Riding Flatland by Cruiser

This is a story about riding flatland, but with a twist. I've managed to work my way around Europe trying to promote my sport. I've talked to Martti, "ssles", and Jesse Puentes to name a few about parts, manufacturing and ideas. Enjoy.

Does this sound familiar? It's 10 AM on a given day; and all I can think about is I've got to get my body and my mind geared toward a kick-ass day of FLAT; suddenly I realize that today could be the realization of that trick I've been fantasizing about all week. In my case it would be the Hitchhiker. But then I've only been riding for about 3 months. My name is Daniel and here's a little tale of "Surviving the Return of Flat":

I was inagurated into BMX with the unusual awe of watching Saturday morning cartoons and witnessing for the first time a couple of guys [Eddie Fiola and Martin Aparijo] featured in an Orange Crush commercial busting sick moves somewhere, as I could have imagined, as far as outerspace.

Immediately I cashed in a $1000 Savings Bond to purchase a new GT Pro Performer (Pink) in hopes it would take me along on a ride like none other to kicking-out to the stars like Eddie or Michael [Dominguez] or spinning to the closest spot on the earth [I call that spot "Flat"] just like RL [Osborne] or All the other "greats" of the late 80's.

3 Bikes later, (GT, Redline, Norco) I was reunited with Jason Brown by accident while pushing lawnmowers [not the trick, but the machine that cuts grass] in St. Albert, Alberta. It was soon after I became aware Jason was already achieving status as a seasoned graduate of the "Kevin Jones Era of BMX" and was now pushing the envelope into the reinvention of BMX flatland.
I don't even think I was capable of realizing that this would have a profound affect on the future of Flatland and where it was headed. Was Flatland becoming sacred by it's limitations or by it's concentrated level of difficulty?

12 whole long years went by and while I waited and rested, I didn't have a need to pick at the scabs on my shins anymore. Perhaps it could have been considered a logical transition from BMX into retirement and back again into BMX, but my idea of what was to "be" actually came to me in a dream: Full-speed "elbow-glides" down some hill, in full control....

Today, riding takes up a lot of my time. I've dedicated myself to riding and riding gives me peace of mind. Additionally, my beer gut is disappearing and I often find myself thinking of tricks just running up stairs. "Yeah, 360 hitchhicker like Martti--oops, gotta watch the ankles," often sticks in my conscience.

***Here comes the surprise*** The biggest effort doesn't come from my connection to my bike. It actually comes from the connection of my bike and Newton's Laws of Physics.

His one law states that if you place a force on an object, it will accelerate inversely proportional to the mass of the object. This means, if you are pushing [equally] on two objects, and one of the objects has twice the mass than the other, it will accelerate at half the acceleration of the other.

So, a larger [26"] wheel size does mean an increase in weight, however, let me tell you, there are clear advantages in surface area and momentum.

WTF?

In 2005, I've chosen to return to Flatland with a 26" bike I've designed. Since then, my legs have never felt better. Sure it's much more difficult to throw around a 26" wheel or a 50lb bike, but the best parts are in the "roll."

To me, rolling is like floating; and after 11 weeks of riding I'm surviving because of 3 things: I wear shin pads, I often stretch before I ride, and (today) I agree with Alex [Jumelin] when he said, "Every morning I'm just thinking about riding my bike"

Today, I see flatland as a specialized sport of expression where new variations of fluidity and "linking" are making it a thrill to watch and an enjoyment to emulate. I am very glad to have met some of the best and proud to watch some ride at such a young age. Flatland will always be a part of me--even on this crazy kind of bike.

Goal: Hangfive by the summer's end.