Maturity reigns supreme over here. I first heard that Eli had decided to leave the Pro life when I was in Taiwan, so I called Sher when I got home to confirm, talked about asking some questions for the site, then was whisked off to the East Coast for a few more days. When I got back, I sent the questions off and in the meantime, the rumor spread. But now we’re here to fill in the blanks with answers from both Ryan Sher and Eli himself.
As for my personal opinion, Eli was one of my top five favorite dudes to see ride lately, so I’m a bit bummed that I won’t be seeing too much of him anymore. But, there’s more to life than BMX, you know? Well, sometimes…
Eli, rail ride-to-whip on the Shadow Albuquerque stay… Photo: Fudger
Interview With Eli Platt…
I feel like I can simply ask, “What’s up with all this?” and you’ll explain everything. But, is there any truth to the rumors have it that you quit both Subrosa, Shadow, and BMX all together?
Yes to all but the last. I recently told Ryan and Ronnie that I thought it was time for me to move on. I simply have other goals that I feel demand my entire attention, and being a pro BMX rider is not something I feel like I can do half-heartedly. I see that as essentially ripping off my friends. They deserve a team member that is as committed as they are, and I’m just not sure I can do that anymore. I respect everyone at Subrosa and Shadow too much to not give them my all, and there are too many people out there that could serve them well and would love the opportunities I have enjoyed.
I’ve been a huge fan of your riding for a long time, so I’m pretty bummed to hear that you’ve decided not to ride anymore. Have you chosen to step back from riding professionally, or are you just over riding completely?
Thanks a ton, and as the above suggests, I am certainly not done riding. I am just placing it on the back burner, while I move things that have been back there for a while up to the front. In doing that, I am not sure how my riding will be affected, and I don’t want to worry about it being worthy of the resources of my friends.
Did you come to this conclusion gradually or was it a sudden thing?
I certainly came to the decision gradually. I always knew that I would head back to school. Recently, I have really begun to crave that environment again, and I am increasingly anxious to get back. I knew it was time to move on when I started hoping it would rain so I could not feel bad about chilling and reading, instead of being out on the bike. In returning to school I want to give it my undivided attention. I made it through once with BMX on the brain, and I’m just not willing to do that again.
How did the conversation with Sher and Bonner go?
Absolutely as easy as the subject of conversation could allow. As I hope has become apparent, those guys are friends first. They are both such good people. I really lucked out in being involved with them.
What are your plans for the future?
Back to school. Honestly, the exact path is not clear at this point. My first degree is in Philosophy, but I’ve had bit of a falling out with it as a field of study. However, I do think it is an incredible foundation. Now I just need to build upon it.
Anything else you’d like to add?
More than anything right now I am filled with a sense of gratitude. I never would have seen the realization of so many dreams if it weren’t for the people that helped me along the way. Pro bike riders are seriously nothing without so many people behind them. Talent is everywhere, but good people to push some to the forefront are rare. In my own small case, I am so grateful to Mark Corbitt, Chad Shack, Jim C., Dave Jacobs, Rich Hirsch, everyone who has ever taken a photo of me, and, of course, Ryan and Ronnie and everyone at Sparky’s. I’ve met some of the most amazing people along the way. I am really just humbled by it all.
Sher, wallride over the rail in Albacrazy… Photo: Fudger
An Interview With Ryan Sher…
Did Eli quitting both Shadow and Subrosa catch you off guard?
It definitely did. Although I had always knew that at some point he would like to return to school. I just didn’t think it would be so soon.
In some sense, it’s pretty odd for someone to give up the “dream” of being a pro rider. What are your thoughts on it?
I’m beyond happy for Eli! I don’t think he’s giving up his dream at all. I think his dream just keeps evolving as he grows. I think it shows the strong character Eli has to giving up something that was going so well in his life and to start a new chapter. If his dream ever evolves back into being a pro rider, we’ll be here to support him again.
Where does this leave you guys with the Subrosa team video?
Well, it’s in just about the same place. It’s going to be a tour video, we are still going to be going on all the trips, we’ll just get to bring some of The Skeleton Crew riders with us on the trips. We have some footage of Eli from our Colombia trip that will certainly surface somewhere.
What about Eli’s signature frame, the Armada?
We still have a few Armada V2′s in stock. We’ll continue to sell them until they’re gone. Now it’ll be a collectors item to remember one of the baddest riders in BMX! We’ll add another frame to replace it when we have our new rider.
The Subrosa team is pretty small, so with Eli bouncing, are you looking for another Pro dude? Possibly bumping up one of the Skeleton crew?
Yeah, now we’ll be adding to the Subrosa team. We had be planning on making the team bigger this year anyway, it’ll just be a little sooner. We want to do it soon, so the rider can start coming on trips filming with us for the video, and start designing a frame. Our goal with The Skeleton Crew is to give them an opportunity to work their way up the ranks and onto the pro team, so it could possibly be one of them as well. I think we’ll be bumping a rider up, and adding a new one.
Anything else you’d like to add?
Thanks to Eli for being a part of Subrosa from day one.
Eli chillin’ with the rest of the Shadow team… Photo: Fudger
