So, where exactly is Steve Giberson these days? We had a chance to chat with Steve about various things. The following is a pretty good read about Steve's background, his days at BMXA, and the whereabouts of Oz. Be sure to check out Steve's web site by clicking on his logo. Enjoy…

Steve Giberson (#307) rode for SE Racing in the early 1980's.

ROOST: Steve, just to set the record straight, tell everybody how you pronounce your last name.

SG: It's Guy-burr-sun. You can credit Rod Beckering for the GuyB nickname. I used to spell it Gibey, but way too many people butchered that.

ROOST: What got you involved in BMX in the beginning?

SG: Like a lot of kids, I wanted a motorcycle. However, my mom worked as an R.N. in an emergency room, and there was no way I was getting one. She'd seen too many guys come in all busted up. During the Stingray days there were a group of neighborhood kids who would go riding on weekends and after school. We had access to some really good terrain to ride on, hills, vacant lots with jumps, etc. On a Saturday morning, I'd eat about six or seven bowls of Cheerios. Then we'd just ride all day. About the only thing that would stop us was when we'd bonk at the end of the day. It was the typical pool our change to buy a Coke during the day. The first time I raced I got grounded. My mom had already said no, but I talked my dad into taking me to one of the races that Kevin McNeal put in Riverside. My big mistake was coming home and bragging about the third place ribbon I'd won. Mom wasn't too stoked.

ROOST: Who were your heroes growing up, the guys you tried to emulate?

SG: Mostly it was the European motocross guys who were studs at the time. Roger DeCoster, Joel Robert, etc. When "real" BMX got started, David Clinton looked awesome in pictures on his Kawasaki.

ROOST: You were a pretty good racer in your day. What was your most satisfying accomplishment?

SG: Traveling to Tacoma, Washington, and beating all the factory guys in a trophy dash after winning the 14 & Over Open. It was a lousy muddy day. I had an outside lane and was fourth out of the gate. But I also had the scoop on a really good line around the outside of the first turn. In the first turn, I passed Lee Medlin. In the second turn I passed Greg Hill, and coming out of the last corner, I got inside of Jeff Ruminer, and drag raced with him down the last straight. Just a dream day. My bike was a Mongoose, and I was using a Pirelli Moped motocross tire up front. Needless to say, it worked pretty well in the mud.

ROOST: How did you get involved with BMXA?

SG: I'd shown off a couple items I'd made for my bike to Bob Osborn at various races. He'd had me contribute a few articles. Then at a race at Grass Valley, he was asking me about someone he was thinking of hiring for a darkroom position at the magazine. The light bulb flashed on over my head, and I told him I'd be interested in that position. I probably started there a month or so later. I moved out from my parent's house, and rented a room from Rod Beckering's grandma. Later on, Todd Huffman also lived there in the other room she rented out.

ROOST: What sort of things did you learn working with Bob Osborn?

SG: Well, I started off working in the darkroom, doing errands around the warehouse, etc. The worked out great, because I was still racing. Later, after I was starting to taper off on my racing (I ended up breaking my right collar bone seven times), he started asking me about doing more writing for the magazine. When he decided to move me into the editor's seat, I think I basically got a four-year education in writing and photography in about six months. It was brutal, but worth it.

ROOST: How long did you work at BMXA?

SG: I worked there for exactly six years. The last two and a half were as the editor.

ROOST: Working for the mighty BMXA was every kids dream job. What was the atmosphere like working in the BMXA environment?

SG: It was pretty cool. All BMX all the time, and always trying to better the previous issue. It's always fun to be tapped into the nerve center of an industry. There were also some fun creative people to work with. Andy Jenkins, Spike, Lew, etc. The only bogus part was politics like when BMXA was boycotting ABA races, having a required amount of R.L. to put in every issue, stuff like that. I mean, I liked R.L., he and I were roommates for quite a while, but having recommended monthly allowances of coverage was a little weird.

ROOST: What circumstances lead you to leave BMXA?

SG: Long story. Oz had a "vision" of what the industry would be like in a few years. He used the motorcycle industry as a comparison, where there were originally many companies, including the European brands like DKW, Monarch, Maico, Montesa, Bultaco, etc., plus the Japanese brands. He figured that BMX would narrow down to a few major players, and devised a plan. He went to four of the major companies, and told them that if they advertised a certain amount per issue, maybe 4-5 pages, that they would get the dominant editorial coverage. It was promised to them. Honestly, I wasn't too psyched about the idea, but I had to play along, it was his magazine. Anyway, the first issue came out, and it had a lot of GT in it. The next issue came out, and it had a lot of Hutch. All of a sudden, every other company is complaining, and it was all my fault. I don't think I was there much longer after that.

ROOST: What, in your opinion was the reason BMXA ceased its existence?

SG: I'm sure part of it was the number of magazines at the time. Between Plus, Super, BMXA, Freestyle, Freestylin', etc., there was a glut of magazines on the market. Also, the industry wasn't exactly booming. Racing was down, and freestyle had diluted the market.

ROOST: Where else have you worked other than BMXA and what did you do?

SG: After BMXA I did a stint at Redline as the Team Manager. I spent a few years at Challenge Publications on Super BMX and their Freestyle title, then moved over to Mountain Biking magazine when they folded up the BMX titles. After that I moved up near San Jose, CA, to work at Specialized Bicycle Components. While up there I was their Tech Writer/Multimedia guy. I worked on some fun projects: a CD-ROM of one of their bike lines, some non-linear video editing for dealer training videos, and the whole web thing blew up while I was there. I also spent time working on developing web site content with their web site agency.

ROOST: Do you know/care where Bob Osborn is today, and what he¹s doing?

SG: Last I heard, he's a pretty solitary guy, and living up near Carmel, CA. The last quote I heard attributed to him was from when Mike Buff was in the area, and went to visit him. It went something like, "You're the second person from the old days who's come up to see me, and I wasn't happy to see either one of 'em." If he was that happy to see Buff, I'm sure he'd be less happy to see me. I don't think I'll make the attempt to try and connect.

ROOST: What is your opinion of Chris Moeller and Company using the BMX Action name on their new Magazine?

SG: Bagging the trademark was probably one of the smartest things anyone in the BMX business could have done. I just hope they maintain the reputation for quality that BMXA had before. Chris was around back then, so he knows what's up.

ROOST: Have you seen the new BMXA? If so, what is your opinion of it?

SG: Honestly? I haven't seen it.

ROOST: What do you think of the Mountain Bike companies "invading" the BMX arena? Are they in it for the money, or because the care about the sport?

SG: For most, I think they see it as an opportunity to capture brand loyalty at an earlier age. GT went the opposite direction, and I see a lot of guys who rode BMX in the early days come back with GT. It's a name they recognize and trust. I think a lot of companies also look at it as a way to lock up more floor-space, too. They might have individual product managers who care about the sport, but overall, it's more of a profit-oriented thing.

ROOST: Time to name drop. Who do you still keep in touch with from back in the day?

SG: I see Mike Devitt at trade shows, and Scot Breithaupt on occasion. Scott Clark e-mails from time to time. There are a few guys in the cycling industry. David Clinton (Answer Products), Todd Huffman (The Huffman Group), Rob Lynch (von.net) and a few more I can't think of at the moment that I talk to. Tinker Juarez, Toby Henderson, John Tomac, Eric Rupe, Mike King, Eric Carter, Brian Lopes and Dave Cullinan I see at mountain bike races all the time. Pretty much I can't go to a cycling event without running into someone I knew from the old BMX days. The weirdest is seeing Geoff Scofield, and the Housemans as adults, after shooting them as kids, losing track of them for awhile, and having them resurface in the mountain bike scene.

ROOST: You are still a freelance photographer running your own business, tell us a bit about what you do, and where we can find you.

SG: I still dig shooting any kind of action photography. I have a web site called MotoDrive Action Photo at www.motodrive.com. In there's an eclectic mix of mountain bikes, motocross, BMX and motorsports. I still do a fair amount of assignment shooting for Specialized Bicycle Components, mostly on the mountain bike side, but I'm always available for shooting or web gigs.

ROOST: Are you available for weddings?

SG: I don't do weddings, bar mitzvahs, births, etc. I have a lot more fun trying to capture moments of action. You know, capture the uncapturable.

ROOST: Any profound last words of wisdom you can leave us with Steve?

SG: Profound? Yikes. The pressure's on. I guess just that you can always stay involved in cycling, it's something you can make a career out of if you choose to, and not just be something to do when you're a kid. I also have to thank the people who helped out during my racing days. I owe big thanks to Rick at Rick's Bicycle City in Fontana, CA. He set me up with the Mongoose bike, and I don't think I got him the credit or coverage he deserved. Also Malcolm Smith, Craig Kundig at RRS, SE Racing, The Bicycle Source (Steve Potts), and Pro Neck.

Visit Steve Giberson on the web at motodrive.com.
Just click the logo and you're there.