Racing
Jake put this link in the comments. for those of you who don’t read the comments you can watch the Olympic Semi-Finals by clicking here. You have to download MS’ Flash competitor, Silverlight, and promise that you have cable.
Funny thing about watching the races is that I notice that nobody in BMX hits the apex of any turn. I wonder if it’s just too hard or if nobody’s ever really tried.
Either way, the finals got rained out last night and, supposedly, will be on tonight. Who knows when.
Also, seriously
= 
I’m not sure when that happened, but apparently it did.
Also, everyone should read Kenan’s agency bio. It’s awesome (he shares representation with his ex-roommate)
Oh, and Harkin might want to have a word with Zach Shaw about the 360 flip, first my arse.
You know the funny thing is, when I got back into BMX (at least as a spectator) they did a rider bio on Kenan for the X-Games and one of the things he said was, “Everybody thinks I invented the 360 back flip, which is actually called the ‘Zach flip’, but I didn’t it was this guy, Zach Shaw.” Cut to Zach sitting eating Taco Bell, surprised that there’s a camera in his face while he’s enjoying his delicious, faux mexican food. It was teh first time I’d ever heard the name Zach Shaw.
I’m surprised that 10 years later he’s claiming to be the guy who invented it.
“Funny thing about watching the races is that I notice that nobody in BMX hits the apex of any turn. I wonder if it’s just too hard or if nobody’s ever really tried.”
Are you being sarcastic or serious?
Serious. I never raced BMX. I was watching the semis on the web and I noticed that almost everyone took the high, outside line, no one even seemed to come close to hitting the apex like you would in motorcycle or car racing. I honestly am ignorant to the cause of the difference in technique.
For anyone who doesn’t know what I’m talking about, go here : http://home.pon.net/hunnicutt/perfdriv.htm and scroll down to “the anatomy of a corner.”
Ok. There’s not a realistic comparison at all between car racing and BMX racing, for many reasons. Braking, acceleration etc etc and why you need to “hit” the corner like that in a car doesn’t translate to bicycles. And that’s a 90, there aren’t many 90s on BMX tracks. If you went that wide in a 90 turn during a BMX race and braked, you’d have someone nonchalantly cruise by you on the inside, or if they were too far back to cruise by, they’d simply plow the shit out of you at the “apex” if you swung that wide.
Momentum flow is different between cars, motorcycles and BMX bikes. The lack of an engine is a slightly major factor. If you hit your brakes during a BMX race, you’re having issues.
I’d like to note also, those BMX racer dudes are hauling major ass and making it look way, way easier than it is.
They were hauling major ass, which is why it hit me, honestly. At the speeds they were going into a non-dirt corner it looked more like Moto GP than a typical BMX race. Except, of course, no one in Moto GP would expect to keep the lead taking that line. Conservation of momentum makes sense.
Conservation of momentum, and seriously, getting plowed. You can’t mow people over in cars or motorcycles (usually, MX has exceptions every so often) without serious consequences. It’s legal to crash people in BMX racing, which is what I loved about it. Shifting gears, another major differentiation in how you can realistically enter and exit turns and not get passed. If you stuff someone on a MX bike and they come to a halt, just twist the throttle and they’re back up to speed, not as easy to get back up to speed when you have to pedal.
Asphalt allows you to carve slightly harder, but the same techniques, theories and rules apply to dirt turns. They asphalt turns because of rain. I’m almost positive Florida tracks were the first to do this in the early 80s. I have enough scars to remember it well. I’m not sure which is worse, crashing on an asphalt berm or shell berm, neither are fun. Brian Foster almost tore his nipple off crashing in an asphalt berm in Sarasota, FL.
Speaking of Sarasota BMX, totally disturbing: http://waspohio.blogspot.com/2008/01/wanted-pedophile-from-florida.html. I don’t know how to insert a direct link.
Dude, that’s beyond disturbing.
Someone should send Kenan an email about that. Someone who knows him should call either him or his representation out on that shit. He’s got an impressive enough resume where his representation shouldn’t have to have inaccuracies.
I first met Kenan years ago, the Kenan show can be a bit much in person, but he was always a good rider, a good TV commentator, and seemed to be a decent guy.
Padding your resume is something we’re probably all a little guilty of. But taking specific credit for something someone else did in order to make tons of money on commentary gigs really, really sucks. I want to believe that his representation made a mistake or something, it seems weird he would publicly credit Zack on ESPN for the 3 flip 10 years ago and then turn around and take credit for it later….