One of Odyssey’s more popular “big” handlebars just got bigger.
The new Lumberjack XXL bars are a full 9.8″ high and 30′ wide (both wider and taller than its predecessor the Lumberjack XL). Rounding out the spec sheet, these bars sport a 11° backsweep and 2° upsweep.
Other notables are multi-butted main tubing and Odyssey’s 41-Thermal Lifetime Warranty…which means, in layman’s terms, these bars will take whatever you throw at them.
Nice upgrade by Odyssey.
Framed Bikes, out of Minnesota, is focused on making fun bikes that aren’t expensive.
This past weekend, they dropped the news on social media that they were going to be adding a 22″ BMX bike called the “Defendant” to their lineup.
The Defendant is available in two trim levels, an entry level high-ten (frame/fork) version and a Pro version with a full cro-mo frame and fork.
The crazy thing is that even though it is dubbed the “Pro” version –and is full cro-mo with sealed components (minus the looseball headset)..it currently retails for the decidely non-pro price of just under $320 US.
Wow.
That is very a good price for a full cro-mo complete.
Now the full geo hasn’t been posted yet (most notably the head angle and seat angle) but what has been posted is looking pretty promising:
Not too shabby.
In the clip below, Brandon (from Framed Bikes) does a walk through of the 22″ Defendant, showcasing some of the key features and explaining some of the thinking behind the bike.
Keep in mind, Framed Bikes is a direct-to-consumer outfit so you won’t be able to hit up your regular bike shop or mail order for one of these. They are only available via framedbikes.com or the-house.com.
At this price-point, I think we’re going to see even more people taking the plunge and experimenting with 22″ bikes…and that’s a good thing in my books.
The USA BMX Grand Nationals, touted as “The Greatest Race on Earth” was, as all you racer-types know, held this past weekend.
Not only does it feature some of the most exciting racing you’re going to see anywhere, it also serves as a showcase for companies to debut some of their new products.
This year’s Grands was no different.
One company’s product in particular, generated quick a bit of buzz over the past few days. That product was Yess BMX’s 2018 concept prototype bike called Project2024.
The bike uses a frame that can accommodate two different wheel setups: OS20 and 24′ cruiser. When the OS20 wheels are used, it features a bottom bracket height of 11.5″; when the 24″ cruiser wheels are used, it sports a 11.75″ bottom bracket height.
How does this BMX wizardry work you ask?
The frame uses purpose-designed dropouts, that can be flipped upside down…changing the radius distance from axle to ground. This provides a similar bottom bracket height to be achieved despite using two different wheel size setups.
The benefit?
This innovative setup could allow you to take one bike (with an extra wheel set) vs. two bikes when traveling to big races.
The downside, of course, is having to swap out the dropouts and wheels between motos….and having the time to do so. Probably a non-starter at smaller state or national races but perhaps do-able at the big UCI race extravaganzas.
Gotta respect those Yess folks for pushing the envelope on BMX innovation.
Still on the Grands/OS20 front, SSquared Bicycles also had something up their sleeves.
The SSquared tent showcased the debut of the SSquared Bicycles OS20 frame and Answer BMX disk brake set up.
Word on the street is that the OS20 frames might be “made to order” for the time being since they still so new.
I would suggest confirming with SSquared to be sure (before you order) but…hot damn!…if true, this is a great opportunity to get a custom OS20 bike built with the race-tested quality SSquared is known for. Definitely don’t sleep on this if you are in the market.
Some pretty cool new offerings from Yess and SSquared.
It seems that the OS20 momentum that’s happening in the race world continues to grow. It’s good to see.
(Pictures: Yess BMX & SSquared)
Chris Rantell is another convert to the 22″ movement.
Chris is a BMXer from way back and has done his time with 20″, 24″ and 26″ bikes.
Sunday even featured him on their site doing a Wallride on a Sunday Model C during the 420 Jam a few years back.
Despite being able to shred on all those sizes of bikes…apparently something was still missing.
According to Chris:
26 was more cruiser based but the 24 was meant to be a bmx bike and it just never felt like it to me.
The 22 on the other hand?
First time I got on it it 180’d perfect. 24 hop stuff is hard. Top tubes on most [22s] are also around 22 which gives more foot clearance. Honestly it really truly felt like just a scaled-up bmx and I just felt like my back is straighter.
Chris documented some of his first session of really riding his 22″ at Joyride 150 bike park (see below) a few days ago.
As the clips show it looks like the 22″ hits the right spot for his height and riding style.
Hope to see more 22″ clips from this guy.
big and tall bmx 