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New School BMX 2004 - Now => New School Park, Street & Dirt => Topic started by: theRuler on September 11, 2011, 11:34 AM
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There are dozens of kids riding BMX where I live, which is great. And in the town park they have just built some bowls, and they are always busy.
Thing is though, none of the kids run brakes.
Walking through town on an evening my mates often get me on one of the local's bikes to do gut levers and stuff, but with the bikes having no brakes, it is hard to do tricks!
Don't people do tricks anymore?
All I see the kids doing are attempting 180 bunnyhops, pathetic footjam endos and out of control manuals (with no brake to feather, to help you learn)
In my experience you gotta learn the tricks with brakes first - it helps. The more tricks you know, the more into it you get, and it keeps the sport alive.
These local "brakes are for gays" riders will mostly not get anywhere, and will get fed up with BMX.
One night there was one kid who had a front brake (his dad probably made him) and I got on his bike and did a no handed cowboy.
They had never seen anything like it, and one kid said he was gonna get a front brake and try it.
Brakeless riding is nothing new - at KOC in the mid nineties there was always a gang of local kids ripping on ratty bikes with no brakes, and they had their whole own style. But most likely they learned the technique and control by using brakes first though.
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Peer pressure... :-\
Agree on running a brake to start with, most of the kids at our local park don't run em some are sketchy but some of em have awesome bike control
Two newbie kids asked my how to go over the spine, (albeit the small one :-[) neither had brakes, i showed them and both had a go on my bike saying it was easier, that's cos you're using the brake i told em, both said they'd put a brake on.... it's highly likely they won't
But we're just old farts to them who know nothing... :crazy2:
As an aside i do like the look of brakeless bikes.... :smitten:
(http://www.radbmx.co.uk/archive/albums/m48/markw33/Picture004.jpg)
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I took my boys to the newish public skatepark in town yesterday. I didn't even bother taking a bike myself as I knew it'd be too packed to ride. None of the BMXers had brakes and were stopping by dragging their expensive trainers/skateshoes on the ground :idiot2: . I didn't see any good riding but a fook of a lot of posing in trendy clothes and hanging around going on and getting in the way. I still don't get why this is cool and other kinds of riding aren't. I guess being a slacker must be fashionable at the moment :tickedoff:
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I took my boys to the newish public skatepark in town yesterday. I didn't even bother taking a bike myself as I knew it'd be too packed to ride. None of the BMXers had brakes and were stopping by dragging their expensive trainers/skateshoes on the ground :idiot2: . I didn't see any good riding but a fook of a lot of posing in trendy clothes and hanging around going on and getting in the way. I still don't get why this is cool and other kinds of riding aren't. I guess being a slacker must be fashionable at the moment :tickedoff:
Scene kids... Ride indoor parks to avoid em, they won't pay entrance fees to sit around.... :daumenhoch:
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There are dozens of kids riding BMX where I live, which is great. And in the town park they have just built some bowls, and they are always busy.
Thing is though, none of the kids run brakes.
Walking through town on an evening my mates often get me on one of the local's bikes to do gut levers and stuff, but with the bikes having no brakes, it is hard to do tricks!
Don't people do tricks anymore?
All I see the kids doing are attempting 180 bunnyhops, pathetic footjam endos and out of control manuals (with no brake to feather, to help you learn)
In my experience you gotta learn the tricks with brakes first - it helps. The more tricks you know, the more into it you get, and it keeps the sport alive.
These local "brakes are for gays" riders will mostly not get anywhere, and will get fed up with BMX.
One night there was one kid who had a front brake (his dad probably made him) and I got on his bike and did a no handed cowboy.
They had never seen anything like it, and one kid said he was gonna get a front brake and try it.
Brakeless riding is nothing new - at KOC in the mid nineties there was always a gang of local kids ripping on ratty bikes with no brakes, and they had their whole own style. But most likely they learned the technique and control by using brakes first though.
I used to think along the same lines as yourself but seeing the rate that young riders progress, the flow and style they develop brakeless I now think brakeless from the start can be a great thing, they progress quick as they hit the tranny's faster and go higher because they cant slow down, lets be honest in new school terms using brakes doesn't compare to a brakeless rider going big and flowing round a park at speed. I run two brakes and probs always will but I'm very aware of how little flow I have in comparrison to a brakeless rider, I would love to have flow like that but it aint gonna happen as I grew up doing front and back hops, all my riding has revolved around using brakes.
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I've never really cared about the whole brake/brakeless argument, if people want to ride without them, then as long as i'm not paying for their shoes, and they don't go running in to other people at the park, then that's fine with me.
I sometimes get a little stick from the other folk at the park, but hey, my shoes are in great condition and i can get to the park safely in the first place.
I'm aware their argument is, without brakes you have to commit to what you're trying, shitting yourself and pulling the brakes isn't an option, so brake riders probably progress slower it's true. At the same time, though, all of the old tricks from back in the day that got me in to bmx in the first place, you never see these newschool riders pulling, mainly because a lot of them require brakes, and because they seem to stick to tricks they see on newschool edits.
Wake me up when you see a brakeless newschool rider doing a cherrypicker.
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I understand brakeless riding for flow, and the riders that ride well without brakes have a fine style.
What saddens me are the masses of kids that are into BMX but are brakeless because of fashion, and will never learn any tricks, and lose interest.
(obviously there will always be the riders that do get the interest, and keep it going)
Maybe having a back brake could help them learn a tyretap. Maybe learning a tyretap will lead to another trick, which will cement their interest in riding for years and years.
The majority of the new breed of brakeless are not thinking about "committiing to what they are trying", they are just fitting in with the crowd.
A friend of mine's son has a BMX, and he took the brakes off because they are "gay".
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Wake me up when you see a brakeless newschool rider doing a cherrypicker.
i think you might have over-laid mate.....
1:40s
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Wake me up when you see a brakeless newschool rider doing a cherrypicker.
i think you might have over-laid mate.....
1:40s
/>
Pretty slick!
Dude has a front brake too - good lad ;)
Love the peg wheelie to tailwhip shiznit. I think I will try that.
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most sports have their scene kids, esp the urban types, skating is full of them, not just the young either,
the old school has its scene kids too if we're honest about it, you know the ones, they don't build or contribute much, they just hang around the forum because they've nothing better to do,
as for brakeless riders, i honestly don't think you can argue that it hasn't progressed bmx massively,
front brakes, rear brakes,both brakes,no brakes,
as long as they're riding "20 wheels then they're ok in my book.
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and another, just to show how common the "cherrypicker" still is,
its just evolved,
dandois is absolutely fooking amazing,
1:26s
/>
can you do it?
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I just worry that riding with no brakes just to look good (rather than good reasons) will mean the rider doesn't get any skills down and just fooks it off, though lack of interest.
For me what kept me interested in BMX was the fact that I could do tricks and stuff, so I kept at it.
Most brakeless riders honed their skills with brakes, then took them off at a later date.
Riding without brakes is nothing new in BMX, but it seems popular with new riders.
^^^^another wicked flatlander!
More like a headtube wheelie - remember Craig Strong doing them back in the early 80's!!!!
You can bet that flatlander started with brakes on his bike though, then took them off when he didn't need them.
Had he just jumped straight in a no braker, would he have learned to do the stuff he can do now?
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Wake me up when you see a brakeless newschool rider doing a cherrypicker.
i think you might have over-laid mate.....
1:40s
/>
s'a rolling Pedalpicker not a CherryPicker... technically yo ;D
(http://www.peeldesign.co.uk/JPG/woody72dpi.jpg)
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It's a pedaling time machine, nothing to do with a cherrypicker really.
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I just worry that riding with no brakes just to look good (rather than good reasons) will mean the rider doesn't get any skills down and just fooks it off, though lack of interest.
For me what kept me interested in BMX was the fact that I could do tricks and stuff, so I kept at it.
Had he just jumped straight in a no braker, would he have learned to do the stuff he can do now?
for the most part i agree, as someone else said alot of it is down to peer pressure but imo those who really want to ride will always ride, those who move on will move on,
all i know is the that the ones who dedicate themselves to it generally become incredible riders,
it used to annoy me a little too,the out of control rider struggling to keep control and getting on everyones tits,
nowadays i just smile and raise my eyebrows ::)
imo it should be like a right of passage, reach a certain level THEN take the brakes off,
i'll be totally honest though, both the riders in those links could probably do whatever they wanted, with or without a brake, i remember terry adams saying he used a single front brake because he still loved doing the tricks he used it for,
last one,
viki gomez.....legend
3 or 4 "cherrypickers" in this one
/>
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It's a pedaling time machine, nothing to do with a cherrypicker really.
same thing,just taken to the next level,
is it not having the bike stood up vertically and having one leg over the headtube?
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I suppose so, but that's about it, might as well say a deathtruck is a cherrypicker as well then?
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imo it should be like a right of passage, reach a certain level THEN take the brakes off,
Oh yes.
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I use a brake to stop me from wiping out anyone who gets in my way in a skatepark ;D and to stop on trails when I loose my flow. Best not to go down to a good skatepark when the kids are on holidays etc, snake after snake, ha. Some of the kids I've seen running no brakes are good riders though, doing all sorts of tricks, both old and new. Takes me an hour to warm up to the point where i can manual etc without a brake - most of the riders I ride with run none.
My view is each to his/her own.
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I remember in a mag years ago when brakeless was getting popular there was a little feature and comments from riders about it all, the One that sticks out in My mind was along the lines of "If You don't want to use the brake, don't pull the lever"
I've never given the brakeless thing a real go, doesn't really interest Me & I think a lot of stuff looks better done with brakes, but like darksunday put earlier, as long as they're riding 20" wheels then they're ok in my book :daumenhoch:
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I always thought the "hopping" was required for it to be a proper cherry picker, as such none of the videos linked above actually do a cherrypicker.
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My stock reponse whenever brakeless riding is mentioned,
Brakeless LOL ::)
(http://www.4gifs.com/gallery/d/173351-1/Bike_ramp_rail.gif)
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My stock reponse whenever brakeless riding is mentioned,
Brakeless LOL ::)
(http://www.4gifs.com/gallery/d/173351-1/Bike_ramp_rail.gif)
;D he's smiling right up until the moment his face hits the bar, bless him
the young chap in this video's got a brake and helmet, but clearly decided that wearing a shirt was a safety step too far
/>he's very good, but I kept thinking that's gonna be a nasty fooking graze just waiting to happen :shocked:
needless to say when I try that T1 bowl on saturday I'm going for all the protection I can muster, on account of the fact that I am shit and will also need to drive home
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Please don't misunderstand what I am getting at in this thread.
I don't care that people ride with no brakes, and excel at it - that's all good. Brakeless flatland and street is awesome, and innovative
And if you want to destroy your shoes with "foot brakes" it's your call.
What I am saying is there is a whole bunch of keen riders that don't get to experience tricks that require brakes, because of a current trend.
These brake dependent tricks are stepping stones, and building blocks.
And that worries me in that these riders will tire of BMX sooner.
But obviously, not all brakeless noobs will.
We all went through crazes and trends with our bikes, but there weren't ones that limited what we could do on them - usually the opposite.
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But the building blocks have moved, you don't need brakes for grinding, barspins, tailwhips?
that said, I ride a back brake, and air higher as a result
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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.
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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)
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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.
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A front brake is handy for doing this:
(http://30cms.co.uk/temp/al360.jpg)
Wonder whatever happened to this guy? ;)
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Wonder whatever happened to this guy? ;)
he got a haircut and fuzzy felt goatee.
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but he still wears that elbow support....i think it's actually the same one...sure smells like it is.
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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.
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That sequence is from 18 years ago :(
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That sequence is from 18 years ago :(
yeah, can you imagine how that elbow support smells now? Daz and Persil ain't helping. !
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no slight on Alex, but you can do that footjam, think Matt Jenkins had a DIG cover doing it quite a while ago
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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.
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Having a brake means you can do it either way.
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to foot jammers I say this...you wouldn't wear brake blocks on your feet would you?
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love that derailuer guard proper spoke saver :daumenhoch:
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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 ;D
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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 :4_17_5:
(http://www.radbmx.co.uk/archive/albums/g95/oldschoolburner/HPIM3414.jpg)
(http://www.radbmx.co.uk/archive/albums/g95/oldschoolburner/HPIM3417.jpg)
(http://www.radbmx.co.uk/archive/albums/g95/oldschoolburner/HPIM3422.jpg)
(http://www.radbmx.co.uk/archive/albums/g95/oldschoolburner/HPIM3421.jpg)
(http://www.radbmx.co.uk/archive/albums/g95/oldschoolburner/HPIM3415.jpg)
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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?
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that Macneil is nice :smitten: :smitten: :smitten: which one is it?
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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 :smitten:
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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.
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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.
;D ... not sure about ZERO but its in the low 1's :)
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agreed
difficulty 9/10
style 1/10
deductions -10 for over 'wanging' of leg
final score= 0/20 :police:
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"style is the backspin on the quater as it goes into the coke machine"
>:D
and Eddie Fiola.
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Flatland appears to have regressed to the time of victorian stunt cyclists.
Quote of the month surely............fooking hilarous ;D
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I took my boys to the newish public skatepark in town yesterday. I didn't even bother taking a bike myself as I knew it'd be too packed to ride. None of the BMXers had brakes and were stopping by dragging their expensive trainers/skateshoes on the ground :idiot2: . I didn't see any good riding but a fook of a lot of posing in trendy clothes and hanging around going on and getting in the way. I still don't get why this is cool and other kinds of riding aren't. I guess being a slacker must be fashionable at the moment :tickedoff:
Scene kids... Ride indoor parks to avoid em, they won't pay entrance fees to sit around.... :daumenhoch:
:daumenhoch:
spot on betty.
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Ride indoor parks to avoid em, they won't pay entrance fees to sit around....
Plenty of brakeless riders in Mount Hawke these days so not necessarily true imo. Been watching down there for months and, as yet, not seen any incidents attributable to lack of brakes. Almost certainly following a trend and it's got to be easier not setting up a brake and ideal for barspins, although still see a few riders with gyro setups. Would rather see a dozen brakeless BMXers in the park than plankriders or scooters. >:D Humps
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Ride indoor parks to avoid em, they won't pay entrance fees to sit around....
Plenty of brakeless riders in Mount Hawke these days so not necessarily true imo. Been watching down there for months and, as yet, not seen any incidents attributable to lack of brakes. Almost certainly following a trend and it's got to be easier not setting up a brake and ideal for barspins, although still see a few riders with gyro setups. Would rather see a dozen brakeless BMXers in the park than plankriders or scooters. >:D Humps
My comment you've quoted was about scene kids that hang around outdoor parks not riding, i've no problem with brakeless riders... :daumenhoch:
Do wish they'd start out with a brake and learn basic bike control before taking it off though
Off topic i know... hows the re fit of mount hawke going?