Interviews
Jim Cielencki By Seditious Canary

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Seditious Canary: Good evening Mr. Cielencki. Your mission, if you choose to accept it, is to infiltrate Kink Bike Co. as their Team Manager and find out what it's like to manage one of the best BMX teams ever assembled, design revolutionary BMX parts and tour as a professional BMX rider.

Seditious Canary: This IM will self-destruct in 10 seconds.

Jim Cielencki: signed off at 19:18:13.

Jim Cielencki: signed on at 19:19:07.

Jim Cielencki: I didn't know it would really self-destruct?

Seditious Canary: No, of course not. It's sounded cool.

Jim Cielencki: I can only try.

Jim Cielencki: Maybe I can infiltrate it another way because I am not the team manager anymore. How about as a team rider?

Seditious Canary: Ahh, you're sloughing off the responsibility already. Excellent, you are learning about this BMX thing very quickly.

Jim Cielencki: Sure I will accept the mission, as long as I don't have to call them too much. They don't like that.

Seditious Canary: No, this is a no call sort of mission.

Jim Cielencki: Okay good, then I accept.

Seditious Canary: I think it requires heavy relaxation.

Seditious Canary: And riding....

Jim Cielencki: Sounds even better.

Seditious Canary: So, to get us started, how long have you been riding bikes of any size?

Jim Cielencki: My first bike was some kind of chrome thing and it was probably 25 years ago.

Seditious Canary: What kind of bike was it?

Jim Cielencki: It was probably a Huffy, but I have no idea. It wasn't until I got this red Takara that I actually did something related to BMX, which was actually racing on it.

Seditious Canary: You actually raced for a while, didn't you?

Jim Cielencki: If by awhile you mean three times, then yeah I raced for a while.

Jim Cielencki: I was just too small and wasn't really into it, but I would go out to the track with my brother when he would race.

Seditious Canary: So was BMX always about the tricks for you or was it childhood transportation that has somehow gone horribly wrong?

Jim Cielencki: It was mostly transportation like most kids because at that time there weren’t really tricks. At least I didn't know about them and besides they weren't that advanced. You could only do some jumping stuff like helicopters and tabletops, but again I was too small. It wasn't until I got pegs that I was able to get into tricks.

Jim Cielencki: I remember when the NBL was the NBA or something along those lines.

Seditious Canary: hehe, I'm old enough to remember that time too.

Seditious Canary: How did you get into bikes? Was it someone you knew or did riding around just grow on you like kudzu?

Jim Cielencki: My brother got me into it by taking me racing and then just riding in the neighborhood with him. When I got to 6th grade, I realized that riding was really big and a lot of people were doing it. So, I got more into it with people that were as good as me, and the same age.  

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Seditious Canary: So where did you grow up and did it play any roll in your riding?

Jim Cielencki: I grew up in a suburb of Buffalo New York called Cheektowaga in the western part of the state. Early on I would say that it played no roll in my riding because the time that I grew up in actually played more of a factor. But in the late 90s, when I was riding more street, it played a big deal. Up there nothing is really that same as what you would find in magazine, you have to come up with different stuff and don't expect too much. Just enjoy hanging out with your friends because what is there isn't the best, so just have fun with what you have.

Seditious Canary: Did you play sports at all growing up?

Jim Cielencki: Yeah, I played little league baseball and what not. I was into basketball in middle school, but after that no. I just rode a skateboard and my bike. If there was a game of something going on in the neighborhood I would play, but I wasn't serious about that stuff.

Seditious Canary: Do you think playing sports helped with you riding in any way?

Jim Cielencki: Actually you know what I forgot to say that I took gymnastics from 6th to 8th grade and that helped me the most with my riding. Just learning how to tumble out of a crash and how to stretch. Being comfortable flipping in the air and stuff like that.

Seditious Canary: Agreed. Most people think gymnastics is just standing around in tights with chalk on your hands. It's really helpful since you learn how to crash better and it gives you a lot of flexibility, which also help reduce injury when you crash.

Jim Cielencki: Totally, that is the best thing I got of any youth sports.

Seditious Canary: Did you grow up riding with anyone that influenced your riding or kept you in it when you wanted to give it up?

Jim Cielencki: After everyone quit, there were a bunch of guys that rode in a town about one and a half hours from Buffalo, NY. They were so motivating and I don't know where or what I would have done if I didn't ride with them. I would go down there every weekend or so to ride. They had ramps and street around them so it was super good.

Seditious Canary: After you got out of high school, what sort of education did you start working on?

Jim Cielencki: I went to college right away and I was suppose to go into engineering, but I got my freedom and was totally not into going to school. It took me awhile to get back into school, but eventually I settled on Geology and was working on a Masters in Urban Planning.

Seditious Canary: Do you mean things like bridges and overpasses?

Jim Cielencki: Ah, you mean for Urban Planning? If so then sort of that is only one aspect of it and I was more into the redevelopment of inner cities and mapping programs.

Seditious Canary: Ahh, so street planning in relation to utilities and buildings?

Jim Cielencki: Yes, but not so structural that is also an aspect in which I was into definitely, but I like city life and its density. So my interest was in redeveloping inner city to make them livable and workable. Eliminate the necessity of a car, so that you could survive without one. But doing this in a way that doesn't discriminate based on race, income, sex and occupation.

Seditious Canary: Excellent idea. Has visiting places like Europe helped inspire you in that goal?

Jim Cielencki: Yeah definitely when I went to the Backyard Jam in Telford, I rode in a car with a couple of English guys and they were making the fun of the area because it was in the suburbs and that it was "shit" because there was nothing around it. Could you survive in America if you didn't have a car? It would definitely be tough compared to having one. It is almost discrimination in the way we develop because they only develop for the automobile and who doesn't have an automobile? The poor, elder and the young.

Seditious Canary: Yeah, not having a car is really hard. I have done it most of my life.

Seditious Canary: Do you think being into bikes played any roll in what classes you took in college?

Jim Cielencki: Yes and no, for geology, bike riding always put me at odds with the rest of the world because it wasn't acceptable to ride a bike. So maybe I was attracted to geology because it wasn't a usually topic. As for Urban Planning, it did help because I was able to see the world at a different pace when I am out riding around compared to when you drive a car. So in that way riding helped.

Seditious Canary: What are your feelings about bikes getting lighter and the technology that is making them lighter?

Jim Cielencki: I think that bikes got lighter for two reasons that may or may not be equally shared. Technology did play a big role in allowing the bikes to become lighter, but so did a change in riding style. Riders became smoother and nobody jumps off buildings anymore. Riders realized that there stuff was overbuilt for what they needed for, so they worked to change that.

Seditious Canary: How would you respond to the people who say only a 40-pound bike is going to hold up to heavy riding?

Jim Cielencki: One bike is not for everyone! It all depends on what you are into; if you ride trails then a 40-pound bike might not work the best. At least now you have a choice, if you think a 40-pound bike works for you then you can most likely go and build up a bike to that. But go back to the mid 90s and see if you can build up a sub 30-pound bike that is decent in strength for "freestyle", good luck at that. There is something for everyone, now.

Seditious Canary: What sort of roll do you think you have played in bikes getting lighter?

Jim Cielencki: I am one among many riders who were looking for a way to lighten their bikes. Just wondering if something will work better, playing devils advocate about the products that were out there.

Seditious Canary: Are you trying to set this up for me? You've played into my next question. What is it like to see a design idea you have become an actual product?

Jim Cielencki: Obviously, it is pretty cool, but you wonder how well it will actually work. And if it will help you do a trick you have been thinking about. That is probably the reason why I went towards the light stuff is because there was tricks that I wanted to do, but I felt limited because of weight. My only hope is that people look at their riding and realize what type of bike they should be building up. If you are just getting into then you don't need the lightest bike, you just need a decent bike that will take the abuse from your learning.

Seditious Canary: What sort of parts have you designed already and what was the process like? Did you break something and say "Man, I could make something better?"

Jim Cielencki: Sounds like a 2 part question, I like the second part. Well, I am sure that each part is their own story, but again some part didn't work as well as I thought it could, so I asked for changes. When I was doing the bulk of the Kink stuff, it wasn't just me, it was the team’s effort. I would just gather their input and go from there. So I can't say any of that stuff was 100% me.

Seditious Canary: Are you working on anything parts right now that we should watch for?

Jim Cielencki: No, not really just riding a bunch of stuff that Odyssey is working on. I am so happy to be apart of them just because they are really into doing new stuff. They have a bunch of stuff coming that is going to be good. Chris Cotsonas is the best, he doesn't get a lot of publicity in the "media" but he should.

Seditious Canary: Chris is great. I wish I had run into him at InterBike last time. I can't count the number of guys I know personally he has helped.

Jim Cielencki: Yeah, he does so much good stuff for Odyssey and BMX. How many other companies have one of their representatives online to answer questions about products in an almost instant.  

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Seditious Canary: So you are living south of the Mason-Dixon line now. What are your new digs like?

Jim Cielencki: Sparse is one way to describe my apartment. If you come over plan on sitting on the floor I have only one chair. And the floor is more comfortable then this stool that I am sitting on right now.

Seditious Canary: My computer was sitting on top of a box for a few months, so I know what you mean.

Jim Cielencki: Exactly.

Seditious Canary: What has it been like living in Athens and riding with the Athens Family?

Jim Cielencki: They have taken care of me. I have learned a lot about flatland. I have gotten into more tech stuff in street riding. And then there are a bunch of parks with a whole bunch of super good riders that help keep you motivated. The move couldn't be any better.

Seditious Canary: Who are you hanging out with from day to day down there?

Jim Cielencki: Most of the time my schedule is solo, but I meet up with Kent Pearson, Jody Temple, Darren, John Doekker and Josh Ponzer. Those are the local guys and when I go out to Atlanta there are so many guys.

Seditious Canary: I've heard the Athens Family is huge.

Jim Cielencki: It might be, but some members have moved out of Athens I think. That is all right. Though because a scene that is too big isn't much fun.

Seditious Canary: Are you a snowbird down there or are you planning on setting up shop long term in Athens?

Jim Cielencki: I would like to set up shop longer here, but right now I have the chance to travel for a while so I am going to take it. Who knows if I will get the chance again? Or if I would even want it after awhile?

Seditious Canary: Where are you going to be going?

Jim Cielencki: Back up to Buffalo, but that will kind of be a home base. For most of the fall, I will be traveling around. I want to drive out to California, go to Woodward and then over to England and Spain with a few other countries in between. I am open to go anywhere after that.

Seditious Canary: What do you think your worst injury was?

Jim Cielencki: I don't know, maybe hitting my face on the ground last year, but that wasn't so bad because a good thing came from it. I don't know what my worst one could be because I don't think I went to the doctor when I probably should.

Seditious Canary: Was that your accident in Toronto?

Jim Cielencki: No it was in Buffalo at the CFB.

Seditious Canary: Oh, right. I remember hearing about that. Did your accident in Toronto influence your decision to have LASIC at all?

Jim Cielencki: I didn't have any accident in Toronto, but the one in Buffalo influenced me to have the surgery.

Seditious Canary: Hmm, dang Internet...

Jim Cielencki: Good and bad isn't it?

Seditious Canary: I thought that injury was in Toronto. How has your eye surgery affected your riding?

Jim Cielencki: No worries about your braking glasses, or sweat dripping on your lenses and having them fogged up and what not.

Seditious Canary: How about just the being able to see part?

Jim Cielencki: Yeah, I guess that would be important. Seeing clearly from all points of view referring to peripheral as well as straight ahead is good. I don't really think I can describe in short enough words what it is like to go from 25 years of glasses to one day not having them. It took me months to figure out all the benefits of not having them and to this day I still think of new benefits.

Seditious Canary: Is depth perception better too?

Jim Cielencki: I don't know. I am so use to it that I can't really compare them anymore.

Seditious Canary: My wife had LASIC a few years ago and says it is one of the best things she has ever done, but that it was also the most stressful 15 minutes of her life.

Jim Cielencki: I agree. Easy, but stressful.

Seditious Canary: Did they tell you not to ride for a few weeks afterward?

Seditious Canary: Or fly?

Seditious Canary: Or sleep without bug-eye spoon shaped strainers taped onto your face?

Jim Cielencki: I did both the next day, they didn't say much about flying, but I was supposed to not ride for two weeks.

Seditious Canary: What is it like going on tour or traveling to contests?

Jim Cielencki: It is always good for the most part. Tours are good because you go with people that are your friends and you get to break up the schedule of your everyday life. It is all about traveling which I find a lot of fun.

Seditious Canary: What is your favorite part of being on tour?

Jim Cielencki: The beginning is always good because there is this excitement of what could happen. You get to see everyone that you haven't seen in a little while. Another good aspect is meeting new people, seeing their spots and just seeing new places.

Seditious Canary: What was the most recent tour you were on and where did it take you?

Jim Cielencki: The most recent thing I did was a solo tour going to a bunch of video premieres from Atlanta to Buffalo. Nobody else on the team went with me, but it was really good, I went to a whole bunch of parks that I haven't been to and everybody I met was awesome I had a good time, it was a little long, but it was fun.  

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Seditious Canary: What was the Mega Tour like? I can see hanging out with a few riders for a few days, but so many great riders has to be both really great and total chaos.

Jim Cielencki: We didn't see most of the teams other than the days of the demos. I had a good time even though my shoulder was hurting really bad. We had so much fun hanging out together, we didn't ride as much street because of the weather, but otherwise it was really good.

Seditious Canary: I heard there were a bunch of pranks getting pulled on that tour. Is that common or does it depend on how sporting the people on tour are?

Jim Cielencki: Yeah, that is sort of what is expected. But it should have only been open to rental vans, good job DK.

Seditious Canary: hehe

Jim Cielencki: Exactly, they know what they did.

Seditious Canary: Speaking of pranks, did you guys pull any on the MegaTour?

Jim Cielencki: No comment.

Jim Cielencki: I think we did most of them.

Seditious Canary: What was it like shooting Wasted Days?

Jim Cielencki: Pain in the ass is what it was like. For Kink's first video, it was a lot to live up to I thought whether we accomplished it is up to everyone else. I am just glad it is over.

Seditious Canary: Chris (from Kink) says my copy is in the mail.

Seditious Canary: I hear it's great, so I'm looking forward to a few happy hours in front of the DVD player this week.

Jim Cielencki: You should enjoy it, I complain so much, but I actually like it.

Seditious Canary: I think I should go on one of these tours as a mechanic.

Jim Cielencki: That would be good, if you were on our van it would have been officially standing room only, ask Kevin Porter.

Seditious Canary: What do you carry with you when you ride?

Jim Cielencki: Keys, wallet and maybe some eye drops.

Seditious Canary: Tool wise I mean, if anything.

Jim Cielencki: Nothing, I can't stand riding with a backpack, it seems to kill any spontaneity. I would rather walk back.

Seditious Canary: I know what you mean. I rode with a CamelBack once and hated it.

Jim Cielencki: I hear you, my manuals get thrown off big time.

Seditious Canary: I would be happy if I could manual on purpose. As it is, I only seem to do it accidentally when: it looks really cool and nobody is watching.

Jim Cielencki: Just keep working on it. It took me forever.

Seditious Canary: An unidentified source told me to ask you "What can you get for $35 in Canada or $12 in Mexico?"

Jim Cielencki: I really wouldn't be the one to ask, talk to someone else on Kink. I bet your first choice you will get it right.

Seditious Canary: OK, Just a few more questions. These are all from our readers.

Jim Cielencki: cool

Seditious Canary: Smoker Dave asks: How do you feel about the BMX industry, and riding today compared to 5-10 years ago?

Jim Cielencki: It is much bigger, and in way better hands than 10 years ago or longer. It is in the hands of people that care and have more than money involved in it, they actually do the sport and are interested in it. There are some things that still need to be worked on like low-end bikes. The "rider owned" companies sooner or later are going to have to deal with low-end bikes. How much of the industry do you own if you don't sell low-end bikes? I don't think as much as you might think. As for riding, it seems endless lets see where we are in 2 years who knows is how I feel.

Seditious Canary: Todd asks: Years ago, before the light bike craze, did you ever think that later on you would have one of the lightest bikes in BMX? Has it (your bike) changed your riding much?

Jim Cielencki: Well, I never wanted a heavy bike. I ended up settling on one though. Before riding for Kink, I was riding a GT Fueler, not the greatest bike, but it was way lighter than an Empire. I had a flip-flop hub at the time and looked into getting a 14-39 because it would be smaller, lighter and more out of the way, but there wasn't a good 39 to be found at that time. I have always wanted a decent weight bike, but in the past there just wasn't the choices available. In defense of the Empire, it was a light heavy bike for the time. As for changing my riding, I don't really do sprocket stuff anymore at least until someone makes a good chain. But for everything else I think my riding hasn't really changed, it is definitely more fun to ride than a heavy bike. I have learned to run out of stuff without letting my bike go flying.

Seditious Canary: Last question. I know it's getting late for you.

Jim Cielencki: Pizza is calling.

Seditious Canary: Salad Days asks: Why were you kind of a prick to Mirra on Road Fools 9?

Jim Cielencki: I watched that video recently and was like “What a dick I was.” It is unfortunate that things come out the way they do, you can make a story look so many different ways, but if you have limited film you can only make a story based on that. It was definitely weird riding with him. I have never ridden with him up until that point. And I must say we have different riding "styles" I use that for lack of a better term. I think most of my problems arose when "we" were figuring out what his "style" was all about. As for the pool thing, he wasn't the only one and tough shit. I still stand behind what I said there and it wasn't directed only at him. The best trick would have been to air not do mini ramp tricks. If you made it to the end, you would see that everything is good. Sometimes those things are not believable, but I didn't lie about what I said earlier in the video, so what makes me lie at the end.

Seditious Canary: OK, I forgot one question...

Jim Cielencki: Okay

Seditious Canary: I owe you beer for it.

Jim Cielencki: Okay

Seditious Canary: What are you listening to music-wise?

Jim Cielencki: I think I have ADD, so I am all over the place. From all the hip hop stations down here, to classic rock and especially oldies. Can't forget the Props Rock and just about everything else in between. I seem to not be able to stand anything right now. So I am all over the place.

Seditious Canary: What is your favorite obscure song or band?

Jim Cielencki: Buffalo Tom and a song called Torch Singer

Seditious Canary: Ahh, Buffalo Tom. Good call. Great band.

Jim Cielencki: Kind of an unsung favorite, might be the words to describe them in my eyes.

Seditious Canary: Many thanks sir. We appreciate your time and interest.