Stompin’ Stu Thomsen slays the trails

3 03 2015

Stu Thomsen cause a bit of a sensation recently when he returned to the race scene–in old school SE colors, no less–at a USA BMX national in Phoenix.

Stu took home the win in his cruiser class, showing that he still has the horsepower to whup his fellow racers.

But perhaps even cooler than his still awesome racing skills, is his versatility and ability to ride at a high level in so many different types of bike riding.

He was one of the first guys to get coverage riding skateparks in the early days of BMX….and he’s certainly no slouch on a road or mountain bike either.

That’s why I got a little stoked to see a picture surface, right after the Phoenix race, of Stu gettin’ trails-y at the Oakley pumptrack.

Stu Thomsen at the Oakley PumptrackWith so much of the BMX scene broken down into subgroups these days: trails riders, racers, street riders…it’s nice to see someone like Stu showing people the simple truth…it’s all just riding.

It’s a notion that seems to have been lost over the years…run whatcha brung and have a damn good time doing it.

(Photo credit: SE Bikes)





Sneak Peek: Colony Eclipse 24

12 02 2015

Colony BMX let the cat out of the bag a couple of days ago on Instagram. They’re releasing a new cruiser called the Eclipse 24.

According to the brief description, the new 24 is:

Full CrMo, full sealed everything, ready to cruise on or for those that want a bigger BMX for the dirt, park and streets.

I’m looking forward to checking out the full spec list once it becomes available.

Watch for these to be available in the U.S and Australia sometime in March. (Other countries will get them soon after.)

Colony Eclipse 24





A 24″ Chase Hawk tire on the horizon?

28 01 2015

I’ve seen talk of this in a couple of places (the otxdesign instagram page and BMX Museum) but so far no official word.

Is a 24″ version of Odyssey’s Chase Hawk tire in the pipeline?

If the word on the street is to be believed, it looks like it’s going to happen. In the mean time, I guess we’ll have to sit tight until we hear about a release date.

Pretty stoked to see this added into the assortment of high-end tires available for new school 24s.

chase-hawk-white-walls

 





Tested: Stolen Joint tires

17 12 2014

When I heard that Buddy Sardenga was getting a set of 26″ Stolen Joint tires for his Beelzebike 20 666, I knew it would be a good opportunity to hear more about the tires that are popping up on more and more cruiser builds.

Judging by this pic alone, they are definitely winning in the looks department.

Buddy tests Stolen Joint 26 tires

But how do they perform?

According to Buddy,

…they have amazing grip on the concrete and you can lay it down as low as you want on turns. Very fast and quiet, especially with a free coaster.

In the dirt?

What really blew me away was the way they handled dirt jumps and cornering at high speed in berms. Once again, very fast and they grip like they had knobs, great all around design.

Comparing the Joint tires to what he ran before, Buddy said:

I was running Halo Twin Rails before these tires and I would say the Stolen’s are right up there with those.

(Editors note: I took a lap  on Buddy’s bike at Walnut Creek last year when it had Halos on it…and whoa, were they super grippy…if these tires are in the same league…that’s saying a lot.)

It appears the Stolen Joint tires are the real deal…looks and performance in one package.

Check out Buddy shreddin’ Tejano’s trails in Pflugerville, Texas for more proof that these tires live up to the hype. (Pic by Octavio Artuno)

Buddy at Tejano's trails in Pflugerville





Stricker steps up to a 22″…no joshin’

2 12 2014

I had heard stories/rumours previously of Matt Beringer experimenting with a 22 but never could seem to find any evidence of it happening.

Well, it looks like another big name in the S&M alumni is taking the plunge…and this time S&M Bikes themselves is promoting the fact.

JOSH STRICKER

The man, the myth, the legend…Josh Stricker is building himself up a fresh 22″ ATF whip.

Stricker22

Could this be the start of more big-name riders making the switch to bigger wheels?

Who’s to say at this point?

All I can say is I can’t wait to see video of Stricker tearing shit up on this thing.





FBM checks in with custom cruiser rider

27 11 2014

FBM may not be a name synonymous with cruisers but every once in a while they’ll surprise us with a custom cruiser build.

Yesterday, they featured a custom build (on their site) that they did for Creson Dude and touted their custom frame capabilities.

creson bike

Included in the writeup are pictures of Creson shredding pools, trails…you name it.

creson whip

creson bowl

What might be even more interesting is…this might be the same custom frame & fork that we featured here on Cruiser Revolution back in 2009. (It does look kinda rusty in the more current pics…) If it is that same frame…well, then you know that these frames will stand up to years of abuse.

Nice going FBM.

(…and Creson, not too shabby in the style department!)

 

*all pics from fbmbmx.com





Huge indoor park opening in Vegas

12 11 2014

While there have been rumblings about an indoor park opening in Las Vegas before, it now looks likes it’s finally happening.

SK8XTC, what the new park is called, will cater to skateboarders, BMX riders and inline types. The features and amenities include dirt riding areas, concrete bowls, a BMX SX track and a whole lot more. There’s even a sushi restaurant planned!

Seems pretty over the top…but then again, where else but Vegas could something like this fly?

SK8XTC

 





Read all about Ray’s MTB

15 10 2014

I’ve always thought the story of Ray Petro and Ray’s MTB read like a Hollywood movie.

Well, the movie still has yet to be made, but it looks like you can now get the next best thing.

A book, put together by Ray Petro and professional adventure sports writer and photographer, Johnathon Allen.

Ray’s, The Inspirational Story of the World’s First Indoor Mountain Bike Park, tells the story of how Ray overcame drug and alcohol abuse to create the standard-setting Ray’s MTB bike parks.

index

Available at the bike parks and through Amazon, this looks like it is going to be one fun read.





WTP debuts 2015 Atlas at Interbike

15 09 2014

This year’s Interbike show saw a much smaller BMX presence than in year’s past.

Notable no-shows for this year’s show included S&M, DK, GT and Redline. (DK opted to showcase its 2015 lineup in-house at DK HQ.)

With that being said, there was still plenty to check out at this year’s show.

A refreshing change this year was We the People (WTP) and their decision to locate their booth in the heart of the “BMX zone” of the show. Last year’s booth was located a fair distance from the other BMX vendors…I remember asking people for directions to the booth. Perhaps this is a reflection of their recent switch to a new distributor and more positive moves in the future.

Another good thing to see from WTP is their decision to keep the Atlas 24 in their lineup for 2015.

Retaining essentially the same “trails-y” geometry as the 2014 Atlas, it now sports a black and red ano colorway that looks great up close. It unfortunately loses the limited edition tanwall tires it sported in 2014, but it still looks like a  well-spec’d ride.

WTP 2015 Atlas 2015More Interbike coverage to follow, keep your eye out for more posts all this week.





Sneak Peek: 2015 Fairdale Taj Cruiser

17 07 2014

Fairdale Bikes recently put out a preview of their 2015 lineup and part of that preview included the 2015 Taj Cruiser.

The Taj is now in an eye-catching red and features Odyssey grips, seat, pedals, brakes and levers. It will be available as a complete and as a frame and fork kit.

2015 Fairdale Taj spec shotsAnd while complete specs and geometry will be released later (probably around Interbike in September, I’m guessing) the preview does promise that the Taj Cruiser features:

“Wheelie Poppin’, Curb Hoppin’ Track Certified Geometry.”

That’s good enough for me.

2015 Fairdale Taj complete

Check it out.