DIRT NEWS
COACHING FROM THE COUCH
I
n somewhat impeccable timing, Kiwi off-
road legend and riding coach Chris Birch
has released his “Say No To Slow” series of
adventure riding focused coaching videos online
for us all to enjoy.
In development for over a year, Birch says that
Say No To Slow came about through demand
from the community for a DVD style instructional
video. The end result is jam-packed with useful
tips that riders can practise at home as well as out
on the trail or road.
With over three hours of coaching comprising of
16 episodes covering everything from bike set-up
to wheelies, foot position to bike recovery, there
is little the KTM Adventure Ambassador has not
touched on to share his considerable adventure
riding knowledge.
With an easy-going format that reflects the
personable nature of Birch, Say No To Slow
feels more like you’re taking a course in person
rather with the man, rather than watching a slick
14 KIWI RIDER
instructional video. It’s the tiny hiccups while Birch
is delivering his instructions that really give the
series a laid back and friendly viewing experience
– for the betterment of all.
While Birch has previously used YouTube to
share his adventures and tips, this time around
he has decided to instead use the Vimeo on
Demand platform.
“We use Vimeo on Demand to host the series
because it was a big investment in time and
money to get the series filmed and edited to a
high standard, he says. “Using Vimeo on Demand
allows us to charge for watching and downloading
it. If we were to give it away on YouTube the ad
revenue would not even cover the cost of filming
the series let alone the hours and days of editing
so it would not have been possible to make the
videos or we would have had to do it a lot quicker
and of a lower quality. My hope is that people
don’t mind paying a little if the value for money
is high.”