Somewhere around 5AM, the mission began with a rally at The Viewing clubhouse; van primed and the crue bleary-eyed from a sleepless night working gearbags down to a sub-50 pound weight limit. Captained by Darryn Durham and Tyler Bereman, the Death Crue is taking the roadshow global to wave the flag for professional funhavers worldwide.
The destination: ZwarteCross, the only motocross race of it’s kind that pulls elements of motocross racing, music festivals and over the top misbehavior into a four day format for the records books. Let it be known. training for this event includes everything that a “serious” (a word we generally discourage) motocross racer should not: Beer drinking, crashing bonfires, road tripping with buddies and a 6-day bender at Mammoth Motocross a couple weeks back that we’re still recovering from!
Jet lag is a symptom best cured with a blast of adrenaline and 12oz coldie of your choice, so they pinned it south to Malmedy, Belgium and rendezvoused with the Fest Series Loose Fest crew. Founded on similar ideals to The Viewing, the Fest Series riders are a worldwide band of freeride mountain bikers that are literally pushing the progression curve to vertical with massive jump lines, a jam-session format and content-driven approach that empowers rider’s creativity and emphasis on radness.
Loose Fest at BikePark Ferme Libert is perched upon the rolling hills of Hotel LeGrand Champs: A lodge befitting of the swiss alps (who also shares a last name of our filmer, with the infamous Mike “Wu-Tang” LeGrand) landscaped by endless rolling fields, dotted by deer, goats and the occasional roaming “albino elk”…we think. Darryn lead the 4AM charge to the “Elk Barn” but couldn’t scale the double fences…the world may never know. Complete with t-bar lift the LooseFest Course features an opening hit measuring out at 79 feet: That’s 14 feet longer than a standard supercross triple. Pushing 80’ to clear the deck on a 20’ tall bicycle landing is nothing short of mind-blowing, and when you add in motos, it’s a recipe for pure space cake magic.
Bereman is a two-time attendee of Cruz Fest who pulled immediate respect when he threw down truckdriver grabs and a huuuuge NacNac that got away from him and robbed him of an ACL, only to show up the next year and take the game to the next level. Within an hour of watching the LooseFest mayhem begin, he geared up and cracked a couple in salute of massive full moon that capped the trip in proper form. Durham, on the other hand was riding on a borrowed 2011 Yamaha replete with Kawasaki Rockstar logos on the shrouds. The first kick of the kickstarter snapped it off at the casting line. If that wasn’t a sign, it’s tank-like handling off the opening drop in line sealed the deal that he better save his magic for the fresh 2017’s waiting for us at Zwartecross.
This blog is coming to you from the back seat of a VW Minivan ripping about 30km’s with the roar in the door over the speed limit with Zwarte Cross pinned on the GPS. Dayle Dabblesworth still thinks he’s on I-15 and his sketchy driving tactics made this story nearly impossible to write on the way, but we got it done to beam the good times back to the states where eager eyes await. Stay tuned for more and remember, you win some, you lose some and you wreck some….so ya better make sure you’re having the most fun win lose or draw!
