TALKING BIKES AND SKATEBOARDING WITH FILMMAKER TERRY BARENTSEN

July 5, 2023/ & / VIDEOS/ Comments: 9

You might not immediately recognize Terry Barentsen‘s name, but it’s likely your YouTube algorithm has pushed one of his videos onto your feed in the past.

Terry is a filmmaker based in New York who makes a video series called “Hotline” where he chases bikers through crowded streets, weaving through pedestrians, traffic, and any other unexpected obstacles that pop up along the route. His videos have a skate video quality to them, reminiscent of GX1000 videos or an old Tommy Guerrero part, where the subject maneuvers through an unpredictable environment in perfectly chaotic style.

We had a gut feeling that Terry drew some inspiration from skateboarding for his work, so we hit him up to see if we could get a peek into his process. Turns out, Terry does have a background in skateboarding, and although he may not be one of those older heads hitting morning sessions at the local park before the kids flock out, he still has a long lasting appreciation for skating.

Watch along as we stop by Terry’s studio, sit and talk about the links between skating and cycling, and try to keep up with a world champion cyclist blasting through the streets of Brooklyn.

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Comments

  1. Alex

    July 7, 2023 9:13 am

    Some physics: the average skateboarder bailing a trick is probably travelling around 10 mph (unless you’re doing some SF downhill shit). The relationship between velocity and kinetic energy is squared. That means a biker going 20 mph will have four times the kinetic energy of the skater, plus the bike. A biker going 30 mph will have NINE times the kinetic energy of the skater, plus the bike.

    While I find the content visually appealing and I see the “street” aspect of this, collisions involving bikers are vastly more dangerous than those involving skaters. Cannot help but agree that some of the backlash is justified.

  2. Cowboy Curtis

    July 7, 2023 5:42 pm

    Get this pee wee Herman bicycle sh*t outta here.

  3. Bert

    July 8, 2023 6:27 pm

    Jenkem back with interesting stuff that goes beyond the usual skate crap. I like the look of his videos and I think the riding certainly has a lot of creative aspects but it also is fairly reactive, based on how the surroundings move (traffic, pedestrians). In that regard it’s closer to longboard hillbomb videos than to classic skate videos.

    So I’m wondering, the must be a more direct pendant to GX1000 in bike culture that goes beyond speed/bombing, basically combining speed and tricks in an urban environment. More urban than mountain biking, faster than BMX, but hitting some bumps and grinding some rails in between? What would that be called?

  4. You know what's just like skating?... skating.

    July 10, 2023 7:29 am

    The piece was interesting. Not sure what the editorial view point was though.

    Maybe the guy from London who did time for killing someone’s mum/wife/daughter might be able to add something on not stopping at lights and fixed gear culture?

    https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2017/sep/18/cyclist-charlie-alliston-jailed-for-18-months-over-death-of-pedestrian

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