Which came first, BMX or the BMX bike?
For the world in general, the answer to that depends on how you
view the Schwinn Stingray's role in history. For me in particular,
and for most of the racers I know, the answer is easier. Admit
it. Didn't you buy your first race bike before you knew anything
about racing? Most of us did. Having done that, didn't you then
proceed to spend as much money on "upgrading" your bike
as you could beg or borrow from your parents, friends, and local
charitable organizations? Sure. Once you really started racing,
didn't you immediately regret buying half of these "upgrades",
and didn't you plan to buy new and different parts to replace
the new and different parts you'd purchased before beginning your
racing career? That's pretty normal, too.
BMX parents who feel they have been placed
in a never-ending hamster exercise wheel of financial outlay,
and older Beginner riders who are paying their own way in BMX
and are totally confused by all the opportunities to spend money
on their bikes, are unfortunately unlikely to find reasonable
advice on what to buy and when to buy it, simply because no two
riders can agree on what the best way to "upgrade"a
bike is. Nor do I claim to have all the answers. The most I can
do is offer my opinions on the subject, backed up by fifteen years
of building and abusing BMX bikes.
Most new racers start by purchasing a complete
BMX bike priced in the $150 to $350 range. If the bike fits, (and
that is a big "if") the next step for the rider and
his parents is to honestly distinguish between "need"
and "want" upgrades. Here's a quick guide, for you to
build your own list with:
A Racer Needs...
Strong, cr-mo handlebars
A stem which grips those bars securely
Properly attached grips
A working brake
"Grippy" pedals, type and brand
unimportant
Proper crank length and gearing
A reasonably "true" wheelset
That's really everything necessary to
win races. I should point out that younger riders (under 12 years
of age) often have special needs when it comes to fitting the
bike properly, but for the 12 and up crowd, the above list is
enough.
Now, let's try our typical "want"
list. If you are a parent of a teenaged racer, a lot of this stuff
will sound very familiar:
A Racer Wants...
Expensive 3-piece cranks
A new frame, just like his favorite pro
uses
Name-brand bars, stem, brake
Clipless pedals, or $150 machined platform
pedals
A new wheel set featuring hubs costing more
than your car
Don't get me wrong. None of the stuff I've just mentioned is useless, or a rip-off, or anything of the sort. Parents can compare the "need" and "want" list to the last time they looked for a car. In order to be usable, a car needs a driver's seat. A lot of us, though, want that seat to be upholstered in fine Connolly Leather. Intelligent young riders are masters of blurring the distinction between "need" and "want", often resorting to outrageous logic:
"Mom, I need 3-piece cranks because
I can't turn Novice without them." "Dad, I need V-brakes
because the lever I have now makes my hand sore." Nor do
racers outgrow this trickery; I recently thought I'd convinced
Mrs. Boswell that she "needed" the twenty-valve turbo
motor in her new car because "it gets better fuel economy
in the mountains, " or something like that. Naturally, she
wasn't fooled, not after years of spurious reasoning. You shouldn't
be fooled either.
The good news is that now, more than in
the past, the complete bikes you can buy at the local bike store
are entirely adequate for beginning competition. When I began
racing, most complete bikes, even the expensive ones, had dangerously
weak stems, brakes that were easier to maladjust than to adjust,
pedals that might as well have been covered with grease for all
the traction they provided, and cheap mild steel cranks seemingly
designed to bend immediately.
My first racing bike required about sixty
dollars' worth of new parts before I could race it safely; my
cruiser, made by the same manufacturer, but thirteen years later,
was ready to race out of the box.
The fact that my current cruiser was perfectly
satisfactory as it came from the bike shop doesn't mean I haven't
fiddled with it, added Flight cranks, et cetera-but everything
I've put on has been definitely more of a "want" than
a "need."
Why, and when, should a bike be upgraded?
I have tried to answer this question with the list below. "Needs"
are listed first, followed by "wants."
A strong stem (also known as a gooseneck) - This is the most important part you can buy for a bicycle. Nothing frightens a Beginner rider more than having bars "slip"-this is also the cause of quite a few racing accidents. The stem should have four bolts securing the handlebars. When all these bolts have been tightened down, a strong adult should not be able to "adjust" the bars by putting a foot on the stem and pulling on the bars. The heavier the rider is, the less likely that the "factory" stem will be adequate. Lighter riders will have better luck.
Cr-mo handlebars - One of the most common cost-cutting measures taken by bike manufacturers is to supply "mild steel" handlebars with their bikes. Steel handlebars are heavy, but more importantly they are more likely to break. If your complete bike has "mild steel" bars, it is worth the money to upgrade. It is usually not worth the money to change the Manufacturer A Cr-mo bars that come with your bike to Manufacturer B bars, just because they are "cooler" or supposedly stronger.
Grips - Rubber grips are a must. Do not buy plastic grips-they never stick. Parents who are buying a new bike should try to twist the grips, motorcycle-style. If they move, have this fixed before you take the bike home. Grip slippage is dangerous. Again, don't worry about the name brand-just make sure the grips are soft rubber and securely attached. I use 3M Industrial Trim Adhesive to put mine on.
A working brake - You'd be surprised how many otherwise well-maintained bikes have lousy brakes. Nearly any brake will do a good job if it is adjusted properly. If you have to, pay a bike shop to show you how to adjust yours. Don't spend money on a new brake set unless you have had the current setup looked at by a reputable shop. 99 out of 100 times, maintenance, not the parts themselves, is to blame.
"Grippy pedals" -More disagreements are started over pedals than any other equipment issue in the sport, but most of the pedals out there today are pretty good. The sole exceptions are plastic pedals and "rat-trap"pedals. If your beginner is slipping his pedals, usually it is his fault and not the pedals'. Keeping one's center of gravity low over jumps and bumps usually eliminates slippage.
Proper crank length and gearing -Most new bikes today are sold with chromoly one-piece cranks, and that's a good thing. The invention of long one-piece cranks (generally credited to the Esser family) helped make modern racing possible. It was not unusual for Pros to run one-piece cranks as late as 1987. No teenaged rider, and I feel safe saying this, has ever lost a race because they didn't have three-piece cranks. Like most aspects of BMX, this isn't true for young riders, but the rest of us don't need three-piecers. More important is that your cranks be the right length, and that your gearing be correct. I have examined both of these subjects, at length, in the past, and you can get the articles from my web site- wow.infinet.com/~jboswell.
Wheels - If your wheels are in "true", spin easily, and don't weigh a whole bunch, you're okay. Even "mag" wheels will do for a beginner. The only thing to avoid is a set of wheels with steel rims (to which a magnet will stick.) These are usually really heavy and weak. They are also extremely rare nowadays.
So much for the "needs". Now let's talk about the "wants," the bank busting, parent bewildering stuff.
Three-piece cranks -Three-piece cranks, of the type invented by Redline and now sold by everybody in the free world, are the traditional way for a young rider to show his pals that he has a "serious" ride. I wish I had a dime for every time I have seen a kid on a $150 bike to which he has added $200 cranks. This is a poor idea. Although three-piece cranks are lighter than one-piecers, the weight difference is slight. Nor are they always significantly stronger. Buying three-piece cranks also means you'll be buying new pedals, so take that cost into account. Often, young riders cajole their parents into buying 175mm three-piecers, only to outgrow them a half a year later. Needless to say, this tends to cause parent-rider friction... My advice: Let this be the last, rather than the first luxury item you buy.
New frame -If your rider "fits" his current bike, it's wise to wait until he outgrows or breaks it before buying a new frame. There's an unfortunate myth in our sport that a new frame will fix anything, but this is not true. The most typical scenario I encounter nowadays is the 14-year-old, with a chromoly race bike, who wants to buy a $300 aluminum frame and put his "old" parts on it. He'd be better off entering thirty local races with his money. Experience, not expense, makes you faster.
"Premium" bars, stems, brakes -If your current handlebars are in good shape, why buy new ones? (As long as your current bars are chromoly-see above) The same goes for the ninety-pound rider who wants a $50 "heavy-duty" stem, or the kid who doesn't bother to clean his break pads but wants CNC machined direct-pull cantilevers. If your current parts work, keep 'em. Once in a while, I do splurge and buy myself some super-trick "upgrade", but it's just gadget-mania on my part. be honest with yourself (or your family) about the unlikelihood of improving your racing with this stuff.
Clipless pedals, $150 platforms -The clipless pedal debate in BMX is rapidly approaching holy-war levels. I won't please anyone by discussing the merits of clipless pedals here, but for the Beginner or Novice racer I think they make little economic sense. The same goes for machined platform pedals. I paid eighteen dollars for my racing pedals and they have never stopped me from winning. (Many other things have, though.) Beginner and Novice riders should work on their skills before they worry too much about their pedals.
Superwheels -It has never been easier to spend a lot of money on racing wheels. The average new rider will damage his wheels too often to justify doing so. Until you can go a full season without seriously "dinging" your wheels, two sets of $100 wheels would be a better investment than one set of $200 wheels.
I had a pro houseguest for the Christmas Nationals who made his main on a set of wobbly, no-name wheels. So don't let your kids or pals tell you it takes expensive wheels to win races.
Looking back on what I've written, I
can't help but feel like the Grinch Who Stole Christmas. It isn't
my intention to talk riders and parents out of having fun buying
stuff for their bikes. There's nothing I like more than buying
neat stuff myself. What's important to realize is that in the
long run, you have to win the race. Your bike can't do it for
you.
Don't lose heart. There is an easy
way to make your money pay off in your riding, and I've already
mentioned it above. Go to local races every chance you get. Every
time you line up for a race, you gain priceless experience and
skill. Don't let anyone tell you that local racing isn't for champions.
Champion riders as diverse as MC's stalwart "Mac" Plummer
and Schwinn wonder-rookie Matt Pohlkamp, both of whom honed their
superior skills through years of local racing, would disagree.
So what's the best thing you can "do with" your bike?
That's simple. Race it!