Léo Claro – Third Floor

Léo Claro is a name we don’t hear much of anymore, super stoked to see this new “Third Floor” edit out of the man himself. Leo looks to have gone on a stem lash frenzy over there Brazil, there’s multiples on lock, stem lashes out of Bottom bracket noses, and my favourite the inside switch foot pedal Karl at the 6 minute mark. High level pegless flatland right here.

32 thoughts on “Léo Claro – Third Floor

  1. STOKED !!! Fron time to time , to THIS day………I always go back , watch Leos edits from as far back as 2011 ! This is so cool , him STILL killin da STEM stance work ,during his SMOOOOOTH / CONTROLLED rolling combos . One of the Brazilian ELITES , on a bike since like , ummmmmm……..early 1996 !! Hell , CLAYBOM , himself is a crazy skilled rider ! Bobby Carter was one of , if Im correct ……the first cat to showcase CLAYBOM , his riding back in 1998 ! I urge EVERYONE to go check CLAYBOMS bmx YouTube channel , check out even MORE edits of Leo Claro …and CLAYBOM , his life time edit that covers his ENTIRE bmx career , the CONSTANT progression of his riding through like 25 YEARS STRAIGHT ! Everyone……..REMEMBER ….Leo Claro De Silva being HAND SELECTED to be flown in , AND compete in Oberhaussen, Germany…. for the 2002 Circle Of Balance event , thrown by Red Bull ?!! Bet YOU do ….Effraim ! Haha….THATS how dope Leos riding has ALWAYS been…….and …as ya can see here…….STILL IS ! RESPECT to BRAZIL ! Thanks for the post Big-E , this makes my morning !

  2. Beautiful art being presented as it should be. This man is an unsung hero, like so many in our sport/artform are. Massive props and respect! Again, massive props and respect!! Super stoked Leo got the chance to get this on film and share it with us. Thanks to all involved in getting this edited and posted up!

      • I mean to actually ride without properly for time and put out section like Leo did. Not just take them off for a session or two as an experiment.

        • During the 80s Kevin had several bikes for riding flatland and one of those rides was a pegless bike with direct drive on the back wheel.He was riding on a regular basis that bike as its writen on the magazine along with some wild photos featuring some crazy tricks on that pegless bike.Dont forget that Kevin was riding 10 hours a day,every single day that time of period…you dont have to see an edit to believe it Lee!Also Kevin Jones is the first ever brakeless flat rider…its in Dorkin 4 if you need proofs!!!

          • Lee Musselwhite,you are an experienced flatland rider with lots of years in the craft and many crazy tricks on your belt…i have a lot of respect for you.Sorry but when you said that Leo is the first ever pegless rider i jumped off my chair…you know!!How is it possible for you not knowing that Kevin Jones invented Everything in flatland eons ago and he clearly shaped what we call modern day flatland??We all the rest mortals,consisting myself,are still copying his tricks 30 years later and we will keep for the next 30…People nowadays are winning world championships in flatland with Kevin Jones tricks…dont you see that??

          • I’m talking about actually taking your pegs off and dedicate all you riding time to creating a new direction with this pursuit. I don’t know of another rider who did that first. Same way chase did with Brakeless.

    • He didn’t get any credit for it, but Kevin Jones. I don’t think he was putting labels on things he was doing, pegless, brakeless, and had different bike set ups and was the first to do stuff for a couple of years like that. After that the first I recall is Leo, with the skinny primo tyres. I would give the credit to Kevin tho. True visionary.

      • I didn’t realise Kevin had spent a lot of time on pegless tricks (only ever saw a few bits on the Dorkin vids) I didn’t doubt it though . But it sounds like Leo was the first after to push solely in the pegless direction. Same way many riders experimented without brakes….Kevin, Edgar, Chad to name a few in video parts but Chase took them off and really went forward with that style I felt.

        • Possibly Lee. I never met Kevin but from what riders like Brett Downs and Mark eaton have told me, he just did things just “because” not for any fame or anything like that. He was having fun busting out as he says on Joe Kid on a Stringray. Like all things, the concept gets pushed on, totally agree about Chase and brakeless riding. For me, it was when he did tricks that supposedly required brakes, like the mega spin to perverted in his US ride interview, that was a game changer.

        • Great thoughts Big E and Lee and i concur…but i have a feeling that Kevin showed us and i mean to the world only a slice of what he is capable of…We all witnessed his riding abilities in the Dorkin series but that legend is a genious,an artist i could say that i think he definetly kept a lot of things into secret and didnt let everything to the light.As he is the pioneer on a lot of staff in flatland,riding became very personal to him and im pretty sure that he hold a lot of tricks and ideas in personal.Kevin Jones plays with your mind as Chase said in an interview!and Chase continued ‘he never gives any straight answers when you ask him something’.Thats Kevins mentality i think…i will show you a couple of tricks and i will disappear to keep the mystery alive!!

  3. Last summer I went to the Hell Track event. I was riding the track and had no pegs on my bike. I went down to the flatland jam and didn’t feel like putting my pegs on so I started doing tricks without pegs. I was next to Martin Aparijo when another rider told us if she didn’t have pegs, she couldn’t do any tricks. Martin and I smiled and told her we started trick riding before pegs were invented. There were plenty of guys riding and riding hard before pegs came out. Josh White considered himself a flatland rider and didn’t run pegs. Hell, Johnny Knight the local pothead in my neighborhood back in 1980, would do wheelies, twirling the bars with his fingers spinning the crossbar of his bike. I’ve still never seen anyone else do that. I remember Fred Blood telling me about Mike Dominguez doing a rollback, popping up into a nose wheelie and going gown one city block, no brakes, no pegs.

    If you guys remember in Dorkin’ 10, Eaton said that he and Kevin had quit riding because “what else could they possibly do”. One night after the Cardboard Lords won their battle, Kevin came over to the spot where I was riding with Mike Daily. Seeing Mike’s pegs got Kevin back on the bike because he immediately saw the unlimited potential of tricks now that pegs were there. Kevin and Mark were already that good before pegs came out. I showed him the tailwhip and he was amazed by the Potts Mod on my bike.

    We Plywood Hoods rode everything, both terrain and bike set ups. Freewheel, coaster brake, free coaster, roller coaster or Kev’s direct drive wheel. Anywhere from zero to three brakes. Levers that activated both brakes at the same time, with and without pegs. The un bike and a rear wheel unbike. We never thought that we were doing anything beyond riding. We didn’t label it. Kevin was toying with 18″ wheels and 24″ wheels in the late 90’s. It was all experimentation. When I was filming Kevin he snapped his bars mid Hang 5. I yelled at him to do a one handed trick. He leaned the bike over on a pedal and did a one handed straddle out of the poser. Kevin tried so many things that he could improvise and bust out in any situation. It wasn’t about limiting himself. It wasn’t about purposely riding without, it was about being able to do anything. He didn’t invent half a handlebar riding, he was just able to work around the situation.

    Rather than focus who was first to ride pegless, let’s appreciate the creativity and originality seen in this clip. Purposefully riding without brakes or pegs forces a rider to take a different approach and while limiting, it is also very focused and opens up new possibilities within a smaller box. Much like Yull deciding to see how far he could push brakeless decades or Whiteski mastering slow to stopped balance. Leo deserves full respect without the distraction of saying he was or wasn’t the first. Giannis, that is not a slam on you either. Your creativity, skill and discipline are fully respected also.

    • Thank you very much Mr. Brett Downs for your statement and for sharing your bmx knowledge from over the years…without even know you or ever ridden with the Plywood Hoods i knew that You along with Kevin,Mark,Chase and the rest Hoods you paved the way for all we see nowadays worldwide in flatland.Of course you are right about this edit of Leo,he deserves respect for the hard work but i had to give credits to the man who made everything possible with brakes or brakeless,with pegs or pegless…Mr.Kevin Jones.

  4. Leo Claro De Silva RULES ……….and …….speaking of Kevin Jones , Giannis , Big-E , Mr. SPIDER GLIDE , which is by the way …..one of the MOST game changing moves EVER created ,also ……STILL cant believe you holding THAT position , rolling forever ! Cheers , Lee ! Oh , yeah …….about KEVIN JONES …Ive said this ,couple months ago, haha……Giannis , youre crazy correct about Kevin , his demeanor about showing tricks……ONCE , having a TON of stuff never seen …EVER ! Hahaha , Brett , I know you’ve probably seen , heard , or were THERE , riding @ the , ummmmm…..I think 1994 , York Jam ? Bobby Fischer was there , told me / my friends , couple months later , while we were all riding in a NICE parking lot in downtown Dallas T.X. . He said @ that particular York Jam……..Kevin did a FULL ON , rolling BRAKELESS turn bucket ……P- CADE style !! Rear peg to rear peg , like backwards wheelie , decade , landing in a FOWARD peg wheelie !!! ONLY decading from left to left rear peg !!!!!! Bobby told us this in September 1994 , saying Jones did it ONCE , shrugged ,as if it were NOT a big deal , kept on riding , hahahhaha…….how bout THAT ,Giannis ?! .Youre SPOT ON , campeon , EVERY word you’ve typed about Kevin in these comments , Giannis . Brett …….you’ve been like SUPER lucky , having been there as Kevin was SINGLE handedly morphing the ENTIRE art form of bmx flatland from like , what ? 1985……..TILL……….TODAY , haha. SALUD , PLYWOOD HOODS , EVERY one of ya !

    • Hermano youre right!how lucky these guys witnessed that brakeless turn backet P cade type move in 1994??Kevin is the Man and Brett Downs made me so happy about their past experiences with the Hoods and beyond…sometimes i wish i could ride in York with all the Hoods together and being there YOU cabrone too pulling those 15 minutes combos and the K watching…!!!

  5. Thanks, guys. Yes, I was lucky to see so much crazy riding but the main thing was Kevin, Mark and Chase opened my mind. They showed me, and the world, anything is possible and you don’t have to do everything one way. Try everything and see what works for you.

    Also, you don’t have to take off your brakes and pegs to ride brakeless and pegless.

    • True words from a true freestyler…such moment i am very proud to be a flatlander…’you dont have to take off your brakes and pegs to ride brakeless and pegless’…i coudnt agree more Mr.Downs and original i can add also…

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