How’s it going Matt? how is the winter treating you in Coatesville?
Not bad not bad, definitely trying to ride as much as possible. Hell, this winter has barely even been “winter”, its only snowed like 3 times and they’re saying its supposed to be in the 50s this week. School and work take up way too much of my time but make me really grateful to be on my bike when I can. I’m always daydreaming about riding and doing new tricks on certain spots.

We’ve been riding Slade’s boxes a bunch lately and hitting up parks like York and Charm whenever possible. Slade’s boxes are a fucking blast and can be set up in a bunch of different ways. Charm has been real fresh lately too since they added a whole new half thats mainly street obstacles. I haven’t really been able to get out and ride enough street though.

You recently made some drastic changes to your bike, small bars to big bars, 2 to 4 pegs, and a little bit ago, a new frame. Can you explain what made you make those changes?
Haha, I don’t know if I’d call the changes to my bike “drastic” but yes I’ve switched some things up. My bars have been getting bigger gradually but I still wouldn’t say they’re all that big. I made the switch to Spacebars when my Vinnie’s cracked. I used to run pretty small bars until I started doing luc-e’s and wanted to be able to dip my front end more so I looked for something with more rise. I think wide bars are retardedly unnecessary. Mine are cut down about 1/2″.

I got my Benny L frame a few months ago after getting rid of my S4. I got the S4 after my Dehart2 cracked and I just didnt like the size of it at all so I knew I needed to make a change. The geometry of the Benny L is amazing and makes spinning a breeze.

As for my pegs, I fucking love 4 pegs!! Seeing Dave Thompson’s Verde video part and Ryan Howard’s ALYK: Still Here part made me psyched as hell to try them, Dave Thompson’s part especially. From the first day I put them on I was hooked. It was really refreshing, I was basically learning something all over again. Being able to grind on the opposite side allows for all new tricks and lets you to do a lot more with less stuff to ride. They feel really natural on my bike. I think a lot of people are hesitant to run 4 pegs because of the extra weight but the weight of my bike has never really bothered me especially with bicycle technology progressing the way it has in the years that I’ve been riding.

And do you feel like it has an effect on your riding at all?
I’ve noticed that my riding has gotten a bit more dialed and I take my time more than i used to.

Have you played around with crooked grinds at all? (switch or reg) I used to do switch crooks back when I still had RSD but never could lock into reg crooks once I got LSD.
I’ve messed with crooks a bit and they’re definitely tricky, I hate having my front peg come off and bash my sprocket into a rail. I think I’ve started to get the hang of leaning back and whatnot. For now I’ll be sticking to doing them in skateparks until I get more comfortable. My favorite opposite trick so far is opposite feeble threes, they’re just awesome and look cool.

Yea, Ryan Howard’s Still Here part made me want four pegs as well. Have you had any problems with catching your back foot on the opposite rear peg?
I might’ve hit my heel a bit the first week or so but I’ve adjusted and I dont hit my foot at all now. it’s surprising because I run 180mm cranks and the Benny L has such a short rear end, plus I wear size 10 shoes (not that thats a big shoe size or anything).

What made you go with Gray on the new paint job? and are you making any other modifications to your bike setup since you’re putting it back together?
I went with the gray color because I thought it would look cool with my kelly green bars and forks. I also really liked the matte color of my Dehart2 frame when I had it.

I’m not making any modifications. I just wanted to clean everything real well and re-grease it because my bike had gotten super squeeky and it bothered the hell out of me.

I’ve got some trip ideas lined up in the near future. In the beginning of april we’re going to do another pittsburgh weekend just like the last one we did about a year ago. I also have a big week long trip to Tulsa that i’m working on that would be ridiculous.

Frame: Fit Benny L 20.75”
Forks: Odyssey Director
Bars: Odyssey Spacebar
Grips: Deluxe Shovelhand
Barends: Animal
Stem: LE CUSTOM Fit DLR
Headset: Kink/Deco
Seat/Seatpost: Shadow Solus Mid Combo
Cranks: Profile Lite 180mm/Gold cone washers/GDH spindle
Sprocket: Profile Spline Drive 25T
Chain: Shadow V2
Pedals: JCPCs green/black
Rear Wheel: Odsy V3 Hub/ Proper Rim/ Fit FAF 1.95”
Front Wheel: Odsy Vandero2 Hub/GSPORT Birdcage Rim/Odyssey Aitken PLYTE 2.25”
Pegs: 3 Shadow Little Ones, 1 shit one
Hubguard: S&M Cymbal Steel
Weight: 24 lbs
Mods: Cut flanges off grips, grind side on my left pedal, cut bars a little, cut steerer tube, slit cut for my seatclamp, cut rear axle, cut seatpost

Recently, Matt Loughead hit up Shilo and asked him about his recent surgery.  Click through for photos and a little interview with Shilo.

I was born with a birth defect in my feet which is called tarsal coalition and it is where the bones in my feet grow in certain spots and form incorrectly. There were two bones in my feet one connecting from my ankle to my heel and another connecting from my ankle to the front of my foot and neither of these bones were supposed to be in my foot. This is a very common defect and mainly goes unnoticed in most cases, but in my case I ride bmx and have had reoccurring problems with my left foot. I had always thought that I had weak ankles just from being as skinny as I am and was just spraining it…. Turns out when I thought I had a sprained ankle I had hairline fractured these extra bones in my feet. Which caused chronic pain while riding, walking, and running. So after finding out I had this defect I had been told after going from doctor to doctor that I would need surgery. This was a big deal to me because I had never gone through any surgeries even with my long list of broken bones, multiple stitches, and numerous concussions. They told me they would go into my foot on the left side and cut the two extra bones out then go into the right side of my foot and put a bone graph in. The reason for the bone graph was because of the extra bones being in the left side of my foot so long without the extra bone from the graph my foot would roll over and cause more pain. Finally they would go into the left side of my calf and extend the ligament, because from having these extra bones my ligament had never been fully extended. So now I’ve got until August 1st to get my cast off and I’m looking to get through physical therapy fairly quick, pushing myself as hard as possible and working my ass off to get back on my bike and coming back to riding with some bangers!

So explain what has been going on with your foot.
Well around September of 2010 I was going through different pains in my foot and it was almost like a chronic pain every day. I would go home after riding and ice it because of the pain in my left ankle.

How did you become aware of the birth defects?
After 4-5 doctors visits they sent me for x-rays and after seeing the x-rays they found something odd… They couldn’t quite tell what it was so they sent me for an MRI and CAT scan and determined it was tarsal coalition. Meaning there were two extra bones in my feet connecting from my ankle to my heel causing my severe ankle pain.

What have you been doing to pass the time?
I’ve been trying to find anything to do to pass the time without riding. I sleep as much as possible also haha but I would like to get out with the guys and film or something just to stay into riding even if I’m not on my bike. I basically just chill and wait to get this cast off my foot.

What will you be doing in the near future?
In the near future I’m hoping to get this cast off and gett back into riding as fast as possible. It’s almost like torture not riding.

How has being off your bike affected your life?
Being off my bike is probably the worst punishment I’ve ever had. I’ve always wondered what I’d be like if I didn’t ride and it turns out that I’d be the most boring human being alive! There’s nothing that is as important to me as riding and every day I just remember I’m one step closer to getting back on my bike!

What are your plans for when you can ride again?
When I get back on my bike I’m going to take it slow for a little while so I can get a feel for my ankle. But when I get comfortable again I really want to hit up the red kinker I was looking at a while ago and the Kop kinker I tried but never landed.

I first met Cody aka McLovin right when he started riding 3 years ago. I heard people refer to him as McLovin, then when I met him I was like, holy shit it really is McLovin.  His quick one-liners will keep you on your toes.  He’s got a good attitude and can manual 180 just about anything.  I’ve watched him progress from grom to shredder, and it looks like he’s showing no sign of slowing down anytime soon.

Name: Cody Neiswender aka McLovin
Age: 20
Location: L Town Pennsylvania (Lebanon)

First of all how did you get the nick name Mclovin?
Well I started riding right around the time the movie “Super Bad” came out and one day i rolled up to the lebanon skatepark and shepps said i looked like mclovin from the movie and the name just stuck i guess haha

Do you have any other Nic names?
No not really i dont think u can top McLovin

How long have you been riding?
Since the end of my senior year in high school so almost 3 years

What was one of your first Bmx influences?
Chase D was one of the biggest influences that definitely shaped my riding style. i always used to watch the lotek vancouver and fitlife videos on the internet and he always had such a good style and a way of making the simple tricks look fun and good.

What is one of your latest Bmx influences?
Little Jeff and Ratkid and all those animal dudes that just ride the simple shit that you can find in any city around that just keeps riding fun and fresh. I also like watching Chase Hawk or Dang Dang or anyone else who likes to go high and flow around skateparks just anyone who looks good on a bike and is having fun.

^fast Manual 180 on a truck tire.

First 5 songs that come up in your iPod on shuffle?
Switchfoot Meant to Live, Copeland No one really wins, Eazy Old School Shit, Recover Push Push, Spoken I Won’t Lie Down

What are your interests outside of Bmx?
Music, Girls, Chillin, Havin fun doin anything really

What’s it like living in Lebanon?
Its pretty dope theres alot of fun spots to ride and i got the best friends in the world here. The weather sucks dick in the winter but other then that im pretty happy where im at right now.

If you could live anywhere else where would you go?
I wouldnt mind traveling around alot like not being tied town to one place but it would be cool to live in Philly for a while and Austin would be dope too.

Favorite thing to ride?
Lebanon YMCA Skatepark never gets old to me and York Skatepark also, but im down to ride anything and anywhere my friends are and theres a good fun session going down.

Describe your personal bike set up?
Fit Eddie V3 Big Bars two Pegs brakeless 2 Pegs Trendy as hell and i dont care haha

How’s filming for the new Yea video coming?
I got a clip haha I had to work for it since im dick footed but i got a bunch of ideas in my head i wanna get done so im hoping for a pretty solid part.

You just made some really dope Yea Beanies, do you plan to make more?
I could they are pretty easy to do anyone who wants one and sends a few bucks my way i could make them a custom one

Thanks for being a part of TheYea. Any shouts?
Shoutouts to to Matt Smith for this interview, Baby Sex for motivating me when im feelin lazy, Brandon for being brandon Kyle for telling me not to be a bitch, Zach, Chris, the rest of the yea homies Christina, Deluxx Bikes for keepin my bike fresh, anyone who gave me a free part or a place to stay and all the people who actually read this shit.

Want more McLovin?

McLovin Cribs Episode

It Was a Good Day edit

The Yea Mixtape #1

Interested in a Yea beanie?

click here and hit McLovin up!

Name: Shilo Staniech
Age: 15
Location: Coatesville, PA
Hometown: McKeesport, PA

How did you get into BMX?
My brother got a bike when he first got his job and I thought it was the coolest thing ever so I asked for a bike for Christmas and got my first Fit complete and it was all set from there.

What kind of stuff do you like to ride?
I love riding street, it has a nice challenge because it’s not meant for you to ride it, you really have to look and search for what you want to ride, which is awesome.

Describe an average week of riding.
An average week of riding for me is meet up with Matt, get everyone rounded up to ride, and then hit up some new spot that I’ve never been to and get pushed to do a new rail or trick; this happens almost everyday haha.

What’s it like being a part of the crew you ride with?
I absolutely love it! I thank my older brother because if it wasn’t for him I wouldn’t have the crew I do now. I’m the youngest of the group but I try to get shit done like I’m 19. And I also get to experience the party life which doesn’t hurt either.

How’s it feel being only 15 and able to do what you do?
Well I don’t really get to do what I want to do because of my mom not letting me out because I gotta watch my little bro Spencer. But it’s definitely awesome to get out and about with all the older guys and just kick back.

What do you do when you’re not riding?
Hang out with friends, chill with my little bro, and if anyone wants to, have a couple drinks with the guys.

Describe your party life.
I throw it down like I’m 21 but it can get a little hectic sometimes. I’ve had a couple close calls with the po-po but it’s always a fun time when I’m with the crew.

Where do you see yourself in 2 years?
Hopefully doing better then I am now but I definitely am not worried about being picked up on a team or anything but what happens happens. I just wanna keep riding and having fun with what I’m doing, chillin with the crew, and doing what I love!

Any shout outs?
My man Matt Loughead since he has been a big supporter of my riding, my bro Slade, my good old big headed friend Jeremy for keeping me entertained, dad aka Miles Houser! My mom and grandma for supporting my bike when it breaks down and Matt Smith for hookin me up some stickers and this post on the site. Thanks everyone and anyone else I forgot to put up on here!