A few days ago I was checking Facebook, and came across a status from Paul Chamberlain that read “I don’t ride for S&M anymore” said the drop to the ocean.”. I contacted Paul to find out what the deal was, and get some kind of official word on his decision to leave S&M. Read below for the scoop, good luck for the future Paul!”

“I’ve made the decision not to ride for S&M anymore. As a rider in Australia it’s much easier for me to just buy parts when I need them than have to go through a distro and justify my actions or promise something in return. I don’t want to owe anybody anything, especially if no conditions are stated and no agreement is made.

Since I’ve been on S&M there have been 3 different distros here. It’s tiresome for me to have to try and renegotiate everything when the distros here are all struggling to sell stuff, let alone give away stuff to a flatlander.

As a flatlander, in Australia, who really isn’t that good, I feel very privileged to have ridden for S&M. I have no delusions about deserving anything at all for free. I’ve been given 3 frames and countless other parts even though I’m just a small drop in the ocean.

It’s not great loss for S&M at the end of the day. They have James, Chad and Pete. Pete has some great ideas and I hope that he can work with S&M to realise some of those. I hope that S&M can see that Pete is not only a great rider and person, but he is also a visionary and vehicle for the brand.

When the time comes to get more from S&M I’ll be opening my wallet, just like everybody else. Just like I did before I was on the team when I bought my 19″ LAF from Flatlandfuel. The one that’s sitting in Chad’s garage now.

Thanks for the support everyone! It’s been a great ride these past few years.”