Athlete Profile: Chris Akrigg
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 | I'm not a big hero person. Just people who do the thing they love, how they love to do it, are heroes to me. |
A self-described introvert-extrovert, Chris Akrigg spends his off-bike time putting his feet up and drinking tea. His interview responses come across as vague and non-committal, “I really don't have a favourite terrain, or if I do it changes from week to week or even day to day, I think it's just more about what sort of mood I'm in,” but perhaps it’s because truth is, there simply isn’t much that Chris can’t ride. When you have skills that allow you to ride everything from seemingly unconnected massive boulders to downhill tracks on a road bike and still communicate flow and ease, there really isn’t any point in playing favourites.
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“It’s funny really, I spent over ten years on pretty much the same bike when I was riding trials comps,” – as one of the world’s leading trials riders, Chris is a six-time British Trials Champion, “then when I started playing about on other bikes the flood gates sort of opened!” He now has a fleet of bikes from Mongoose including, a "full DH bike to a 16'' BMX and everything in-between.” He also owns four motorbikes.
Chris was brought up around motorbikes, thanks to his Dad who is a motorcycle trials rider, “I guess it was pretty inevitable that I would just pick up a bike and start riding.” With what he has accomplished in his career thus far, most point to natural talent or super-human skills, but Chris, again, is humbly unwilling to commit a judgement here, “People have said that I have a good natural ability but I don't know if that’s what it is. Maybe I do, but I also know how much time I've spent on my bike, maybe it’s just a bit of both.”
Whether it is natural talent or hours, days and years spent perfecting his abilities, Chris makes the seemingly impossible look amazingly easy in his videos. “I put a lot of effort into making stuff look silky smooth,” but he says, “a lot of the time when you see my riding it’s in videos so the stuff that goes into them is normally something I’ve tried a couple of times and have it down. Or maybe it’s just magic.”
| My favourite is probably the Teocali; it's a real good all rounder and I can pretty much ride anything on that machine! But I also love my trials bike - it's too hard to choose. |
Chris was brought up around motorbikes, thanks to his Dad who is a motorcycle trials rider, “I guess it was pretty inevitable that I would just pick up a bike and start riding.” With what he has accomplished in his career thus far, most point to natural talent or super-human skills, but Chris, again, is humbly unwilling to commit a judgement here, “People have said that I have a good natural ability but I don't know if that’s what it is. Maybe I do, but I also know how much time I've spent on my bike, maybe it’s just a bit of both.”
Whether it is natural talent or hours, days and years spent perfecting his abilities, Chris makes the seemingly impossible look amazingly easy in his videos. “I put a lot of effort into making stuff look silky smooth,” but he says, “a lot of the time when you see my riding it’s in videos so the stuff that goes into them is normally something I’ve tried a couple of times and have it down. Or maybe it’s just magic.”
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Chris has been producing his own videos for some time now and says it gives his “riding career a purpose.” He has had an interest in photography and filming for as long as he has been riding, “I always used to film everything anyway, so it was a natural progression.” He goes on to explain, “I just love the process, from finding the locations to riding them to finding camera angles, and then putting it all together in an edit.”
His strong ability allows him to have an extra creative edge with his riding and filming, he is able to see the possibility in things that other riders may not, “I like to think I can have fun or find something interesting from anything, as small as a 4” curb to a massive mountain.” Having others scout for him can be a challenge, “they ask ‘what sort of stuff are you looking for?’ And I just say, ‘I don’t know but I’ll know it when I see it.’”
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As hard as it is for Chris to pinpoint a favourite bike, landscape, or tipping point in his transition into filming, he also does not recall favourite highlights of travel, “I can’t really single one trip out.” But he says, “I did used to love going out to Europe to compete in the World Champs Trials back in the day.” With a month on the road at a time, he says they would be “competing at the weekends then traveling to the next venue through the week, stopping at cool places to chill and ride along the way. Good times!”
Not someone who excelled in the classroom, Chris credits riding bikes with teaching him what he needs to know, “what I have learned from riding related stuff is amazing!” And he has his career in bikes to thank for “the amount of cool people that I’ve met along the way, the people who have inspired me and changed my life’s trajectory in a combination of different ways.”
“I wouldn’t ride for a company that was barking orders at me all the time, I think that would just ruin it for me,” says Chris in appreciation of his longstanding sponsorship with Mongoose. “We have a really good relationship, this helps me just get on with stuff.” Along with Mongoose Bikes, Chris is also sponsored by, Shimano, Fox Shox, Lazer, Pro, Royal, Fabric, FiveTen, Maxxis, and Oakley. “I still can’t believe I do what I do for a living, so thanks to the people who make that possible, and that would be my sponsors – cheers sponsor people!”
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| This year I plan to stay safe and make some cool videos. I'm feeling pretty good this year so expect some Akriggness! |
MENTIONS: @mongoosebikes / @shimano / @foxracingshox / @Royal-Racing / @Maxxis / @LazerSport / @Fabric
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Keep it up and stay safe Chris, you're an inspiration.
props to Chris, and best wishes for the future. Happy trails!
www.bikemag.com/videos/bloody-steep-hard-luck-at-bds-llangollen
Also, I thought Yorkshire Tea was one of his sponsors too?...
^Amen to that. Nothing more insulting than having someone imply that one's hard earned skills are innate, rather than the product of blood, sweat, and persistence. Every progressive rider among us knows the time and effort invested. Chris is better than the lot of us because he's practiced harder, longer, and better than us. We each choose the rider we are becoming every time we get on the bike.
It is also good to know that there is still people who make things easy. Those who achieve to make things flow. C Akrigg is one of those few ones.
Cheers,
Also, "a hill in Spain" might be my favorite riding edit, ever.
Can't wait to see more from you Chris Akrigg!
Whatever. They're both awesome. I just think Akrigg is more fun. Plus Danny has yet to make a cyclocross video, and I really want to see that.