The BMX Race thread.

Shrieking Violet said:
i never really noticed it when i was last racing but i think i've got a lot more bike/body awareness now, and i feel i'm not getting a proper "spin" happening when i'm pedalling out of the corners.
Click to expand...

With longer cranks you'll find that the pedalling action tends to be more elliptical as opposed to circular (as you're having to push so hard to the get the lever over) Spinners are Winners =D
WOW 5'3" on 180's!?! That's nuts! Definately get down to 175's. Out the gate and out of berms especially you'll notice a huge difference
 
Getting Saints for my BMX - I'm guessing the chain line will be slightly off like the SLX's burrito?
 
Saint spacing last I heard was two on the drive side one on the other, but it's doable just fiddly. XT's and SLX's are both cheaper and lighter though... but Saints look pimp! Unfortunately my 42kilos don't merit the extra 200grams
 
parker93 said:
Getting Saints for my BMX - I'm guessing the chain line will be slightly off like the SLX's burrito?
Click to expand...

If you have a 68mm bb shell, i would stick to other cranks or double check its possible...as i personally haven't tried it (theoretically it should be 2 spacers non drive, and 1 drive side, but i really can't say 100%).

If you have 73mm shell bb, you run 2 bb spacers on the non drive cup, and none on the drive side cup. The chainline will be slightly out, unless you re-space the rear hub, and dish the wheel to counter this. Personally its not bad enough to worry about doing this though. But yeah, the chainline is not perfect on most frames with the shimanos unless you face off your bottom bracket a bit and put in some custom spacers... but again, not worth the hassle.
 
Cheers Burrito, that's what I was thinking/reading, just needed to confirm it. I think I will stick with Saints because I've had them before on my old STP and loved the feel of them. Pity they don't make a 180mm version, but I'm more then fine with 175mm anyway!

In my next order a few days away:


  • DXR Lever
  • DXR Brake
  • Goodridge brake cable kit
  • Saints
  • SRAM PC 7x single chain
  • Crankbrothers smartys
  • ODI Troy Lee lock ons
  • Odyssey Integrated headset
  • Maybe DTH's (currently got tioga powerblocks)
  • Maybe Polar C200CAD Computer
Sound good?
 
i would never buy dxr brakes and lever. they are just shiny deore ones, not worth the extra money. i use xt caliper on one deore caliper on the other and avid levers. and i run powerblock tyres and think they are way better then the maxxis dth. and definately get the saint cranks, i have xt and slx cranks and would rate saint as 100 times better. and yeah 2spacers non drive and one drive.
 
ever thought of going the way of LDC for lever and brake arms?

I imo dont dig the saints. I dont like the four bolt chain ring.. I know heaps are going to it but I just am not a fan. I like Profiles spread to a 5 bolt spider..

but the rest of the shopping list is kick a$$.

post up pics when you get them.
 
Haha okay now I look like a dumbass for messing up the spacer combo above!

List lookin good Parker! Quick note though, the DXR lever comes with cables unless you need them for something else?

Racebmx deore levers don't look half as COOL as the DXR's ;) and are probably a touch heavier

Cant WAIT for my J&R order- new wheels, full race kit, brake and chainrings hehe! Going to spend my overnight shift building the day it gets here haha
 
hach_bee said:
With longer cranks you'll find that the pedalling action tends to be more elliptical as opposed to circular (as you're having to push so hard to the get the lever over) Spinners are Winners =D
WOW 5'3" on 180's!?! That's nuts! Definately get down to 175's. Out the gate and out of berms especially you'll notice a huge difference
Click to expand...

i've got a fair bit of mass - 68kg - what i feel is the hip drop when i'm pedalling out of the berms. i have short legs for my height too, unfortunately. elliptical is exactly the word for the pedalling action i'm feeling. i may drop a few kilos yet, not actively trying but with the amount of training i'm doing, it's inevitable. due to a couple of years of very poor health and major hormone imbalance i went up to 85kg, so i'm down this far since christmas, and very happy with that.

i can see that 200g with your mass would make a difference, you must be a tiny frame?

yesterday my man and i hit the track. every Sunday, my training day with him, i try to up it another lap, so this week's target was 19 laps. most i pushed myself in, and every second lap i use upper body only through the pro and rythmn sections of our track, trying to build up strength and skill there. catch my breath, and back on the track, no hanging about. once i made it thru the 19 laps i made myself do a victory lap :D he's riding a Giant XTC with the suspension turned off, he's also about 5' 11". i put him on my Norco for a couple of laps as well, and followed on the Giant. damn it's a long way off the ground on it! he's looking pretty comfortable on my Norco tho, going to keep an eye out for a Kuwahara and trade off my Norco to him and/or my daughter i reckon. trouble is at Sawtell we race Friday nights and he works permanent afternoon shifts. if i can get him on a cruiser, Grafton on a Sunday afternoon might be the go....

our usual routine is track, home, stretching routine and abs on my fit ball. i'm teaching him Facilitated Stretching, it's a brilliant technique i've mostly used on my clients. i do triceps lifts on the stairs too. last time i was racing i didn't go in technical at all, and my then husband wasn't interested in real fitness even tho he decided he was racing too. then Wednesdays i hit the track again with my other training partner who's one of our older men, he's been racing 20 years now. i still can't catch him tho :D Friday night is gates and racing, i try to fit in my laps minus the six races i'll do. last week we had five on the gate, four of the 30+ men and me. i really enjoyed it even tho i was trailing by a straight...
 
Last edited:
Violet haha yes, I am tiny (it sucks!) just ask Burrito.

That hip drop I can imagine is probably not too good for posture and general trunk stability? It's great to see you have a decent routine in place. Wish I had the chance, working out west on a farm doing night shifts doesn't leave much opportunity. All the tracks up here race and train at nights!

Keep training with the guys though, we used to always see the girl sprockets who raced with the guys had more skill and were tougher especially in corners, you can learn alot!
 
damn it's good to be able to talk technical/body stuff with a woman rider!

i notice the hip drop more when i'm trying to accelerate of of the first corner. apparently none of the corners on our track work properly but i haven't got the experience to say yay or nay there. our second straight slows me up heaps because it's our pro straight - and because i've never learned to jump or scooter, two of the jumps just want to throw me up into the air. at this point i can only hit them at a certain speed and stay safe, tho i'm pushing that limit every week. hence the upper body and core work too, trying to keep that front wheel on the ground.

second corner is not so bad, i can hit it in the middle and rail it from there, easy enough to swoop down and pedal out. fourth straight is the rythmn section so if i don't come out of the third corner with enough speed it's hard upper body work pumping too. fourth corner is damn tight, with a nasty little tabletop straight out of it. again, i'm really noticing the hip drop while accelerating out of there. and trying to get a full pedal in between the two doubles after is just plain hard work!

i'm lucky that i work for myself so i can take wednesday afternoon off to ride with my club training partner, and sunday afternoon is about all the time my man has in daylight due to his shift at work. i reckon riding with the men s great too, none of them want to hurt me in the corners and they're too damn fast anyway!
 
Get those new cranks ASAP! 180 is huge, especially on tighter tracks. Curious to know why your corners don't work properly? Also more important to keep the rear wheel on the ground on jumps that kick, concentrate on standing over the back wheel and scootering will start to come naturally. The problem with keeping the front wheel on the ground is often you can force it down so hard that it'll kick the back wheel up and with your centre of balance at that point it can end badly. Just don't jerk the bars in an attempt to do this, you'll unsettle the bike, and likely come off!

Haha, also, just personally a secret I learnt back when I was racing that applies to 90% of women riders. If you square up any of them in a berm or contact handlebars, they'll either jump on the brakes or panic. If you're training with guys, get them to ride handlebar to handlebar with you especially in corners, knock ends a few times to get used to it. Gives you a HUGE edge mentally over your opponents if you can handle the pressure and they can't!
 
Only just saw the thread but...
parker93 said:
I'm from Canberra and local club is Melba. Have ridden the Tuggeranong track twice, but i'd still call it a home club I guess (kinda).

Entered in the MacArthur Madness and came off badly on the second last straight (all on my own, not that I remember) whilst coming second in the first moto of the day (feltq can back me up on this, and video footage to come! Yes!)... So devastated!

What about you hach? What bike have you got?
Click to expand...
Yeah you did eat it quite hard, im keen to see that video footage though!
Why not get a pair of crupi's from J&R, they'll give you a better chainline then saints and they come in 180's. Their about the same price as saints if not cheaper too.

evObda2 said:
Bout time there was a bmx race thread!

Im coming back to do some racing after 10 years.. (before that raced for a number of years before wrecking my knee). Been riding Dh over the last couple years, but am going to build another bmx up as 4x just isnt the same. Not decided on 20” or just 24 cruiser class yet. Will see..
Click to expand...
How's the build of that red machine going? pretty keen to see how it got on :)

Props to parker for the thread also, really good idea.
 
hach_bee, was talking to my club training partner earlier, he says that our main track problem is that it's built into the side of a hill so every corner has to step down to the next terrace. so that also means they are subterranean and the groundwater seeps thru the face of the corner and wrecks the surface quicker. it also faces west so gets the baking hot Mid North Coast sun all summer.

there's local shop advertising a set of x-drive cranks the same as mine but in 175's cheaply, i might grab those for an experiment. i can also borrow a set of wheels the same as mine but with better tyres for a play, i'm running big fat Tiogas at the moment. i'm trying to keep my body level and let the bike rise and fall beneath me as i ride over the jumps but yes the trunk stability is an issue, really hanging out to try some shorter cranks after talking to you.
 
Shrieking Violet said:
hach_bee, was talking to my club training partner earlier, he says that our main track problem is that it's built into the side of a hill so every corner has to step down to the next terrace. so that also means they are subterranean and the groundwater seeps thru the face of the corner and wrecks the surface quicker. it also faces west so gets the baking hot Mid North Coast sun all summer.
Click to expand...

Now not always a downside, I'm guessing your track would be pretty quick if each drops down, makes it easier to maintain speed and up your skills at faster speeds. bummer on the surface problems though, berms are harder enough to maintain as it is!

Shrieking Violet said:
there's local shop advertising a set of x-drive cranks the same as mine but in 175's cheaply, i might grab those for an experiment. i can also borrow a set of wheels the same as mine but with better tyres for a play, i'm running big fat Tiogas at the moment. i'm trying to keep my body level and let the bike rise and fall beneath me as i ride over the jumps but yes the trunk stability is an issue, really hanging out to try some shorter cranks after talking to you.
Click to expand...

Why are you changing wheels to try out cranks...? Not gunna let you know accurately the difference unless you run them on your current set up. Trying to keep your body level, I see your point, using your legs for pumping and such but keeping it level wouldn't that mean that you wouldn't be using your arms (as much as you should)?
 
the main issue among the riders with our track's corners is there's pretty much only one race line so it gets a bit hectic, especially on the first - and when it's the 30+ men's gate, even more so with all the testosterone in the air! the track is pretty quick, yes, but it puts us at a disadvantage when other clubs have a flat track.

i use both my arms and legs to get right down into my bike at the top of a jump, often i'll contact the seat (it's as far down as it can go) and then use arms and legs again to push the bike down over the other side. still working out what's the best riding position for the rythmn section, sometimes i end up too far back and the front end wants to get loose. i'll take on board what you said about bringing my body further back on the nasty jumps, been playing with body position a fair bit when i'm doing my training laps. at the moment looking to up the fitness and skill levels rather than speed.

as for the other rims, just another thing to play with before the owner of them sells them off, my Tiogas are 24x175, lots of meat on them, which i like, it gives me plenty to grip with, but now i have a little more confidence it would also be good to play on some skinnier ones.


found this chart today you may be interested in, if you haven't already got it: http://www.bikefitting.com/English/Theory/Crank.aspx
 
Last edited:
1.75's aren't that bad, I'm running one of those on the front, 1.50 on the back (in 20s of course though!) According to that chart I should be on 165's ( I'm only 5'1") but I get much better leverage with 170s without throwing my hips. Fortunately my coach back in the day had coached a couple of national teams so I'm pretty confident with the set up!

Downhill sprints are the best for learning to spin! Or uphill, if you want to build those quads =) If you're worried about the front end getting loose, try practising monos just on flat ground, do a gate snap and get used to the feeling of the front wheel lifting off the ground to gain confidence. That way you'll learn the balance point on your bike. If you think you're going back too far, tap the brakes, good old physics takes care of the rest!

I know alot of girls particularly (myself included) have trouble with manualling (or scootering) as a track skill. Confidence in your bike and ability is totally key! Practise practise! I know I need to also! Did you say you're from Sawtell? I'll be heading down to Casino next couple of months so maybe we could even meet up and train =D
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top