BMX history

History of BMX: Where It All Began

By: Maeve Rich

The history of BMX begins with a single bicycle: the Schwinn Stingray. Invented in 1963, the Stingray is often thanked for beginning BMX. Kids were able to use the Stingray to emulate their favorite motocross riders of the time.

BMX riding blew up in the 1970s, with kids across the country riding their bicycles on dirt trails and around tracks. BMX races began giving people the opportunity to test their skills against other riders. As BMX-specific bikes began to emerge in the mid-seventies, BMX riding became more technical and advanced.

The American Bicycle Association (ABA) was created to oversee BMX riding and magazines dedicated to the sport (such as Bicycle Motocross Action Magazine (BMXA) and Bicycle Motocross News) were started. This helped spread BMX even wider. It started to become popular in countries around the world.

In the early 1990s, extreme sports began to make their way into the national spotlight. They became mainstream as they gained attention, especially when ESPN created the "X-Games." In 2008 BMX was officially made a part of the Olympics.

Today BMX riding is a challenging sport that involves double and triple jumps, rollers and tabletops. It's a faster sport which relies less on the rough and tough obstacles that it used to. BMX bicycles are 20 inches, made of lightweight material and are far more advanced than ever.

There are two organizations overseeing BMX racing in the US: the ABA and the National Bicycle League (NBL). In general the ABA governs the west coast and the NBL covers the east. The American Freestyle Association (AFA) oversees BMX freestyle riding. BMX continues its rise in popularity in the US and around the world.