Which racer is using cloak of invisibility?

1 04 2012

In the lead up to the 2012 Olympics, racers, along with the companies and countries they represent, are pulling out all the stops to give themselves the edge going into the big event.

Whether that’s a carbon fiber frame, a 20mm axle set up or top-secret training technique, no stone is going unturned.

To what length are racers going to give themselves an advantage?

Would you believe cloak of invisibility technology?

Cruiser Revolution has uncovered some top-secret spy photos of a racer (nationality unknown) using the cloak of invisibility.

Check out this photo taken at a top-secret training facility in remote area somewhere in Nevada. The red bike is clearly being piloted by an invisible man!

Rumors have been circulating in the smoke-filled backrooms of the BMX industry about how long this technology has been in the works.

No one knows for sure.

But this undated photo clearly shows the unnamed rider piloting an early-90s model Haro.  It also highlights how far the technology has come–in the present day — as the cloak of invisibility, in this iteration, clearly can’t quite cover the rider’s 100% cotton riding attire.

Where will we “see” the invisible rider next?

Again, no one knows for sure.

But it may be sooner than we think.

Check out this photo that ABC News confirms was taken from their special doppler radar satellite orbiting Chula Vista, California this weekend. Satellite coordinates indicate it was taken just outside the Olympic Training Center.

The plot thickens.





Chromoly: don’t call it a comeback

28 03 2012

Is the race community’s love affair with the carbon fiber fork coming to an end?

It’s beginning to look that way.

Heck, when you have a big name like Olympic contender Mike Day saying things like, “always good to have a chromoly fork…and not have a road bike fork on your 20 inch” (when he’s being interviewed about GT’s 2012 lineup) then you know things are starting to shift.

On the Bodogs Race Report, in a post called Chromoly is the new carbon fiber, the writer talks about his own experiences with the different types of forks that are currently available:

Speaking only from experience I have personally witnessed no less than half a dozen cases where carbon fiber has failed, two cases where aluminum has failed (Both at the welds) and no cases where chromoly has failed.

He also sees a move back to chromoly in response to what he’s observed out at the track:

The new trend has returned to the beginning. Parts companies are building affordable chromoly forks that are stiffer and lighter than the most expensive carbon fiber forks on the market.

These same companies are also starting to play up the benefits of chromoly in their marketing. In a recent ad in Pull Magazine, CLIQ/Haro compared the chromoly Cliq fork to the Sinz carbon fiber fork.  At half the price, no rider weight limit and (as an added blow) a lighter weight overall it’s hard to argue that carbon fiber is a better choice. The ad finishes with the tagline,“Does any of this make sense to you, cause we’re still confused.”

Clever.  With more and more people getting the sense that they’ve been sold a bill of goods with carbon fiber forks, I think we’ll continue to see people voting with their wallets and going with the tried and true benefits of lightweight chromoly forks.

4130…It’s good to see you back at the race track, my old friend.





Updated InDust Cuatro: spy photos

9 03 2012

Back in November, pictures of the new InDust Cuatro 24 were making the rounds on the Internet.

Now it looks like some refinements have been made to the geometry.

Most notably a slacker head angle (presumably to make it more stable at high speeds when riding trails) and a lower seat tube.

Stout Bikes (the company manufacturing the frames) let the cat out of the bag with some spy photos on their website the other day.

These are looking really good. No word yet on when these will be released but I suspect it will be in limited quantities when they do.

Check out the InDust Facebook page or their webpage for all the latest developments.





S&M joins the 22″ movement for 2012

7 03 2012

BMXUnion posted a great interview today with Chris Moeller of S&M Bikes talking about his company’s recent foray into the manufacturing of 22″ frames, forks, wheels and tires.

According to Chris, the motivation to create the new line was simply due to friends nagging him to do it:

If my friends hadn’t been so persistent about it, it would never have happened. Once I had one built up I thought it was cool and I had fun riding it

Earlier in the interview, he also said:

The idea of a slightly larger, more stable trail bike for older guys coming off an extended break from BMX or larger riders coming off MTB’s made a lot of sense to me.

In terms of geometry, while still being fine-tuned,  Chris said:

The geometry is about the same as a 20” but with a little more kicked back seat angle. The tires are 22” X 2.125” for now. It wasn’t too difficult scaling it to the larger wheels and we kicked the seat angle back for raising the seat up high to actually ride the bike. Since there are no preconceived TT lengths people are judging it by we didn’t have to worry about that. And if you go to the trails with the seat down it won’t make a difference anyway.

The release date for the 22″ Holmes (fitting name for it’s larger size, natch) is set for mid-summer along with a Revenge wheel-set and tire combo that will be sold separately.

Be sure to check out  BMXUnion  for more on S&M’s new 22″ gear and related musings from Chris Moeller.

Dan Closser airing out the S&M 22" prototype (Pic from BMXUnion)

For related discussion on the 22″ phenomenon, check out these earlier Cruiser Revolution posts:





Rasta Model-C: coolest custom Sunday?

1 03 2012

I’ve seen a lot of great Sunday Model-C builds over the years but this has got to be one of the coolest!

Check out Chris Ehlbeck’s custom Rasta Model-C…this whip is badass!





T19 “How I Roll” 24inch BMX Cruiser

29 02 2012

T19, one of the better known skateboarding brands in Japan has introduced a cool vintage-looking 24″ cruiser called the T19 X How I Roll BMX Cruiser.

For those on the vintage tip, this bike has all the classic elements to make an old-schooler happy. We’re talking v-bars, retro frame gusset, skinwall tires…true classic style. Not to mention the  frame, fork and handlebar are all cro-mo. (Check out the full spec list here.)

Part of me wants to get one of these and cruise around like it’s 1983!

But then again, it might just be that this T19 video is making me want to grab my bike and run wild in the streets (It’s true…)

Special thanks to Roger Faso for giving me the heads up on this bike.





Stolen Saint: a great new 24″ option

10 02 2012

This bike first caught my attention when I was cruising the booths at Interbike back in September.

I was immediately impressed by Stolen’s first foray into the 24″ world.  It looked like they did their homework: tall-ish bars, double-wall rims, raised BB…all at great price (under $500, I believe).

Check out this video of Rick at Pat’s 605 Cyclery in Norwalk, CA  giving the bike the once over (seriously, why don’t more bike shops do videos like this?).

If you’re looking to get a 24″ complete, the Stolen Saint is a great new option.





Wanna lose a few inches this year?

7 02 2012

The 22″ wheel movement has suddenly taken an interesting turn with the news that S&M is testing a prototype frame and tires.

In 2010, I did a post called 22″ bike: could you lose a couple inches? that generated a bunch of discussion on the pros and cons of the wheel size.

Back then I said (in the comments section) that having a single source supplier for all things 22″—Faction was the only company at the time offering 22″ stuff—would “hurt the cause”.

Now with companies like InDust offering 22″ frames and Standard building custom one-offs,  the 22″ movement is starting to pick up some more momentum.

S&M is already offering 22″ forks as a custom option  but has shied away from manufacturing frames till now.

With this new prototype it looks like S&M is about to jump into the 22″ scene with both feet. And by doing so, it looks like the 22″ option suddenly has a whole new level of legitimacy.





WTF…why the fender?

27 01 2012

There’s a thread going on right now over on Vintage BMX discussing the pros and cons on installing rear fenders on race cruisers.

Yes my friends….fenders.

Turns out GHP racer Todd Parry is running a carbon fiber (?!) fender on his race cruiser to avoid “being sucked in between the tire and the seat”.

And while the different sanctioning bodies tend to frown on these kind of things, it appears that track operators are letting the use of fenders slide.

Seems a little goofy to me.

What do you guys think?





Taking a Sledgehammer to the flat scene

24 01 2012

Joe Cicman and Danny Sirkin threw down some serious flatland moves on a 24″ last year in two installments of TwoFourFlat.

Well, they’re back at it again.

This time taking a 26″ Volume Sledgehammer through its paces and teaching the big bike some new tricks.

Check it out.