BMX is a high energy and aggressive form of cycling which is considered to be an extreme sport. Bikes are specially adapted to meet the rigors of the sport, particularly the landing of tricks and jumps. There are an enormous range of tricks that can be executed on a BMX bike but the most common are flatland tricks which can be carried out without ramps. They range from those performed on one wheel to tricks that are carried out through the air.
Wheelie
The wheelie is one of the best known BMX tricks. The wheelie involves riding along solely on the back wheel of the bike and requires a rider to balance the forward and backward forces of the bike’s motion. The trick is executed by the rider pushing on the bike’s pedals in a forceful manner while at the same time pulling up on the handlebars of the bike to raise the front wheel into the air.
Endo
An endo is almost the opposite of the wheelie in that it involves the bike coming to rest solely on its front wheel. Like the wheelie, the endo requires a great deal of balance from the rider. The trick is carried out by the rider pulling hard on the front break of the bike to transfer the force onto the front wheel of the bike. This raises the rear wheel from the ground. The rider must then shift his weight to avoid moving too far forward and coming over the front of the bike.
Bunny Hop
The bunny hop is a common form of BMX trick that involves bouncing the bike off the ground. The trick is carried out by the rider jumping upwards as high as possible whilst at the same time pulling up hard on the handlebars. This should result in both the front and rear wheels of the bike raising into the air simultaneously.
180
The 180 involves spinning the bike through the air through 180 degrees and riding out of the trick in the opposite direction to the way the trick was ridden into. The 180 is carried out by the rider turning sharply to one direction, pulling up hard on the handlebars and jumping into the air to flick the bike through 180 degrees. On landing, the rider peddles backwards and turns the handlebars sharply to restore the bike to travelling in a forward direction.
360
The 360 is a natural extension of the 180, spinning the bike through a full circle. The trick is carried out in a similar fashion to the 180 but requires the initial turn into the trick to be executed with greater force and the jump and pull on the handlebars to be made more powerfully. Once the bike has spun through a full circle, the rider simple pushes back onto the handlebars to force the bike back to the ground and rides off in a forward direction.
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