You know why? Because nothing is stopping me from picking up a camera and doing the same. I am one of the main builders who maintains our local jump park, and if one of my buddies was vlogging about the build or whatever and making money off it, I wouldn't care. They didn't have to publicly 'shame' Sam for him doing his job how he sees fit. I agree, that it's not a bad thing necessarily that they have parted ways. The other 3 are a mix bag (Makken was on redbull, Trond used to be in the scene (see Seasons, Anti Days of Thunder etc), and Nick has his own career going on, but has been on the scene for a while too). Andrue, Graham and Kurt DEFINITELY make/made a good chunk of money through riding. 4 of the 7 founders are very high profile riders that are certainly earning a good chunk of change, being Andreu Lacondeguy, Graham Agassiz, Kurt Sorge, and Nico Vink. 'Think about it? Do you know the founders? None of them has a media presence worth more than a frame and some kit' ummm. There might be some of that flavour still cooking in some of these guys and I can understand both sides. Because some brands have pushed riders in the past to go out and ride shit events to boost their social media platforms. These guys needed to escape the treadmill of the current media events, where the events had a sole purpose to create stock images, videos and content for the big money brands and the riders had to build and ride courses they didn't see as save. Both guys love to shred and I'm sure they still will be seen in a wild train somewhere in chatel or where ever they meet.īefore you guy throw stones and hate, go back and remember why and how the fest series came to life. Sam on the other side is used to represent himself, his supporters and to throw content out in a regular basis.

He doesn't like to be in the spotlight or all over in the 'not so social media'.

Nico is one to hang out and he even isn't shy to show your kids some cool tricks, as long as it is private. They are both very passionated about what they are doing. I know Nico Vink and Sam as we have worked together for some time. The full statement from the Fest Series is I was about to say the same. 'We wish the best for the Fest series and their new direction but assure big air fans we will continue the good times here at DarkFest and can't wait to show you guys what we are up to out here!' Since DarkFest has always been about shredding big jumps, having an inclusive and diverse rider list, and sharing our good times with everyone through social media, we have mutually decided to go our own ways. He said, 'Unfortunately for freeride fans, the Fest series has implemented some new rules for their events which included limitations on who we could and couldn't invite, and controlling and limiting media output from the event. Sam has responded with his own statement shared with Pinkbike. Fest Series released a statement first, saying, 'Sam Reynolds has been running the event in a way that is going against the core values Fest stands for,' and 'Fest series is a lot more than performance-based, It's about personalities, a lifestyle, a certain dedication to the art of riding bikes and building trails, things that are far more important than how many views or likes a video gets on social media.' It seems that the rift has come about due to the amount of filming and media output allowed from Fest events, plus the riders that can be invited. It seems that Darkfest will still be going ahead but it will now be Sam Reynolds' own event, rather than something organized in collaboration with the Fest Series. The Fest Series has announced it is parting ways with Darkfest and that the South African event will no longer be a part of its calendar.

Hustle and flow cast wiki