The BMX Race thread.
- Thread starter parker93
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converge11
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Lol I might just be too weak in the legs to push big gears. I'm getting approx 53" rollout with the new gearing. My mate runs 33-14 on his 20". Now thats spinning!
Norco Maniac
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Anth, i'm running 40-17 on 170mm cranks on my newschool cruiser on 170's. my only problem with the gate at Mildura was balance....and it was damn slow to drop. if *i* can hit the gate dropping it's slow....
running the same gearing on my oldschool but with 175's till i get my rear into gear and clean up the 170's i have for it. do realise that the Mildura track was long?? 390?
converge11
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So what would you guys class your gearing as? Spinning, average or pushing? I based mine on the bmxq website, it had 41-18 classed as intermediate gearing and 40-18 as expert or something. Two of the guys in my class recently changed gearing. One runs clip shoes and went up a few teeth on the front to push further. I beat him on a tighter track, but he takes me by a bike length on our track. The other guy did the same, but its gone the opposite for him, he said he feels like hes faster, but honestly I can tell its slowed him down. The part of the track I struggle most with is the back straight, its pretty much flat, with two tiny lumps and you have to pedal it into the next berm. I struggle there as I've just done 3 straights, and now with the lighter gearing I feel like I can actually pedal that part rather than just roll and loose the pack
Norco Maniac
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i'm a pusher rather than a spinner. having said that, different tracks do require a change in gearing. technically, i'm running the same gearing at 5'2" as a novice with few skills as my OH at 6'3" with a life spent on a bike. it really does come down to what suits you personally.
Mildura's gate seemed fine , I have good and bad days balancing ! Xkeys gate is a shocker when that easterly breeze shoots up the start hill and stops it from dropping , they should mesh it in between the wheel pads . That gearing I had was still from Aussies ( tallish ) with that awesome start hill and I think I top 3'd the first 10m in all my motos , as a rule of thumb on a new track/unknown riders I'll default to a tall gearing , gauge where I'm at in motos then spin ( if needed ) enough to get my elbows in front down the start for semis and final ... I've usually got enough gears and chains to mix n match for 'half tooth' changes to ratio ( .5 increments on rollout )
Norco Maniac
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i couldn't get any launch at all off Mildura's gate but i love what they've done with the track! and yes, Cross Keys' gate does get a bit hairy in the wind
hwell: one the weather warms a little Benny and i will be heading down to Happy Valley of a Friday night again, their start hill is low and flat like Mildura's and i need all the practice i can get!it looks like we'll be racing the Vic titles, too :eyebrows:
converge11
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woohoo! i just won bmx racer magazines comp on their facebook page. i won 2 copies of the mag signed by the olympic bmx team and luke madill. pretty stoked!
tried the new gearing at training tonight, absolutely loved it, was getting great starts, couple of quick cranks here and there just give me a massive speed boost. i was a much faster rider tonight than i usually am. talked to one of the better cruiser riders there and he said he runs similar gearing to mine. my mate bailed on the 20" tonight so i have to wait till tomorrow to pick it up. will most likely race it friday night in my cruiser class (we're pretty relaxed on club nights)
tried the new gearing at training tonight, absolutely loved it, was getting great starts, couple of quick cranks here and there just give me a massive speed boost. i was a much faster rider tonight than i usually am. talked to one of the better cruiser riders there and he said he runs similar gearing to mine. my mate bailed on the 20" tonight so i have to wait till tomorrow to pick it up. will most likely race it friday night in my cruiser class (we're pretty relaxed on club nights)
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Norco Maniac
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^^ awesome stuff, converge
racing last night in the mud at Cross Keys, i really wasn't feeling the lurve. but you get that. did get a play with the S&M forks off the OH's cruiser, i think i'll swap him the GHP ones i got for mine, permanently :eyebrows:
racing last night in the mud at Cross Keys, i really wasn't feeling the lurve. but you get that. did get a play with the S&M forks off the OH's cruiser, i think i'll swap him the GHP ones i got for mine, permanently :eyebrows:
converge11
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Well I got my loaner 20" today. Specialized hemi. Got a fair bit of decent gear on it, brand new dxr brakes and cranks ect...my mate built it up to race again but has given up on that idea. He gave me all his spares and tools and said if I decide I eventually want it he'll think of a price. But for now its mine to race. Around the track this arve every thing felt fine. Slightly noticed on berms the different handling, but other then that I rode it as well as I ride my cruiser. I dont like the tyres on this thing. They are big wide maxx daddies and the max pressure is 40psi.....he told me to put 100 in but I'm not too keen on risking that lol.
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RB 24
Likes Dirt
personally I am a spinner. Even on my road bike I never go into my 53tooth unless it is a big breakaway I am trying to catch or trying keep with faster guys.
Learn to spin at a high rate then adjust your gearing to keep on top of it. The time it takes to try and push a heavy gear out of a turn could be distance increased by using a lighter gear.
thats my thoughts..
oh and that hemi is a ripper frame. well built.
Learn to spin at a high rate then adjust your gearing to keep on top of it. The time it takes to try and push a heavy gear out of a turn could be distance increased by using a lighter gear.
thats my thoughts..
oh and that hemi is a ripper frame. well built.
converge11
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awesome guys, i definately like to spin more than push. i notice a massive difference off the gate. what do you's reckon i should do tomorrow night racing? race the hemi in cruisers (they allow it for us beginners) or race cruisers and 20" against the fast guys? i was just going to race the 20 in cruisers, but since getting the new gearing on the cruiser i love riding it so would love to see how it goes tomorrow. will just be shameful when i get absolutely smashed by the fast guys in 20" lol
RB 24
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race the machine for the class they were built for. thats my tip!
even if you do get smoked by the 20" class it is still a fair equation of where you sit in the general 20" class. good way to work out where you need to work at.
Take the 24" for racin and the 20" for pacin.
again...my thoughts.
oh. on the subject of spinning. My young blokes have their road bikes locked out with their gearing being 6mt for the big one and 5.5mt for the younger one. The older boy can spin and hold a base spin at 145rpm. His race min pace is 125rpm and if he needs to bash it up he threw down 196rpm for 30 seconds to catch a breakaway last night.
RB
even if you do get smoked by the 20" class it is still a fair equation of where you sit in the general 20" class. good way to work out where you need to work at.
Take the 24" for racin and the 20" for pacin.
again...my thoughts.
oh. on the subject of spinning. My young blokes have their road bikes locked out with their gearing being 6mt for the big one and 5.5mt for the younger one. The older boy can spin and hold a base spin at 145rpm. His race min pace is 125rpm and if he needs to bash it up he threw down 196rpm for 30 seconds to catch a breakaway last night.
RB
converge11
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my club just emailed me back (within 5 mins, geez they are an awesome club!) and said i have a choice of racing 20" in cruiser, or 20" in division 5 (im guessing highschool aged kids) or racing both, but they sorta made a point of it might not be a good idea on a small night because of the shorter break. hmmmm dunno what to do! lol, maybe ill just race 20" in div 5. i have no shame getting smoked by teens lol
RB 24
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mate no shame in getting tuned up by kids.
riding and racing regardless of age barrier brings it all back to the same thing.... you are all there to have fun. Makes no difference if it is kids or adults. Funs the game.
Take both bikes and gauge it on the night. You might have a few mates turn up with 24" and want to fang around with them or even do pump races..if it isnt a serious clubbie night dont race it like nationals. Have fun, do some jumps, have a pump race and do a fangin skid at the end.
riding and racing regardless of age barrier brings it all back to the same thing.... you are all there to have fun. Makes no difference if it is kids or adults. Funs the game.
Take both bikes and gauge it on the night. You might have a few mates turn up with 24" and want to fang around with them or even do pump races..if it isnt a serious clubbie night dont race it like nationals. Have fun, do some jumps, have a pump race and do a fangin skid at the end.
converge11
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sounds great, i just emailed them back saying ill bring both bikes and see how many riders we have before deciding. apparently a local reporter is coming down to race cruisers for the first time ever so he can do a big article on bmx for the local newspaper. so definately wanna get in that race to give him some stick lol.
lol.
converge11
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omg i had a blast tonight! raced 20's and cruiser! only got 3 motos in on the 20 though as i looked down and noticed i was missing a chain ring bolt. so i went to check the others and one fell out! so i only got 9 motos in tonight but it was literally race, ride back, swig of water and back up the gate for another moto, i love it!
so to save me some heartache next week. what do you guys do when putting new chain bolts on? this bike has brand new dxr cranks, and when my mate got it back from the shop, 3 bolts came out on his first ride, then i put brand new ones in, and same thing has happened to me tonight. i have no idea what the go is. doesnt seem to be any loctite on my wifes bike and her chain ring doesnt fall off lol. any ideas?
so to save me some heartache next week. what do you guys do when putting new chain bolts on? this bike has brand new dxr cranks, and when my mate got it back from the shop, 3 bolts came out on his first ride, then i put brand new ones in, and same thing has happened to me tonight. i have no idea what the go is. doesnt seem to be any loctite on my wifes bike and her chain ring doesnt fall off lol. any ideas?
converge11
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allen key type with the two notch things on the back that you use that special tool for, but the first ones that fell out were torx type. i might grab some like my wifes bike. they have allen key both sides so you can get more tight than the allen/special tool type. maybe some loctite too? i did notice on the shimano site they list chainring sizes for dxr's. are you meant to only use shimano rings on them? im running a different brand ally 33tooth ring. i notice they dont list 33t in their rings. i dunno if that would make a difference at all though..