Welcome to Elephant Glide!

Welcome to Elephant Glide! As you've probably figured out by now this is an online community of flatland freestylers, both old school and new school, a place where we can share our passion of spinning on our bikes in empty parking lots. And for those of you reading this who may not ride (e.g. my wife), the words "elephant glide" refer to a flatland trick, so you can stop wondering.

This site was inspired by a face-to-face reunion a few of us riders had in late 2008. It had been close to 15 years since all of us had gotten together. After a few emails back and forth we decided to meet for lunch in Columbus, OH. It's hard to describe the camaraderie that develops between riders. After all those years we picked up right where we left off, as if we had just gotten back from an AFA Masters Series the night before. Of course we talked about our families, our careers, and other topics to catch each other up on the years missed. But what kept us in that restaurant for hours that day were the stories about riding. Whether it was a memory about what happened in a jam circle at the Velodrome, or what goofy song someone rode to at Randy Loop's King of Flatland series, we realized that the years we've spent spinning on our bikes have deeply contributed to who we are.

I still ride and keep up with the scene. I'm not traveling to contests every other weekend like I used to, but thanks to the internet it's not hard to stay tapped into what's happening around the globe. There are some other great flatland sites out there, but this one is intended to bridge the gap between the new school riders and the old school riders (and those of us who don't want to admit we're old school).

So bring your stories of days gone by, and bring your reports of who killed it at the latest Voodoo Jam and post them in the Forum. Start a Group here on the site with the riders in your local area. Or start your own Elephant Glide blog and keep the rest of us up to date on your local scene.

Over the years I've made many strong friendships via riding my bike, and I look forward to making many more here on Elephant Glide!