BMX – Come Fly With Me

Along time ago when I was just a child, I wanted a BMX bike so bad! Santa never brought me one and birthdays came and went too. As a family we struggled financially so I had to make do with a second hand, re painted, black racer bicycle.

I did love that ricketty old bike and indeed was grateful you must understand but I still looked on in envy at all the other BMX bikes. Perhaps because I believed I could fly over the garden, house and beyond at that point made me want one even more. I hadnt grasped the fact that the BMX bikes in the movie E.T. had more than a helping hand in getting them off the ground! Flying over large obstacles in BMX video games didnt seem to compensate.

Of course back in those days the whole BMX thing was brand new and on Christmas mornings the streets seemed to be full of kids zooming up and down pavements, which were littered with crude home made and often dangerous ramps, on their new bicycles, the large majority of which were the phenomena that was to become BMX.

Despite thousands of valiant attempts, no one ever did manage to fly their BMX over the house, although crazy Billy from the next street has the scars to prove he gave it a really good try. We all concluded that E.T must have had some kind of magical powers!

More than 30 years later and although BMX bikes still cannot fly they are still very cool and are more popular than ever. For the first time in its history in 2008 they became a successful part of the Olympic Games in Beijing.

At the 2008 Olympics, racing was the only BMX discipline to take part but with the ever growing popularity of the sport in general, it is only a matter of time before Freestyle is included too.

BMX also has Flatland in its arsenal of disciplines, this too is growing in popularity and as with other forms of BMX riding takes great skill to be a true pro.

With such a variety of styles it is not a surprise to find out just how many different models of BMX there are. Not only does each discipline generally require a different bike with regards to weight and structure but even within the disciplines themselves there are many different models and brands.

Famous riders get bikes designed not only with their name branding it, but often with their own specifications too.

If you are looking for a BMX bike for personal use or for a gift for someone else, never have you been better served by the choice and variety available and there should be no problem finding the one you want.

November 25 2008 | bikes | No Comments »

Turn Your Road Bikes Into A Work Of Art

A brief look at the increasing popularity of custom bicycles. Read on to discover how riders are turning their bikes into works of art.

With the surge in popularity of cycling both competitively and for fun, custom bikes have increased in demand with novice and professional cyclists alike. Even though they are more costly than their off the shelf counterparts, there are lots of advantages to buying a custom made bicycle. Custom bicycles are made to fit your exact body measurements which means a greater amount of comfort and less wear and tear on your bike. Custom built bicycles are especially perfect for those with not so ‘average’ body types who tend to find that they just can’t find an off the rack bicycle they can get on with.

It is critical for the custom bike manufacturer to know your riding style and body type if they are to make a suitable bike, but there are other things they will need to know too. Before deciding to have a custom bike made the cyclist needs to decide how they are going to use their bike as this will have a major effect on the design decisions the manufacturer will make. A bicycle used every day by a man to and from work will be hugely different in design to that of a racing cycle to be used by the same man. Other points that should be considered are the frequency and length of time the bike will be in use as well as the different types of terrain it will be ridden on. If you let your manufacturer know all of your requirements it will help him in making the best possible bike to suit your needs.

Custom bicycles give riders the chance to express their individuality. Even the more performance oriented bikes, such as racing and mountain bikes, can be customized with different colors and components chosen by the individual. However it’s the low riders, cruisers and choppers that are the works of art , and give the cyclist the opportunity to make a huge fashion statement.

Recently it has become increasingly easy to find companies who manufacture custom bikes, due to their resurgence in popularity. A lot of custom bike builders now own websites that allow riders to view all of the many components and options available in order to build that bike they’ve been dreaming about. If a rider has no local stores there are many websites that will work with people on a long distance basis, meaning that this dream can become a reality for anyone with a computer.

Get more info about lowrider bikes and custom making bikes at this web.

November 19 2008 | cycling | No Comments »