For freestyle BMX riders in the Northeast corner of America, the King of Flatland (KOF) Series, which began in Manchester, N.H. in 1987, was a big deal. What began as another local contest series in New England, soon evolved into the glue that held the scene together. From 1987 to 1993, the Cote family brought riders from all over the world to New Hampshire. The series helped shape modern day flatland, and spawned legendary riders like former Hutch Factory Team rider Darren Pelio, and even modern-day X Games rider Kevin Robinson. It helped create a close-knit scene of flatland riders in the northeast, one that still exists today, and created countless lasting friendships for many who have put down their bicycles. Many of the riders from the original series, like Jim Cavanaugh, Brian Chapman and Sean Maher continue to progress their flatland riding to this day.
At the same time KOF was growing, many local riding scenes around the country began producing their own ‘zines, do it yourself Xeroxed publications that were the blogs of yesteryear, and the pipeline between  … More