Mountain Bike Evolution
Everything You Need to Know About BMX Bikes
Unlike road and Mountain Bikes, BMX bikes have evolved from garage made creations for a small racing niche into a huge industry and one of the biggest markets in cycling today. BMX bikes are built for fun and are so versatile there is almost no end to what can be done on them. The thrills you get from riding combined with the huge amount of exposure from events such as the X-Games and countless other competitions and races all around the world, make this one of the most popular styles of bicycling today.
BMX, or bicycle motocross, originated during the early 1970′s in Southern California. Kids started racing their bikes on dirt racetracks to imitate their favorite motorcycle racers. Most bikes were simple mass produced bikes that had been altered in garages or by small shops in the scene. With the release of the documentary On Any Sunday in 1972 the trend exploded in popularity all around the country. As the sport became more popular, riders soon found they could ride outside of the track and that they weren’t limited just to the dirt. Freestyle BMX, a popular discipline of the sport, where tricks and big air is the goal, exploded in the 1980′s and now rivals the original form of BMX racing in popularity and sales. Another faction of the sport to emerged focused on big air off jumps. Jump BMX bikes spun off from freestyle BMX and has a huge following today. The sport and industry was promoted with the help of very talented and individualistic athletes that showed the world what was possible on these simple one-geared bikes. Names like Dave Mirra, Matt Spinner, Matt Hoffman, Ryan Nyquist and Bob Haro can be found not only on BMX bikes but video games, clothing lines and a slew of other products and promotions.
As the industry grew, many large bike companies quickly caught on that there was money to be made in this market within the world of cycling. The kids, parents, bike shops and small time fabricators who were there at the beginning of the BMX movement began putting their expertise to use and started their own bike or component lines. Many of these rider-owned companies like Haro Bikes, GT and Mongoose were later bought out by goliath corporate bike companies. Today, it’s rare to find a large bike operation that doesn’t offer a line of BMX bikes or owns a BMX brand.
Types of BMX Bikes
Compared to other cycles like road and mountain bikes, BMX bikes are usually made with smaller frames and wheel diameters, they use platform pedals and are built with some of the strongest frames in the industry. These qualities make the bikes favorites amongst young riders and since they are so hard to break, parents too.
While all BMX bikes share similar qualities, the individual styles of the sport have forced evolution in the design, style and fabrication of different bikes. There are still multi-purpose BMX bikes or bikes that are very capable in more than one area of the sport, however there are definite differences amongst the three main styles.
- Race: Bikes made for this division of BMX riders are the lightest out of all three. They are built to be strong enough to take abuse from an off road track but lightweight enough to give the racers every ounce of advantage they can get. Their knobby tyres are perfect for riding in dirt tracks, and like most BMX bikes they don’t come loaded with options. Simple, fast and lightweight is what you get with one of these.
- Freestyle: These bikes are designed and made with tricks and stunts in mind. This includes a lot of park, street and ramp riding. This discipline of BMX is wildly popular because of the visually spectacular feats riders can pull off. Even people who don’t bike can’t help but to stop and watch these riders do their thing. The adrenaline and a constantly rising bar keeps riders always coming back for more. The bikes themselves are different than other BMX bikes in that they have smooth tyres and come with a wide range of unique accessories that help the rider in doing specific tricks.
- Jump: BMX bikes in this category are built and designed with extremely strong frames and wheels to withstand the impacts that are inflicted on them day after day. They are heavier than other BMX bikes because of this, but are by far the most durable. They are perfect for off road riding down rough trails and their knobby treaded tyres are designed for this terrain.
What bike you decide on in the end depends on what you plan on doing with it, your experience level, your budget and many other factors. Try several bikes out and see what feels good, talk to riders who know good bikes from bad and do your research. BMX bikes range from the affordable to super high end, so make sure you’re getting the right bike for you or you might end up with a lot of money invested into the wrong bike.
About the Author
Red Bull Rampage: The Evolution 2010 – DVD Trailer
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