The Creativity of Street riding

A lot of people think BMX bikers just ride ramps and jumps to do tricks, but the truth is there is a whole other side to BMX. Street riding makes up 50% of all BMX riding, and is common in city areas.

Creativity
This style of riding is creative because the rider sees and rides things that are hidden to most people who ride bikes. In the picture above, Tom Dugan saw this broken bench and thought it would be cool to use it as a ramp to boost over the metal framing of the tennis court. It's all about seeing, imagining, and riding what was not intended to be ridden. It turns what some would call "nothing" into something unique and fun. Sometimes just natural features on buildings are more fun then things built specifically for bikes. For me, I'm always on the lookout for spots to ride around town.

A huge transfer onto a roof. Another Dugan picture

It's quite hard to find the "perfect spot". When I say spot, I mean an area that is man made and not for riding on, but holds the potential for fun riding. Usually there will be what looks like the coolest thing to ride, but there will be a tree or a rock in the way. When you find a spot that actually works, it is super rewarding to ride it. 

I've noticed as I become a better rider, I see more and more places to ride, I think this is because as my skills get better, more things are possible on the bike, opening up more oppertunies and fun spots. Since using pegs to grind is a common part of BMX, I always carry a piece of wax to smooth things out for grinding. 

The spot above is a perfect example of a sweet spot to ride. It just happens to have a soft landing, a good run in, and everything is at the right angle. Street riding offers great oppertunities for photographers to get really unique shots of riders. To me, there's nothing cooler then going out away from town to some remote spot and getting pictures of riders riding a unique spot, and return, maybe never to come back.

here is a link to the most creative rider I have ever seen. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v7FGGkVxH9M

The Park

My favorite place to ride BMX in this area is the skatepark. Condon park offers a pretty large skatepark that is one of the better parks around. It offers a lot of riding due to its size.

Condon Park Skate Park

This Park has been around for a decent amount of years (6+) and in my opinion, is the best park in the (530).  This 100 by 80 foot concrete playground has been the stomping ground for many teens and adults.

BMX in the Park

Like many other skateparks, bikes aren't allowed in the park. But this, like every other rule on the park sign, is broken every day. There's always been BMX/Skater rivalry, but BMX riding in skateparks is not dying out, and won't anytime soon, so Skaters are adapting. The GVPD used to have a real problem with bikes in the park, arresting people for riding and such. 

"Dorsey, who posits himself as the spearhead of the initiative to include BMX bikes in the skatepark, has been riding there for more than a dozen years — and said he has been to jail twice for doing so."-The Union 

Another issue in the park is scooters. Skaters and BMXers have had beef with with the scooter community for a while. While Skaters don't always like bikers, they have way more respect for bike riders then scooter kids. Many kids on scooters in the park are under the age of 10, causing problems. These problems arise because younger kids aren't always aware of their surroundings and are at risk of being hit by skaters and bike riders. This causes safety problems for skaters and scooter kids. I can't tell you how many close calls I have seen with kids on scooters nearly getting plowed by skaters. The park is not an ideal place for a kid under 10, due to the safety issues, drug use, and more adult environment. I can't diss on scooters too much, because at the end of the day, both Bmxers and scooter kids aren't allowed at the park.

Park Features

The park features some unique designs that make for maximum fun, and a variety of structures for different riders.

One of the parks deeper bowls

One of the features of the park are the bowls. Bowls are deep, spherical depressions in the ground as shown above. These are created for maximum speed, flow, and carve. Some bowls are deeper then others, and others are rounder then others.  These bowls are used by BMXers to get air out of. Getting air (or airs) is when a rider travels with speed up the slope of the bowl into the air, and turns 180 degrees around and back into the bowl. 

Above; A rider airs out of a bowl in a SoCal skatepark

Airs take lots of practice, balls, and precession riding in order to be safe. Many of the riders I know of do not wear any form of protection when riding, even when doing airs as big as the one shown above. I have seen crashes from doing airs and I can tell you it's not a pleasant sight. Still, if you are an experienced rider, bowls can be a really fun feature in the park.

Next week I will continue on the subject of Skateparks, including out own GV park

Heres a link to a video of some skilled riders in the Condon Park

http://www.bmxunion.com/blog/daily/jibblets-grass-valley/