Video: GT Celebrates 50 Year Anniversary in 'Birthday Party to the People Tour'
You only turn 50 once, so we had to make it special! To celebrate our 50th anniversary, we’re bringing together as many friends and fans as possible throughout the year with our Birthday Party to the People tour. GT riders from across the globe are hitting the road to check out some of the sickest, most fun and meaningful spots in the GT world.
Tour number one kicked off at Sea Otter Classic in Monterey, CA with Wyn Masters, Noga Korem, Hans Rey, Chelsea Wolfe, David Lieb, and Joey Foresta hitting the races and cruising the scene. The crew were then joined by Tristen Cooper and Mason Ritter and headed south to ride killer spots, connect with old friends, and hang with the fans as they made their way to the birthplace of GT - SoCal.
After a rad session at the massive Mosqueda skatepark in Fresno, CA., the next stop was to visit the man who started it all, Gary Turner. The crew took a trip down memory lane as they dug through the archives of Gary’s workshop.
 | This road trip was easily one of those special, once-in-a-lifetime experiences. It’s not every day you get everyone together for a coastal California road trip, meeting up with every GT legend along the way. Thankful is an understatement. |
| The Party to the People tour was an epic time, it was rad to bring all the different riders from GT all together for a week, and the highlight for me was meeting Gary Turner himself and getting the chance to sit and chat with him on all things GT history, also the other legends like Dave Voelker and the guys I used to watch in the GT ‘Dead Sailor’ BMX VHS as a kid |
Along the way, the team stopped at Sheep Hills Trails for a session on the legendary dirt jumps. In the early days of GT, this is where a lot of product testing went down, so it was only right to get in a few laps.
City Grounds, one of our largest BMX retailers, invited the gang to party at their HQ. A wild ramp setup had been built in the warehouse and the team got straight to work putting down some big moves while housing a few tacos in between.
From City Grounds, the squad made their way to Laguna for a trail ride with tons of GT legends. Former employees, team riders, and friends of the brand met up for a sunset cruise on the trails that helped shape the early days of GT’s Mountain bikes.
The crew then kept it moving south to San Diego for a day of skatepark sessions before meeting up with BMX legend, Dave Voelker, for a night rideout around the city. The bikelife community showed up big and we mobbed the streets of downtown late into the night.
The trip wrapped up with a visit to Strait Acres to ride and hang with Rachel and Kyle Strait. Tacos, slalom runs, and an afternoon dirt jump session with the homies was a perfect ending to an unforgettable trip.
Thank you to everyone who came out to celebrate with us and we can’t wait to keep the good times going!
Stay tuned for the next road trip going down in August starting at the Malvern’s Classic in the UK!
Special Guests: Albert Mercado, Parker Heath, Se7en Crew, Rachel Strait, Big E, Dave Voelker, Ratty Maty, Gary Turner, Brian Lopes, Eddie Fiola.
Video: Ian Howes
Photos: David Lieb, AJ Allen, Heather Young
Author Info:
Must Read This Week
Sign Up for the Pinkbike Newsletter - All the Biggest, Most Interesting Stories in your Inbox
PB Newsletter Signup
And anybody @ GT who may be reading this, how do I get some of those 50th Anniversary stickers??
But I'd love to hear the whole story.