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Greg Tait
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CG: So what have you been up to recently? GT: Pretty much just trying to enjoy everyday that I’m alive. Life can deal you some ups and downs and that’s what keeps it interesting. Not sweating the small shit really helps me stay pretty damn happy. I wish more people would take note of that. As far as other activities go, it’s almost wakeboarding season and I seem to gotten myself an almost unhealthy addiction to bowling over the winter. So much so that a group of us will be in a summer league and will be sponsored by Empire. I got to say that I’m pretty pumped on that. I can’t even explain how awesome Tom and Tina are so I won’t even get started on that. CG: How often are you riding? GT: Sometimes every day, sometimes once a week. I have so many other interests that I just do whatever I feel like doing. More times than not, my bike is involved in some way. It may be taking a ride up the greenbelt, cruising around with my son or drinking a beer or two with my friends somewhere. It’s not always about stunting. CG: For those new school riders? How long have you been riding? How long have you been riding in Austin? GT: I’ll be 39 this summer and I first got into bmx around 1983 or so. I was 12 and that’s actually kind of late by today’s standards it seems. It’s weird sometimes seeing how big the “sport” has become and having witnessed it since the beginning. I grew up about 2 hours away from Austin and ever since I saw coverage of AFA and other contests here in the late 80’s, I knew that was where I belonged. I would come up for Trend contests and stuff all the time and then I finally moved to Austin in 1992 on my 21st birthday and have never looked back. CG: What are you riding now? Dirt, Vert, Street? What do you prefer? GT: I like to ride absolutely everything, including flatland. My bike has always been set up so that every option is open all the time. My favorite would probably be dirt. There’s just so much variety and it’s such a good feeling to flow good trails. Having practically living at 9th Street for 18 years probably has a lot to do with that, I guess. We are very lucky to have that place.  CG: How have you seen the Austin bike scene change over time? What have you noticed the most? GT: It’s kind of strange because I really don’t think it has changed that much. People have always come here to ride. Even when bmx was almost dead. Even though the population has more than doubled since I’ve been here, the mentality is still basically the same. Have fun and don’t be so serious. I’m sure a lot of that has to do with the fact that I ride with people that share the same attitude as me and I’ve known for a really long time. CG: Do you see Austin as a bike hub for BMX with companies like Empire, T1, 9th Street? What's the appeal? GT: As far as I’m concerned, Austin has always been a hub for bmx. I consider myself to be very lucky to have been a part of it for as long as I have. I’ve met people from all over the world while living here and I don’t ever see that changing. I think a big part of the appeal here is that we have such a relaxed attitude that it makes having a good time so much easier. People can sense that and it makes for a comfortable environment. That’s why so many people come for a visit and then return home to get their shit and move here. That and you can ride year round here as well. CG: I noticed that there seems to be more skate parks being built in Austin and the surrounding cities. Any other big plans in the making? GT: I like the fact that more parks are being built but I really don’t like the fact that they don’t allow bikes. It actually pisses me off because the skaters and bikers actually get along pretty good here for the most part. We ride the parks anyway but it sucks to know that you could get a ticket for it. I’ve been a land surveyor and CAD draftsman for 20 years and was really pushing to get my own skatepark building company going since about 2006. It’s impossible to get your foot in the door to get city contracts when you haven’t built one yet, even though I had all my bases covered as far as design and construction. I got involved with a private project called X Park USA (xparkusa.com) in 2007 and got the nod to design and build a 30,000 sq. ft. bmx dirt park as well as co-design the massive concrete park with Zach Wormhoudt. And as luck would have it, the economy went into the toilet by the time we got all of our permits and everything else associated with a project of that size in order and ready for marketing to investors. Luckily the project is still alive and they have about half the money needed for it. That’s a good thing because I quit a very good job to be able to work out there doing something that I love.  CG: You have a son now, how old is he? Has having a kid changed your approach to riding? GT: My son Jordan will be turning 7 this summer and I’m pretty sure that he’s the coolest little kid in the world. He’s grown up around 9th Street and sometimes you can forget that he’s only 6 because he already seems like one of the boys. He’s the best thing that has ever happened to me. CG: Does he seem to have the same passion for BMX as you did? GT: People seem to think that I would be pushing bmx on him a whole lot for some reason. I really don’t. I want to expose him to everything. We bowl together, hit golf balls together, play baseball, football and pretty much everything else there is to do. The way I see it is that someone will only be passionate about something that truly makes them happy. All any parent should want for their kid is for them to be a happy person. I honestly believe that and I will support him in whatever he chooses to do. He’s in flag football right now and I kind of fell into the role of assistant coach and I think I’m having just as much fun doing that as he is playing. Kids got a great arm so might as well use it. CG: Do you see the Austin scene leaning more towards street, vert, dirt, flatland? or is it still strong in all areas? GT: Street has always been pretty strong here but I think all areas are pretty well represented. Except for vert because there just aren’t many vert ramps to ride. I love riding vert. The flatland scene here has really been coming on strong over the last couple of years and I’m very stoked to see that happening. It’s the hardest type of riding there is so I’m glad to see that there are still people with a passion for it. I ride with them from time to time and they are a great group of guys.  CG: What are you currently riding? GT: I’ve been riding T1’s for a decade and I really don’t see that changing anytime soon. I’m not the smoothest rider in the world and I’ve never broken one. And Joe is a genuinely good person and the products speak for themselves. We are lucky to have people like Joe and Taj here. My current bike is an ’07 Ruben and I love it. Almost time for a new one though. It will certainly be a T1 and there’s a 99% chance that it will be chrome. Again. What can I say, I stick with what works for me. CG: You always seem to be pushing yourself, do you find yourself still trying to learn new tricks? Or are you content with just riding now? GT: A bit of both, I suppose. If I see or think of something that I think will feel good, I will certainly try it. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t. I haven’t been sponsored by anyone since I was on the Homeless team in the mid-90’s so there’s no pressure on me to do anything. I’ve calmed down a lot in my older age but I will still bring the heat when I feel like it. I’m just smarter about it these days I guess. CG: Rumor has it back in the day you had 9th street so dialed in that you used to ride it in the dark? GT: Haha, that’s funny. I still can when the moon is right. When you hit a line a thousand times you can get the timing down pretty good.  CG: What have you noticed most about 9th street over the years? GT: The more things seem to change the more they stay the same. Most of the same faces that were there in the 90’s are still there today. One of the first people I became really good friends with (Jeff Pierce aka OMP) when I moved here is still down there all the time now and he’s 10 years older than me. He’s 48 years old and still out there jumping and crashing and just having a good time. He represents what Austin is all about. CG: What advice for upcoming riders, young or old would you have? GT: Just keep bmx fun and be open to all types of riding. At least try new things and you’ll get a lot more out of it that way. You never know what you might end up liking. It’s not a contest, it’s just fun so try and remember that. CG: Last comments? GT: Thank you Tom and Tina for keeping me on a bike for so long and making this scene a better place. They are the glue that holds everything together. And thanks to whoever reads this and gets anything out of it. And of course, thanks to Chris Gomez for using his badass camera on me. Ride on. chrisgomez.photo@gmail.com www.chrisgomezphoto.com Old School Noodles Photo Gallery  |
