Hey all, In my 50s and I do a good amount of weekly MTB riding on my Pivot Switchblade or Trek Top fuel as well as DH park riding on a Kona Operator a couple times a month. I just picked up a dirt jumper and took it to the skatepark where I ride my skateboard a lot and had sooo much more fun than I was expecting just going over the obstacles and carving around on the quarterpipe. Just getting a feel for that type of riding standing up the whole time with a small bike was weird and at first I didnt like it but every loop around park felt better and better and now Im hooked. So looking into it Im seeing everyone say a BMX bike is even better for the skatepark if all I want to do is some halfpipe 180s, quarterpipe jumps and coping grinds and I was leaning towards the Kink Whip. What do yall think ?
by djozer
7 Comments
If you are use to bigger bikes try a 22” wheel bmx. Still very nimble but comfortable. Great for transition and jumps.
hey I’ve got a 24″ that I take the park but it’s just not built to throw down hard (due to the rims and the steering angle primarily) like a quality 20″ with a longer top tube or even a 22″
The Kink Whip is all chromoly and all sealed bearings, short of building it from the frame up, you couldn’t do much better for the price, except maybe get something used
First coming into BMX (especially from other disciplines) what I’d advise you be aware of is that BMX geometry has gotten *really* aggressive lately. As in, even if you grew up riding BMX bikes the modern ones will feel extremely twitchy and you’ll loop out (fall over backwards) easily.
Twitchiness is mainly from steep head tube angle (75+) and smaller fork offset (less than 32mm). Chainstay length will determine how easily you loop out (and also determines how steady manuals feel). So ideally you’ll want something at or less than 75* headtube (mitigated by longer fork offset, like 32mm) and chainstays on the longer side (at *least* 13.5”).
All that being said, the Whip looks like a fairly acceptable candidate. 75 HT but 32mm forks (somewhat twitchy but not bad), 13.5” chainstays (prob long enough to be somewhat steady but without making the bike feel too long).
I say all this so you’ve got an idea what to shop for- but personally I run a Kink Backwoods frame and love the quality. It’s a little “softer” than the Whip (74.5 HT, 13.75” CS) which would prob feel even better for you in a perfect world, coming from MTB and all, but don’t think you’ll find that kinda geometry in a complete. So I’d vote go for the Whip, if you generally love it but wanna soften the edges a bit consider a Backwoods frame (but that’s serious money, def for a later chapter).
Best of luck and hope this wasn’t too confusing!
20″ for skateparks 100%
I can’t give you any advice; I’m so sorry for that!
But in your 50s and at the skateparks? – Hell Yeah!! That’s great; love to hear that!👍
Mtber here, I got a 20” bmx also for this reason and it was worth it, works much better in tight transitions than the 26”. Definitely take it slow getting to know the bike, looping out is not far away and steering is much more ‘responsive’ if you are used to slacker and bigger wheel mtbs. Look for longer top tube and longer chainstays
What is it about all these fudds who love to insert their niche preferences around here like it’s good advice???
Yes, it’s a good bike. 20 inch over 22 all day. Modern middle-road geo you find on essentially every complete is not too twitchy for beginners.