Donny Robinson, US Olympian and Silver Medal Winner
Well, even after the semi-finals were rained out, and thus, not televised as planned, the BMX events in the Olympics put on a solid 45-second (per race) show. Jill Kintner, Mike Day and Donny Robinson all medaled for the United States with bronze, silver, bronze, respectively. Maris Strombergs of Latvia won the men’s gold, and two French riders, Anne-Caroline Chausson and Laetitia le Corguille took the gold and silver.
Stuart over at DHADM sent me a couple of videos in the build-up to the BMX racing events in the Olympics. One from the Seattle program, Evening Magazine, and another from MSNBC. The video from MSNBC, above, features some more behind-the-scenes of the track, and an interview with racer, Donny Robinson.
Interesting that the host on Evening Magazine, John Curley, mentions that if you haven’t heard of “BMX Motocross” before, you’re not alone. Strange, because I know that BMX has always had a good footprint in the Pacific Northwest, and, well, it has been around for what, 30-plus years? Public perception of BMX never surprises.
Evening Magazine BMX Feature, featuring some solid Washington racers
If you didn’t get a chance to see the Olympic medal rounds on tv, you can check them out here
Oh, and George over on Kranky found some great photos (via We Mine Deeper) of the Olympic BMX races, shot by a non-bmx photographer. Cool stuff.
On the heels of this, I’ve dug through my archives, and I have something pretty special planned starting Monday - it will be Bob Haro week at BMXRoots. Check back for some stuff many of you may have never seen.
The BMX competition in the Olympics is only three days away, and with that, there are some lively discussions popping up all over. Since most of my time has been on the freestyle/non-racing side of BMX, I’m focusing on this side of the fence. There are plenty of other places to get the BMX racing contingent’s thoughts on the Olympics, and a quick search will get you there pretty quickly.
First, Phil at Super Rat Machine is giving you a shot at winning a set of Super Rat Prototype pedals as one of his Friday Freebies, for answering these questions in the comments of his site:
Since this is the first year of bmx in the olympics and since it will essentially expose millions of people to bmx racing what are the pros and cons of the event as you see it? and do you think it will affect your daily interaction with joe public? and to go along with that do you think any other form of bmx will make it into the olympics?
Post your answer here by Friday, August 22nd, for a chance to win a set of sweet not-even-yet-released pedals.
Over on the RideBMX site, there’s an interesting bunch of quotes from BMX-industry folks and riders. Mat Hofman’s response and comments (taken from another interview in a German newspaper), have sparked quite a bit of discussion. Rad to see the infamous McGoo throwing some thoughts, as well.
(Note that I’m not the Jeremy commenting on the Ride site, it is me on the Super Rat site, however, for what its worth…)
On a lighter note, I encourage you to take a cue from the Minnesota Faction BMX crew, and get some other riders together and watch the racing. If you’re in Minneapolis, join them. What better reason to ride, drink and eat - in whatever order you prefer? Thanks to Paul Smith for the heads-up.
Corked pedals…not pedals made from cork. A Super Rat Friday Freebie.
Seat stay/framestand and bologna-cut top tube detail. Photo: George Yang
Looks like there’s already quite a bit of chatter about the Knight Performer - I’ve seen it pop up on a number of the vintage BMX sites over the past couple of days. One thing that’s been discussed is the geometry of the ride, and how it compares, considering it is overall, a pretty modern ride. I hit George at Knight up for some more information, and he sent over pretty much all you might want to know:
Material: 4130 Chromoly
FRAME
Top tube length: 21.5″
BB height: 12″
Chainstay length: 15.25″
Head angle: 73 degree
Seat tube angle: 70.5 degree
Headtube: Integrated
Bottom Bracket: Mid type
Brakes: 990 mounts
Seat post: 25.4mm
Dropouts: 3/16″ thick
Axle type: 3/8 axles
Extras: Coaster Brake plate like the 20″ version
So, there you have it - the top tube length should keep it roomy, yet quick for a cruiser. With the 3/8″ axles, you might need to hookup a set of the Skyway Graphite TuffWheels to go with the frame. Keep a lookout here for shots of the prototype as it gets built-up.
Related: Knight Retro Performer Prototype
Raw and fresh out of the jig. Photo: George Yang
The 24″ Retro Squareback Knight released last year was very well received by those looking for a cruiser with vintage styling. Modeled after the Redline squarebacks of yore, it was a fairly traditional cruiser frame, with some really nice detailing.
I think that the new 24″ jam from Knight will up the retro BMX game - other manufacturers should take note. In fact, it is only retro in styling, as it features all of the modern features of today’s BMX bikes - integrated headset, mid-bottom bracket and 990 brake mounts. However, look closer at the photos of the prototype - a coaster brake tab and a standing platform. Yeah, I said it - a standing platform, just like the GTs of yore - on a 24″ cruiser. Knight is calling it the Knight “Performer”, but I don’t know if they’ll stick with that name. They say it is a tribute to one of the most recognizable early freestyle frames, the GT Performer/World Tour, and Eddie Fiola - who helped make GT so prolific early in the freestyle game. Be sure to hit the link on Eddie’s name - there’s a great story on lifelounge.com, with some of Eddie’s personal photos.
If you want one, get a hold of Knight quickly. They’re going to be made in limited numbers, and available very soon. Damn, just like yesterday’s post - did I find yet ANOTHER bike/frame to obsess over? Check more photos over on the Knight blog.
THAT, my friends is a starting hill… Photo Credit: Casey Gibson/USACycling.org
As I type this, the opening ceremonies of the Beijing Olympics are underway. Controversy aside, it is pretty amazing to see BMX recognized as an Olympic sport. Thanks to the good folks at the OS-BMX Forums, here are the broadcast schedules for the Olympic BMX coverage on NBC, here in the United States. If you’re a night-owl, you can watch some of this live online at nbcolympics.com
August 20, 2008 - 12:30am - 2:00am EST
Late night (LIVE) BMX cycling, featuring men’s quarterfinal races.
August 20, 2008 - 8:00pm - 12:00am EST
Prime time (LIVE) cycling’s BMX finals.
August 21, 2008 - 2:00am - 5:00am EST
Prime time Replay BMX finals.
Wanna know more about the bmx athletes? Check these links:
jillkintner.com - Personal site of the sole female USA rider and all-around badass cyclist
USA Olympics Cycling Team
Redline’s Global Olympic Team Page
Mike Day (Olympic rider) on EXPN.com
Uhh…
Related:
Nike USA Olympic Uniforms
Dan’s Comp has 3 of the 2,500 limited edition Freestylin’ Books from the Nike Collaboration to give away. These are much sought-after in certain circles, and I gotta say that I’d love to get my hands on one as well. You can enter once a day, and there’s no purchase necessary. Check out the details here.
Double foot-jam tailwhip at the Kansas Action Sports Contest - rider’s name coming. Photo: Jeremy Schutte
Alright, I’ll get the obvious out of the way first - August in Kansas is HOT. Not quite Texas hot, but we can get damn close. Heat and humidity combine to make some sweaty, exhausting times. So, first, props to the 12-15 riders who rode through the heat yesterday in the state capital of Topeka, for the bmx portion of the Kansas Action Sports contest - which also had skateboarding on Saturday and Inline skating on Sunday as well. It was pushing 100 degrees yesterday at the end of the contest, with 90+ % humidity. Ugh.
Ty from Topeka organized and announced the bmx contest, held at the Rip On Skatepark at Shunga Glen Park. Rip On is a small park with some big features - definitely worth checking out if you’re in the area. Seeing that I had my almost-4 and 6-year-old boys with me, I didn’t get to meet many of the riders, but I gotta say that, as always, the midwest guys easily throw-down with any rider out there. A nice mix of new and old tricks, with footjams, whips, big boosts, grinds and wall-rides all represented.
Rumor has it that they are considering moving the contest to earlier in the summer, and I gotta say that this, along with wider promotion of the entire contest, across all disciplines, would boost the contestant and spectator turn-out. Again, especially with BMX, we gotta evangelize it, and I was glad to see the amateur group available to the younger/less-experienced riders.
The contest was sponsored by Capps Bike Shop, Midwest Skateboarding, Topeka Parks & Rec, the City of Topeka and Pepsi of Topeka. Nearly every rider walked away with something in-hand from the sponsors - always a nice touch.
I’m planning on shooting some photos with some of the riders, in the upcoming months, so look for those here, soon.
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