September | 2011 | cruiser revolution

This is real street riding

28 09 2011

Every so often a video appears on the scene that’s so mind blowing, so ground breaking, so epic…it changes everything.

This is one of those times.

“Hell yeah, put that on your list of cool shit you saw today” – Jesse Miller

After a week in Vegas, checking out the latest and greatest at interbike, celebrating the top riders in the sport at the Nora Cup Awards and just taking in the spectacle of the Strip…it felt there was something missing from my interbike experience.

Sure flashy new bikes and parts are cool but BMX is so much more than that. It’s that feeling you get when you get a group of riders together and have a good ride or session.

Thankfully the 4130 crew, together with Vegas local Micheal Leonard, brought the L.A.-based 4130 Subway Series ride to Las Vegas to coincide with interbike. Renamed the 4130 Sin City Series ride, 200 plus riders made it out to take part in what would become an epic ride. Everyone was smiling and having a good time…old school, new school, race or street rider…it didn’t matter. It was a celebration of BMX in it’s purest form.

That good feeling you get when a good group of riders gets together to ride?

The 4130 rides have that in spades.

I’m still hyped on the ride a week later.

So much fun.

Vodpod videos no longer available.

Comments : 7 Comments »
Tags: 4130 Sin City Series ride, 4130 Subway Series ride, BMX, interbike, Las Vegas, Las Vegas strip, Mayor of Hollywood, Micheal Leonard, Nora Cup Awards, Vegas
Categories : Freestyle, New products, New School, Old School, Tomfoolery

Random interbike finds

22 09 2011

While I was cruising the booths at interbike, a few random things caught my eye. No real rhyme or reason to them but things you might be interested in.

The return of the Redline Forklifter Plate

Spotted this in the Redline booth. It looks pretty similar to the old Forklifter plates that RL Osborn used to sport on his bike (like in the opening sequence of Rad).

Tioga’s “is this taking things to far?” new pedals

Spotted these at the Tioga booth. I’d be a little nervous about riding these puppies. (What I was hoping to find in the Tioga booth is news that they would be offering the Powerblock tires in 24 X 1.95…alas, no such luck.)

New kicks from 5-Ten

Although I’m something of a flat pedal purist when it comes to racing, I do like the added edge that sticky shoes like 5-Ten provide. Wandering by the 5-Ten booth I noticed that they’ve stepped things up this year with cool half-cab and high-top styles.

Pryme knee/shin guards

Not sure if these are new or not but I really liked how streamlined they were. They looked like a good option to wear under jeans at the local bike/skatepark.

Cruiser Candy

I got pretty excited when I spotted this van at the show. Probably because I was hoping to fill my pockets with cruiser-shaped candy. Unfortunately (at least for me anyway) Cruiser Candy is a business focused on the beach cruiser market. I consoled myself with one of the complimentary beers that some of the booths were offering to “guests”.

Comments : 1 Comment »
Tags: 5-Ten shoes, BMX Cruiser, Cruiser Candy, interbike, Pryme knee/shin guards, Redline Forklifter plate, Tioga pedals
Categories : Freestyle, New products, New School, Old School, Racing, Rad, Skatepark, street, Trails, Trails/Jumping

Cruising the booths at interbike

20 09 2011

You’ve probably already checked out the interbike coverage from Ride and Vital BMX already but you and I both know they’ve left out what you’re really looking for…what’s new in 24″ BMX news.

Good thing Cruiser Revolution was there this year to bring you the highlights that you were really looking for.

Free Agent

An updated colorway and the addition of Sinz forks are all new for the Free Agent Limo 24 in 2012. I’m seeing more and more Free Agents at the track, so this could be a big seller when these drop in stores.

Redline

It seems that Redline’s reputation for out-of-the-box ready race machines remains intact. While the Project 79 bike got a lot of hype (I got the impression that a 24″ version isn’t on the horizon anytime soon) the old workhorses, the 24″ Flight and 24″ Proline look as good as ever with some updated colorways and component tweaks.

SE Racing

While I was hoping to see the updated Floval Flyer (it wasn’t on display for some reason) SE had a number of cruisers to check out. My particular favorite looks-wise was the OM Flyer. For real, this thing is beautiful. A vision in chrome goodness (it even sports chrome valve caps!).

Sunday

Sunday didn’t have a booth this year but I chatted with Jim C. after the Nora Cup awards and got the lowdown on what’s new at Sunday for 2012. The Model-C complete will be sporting a 22″ top tube with a great parts package. Check out this web edit for all the details.

We the People

According to the rep I spoke to, WTP dropped the 24″ for the lineup because “it wasn’t doing what we wanted it to in the market place”. Sad really, considering WTP’s legacy of great 24″ bikes. Perhaps if they actually promoted their 24″ bike…say with a web edit or a picture of someone riding it…. they would’ve achieved the sales they were looking for. (See Where’s the promotion?” ) But who am I to say? Perhaps not marketing is the new marketing. What’s replacing it is their new 26″ Champ bike. If you’re a BMX Museum regular you will see the not-so-subtle design nods to the classic Champion frames from back in the day.

Stolen

Stolen is new on the 24″ scene for 2012 with a good first effort called the Saint. It comes complete with 7.25″ bars and double-wall rims.

DK Bicycles

DK seems to have a lot on the go these days 24″ wise. They’ve updated their popular Sentry cruiser with a 22″ top tube, their freestyle-oriented Cygnus is looking sharp and their long-awaited 24″ Professional frame (with the higher than usual bottom bracket) will be dropping in about a month. Their Evolution rims are also looking dope. Check out this clip of Trevor Gay explaining, with Brian Hunt‘s “help”, all the features and colors available in the Evolution rim.

Vodpod videos no longer available.

Comments : 12 Comments »
Tags: Brian Hunt, dk bicycles, DK Cygnus 24, DK Sentry cruiser, Floval Flyer, Free Agent, Free Agent Limo 24, interbike, OM Flyer, Redline 24" Flight, Redline 24" Proline, Redline Project 79, SE Racing, Sinz, Stolen Saint 24", Sunday Model-C, Trevor Gay, We the People Champ cruiser, WTP
Categories : Freestyle, New products, New School, Racing, shenanigans, Skatepark, street, Tomfoolery, Trails, Trails/Jumping

It would be a sin to miss it

14 09 2011

By the time you read this, I’ll be in Sin City (Las Vegas) checking out all the new 2012 stuff on display at Interbike. It’s going to be a busy week. Tons of stuff to check out and people to meet. And while I’d love to say that I’ll be “reporting live”, I’ll probably just put it all together in a recap next week.

I’m also planning on hitting the the Nora Cup Awards. Drew Bezanson (who rides at Joyride, my local bike park) is up for another award so I’ll be cheering him on.

On Friday, the Vegas edition of the 4130 Subway Series goes down. It’s going be nuts. (Now I just have to borrow a bike so I can participate!)

More details next week.

Comments : 10 Comments »
Tags: 4130 Subway Series, 4130 Subway Series Las Vegas, Drew Bezan, Interbike 2011, joyride 150, Las Vegas, Nora Cup Awards
Categories : Freestyle, New products, New School, Old School, Tomfoolery

How stacked is the 40-44 cruiser class?

12 09 2011

That headline is a bit of a rhetorical question because, from the looks of things, it’s incredibly stacked. I just finished reading Scott Burright’s post on 30plusbmx on that class at the NBL Grands and it’s no joke.

According to Scott:

40-44 cruiser at the final NBL Grands was epic. 59 riders showed up to do battle in one of the most competitive classes in the sport. The title would come down to who was able to make it through to the main event. The class had eighths, so this would be no easy task.

Check out Scott’s writeup for all the details but suffice it to say the main was a pressure cooker for the guys who made it because it was anyone’s race to win. The talent in the class is deep:

Words cannot describe how hard and competitive this class has become. There are seriously 25-30 guys who can make mains at any given national.

With the NBL and ABA uniting under the USABMX banner next year, it looks like the level of riding is going to get that much more competitive. Tough if you’re one of the competitors but awesome if you want to watch some closely fought races.

Comments : 1 Comment »
Tags: 40-44 cruiser class, ABA BMX, BMX Cruiser, BMX cruiser class racing, NBL BMX, NBL Grands, racing cruiser class, USABMX
Categories : New School, Racing

Lightning bolts: key to a great BMX logo

8 09 2011

BMX legend Taj Mihelich, put together a cool article (that’s making the rounds today) for Complex magazine called The 50 greatest BMX Logos.

It’s a great read. A funny thing you’ll notice, and one that Taj notes in the writeups for each logo, is how prevalent the lightning bolt is in BMX logos. It shows up time and time again. In the Zap Pad writeup, he says:

There is definitely some connection between lightning and BMX. You can find lightning bolts on all kinds of BMX imagery. I think that maybe the very bones of BMX, chromoly steel, can only be created by a direct lightning strike.

For me, the Elina lightning bolt seat is the most iconic of the BMX lightning bolts. Those old school Elina seats are pure BMX.

Like I said earlier, it’s a great read.

For old schoolers, it’s like a trip down memory lane.

For new schoolers, it’s an opportunity to see (and maybe laugh at) what passed for cool back in the day.

Check it out.

Comments : 2 Comments »
Tags: BMX, BMX legend, chromoly steel, Complex Magazine, Elina lightning bolt seat, Taj, Taj Mihelich, Zap pads
Categories : Freestyle, goofiness, Old School, Racing, Skatepark, street, Trails, Trails/Jumping

Forget Dr. Phil, build a pumptrack!

6 09 2011

Back in February, we discussed Can a pumptrack save your marriage?

But what happens when your marriage is…how do I put this delicately?…on the rocks?

Well, if you’re like Jon Maglio and already have a simple pumptrack in your backyard, you get digging! Breaking out the shovel and getting his pumptrack super dialed with more flow and obstacles was Jon’s preferred form of therapy.

Just check out this video. Judging by the smile on his face at the end, this form of therapy was more effective than anything Dr. Phil could’ve recommended.