"K Rob", now that's a nickname. Jared Souney © 2006 Lat34
200 Pounds of Terror
Aug 19 2006 / PortlandKevin Robinson just keeps learning new tricks
Kevin Robinson is the master of the flair. No one has more variations of the backflip half-twist that is a staple in the top BMX Vert riders’ runs. No-handed flairs, switch-handed to one-footed flairs, opposite flairs, and the latest -- a double flair.
The latter trick Robinson landed for the first time ever at the X-Games, although it was only enough for 4th place in the vert competition. He did earn himself a gold medal in BMX Big Air, with a 50-foot no-handed backflip followed by a no-handed flair. If you didn’t catch it on pay-per-view, try to imagine that. Pretty impressive.
Robinson is 34 years old, hardly a spring chicken, but with over 20 years of BMX experience, he has only gotten better with age. Over the years Robinson has not only added trick after trick to his repertoire, but also gained consistency and strategy. He trains regularly with close friend and X-Games Vert gold medalist Chad Kagy, and having one of the best riders out there as your training buddy certainly hasn’t hurt him.
As one of the biggest riders out there, weighing in at around 200 pounds, Robinson’s tricks and agility are even more impressive. Of course, that weight is all muscle; in addition to BMX Vert, he also competes as a professional body builder.
In the prelims at the Vans Invitational in Portland, Robinson wasn’t holding back at all. He threw down a lot of tricks, like his new table top 540, which you would expect to see in his final run, and did them back to back. A few bobbles in his landings, and stellar runs from Bestwick, Tabron and Kagy left Robinson sitting in 4th going into the finals. But he’s already been practicing to step it up. After the prelims ended, Robinson starting trying 540 tailwhips, and the addition of that trick to his already strong run could be what it takes to win his first Dew Tour of 2006. After third place finishes in Louisville and Denver, he currently sits in 3rd on the overall Dew Tour rankings for 2006.
Robinson is 34 years old, hardly a spring chicken, but with over 20 years of BMX experience, he has only gotten better with age. Over the years Robinson has not only added trick after trick to his repertoire, but also gained consistency and strategy. He trains regularly with close friend and X-Games Vert gold medalist Chad Kagy, and having one of the best riders out there as your training buddy certainly hasn’t hurt him.
As one of the biggest riders out there, weighing in at around 200 pounds, Robinson’s tricks and agility are even more impressive. Of course, that weight is all muscle; in addition to BMX Vert, he also competes as a professional body builder.
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-Brooke Geery
