Live after death: 24s aren’t done yet

2 03 2010

“The rumors of my death have been greatly exaggerated.” Mark Twain


Despite showing  love for the cruiser in recent issues, BMX Plus! seems to have now sounded the death knell for the cruiser in their April 2010 issue in an article called Cruising into Oblivion: The Death of the 24.

It’s  actually kind of amusing however when you take a look at this sensationalist article in relation to the rest of the magazine. For instance, Redline has again seen fit to place a two-page ad for a cruiser in the magazine. And this time it is their top-of-the-line Flight Pro 24!  I’m going to go out on a limb and say there must be some kind of market for 24s to justify that kind of advertising.

And in their mailbag section, a reader writes in about racing Cruiser for two years, “…One thing led to another, and now I race a 24-inch Haro…”.

Are big ads and actual reader feedback not clear enough signs for Plus! that cruisers are alive and well?

Guys like Danny Caluag, Barry Nobles and George Goodall (who is  featured prominently in the Redline ad) are also keeping excitement alive in the National race scene.

And completely ignored by the article is the explosion in popularity of modern trails/park 24s…which I don’t have to convince you of, if you’re a regular visitor to this site.

The death of the 24?

Hardly.

We’re just getting started.





…and now for the complete picture

25 02 2010

It’s here!

Probably the most widely (and wildly) anticipated 24″ complete has hit North America’s shores.

Sunday’s Model-C frame made waves in the 24/cruiser world last year… and now that it’s available as an affordable, well-spec’d  complete…well, let’s just say these things are going to go like hotcakes!

Most of the major mail order companies are in stock, so if you’ve been looking at picking one up, here’s your chance. Just don’t wait too long…trust me on that one.

(The Sunday Model-C complete as shown at Interbike.)




BMX racers vs. ballerinas: Who’s radder?

24 02 2010

Let’s find out!

1) Ballerinas: wear ballet shoes for competition

BMX racers: wear “ballet shoes” (with clipless pedals) for competition

2) Ballerinas: wear tights

BMX racers: wear tights*

*Say what?

Yes, my friends it looks like the end is near.  GT’s Joey Bradford rocked a pair of tights (!) to a Pro Cruiser win at the Gator Nationals on the weekend.

To some this might be called  progression…to me, it’s another sign of the moto (or is it the mojo?) being sucked out of bicycle motocross.






Yard work just got more interesting

15 02 2010

Found this vid recently while poking around on vimeo.

It looks like Jason G has got the right idea when it comes to doing yard work.

Check out his sweet backyard pumptrack.





I love my bicycle

11 02 2010

…but flatlander Terry Adams takes things to a whole other level.





Are shaved headtubes next for Model-Cs?

9 02 2010

Odyssey designer, Jim Bauer recently had a couple of bike checks posted on ESPN, including his tricked out Sunday Model-C.

Off the top, you’ll notice the tricked out, “Bauer-original” paint job and it’s brakeless setup. It’s also loaded with Odyssey and G-Sport components.

Sunday has been experimenting with a shaved headtube design and Jim’s ride has it! The headtube is slimmed down, with less of an hour-glass shape and the bearings of the internal headset are exposed.

Finally, a picture of the man with his bikes. That’s a Metal prototype on the right. This photo just begs for a caption that includes the phrase, “…from the wrong side of the tracks.”






School is always in session

28 01 2010

Old school.     New school.

Do those distinctions even matter for a guy like Stu Thomsen..still kicking ass after all these years?

Nope.

For Stompin’ Stu, school is always in session.

This shot says it all: catching air and going fast.

Some things never change.





Dirt: take with plenty of Liquid

21 01 2010

I teased you a while back with a great video from Jeremy Combs riding a prototype of his new Liquid frame.

Well, now it’s time to take a closer look.

I have to say I’m  pretty excited about this new frame…1) because it was obviously designed by someone that knows his way around a bike and 2) because it offers a long top tube and short chain stays (a combo that seemed a long time in coming).

Check out these specs from the liquid-dirt site:

TT: 22″ and 22.25″
BB: 12.7″
CS: 14.25″
HA: 74
SA: 72
ST: 9.15″ center to center
Weight: 5 lbs 3 oz

They’re also 4130 Sanko Chromoly and feature removable brake mounts and routing.

Colors available are:  flat black, pearl plum grey, and limited edition flat bubblegum blue.

And if you’re a fan of 24″ dirt jumping (and really, aren’t we all?) you should really check out liquid-dirt for great dirt jumping photos like the one below:





Showing some skin in Utah

17 01 2010

I’ve asked the question before…and I’ll probably ask it again…is it time to show some skin again?

The skinwall tire, once a staple in the BMX world has all but disappeared. This depresses me a bit because I think skinwalls really make a bike’s wheels “pop.”

That’s probably why I was so pleasantly surprised (and stoked) to see the Fit CR24 that Glenn from Utah has souped up. It’s a new school ride with some old school flava!

The shiny chrome and the skinwalls take me back to the Chrome Hutch Pro Racer I had as a kid. But it’s every bit the modern day 24…from the current geometry, to the taller handlebars to the translucent plastic pedals…this is one sweet ride.

It turns out everyone can get a piece of this retro-cool skinwall magic. Glen tells me that the tires are actually 1.95 Kenda K-rads that SE Bikes had made for their retro cruisers. You can order them through coloredtuffs.com.  I  linked to that page in my earlier skinwall post..back then I was under the impression that they were just generic knock-offs…now that I know that they’re K-rads…well, now I’m pretty tempted.

True, they’re a bit pricey but to finally get a good skinwall tire again…it might just be worth it.





Redline runs 2-page Proline 24 ad

13 01 2010

Flipping through the latest edition of BMX Plus! recently, I was pleasantly surprised to find a two-page ad for the Redline Proline 24.

So many companies give short shrift to 24s in their ads,  it’s nice to see Redline step up and recognize that cruiser riders want to see “their” bikes in the BMX mags too. For Redline to do so in a two-page spread makes me respect them even more.

What’s more, I love that they chose the Proline 24 over the Flight 24 for the ad. While the Flight 24 is certainly a sought after bike for the hardcore race crowd (with factory Answer Scythe forks, etc.) the Proline 24 is a simple, well-spec’d bike that works: Chromo forks, Redline Flight cranks…everything you need to win races or ride trails…nothing too fancy, but nothing that needs replacing either.

Even though I’m kind of surprised it wasn’t offered in red, or that cool bronze-y gold of last year, I find that this blue version is growing on me. Great job, Redline.

Respect.