Bruno Hoffman.

The interstellar rise of Bruno Hoffman has been impossible to ignore over the past decade. From the German heartlands, cutting his teeth (quite literally) in the BMX scene of Cologne from a young age, Bruno is a jack of all trades, a leader of the new school as well as a seasoned veteran all in the same breath. Having left his mark on the global contest scene, Bruno is now focused on video parts and has amassed a large and world-wide fanbase in doing so. Despite all the attention, Bruno’s approach to things is calm, carefree, interested and positive. He is one of the few people who realize that if you go your own way, only good things will come. With his latest film project, Foreign dropping on DIG BMX any day now, we decided to give the man himself a call to talk shop, so without further ado – Herr Hoffmann.

Give us a little background on yourself?

My name is Bruno Hoffman, I’m from Germany. I live in Frankfurt, I’ve been riding BMX for about 20 years - pretty much my whole life! The last 10 to 15 years has really changed in BMX, now it’s way more street focused, which I really like - and I’ve dedicated my life to that.

Talk us through your journey in BMX.

I started riding pretty young, 7 or 8 years old. I was pretty small and weak as a kid, had a few crashes at a young age, I actually lost all my front teeth, luckily just the baby ones in a big crash when I was young. After that I was kind of over it for a while, then got back on the bike when I was 9 or 10 years old. I’m from a small town in between Cologne and Frankfurt called Siegen, and back in the days Cologne was very much the hub of international BMX so it was a great place to be. I met a lot of people when I was super young, started out in contests like most people and then made the transition into street which is the main thing now.

Describe your local scene?

I live in Frankfurt now, been there since I was 19. It’s a big city, big airport so it’s really well connected. It’s the financial centre of Germany so there’s a lot of modern architecture and spots. The scene is good, it’s thriving, a lot of people come through – it’s really well located and we’ve managed to do a lot of videos and jams here so it’s become more and more on the map. Brands from America and Europe do trips here so it’s a good place to be. It’s good as it’s big but not too big, living there the past 11 years or so it’s become like a village – you know everyone there from the music scene, the skate scene and so on. It’s a good vibe.

Where are you right now?

Right now I’m in Manchester, we had a big BMX park contest last night which is pretty far away from what I’m doing, but it was a sick event, turned out really good – real busy which was rad. I used to come to the UK a lot, but mainly the south – London and actually a few times in Liverpool as my frame sponsor is based here so it’s been sick to come to Manchester and see how alive the scene is here, saw lots of old faces and met lots of new ones. Even the weather was good which is kind of rare for England…

What have you been working on recently?

I’ve been working on a new part for my frame sponsor, Federal bikes. It’s going good, I’m about halfway through the full video part and keen to keep going. I also have a few other projects here and there, working on throwing a jam in Frankfurt in the middle of July, adding some ramps to an existing spot. It’s great to work with friends on these kind of projects.

Any specific crews you ride with?

We have a crew that a friend and I started called Ciao Crew – we did a bunch of videos, clothing and all that stuff. It kind of died down a few years ago, it’s just how it is, people move on, but we’re looking to give it a re-vamp at the jam in Frankfurt, work on a new video and throw a premier for a new video part.

What have been some of your career highlights?

I mean contests are always a good moment, as easier one to say as a highlight as you have results to talk about and be proud of but that kind of stuff comes and goes. Now that I think my FTS part was my highlight, a full length video that we premiered a few years ago. It’s a crazy feeling to release something that we worked on for one and a half or two years and physically hold the DVD and have the book. We premiered it at House of Vans in London, back in the day. That was a really big moment for me.

How did the transition from contests to filming come about?

It honestly came about as there are just less contests now, there used to be more jams, X-Games was bigger. I grew up doing that stuff when I was super young but after a while it becomes the same, the same faces in the same locations. From a rider’s perspective it’s also stressful knowing that if you mess up one run in the contest you are done. Filming video parts is much more fulfilling, you can travel all over the world and its different every single time. Knowing that you need or want something for your part and finding spots and filming them is really where my heart is at.

Have you had many injuries that have held you back that you have had to overcome?

Well aside from headbutting my bike and losing a bunch of teeth it’s been mellow, which I’m really happy about. No shoulder or knee injuries, although I did tear my meniscus which wasn’t even that bad, I was only out for a couple of weeks. Compared to most of my peers – I’ve been really lucky. When I was filming for my FTS part I went to Canada and fell on my head twice in two weeks, both times ending up in hospital. I remember having to call my mum both times and it was a bit of a wake up call, as to whether I was pushing my limits too hard… if I really knew what I was doing. Usually I’m really on point with knowing when to send it or not, so it was important to check in on.

There seems to be more female riders than ever right now, how have you seen that evolution?

It’s great, I feel we are a few years behind skating as well, that’s kind of always the way it is, skating is always further ahead but in BMX it’s good to see more women in the streets and parks than ever.. Wibke Vogel is a really good friend of mine, also on Vans and it’s so sick to see her riding.

How would you describe the vibe within the Vans BMX team?

It’s good! Such a tight knit crew, a lot of good trips, great friends and memories – I’m hyped to be a part of it

Favourite places to ride?

Anywhere in Spain is amazing. But the three main places that stand out to me are Taipei in Taiwan, Tel Aviv in Israel and New York. Taipei and Tel Aviv just have so much going on, such an amazing energy – there’s something happening on every corner. And New York, is well New York. Those places, you wake up in the morning and you are so tired from riding but you just want to get up and get out there as there’s so much happening you don’t want to miss anything. It gives me energy – see more sh*t, see more spots, see more people. Don’t sleep on that.

What and who inspires you in BMX?

Riding, Dak and Calvin - they are both good friends, so passionate, fun to ride with and always pushing the limits. Simone Barraco from Barcelona is also always fun to ride and hang out with as well as Dan Lacey, they all give me a different perspective on spots.

And outside of riding? What gets you fired up?

I love to be at home, but I love to be away. See different cultures, eat different food, see different views. Being out in the city, being out in general. I like nature, I like road cycling, I like to run nowadays, I never thought I would be into it but I am. Being outside and seeing stuff, being with people and absorbing the moment!

Favourite Vans shoe to Ride in?

Well, it’s a weird one as it’s Rowan’s shoe, I’ve been riding them for ages, I know it’s not for BMX but I really love how that shoe feels, it has amazing support around the heel which is so important, they are the main part of the foot that can stop you from riding. I’m always trying to protect my heels.

Any last words? A message for the internet? A message to your former self?

I’d want to thank my family for always being there for me, my dad, my mum, my brother – and also my friends and sponsors.

Don’t think too much about what others might think, stay true to yourself. Be nice, treat people how you want to be treated.