First Look : Tony Malouf's BSD Beverage Frame

BSD quenches your thirst with Tony Malouf's new Water 'Beverage' color way!

13 Apr 2015

Photos and words by Wes McGrath

A famous quotation loosely attributed to Mark Twain states, "Whiskey is for drinking, water is for fighting over", can span meaning across generations. Since the ages of Mark Twain and the American frontier the importance of libations has captivated both young and old, all the while water takes a back seat in the minds of most... Yet, when we go to a bar and order whiskey it's often paired with water, either to help with an upcoming hangover or to just smooth over the rough after tastes of cheap liquor.

However in this case of Tony Malouf and his new signature BSD 'Beverage' frame, whiskey has taken the back seat to the recently released 'Water' color way... This frame is a spin off of his past Jameson color way of green and burgundy, with a refreshing raw clear coat appearance mimicking H2o in all its life giving Dartisean glory!

So Tony, we have recently been getting the chance to work together and this trip to Puerto Rico was definitely one for the books. You filmed your frame promo while we were there and now lets give some insight to how this all came to fruition. Start by telling us how old are you and where you are from originally.

I'm 26 years old and I am from the Midwest, Illinois to be exact... I have lived in Arizona for the past few years.

When did the first set of beverage frames originally come about?

I think it was the end of 2012. Not 100% on that but I know the promo for that came out early 2013.

How did your frame come to life through BSD?

Well, Grant (BSD owner) and I discussed it a couple years into my (7 year) involvement with the company but waited quite a while before pulling the trigger. That would have been around 2010 when we first brought it up, that was even before Reed and David were even around. The Beverage and the Raider ended up dropping the same time a couple years later.

What is BSD to you?

A high end BMX bike company. Haha actually I'm not sure. Sounds like an experimental drug.

When you come across a spot like this DIY park in San Juan, you don't let a little rain ruin your party. With my flashes covered in plastic trash bags I found on the ground we were able to pop a few frames before taking cover!

Just a stones throw away from a DIY skatepark in downtown San Juan, we spent hours at the park riding and enjoying this unique spot...

A quick hop into an even quicker 180 hypes up the whole crew to start off the day!

The one and only campus we pedaled around turned quite a few set ups to ride, but we were repeatedly witnessed by security and after this manual-feeble-smith we left before we could experience the Puerto Rican government grip...

Well, the question still remains, "What happened to the spots"?! On this trip we were very fortunate to find spots that were in a sense, jaw dropping! This specific spot we filmed and shot more than one trick and spent the last few hours of daylight there. We never thought such a spot would be ridable atop a police station!

This statue represented many things within Puerto Rican history, but we were too occupied with tailwhips and banks to read the information card.

Tony makes just enough room to thread himself through the branches of this tree with first try caveman drop.

Why did this specific color way attract you to Puerto Rico to film for your frame promo?

Well, once we based it off Fiji water I knew I wanted to go somewhere tropical. What better then an island surrounded by water?

Was the recent BSD blue made just for the water beverage edition? Safari pedals, paley grips, bars, tires?

Yeah it was actually! Grant and I were once again discussing new things for BSD and eventually got around to tires. Alex's Donnasqueak tires had just came out and we already had grey and red ones. I was thinking of my new color scheme and knew right away that if we went with the Fiji themed graphics I would want blue tires and a blue seat. Once we finalized the frame we finalized the blue!

What specific geometry changes were made in this issue of the Beverage?

Ummm... The rear end is wider for fatter tires and we made the head tube a bit steeper for noza's and we thickened up the tubing a bit for strength.

Is there any change in your life style since the first "Jameson" colorway was released? Given the change from whiskey to water?

Hahaha loads man! I still drink a fair amount of Whiskey but I mainly drink water. Over the years I've gotten really into spring water and finding springs. From that I've grown a much larger appreciation for water. If I'm not drinking water I'm normally drinking cold pressed juice with a scoop of RAWr superfoods.