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product during the down time between Waterford making our goods and us setting up shop. We are doing better every day now. I am having the time of my life with this project along with being back on my bike.

Standard is not just a BMX freestyle company but you've supported and sold to the BMX racing scene for all this time too. What's the importance of BMX racing to your company?
Rick: Racing is very important to SBC. We have always supported it and taken part in it. I was really into racing before there was really anything called freestyle. Back in the late 70's and up until around 1985. Then I raced a little in the late 90's. My last race was around 2001 or so.

Standard is known for made in USA quality products. How have things changed from making strong and heavy bikes 15 years ago to strong and light bikes now?
Rick: When we started our focus was on strength only as riding was changing and demanding more from the bikes. The bikes weren't keeping up so we decided to give it a try ourselves in changing this. These days our focus is on balancing strength with weight. For a while there freestyler's were going a little crazy with the light weight. It seems like people are being more realistic now as far as weight and strength expectations go. We can build just about anything a rider wants. We just ask that they have the bike built to match their riding style. For instance a guy jumping off of buildings shouldn't have a 3 lb. frame built and expect STA strength from it. We think that with the high performance tubing advancements we can build frames for freestyle between 4 and 5 lbs and have them last a reasonable amount of time. Race wise, we have our bigger frames well under 4 lbs with plenty of strength for that use. The little kids frames start at under 2 lbs!

Bike manufacturing has faced strong competition from overseas companies. There are only a few USA-made companies left. What's the advantage of having bikes made in the USA?
Rick: I would say our advantage is customer service, quick R&D, quality of material control, and overall quality control. We don't have to wait for the slow boat from China to make changes or find out if something works. We just build it in the shop and ride it.

You now also run a custom bike program. Can you take us through that so if people want to get that bike they've always wanted, they know what to do?
Rick: It is really quite simple. We just ask people to call or e-mail us their ideas and we take it from there. We take their ideas and work with them to make sure they get the exact bike they want. We can basically fulfill most requests. Most riders seem to want to try different geometries from time to time. The rest ask for complete customs. We have built everything from BMX mini's and full race mountain bikes to 6 lb. Shaman frames. We really like building the wild stuff. The vintage guys come up with the wildest ideas!

Who are your test/team riders these days?
Rick: We have a full race team and freestyle team. We are always looking for new talent! 

Do you have any special products coming up for 2010?
Rick: Our new Overload stem is pretty cool. I really like that. We are working on an updated Trailboss, a flatland frame, and a host of small parts. We are kicking around the idea of some sort of box set or greatest hits as far as video goes. Or maybe some sort of on line version of these.

Last words?
Rick: I am really having a great time with riding and building bikes. When I was a young whip I never thought I would still be hungry to ride at 44! Standard has been re born into a better BMX company. Our mission is still the same: to provide a place where rider's can go to get a bike they can trust.

For more info hit:
-standardbyke.com
-goodtimessuperstore.com
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
-twitter.com/standardbykecompany.

If riders want to stop by and see how frames are built come to Davenport and we'll show you around. We also have a great skatepark 4 blocks away. Consider it an open invitation.

Rick