Motive
Set to premiere during Crankworx Whistler, MOTIVE is a film that delves into the minds of those who stamp their own distinctive style on mountain biking. What puts the fire in the belly of these riders and drives them to ride the way they do? Leading up to the premiere, each installment featured here gives fans a glimpse of what's, and who’s, to come.
Motive
Set to premiere during Crankworx Whistler, MOTIVE is a film that delves into the minds of those who stamp their own distinctive style on mountain biking. What puts the fire in the belly of these riders and drives them to ride the way they do? Leading up to the premiere, each installment featured here gives fans a glimpse of what's, and who’s, to come.
Motive
Nature vs. Nurture
Style is everything. Some riders have flow so distinct, you can recognize them from a distance as they glide effortlessly along singletrack and over berms. But where does that style come from? Is it just something that comes naturally—just part of their DNA manifesting itself in mega hucks and epic bar drags? Or is it absorbed primarily from their environment, with the trees they navigate at the very root of their development? Well, in the case of Matt Hunter and Matty Miles, when it comes to Nature vs Nurture, it’s pretty much a dead heat. There’s natural, DNA-fed talent, and then there is Kamloops—the crucible which takes that DNA and forges it with landscape to create pure, enviable ride style.
I've been living here for almost 34 years and I still have no idea where the magic comes from.
It’s easy to see why Kamloops is heaven for riders. The trails are magical, the forests lush, the vibe so chill that it seems fictional. But it’s also where the two Matts first met, where they ride and plan adventures together, forming the backdrop to their long friendship. And when MOTIVE is released at Crankworx, we’ll be privy to their special relationship with this space—one they’re eager to show the world. “I think in prepping for the MOTIVE segment,” says Matty Miles, “we knew that showing people what we normally ride every day would come across in the most organic way. So really, we just rode our bikes to prep. [laughs] But Kamloops has so much more to offer than just bikes,” he continues. “[It has] smaller town vibes, there’s always some sort of rad activity to do outside—fishing, hunting—and just exploring really. One hour in any direction and there’s a different landscape to see, and being in Central B.C. makes it easy to access our Province. Knowing the potential and what's around me here keeps me inspired.”
So they ride the mythical, magical Kamloops and we reap the rewards of their play with a visual feast for the eyes. There’s no battle of Nature vs. Nurture here, that’s for sure. For riders who’ve grown up in, and been shaped by Kamloops, it’s one and the same.
The Power to Ride More Trails
Turbo Levo FSR
MOTIVE
Finn Iles
It felt like he came from nowhere—this scrappy little 14-year-old, daring to flout the rules and strut his stuff in the Whip Off World Champs at Crankworx, in 2014. A campaign, #LetFinnIn, may have got him there, but it was years of obsessive practice that saw him slay dragons to win that day. Remember: nobody comes from nowhere. Finn Iles didn’t just pick up a bike that day and say, “Oh, hey, maybe I’ll try this?” With Whistler in his backyard, and Finn refining his “getting sideways” skills on Crabapple Hits from the age of 11, well…didn’t everybody see it coming? But here we are just a few years later, and now Finn is dominating the junior ranks of downhill with the words “Fast, faster, fastest” burned into his brain. Now, it’s the dream of rolling the success of his 2016 downhill season forward, at an even faster clip. It’ll be a tough year to beat, considering he won the Jr. World Cup overall, Jr. World Championships, and Whip Off World Champs, but when you’re young and at the top of your game, of course you shoot for the moon.
It’s not the will to try and beat everybody else. I’m just trying to ride as fast as I can.
Where does that drive come from? His desire—not to win, exactly, that’s just the silver lining—to go as fast as his young legs will allow, how does it ignite? This first “sneak peek” instalment of MOTIVE sees Finn reunite with the Coastal Crew to head to Vancouver Island and find out. He first crossed paths with Curtis Robinson and Dylan Dunkerton back in 2009, when they were his coaches at a camp. Since then, both Finn and the Coastal Crew have defined their own riding styles and gone in different directions, but for them, it’s never a bad time to get together and ride again. For days, the team dug, hiked, packed, and filmed Finn riding the trails to collect footage and insights for the final film. This one-minute edit is just a glimpse of what’s to come in August.
Vancouver Island is one of the best riding spots anywhere in Canada for race training, so it was the perfect place to shoot and spend time. It was also Stevie's [Smith] training tracks so it is a special place to ride and film.
MOTIVE
About the Film
Motive, is the collaboration of the filming talents of Mind Spark Cinema and the powerhouse filming and riding talents of the Coastal Crew (Curtis Robinson and Dylan Dunkerton). Motive, shot across North America, will be a film oozing with effortless style and progression of Curtis Robinson, Dylan Dunkerton, Finn Iles, Garret Mechem, Matt Miles and Matt Hunter. Set to World Premiere during Crankworx Whistler in the Olympic Village on Friday August 18th.