 | |  | | | | | | | | | I first saw Dean ride at the Halloween Jam a couple of years ago at Unit 23. Everyone was asking who the brakeless guy with four pegs was. He was doing barspins to brakeless fufanus, turndowns and even learnt flips on his second try. A few years on, most people now know Dean-fae-Stranraer as the guy who blasts obscene airs on any ramp he wants. He's also now sponsored by BSD, Pretty Heavy, Unit 23 and West End Cycles have just offered him a deal. Treats indeed! Dean has a reputation for not having a lot to say. This is not true - Dean talks loads, but you just have to listen closely 'cos he whispers.
Intro:
My name's Dean Evans, I'm from Stranraer and I'm 19.
How long have you been riding BMX?
Since February '99.
How did you get into it?
Just some of my friends had BMXs, so I got one. The skatepark was built as well, so I just went along and rode there.
What's the scene like in Stranraer?
It's really good. It's changed a lot - when I started there were about seven BMXers and I was the youngest and I didn't really know them, I just went along with my friends and they were all really good. They've all quit now and it's all younger people like me or a bit younger who've started riding.
Is the standard of riding quite high?
Aye, everybody's really good now. Everyone's got a lot better over the last few years.
What's Stranraer like as a town?
S***e [laughs]. Rubbish. There's the most pathetic skatepark ever - it's all small ramps. Street's ok, there are a couple of good things, good wallrides and stuff, that's about it really
[Doig]: No dirt?
Dirt? No - we tried building jumps before but just couldn't be bothered There's nowhere to build them really, it's all rubbish ground, so it's not really worth it.
Where have you learnt most of your stuff?
Just in the skatepark on the mini. That's about it really. Or Safeway.
What is there to ride there?
Curbs [laughs]. That's all there is - just curbs.
What's your favourite thing to ride?
Just mini ramps and spines and stuff. That's about it really.
You always go ridiculously high. Do you like height more, or going for tech stuff?
I like doing both. I actually like seeing how high I can get - just going as fast as I can at a ramp and seeing how high I can get. But I like doing a lot of tech stuff as well.
Have you injured yourself much going high?
Not really by doing airs and things. I've sprained my ankle nine times - eight times on the left and one on the right, and that's just learning tailwhips and stuff.
You don't like tailwhips.
I'm sick of them, aye [laughs]. They're too boring now, everybody does them. I'm fed up now. I just don't bother with them much any more. I kind of realised that I can't do them that well any more and I was never really that great at them anyway, but it annoys me that I took so long learning them, like it took me two and a half years to learn them and now I still can't really do them very well and just hurt my ankles. So it's not really worth it.
How high were you getting on vert when the Redbull ramp was at Dumbarton?
I don't know. I could get over that foam thing - the foam Redbull logo [Ed: That's about six or seven foot]. I was just getting used to it and then they took it away.
What bike set up have you got at the moment?
A Fit Series 1 with a 21in top tube with mostly Primo parts on it. One brake, two pegs. I used to be brakeless with four pegs for like, two years, but I just put a brake on.
Why?
I just got bored doing sort of flowy, manually brakeless-style tricks and wanted to do more fufanu sort of stuff.
You're also obsessed with bike parts.
[Laughs] Aye.
What is it about them that gets you so excited?
I just like new bike parts - just fancy things. I just have to have it [laughs]. Just shiny stuff - I like chrome parts.
Your back wheel is particularly shiny.
It's got titanium spokes and an Odyssey 7k rim on a Profile hub [Ed: It also has an 11t driver].
And a titanium axle?
I'm getting a titanium axle off Grant - he says he's gonna send me one. The front wheel, I've just ordered: it's gonna buy titanium spokes, a 7k rim and a Vandero hub.
Is it a big deal for you to keep your bike working perfectly?
Yeah - I'm tightening things all the time. I like to
keep it clean as well, I hate getting dirt on it and all that. It's just annoying when it's all messy and loose and...I just can't ride it really.
Do you break parts often?
Sometimes. I've bent bars quite a lot recently. I had Fit Series 2 bars and I bent those in no time, then I got Ruben T1 bars and I've bent those as well now. I used to break a lot of back wheels as well too. I used to bend them and snap spokes.
Doing tailwhips and things?
Yeah, but I also used to break spokes doing just little things like 180s and stuff. They just snap.
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