Sam Pilgrim & Blake Samson visit Poland and the NS headquaters

The dirt jumping scene in Poland is very strong however not many top level international riders have been visiting this country so far. This situation is changing quickly due to the number of events and skilled riders representing our country in the best competitions worldwide.


This year Octane One was the main sponsor of one of the Dirt Town events in Jelenia Gora, Poland. This competition was also ranked as a bronze event in this year’s FMB World Tour. That is why we asked our best team riders to come to Poland and give local riders an opportunity to meet and compete with Sam and Blake.


After some problems at the airport in UK our riders finally arrived in Poland. Jelenia Gora welcomed everyone on Saturday with nice weather and amazing crowds who gathered near the town hall to see the event. The track may not have been as demanding as some of the other courses at the biggest events but it was fun to ride and Sam decided to show why he is on the top of the FMB World Tour rankings. Thanks to the international status of the event the lineup was pretty strong and there were a lot of riders from several other countries. The overall level of the competition was high.


Laying down sick tricks that included front flips, no-hand backflips and amazing flares on the quarter at the end of the Dirt Town’s track, Sam Pilgrim won both best trick and main event and went home with 2500€ and points in the FMB World Tour ranking. Our second NS Bikes team rider – Bartek Obukowicz was 4th and Blake Samson finished 6th.


When the competition was over it was time for a polish style afterparty at the glider hill. Chicks, a great crew and music by DJ Sam Pilgrim (that’s right... Sam is also a skilled DJ!) made everyone party till the early morning.


On Sunday it was time to wrap everything up and hit the road and head up to the north of Poland. The NS Nissan Navara bombed down our amazing Polish “highways” (“Sooooo Zimbabwe” – Blake Samson) and the guys had 10 hours to admire the famous polish roadside girls, the beautiful Polish countryside and taste some polish specialities before we reached Gdynia in the evening (the specialties did not include the girls!).


As we had a really tight schedule on Monday we started the day early by shooting some photos and videos on a wooden pier in Gdynia with Radek Drozdowicz, who joined us at the final part of the Polish Trip to make a great video which you can see below. Our next stop was the NS Bikes / Octane One headquarters.


Our crew welcomed Sam, Blake and Bartek in a typical polish style – with a shot of vodka. Then it was time to meet our project/design team and show the guys some new stuff we prepared for 2012 season along with few surprises.


We also had a moment to visit our warehouse where guys got some new parts and gadgets.


While our riders were visiting our home town we could not forgot about local riders so we decided to organize a small dirt jam so that they could meet Sam, Blake and Bartek and see them in action. We have selected Piret’s Backyard - one of the best spots for riding in Poland. The local BMX Division crew had been working hard for a couple of days to prepare the course while Piotr “Piret” Kolodziej was playing guitar with his band at Glastonbury. We planned this to be small event and even though there must have been at least a hundred people and event local TV news crew.


After a couple hours of riding it was time to visit Sopot which is one of the best places to chill and party. After a nice dinner at a Mexican joint we were ready to hit the local clubs and pubs. Even though it was Monday we managed to get some action. We don't really remember what happened later that night but at least the boys managed to catch their flight back home in the morning!


We have saved the best for last. Check out this cool video by Radek Drozdowicz from Sam and Blake's visit in Poland. The video footage from Jelenia Gora was made by Kuba Klawikowski (asfstudio.pl). We would also like to thank two Polish skilled photographers Bartosz Wolinski (wolisphoto.com) and Piotr Staron (staronphoto.com) for great shots!



Also check out massive galleries from Sam and Blake's visit in Poland:

- Dirt Town Jelenia Gora 2011 by Staronphoto.com
- Dirt Town Jelenia Gora 2011 Finals and Best Trick
- Dirt Town Jelenia Gora 2011 Afterparty
- Photoshoot in Gdynia
- Sam Pilgrim, Blake Samson and Bartek Obukowicz visit NS Bikes
- Sam Pilgrim, Blake Samson and Bartek Obukowicz at Piret's Backyard
- NS Bikes / Octane One riders and crew chillin in Sopot

NS Bikes and Octane One are distributed in Canada by Lama Cycles.

For more news visit our official NS Bikes and Octane One websites and follow us on Facebook.

Posted In:
Stories Sam Pilgrim Reader Stories