Freestyle BMX

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Freestyle BMX is a creative way of using bicycles originally designed for bicycle motocross racing. It can be split into several disciplines, although riders will generally participate in more than one discipline. These are Street, Park, Vert, Trails (sometimes called Dirt) and Flatland.

Contents 1 Disciplines 1.1 Park 1.2 Vert 1.3 Trails 1.4 Flatland 2 Bikes 2.1 Freestyle BMX-specific bicycle parts 3 External links

[edit] Disciplines

[edit] Park

Skateparks are used by BMXers as well as skateboarders, inline skaters and sometimes scooter-riders and they all draw inspiration from the others. Skateparks themselves can be made of wood, concrete or metal. Styles of riding will differ between wood and concrete parks - wood lends itself to easy tricks, while concrete is more suited to a slow, flowing style, with riders searching for gaps, and aiming to air higher from the coping. Concrete parks usually tend to contain bowls and pools. However, it is not unusual for riders to merge the two styles in either type of park.

Concrete parks are commonly built outdoors due to their ability to withstand years of exposure to the elements. Concrete parks are also often publicly funded due to their permanent and costly nature. Parks made from wood are popular with commercial skateparks due to ease of construction, availability of materials, cost, and the relative safety associated with falling on wood instead of concrete. Parks designed with BMX use in mind will typically have steel coping that is less prone to damage than concrete or pool coping.

Common obstacles include:

• quarter pipes - literally, quarter of a pipe - riders air from it and perform tricks on a platform above the ramp or drop in on it to gain speed
• spines - two quarter pipes back to back
• flat banks - a flat bank set at an angle of roughly 40 degrees from horizontal
• wall rides/vert walls - a vertical wall above either quarter pipes or flat banks
• miniramps - two small quarter pipes facing one another, like a halfpipe, but with a short flat area between.
• hips - essentially two quarter pipes or flat banks, each with one edge at a right angle or a more aggressive angle to the other.
• box jumps - a steep quarter pipe like lip with a deck extending to a landing often less steep than the lip.
• pyramids - a four way wedge or transition box.
• camel humps - a quarter pipe with a short flat area on top leading to a small hump, used to gain air.
• launches - A curved ramp that launches the rider into the air.
• roll-ins - A long sloping ramp. Also used to refer to very tall ramps (15+ feet)

[edit] Vert

Perhaps the most extreme of the BMX disciplines, a half pipe consists of two quarter pipes set facing each other (much like a mini ramp), but at around 10-15 feet tall (around 2.5 to 3.5 metres) high. The biggest ramp ever used in competition is the X-Games big air ramp at 27 feet tall. Both 'faces' of the ramp have an extension to the transition that is vertical, hence the name.

Riders go up each face, performing tricks in the air before landing into the same face. A typical run involves going from one side to the other, airing above the coping each side. Also possible are 'lip tricks' - tricks on the platform at the top of the ramps before dropping into the ramp.

Mat Hoffman popularized the sport in the early 90s, and holds the record for the highest jump of 27' out of a 25' ramps (a total of over 15.5 metres from the ground). He achieved this by being dragged along a field by a friend with a motorbike and hitting one face of the ramp. On one attempt, he lost control at the peak of his jump, and the resulting crash caused life-threatening injuries such as losing his spleen. Remarkably, despite his age and history of injuries, he still competes to this day.

The danger of the discipline (and scarcity of full-size vert ramps) puts most riders off, and as such, there are a small number of top professionals who remain at the top of the sport for many years. Notable vert riders include Dave Mirra, Chad Kagy, and Jamie Bestwick (who has won the majority of all the major international competitions in recent years). Other up-and-coming vert riders include 18 year old Zack Warden, who landed the first tailwhip to tailwhip back in vert ramp, commonly referred to as a "windshield wiper".

[edit] Trails

Trails are, as the name suggests, lines of jumps built from dirt (heavily compacted mud). The jumps consist of a steep take off, called a lip, with an often slightly less steep landing. The lip and landing are usually built as separate mounds, divided by a gap. The gap is measured from the topmost part of the lip, horizontally to the topmost part of the far side of the landing. Gaps typically range from only a couple of feet to over twenty feet. A moderate gap is around twelve feet.

Trails riding is sometimes also referred to as 'dirt jumping'. Most riders that ride trails maintain that a subtle difference exists in the style and flow of "dirt jumps" and "trails"; trails riders focus more on of a flowing smooth style from one jump to the next whilst performing more stylish tricks, while dirt jumpers try to perform the craziest tricks they can without much thought to their style or smoothness. This flowing trails style is popularized by riders such as Van Homan, Mike Aitken, Chase Hawk and Chris Doyle.

Although many regard trails and street as being completely opposite, the attraction is similar—trails riders build their own jumps so their riding is limited only by their creativity and resourcefulness.

Dirt jumping bikes are heavier than BMX racing bikes but lighter than freestyle bikes. Often a BMX jump bike will have only a rear brake and they might also sport a gyro. The gyro will allow them to do airborne tricks such as barspins. But most trails riders don't ride gryos, they run a single straight cable from the lever to the brakes.

With trails you do not need to pedal in between jumps. By pumping, or pushing your bike down as you come to the middle of the area between the jumps, as well as landing front tire first on the landing, you gain speed to clear the jumps.

[edit] Flatland

Main article: Flatland BMX

Flatland BMX occupies a position somewhat removed from the rest of freestyle BMX. People who ride in the above disciplines will generally take part in at least one of the others, but flatlanders tend to only ride flatland. They are often very dedicated and will spend several hours a day perfecting their technique.

Flatland also differs from the others in that the terrain used is nothing but a smooth, flat surface (e.g. an asphalt parking lot, basketball courts, etc.). Tricks are performed by spinning and balancing in a variety of body and bicycle positions. Riders almost always use gnurled aluminum pegs to stand on to manipulate the bike into even stranger positions.

Flatland bikes typically have a shorter wheelbase than other freestyle bikes. Flatland bikes differ from dirt jumping bikes and freestyle bikes in one way. The frames are often more heavily reinforced because the people riding flatland often stand on the frames. This shorter wheelbase requires less effort to make the bike spin or to position the bike on one wheel. One of the primary reasons flatlanders often ride only flatland is a result of the decreased stability of using a shorter bike on ramps, dirt and street.

A variety of options are commonly found on flatland bikes. The most unifying feature of flatland bikes is the use of four pegs, one on the end of each wheel axle. Flatland riders will choose to run either a front brake, a rear brake, both brakes, or no brakes at all, depending on stylistic preference.

[edit] Bikes

The vast majority of freestyle bikes utilize 20 inch wheels. Frame sizes and geometry vary, but the top tubes are usually 20-21 inches long. Some riders customize store bought (complete) bikes, although most riders build custom bikes from the ground up to suit their preferences and style of riding.

Generally, street riders use smoother tires for more grip on concrete, and may use from zero to four axle pegs for grinding. Many do not use brakes, as this makes certain maneuvers (i.e. barspins) easier/smoother.

Park riders use a similar setup, but some prefer to use brakes (front and/or back) for a wider variety of tricks.

Dirt riders usually don't have pegs, and use more knobby tires for better grip in the loose dirt. Dirt bikes also tend to run only a rear brake, and have longer top tubes. Many riders use bigger bars for more control, although big bars have become a trend among kids and popular professional riders.

A professional who primarily competes in park contests will probably have a gyro with rear brakes only, zero to 4 pegs, and a lightweight bike, with few exceptions. This is because riders in contests usually have a limited time, 60 seconds or less, and have to perform very difficult tricks consistently

Vert bikes are relatively heavy for stability.

Flatland riders bikes usually run four oversized aluminum pegs, and smaller, lighter frames often with pre-bent tubes to make it easier to do flatland tricks. Brakes depend on preference, riders often have brakeless bicycles. In fact most aspects of a freestyle BMX bike's setup are based on personal preference, so a park rider could ride street, dirt or whatever else he might want without any changes to their setup. Most BMX bikes have small sprockets (22-30t) and 8-11t drivers to maintain a 2.75:1 gear ratio. Some bikes use sprocket guards to protect the chain and sprocket. Many bikes also have slammed seats to stay out of the way for certain tricks. Above all a freestyle BMX bike should be simple and strong while remaining light and nimble.

Before there was a "true" freestyle bicycle, riders used BMX racing frames for jumping and for performing flatland maneuvers. Bob Haro was the founder of the first freestyle bicycles company, Haro Bikes. Most of the early Haro Freestyler bicycles are collectible items that sell for several thousand dollars. [1] The first freestyle bicycles were not as riding style-specific as modern ones; what made them suitable for flatland usually was the addition of bolt-on components, like standing pegs, platforms for the frame, the forks or the chain stays near the rear dropouts, and front and rear brake cable detangler systems like the ACS Rotor for the rear brake and the Potts Mod, a hollow stem wedge bolt for the front brake. By mid-90s, riding style differentiation in frames and components became the norm.

Coming into the 2000s BMX bikes have taken a turn for technology. Past trends of strength over weight have flipped once again and now new technologies have led to stronger parts at lighter weights. Many innovations are coming from MTB, Road, and other forms of cycling. New innovations in the BMX world include:

• Integrated / Internal headsets - Commonplace in road-bikes for many years, they are now the norm for BMX, replacing the tried and true press fit cups seen in the past.
• Mid / Spanish / European bottom brackets (BB) - All smaller than the traditional American bottom brackets seen on many older BMX bikes, these save weight, clean up appearances, and add ease of use with threads and straight push fit bearings. Mid and Spanish bottom brackets use bearings that press directly into the frames, the basic design of which was used on road bikes years ago. No cups are used. Mid BB's use larger bearings than Spanish.
• Integrated seatclamps - Old technology making its way to BMX once again.
• Integrated seat/Seatpost combination - An innovation from BMX that is now being used for all forms of cycling. These seats are much easier to fit and much lighter.
• Pivotal seatposts - Pivotal seats and posts utilize a single bolt locking mechanism to hold the seat is place. The seat is adjusted with an allen wrench through a small slit in the top or side of the seat. Pivotal posts hold the seat on much better than normal rail posts and are lighter.
• Kevlar beaded tires - Kevlar is much stronger, lighter and more expensive than steel which is used as the bead for traditional tires. Some companies have started combining Kevlar beads with very thin tire carcasses, which make for super-light and very expensive tires. The primary function of these tires is to reduce rotating weight, which has a substantial effect on the feel of a bike.

Other products have emerged from companies that have pushed the envelope of what technology can do in BMX, from one-bolt stems, to antique ideas making a come back with modifications, BMX is in a new era, parts are more reliable and bikes are lighter, the BMX world is getting in key with other cycling sports.

Some other well-known BMX copanies are:

Animal, Coalition, Colony, Demolition, DK, Eastern, FBM, Fit, Hoffman, Kink, Macniel, Mosh, Mutiny, Odyssey, Primo, Shadow Conspiracy, Subrosa, Sunday, Stolen, Tree, We The People, Fly Bikes, Free Agent.

[edit] Freestyle BMX-specific bicycle parts

• Detangler / Gyro / Rotor - A device that prevents the rear brake cable from becoming tangled during barspins, tailwhips, or any tricks that require the handlebars to spin 360 degrees or more. A 'gyro' is a two piece device that floats under the stem and rotates on ball bearings. The top cable from the rear brake lever connects to one half of the device while the bottom cable from the rear brake connects to the other half. When the brake lever is pulled the 'gyro' raises and in turn pulls the lower cable attached to the brake. This allows the bars to be spun around infinitely.
• Pott's mod bolt - A hollow stem bolt that allows the front brake cable to be run through the stem and fork. This allows the bars to be spun 360 degrees or more without tangling the front brake cable.
• Axle Pegs - Short 4 to 5 inch long tubes. Street pegs used for grinding tend to be made of chromoly. Some street pegs designed for lightness will either have a thinner chromoly sleeve over an aluminum body, or simply be made out of a tough plastic compound. Flatland pegs tend to be made of aluminum, have a larger diameter than street pegs, and have grippy surfaces for the feet. (In rare cases, this surface is made of sandpaper or rubber)
• Freecoasters- Freecoasters allow rolling backwards without pedaling backwards as one would need to do with a cassette or freewheel hub. The design of the freecoaster is based on coaster brake hubs with the brake pads removed allowing for backpedaling. Some companies also manufacture specific freecoaster hubs. Such hubs are very popular with street riders.

[edit] External links

• Freestyle BMX information - bmx.bikebuy.eu