveira – @olivejuuuuice

Mike Ardelean – @michaelardelean

Andrew Mcmullen – @andrewmcmullen

Click below for a sampling.

Continue reading Follow us on Instagram! →

If I had a whole bunch of money, I’d buy a Lamborghini and give everyone the finger as I drove by. That’s the extent of my interest in cars. While I do appreciate cars and design, I just see them as a method of getting from point A to point B and couldn’t be arsed with working on or restoring them.

What I do enjoy though, is nicely put together pieces on just about anything. I recently came across this Depth Of Speed web series that I really got into. The series basically covers car enthusiasts from all over the country talking about their vehicle. Simple, but very enjoyable.

Go HERE for the Depth Of Speed site and HERE to check out all the videos.