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Jump Bikes

ColeLove | Apr 8, 2010 |

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Everyone knows what a mountain bike is, and everyone has seen BMX riders pull crazy tricks over improbable obstacles, but are you aware of a third type that is starting to appear?

Bikes designed to combine what is good about both types have really started to take off over the last few years, with a new type of hybrid bike appearing in shops: jump bikes. These bikes enable skilled technical riders to perform all kind of freestyle tricks, much like a BMX, but with the added strength and shock absorbers of a regular mountain bike.

There are currently two camps of riding styles:

Dirt jump biking, where riders fly down mountain or forest trails, hitting large ramps , executing freestyle tricks and landing huge drops. Sporting competitions often take place, and they can be either race or trick based, depending on the event.

Street jump biking instead follows a similar path to skateboarding, with riders exhibiting super skills by negotiating park benches, wooden tables and anything else that might be found in an urban setting.

So how do these bikes differ from other styles of bike, I hear you ask?

A jump bike is what you would get if a BMX and a mountain bike got together for one night and had a love child – a combination of a small but tough lightweight frame, large 24"wheels with disc brakes , and strengthened front shock absorbers to withstand a lot of punishment.

The frame is specifically designed to give as much room as possible to the rider; it has a low seat so that the top tube is far away and short chainstays so that more of the rider's weight is over the back wheel. This also gives the frame a snappy feel, letting the jump bike rider command the bike into impossible angles of attack.

Expect to see more jump bikes on the road, as their ease of use and durability is convincing more people every day to own one. So if you see a bike that looks mobile and could take a pounding, the chances are that it's a jump bike!