Alex Burston Loves his Ground Control UFS 3x3 Freeskate Frames

Alex Burston is a professional, aggressive inline skater from Manchester, England. His sponsor, Sunshine Distribution, recently sent him their new Razors Cosmo free skates and a set of the Ground Control UFS 3×3 freestyle frames. I’ve been pretty excited Ground Control stepped in to bring us a UFS freeskate frame option in both a 3×125 and 3×110. I chatted with Alex over Skype about these frames and his newfound love of Big Wheel Blading.

How long have you been skating?

I remember having those Fisher Price skates when I was 2-years-old, and I’m 28 now. I’ve been going to the skatepark since I was six years old, so for 22 years, I’ve been skating aggressively.

So you grew up mainly in a skating park?

Yeah, and Skating Street, as well. The first skatepark I visited was Bones in Stockport when I was six. It was nice to have a park nearby because there weren’t too many skate spots where I was from then.

As a kid, did you do any other kinds of skating?

I always was on my street, trying to go fast and skate down hills. At first, I never knew skating was a thing; I just did it. Apart from that, not really. As soon as I found a pair of skates that I could grind on, that was it.

Did you try skating big wheels before Ground Control released their 3×3 freestyle frames?

No, not really at all. I tried some of my friends here and there, but I didn’t even skate a flat setup on my aggressive skates until the Ground Control BIG Frames came out.

Bombing the cobblestone streets of Manchester, England.

What size wheels are you skating on the GC Big frames?

I skated them with 72mm wheels when I got them. Then I skated the GC MEGAS after that. But up until that time, I was skating an anti-rocker setup[a] with 58mm or 60mm wheels on the outsides.

How did skating a 72mm flat setup compare to skating a 60mm anti-rocker setup you’d spent your life on?

It was a nice change. You can maneuver a lot easier on the ground with the 72mm flat setup.

Did you have problems doing tricks with the bigger frame and wheel size?

I wouldn’t say I had problems, but some little wheel bites would happen after all those years of skating anti-rocker. Other than that, I was just getting used to a flat setup. The GC BIG frames are easy to skate because they have a nice groove. But yeah, it was a big change, but it was fun, I had to relearn a lot of things again and do them properly. Bigger wheels just make your skating so much smoother.

Which Ground Control freeskate frame setup are you skating on now?

I got the big boys, the one-two fives; I couldn’t help it. I saw them and was like, I want the biggest ones. Gimme them ones!

The Razors Cosmo with 3x125 UFS Ground Control frames.

The Razors Cosmo with 3×125 UFS Ground Control frames.

Are you skating them on the Razors Cosmo or Razors Shift skates?

I’m skating them on the Cosmo at the moment. I have both the Cosmo and the Shift, so I can keep my freeskate separate from my aggressive skate, which is very lovely.

The Cosmo and Shift skates are pretty similar, right? Just with a different soul plate?

Well, the bottom part is different, the actual soul base, and there is no soul slider on the Cosmo. It’s just a nice streamlined soul plate. It also has a strap that the Shift doesn’t have. I don’t know if it’s just me, but they seem a little thinner; the Cosmo seems a bit more aerodynamic, but that could be because of the different soul plates. But I love them; I properly love them; I’m looking at them now.

What was it like when you took the 3×125 frames out for a spin?

The first time I tried them was last June at Barcelona Extreme when Marco Giehm had them as a test sample. That time was scary because I’d never skated on wheels that big before. At first, I was like, whoa, can I do this? I was going so fast and not used to being that high up off the ground. Then I got my pair, and I took them out in my town; there are hundreds of hill bombs here to skate.

I took them out and loved them straight away. It is a bit scary, though. You know, you step down on a little curb, and there is no middle space to plant off of because there are just three wheels. So, there are many things I have to get used to, but I loved it straight away. You can easily go over all the cobbles and all the bumps. It feels like you are flying. You have to be cautious.

Alex Burston lacing a burly royale. Photo by Sam Cooper.

Alex Burston is lacing a burly royale. Photo by Sam Cooper.

The 72mm is a tremendous aggressive frame for skating around a town from spot to spot like many people did when they were kids.

That is the best thing about the shift concept. I used to do the same thing; I would skate around the city center nearly daily on an anti-rocker setup. I got the GC frames and big wheels, which made my life so much easier.

Did you have any interest in skating 3×3 skates before you got yours?

I’ve wanted some for ages. After seeing it, you know the big wheel skating and the freeskating is coming up and popping up in our scene. So I’ve been seeing a lot of that and have been gagging for them for ages. I was hyped when I found out GC was making them. That was it, I was so happy. I’d been wanting them for ages, and now they are here!

In aggressive skating, you still have this faction that hates the idea of big wheel notion that it is lame. What do you have to say to those people?

I mean, it’s skating, skate. If you don’t like it, don’t hate it; you don’t have to do it. If you haven’t got something nice to say, you need to say nothing. But you are right. I have heard a lot of bitching about it. I think they need to shut up and go skate.

Since you’ve gotten the Cosmo skates and 3×125 frames, how often have you used them?

I use them almost every day. At home, I skate them nine days out of 10. Some days, I’ll skate the 3×125 frames to a spot and then shift them over to an aggressive frame, either my BIGS or anti-rocker setup, depending on how I feel that day. And that’s it. It makes skating fun, and having these options is perfect for me.

Alex Burston on the Razor Cosmo with 3×125 Freestyle Frames

What’s the furthest you’ve skated on your 3×125 frames?

I skated pretty far, around town a lot, and sometimes did little missions on my own, but I never really measured it. If it’s dry, I go out at nighttime and bomb some hill bombs, then skate up some more hills to go back down them. Typically, I’ll be out for a few hours skating.

You should look into getting an app like Endomondo, which tells you how fast and far you go and all sorts of other things.

Yeah, I’ve seen that; I think I need to get on that. And then I can go jogging as well.

There have been several aggressive skaters, like Daniel Nielson, who have started skating in marathons as well. Last year, he skated the Razors Shift skate with GC 3×110 frames in the Berlin Marathon. Do you have any desire to skate in any marathons in the future?

I would love to skate a marathon! It is something I’m going to be looking into.

Made by Kathy’s Custom Crochet in Chicago, Illinois

You blade, your lady Laura blades, and I know your daughter hasn’t been born yet, but how long before baby Alice gets her own blades?

Alice is due to be born May 13th, and we already got them, mate. We got Alice skates! They are not real skates yet, but we got some little crochet bootie skates replicas of my pro skate, the Razors SL! Laura got them made by Kathy’s Custom Crochet in Chicago, Illinois. Kathy did a fantastic job; they look so lovely and are awesome!

What’s your favorite urban playground to skate in?

It’s hard, but it’s also easy because it’s Barcelona. It has everything you want to skate, from hill bombs to free skating, smooth ground, and aggressive skating. With all the rails and other stuff, it is unbelievable.

What’s your favorite skatepark?

At the moment, it’s Adrenaline Alley Skatepark in Corby. It’s where they are having the British Championships next weekend. I don’t skate there enough because it’s about 4 hours away. But when you are there, you get lost in that place; it’s like a little town. It’s really good!

Is the pump track you were skating in your free skate edit in your town? What was it like?

Yeah, it’s not far, just a few miles down the road. It’s entertaining; it’s better to skate on a dry day. We went there when it was wet and soggy from the day before. Other concrete ones have been built all around the UK. I love skating the pump tracks, though it is a lot of fun on these big wheels. It is very tiring, though.

Aritz Ortega filming in Malaga, Spain for his 125mm edit.

Aritz Ortega is filming in Malaga, Spain, for his 125mm edit.

Who is your favorite person to watch on big wheel skates?

Aritz Ortega has been doing some cool stuff lately. It’s been really good to watch him; something is coming out soon. I’d like to see Nick Lomax. Lomax smashes it. He’s a buddy of mine; we grew up in the same city. He’s doing 900s and flatspin 540s on the streets. He is crazy and nice to watch for entertainment. Who else has been smashing it on the big wheels?

Danny Aldridge!

Oh yeah, Danny! Danny Aldridge has some mad skills.

Notes:

a. an anti-rocker setup is when on an aggressive skating frame, the front and rear wheels spin normally and are in contact with the ground. In contrast, the inside wheels are generally 48mm hard urethane or plastic wheels used to increase the surface area for grinding.

Alex Burston’s BHC Video Section

Alex Burston of Manchester, England on Life, Skating and his New Found Love of Big Wheel Blading