The first trick Christian Rigal ever learned on a BMX bike was a tree ride, at a Burger King in Moraga, California. Twenty five years later he rides mountain bikes for a living and, in his words, all he is doing is driving around looking for cool trees to ride his bike on.

Christian spent a decade as a pro BMX rider, earning X Games Real Street medals and filming video parts on both sides of the lens. Then Brandon Semenuk put him on a mountain bike and it changed the trajectory of his career. In this episode we get into what it means to carry a street rider's eye into the mountains, why he took a conscious step back from filming other people to focus on his own riding, and how he learned to stop measuring himself against friends who have been mountain biking their entire lives.

We also go deep on the trail he built on the Oregon coast near Pacific City. Thirty six days straight of building through the winter, roughly six of them spent hand placing moss and ferns so the trail would look like it belonged in the forest, and so the hillside would not wash out into it. Then we get into what happens after a project is done: why he insists on premieres and printed photos, why he gave away tires and pumps and helmets like it was Christmas, and why a video that only lives on Instagram never felt like enough to him.

Christian Rigal is a professional mountain biker and filmmaker who runs Rigal Visuals. He came up through BMX riding for United Bike Co, earning X Games Real Street medals (silver in 2017, bronze in 2018 and 2019) and appearing in video parts including Markit Zero. He moved to mountain bikes around 2018 and his films include Redemption, By The Homies, the Five Ten short Crossover, and Long Story Short for Specialized. He is supported by Specialized, Scott, Fox Racing, and Five Ten.

Follow Christian:

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/christianrigal/
Rigal Visuals https://www.instagram.com/rigalvisuals/

Outside Is Magic is a podcast about the intersection of creativity and the outdoors, hosted by Christopher San Agustin, founder of Broken and Coastal.

Website: https://www.brokenandcoastal.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brokenandcoastal/

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outside is Magic is hosted by Christopher San Agustin.
Produced by Broken and Coastal.
Follow us on Instagram @brokenandcoastal
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