Check out this Austin local on the Specialized grassroots team tearing things up on a Specialized P24!
Quality footage of 9th Street and some other good stuff. Not 100% sure on the name but I believe it’s Thomas Williams. (Can any of you Austin locals confirm?)
Enjoy!
Vodpod videos no longer available.A while back the post titled, Traditional cruiser bars: who needs ’em generated a lot of discussion about the trend towards taller bars on 24″ BMX bikes. Part of that discussion also noted how the trend hadn’t really taken hold in the race community.
Racer, BMXActionOnline moderator and today’s guest tester, Matt Shelley thought the idea of taller bars on a race bike was a good one and decided to check it out for himself.
Here’s what he had to say:
The tall bars garnered a lot of interest at the races I attended, and most racers seemed positive toward the idea and feel. The local hot shot, nationally ranked in both 20” and cruiser, balked at the idea, insisting both bikes need to be set up with identical heights and reach. A rider who really liked the feel of my bike replied “all well and good, but if you only ride a cruiser, that rule simply doesn’t apply.”
A concern I had with the test was comparing my “apples” to “oranges”. Stack heights and stems vary from bike to bike, so bar height is not the final word in overall height. I decided I would measure from the top of the headset bearing. Whether internal or cup, this seemed like an appropriate starting point, and the middle of the grip area would be the end point.
Below is my main race bike. The bars are 5.75 inches, and the overall height is 7.5 inches.
I’ve been running this setup for close to 2 years now. It seems typical of most race cruisers and feels pretty good to me.
Here is a picture of a Quad that I recently set up. The bars are 7.5 inches with an overall height on 9 inches.
I’ve raced this bike 3 times now, and two 2nds and a 1st have been the result. After the initial half hour of “this feels different,” I did not notice the bars much after that. I felt that they gave me better pull when manualing and hopping over jumps, and I got the impression I had much better pump with them on backsides.
Another advantage of the taller bars was leg room. I’m 6 feet tall with an inseam of 33 inches. The 6 inch bars I ran on the quad had to be rotated a bit forward, as I felt they were a little too close to my knees. With the 7.5 bars I can now run them in line with the fork.
The only area I felt these bars to be too tall was out of the gate. I was now standing taller, and thus could not get all of the “give ‘em” out of my hips and into the pedal that I am used too. Aside from those first few pedals, no other detrimental effects on the track were noticed.
I’m now planning to boost the overall height on my main rig to 8 inches. This should give me that better pull and pump I felt, and still allow for a powerful feeling out of the gate.
So taller bars on a race cruiser? Hey, if it feels good… do it!
Received an email from Cullen (aka CMC) recently that simply said,
“Nice to see some smooth low-key brakeless 24″ riding”
with a link to this Daniel Ziller video:
Vodpod videos no longer available.Kinda makes you want to drop what you’re doing and go ride, doesn’t it?
Think freestyle riding on a 24″ BMX bike is a new phenomenon?
Think again.
Ted Emmer was rocking a 24″ at the Del Mar skatepark back in 1984!
He even managed to score some coverage in the first edition of Freestylin’ magazine. (Check out the wheels…custom 71 spoke Z-rims!)
Here’s classic video from the King of the SkateParks Del Mar Contest:
(Stoked that Ed Koenning had this video and was able to post it.)
An interview that Sunday Bikes’ Jim Cielencki did recently with Complex magazine has just come out. And while the intent of the article was to talk about the 2011 Model-C Pro, Jim also took the opportunity to talk about the history of the Model-C, the geometry and the different models available in the Sunday lineup (including the Wave-C).
Explaining how he convinces people to give the Model-C a try, Jim says:
I feel like a drug dealer, because when someone goes ‘oh, there’s the 24,’ I put it in their hands and they ride it, and most people have judged it and they’ve discounted it or have a negative opinion of it, but they ride it and they understand. Because there’s never been anything like this. They don’t have anything to go off of. They get on and they go ‘Oh, OK, I get it’.
Great to see some mainstream coverage of what’s going on in the world of 24″ BMX. Check it out here.
(Bonus info: The interview was done by Russ Bengtson, the guy behind the hugely entertaining, but now defunct, SPRFLS blog.)
Bobby Parker and the Sunday crew recently made a trip up to Colorado to hit the plethora of concrete parks available in the state. While there, they managed to hill bomb Mt. Evans (which is supposed to feature the highest paved road in North America) and shoot some great footage.
Andrew Brady was able to capture some of the radness that went down with his camera and Bobby was cool enough to send some of the photos along. He also included a writeup for each one to give you a look into what went on “behind the scenes” for each photo.
So without further ado, here’s some highlights from Bobby Parker’s Colorado trip in his own words:
One-footed table at Boulder skatepark. This place is wild! Big hips everywhere that went all ways and angles. For some reason I started getting the feel for opposite tables on my Model C a while ago on some long sessions at the Walnut Creek Pump Track….For me it seems like opposite carves/airs and opposite tables work better on the 24″. It is debatable on what specifically makes these things happen…something else that’s awesome that cruisers bring to the table (oh yeah….pun intended). The hip at the Boulder park just started feeling really good that way and I had never really toyed with one-footed tables before so I let a few fly. – Bobby
No hander at Valmont Bike Park. Lets just say I still have a reminder of Valmont on me right now…in the form of road rash and a sprained ankle. We rolled into the parking lot about 30 minutes before it was too dark to ride but still managed to ride for about 45….I was trying to get in as many laps as I could so when I saw a few of the Sunday guys take some cranks into the XL line I jumped right behind.
Next thing I know my tire doesn’t quite make it to the end of the log ride and I get sent. A little bit of blood never hurt anyone, I guess.
As I go back to the van to straighten out my bars (and dust myself off) Andrew went to go set up his flashes on the last jump to take a picture of one of the Sunday guys. The team guy ends up calling it quits on account of it starting to get dark. The mosquitos were the size of battleships out there and I knew Brady was being feasted upon. I told him I would try something for his efforts of setting up all of his flash stands. This is what we came up with. – Bobby
Sounds like an awesome trip. In his email, Bobby said there was so many awesome places to ride that they didn’t even put a dent in all the skateparks Denver had to offer. Looks like Colorado is going to be getting a lot more visitors in the near future if people start getting wind of what’s available there.
In a key plot point in the movie Rad, Cru Jones makes the life-changing decision to postpone taking his SATs to take part in the big race at Helltrack. He does it because he thinks he’s got a chance at winning against all the “factory hot shots”.
Did he make the right choice?
It seemed like the right idea at the time. Factory BMX racers seemed to have it all back in the 80s. Driving Porsches, international travel, BMX Action magazine covers…you name it. They were living the high life.
Winning the big race would be Cru’s ticket to living the dream.
But today? I’m not so sure skipping the SATs would’ve been the right choice.
Check out the check that Denzel Stein, Redline factory hotshot, is holding for a recent win…$1400.
Compare this with the check that Team Kachinsky (Brian Kachinsky, Corey Martinez, Sean Sexton and Will Stroud) is holding after a win at the recent Nike 6.0 contest…$14,000. (Sure it’s split 4 ways…but c’mon that’s a much sweeter payday.)
Today, he probably would’ve been wise to skip the race altogether and focus on perfecting his bicycle boogie skills.
In case you missed it, Todd Lyons started a thread on BMXMuseum offering sneak peaks of SE’s 2012 line. I have to tell you, they have some seriously sweet looking rides.
If retro/old school is your thing (or you’ve been in this BMX game since ‘back in the day’) I bet your already salivating at this beauty…a chromed-out OM Flyer. Serious old school awesomeness here.
If you’re looking for a serious race machine (with some old school flair) look no further than the 2012 Floval Flyer. As you know, the 2011 version that we tested recently was pretty impressive.
SE managed to shave even more weight off it for 2012 making it possibly the lightest production 24″ on the market…and that’s without carbon forks! Slimmed down Landing Gear grace the front end giving you peace of mind if you occasionally case a jump or two.
Hopefully we’ll see a better pic of the Floval Flyer soon.
In any event, check out the thread at BMXMuseum. Looks like SE has some good stuff going on for 2012.
In a time when many 47-year olds are content to ride nothing more than their couch or a golf cart, Jon Faure (who just turned 47 today) continues to push his limits.
Recently taking on Woodward West’s Mega Ramp and walking away smiling, you know this self-professed Old Guy Who Rides still has that fire inside for riding.
Jon Faure, 47 years young
Jon seems to embody the philosophy that I think most of share, regardless of what side of 47 we’re on, when it comes to riding:
We may be old enough to know better, but still young enough to do it anyway (mostly ’cause it’s so damn fun!)
Happy birthday Jon, looking forward to seeing more radness in the future!
cruiser revolution 
