Justin KosmanHuge 180 tuck no-hander down a triple set in Nor Cal.When Kevin Kiraly first came onto the BMX scene, he wasn't the rider we know today. A resident of Livermore, Calif., Kiraly got his start riding park in the 2005 Free Flow Tour, which he eventually won. From there, he moved onto the Dew Tour and seemed to be headed down the path of professional park rider. But his motivations began to change. Instead of double whips and opposite flairs on park courses, he began to pursue tuck 180 no-handers down stairs and huge barspins to ice down rails. The transition was a few years in the making, but nowadays, it would be hard to tell that Kevin Kiraly was once a flip-whippin' park rat with a lip ring and a signature sticker from Redline. With a renewed focus on street, and the ability to crank out impressive edits for Verde, Kiraly got the invite for X Games 16 BMX street. And judging from his consistency, there's a good chance he could do very well. Recently, Justin Kosman caught up with Kevin to discuss life in Nor Cal, his influences and getting the X Games invite. Interview by Justin Kosman.
How is life in Nor Cal?
Nor Cal is chill. I like being there with my friends and family. I've thought about moving to San Diego a few times, but I've just never done anything about it.
You've got a lot of untapped spots up North. How do you seek out your riding missions?
There's a lot of sick famous skate spots that bikers never hit, which makes them awesome for filming and shooting photos on. We usually find spots through our skater friends, or sometimes we just stumble upon them and realize where we've seen them before.
How does Justin Burns and Nick Ince help you keep it real in Nor Cal?
They're just good friends and very talented riders. I'm psyched to be able to ride with them on the daily.
How did you first step on a BMX bike?
I raced back in the day. I had a Powerlite.
Justin KosmanKiraly eyes up a picturesque rail in San Jose, Calif.Who are your BMX influences?
Danny Hickerson, Garrett Reynolds and a couple others.
Who are some of your non-BMX influences?
Andrew Reynolds, Chris Cole and my brother.
What kind of car are you driving these days? What's under the hood?
I'm just driving the Subaru WRX. It's nothing special, just a fun car.
What three riders are pushing street riding this year?
Garrett Reynolds, Corey Martinez and Dan Lacey.
You seem like a first try kind of guy. What's one trick that put you through the ringer for a good hour?
I love it when stuff goes like that but it definitely doesn't. The last trick that took a long time and I got worked on was a 180 whip down a decent 4-block. It took a good 45 minutes to an hour to pull it, and I got destroyed so many times that afternoon.
How have the last few Verde trips treated you? You hadn't gone on many team trips before, right?
We've been going on a lot of Verde trips lately, and it's been kinda stressful but really fun. Before Verde, I had only been on a few riding trips. It's crazy how different trips can be with different people.
What can we expect from the Deadline video?
It's going to be the craziest video ever made.
How do you think you were selected for X Games street this year?
I'm not sure I'm pretty psyched though. I guess I could have gotten in from winning the Rail Jam last year at Interbike, and having a couple Web vids or something. I really appreciate everyone who voted for me.
Look for Kevin Kiraly to be riding BMX Street at X Games 16 in Los Angeles. And check out Kevin's signature Verde bike check here.
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