With the arrival of the Mountain Cycle Rumble, it was time to get out of my riding comfort zone. For a long time now, I have wanted a hardtail that could double as a dirtjump bike and a freeride machine. This deal hit with Mountain Cycle and I was able to get my dream. The Rumble with a Rock Shox Pike bolted up allows 95mm travel for the dj’s and 140mm for the freeride sections.

Noonday

Noonday is a local bmx track that also includes a pump track behind turns one and three. On Thursday night, a group of us headed out under the lights to get some runs in. This was the first time in years that I have been on a track like this one, and it was the first time in months that I have even touched a hardtail. This was going to get interesting.

Some long time friends…Brandon, Joey, Jeff and Chad…met me out at the track for some late night riding with some other guys in the area. Later in the night, Joe (regularjoe) brought out the camera and got some great shots (all of them in this article are his).

The Ride

The ride was incredible. BMX track riding on 26″ wheels is all about explosive power and timing. You have to keep your sprint speed going for a long period of time, and if you timing gets even just a little bit off…your momentum is gone.

My best advice for beginners is sessioning. Practice one section of the track over and over again until you get it right. After that, add another section and so on. That will help you not feel overwhelmed by the entire track, and it allows you to use your peak energy on the experimenting. Keep your speed up and everything should go fine.

What am I hoping to accomplish?

About a year ago, I noticed that my riding was plateauing. I wasn’t getting that much better and I was doing the same thing over and over again…mostly XC styled riding. It was at that point, I decided to expand my riding ability resume to include other flavors of the sport with the hope that the skills I learned in the other areas would crossover. I was correct…the more I learn how to ride other 26″ wheeled art forms, the better my riding gets in other areas with the new skills I have learned.

Dirt jumps were just the next progression in this quest. Be on the lookout for more incredible pictures from this track. It is going to become a regular ride mixed in with our weekly night rides during the cold months.

The regularjoe gallery: