In The Raw // Infection 4 Jam // Blaine, WA // 1997

I think I was 16, maybe 17. Our friend Neil Sanders, who owned a bike shop in the town I grew up in (New Westminster, BC, Canada), was always cool with taking my friend Nick and I to ride places we’d otherwise not get to check out. He was older, had a driver’s license, and was just together enough to make sure we didn’t get dead, despite our best efforts. One of the places we’d visit with some frequency was Blaine, Washington, just south of the border from us. The thing about Blaine, is that it had not one, but TWO sick back yard ramp set ups. In the mid to late 90’s, despite being in a different country, their backyards were the centre of the wooden ramp scene for us Vancouverite’s. I’ll forever be grateful for their work! On this particular weekend, Jarek partnered with Scott Hagnas to hold a jam, and premier Scott’s new video Infection 4. Neil and I piled our bikes and pads into his truck, and rolled up to Jarek’s just as things were heating up. I quickly decided that there was absolutely no way I was going to try and crowd a deck that was supporting the weight of every heavy hitter from the PNW, including but not limited to Paul Buchanan, Jason Enns, Cecil Milligan, Mark ‘Toast’ Johnson, John Bristol, and Dom Mach. However, as an avid filmer, I was happy to spend the day on the sidelines with Shad and capture what went down. Well, 18 minutes of it anyways. Please enjoy this footage of an above average day at Jarek Naslund’s ramps. Props to all those involved.

-Matt Barber