cruiser revolution

Gary Turner releasing line of 26″ frames

20 05 2015

The man responsible for building one of the most well-known brands in BMX, GT Bicycles, is returning to bike biz (as Gary Turner BMX) with a limited run of vintage-style 26″ cruisers.

Each frame set will be chrome plated with “old style” Gary Turner BMX chrome stickers. Price for frame, fork and handlebar will be $800 (US) and the run will be limited to only 100 frames.

Here’s a “spy shot” from the Gary Turner Facebook page.

Plans are also in the works for 24″ and 20″ frame sets at a later date.

Pretty cool to see one of the icons of the sport returning to the industry he helped create.

Here’s a lookback at an ad with Gary in his heyday.

The Gary Turner online store, www.garyturnerbmx.com, will be taking orders for the 26″ cruiser sets on Tuesday, May 26, 2015 at 8am PST.

And if you’re in Corona California on August 9, swing by Pole Position Raceway. Gary will be hosting a vintage bike show and launch party for the new frames. A 26″ Limited Edition frame set will be given away as a “best in show prize” at the event.

Comments : 6 Comments »
Tags: 26" BMX Cruiser, Gary Turner, GT BMX
Categories : New products, Old School, Racing

Behold…the non-race race jersey

13 05 2015

Here’s an interesting development.

Freestyle-oriented companies producing BMX racing jerseys!

Sure, back in the 90s a number of dirt jumpers (e.g., Shaun Butler) could be seen sporting race jerseys but that trend seems to have fallen away in the modern era.

However, things might be trending back that way…if a couple of recent product offerings are any indication.

The first notable instance of this was the limited run of Empire BMX race jerseys. These babies sold out quickly and (from what I understand) there are plans to make more.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Empire BMX (@empirebmx)

And now more recently, the Shadow Conspiracy Contender jersey.

A jersey “inspired by BMX racing” but with enough “street-wise styling” to not scare off the street riders.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Dan's Comp (@danscompinstagram)

I, for one, am digging the look of these jerseys and hope that this type of thing continues.

Yet it still makes me wonder…who’s going to be next to jump on this bandwagon?

Comments : 4 Comments »
Tags: BMX racing jerseys, Empire BMX, Shadow Conspiracy, Shaun Butler
Categories : Freestyle, New products, Racing

Lairdframe’s eye-catching 24″ frame

7 05 2015

Lairdframe has been building its reputation on building quality, custom one-off frames.

To this point, most of these custom frames I have seen have been 20″ in size. It’s to be expected, given that’s the biggest market.

I’ve always been stoked on how they look and the build quality.

With that being said, I was pretty stoked to spot this custom 24-inch(!) Lairdframe build over on BMXMuseum.

Definitely a new school build, this bike is certainly an eye-catcher.

Peep the specs:

Headtube angle: 74.5 degrees
Seattube angle: 71 degrees
Toptube length: 21.75″
Chain stay 14.375″
Bottom bracket height: 13.625″
Stand over height: 9.375″

All I can say is, “Wow!”

I sure hope we’ll see more 24″ custom frames like this from Lairdframe.

For the rest of the deets (and more pictures of the bike), check out the BMXMuseum profile .

For more on Mike Laird and Lairdframe, have a look at this FatBMX writeup and Lairdframe.com.

Comments : 1 Comment »
Tags: BMX Museum, Lairdframe, Lairdframe custom 24-inch, Mike Laird
Categories : Freestyle, New products, New School

Lurch’s custom Stout 26-inch

30 04 2015

This sweet ride caught my attention during my last trip to Ray’s MTB in Cleveland.

The owner of the bike, Joshua “Lurch” Gittere, was tearing up the jumps on it so I chased him down to get the scoop.

Very much in the MTB or BMX? category, his custom-built bike seems to combine elements of both styles of riding to make something very distinctive.

Manufactured by Matt at Stout Bikes (you might remember the eye-catching Beelzebike was also made by Stout) this bike is big and strong.

Lurch had originally asked to have it built up for a 100mm suspension fork, which is how he rode it for a little bit.

Then he decided he wanted to see what it rode like when it was built up like a “true” bmx bike with rigid forks and big bars.

According to Lurch, the new setup,

“Feels amazing!! Rides soooo smooth and works for me…anything that keeps me riding is whats up in my book.”

Here’s the specs of the custom frame:

Head Angle: 69 deg.

Seat Angle: 74 deg.

Top Tube: 23.5″

Chain Stay: 15.25″ slammed

Finish: Black with silver flake

Lurch’s setup:

Fork: S&M Pitchfork XLT 26″

Handlebars: S&M Hoder Bars

Grips: DUO Corey Martinez

Bar Ends: Kind Ideal

Stem: Colony TLD Flatland Stem

Seat: United X Cinema Pivotal

Seat Post: Shadow Pivotal

Cranks: Profile Madera 180mm

Sprocket: Kink Sound Sprocket 28 T

Pedals: Deity Compound Pedals (plastic)

Chain: KMC

Headset: Kink Integrated

Front Rim: Sun Ringle MTX 33 36 Hole

Front Hub: Profile Elite

Rear Rim: Sun Ringle MTX33 36 Hole

Rear Hub: Halo DJD Singlespeed Cassette, 11 T

Spokes: DT Swiss

Tires: Geax Booze 26 x 2.3

Brakes: Hayes

Pegs: Sunday Pipe Pegs (not shown)

–

All in all, a pretty interesting mix of both BMX and MTB elements in this bike.

–

Lurch said he had dealt with some back problems in the past and this setup really made it easy for him to ride and be comfortable on his bike again. Who can argue with that?

Comments : 4 Comments »
Tags: Lurch, Ray's MTB, Stout Bikes
Categories : Freestyle, New products, New School, Skatepark, Trails/Jumping

Sneak peek: Tribute prototype tease

24 04 2015

Tribute Bikes put the word out yesterday that they have a new prototype 24″ frame, ready for testing.

While specs have yet to be finalized, it looks like some details have been more or less confirmed (at least if the specs in the teaser image are correct…).

Here’s what we know so far (spec-wise):

Top tube: 21.98″
Chain stay: 14.25″
Stand-over: 9.5″
Bottom bracket: 13″ (TBD)

Other notables?

Well, how about Reynolds 853 tubing, removable brake mounts, and a “top-secret chain stay yoke”?

Hmm…I wonder what the scoop is on that last part.

Looks pretty interesting, in any event.

Hopefully we’ll see Tribute rider, Mike Leonard on one of these soon for some street-level torture testing.

Comments : 1 Comment »
Tags: Mike Leonard, sneak peek, Tribute bikes
Categories : Freestyle, New products, New School

Curbed, dog

22 04 2015

It may seem odd to write about cement curbs on Earth Day (of all days) but in some way it is oddly appropriate.

Earth Day is a day when we–collectively–look at our environment in a different light.

Sure, it’s there every day but how often do we stop and appreciate it?

Now, think of the urban environment.

Curbs, banked surfaces, rails…to the average pedestrian these things barely register.

To a bike rider…well, these things make their eyes light up and stoke their imagination.

Stevil, over at All hail the black market, wrote about this today –in the context of skating–but I think you’ll agree the same line of thought goes through the mind of any BMXer rolling down the street.

The rad thing about curbs is 99% of the population sees a cement block, if they even see them at all, and generally pay absolutely no mind to them whatsoever. Skateboarders on the other hand, look at them- This thing that’s so impossibly mundane, and see potential for a great deal of fun.

It’s all about perspective.

And the notion that fun…even with something as mundane as a curb…is never far from reach.

(Pic: ATX local, CMC finds himself some fun with a curb manual)

Comments : 2 Comments »
Tags: All hail the black market, CMC, Curbs, Earth Day, skateboarding, Stevil, street riding
Categories : Freestyle, New School, Old School, street

Redline reboots the PL-24 as a 26″

17 04 2015

Redline has let the cat out of the bag…they’re rebooting the iconic PL-24 as a 26″ cruiser. In their words, with a “modern take on the classic.”

Do you think that “modern take” extends to the geometry? We’ll have to see.

If you’re in Monterey for the Sea Otter Classic this weekend, get yourself a sneak peek at the Redline booth where it will be on display. (And if you do happen to be there…be a pal and get some more deets and photos for us, OK?)

Here’s a pic of the PL-26 that Redline has been sharing on social media.

And here’s a look at the original Redline PL-24, taken from the pages of the legendary BMX Action magazine.

Those levers, tho.

Zoot scootin’ indeed.

Update:

New photo that Redline has been circulating.

Comments : 6 Comments »
Tags: BMX Action magazine, Redline bicycles, Redline PL-24, Redline PL-26, Sea Otter Classic, sneak peek
Categories : New products, Old School, Racing

Win from lane 8, double the prize money

15 04 2015

While most BMX racing rule changes are met (at least by me) with expressions of frustration…or at best, a barely suppressed yawn…the new UCI “Double Dice” rule is something that has made me sit up and take notice.

UCI BMX and Elite Trax, are adding a new spin to the Pro payout for the 2015 Supercross series:

Doubling the prize money for anybody winning from lane 8!

This has the potential to do some really interesting things to Pro main events. Race strategy/training is definitely going be thrown for a loop. For starters, we’re going to see a heck of a lot more high-low passes in the first turn!

Granted, this has little effect on the cruiser classes for now but I’m curious to see if this kind of incentive filters down to other races and categories.

In any event, Pro BMX racing just got a whole lot more interesting this year.