More carbon fibre breakage

I have warned people time and time again about the dangers of carbon fibre and how they can snap without warning. The picture above is proof positive and I have even seen with my own eyes how carbon fibre can let you down. If BMX racers nowadays say that the reason they use carbon fibre is because it is lighter, I can honestly say that there are slew of chromoly race forks in the market that are as light or even lighter than carbon fibre. The BMX race professionals use carbon fibre because they are sponsored riders. They can afford to change the fork after every race if need be. But how about the casual racer? Can he or she afford to change the fork after every race? Go figure.

Kuwahara 2012 or so it seems

I had to really do a double take when I saw this on BMXMuseum.com. Incidentally, this picture was taken from their site and they hold all copyrights. Kuwahara coming out with a new model? Well, all I can say is that it is a refreshing change. Interesting looking frame. I do not get the rationale of the "holes" in the frames though. And another surprising thing is that this one is set up with Profile Racing cranks. I thought all these new-school racers were strong advocates of aluminium cranks? Not too much info on the frames are available but there are some more pics available on the BMXMuseum.com site. Check it out!

Kuwahara Laserbars

Don't laugh. These bars may be more than 26 years old but I know of at least two riders that still use this bar to race modern races. The feel of this Laser Bar (what Kuwahara used to name their bars back in the day) is very comfortable and the pull-back is not too great. Sadly, you cannot get them anymore. What comes close to them would be an S&M Slam Bar, if you can still get them. These S&M bars, like the Laser Bar, have a width of 28" and a height of at least 8". I still have one of these laser bars on my Kuwahara but then again, my Kuwahara is just an exhibition piece now.

Rain or shine, the BMX race goes on

Check out this old photo from the Singapore BMX races in Tuas in the early to mid 80s. That is what I love about BMX back then. Rain or shine, wet weather or dry weather, water-logged or dry track, the race went on. That was the whole meaning of bicycle motocross, a rugged sport that made men out of boys. In a way, the wet conditions made the race more interesting and more fun. That is what I do not like about BMX today. If it rains, the race is put off. That ain't BMX. It seems that BMX racing all of a sudden is not as rugged as it used to be. I wonder if they can bring back those days when we rode and raced in all kinds of weather?

The BMX scene in Thailand

Check this out. It does not get any better than this. We went up for a BMX race to Malacca in 2000 and we were humbled. The kids were using bikes that people here would throw away and they were kicking our asses, racing on a track with huge jumps. The same can be seen in Thailand here. The never-say-die attitude and even the ladies are capable of jumps that most riders here would not even be able to pull off. You can see the rest of the pictures here. Be amazed!

The Mettle Games

I had an email from the organisers of the Mettle Games, wanting me to spread the word. But when I called up their number, I kept being transferred from one person to the next because none of them knew about the BMX segment. What gives guys? So finally, I hung up the phone and called a knowledgeable friend who is involved in it.

The BMX event is happening on the 2nd to 4th of December at the East Coast Skate Park. I had a look at the description of the BMX event on their webpage:

"Watch extreme racing bicycles go at it over a rough cross-country course that consists of jumps, obstacles, and turns. A battle of skill and stamina, riders will push the limits of physics and their leg-powered machines to a whole new level!"

Last I checked, that is a skatepark, not a cross-country course as they put it. So I take it that either these people do not know what BMX is about, or there really is a cross-country segment that will be conducted there. Interesting considering that the skatepark is all concrete and there is nary a cross-country patch there...

Oh well, these are event companies, not hard-core BMX enthusiasts so I suppose we can overlook this. However, it looks interesting for those who want to check it out

More emails coming in

Got a couple of emails today. The reason we print these emails is because we have some people who read them and get back to us, wondering how they can help. Wonderful way of communication and that is for sure

Hi There, 

I am writing from an event management company. Would like to enquire if your team is managing the BMX track? Do we need to get permission from your team to hold an event at the track? 

I look forward to your soonest reply. 

Thanks.

We replied to the sender with all the relevant information. Hopefully something comes out of it. And now to another one. This one is a bit unique. I wonder if the sender knows what BMX is and what it entails:

Dear Sir/Madam, 

I am (name withheld), a student from (name of school withheld).

I am writing to you as I am seeking for a BMX bikers to film for a 30 second advertisement. It will be a TVC for (company name withheld), however it is purely a school project with no funding from the brand itself.

I do not have any specific scenes in mind, but I would like it to be the bikers navigating a forest. I would also love to meet up with bikers during their training session to see the sport.

I am planning to shoot this on 30th November or 3/4 December. 

Do let me know if you have any enquiries. Thank you for your time and I hope to hear from you soon!

Cheers,

We the writer an email, letting the writer know what BMX is all about. We do this lots of times really, so we are used to it. We will be more than happy to help the writer out if the writer has anymore enquiries

An email from a Polish BMXer

I have said it before and i will say it again...we love getting mail. We got this recently so for those interested in meeting up with this BMXer from Poland, let me know

Dear BMX Friends,

My name is Iwo Kepka, I'm a street rider from Europe, Poland. I also work for a little Polish BMX print magazine

Right now I'm in Manila, Philippines enjoying my extended vacation. I think that spending time with BMX locals is the best way of exploring the country. It's much easier to talk and find common language and much faster to make new friends.

Unfortunately it's time to go back home soon. I have a flight to Europe from Kuala Lumpur on 30th of November. Having that in mind I thought maybe it's a chance to see yet another's country BMX scene. That's why I'm writing to you. I would like to take a plane from Manila to SG some days before my flight, spend some time in the city and than go to Malaysia/KL by bus or plane.

I'd like to ask if you know some riders in SG, who could show me around the city and its BMX scene? It would also be nice if someone could host me for a short time or help find cheap accommodation, since I'll be traveling with heavy luggage. No bike though. :(

I planning to come just before the flight, maybe on 26th, so it's about two days and one/two nights. I haven't booked the tickets from Manila yet, so it's still an open case.

I'm also thinking about seeing KL just before the flight to Europe, so I'll be probably leaving SG on 28th evening or so by bus or a plane to KL. Do you know anyone in KL who could help me in similar way? Thank you.

Please let me know if you think you can help or know anyone who can. That would be lovely. Thank you in advance.

I will be doing some article piece of the journey for the magazine for sure and I'd love to describe Singapore scene as well.

The aftermath of the national championships in Singapore

The BMX National Championships were held in Singapore on Saturday. Hopefully this will allow the Singapore Cycling Federation (SACA's new name) to choose someone to represent Singapore overseas in the SEA Games. It can be done and I will tell you why. A select few of us pushed with almighty odds to send riders to Australia in 2003. We succeeded. But when the medals did not come in, the powers that be decided to stop funding for BMX and only concentrate on road and mountainbike riding. The result of that was that our track got eroded and we had no funds to maintain it. It became un-rideable. Also, with no budget, we could not hold any races. That is partly the reason Singapore does not have any BMX riders now. The sins of the past will haunt the present and the Catch 22 situation will always be there till someone makes the grade. And after viewing video footage of the BMX National Championships here in Singapore, our riders have a long, long way to go. They do not have the speed and confidence. And it does not help that there are some out there who are exploiting the sport too, to make money out of it. Some have confessed to me and one even took some of the old-schoolers for a ride, literally. They know who they are and that is why we are wary of working with them.

Riders need more exposure to BMX riders from other countries. Many of us, the old-schoolers, have faced very talented overseas riders back then and have honed our skills. So is Singapore serious about sending riders to compete overseas? Then have more BMX competitions. Find riders who can and will ride and are disciplined. Our current crop of riders need to up their stakes. And the only way they can match their skills against the best is to have more competitions overseas or organise international meetups here. Other wise, it will just be a waste of time.

Why no Singapore BMX riders at the SEA Games?

I saw a posting on Facebook, and at the same time, I also came across this article here that the "Indonesia BMX Contingent Becomes Overall Winners" in the SEA Games. First of all, I would like to congratulate our Indonesian neighbours. They have a standard of riding and perseverance that is an absolute joy to behold. But what amazes me is that the Singapore Cycling Federation did not send even one single rider to the SEA Games. I wonder what the VP of BMX in SCF is doing. At least, as VP of BMX back then, we were able to send two riders up in 2003 to the then BMX Grand Nationals in Perth, Australia. 

I suppose it boils down to how often our boys race and where. So more races need to be held and more trips to BMX races overseas. The BMX committee of the Singapore Cycling Federation really needs to do something about this or all we are going to be is one small country with a first-class BMX track with no riders even competing in events like the SEA Games. Honestly? Its embarrassing.

Lost Nicolai bike

I really, really hate bike thieves. I have had my bike stolen a couple of times before and I swore that if I caught the bike thieves, I would roast them alive. I once caught a guy that stole my BMX back in 1983. I found out who the thief was and got the police involved. The thief got down on his knees and begged for mercy from my dad's friend, who was a police officer. Even though that was 28 years ago, I still feel the same way about scum of the earth like bike thieves. This bike above, a Nicolai, was stolen from the Tampines BMX track. If you come across it, please let me know by sending me an email at admin@osbmx.com Thanks.