I’ll try to be concise. I’m moving to Orange County in two months to start a masters program. I’ve been riding on and off my entire life. Was quite skilled in the 2000s as I was from Ohio where there are no hills. Bought a streetsweeper to ride around my undergrad university, which was not smart as the entire campus was hills galore. The streetsweeeper sat mostly as my plan to ride around campus was DOA. I want to get back to riding and bought a 2021 kink switch to go with the Sunday as I fix it up. I again did very little research as when I think of Bmx, Southern California seemed like a place much more suited to relaxing and riding. Have I made a mistake again or is Bmx more acceptable and conducive out west? I have no desire for mountain biking, and know that skateboarding, at least it used to be, is rooted in the culture there. I just want to ride and enjoy the leisure while not studying. Anybody from that area have any advice or tips? Am I making a mistake choosing to go with both bikes having free coasters opposed to cassettes? I’m not nearly as good as I used to be on tensile haros let alone nice chromoly rigs. I’ve never been to California ever so just want to know if I’m making a mistake or if people are more friendly? Nobody rides Bmx where I’ve been living and I see why given that Carolina is nowhere is as flat as the Ohio plains but I do want to become involved. Also any advice on bikes to look at besides the pink/purple Sunday and the kink switch? Or stores that focus on Bmx? Again it’s all mountain bike shops where I’m at right now. Thanks! Neither are my pics but these are the bikes I currently have and am bringing.
by TheFeldogFromHell
5 Comments
u/5150bmxdotcom where you at
Yo!!! As these dudes said, swing by once you settle in and we can figure out all that stuff, no problem at all! 👊
BMX scene is very lively here, it just depends on where you look, how far you are willing to venture out, and what style you ride. For street, most skateparks in OC (Orange County) support bikes. But Southern California is the hot spot for dirt jumps. Hell, dirt jumps were pretty much born here in the 70s and 80s when it branched off the racing scene. Cities more outside of OC have now built bike parks with built in jumps and pump tracks, which is what a lot of people ride now in my area. Sapwi Bike Park in Thousand Oaks, Flight Deck in Moreno Valley, Gale Webb Action Sports Park in Menifee (where I ride the most), and of course Sheep Hills. Inglewood also has a full size pump track where a lot of longboarders and skateboarders hang out, but bikes are loved there too. There is also the Bike Life culture too, which involves all the wheelie boys and SE Bikes crew. They normally ride on the coastlines or through downtowns.
Long Beach has a good street scene, but of course you’ll deal with security if you ride a high security spot. Right in OC though is the Vans and Etnies Skateparks, which are great for street. You’ll see a lot of pros hang out there. In San Diego, there’s the YMCA Krause Family Skate & Bike Park which is another famous park and was just rebuilt with some great vert if you like bowls. You just have to look at skateparks and bikeparks in the area. Instagram can be your best friend for finding pages on the bike parks, they normally keep them updated pretty well.
As for getting bikes and what bike to ride, its more direct to consumer now, but there are still bike shops. Most are selling E-Bikes now (a big problem in SoCal), but they can carry mountain bikes and BMX. S&M and I think CULT are right in OC, but most people buy bikes online since our shipping is fast here. And freecoaster or cassette is more personal preference. I see more cassettes out and about, but I also race and ride the dirt jumps a lot. Facebook Marketplace can be a great place to find good deals on used bikes.
Just want to say base off reading all the replies here that the BMX community is AWESOME
Grew up in Costa Mesa, CA. Check out Sheep Hills (you can find plenty on YouTube). One of my longest and fondest memories of OC!
Have a blast!
I just got back into it and bringing my kids along. Here’s a picture of my new PK.
https://preview.redd.it/tocw4evdbq7h1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f919886f0fdb85feeaa7d739c91f2a4c1a438a24