Lyle Staufer - Crank Vol. 1

64 pages
Photographs by Lyle Staufer
21 x 14.7 cm 
Language: English
Paperback
Publisher: Stickit
Edition of 150 copies
2024

New zine. New scene. Bike culture Virginia. A zine by Lyle Staufer. And with each turn of the page, viewers are transported into unique stories that unfold on two wheels. Staufer's eye for photography gives a timeless vibe to the images, a nostalgic and authentic feel that resonates with Virginia's bike culture.

It started in 2019 when I brought my camera on a bike ride with my friend Brad. We grew up skating together and when I heard Brad and his friends were doing tricks on their bikes I was interested in seeing what it was all about. I never knew what those first few images taken from my bike would mean, but since then it’s become part of my image to always have a camera slung around my shoulder while riding. Over the last three years I’ve had the pleasure to document a local bike club called the Broad Street Bullies. An amalgamation of sorts, the group is undefined and always changing, yet the message stays the same. Leave your bullshit at home, ride bikes, and have fun.

This is a skateboard style mag for the Broad Street Bullies and the wide spread wheelie culture we’ve seen spread online over the last  few years. I wanted this book to be something like a Thrasher mag, something that inspires others to go out and create. For photographers and bikers alike, to collaborate. This book shouldn’t be sealed and kept shut, it’s meant to be thrown around your house, flipped through, and shared. These images were captured over the course of a year, partially from digital, and partially from 35mm film. Some images are taken from the saddle of my bike and some from the streets of Richmond. There is no other statement for this zine than to go outside and have fun with your friends. Fixed gear, bmx, or your father’s old track bike. Ride safe. 

I’m 27 years old, and I’ve been shooting pictures for about 10 years. Documentary, street, and lifestyle photographer. Richmond, Virginia.