[November 1998]

<!-- I've met Tom Masterson on very few occasions, but he's always impressed me with his riding skills. At the Ride photo shoot (where I took the photos on this page) I was absolutely amazed at what Tom was doing — high, smooth, and rad variations — on what were some of the biggest jumps I've ever seen. He later proved his street skills were up to par as well. Since I don't really know all that much about Tom, I figured the best way to find out was to ask him...prepare for some bizarre answers. -->

Age & home:

I just turned 21 on 9/17/98 and something weird happened. After many hours of hiking through a section of the Rockies called Atlas, there was a big balloon that said "Happy Birthday" with a teddy bear painted on it. How weird can it get? My permanent address is in a beautiful town called Dracut, but right now I live under a fuckin' tarp in Colorado.

Years riding:

It's been 8 years now.

School/work:

I'm in my 2nd year at Middlesex Community College in Lowell. As for work, I do bike shows, paint houses, I get a monthly salary from Huffy, and when I get back from Colorado I'm going to participate in a 10 day sleep deprivation study at Brigham & Women's Hospital in Boston for $1,300.

Sponsors:

My mom, Eastern Boarder, and Huffy Taiwan.

What's the deal with Huffy? How did that come about? Do you like the bike?

I was at Muggleston's house lookin' at a mag and I read an article about the Huffy deal (shovels, wheelbarrow, frame). About a week later I called Scott Toth at Huffy and within a couple of weeks I had a frame. I was riding an MJ12 for a while, but the headtube ovalized so now I have an STA with Huffy stickers. The angles [on the Huffy] were good, but the head tube was like a fuckin' tin can.

How did you get started riding?

I used to live at an old apartment complex called Whitecliff Manor and for 6 years I didn't even know that there were some bike jumps in the woods behind my house. I went to Catholic School up until the 5th grade and for the 6th grade I switched to public school. That opened up a whole new world for me. I met a kid named Josh at the bus stop and he told me about the jumps and how he rode there after school. He was the best rider I had ever seen and it was then that I knew that I wanted to ride.

Have you always been jumping? Did you race at all?

Yeah, I've always been jumping, but when I first started I used to ride flatland at night after I jumped during the day. Paul Dufresne got me into racing, then I got Al Farris into it and we would race at Wakefield BMX every Sunday. As soon as we saw 44 something, Wakefield got old real quick. Then we met Muggleston and started ridin' at Pig Pen. It's all history from there.

With whom & where do you ride most of the time?

I ride with Angel Tejeda, David Muggleston, Allin Farris, Mark Rainha, and the Dracut locals most of the time. MOD and Boston are my local spots; other spots I've ridden at are Impact skatepark and Winchindon jumps. I've been going on a lot of road trips lately so I don't really have a spot that ride most of the time.

Do you like living & riding in New England, or do you want/plan to leave?

I love NE. In fact, the last road trip I was on didn't even leave NE and it was the best one yet. With a classic lineup like David Muggleston, Mark Rainha, Bill Bachman, Steve Kneeland, Angel Tejeda, and myself, you're gonna see some serious shit.

What's more important: Tricks or style?

Going big or being smooth?

I saw the carcass of a goat lying aside a stream. It's stomach was exposed and kept maggots real close and it had no eyes. But the best part was the smirk on the dead goat's face, that was the best part.

Who's had the biggest influence on your riding?

Al Farris. We grew up together and rode every day. Dave Muggleston and Angel Tejeda have also influenced me greatly in many ways on top of riding.

Worst injury:

I don't know if this was my worst, but a couple of months ago at some jumps in Winchendon I tried to 270 a hip and went way too fast. I bailed on a 180, overshot the landing and when I landed my face hit my knee so fuckin' hard. Blood was coming out of my mouth, and my knee was fucked up for 2 months from the impact.

Future plans:

If any pussy mutherfuckers wanna talk shit about me then should say it to my fuckin' face. North East Sports is the fuckin' worst bike shop and they can suck my ass. And I hate everyone that gave me bullshit about diggin' at MOD.