Keith tailwhipping the mini at The Zone in Maine.

RealVideo of Keith (32 sec., 260K): spastic halfpacker, turndown on vert, air at Maximus skatepark, gliding switch-b to undertaker.

Forward death truck.

[June 1998]

<!-- Keith McElhinney is a longtime staple of the New England riding scene. Besides the fact that he's been riding since Bob Dole was a toddler, he always makes his presence known when he's around. During the local contest heyday of the late 80's/early 90's, you'd find Keith entering everything from King of the Flatland contests to Maul's Brawl mini ramp comps the ERA's vert and street comps...and if he wasn't placing in the top 3, he was at least making a spectacle of himself... -->

Name:

Keith McElhinney

Age:

29 (f*ck!)

Home:

Yes. Stoneham, MA

School/work:

Engineer for Simon and Schuester (yes, the one that just got sold for $4 billion or something)

What do you think of the Web?

Overhyped and underutilized. Too many sites are there just to "be on the web" without realizing the amazing potential that there is under the static HTML. It's great that you can get all kinds of information from sources you would never have gotten otherwise, but it is hard to tell if the information is correct. Web sites should be like magazines: glossy, inspiring or even just stupid. Something that will grab you one way or another.

What are some Web sites you visit regularly?

eWire, OnSale (don't EVER buy anything unless its from a real company), Dilbert Zone, game sites: a great 3dfx site, Quake site, Quake II editing site.

Significant other:

Jen Boutin (soon to be Jen McElhinney on August 9)

Are you still listening to Whitesnake?

Absolutely! Actually the noise I mostly listen to these days are Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Face to Face, Blink 182, Flock of Seagulls, ya know that kind of stuff...

Years riding:

19

Sponsors:

I would have to say Dick Maul's Bike Shop. He always hooks me up with stuff cheap. Then again he always hooks everyone up cheap.

Bike:

I ride a Hoffman EP for flat and an Eastern Hercules for ramp/street/jumping

Truck:

`97 Dodge Ram Sport

Which do you like better?

Bike. I love my truck, but riding, especially lately, is becoming one of the most important things.

Type of riding you do (flat, dirt, etc.):

Yes. I ride anything and everything. I rode vert for the first time in probably 4 years at Alternative Sports Skatepark in Tom's River, NJ a month ago. That place is so good! The vert was perfect (as was everything else) and it was so much fun. Kevin Robinson is just finishing his park in Providence, RI and it is looking awesome. He may put in a full vert in the future, but it looks so good now. I still ride flat, but not as much as before. I just don't have the time anymore to ride 6 or 8 hours a day. I have been going to Wakefield track a couple of times a week, but the jumps are just too racingish. I try to go to The Zone in Portland, ME once a week, but once Kevin's is done, I probably won't make the trip that often. I'm gonna go check out the Postal jumps this week (hopefully).

Describe your riding style:

Like an epileptic cat that gets thrown in a bathtub full of cold water.

Favorite riding spots:

ASS, NJ, Kevin's Skatepark, Salem train station

Favorite riders:

John Cote, David Tufts, the Chapman Brothers, John Maul, Rich Daugirda, Tony Long, Jared Souney, Kevin Robinson.

Last trick you learned:

(Flat) Some flippy ground stuff. (Mini) G-turn flyout to rockwalk in without the back wheel touching. (Jumping) Barspins.

Best riding memory:

That's a hard one. It is definitely not the all you can eat seafood we got in South Carolina — we almost had to evacuate the city after John Cote used the bathroom. It is probably just a conglomeration of all of the stuff I got to do: Riding to The Cult's "Sun King" at Sousa's half-pipe, rolaids at KOF, late night session in Salem, Cote's warehouse, RATZ, Arlington Bus Depot, Hampton Beach and 12 year old girls, ASS, Dave Alden's hair, Steph Pilanen's wedge ramp, doing the '91 NBL Circuit with Cote and Murphy.

Biggest accomplishment:

Not being dead yet!

What's your opinion on riding's newfound popularity?

I think its cool. I know a lot of people think that ESPN is ruining our sport, but most of those people weren't around in the early to mid nineties. The popularity gives us more choices. I can go to Dick Maul's and look at 15 different kinds of high-end frames. This didn't happen when the sport was small. I also like seeing kids that are into it. You see some little 13 year old practicing endo and that's cool. I can go to riding spots and have people to ride with. It seems to be a lot better that if it was dead. Skateparks don't exist when no one goes to them. If you think that ESPN is ruining our sport, don't watch it, don't go to it, ignore it.

Do you like contests?

I like them. I don't get to enough of them, though. I went to the Canadian competition and IT SUCKED! The guy who put it on lied to us about everything. He is such a dick. I think competitions have changed a lot. When Dad Cote put on the King of the Flatlands and Greg Sousa, Kevin, Woody and Fred did the Eastern Ramp Association Comps, that was the best. All summer you would have someplace to be every weekend. Maul's Brawl was one of the last local comps, and he isn't doing them anymore. These days no one does local stuff, which blows.

What's good about living & riding in New England? What sucks?

The people in New England are awesome. The riders are all really laid back, but still serious. The scene is strong. The weather sucks pud muffins. Until Kevin's, there was no good local skatepark.

Have you shaken the nickname "Striker"?

I don't know, ask Kennan "Dog" Harkin.

Final words: