BMX Texas Take Over: Riding into the Lone Star State!
Name: Steve Strong
Hometown: Dagenham, UK.
Started riding BMX in: 1981.
Number of bikes in the collection: 3 at the moment, built around 25 decent ones I was happy with.
What was the first project bike that got you into collecting BMX bikes?
Steve Strong: 1981 Team Murray 'Track Certified'.
How difficult was it to find parts for it in the beginning?
Steve Strong: When I first started, I knew nothing of the UK scene. I was (and still am) a member of BMX Society and BMXMuseum. Primarily all of my parts came from Ebay.com and the Museum pages.
Name: Ian MacArthur
Hometown: Chigwell, Essex, UK
Started riding BMX in: 1981
Number of bikes in the collection: Currently 25 (down from 62)
Do you remember the moment that you decided to start collecting BMX memorabilia?
Ian MacArthur: It was 2003 and I'd started riding skateparks again inspired by early days of Road Fools on the Extreme channel and I just searched for some old brands online and there was old stock kicking around on ebay and low level e-commerce sites like SkatePool.
Name: Chris Daly
Hometown: Hayling Island
Started riding BMX in: 1982
Number of bikes in the collection: At the moment 6 with one on the way.
Do you remember the moment that you decided to start collecting BMX memorabilia?
Chris Daly: No not really, it happened gradually I guess, I started collecting properly around 04, I wanted to build a bike to ride again & I just started to see more & more bikes & parts on eBay that I always wanted until I got everything I ever wanted. It was really easy back then, not too many people collecting.
Name: Alessandro Barbero
Hometown: Ceva, Italy / Woodward, PA, USA
Started riding BMX in: As a kid in the late '80's. Pro since 2001.
Number of bikes in the collection: Most of my bikes are Race bikes from 1975 to 1985. I don't know how many exactly.
What is Italy's history like regarding BMX Bikes. Do you have any Italian BMX bikes in your collection?
Alessandro Barbero: Of course I got some, so I usually try to split the BMX Toys from the Real BMX that
Name: Chad Powers
Hometown: Grew up in Nokesville, VA, live in Richmond, VA now!
Started riding BMX in: 1996
Number of bikes in the collection: 250-300 rideable bikes
The BMX museum you've got going at the shop is fairly new. Can you explain how it all unfolded?
Powers BMX: it’s not new! It has always been in the works. But we just moved the shop into a bigger better spot which we had build a section dedicated for the BMX museum!
When you were looking for a new location, was starting a BMX museum always on your mind?
Powers BMX: Yes, the museum was a main point of the new location!
It seems you've got plenty of bikes. How do you decide which bikes deserve a spot in the museum?
Powers BMX: We don’t dislike anything that’s BMX! We are going to downsize it a little, get rid of some doubles.
What's the oldest bike in the line-up?
Powers BMX: We have a Schwinn Sting ray. I personally love the '70s BMX.
Name: Brian Gutierrez
Hometown: Venice, California born and raised but migrated to Orange County in the late 80's.
Started riding BMX in: Friends of mine I rode with and me started calling it BMX in 1972. Prior to that point we just rode our Sting Rays. We were emulating Evel Knievel whenever possible. Starting with use of a small wooden car ramp we would attempt new records over an ever longer, ever taller stack of old banana boxes. When that lost its sparkle we went to the dirt! At first it was just to find bigger stuff to jump off of or over the top of.
Then we discovered we liked the dirt. The trails that went along with the jumping spots were just as fun
Name: Alex Leech
Hometown: Oxford, England
Started riding BMX in: 1981
Number of bikes in the collection: Maybe 20 completes and another 20 frames
Do you have any other brand of BMX bike in your collection other than an S&M?
Alex Leech: I have one BMX that’s not S&M; a Haro “84 Sport”. I had one in 1984 so I wanted to get another one. The one I used to have was a USA made Gen2 Sport. I rode it for ages and it broke many times. Unfortunately, I have no clue where it ended up. The one I have now is a Gen3, so not exactly the same as my old one. It isn’t built the same as I rode mine but it’s got a few references to my old bike.
A Bonus Haul To End The Year! S&M HAF, Kuwahara & More!
Name: Mike Janssen, owner BMX Museum NL
Hometown: Shanghai, China
Started riding BMX in: 1982
Number of bikes in the collection: 100+, all part of the BMX Museum NL collection which opened the doors on February 8 th 2009.
Do you remember the moment that you decided to start collecting BMX memorabilia?
Mike Janssen: Definitely! I started to look in 2000 for my own 1984 GT Pro Series because I regretted it
After doing a BMX 'zine for ten years (1987 - 1996) FATBMX made it on the internet. The year was 1998. Here to stay.