Tricks aren't for kids . . . anymore.

[TwoBobRob]

It's the difference between riders and kids with bikes.

Riders will make a personal choice to run as many or as few brakes as they choose, and that's all good.

Kids with bikes will do whatever their mates say, or whatever they perceive as cool.  Hence so many brakeless kids who really can't ride and will never, ever progress.

But they're not riders.......  scene kids as someone eloquently put it.

I had a lad in the shop here yesterday who cut the cables on his week old bike, went to his mates dad and got him to take the brake off because "it was in the way". His own dad marched him into the shop to have the brake put back on - half of the bits and pieces missing obviously - and the kid finally confessed when he realised I'd seen right through him.

When questioned by his dad, the kid said "brakes are old fashioned and they stop me from doing triple barspins"....

10 years old, first bmx, purchased last week.


Don't try and understand it, we're all old!!  Just be thankful he's on a bike and not robbing an old lady.

[SaMAlex]

2 things that have been said to me at skateparks that fit in this thread

Brakeless Kid at Corby: "wow, i didnt know you could fit a front brake to a BMX"
As has been said, its fine for people to ride how ever they like, but it'd be nice if they knew there are other ways as well.

Good skater lad at my local ramp: "you make every manual roll. I dont often see BMXers who can do that"
It comes to something when making a manual roll is a stand out trick, cos most kids loop out and jump off cos they aint got a rear brake.

I'd love to pull my brakes LESS and I make a real effort to ride OFF the levers, but at the same time I LOVE doing brake tricks and would never limit the (pretty small) amount of tricks I can do on a riding session.

(side note: Not long ago I set up a new bike and took it for a spin before I put the brakes on. The fear of looping out was SO great that I couldnt manual, or even bunny hop. No joke! Im WAY to old to change my ways now! haha)

[jeff spicoli]

If you don't like brakes then don't use them but leave them on your bike incase you ever need to use them. They don't weigh that much so why take them off. I had three brakes bitd but am down to two now. Miami hoppers , front hops , front wheel kickturns , Freeman flip etc etc all very difficult without a front brake. The back break comes in handy for cherry pickers and wheelies lol. i have seen the brakless kids at my local skatepark and they are mostly complete crap on a bike but the odd kid is awesome. Harry Main rides our local park with no front brake and does some insane front wheel action.

[theRuler]

A front brake is handy for doing this:



Wonder whatever happened to this guy?

[JT71]

Wonder whatever happened to this guy?

he got a haircut and fuzzy felt goatee.

[JT71]

but he still wears that elbow support....i think it's actually the same one...sure smells like it is.

[SaMAlex]

but he still wears that elbow support....i think it's actually the same one...sure smells like it is.

I do and it is. I wore it last night!
I cant find one that holds my elbow together as good as that one. I have tried looking.

[theRuler]

That sequence is from 18 years ago

[JT71]

That sequence is from 18 years ago

yeah, can you imagine how that elbow support smells now? Daz and Persil ain't helping. !

[evamedia]

no slight on Alex, but you can do that footjam, think Matt Jenkins had a DIG cover doing it quite a while ago

[SaMAlex]

no slight on Alex, but you can do that footjam, think Matt Jenkins had a DIG cover doing it quite a while ago

Oh totally. There aint many brake tricks that someone cant to with their foot (and do them very well too). I think that keeping your feet out of the wheel looks better, but im sure brakeless riders will remind me how clean and tidy their bikes look.

[theRuler]

Having a brake means you can do it either way.

[JT71]

to foot jammers I say this...you wouldn't wear brake blocks on your feet would you?

[oldtired]

love that derailuer guard proper spoke saver 

[Nana]

I just wish it made the brakes cheaper to buy.............i mean if all these kids dont want em..........how come some calipers are still Ł50+


I like my brakes as i have a morgage to pay and kids to bring up...........i just cant put the brakerless commitment into my bmx at all 

[oldboyburner]

my son loves the tricks but rides no braked as he says he would hessitate on the ramps he has just entered his endo pic on burnerworls
here is the bike he rides 90% from the rad shop

[deeman]

I dont get the whole brakeless thing.surely common sense would determine that you are aboard a machine that is capable of travelling at 30mph quite quickly,and you should be able to slow down just as quick for your own and everyone else's safety?would anyone consider driving their car brakeless'sure i can appreciate the skill involved riding brakeless,that Dandois vid is mind blowing,but i agree that there are probably so many kids that wont progress or reach any kind of skill level as a result of this 'peer pressure' and will lose interest quicker,but then they probably would have anyway.Probably the most worrying thing is that most kids who ride with no brakes also probably ride to and from the skatepark,and to school/work everyday using public roads?

[oldtired]

that Macneil is nice    which one is it?   

[ED209]

It's a pedaling time machine, nothing to do with a cherrypicker really.

ahhh... don't know the proper names  should have said 'like' a rolling pedalpicker.

As has been said a long time again... if you mess up any trick where your balls are over the headtube then you get your cherries picked 

[ukoldschool]

I watched the 3 videos linked on the first page and I have to say all 3 riders have amazing skill, but ZERO style.
Every trick looked the same and was done the same way in and out.
Riding brakeless may have given them a great sense of balance and an ability to handle the gyroscopic tricks they do, but it looks like shyte when youve got a leg wanging out all over the gaff as a way of keeping your balance.
Flatland appears to have regressed to the time of victorian stunt cyclists.

[ED209]

I watched the 3 videos linked on the first page and I have to say all 3 riders have amazing skill, but ZERO style.
Every trick looked the same and was done the same way in and out.
Riding brakeless may have given them a great sense of balance and an ability to handle the gyroscopic tricks they do, but it looks like shyte when youve got a leg wanging out all over the gaff as a way of keeping your balance.
Flatland appears to have regressed to the time of victorian stunt cyclists.

  ... not sure about ZERO but its in the low 1's 

[ukoldschool]

agreed

difficulty 9/10
style 1/10

deductions -10 for over 'wanging' of leg

final score= 0/20 

[ED209]

"style is the backspin on the quater as it goes into the coke machine"

 

and Eddie Fiola.

[Nana]

Flatland appears to have regressed to the time of victorian stunt cyclists.

Quote of the month surely............fooking hilarous 

[ukoldschool]