If the hump doesn’t go the right way
and nothing comes back, you might
find more guys will start walking away
from the sport or riding shows. Without
contests it’s hard to keep the sponsors
happy; they love seeing you on the
podium and the media coverage they get.
Without that, they don’t see the benefit
of sponsoring riders and the whole sport
suffers.
Do you get much positive feedback
from sponsors for riding demos and
shows?
Not really, no. My sponsors’ main priority
is X Games, then X-Fighters and NIGHT
of the JUMPS. I get bonuses for podium
results, but I don’t have any bonus
structures in place for riding Nitro Live
shows. That’s purely because there are
so many other guys riding in the show;
you’re in trains, synchros, there’re BMX
bikes and the Giganta-Ramp going on,
you’re just part of the show as a whole.
On the other hand, if you win or get top
three at a contest, the spotlight is solely
on you for 90 seconds or more, and
that’s what the sponsors love.
Is there any chance of you branching
out and doing something like step-up
or quarter-pipe at X in the future?
To be honest, I just want to get a bloody
freestyle gold! There’s so much work that
goes into that and until I succeed I don’t
want to side-track myself.
Haha fair enough! You hinted earlier
that you want to start looking at
Doubles and Front Flips now. Is that
your focus?
I think the Double Flip has been
overlooked because of how crazy we all
thought it was. I’m definitely not saying
it’s easy, but to see Levi do them so
smoothly and consistently with combos
this year, it’s changed a few people’s
minds and shone a new light on it.
And I want to work on the Front Flip
purely because I hate the mechanical
ramps and I want to show that it’s still
possible off a standard ramp.
I’m guessing you’ll be gleaning as
many tips as you can from Jacko
Strong for them.
That’s the plan. I’ve taken a few off the
super-kicker into the foam-pit and they
weren’t as successful as I would’ve liked.
But as scary as they are, I’m committed
to getting the Front Flips going and it’s
only a matter of time before you see me
do them. u
100 | FreestyleXtreme.com
..................................
I’m Rob Adelberg
HI I’M: Rob Adelberg
BUT PEOPLE ALSO CALL
ME: Bobby
I’M: 29
AND LIVE IN: Benalla,
Victoria
I RIDE: a Yamaha YZ250
AND DRIVE: a Ford Ranger
I LISTEN TO: City and the
Skies
THE LAST MOVIE I
WATCHED WAS: War Dogs. I
always get a good kick out
of Jonah Hill.
I EAT: chicken parmy with
chips and gravy
AND DRINK: Rockstar, or
water with a tiny bit of
vinegar
IF YOU SEE ME AT THE BAR,
GET ME: a water with ice.
“
I’ve got a
whiteboard with
some tricks written
down that I want
to tick off: three
different varials,
the 360, Double
Backflip and the
Front Flip