Vašek Kolář and his Gravel Ride

Vašek Kolář is one of the most talented athletes in the Czech Republic. We know him mainly from the bike trials. Now he decided to exchange “swallows” for “rams”. The way he managed to adapt to the gravel wheel in a few days, being able to cut out these incredible tricks on the spot, testifies to his exceptional abilities. In addition, in this video, he rides with the brakes on the other side, after a quarter of a century of training! Incredibly challenging thing. Read how the whole project was baked and enjoy the video at least few times;)

22. 4. 2021 Photos: 7

We haven't seen Vašek on the gravel yet. Where did the idea of catching "rams" come from?

"I've been wanting to try gravel or road riding for a long time, so I agreed with the Kellys brand, which I ride, and at the beginning of March they lent me their new model of a gravel - Kellys Soot 70. After the first ride it was a really strange feeling, I've never held handlebars like rams before, so it was something completely new for me and I immediately thought it would be nice to shoot something interesting about it. On the same day I called my friend Jirka Fikejz, who I know shoots great as well as he rides the gravel very often at the moment, if he engages. Jirka nodded without hesitation, I came to Hradec Králové to see him and we started working on this My Gravel Ride project."

In the video we can have fun with a number of tricks in different environments. Where did you shoot everywhere?

"Well, filming was a bit complicated through the changing weather. Snow showers, then rather heavy rain, and the sun in a few minutes later, sometimes it was very mentally demanding. I had a few ideas and tricks in my head that I wanted to try. That's why we tried more places in the Czech Republic. Railway station in Hradec Králové, streets both in Hradec and Ústí nad Orlicí, bike park Peklák in Česká Třebová, area of construction company Moyses with excavators and various equipment in Blansko, crossing the rope, trickshot with basketball ball, etc."

The footage and editing of the video are very good. How long have you been working on the project?

"During the filming, what I enjoyed the most was that you found out what is possible with rams and thin tires, and basically without special preparations and training. I kept improving and surprisingly quickly gaining confidence during filming. Moreover, I had the brakes reversed on all the shots, which was a bit more dangerous. But over time I got used to it. We managed the whole video in five shooting days during March and many more hours behind the computer while editing, for which I want to thank Jirka and all those who participated in this video project."