September 22, 2003 - We are setting up tomorrow for the LA County Fair. Do not miss our shows at 1:00pm, 3:00pm, 5:00pm and 7:00pm each day September 25th - 28th then check us out at The Big Fresno Fair October 1st - 4th and 2:00pm, 4:00pm and 6:00pm each day.

September 21st, 2003 - Well, last week was week two of the September Got Milk? high school shows. We had a weekend off and it was back to work. We had almost the same lineup as the previous week with a few changes. We swapped out Jim Burgess and Jay Stevason for inliner Marco De Santi and BMX'er Jimmy Walker.

Day 1 - Palos Verdes Penninsula High
Monday started off a little rough but ended up being a one of those "diamond in the rough" kinda days. I had to drive up to Redondo Beach to pick up Marco De Santi and I figured I was close enough to the school area that I did not need to go back to the freeway. I got us pretty lost for a little while but ended up on the PCH in an area of LA that I never knew existed. The Palos Verdes neighborhood was awesome, rolling hills, beachfront homes. It looks like something from Big Sur or Monterrey. Sure enough I stumbled upon the school. These are some lucky kids because this is the coolest high school I have ever seen. We were due to perform for one group of kids during lunch and we were setup on the football field overlooking a valley. They had a group of moms who volunteered for the afternoon to be safety monitors, that was a first. They were actually pretty funny. The show was awesome as usual, Marco was flat-spinning and back-flipping his way all over the ramp and Jimmy Walker and Jason Davies concocted a doubles run, a first with BMX riders on that ramp.

Day 2 - Glendale Senior High
Let me tell you about Glendale High. I rolled up and the ramp was setup on the track next to the biggest set of bleachers on the football field. The staff was very pumped up about all this, they had the whole school coming out for one giant assembly. It was going to be a little different because the first row of bleachers was set up about as high as the deck of the ramp so it was almost like an arena setting. They brought these kids out and it was amazing, they were cheering for practice! They were making noise before I ever started talking on the mic. This show was the most incredible 25 minutes I have ever spent at a school show ever, I'm talking all high schools, junior highs and elementary schools of my whole career. These kids were louder than most fair show crowds I have dealt with. It definitely affected my performance as well as that of the riders. The Q + A trivia session was awesome too, that in itself lasted almost 20 minutes. They even bussed in some of the junior high kids for the show. After it was over the athletes and I all just looked at each other as if to say "did that just happen?" I would say there were about 2400 kids there and I give them an A+++!!

Day 3 - Westminster High
Another hot and sunny day in Southern California. We had a great day at Westminster and the kids seemed to love the show and the break from class. The school yearbook had a video crew out there filming and they wired Marco up with a helmet cam so they could get some actions shots.

Day 4 - Downey High
Thursday was super hot. This was a huge campus and they had us setup on the football field behind the big gymnasium. We did two groups, both assemblies at this school and they were huge. I would say about 1000 to 1200 kids per group. When they came filing out of class it was once again a sea of people. Most of the students came up close, but a few stayed back against the gym wall at the start of the show. By the end of the shows they were all up close to the barricades.. Richie and Gabe proved to be crowd favorites here once again and the giveaway sessions at both shows were madhouses.

Day 5 - University High
This campus looked like a college at first glance. It was down the street from UCI and it was huge. We had one group today, during a lunchtime assembly for about 32 minutes. This is a little less time than we prefer, but we made the best of it. We were setup in the quad nestled between music class and the lunch area so students brought their lunches to the show. Everybody seemed to have a great time and the riders were bombarded with autograph requests after the show.

September 13, 2003 - Well its been awhile since we have performed got milk? Gravity Tour high school shows. The last time we had assembled at a school in the name of GOT MILK? was back in May. It has been a busy summer with shows and contests and it is nice to know the season is winding down. The lineup for last weeks shows in San Jose California was Jim Burgess, Jason Davies and Gabe Weed handling the BMX duties and Richie Lopez and Jay Stevason covering for us on the skateboards. The boys were more than ready to thrown down some tricks and have some good ole fashion dairy fun courtesy of the California Milk Advisory Board. Here's a rundown of how the week went.

Day 1 - Leland High
Most of us arrived late Sunday night so I thought everyone would be tired and a little slow this morning. To my surprise everyone actually got up a little extra early and had breakfast then we headed off to the school rearing to go. We arrived a little early and gave Gus and Martine, our ramp crew, a hand setting things up and making sure the site was clean and looking good, the BMX boys even had a little flatland session on the tennis courts before the student body came out. Our first show was during lunch and lasted for about 45 minutes. High school shows tend to be hit or miss with the crowds, and sometimes you get a group that can be "too cool for school" but Leland was amazing. We probably had somewhere in the neighborhood of 1800 to 1900 kids. Jay Stevason was a newcomer to the Got Milk Gravity Tour and he had everyone's attention as soon as he dropped in. He and Richie were definitely the crowd favorites. After the show we did autographs, gave away some cool stuff and then headed back to the hotel.

Day 2 - Independence High
Tuesday started off with the threat of rain. It was a little misty in the morning and very cloudy throughout most of the day. We were originally slated to setup on the football field but due to the wet grass and a rather small gate to get on the field, Independence decided to let us setup in front of the school right by the gymnasium. This ended up being a much better location because we were closer to the campus and everybody was able to get out to us much faster. We had two performances this day, assemblies, each one consisting of about 1500 to 1800 kids. Independence definitely liked the show and when it was time to give out free GOT MILK? stuff and do some GOT MILK? trivia, everyone went crazy. The crowd favorites today seemed to be Richie and Gabe.

Day 3  - Oak Grove High
So much for the threat of rain this week, day 3 was sunny and beautiful. It was nice and hot as well, probably about 90 degrees come show time. We had one show this afternoon, about an hour in length during lunch. The setup here was a little different compared to most. The school has a theater with a concrete stage that leads out of the back door. It stands about 3 feet off the ground. The activities director had us setup against the stage and the other side of the ramp was a grass hill so everyone could see us perfectly. They had several kids from the school paper and video yearbook standing on the stage filming and taking pictures, it was a cool vibe. Since the lunch period was an hour we extended the show a little longer than normal. I don't really know what else to say about the guys, they were on their A game as usual, the kids really got into Jay Stevason's varial tricks and back to back 540's. Richie is always a crowd favorite and once again Gabe was a big hit. We had a really good trivia Q + A session after the show.

Day 4  - Silver Creek High
It was another beautiful and sunny day. Thursday was one show, during lunch for about 45 minutes, set up in the Quad next to the lunch area. We were actually set up directly across from the lunch serving lines and they had some GOT MILK? banners hanging from the walls, some of the older ones with Tony Hawk on them. This was the second day in a row that a girl won the skateboard.

Day 5  - Santa Teresa High
Friday was the last day of the San Jose shows and man was this one a scorcher, had to be close to 100 degrees come show time. Today we were setup out on the football field for an assembly. At first I didn't know why they wanted us dead center in the field but when I realized they were bringing the whole school out at once it all made sense. There was a sea of people that just kept coming out to the field. There were around 2400 kids at this show. They students were a little farther away from the ramp compared to what we are used to so I cranked the PA up a little louder so everyone could hear. Despite the heat and the distance the group seemed to be really into the show and very receptive to our messages and why we were there. Giveaways were crazy, everybody wanted GOT MILK? stuff. We gave the skateboard to the principal and we all signed it and took a group photo. They are going to hang the skateboard in a display case in one of the hallways.
I give Santa Teresa an A.

August 2, 2003 - Hello gang. It's Steven writing from the California Mid-State Fair in Paso Robles, CA. We are just past the half way point of the 2003 Gravity Tour. This weekend's shows have been packed and the Paso fans are amazing! The fair has set up our shows right next to the Bunjee Jump, which has kept Danny Mayer and Mike Budnik busy during our breaks. Producers dairy is out with free milk and we have given away a ton of free stuff. We are scheduled for one more day here in Paso, so we'll see ya down here!

July 20, 2003 - The team is getting ready as we head up to the Gilroy Garlic Festival in Gilroy, California. Dave Brumlow is going to join us for a couple of shows and Chad Shetler who has never ridden with us will be there as well. The festival brings in about 125,000 people so it should a spectacular weekend.

July 13, 2003 - Hey everybody!  We are having a blast at the Orange County Fair here in Costa Mesa. Our shows are at night in the Citizens's Bank Arena along with the FMX demo and crash up derby. Jesse Fritsch and Danny Mayer have been rip'n it up and Gabe is riding better than ever. We have two shows today at 2 and 8pm so come on down and check us out!

May 12, 2003 - Jimmy Coleman here once again.  Time for stop number three on the 2003 got milk? Gravity Tour: The Dixon May Fair. Dixon is a small town about 35 miles west of Sacramento. It's a neat little town right off of interstate 80.  The May Fair is an annual event that draws in some rather large crowds.

This was a four-day event and the guys all got in on Wednesday. There was some bizarre weather in the area and sure enough it carried over into Thursday. The crew for this event included myself, Mike Crum, Sven Boekhorst, Koji Kraft, Jason Davies, John Parker, and Gabe Weed. We arrived on site on Thursday to set up the PA and right before I was going to pick up the guys it started raining. It basically rained off and on all night and we actually had a funnel cloud in the air over town that night. I thought California didn't have tornados!

Friday greeted us with blue skies and fairly mild temperatures. We had three shows a day throughout the weekend. The crowds were a little smaller than we would have liked but technically with the rain it was considered the first day of the fair so the smaller crowds were to be expected. The shows went without a hitch and our 6 PM show was actually quite packed.  The fair filled up quickly that night because country star Leanne Rimes was coming in to play.

Saturday was another great day weather-wise and the crowds were great too. Basically the crew we had for this weekend's event was the 'battered and bruised' crew. Mike Crum was recovering from a hyper extended knee. Sven Boekhorst was just getting back on his skates after recovering from a broken ankle last summer that required two pins and a plate. Jason Davies was recovering from a fractured wrist, and Koji Kraft was still recovering from a broken clavicle. Despite injuries, the crowd was treated to some great riding. We gave away the usual swag, t-shirts, hats, got milk? skateboards, and of course free milk, courtesy of our friends at Crystal Cream Dairy. Koji slammed pretty hard in the first show and broke his pedal. He runs oversized pedals on his bike and couldn't get a replacement. Our flatland rider Gabe Weed took a pedal off his bike and gave it to Koji and Gabe rode the last two shows on one pedal. Riding flatland with one pedal is unheard of but it didn't phase Gabe one bit. He rode like a champ. To cap the day off, John Parker crashed on a double tailwhip and broke his knuckle.  Add another one to the injured list.

Sunday was another fine day with great weather and awesome crowds. It was Mother's Day and Latino day so we had some crazy salsa music on the stage behind the ramp competing with us all day. Despite the loud thumping Latino beats, we still rocked the crowds with three awesome shows. Koji managed to knock himself out in his intro run of the last show but got right back up and rode for the last 10 minutes. That kid can take a beating and keep coming back for more. Well that's it from Dixon. Contest season is around the corner so we take a bit of a break in the action from the got milk? Gravity Tour. Enjoy the photos and we'll see you soon.

May 8, 2003 - Well its time for a little update from the road on the 2003 got milk? Gravity Tour. We kicked things off in April at the Toyota Grand Prix race in Long Beach California. The following week we spent a few days in the Torrance California area (a suburb of Los Angeles) and then it was time to pack up and head to Stockton California for the Stockton Asparagus Festival.

A few of us had been to the Stockton Asparagus festival before and those who hadn't been there had all heard good things about it. The crew for this event was Mike Crum, Richie Lopez, Marc Englehart, Jim Burgess, John Parker, Koji Kraft, and myself Jimmy Coleman. Once we arrived in Stockton, the weather wasn't exactly agreeing with us and we were told there was a good chance of rain all weekend. That seemed to put a damper on things (no pun intended) because we had a great ramp to ride and the possibility of huge crowds, and the thought of sitting in the hotel all weekend didn't sound too exciting.

Friday we arrived on site and sure enough, rain. The park that the event was held in was a pretty cool little place with lots of oak trees and had a fairly large sized pond that snaked through the entire park. The ramp was in a perfect spot right next to the pond and on the edge of the "kids area." Basically Friday was a wash.

Saturday found us with great temperatures and blue skies. We did 3 shows and had great crowds. People were packing in on both sides of the ramp and screaming throughout the entire show and they had reason to. The level of riding during these shows was off the hook. Most times you do demos and you get guys doing their normal show type tricks, but during the second show something kicked in and these guys were firing off everything they had and then some. Richie and Mike were both pulling 540's and Richie assaulted the ramp with 360 varials, body varials and heelflip indy airs. Marc Englehart got gutsy and threw down a few 900's and even a flatspin 900. As for the bikers, Koji was all over the place as usual and Parker even fired off a double tailwhip for the folks.

Sunday there was the threat of more bad weather but we managed to get in all 3 shows without any problems. That same intense energy from Saturdays shows had carried over. Usually the first show of the day everyone takes it easy and gets into a groove, not today. From the minute we started it was like a contest and the crowd loved every minute of it. We had a visit from the Dairy Princess (it was her last day as Dairy Princess) and she helped give away the Got Milk? goodies we had. The last show of the day the fans were treated to a rare 8 foot out bike ejection by John Parker. Basically he got a flat in the middle of an air and had to bail out, it was the equivalency to jumping out of a third story window. Now most guys would have quit for the day seeing as how it was the last show. John fixed his flat in record time, then got back up and did a double tailwhip, how's that for professionalism. Koji capped off the show by trying a crazy looking flair (blackflip 180). He almost made it but slid down the ramp on his hip.

Overall the weekend was a huge success despite the weather, and the people of Stockton were able to witness some great riding, courtesy of the folks at got milk?.

February 28, 2003 - We have had a nice break and now it's time to get back out on the road. I am so excited about the up coming got milk? Gravity Tour. Our first stop will be at the Long Beach Grand Prix, it's always a blast and everybody is so into action sports. The racing is great so when were not riding we are watching all the action on the track.  Check back soon for more entries!