Bicycles and Dirt Magazine shoot with JMC's Darrall Young.

It was the early 1980's and Bicycles and Dirt Magazine was one of three leading publications covering everything BMX. The magazine was published by the American Bicycle Association and the editors were Brad Fanshaw and Denney Griffiths. This is a behind the scenes shot of a JMC, Darrall Young photo shoot. A wooden ramp was hauled out to a local park in Scottsdale, Arizona that had green grass, blue sky and a sloped landing area.

This shot shows the fluid riding skills of Young being photographed by Brad and Denney (Denney is in the foreground and Brad is laying under the ramp).

Eric Rupe- The Energizer Bunny of BMX!

Eric Rupe is one of the most dedicated bmx racers you will ever find. Rupe and his brother began racing in Southern California during the 1970's. A fixture of the bmx scene, Rupe was a Mongoose ambassador since his early career.

Known today as one of the top Veteran Pro racers he his fast and super friendly. The photo above shows Rupe lost somewhere in the 1980s and he had already been racing over ten years!
Rupe is decked out in the latest 80's bmx fashion with a Mongoose team jersey, Muscle Power patch and Oakley shades.

Brent Patterson 1980 #1 ABA PRO

There was a time when the newly crowned ABA #1 Pro received their new car at the following year's ABA Winter Nationals. In this classic photo Brent Patterson is being handed the keys to a Pontiac Trans Am for winning the top PRO position. The keys are being awarded on the infield of the Chandler BMX track by then ABA owner Merle Mennega.

Brent Patterson was the ABA #1 Pro rider in 1980, that is why the Smokey and The Bandit Trans Am was the big prize.

Brent Patterson gets his Trans-AM from Merle at Winternationals

Cheri Elliott Skyway's #1 1980's Female BMXer

Cheri Elliott Skyway's #1 Girl

Cheri Elliott was a force among female BMX racers in the 1980's. She rode smooth and strong and as you can see her style was as good as the guys!

Cheri always rode a white Skyway frame with, of course black Skyway Tuff Wheels. Cheri Elliott was fast, had jumping style and always had a big smile.

East Coast Old School BMX

East Coast BMX Action

In the 1970's BMX was not just happening on the West coast, sure the California guys would like you to believe that. This berm shot shows that BMX racing was hard-core in the Eastern side of the USA. Note that the number plates are the early type round and rectangular. The JT mouthguard was the hot set-up in New Jersey and Florida!

When Cruisers Ruled BMX!

Cruisers Were King In the 1980's

It was the 1980's and the cruiser class was huge and so were bright fluorescent colors. In this vintage picture we see Charles Townsend battling two other riders in some elbow-to-elbow racing. This is what BMX is all about; battling for position and spinning your sprocket off the bike.

Vintage Photo Week #2

Old School BMX Starting Gate 1977

It's 1977 at a Southern California BMX track, this could be Rancho, Corona or one of a dozen of the great downhills. Technology was catching up with BMX frames, but obviously not the gates. I remember racing these tracks and if you were lucky enough to grab the outside lines the gate flexed so much that one end dropped first. Look at the gate in the photo and you will see the starters side is up and the far ed is flexed out.
The starter would struggle to hold up the gate, but one-footed starts didn't put as much on these gates.

Mongoose ruled the days in 1977 and you can see that most of the kids on this gate had one of the nickel plated rigid frames. The one guy has a Kawasaki BMX bike and even the Kawasaki jersey, a young David Clinton?

Vintage Photo Week #1

This is really some old school BMX racing! Kevin Jackson rode for Schwinn in the 1970's and the guy's on that team also included Bob Hadley and Greg Hill. They rode Schwinn Scramblers but most were modified with some trick parts.

This photo is so 70's era BMX; Vans shoes, Bill Walters leathers, Bell Helmet, Jofa mouth guard and rat-trap pedals (KKT most likely). The other guys in this first turn roost have the cool Scott Goggles and face mask, Tuf-Neck jersey and each are riding some vintage hardware.

Watch For Another Old School Photo From The Archives Every Week!

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Coming soon! Vintage BMX action photos.

Hey everybody, thanks for stopping by. Very soon this is the spot your going to find the coolest old school bmx action photos from the 70's and 80's. The ABA has been "The Sanctioning Body of BMX" for over 30 years and in that time we have seen a lot of races. We have also taken a ton of pictures! Our archives are bursting with great stuff. So we decided that with the Olympics coming up this summer and all of the interest being generated, it would be a good time to start dusting off some pics of the old schoolers and giving them some props! Talk to you all soon!