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Mountain bike film festival winners announced at sold out film night

The first annual Cariboo Mountain Bike Film Festival wrapped up Friday night as films were screened to a sold out and lively crowd.
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Keaton Carruthers accepts his award for Best Mountain Bike Action film Friday during the final night of the Cariboo Mountain Bike Film Festival.

The first annual Cariboo Mountain Bike Film Festival wrapped up Friday night as films were screened to a sold out and lively crowd at the Limelight Theatre. All eight entries were screened to the packed house, and people are already planning their entries for next year.

“The Cariboo Mountain Bike Consortium is focused on two primary goals” said Justin Calof who was the MC for the evening. “We’ve focused on growing the mountain bike economy over the past few years, but this is our first major attempt to address our goal to grow mountain bike culture in the region. The partnership with the Central Cariboo Arts and Culture Society is one that we hope to grow alongside this festival” said Calof.

Keaton Carruthers won the Best Mountain Bike Action category. “Super stoked,” Carruthers explained to the crowd. “I’d like to thank Dalton Anderson and the Feldingers for being my riding team, and to all the parents who supported us in the project.”

Shawn Lewis won the Best Mountain Bike Storyline category with his film The Process.

This video is about the process of building an authorized and legal trail in Williams Lake. Shawn Lewis, president of the Williams Lake Cycling Club and Justin Calof have spent the last five years working with the province of B.C. and trail builders to create a sustainable and functional process for trail building that encourages creativity and progression, at the same time as balancing the needs of other users of the land. This film was shot over the summer of 2013 as they built a new authorized trail on Fox Mountain called 2 FREE 1.

“It was really fun working on this project with JC, and hopefully people will understand how easy it is to build new trails through the Club,” Lewis said.

Sam Tudor won the Best Editing and Production category with an impressive film called Home — A Bike Film.

Home is only a brief glimpse into the lives of three brothers who have been riding bikes since they were all knee high to a grasshopper.

In documentary as well as classic bike film style, Home tries to capture the essence of what it means to live and ride in the Cariboo.

The idea is that biking is a part of life here, not just a succession of epic backflips and stuff.

It’s crashes and sometimes crutches and it’s still fun.

The runners up for the film festival were also screened.

Season was filmed and edited by Wes Gregg from Quesnel.

A commentary on the role of adventure sport in the tourism economy, Wes presents a winter and summer perspective on the Cariboo.

Jesse Hohert and Kurt Williams teamed up on two entries to the festival.

The first was called S--t People Say in the Cariboo and is a statement on the riding culture in the region. The second was a short edit with their poodles and the pleasure of riding with your four legged friends.

Leah Selk, executive director of the Central Cariboo Arts and Culture Society used the film festival as an opportunity to delivery an all time ‘smack down taunt’ on Jane Wellburn.

It all began in 2010 when Jane challenged the community to not only grow the largest pumpkin, but paddle it across Williams Lake as you delivered it to your competitors. Jane, having never even successfully grown a pumpkin was humbled with Selk’s audacity and pumpkin growing prowess.

“This is the most  severe taunting I’ve ever been victim to. It’s a sad day for the Wellburns,” Jane said.

Jane also submitted an edit of the Sprockids season and their Monday night rides.

This ride is key to our sustainability as a mountain bike community as we foster the next generation of riders.

We would like to thanks all who participated and supported this project.

We hope to grow the festival over the years and grow mountain bike culture in the region and integrate mountain biking into difference facets of our Cariboo life.