You know that kid… the one who pulls an all-nighter writing a 10-page paper that’s due the very next day and still gets an A on it? Well, you could almost say that that was the case for Gatorade Free Flow Tour champions Mike Payne and Alex Landeros, the 2010 BMX park and dirt champs, respectively. They both waited until the last couple of stops of the Tour to qualify for the Finals, but it paid off in a big way.
Alex Landeros competing at the DK Dirt Circuit (photo courtesy of Ride BMX::Fat Tony)
After the Gatorade Free Flow Tour added BMX dirt to its roster for the 2010 season, Illinois-native Landeros didn’t compete until the third and final stop of the circuit. After winning the DK Dirt stop, Landeros went on to the Finals, where his consistency, paired with a double whip, suicide no-hander and a stalled-out flip whip, landed him on top of the podium.
Gatorade Free Flow Tour dirt podium (L to R) - Jason Lopez, 2nd; Alex Landeros, 1st; Daniel Sandoval, 3rd
“I really wanted to come out here and do a flip whip,” Landeros explained. “It’s a trick that I’ve been doing for a while, but I was nervous about doing it because these jumps are big. I pulled up too quick, so in order to slow my rotation, I just stalled. I guess it looked cool. It wasn’t on purpose.”
Mike Payne won the Skate City stop in his hometown, where he'll also compete in the Dew Tour Championships
In the same way as Landeros, Payne waited… and waited… and waited until the Gatorade Free Flow Tour came to his hometown of Las Vegas for the second-to-last BMX park competition of the entire season. And even though there were only two weeks between his win and the Finals, it looked like Payne put in the most practice when it came time for the BMX park finals in Salt Lake City.
In his first run, Payne threw down flairs and tuck no-handers throughout the course, ending his run with a tailwhip lookback over the box, and the score held on straight through to the win.
Gatorade Free Flow Tour park podium (L to R) - Andrew Ahumada, 2nd; Mike Payne, 1st; Shanon Farrugia, 3rd
“The entire second heat, I thought I was going to get knocked out of first,” Payne said after his win, “Especially after watching Mini [Andrew Ahumada] ride. That kid shreds, he’s so good. I didn’t expect to win, honestly. It was so good to see that.”
As Gatorade Free Flow Tour title holders, Landeros and Payne will be traveling to Las Vegas to compete in the prelims of the Dew Tour Championships, Oct. 14-17. Even though they defeated some of the best ams around to become 2010 champions, their fates against the Dew Tour’s pros remain to be seen.
“I don’t know. They’ll probably kick my ass, but it’ll be fun,” Landeros said.
“It’s pretty wild that I’ll be riding against legends like Ryan Nyquist,” Payne added. “It’s going to be a good time, but I’m taking him down (laughs).”
Watch the highlights from the Gatorade Free Flow Tour Finals' BMX park and dirt competitions.
