In a new feature here at Factory Jackson, we’ll be peering into the world of the individuals behind some of the content that keeps us rolling and stoked on all things bicycles and dirt. In this, the first installment, we catch up with Stuart ‘Stuz’ Leel.

A professional bicycle mechanic from Aberdeen on the North-East coast of Scotland, Stuz’s life revolves around bikes. When he’s not tearing down local DH tracks or sessioning the local park on his BMX, Stuz will be hiking up a dirty great hill with a camera in tow and an edit in mind…

Words: Olly Forster | Photos: Jonathan Dawson

Right then Stuz, basic stuff off the bat… Age, nine to five and what’s your favourite colour?

I’m 26, currently working in Alpine Bikes in Aberdeen as the workshop and assistant manager and my favourite colour is blue… Despite all the yellow in these photos!

Favourite riders: MTB, MX, BMX and why?

That’s a hard question! For MTB I’m going to have to pick 3; Sam Blenkinsop, Chris Kovarik and Shaun Palmer. That would be my dream team right there! Sam is definitely my favourite rider to watch at the moment, he has such an effortless yet stylish approach that always gets me psyched. Kovarik has been one of my favourite riders for a long time, for almost the complete opposite reasons as Blenky; he’s got a very aggressive style and smashes through everything. I don’t know how many times I’ve watched his section in Super-8 before going riding, but it always makes me want to break stuff. Palmer has done so much for the sport, that combined with his rock star appearance, un-matched style and ‘don’t give a shit’ attitude, it would just be wrong to leave him off my list! For BMX my favourite rider has always been Van Homan. I love the fact he put out the most incredible video section of all time yet still comes across as the most humble dude ever. I watched his Stay Fit section again just recently and its crazy to think his Criminal Mischief section came out almost 10 years previous and he’s still killing it! Lastly, my favourite MX rider is the obvious choice of James Stewart. He didn’t have the best SX season this year, but I could watch him scrub and whip all day and never get bored.

Van Homan – Criminal Mischief

Since we’ve got all these photos of your DH bike, lets start there. What made you choose a Transition TR450 and how long have you been running it?

When it comes to buying bike parts I always try my best to support the brands I’m into and Transition have been a favourite of mine for a long time. As well as making bikes that look and perform amazingly they also don’t take themselves too seriously, which I also think is important for a brand – we’re all just riding bikes at the end of the day! I had a go on Joe Connell’s TR450 back in 2011 when I was filming him for

Does the spec similarly reflect the kind of brands you are into, or are they mostly a solution to where and how you ride?

I’d say a little of both really. I bought the Hope kit as I like what they do as a company, but I’ve also ran their wheels and brakes for a number of years on previous builds so know how reliable their kit is. I went with Sram as I’ve run it on my last 3 DH bikes and I’ve never had any problems – I love how positive the shifting feels too. I’ve always owned Boxxers but after riding a few bikes with 40’s I decided to make the switch for this build, plus you can’t beat a bit of Ka$h Money coating on the stantions!

Chromag bars? A lot of the guys here at FJ are running them, but they’re still a really reclusive brand in the UK… What’s your take on this stuff because I really like it?

Yeah I’m really into what Chromag are doing too. They make really clean looking, well made parts but still maintain a grass roots vibe. You can really tell they’re passionate about what they’re making and riding in general. They’re easily the best bars I’ve ridden, the angles are perfect and the black chrome finish looks so good.

What’s the local DH scene like in Aberdeen and where do you like to ride the most?

The Aberdeen DH scene is rad! There’s a big group of us who head out on a regular basis and whenever we meet unknown faces on the trails they’re always friendly and keen for a chat. Pitfichie and Scolty Hill are the 2 places I ride the most. Pitfichie is a little blown out and erroded after all the years of abuse its had but is still really fun to ride regardless. Scolty has a great variation of tracks and the local guys are always building some new interesting lines to play on. I’ve been wanting to make a video focussing on the Aberdeen DH scene for a while but always get caught up with other projects. Hopefully I can find some time over this summer to film a few sections to show off the skills of the local pinners.

Favourite DH track?

It has to be the Fort William WC course. I love everything from the fast berms up top, the technical loose rocky sections and the huge jumps at the bottom. Oh and the gondola to the top definitely helps!

Off kilter question, but does spending time filming dudes that can really shred make you look at your own riding in a different way? I don’t mean in a “I’m shit” kind of way, as I think most of us mere mortals think that after a day with the top lads, but what I mean is, does it fire you up and make you look differently at the terrain and the way your bike is set up?

Yeah definitely. I’ve had the pleasure of filming a lot of fast guys and it really makes you realise what’s possible on a bike, especially from my point of view comparing my riding to theirs on local Scottish tracks. Some of the gaps and lines these guys take… you wouldn’t of thought possible, but seeing them hit it kind of opens your eyes? But then there are more occasions that make me think, “yeah I’m shit” – especially when I see them hitting the lines at twice the speed that I can! Ha-ha!

Talking of set-up… You said the other day that you’re a bit OCD when it comes to setting your bikes up. The 450 looks very neat and tidy I have to say, but what lengths do you go to?

My OCD does get out of hand I have to say… I guess working in a bike shop can have its advantages in that way – many a lunch break has been spent polishing my frame and bleeding my already functioning brakes. It’s a very rare occasion if my bike has dirt on it. It’s when you start cleaning your tyres you really have to start questioning whether its actually necessary…

Away from the yellow beast here, your pretty keen on the old 20″er. How long have you been riding BMX and what affect does this have when mixing up your riding time between that and downhill?

I started riding BMX back in 2000 when the bikes weighed twice as much as they do now! Aberdeen has an amazing BMX scene with with some seriously amazing riders. The local BMX shop 20 Twenty definitely plays a big part in making the scene what it is. The owner Mike puts in a lot of hard work and it’s great to see the younger guys supporting what he does. I generally don’t have a problem going from BMX to DH, but after a few days on the DH bike and then going onto the BMX my wrists do tend to suffer a bit… My biggest problem is choosing between what I ride. If the guys I go DHing with arrange a ride at the same time as my BMX buddies it’s hard to pick between the two. I guess there’s just not enough hours in a day!

As an avid BMXer and a mountain biker, what’s your take on pro freestyle mountain bikers making skate park edits?

I have to admit I’m really not a fan. Some of the stuff those guys are doing is impressive, however it just looks awkward to me. Why learn all those tricks on a big bike when it looks so much smoother and stylish on a BMX? It’s not as bad as scootering I guess…

Okay, moving on, lets talk about video… I think the first time your name popped up was way back when FJ first started, all of what 2 and bit years ago and you were rolling out some pretty sweet SDA edits. The thing that caught my eye, or should I say ears, was the music choice. Hip Hop and good Hip Hop at that seems to be your preference and one that I’ll happily encourage as I’m sure many of our readers would too. Is this what you’re into and what got you into it?

Yeah I’m a big hip hop head. When I first started riding I would always go out with my best friend Ben and his older brothers, one of which was a DJ who made me a mix-tape. It had A Tribe Called Quest, J5, Whodini, Eric B and Rakim; a good selection of old skool and conscious tunes to get me started, I literally listened to that tape on repeat for a good couple of years. Once I found out who all the artists were I started a CD and record collection which has grown considerably over the years. From Hip Hop I then got into the music the artists were sampling; lots of old funk, soul, jazz and anything in-between. My dad is really into classic rock and punk and has a rather extensive collection that I have slowly been acquiring over the years too. Anything can be found in my collection from Miles Davis to Slayer, but I have to say that hip hop is still my preferred genre.

What’s your take on the recent bombardment of videos that sound like a chav’s disco? Maybe I’m too old and not subjective enough, but when I talk to dudes in the industry, they all hate that shit and more often than not, they ruin some pretty awesome videos…

I totally agree, It’s getting rather tiring if I’m being honest. Like you say, maybe it’s an age thing… But I do think it’s also down to being popular with bigger budget edits and being popular in the charts. Its all personal choice though, I’m sure the mute button has been hit plenty of times whilst watching my edits.

Variety is the spice of life I guess, but do you think electro dribble is just easier to edit to?

I think it mostly comes down to what the film maker is into and what’s popular at that moment with other filmmakers. At the end of the 90’s almost all MTB videos used fast skate punk tunes and about 8 years ago it felt like every video was edited to Rise Against, but right now its electro/dubstep. I definitely film and edit the way I do from getting inspiration from the Sprung series of video’s, and I think the newer generation of film-makers get inspiration from more of the recent big budget edits out there. In the same way I get excited about filming a handheld and panning and zooming a shot of a rider going around a berm (played full speed and edited to hip hop) they get the same feeling from filming a dolly shot of a rider going through a rock garden edited in slow-motion to a dubstep tune… It’s hard to explain without sounding like a diss, but I appreciate all types of riding videos and love that there is no right or wrong way to make an edit, it’s all personal preference. I personally don’t think its easier to edit too, but I think the editors using it like the speed changes for slow motion clips and they possibly think dubstep has a more atmospheric sound to make the edit more ‘epic’? I’m just guessing though…

Moving on. You’ve got a 9-5, a girl to keep happy and the responsibilities of first world living… Do you ever think, “damn, I just wanna make edits and travel!”?

Yes, almost everyday! I would love to travel documenting the world cup series, however I just can’t afford it. I don’t make any money from the videos I make – its purely just for fun. However, if an opportunity came up to travel and film I would jump at the chance.

Lets talk more about video inspiration and what lights your fire. If we go top three, so one MTB, one bike but not MTB and one that’s just sick and nothing to do with bikes at all and a few words why?

As I mentioned already I definitely take most of my inspiration from Sprung. Alex Rankin and Milan Spasic were an unbeatable duo and put out videos that will never be matched on so many levels. My personal favourite is Sprung 3; The opening Laguna Beach DH section, the Maribor 4X carnage, Steve Peat and friends partying, all set to a flawless soundtrack… Perfection! I take most of my video inspiration from BMX so it’s definitely hard for me to narrow it down to one, but ‘Can I Eat’ will always be one of my favourites just purely for its simplicity. The man behind it, Bob Scerbo, has made some of my favourite BMX video’s for that reason. His style is raw and straight to the point but doesn’t get repetitive to me. He put it across perfectly in his Albion interview: “I just want to document what people do. I don’t want to create the scenario”.

Animal Bikes: “Can I Eat?” Steven Hamilton

I also watch a lot of skateboard videos and get inspiration from them. My most watched is probably ‘Yeah Right’ by Ty Evans. It’s got a lot of interesting interludes and creative intros to sections, something that I would love to bring into my MTB edits in my own style. Spike Jonze had a big input in directing ‘Yeah Right’ too and he’s another person who’s work I really appreciate. As well as making some interesting documentaries and short films he has directed a lot of music videos, my favourite being ‘Drop’ by The Pharcyde where the group has been filmed performing the song backwards and then edited to play in reverse for an interesting effect…

The Pharcyde – Drop | Video by Spike Jonze

Right then, plans for the rest of the year? I noticed you headed back over to Fort Bill the other day. Any more riding trips planned?

I normally try to get over to Fort William as much as I can whilst its open over the summer, so a few more trips back are definitely in order. I’m hoping to make a trip to Innerleithen for an uplift day soon too. Other than that I’ll just be riding my local trails and skateparks as much as I can.

Any upgrades or alterations planned for the yellow beast?

Since these photo’s were taken, I’ve changed the tyres to Bontrager G5’s – High Rollers are normally my tyre of choice, but I’ve been getting on great with the new Bonty’s – they feel like they offer as much grip as the High Rollers, but roll a lot faster… I’ve got the bike dialed in now so the only upgrades that will be made from here on in, are when parts wear out.

Most awesome and underrated component on the TR? It’s gotta be the Odi x S&M lock-on grips?

Absolutely! These grips are amazing. If you like thin, soft grips then I’d recommend these for sure. When I find a part that I really like I seem to stick with it for a long time rather than change things up too often. It took me a good while to try anything other than Ruffian MX’s but I’m glad I eventually got these!

Lets wrap this up with a favourite edit of your own and what’s next from Stuz Leel’s video vaults?

Ronan Taylor’s section from Scottish Scene is probably still my favourite edit I’ve made so far. I think the Le Tigre song matches Ronan’s style and speed well and he is really easy to work with when filming. I think the fact he’s made some awesome video’s himself helps as he understands filming from both sides of the lens. At the moment I’m working on a little leftovers edit from the Fort William World Cup. Once that’s finished I have a few projects in mind that I’m hoping to get filmed and edited over the remaining summer months which I’m excited about… I’m not wanting to give anything away at this point though! Cheers Olly!

Ronan Taylor // Scottish Scene 2011

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