FARM JAM 2018
£ Tyler Bereman
squeezing the
last out of the
retreating sun
Andrew Jackson stole the show with
a completely blind backflip over the
hill to a landing he couldn’t see. It
came as such a surprise that none of
the 15+ photographers and filmers
managed to get footage of it.
Then on the last jump of the day,
Jackson’s good mate Stuart Ewing
attempted the same move. But
he rotated too slowly and crashed
hard - he was lucky to walk away
with nothing more than a couple of
bruises for his efforts.
Comp Day
As seems to have become the norm
for Farm Jam, the event day dawned
as a moody, dull day with a thick
layer of grey cloud. Hardly ideal
for photographers, but at least the
wind was nothing more than a slight
breeze.
Due to the earlier rough weather,
only a couple of riders had had an
opportunity to sample the flowing
dirt-focused FMX compound prior to
event day, but after a solid practice
session as the crowds poured
through the sheep gates, everyone
was fired up for the contest proper.
No-one was more fired up than
Andrew Jackson, however. It was
obvious from the very first session
that the understated 24-year-old had
worked his arse off over the past two
years. While his inside-out whips
and perfectly executed upright tricks
were all on-point, it was his silky-
smooth Underflips and his ability
to consistently flip a long-and-low
dirt-to-dirt double that really caught
everyone’s attention and earned him
a memorable Farm Jam victory.
After keeping fairly quiet in the hills
the previous day, it wasn’t much of
a surprise to see Sheeny come out
swinging in the FMX comp. While
none of the jumps were suited to his
trademark Double Flips and 360s,
Sheeny gathered a head of steam
as the comp wore on, chucking his
signature Ruler Flips and Double
Grab Flips to finish second behind
Jackson, while also claiming the Best
Trick award.
Tyler Bereman and Lewis Woods
combined to put on a hell of a show
for the 5,000-strong crowd that
turned up to witness the action, and
apart from a hairy moment where
Bereman over-jumped the freestyle
set-up and had to partially ghostie
his bike off the second step-up, the
pair rode flawlessly and seemed to
feed off each other’s energy. It was
no surprise at the end of the day
when Bereman picked up Best Whip
and Woods was voted to have the
Best Style.
That’s a Wrap
With the awards dished out, bellies
full of quality farm-cooked food and
the beers starting to flow freely, it
was time to sit back and reflect on
two days of riding that surely would
have to go down as some of the
defining moments in Farm Jam’s
11-year history.
his first-ever trip down under.
“Man, I couldn’t be more stoked
to have had the opportunity to
come and ride here,” he grins. “The
vibe, atmosphere, the friendliness
and positive attitudes of the Frew
brothers, the beautiful countryside
and the jumps are all on point. But I
think the thing that stands out for me
is the fact that this is truly an event
that’s ‘by the riders, for the riders’.
It’s easily the best, most unique
event I’ve ever attended.”
With Bereman already singing Farm
Jam’s praises and his videos going
viral, international interest in the 2020
FMX events are already at an all-time
high.
“Twitch, Carey Hart, Jarryd McNeill,
Axel