Brad McDonald: Before starting Ride, I was the part-time staff photographer for Go Magazine in 1991. I was 20 years old and was paid $650 a month to shoot photos for the best BMX magazine-that was my dream job. I had been into riding since I was ten years old, and started shooting photos when I was 15. That was when I realized that I wasn't likely to make it as a pro rider. Working for a BMX magazine seemed like the next best career option, so I taught myself how to shoot photos. Unfortunately, Go went out of business seven months after I started there, so I was out of luck. The only remaining BMX magazine at that time wasn't very good, so I knew there was a need for someone to make a better magazine. I figured it might as well be me, so Ride was born.
Brad McDonald: My biggest obstacle was a lack of knowledge about the nuts and bolts of magazine publishing. Other than photography, I really didn't know much about making magazines or how the publishing business worked. I had always loved reading magazines of all types, but I knew nothing about things like printing or distribution. Luckily, I knew people who were nice enough to help out with their time and advice. I also spent a fair amount of time at the library reading various books about printing and magazine publishing. The other main obstacle was that I had very little money. In hindsight, however, this was probably actually a benefit. If I had had a lot of startup money, I probably would have overspent and not made it beyond the first year. Not having money forced me to be resourceful and make every dollar count.
In the fall of 1992, Brad McDonald showed up at BS contest in Florida selling copies of a new BMX magazine named Ride BMX. The first issue was printed on newsprint and looked like crap, but the spark was there.
Fuzzy Hall one-handed x-up seatgrab in Riverside, California on the cover.
Brad McDonald, edito: When we first let it be known that a new BMX magazine was on the way, the reaction was mixed-riders knew it was long overdue, while many companies were skeptical and wanted to see a first issue. For good or For bad, here it is. Expect to see dirt jumping, street, and all types of freestyle covered from the hardcore point of view. We will be covering all of the big contests, personalities, good riding scenes, equipment, and anything else that we think you will enjoy. In every issue, Ride will deliver to you the best riders and riding in the world. If you have already looked through this first issue, you have an idea what to expect in the Future ...only better. Although we intend to improve the magazine's quality, it won't come at the expense of magazine content. The key for us is feedback from you, the rider. Let us know what you liked, and what you would like to see changed to make this magazine better. This magazine doesn't exist without you, so make your opinion heard. There is a reader's survey elsewhere in this issue-fill it out and send it to us.
Fuzzy and Chad Herrington interviews.
San Jose BS contest
Sacramento, California.
1992 King Of Concrete.
48 pages.
Brad McDonald, Ride BMX US #100: The first issue was terrible in terms of production quality. It was all black and white inside, had bad paper, and the printing was dark. For me as a photographer, it was pretty disappointing. I knew it was a start, but I had ambitions of doing a color magazine on quality paper, not newsprint. Most of all, I wanted the photos to reproduce well. Fortunately, enough people did like it or saw promise. The main thing I wish I had done differently with issue number one was to not print so many. I printed 15,000, and only went through around 10,000. The remaining 5,000 sat in my living room for a couple years.
Taj Mihelich, Ride BMX US #100: Mat Hoffman's big air in the Hoffman Bikes ad in issue one freaked everyone out when we first saw it. Today everyone has seen pictures of Mat doing the big airs, but you have to imagine how shocking it was the first time any of us saw it. No one could believe it was real. I mean, how the hell did he get so high? The highest air I had ever seen was maybe 14 feet and here's a picture of Mat going double that. But it was Mat, so none of us knew what to think. "There's no way someone could go that high, but it is Mat, so maybe..."
cover
back cover
Mark Gonzales on the cover.
Rider Cup (UK),
BS #5 Florida,
Mark Murphy, Rob Nolli, Pete Augustin, ...
Back cover: Matt Hoffman, no handed flip on vert.
Mark Losey, Ride BMX US #50: The freestyle industry was in a down-period, so Brad threw racing into the magazine to attract more readers as well as advertisers. Some people may not have liked the race coverage but it did help produce an interview with Anthony Reyes -a 15 year-old racer /jumper who talked about skipping school and kissing fat girls. As if that weren't enough, the quote "She had big titties" even ran across the top of the story in giant letters. Riders loved the interview, but Anthony's dad, Bingo, was pissed. After the issue came out, Bingo actually got on the microphone at a race in Las Vegas and begged people not to read it. At one point he sounded like he was crying when he muttered, "That magazine is not worth the paper it's printed on."
Jared Souney, Ride BMX US #50: One of my favorite memories from the early years of Ride is a campaign of parody ads, which resulted from an S&M ad in issue two:
"When Keith Treanor asked for a longer Dirt Bike, we built it. When Dave Clymer told us the rear stays on his Holmes were breaking, we made them bigger. When everyone wanted 990 mounts, they became an option. When Ruben Castillo asked for a standing platform, we added it. Our point is, whether anyone wants this shit or not, we do it. In the future, look for S&M Gay Bars for flatland (Jesse "The Conspirator" Puente uses them), new pegs (long and strong), S&M seatposts (thick, trick, and dirt cheap), and the all-new Red Neck (beefy, indestructible mallet design for F/S and BMX"
In issue three, Homeless Bikes created a parody of the ad, and fueled future parodies from Hoffman Bikes, 2-Hip, and Chuck's Bike Shop. The grand finale was a table of contents in issue six created by Steve Buddendeck and Hal Brindey.
The "ad war" was all in fun. No one in BMX was taking themselves, too seriously and we all were able to laugh.
John Peacy on the cover.
Chicago BS finals
Simon Tabron interview.
Jared Souney, Ride BMX US #50: I didn't get a subscription to Ride until after issue three was released. I had two pictures in that issue, which ironically were taken by a wacky freelance photographer named Mark Losey -the same guy who six years later offered me this job. I called Brad and asked if he could start my subscription with that issue. He did.
Anthony Reyes on the cover.
DMC, Taj Mihelich and Chad DeGroot interviews.
Arizona BS
I began writing for Ride in 1993 and became Brad McDonald's first real employee the following year. In the early days Hal Brindley and I wrote, shot photos, or laid out part of the magazine in exchange for discounted ads for our company, 2B. Even more appealing was seeing our names on the masthead (the list of who does what in the magazine). I told my old college roommate about Ride and he showed my name on the masthead to his mother. Brad had simply listed the job title as "Pedophiles" with "Steve & Hal" underneath it. My old roommate thought that a pedophile was a foot doctor. His mom knew better.
Dave Parrick on the cover.
80% newstand, 10% contests, 5% shops.
Vic Murphy's infamous tabletop on the cover.
Chris Moeller interview.
York jam.
Mark Losey, Ride BMX US #50: Chris Moeller voiced his opinions about BMX legends Greg Hill and Harry Leary, and neither of them were too happy. Brad McDonald offered both Greg and Harry a rebuttal in issue seven, and the best quote came from Harry: "I may be speaking on an outsider here, but if I saw someone that looked like Chris Moeller walking up to my car at a stop light at night, I'd put two slugs between his eyes before he got close enough to say anything to me." Classic.
Joe Rich on the cover.
Oklahoma BS.
World championships
Mike Escamilla centerspread.
Dave Young on the cover.
2Hip contest,
King of Concrete.
Interviews with Brian Foster, John Purse and Leigh Ramsdell.
Day Smith flatland How-to.
Pittsburgh scene.
Steve Buddendeck, www.ridebmx.com: While shooting a Leigh Ramsdell interview for an early issue of Ride, we searched for rails in a business complex in Winston-Salem, NC. We didn't find any, but we did find a wholesale popcorn outlet that had great prices. We bought two huge bags, filled Leigh's bathtub, and shot the opening to his interview. Afterwards Leigh ate the popcorn. And no, he wasn't naked.