Bike
BMX
History Of BMX
The story of how your favorite metal bike gained its iconic status.
The history of BMX may seem like the story of the backyard or the front lawn, and that’s absolutely right. But it’s more than that. Here’s the tale of our favorite tiny bike.
The beginnings
The true story begins sometime in the 1970s when these bikes were first developed. It started off as a result of the popularity of motocross taking off as a sport in the USA - the name is inspired by motocross, standing for Bicycle Motocross. Picture this: Long Beach, California, in the 1970s, kids were emulating their local motocross heroes; and the BMX was born.
So what’s a BMX bike anyway?
The bikes we know as BMX started out as a model of bicycle that was easy to customize on your own, so you could get it to cover the types of terrain that you wanted - from asphalt to dirt tracks, to the custom-built BMX circuits that were popping up as the sport gained popularity.
And let’s not forget how a BMX dirt racetrack looks exactly the same as the ones we see for a motocross race. Same dirt. Same mounds. Same rules. Same core DNA.
In the days before BMX, bicycles did not try to emulate their motorized off-road counterparts. They were used to navigate cityscapes and roads, with extra-large diameter wheels and long handlebars for a point-A-to-point-B experience. Smooth and reliable was the bike’s purpose, until someone remade the formula.
Enter the BMX: a hardy bike that could take a beating and be light enough to maneuver over just about anything. Now you sat low on your seat (if you sat at all other than to maybe catch your breath), and if you kicked your feet out likely your toes extended beyond the length of the front wheel.
But of course, the thing that made a BMX a BMX was customization ability. And for every type of terrain there was (and still is) a BMX build for that. The standard 20-inch wheels help, or there is also the 24 inch version for the giants among us.
So we got a smaller overall bike, with easy to spin handlebars, tiny wheels that could take any turn, and a smaller frame that meant the rider was always larger than the bike. And this is how you could take it off-roading. The wheels also had the motocross and dirt bike grooves that added grip and gave you traction on demand, a feature that the bare tires of old couldn’t compete with. And after that it was up to the riders, and the popularity soared in the 80s and 90s.
26 min
ABC of... BMX
BMX has a long and rich history of the most creative riders constantly taking the sport above and beyond.
Variants
Build variants include flatlands, freestyle, true BMX, and dirt jumpers. All model types come loaded with the super thick wheels we’ve come to associate with BMX, to give you ample cushioning on the landings.
The riders
BMX truly flourished when the backyard game went national, and of course, international, in the hands of riders that took the sport beyond what we thought was possible.
These include people like Jimmy LeVan, whose tremendous and heartwarming full length feature can be watched here, and by the likes of Vert and X Games champion Mat Hoffman. For a local hero look no further than Mansour Al Safran, our OP BMX trickster, who exudes a special kind of irreplaceable cool as he freestyles with ease.
Mansour Al Safran Performing in Kuwait
© Naim Chidiac
Over the years we’ve been blessed by so many household names, but what makes BMX truly special is that anyone can ride and go and feel the thrill of it for themselves.
The history of BMX is still being written today, but people like you, and the athletes that continue to further the sport.
