Aaron LaRocque

Vimeo Pro

2011-09-20T02:13:00.001-07:00

Andrew Mitchell

2011-05-09T08:42:00.001-07:00

Drew and I put in a couple shoots on a local Victoria mountain to put this edit together. Check it!

Darcy Turenne Edit

2011-04-25T10:49:00.001-07:00

I've been sitting on this footage for a long time. We shot the first summer bit of this almost 2 years ago and the wintery rainy stuff over a year ago. Anyways, check it out!

iXS/Roger rinderknecht

2011-04-21T11:37:00.002-07:00

Just wrapped up this edit with Roger Rinderknecht. Day 1, we shot at the infamous Post Office jumps in Aptos, California. The following day we shot slalom practise and qualifying at the Sea Otter Classic Dual Slalom. Roger qualified 7th but was edged out and ended up 9th overall. He's over in South Africa right now for the first World Cup of the season and just qualified 2nd behind Jared Graves in the 4X. Let's hope Roger can pull off a great finish in South Africa to start off his year!

IXS/Darren Berrecloth shoot.

2011-04-07T14:34:00.002-07:00

Amazing athletes come and go but for someone to leave a permanent mark on the sport takes someone special. Darren Berrecloth is just such a person. For almost a decade he has been a major fixture in the mountain bike world, redefining impossible time after time. When he first started showing up in video segments, it was unlike anything anyone had ever seen. Things that were barely ridden before Darren would now 360. Few people have pushed the sport and changed it as much as The Claw.
I have to admit that when iXS asked me to shoot something with Darren I was nervous. This is one of those things that shooters dream of - an opportunity that few get. I gotta say, I love my job.

Taipei Show

2011-04-01T14:59:00.004-07:00

I got back from Taipei about a week ago. I was over there with the boys at Pinkbike covering the Taipei Bike Show as well as visiting a few factories over there to shoot some "How it's made" kinda videos. For the last weekend we were there we managed to take a few days off and get down south to Kaohsiung to do some riding with some local boys. Check out the video below.

Tara Llanes Doc. Trailer

2011-02-26T12:19:00.002-08:00

This project has been a learning experience for me in so many ways. I met Tara in October 2009 after a mutual friend introduced us. The next day we started filming this project. We're about 14 months into filming it and still have so far to go. There have been many setbacks, challenges, injuries, and so much recovery time. The struggle to get this far has been immense. Here is the trailer we've put together. We finished this about a month after we met and it represents an earlier direction. So much has changed since this and so much has evolved. We're not sure where this project will take us but it is certain to be quite the ride.

West Coast Weather

2011-02-06T01:05:00.005-08:00

On the west coast we're able to ride year round. That is to say, IF you're willing to get wet you can ride year round. Riding in the rain provides some unique challenges, filming it a whole different ballgame. This edit was shot in some mucky wet, sloppy west coast weather. Pouring, soaking, chilly, fresh rain.

Dean Tennant/Dunbar Cycles edit

2011-01-25T16:31:00.002-08:00

Dean Tennant and I put out our first video together last month. It was really well received and we both had a good time making it. We decided to start off 2011 right with another edit. Dean had one idea in mind. Bigger, better, faster, rowdier. Check it out. Let me know how you think we did.

Dean Tennant - Off Season Training

2010-12-07T15:09:00.003-08:00

It's been a couple months since I shot much. Last thing I shot was Project Gold and with everyone around here wrapping up exams and whatnot for the semester there aren't many riders available this time of year. I decided it was time to search out some new riders. I'd heard the name before, but had never met Dean Tennant. I shot him a message to see if he'd be interested in shooting and he responded in the affirmative.
The shoot started out with little concept. I just wanted to shoot some fast riding. We spent the morning shooting his own private trails, I went home and put together a cut that I was pretty happy with. I showed a few people and the response was less than stellar so I called up Dean and we scheduled round two of shooting for the next day.
I got little sleep that night as I put everything away except for a pencil and paper and emptied my brain out onto the sheet. I struggled to come up with ideas to make this video stand out as something a little different. This is what we came up with.

Dean Tennant: Off-Season Training from Aaron Larocque on Vimeo.

I ride for Nick's Eyes.

2010-12-04T14:46:00.002-08:00

Well it's been a about a month and a half since my very good friend Nick Moore was diagnosed with a disease that would take his eyesight. One eye was gone and the other was certain to go with it. In a desperate attempt to save his eyesight, Nick called upon the help of the mountain bike community to help him pay for a surgery that might be able to stop his good eye from worsening. After countless donations, t shirt sales, and contributions from companies that support Nick, and some that have little to do with him, Nick got what he needed. In early November, Nick went into surgery and all went well. All went better than we had hoped and Nick's eyesight is returning. Nick is a powerful influence in my life of what a person should be and what a friend should be.
Nick's eyes are an example of what happens when a community comes together to take care of one of their own. Many people put in time, money, support, prayers, promotion, attention and love to save Nick's eyes. I am grateful to be a part of that community and so is Nick. We love you, Nick and we're glad we could help!

Here is Nick's emotional thank-you to everyone who helped him keep his eyesight.

Blast from the Past - Crash compilation

2010-10-29T11:14:00.002-07:00

Well it's been a while since I've shot anything new so here's a video of my best friend getting rowdy. This was shot probably 6 years ago or so. Boy has riding changed a lot in 6 years.

I ride for Nick's eyes.

2010-10-25T14:26:00.002-07:00

Nick Moore is one of the best people I know. He's the man behind Demon Dirt. I met him in April at Sea Otter in California. He's one of the most excited passionate, positive people I know and I've had the privilege of meeting up with him at various events throughout the summer. He's just been diagnosed with a disease in his eyes that is causing him to go blind. His left eye is nearly entirely gone and his right is sure to follow if he doesn't get it operated on. He needs a procedure done very soon to save what's left of his vision. Demon Dirt is selling limited edition jerseys to help Nick pay for the surgery. Spread the word and help him out.

China

2010-10-22T02:50:00.003-07:00

I've done enough flying this past year to last a few lifetimes. I've spent nearly 150 days out of town so far this year. I had visited Thailand and Taiwan in January, another trip to Taiwan in August,I but this would be my first time in China. I went to shoot carbon manufacturing, to see the folks that make uber high end road bars and forks. The process is somewhat like paper mache only with really expensive paper. Now the downside of the trip was that I only spent 2 days in China. I spent the same amount of time in transit to and from China. It was a whirlwind trip to an amazing country. I'll go back someday I'm sure. Hopefully next time I'll be there long enough to spend a few days as a tourist. For now, I'm just glad to be home.

Tara Llanes Classic 2010

2010-10-08T14:39:00.004-07:00

The Tara Llanes Classic, in it's fourth and biggest year yet went off last weekend to raise money for the Tara Llanes Road to Recovery Fund and the Reeve Irvine Research Center. 160 racers turned out to battle it out for a spot on the podium and to help out a good cause.

For those of you who aren't familiar with Tara Llanes, she is a professional mountain biker who was injured in September of 2007 and left a paraplegic. Tara's attitude and determination serve as inspiration to thousands including myself. I first met Tara about 11 months ago. A mutual friend knew Tara was looking for a videographer for a project she had in mind. I came out to the Tara Llanes Classic last week at Northstar in Tahoe to document the event. Take a look and see what the event it all about! Keep an eye out for more stuff from Tara and I in the near future!

If you love BC...

2010-10-06T23:02:00.002-07:00

I was born and raised in BC and like most British Columbians I'm pretty attached to it. BC's coast has some of the most stunning and unique landscapes I've ever seen.
Now I don't normally like to get too political but this is something I felt obligated to share. Please, if you love BC, take the time to watch and share it around.

Oil in Eden: The Battle to Protect Canada's Pacific Coast from Pacific Wild on Vimeo.

Project Gold - Story by Strahan Loken

2010-09-19T08:04:00.002-07:00

Water ricochets off my downtube, struggling against the dried mud that’s caked there. I’m cleaning up from the first rainy ride of the fall. All around the mossy South Island hillsides which only last week were parched yellow are fading, transitioning back towards the vibrant green of coastal winter. With each passing day the sun is marching further south and carving away precious minutes of afternoon. Cloud cover is returning, bringing moisture, a familiar chill in the air, and morning dew on every surface. Corners that once gave way under angry tires now carve, while rocky patches once as predictable as pavement contrarily become greasy hazards. Reflecting on the summer, I recall memories of golden light pouring over backcountry trails, backlighting edges, dust trails, and distant ridgelines.

Project Gold from Aaron Larocque on Vimeo.

Shoot only in golden light. Aaron LaRocque and I proposed the seemingly simple concept very late in the summer. In abstract it sounded achievable, but with the warm clear weather quickly coming to a close, we cast off not knowing what results to expect. Here’s how it played out.

Execution
The first feature we tried to shoot was a failure. We’d scoped the steep, rocky chute days earlier, with rolling backlit waves of dust spiraling into the forest, but now the angle of the sun simply wasn’t cooperating. This was not a great start, but nearby we discovered a great set of corners getting blasted by late afternoon light and we were back on track. We relocated to the next zone on the list, navigating traffic, pedestrians, and an exhausting run-in which required extended sprinting to get up to speed. These shots alone would have been a success, but with the sun racing towards the horizon we moved yet again, frantically capturing various angles on a nearby mountain top in the last moments before darkness.

Reward
The large drop line was supposed to be perfectly backlit just as the rider dropped into the mossy forest below, but again the light foiled us. Disenchanted, we contemplated again trying for the dusty chute, but instead chose to explore another ridgeline I’d recently come across. On two wheels the climb was easy, but as Aaron hiked with his burdensome pack I was sure he was cursing my name. Part way up the final pitch we disturbed a wasp nest and Aaron was rewarded with a handful of painful red welts. As we reached the peak the sun crept towards the horizon, battling rows of clouds. We waited patiently. Would the light hit, or would we be left empty handed? In the distance a tiny crack appeared in the cloud cover. Moving right to left, the small triangular wedge looked as though it might, just, intercept where the sun touched the horizon. Aaron collected a timelapse as the clouds literally boiled on the distant mountain top. At the last moment we had surreal light pounding down upon us and working as fast as possible we shot various angles in the few golden minutes available, before again hiking out in the dark.

Exertion
Uncharacteristically, we arrived early at the remote ridgeline overlooking the Sooke Basin and Olympic Mountains with plenty of time. Without the pressure of cloud cover, we hiked to the top, but instead chose to shoot the line from the bottom up. The late afternoon sun beat down upon us, and with barely a breath of wind I was completely soaked in sweat and winded from running up the line over and over…and over. The bony terrain was peppered with hazards and rugged rock-to-rock gaps, but we emerged at the bottom of the ridgeline unscathed, facing only a creek crossing and long ride out in the dark.

Frustration
All around us the light was slipping through the clouds, illuminating the only place we weren’t. We hiked above the area we intended to shoot, partly to pass the time before the light would be most golden and partly to escape the anticipation of waiting. Descending back towards our target area the sky opened up, showering the landscape in soft yellow for a few precious seconds. I’m certain I’ve never seen anyone run as fast with a fully loaded equipment pack as Aaron did right then, but it was not to be. Disappointed, we coasted hundreds of feet downwards to the waiting vehicle and a quiet drive home.

Diligence
We watched the forecast patiently. With each passing day the probability of good light spiraled lower, and with it our chances at finishing the project. The day called for sun with a chance of clouds but the following week was to be completely overcast with showers. This was our chance. As we ascended the fire road climb waves of greyness rolled overhead, but as we arrived in our zone there was no doubt we would get the footage needed. As the sun descended on the distant landscape, flying ants emerged from the forest floor and peppered the skyline with hundreds of pulsing wings, the perfect final element to cap off Project Gold.

We'd like to thank Banshee Bikes and RaceFace for supporting us in this project.
www.bansheebikes.com
www.raceface.com

- Strahan Loken

Almost there.

2010-09-15T19:20:00.004-07:00

Last shoot is in the bag. Done. We failed once but returned to conquer it. We rolled into the zone with plenty of time before the light got really good and the forest was already glowing gold. Backlit bugs swarmed and fluttered in the light. It was reminiscent of something out of Avatar. We collected everything we wanted and more and left with a card full of gems. Take some chances, sometimes you lose. This time we got lucky. Here's a sneak peak at the upcoming edit we refer to as "Project Gold"

Project Gold Shoot #4: Fail

2010-09-11T00:31:00.002-07:00

Strahan and I set out on what we'd hoped to be the last shoot for our latest project. The mission for the edit is golden light. We scoped the zone about 2 weeks ago to make sure the sun would pour over the zone in all the right spots. It was all systems go until we got to the base of the mountain and a rather large cloud blew in front of the sun giving us flat bland light. We were already in it so we ventured on in hopes that we'd catch a break. We could see a gash in the cloud where we thought the sun might drop into just before sunset giving us a dramatic blast of sun for just a few minutes. As it turns out we would be correct. Gold poured through the forest directly on the section of trail we were shooting. It was unbelievable. We sprinted to our positions, I scrambled to set up my camera and tripod and while frantically mounting my camera on my tripod I watched the cloud plow over the sun leaving the forest dull and flat. We waited about half an hour for the light to return but with the clouds advancing and the sun lowering we knew we'd missed our shot. We grabbed a couple test shots in anticipation of our return. We'll get it. Enjoy the not-so-awesome shots:

project gold: fail shoot from Aaron Larocque on Vimeo.

Wash, rinse, repeat - Worlds Day 4

2010-09-03T21:45:00.003-07:00

What a week so far at Worlds. It's been an exhausting week working into the wee hours of the morning and then picking up where we left off bright and early again only a couple hours later. Low on sleep, I'm confined to the Pinkbike booth for the most part doing interviews. While I'd like to be out shooting the action it's a tossup which I would rather do. Seeing the rider blast by and catching a quick glimpse, or hanging out at the booth with soon-to-be MTB Hall of Famer Brett Tippie and interviewing legends of the sport like current World Champ Steve Peat and a host of other childhood heroes of mine. Either way...I'm really starting to like World Champs.

Monte Sainte Anne World Champs

2010-09-02T19:03:00.002-07:00

It's been an interesting couple days here in Quebec so far. It's a different scene than I'm used to. The more I'm exposed to it the more I get into it. It's unreal to see just how impressive the riding is in person. What's even cooler is being in a position where I'm able to meet the riders. I've said it before and I'll say it again. I've got the coolest job in the world.

Light and Dark

2010-08-29T01:13:00.011-07:00

It's been a while since I did a project simply for the fun of it. Now don't get me wrong just about every video I do is fun but it's been a while since I was able to push something in whichever direction I want. Strahan Loken and I are overflowing with concepts for videos so when we both find enough time to put one into play we're happy. I have a love...no, I have an obsession with light. This project is a tribute to that.
The first two shoots were a mix of highs and lows as we rolled into locations minutes behind the light, struggled with threatening black clouds, and were swarmed by angry wasps. At the end up the first two shoots we came out on top with some awesome footage that we really couldn't be happier with. The vision for the project stems from an uncompromising desire to capture the most stunning and surreal light. This means you've gotta shoot in the last few minutes of the day which makes for really short shoots. I find this the most exciting way to make a video. Really putting the time and effort into getting the shots you want. So many times you go out on a shoot and come back wishing conditions were better. Well, this is my art project and I'm gonna wait until conditions are optimal to pull the trigger. There's gonna be no shoulda, coulda, woulda with this. Only the best light we can find.
Tonights shoot was one that we've been waiting a year to pull off. It's a 300m long southfacing ridgeline overlooking oceanic vistas and arbutus forest that is blasted with golden light late in the day. The shoot when seamlessly aside from how fleeting light undoubtedly will be. The location of it means that if you want to shoot it at sunset then you better be ready for the ride out through a very dark forest. Luckily we came prepared. Another shoot, another several shots to plug into the timeline. Piece by piece the project takes shape. Off to Quebec for World Champs on Monday so I'll have to put the project on the backburner for a week.

Stay tuned for the video!

Asia

2010-08-23T02:27:00.003-07:00

I'm really lucky to have the opportunity to travel so much as part of my job. Sometimes it gets a little hectic and usually by the end of the trip I'm more than ready to be on my way home. Home is more of a vacation for me now than going on these trips. The pace slows, I get back onto a regular sleep pattern, I get to spend some time with my girlfriend and I spend less time running around and more time at the computer chipping away at my editing. This last week was another trip to Asia, another few stamps on the passport, another twenty something hours of flying, and another week struggling to catch up on sleep. It was also another week of new places, new sights, new experiences, and new friends. I've got the best job in the world.

Crankworx

2010-08-15T22:48:00.002-07:00

Every August I make the trip up to Whistler for Crankworx. It's one event that I refuse to miss and you shouldn't miss it either. I opted not to work this time around and just enjoy some vacation time in Whistler. If you missed the slopestyle then there's something I'd like you to watch. Check out Mike Montgomerys POV angle of his 2nd place run. This was by far my favourite run of the day and was good enough to earn him $7500. Congratulation Mike! Also, congrats to Cam Zink on 1st place and Casey Groves for pulling off and insane 3rd place run. Oh and in case you didn't notice. Geax riders cleaned the podium. Good job guys!

Bike Dice

2010-08-08T08:31:00.003-07:00

Jarrett and Alan fired me a message the other day and said they wanted to shoot something. I haven't shot anything for fun recently so I was keen to do it and when I heard what they had in mind I was extra stoked. Bike Dice. Get the word out.

Alternative Transportation

2010-08-07T12:07:00.003-07:00

I thought this was really awesome. Let's hope we start to see all cities start to take steps towards being more bicycle friendly especially in congested downtown cores.

Transportation Alternatives PSA ::a ride with Paul Steely White from Cinecycle on Vimeo.

Lone Wolf - Garett Buehler

2010-07-31T11:16:00.004-07:00

Lone Wolf Productions is headed by Matt Brooks. The goal: let riders shoot their own segments and ship the footage off to an editor (in this case, me.) to do the dirty work. This is accomplished by the rider shredding what they want, when they want with a helmet cam. Books shipped off a memory card full of footage for me to chip away at of Nelson ripper, Garett Buehler. This is the finished product.

Tour de France

2010-07-29T12:37:00.003-07:00

I've never been much for road racing, but after a trip to Italy earlier this year for Milan-San Remo, my feelings started to change. Last week, 3T flew me over to France to do some shooting for a corporate project of theirs during the Tour de France. This sealed the deal for me. I need a road bike. The energy and hype around the Tour is insane. Imagine thousands upon thousands of people camping out for days in the mountains to catch a glimpse of riders whizzing by. I gotta admit I was sucked into the hype. Just a bit...

Goatstyle

2010-07-14T22:16:00.005-07:00

Goatstyle is one of my favourite events of the year. Being that I grew up in the Kootenays, it's naturally one of the events that I go the extra mile to get to. This years course was bigger than ever and the calibre of riders was supersized as well. Friday night lights is basically a Throw-your-gnarliest-trick-for-money kinda evening and man, did it ever get gnarly. Double flips, double whips, double anything really. A really fun event and a cool way to spend an evening.
The following day was qualifying. Every category but one completed their runs but during course maintenance a freak storm rolled in and devastated the course. The 25 foot tall starting structure was blown clear over and destroyed. Luckily no one was hurt. The Goatstyle crew responded quickly and with determination. They took the nearly untouched curved wall feature on the course and flipped in 90 degrees making it into a whale-tail style drop in/step down. With a bit of a rearrangement of the schedule for finals, the event continued. The finals were an impressive showdown with Greg Watts taking first place, Mike Montgomery coming in second and Graham Aggassiz grabbing 3rd spot.

New bikes

2010-06-23T01:18:00.002-07:00

After doing a project for Banshee Bikes, I was given two shiny new completes: The Rune and the Wildcard. I've never owned a big bike this nice, let alone two big bikes this nice. With the help of GEAX, Raceface and Straitline Components, I got these things dialed. Huge thanks to Banshee and everyone else for hooking me up with such awesome bikes. I've been out riding a few times since I got them and have to say, these are the nicest and best feeling bikes I've ever ridden. I've always felt really awkward on big bikes like this (I grew up on trials) but these felt like as nimble as a hardtail. Can't wait to get out on them and ride some more! See you out there!

www.aaronlarocque.com

2010-06-16T11:52:00.003-07:00

It's been a long time coming and is long overdue. My new website is finally here. I wanted something super simple, super clean and with just a couple examples of my favorite pieces. I designed the website myself as I had a pretty specific look I wanted. With the help of Taylor Leigh I got it off the ground! Huge thanks to him for his help with it!

New Demo Reel

2010-06-14T23:14:00.004-07:00

Yeah yeah I'm milking old footage but I've been wanting to put out a decent new demo reel for a long time. I picked all of my favourite shots from the last year and a half and threw it together in 2.5 minutes to show what I can do. Let me know what you think!

Huh-why-ee

2010-05-27T13:04:00.004-07:00

Well I took a little vacation this month. I've been traveling a lot for work lately but haven't taken any big trips strictly for pleasure. So I left the video camera behind and my girlfriend and I hopped a plane to Maui to soak up the sun. We spent our days snorkeling, lounging, hiking, basically doing whatever we wanted. For anyone heading to Maui I seriously recommend allowing a lot of time for hikes. We did some of the most amazing hikes while we were there including a 20km hike through the crater of a volcano. (too bad bikes aren't allowed eh?) Anyway, I'm glad to be back. Kinda lame to come back to rain but I can't complain. Lots of stuff in the works, a few shoots coming up. I promise you'll see some content soon!

Role Reversal/New Bikes

2010-05-12T14:41:00.007-07:00

I went out with Strahan Loken the other day. He picked himself up a new camera and wanted to test it out, so we did a bit of a shoot in some failing light on a trail I've been frequenting. I got a couple new banshees now and I've been out riding them as much as possible. I've been out on my new wildcard a few times a week and I'm absolutely loving it. I've never felt so comfortable and confident on a bigger bike like this. I've got a Rune as well that I'm just dialing in. Can't wait to give it a whirl!

I've done several edits with Strahan but it's always been me behind the camera. It was a fun change and was awesome to do some more riding! Anyways, check the video.

Interview Down Under

2010-05-08T09:21:00.014-07:00

Well it's been a great month for me for publicity. I had an interview on Pinkbike.com a couple weeks back, then just a few days ago Issue #19 of [R]evolution magazine, featuring a two page spread all about me, came out. [R]evolution is an MTB mag out of Australia, they were interested in doing a piece about my career up to this point, and of course I was keen.

It's my first big magazine spot so I'm pretty excited about it. The article turned out really awesome, they had some really great things to say, and I'm grateful for the opportunity. Huge thanks to the guys a [R]evolution for doing the piece and to Jason Headley for the photo! If anyone knows where to pick up a copy of this mag in Canada let me know!

Read the article here

How-to

2010-05-02T07:42:00.006-07:00

I was introduced to a new client when I was over in Italy recently. 3T. If you haven't heard from them you need to check 'em out. www.thenew3t.com They're an uber high end road bike component company. Bars, stems, forks, seatposts etc. The best of the best. They've got engineers from Boeing, Ferrari, stuff like that. They wanted a how to video done for their new Palladio seat post. I've never done anything like this before but I took it as an interesting challenge. The mission: Make a super clean, slick How-To that fits their branding, image and style. With the help of a voiceover artist, I think it turned out nicely.

An interesting learning experience. They've got me inspired to start building up a road bike. I'm excited to move into the road bike scene a bit and hopefully start shooting some riding for these guys!

Sea Otter 2010

2010-04-26T13:17:00.000-07:00

I made the trek down to Northern California this month for my very first Sea Otter. I'd been told to dress for the weather there but I ended up sunburnt and dehydrated as opposed to cold and wet, which was a pleasant surprise. I've been to Cali before but this was my first time in the Santa Cruz/Monterey area. I have to say it was one of the most beautiful places I'd ever been. I didn't shoot a ton of riding but I made sure to pull the camera out as much as possible when the light turned gold. I was in heaven.

Big thanks to the boys at Raceface and Pinkbike for showing me a good time down there!

Banshee Bikes Promotional Videos

2010-04-09T19:48:00.001-07:00

I've been working on a set of 8 videos for Banshee to promote their 2010 lineup. I've got a couple of my own en route. Can't wait to get them and swing a leg over. It's been far too long since I'v edone any riding. I'll be sure to post some photos for everyone to drool over when they get in!

In the meantime, check out the channel to see some more videos of Strahan Loken and others riding the new Banshees.

Rocky Mountain/Raceface All Mountain Web Video

2009-11-08T13:35:00.001-08:00

Strahan came up with the concept for the video several months ago. I loved the idea and wanted to do a good job of it so we put it on the backburner until the timing was right. We shot part of it early October and planned to shoot the rest the following week as we had a break in the weather. We had delays getting the bike so it took a backseat to another project in the Kootenays. During the shoot I got swine flu and was unable to travel home. I was stuck in the Kootenays for a week more than planned and felt my chances of getting good fall colors slipping away.
So after a few weeks of luck not going our way, Halloween was the earliest possible date to shoot. We got up early on the 31st, banged out the driving shots, collected most of the riding shots, things were moving at a nice pace when a giant wrench was thrown into the mix in the form of a 25 foot wide, thigh deep, gushing river which cut off our only route to the lake. We stopped and deliberated for about 15 minutes, weighing our options. A couple times we decided to call it and turn around but the clouds burning off above us made us stay the course and carry the bikes through the near-freezing river. This wouldn't have been a big concern except for the hugely fast moving water that could have swept either a bike, one of us or the thousands of dollars of electronics in my not-so-waterproof backpack downstream. We made it accross without incident. This was only the beginning. Altogether we probably did about 100 meters of bitter cold hiking through ankle-to-knee deep water. Needless to say, late-October mountain rivers aren't warm and still being on the mend from swine flu made me nervous about chilling myself to the core. This was our biggest challenge.
Strahan must have pulled out a survivorman DVD boxset the night before because somehow he managed to split wood with a pocket knife and light a fire using rain soaked materials and modest amounts of kindling he tucked into his bag. This fire was a serious blessing as it gave us just enough warmth to thaw out our toes for the ride down and ultimately added a nice element to the video.

The filming itself wasn't too much of a hassle as Strahan is always great to shoot with, always has great input, is way too patient with me and is an extremely hard worker. Perfect for the grueling shoots we seem to find ourselves on. The ride itself was a bit of a challenge for me as I haven't had a working bike in months and have been spending far too much time behind the computer and just having had swine flu, my lung capacity was less than stellar. Luckily with the gushing rivers the full trail was not passable so I was off the hook for the other 2 hours of rugged terrain beyond the lake. We were forced to rethink our original plan for the end of the video though as we couldn't shoot the final section anymore so we opted to rearrange a few shots and finish with the mellow pedalling corridor shot at the end. This turned out to be a blessing as I think it was the perfect end to the video and means we get to keep the last bit of singletrack for another project!

In the end the video turned out like I'd hoped. I was nervous about it as I'd built up so much hype in my mind about the concept. My original vision for it was much different than this final product but I'm 100% happy with it. I think a solid all-mtn web video was long overdue and there needs to be lots more. There's definitely more where this came from!

The response has been amazing and it's perfect inspiration to keep pumping out content like this!

What's Next? Crankworx/World Premiere!

2009-08-17T09:42:00.004-07:00

Well, it's been a long road and we made it. My first full length movie is complete and has premiered at Crankworx. I owe a huge Thank you to so many people. All the sponsors; GEAX, RaceFace, Banshee, Lavan, Pinkbike and Straitline. Thanks to everyone who helped to organize the biggest rowdiest party of Crankworx. Huge thanks to Harrison at the Longhorn for throwing such a badass party and also to Camp of Champions for getting the ball rolling! Couldn't have done it without you guys!

Next, I have to thank the riders. All these guys went above and beyond their call of duty and put in countless hours of building, scoping, etc. etc. In short, I owe the success of this movie to so many people! Thanks guys and I look forward to working with all of you again in the future!

Mt Washington day trip

2009-08-03T15:15:00.002-07:00

This last Saturday I had the opportunity to go up to Mt. Washington. We headed up to do some last minute filming for What's Next?

Huge thanks to Brent Curtain and the rest of the crew at Mt. Washington for showing us an awesome time! We spent the morning and part of the afternoon just doing laps and making a mental list of everything we wanted to shoot. The trails were amazing with some of the coolest woodwork on it. We were having so much fun riding it was hard to stop but with the golden light fast approaching we had to get on our game faces and start pulling the trigger. I was told how awesome the light got in the evening there and was not disappointed. It's always a treat shooting in great light and this was some of the best.

All in all it was a really successful day and tons of fun! We'll definitely be back soon! (that is after their berms have some recovery time)

10 things to do.

2009-07-01T11:23:00.001-07:00

Mark Matthews posted a to-do list on his blog, so I'm gonna do the same. Hopefully posting this will make me get stuff done.

1. Enjoy Canada Day

2. Shoot with Frankie

4. Goatstyle

5. Shoot with Greenall in Kimberly

6. Spend a day in Fruitvale

7. Back to Vic, shoot/dig for 2 days with Taylor

8. Back to Van to wrap up Erics section and to meet Robyn!

9. Hang with Robyn, shoot the last of Taylor, Wink, Shrew and Marks sections in Vic.

10. Start working on plans for the Crankworx premiere.

So much to do, so little time. Tired, stressed, sick of looking at a computer screen....mostly just stoked though.

Hope to see everyone at Crankworx!

What's Next? Trailer

2009-06-12T10:11:00.002-07:00

Alright folks so after many months of hard work, my first full length movie is coming together. We're in the last couple months before it premieres so it's time to drop the trailer.

Here it is.

Starring: Alan Hepburn Andrew Sherry Brendan Howey Casey Groves Dustin Greenall Dylan Dunkerton Dylan Sherrard Eric Lawrenuk Frankie Vass Jarrett Moore Logan Peat Luke Fulton Mark Matthews Matt Brooks Strahan Loken Taylor Leigh

Behind the scenes with Taylor Leigh.

2009-05-12T16:43:00.000-07:00

Most of you probably haven't heard much if anything about Taylor Leigh. Coming from BMX, he's got a bit of a different view of how things should be ridden. Faster, bigger, burlier, smoother, more style and most important to him, creatively.

Taylor and I have been shooting a segment for my upcoming movie for the last few months.

Strahan Loken was generous enough to let us shoot a STUNT HE BUILT, and also came out to take some PHOTOS.

This virgin stunt had been sitting for the past couple years waiting to be hit, a tight S-berm run in, a rough wood plank lip and a few large cedar trees lining the run out make it a big commitment to hit.

All in all, the shoot went well, Taylor continues to impress me everytime we shoot.

Stay tuned for the trailer release in the next few weeks!

What's Next?

2009-04-07T12:24:00.000-07:00

Click HERE

Photography

2009-01-25T20:30:00.000-08:00

So I've been taking some photos lately, When I was home for Christmas, my grandpa gave me a bunch of old cameras. He had an assortment of cameras that only a museum could match. I left with about 6 or 7 cameras, he offered more and he still had probably another 20 cameras(that I know of) left in the attic. So, what did I do with them? Got film and started shooting of course.

Here's a few of my recent photos.

Enjoy

More to come soon!

-Aaron

Dolly

2009-01-25T19:43:00.000-08:00

So my buddy Strahan built me a dolly. I got out today and got some shots with it. I complied a brief video of a few of the shots. Unfortunately my battery died prematurely and resulted in a lack of good footage. Or at least that's what I'm going to use as an excuse.

Huge thanks to Strahan for building it!

Video HERE

11 Year old Anthony Messere

2008-10-27T21:27:00.000-07:00

So a couple weeks ago Anthony Messere from Surrey came over to the rock and did some riding. I met anthony in Whistler and I was blown away to see a kid his age riding jumps that size. Then I saw him tailwhipping some big doubles. I didn't understand it. He killed it here. The video says it all. Watch out for Anthony in the future. I think this kids got a career ahead of him.

WATCH IT HERE

Frankie Vass

2008-10-04T22:43:00.000-07:00

I met Frankie last fall in Whistler when we were both there with Drop In. Personally, I think Frankie is one of the best street riders in MTB. We've kept in touch and a little while ago he sent me some footage he'd been shooting for the last little while and got me to edit it up for him. Not sure who to give credit for the footage but no, it's not mine.

THIS VIDEO was the end result.

Next spring I'm planning a trip out to Toronto to shoot something legit with Frankie for a project I'm working on. We've got some big plans. So until then, enjoy the video.

-Aaron

Steve Meyer.

2008-09-17T23:40:00.000-07:00

So my buddy Steve Meyer, from Lethbridge came to town and stayed at my place. We took the bus out to a hill just outside of town and luckily we managed to find where we were going (after an extended bus ride and free bus fare from a friendly BC transit worker) We hiked up and shot there for the whole afternoon. Steve was a trooper about it. Super fun guy to shoot with and willing to put in the time and effort (he hiked up and we re-shot some lines 10 times) to shoot things right.

Check out the video HERE

I quit my job as well. So for a while you might expect to see a bit more work from me.

-Aaron

Crankworx 2008

2008-08-21T18:27:00.000-07:00

Well, Whistler was as ridiculous and fun as ever. So much fun riding, partying, chillin' with bros and of course watching the events. Not too much to say about the events that hasn't already been said. Best Crankworx to date hand down. I'll be returning next year for sure. So, after a couple days of picking through all the footage since my return from whistler I've thrown together some highlights from the VW Best Trick as well as highlights from the Monster Slopestyle finals.

CRANKWORX VIDEO

Here's a little bit of helmet cam footage that Mark Matthews, Gage Clough and I shot one day on A-line, ninja cougar etc. with my old camera and a bit of electrician tape.

HELMET CAM VIDEO

Hopefully I'll be doing lots more shooting in the coming weeks so check back soon!

Aaron

First video with the new camera.

2008-08-12T08:50:00.001-07:00

So I guess size does matter. It's a bit different shooting with a big camera. So many more features, options and the quality shows. I got the HVX200 a couple weeks ago and shot a couple test videos (TestFootage1 , TestFootage2 ) but didn't have the chance to shoot any biking until now. Shrew, Jarrett and I went up island a bit yesterday and shot some drifty corners and a few other things. This was the first time shooting with the new camera and the footage turned out amazing. Uploaded it and 9 hours later on pinkbike we've got another VOD. Check it out!

CHECK OUT THE VIDEO

Stay tuned, leaving for Crankworx today, expect videos soon!

Aaron

First blog post.

2008-08-07T20:41:00.000-07:00

Well this is the first post on my blog. I'll be posting up my videos and whatever else here so check back here to see new stuff. I'll try and put up new stuff as often as possible. Since I have no new stuff to show you right now then I'll just show you my current stuff.Feel free to shoot me an email and give me any thoughts or criticisms. Hope you enjoy!

Here's a list of my pages of my videos.

http://www.aaronlarock.com

http://www.youtube.com/aaronlarock

http://larock.pinkbike.com

http://www.rip.tv/larock

http://vimeo.com/user480914

Crankworx trip coming up next week. Stay tuned for videos!

Aaron