Lately, the 1980s have been making a comeback.
From New Kids on the Block and the Transformers, to Care Bears and legwarmers, it seems like fashion, music, and even sports are coming full cycle.
Growing up in the ’80s, I remember watching in awe as my neighbours rode their bikes into a ravine that separated our houses. More than 20 years later, bicycle motocross, or BMX – with dedicated skate and bike parks around Ottawa – is back locally in a big way and, unlike the New Kids, is better than ever.
Recently, I met Roland Labrecque, president of the Capital Riders Organization, at Legacy Skate Park at Centrepointe to witness firsthand the return of the sport.
The BMX bikes looked exactly as I remembered them. But according to Labrecque, they’re completely different.
“Bikes now are stronger, he said. “The materials and the engineering have changed a lot.”
Now on the verge of becoming an Olympic sport, BMX has also changed with the advent of video and Internet, which makes it easier for people to break down the moves and learn new tricks.
Labrecque, who started riding as a young teen in the 80s, rediscovered the sport after moving to Ottawa years ago.
“Some people view the people doing this as a bunch of daredevils,” said the 37-year-old, who admits to “trying stuff knowing that my chance of success was fairly small.”
He demonstrates a rollback, a bunny hop and a flat land tail whip, one of the first tricks he teaches to beginners.
Then it’s my turn on the bike – a moment, I might add, I’ve been waiting for since I was a kid.
Hovering over the seat, I keep my feet level on the pedals and knees bent slightly to absorb the shock as I prepare to try my first trick.
Balancing on the bike, I cross my left leg over the top tube and put my foot on the back of the front tire. The whole bike swings around the front and back towards me. I hop back on the pedals.
We take the lesson over to the ramp park, where riders of all ages are swirling weightlessly in and out of concrete bowls.
I try out the smallest ramp – barely an incline, but enough to give a non-rider a thrill as I roll into it and out the other side.
Another attempt down a slightly steeper slope proves less successful when I smash head-on into one of the grind boxes, flipping over the handlebars.
I don’t know what happened. I think I saw the block, but was powerless to steer away from it.
I got about half a dozen enormous bruises from falling off that bike, but fortunately, my ego suffered the most damage in the crash.
All I could think about was Labrecque saying that there was always someone walking around ramp parks shooting video and hoped that my spill wouldn’t end up on YouTube.
Although many of the best riders in Ottawa are in their teens, the sport also attracts people in their 20s and 30s.
But I should probably just stick to Care Bears.
