A unicycle is a vehicle that touches the ground with only one wheel. The most common variation has a frame with a saddle, and has a pedal-driven direct-drive. A two speed hub is commercially available for faster unicycling. Unicycling is practiced professionally in circuses, by street performers, in festivals, and as a hobby. Unicycles have also been used to create new sports such as unicycle hockey. In recent years, unicycles have also been used in mountain unicycling, an activity similar to mountain biking or trials.
Cycle sport is competitive physical activity using bicycles. There are several categories of bicycle racing including road bicycle racing, cyclo-cross, mountain bike racing, track cycling, BMX, and cycle speedway. Non-racing cycling sports include artistic cycling, cycle polo, freestyle BMX, mountain bike trials, hardcourt bike polo and cycleball. The Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) is the world governing body for cycling and international competitive cycling events. The International Human Powered Vehicle Association is the governing body for human-powered vehicles that imposes far fewer restrictions on their design than does the UCI. The UltraMarathon Cycling Association is the governing body for many ultra-distance cycling races.
Mat Hoffman is an American BMX rider who was considered one of the best vert ramp riders in the history of the sport. He was nicknamed "The Condor" and ran the BMX Freestyle brand Hoffman BMX Bikes based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. He was a sponsored rider for Skyway and then Haro Bikes before starting his own brand.
David Michael Mirra was an American BMX rider who also competed in rallycross racing. He set the record for most medals in BMX Freestyle at the X Games and earned at least one BMX medal at the event in all but one year from the competition's inception in 1995 until 2009. He also competed for several years with the Subaru Rally Team USA as a rallycross driver. Mirra rode for and was fully sponsored by Haro Bikes from the mid-1990s until he started his own bike company. He was a member of the team which won the 2014 Race Across America four-person male category. Mirra died by suicide on February 4, 2016. He was inducted into the BMX Hall of Fame on June 11, 2016.
Bob Haro is an American former professional freestyle BMX rider turned artist and business executive. He is the founder of Haro Bikes and was one of the most important early innovators of BMX freestyle.
Freestyle BMX is bicycle motocross stunt riding on BMX bikes. It is an extreme sport descended from BMX racing that consists of five disciplines: street, park, vert, trails, and flatland. In June 2017, the International Olympic Committee announced that freestyle park was to be added as an Olympic event to the 2020 Summer Olympics.
Flatland is a freestyle BMX riding style performed on smooth flat surfaces that do not include any ramps, jumps, or grindrails. It is sometimes described as a form of artistic cycling with a blend of breakdancing.
Ryan Nyquist is an American professional BMX rider with 16 X Games medals, 39 X Games competition starts and 60 Dew Tour finals appearances. Nyquist is considered one of the greatest and diversely skilled BMX riders ever. Nyquist has won numerous gold medals in the X Games Dirt Jumping & Bike Park events. Recently Nyquist has had an interest in freeride mountain biking and has been training in mountain biking as well as BMX. He currently rides for Haro Bikes, Vans Shoes, Rockstar Energy Drink, and The Jiffy Market of Los Gatos.
Mat Hoffman's Pro BMX 2 is a BMX video game endorsed by Mat Hoffman and published by Activision under the Activision O2 label. The game, which serves as a sequel to Mat Hoffman's Pro BMX, was released on August 13, 2002 for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox. A Game Boy Advance port was developed by HotGen and released the same day as the PlayStation 2 and Xbox versions. A GameCube port was developed by Gratuitous Games and was released on October 8, 2002.
Kevin Jones is a freestyle BMX rider. Raised in York, Pennsylvania, at age 11 he started riding BMX and began BMX racing in 1982. Though successful, he abruptly quit, as he enjoyed dirt jumping more than racing.
GT Bicycles is an American company that designs and manufactures BMX, mountain, and road bicycles. GT is a division of the Dutch conglomerate Pon Holdings, which also markets Cannondale, Schwinn, Mongoose, IronHorse, DYNO, and RoadMaster bicycle brands; all manufactured in Asia.
Mat Hoffman's Pro BMX is a BMX video game endorsed by Mat Hoffman and the first game to be published by Activision under the Activision O2 label. It is similar to the Tony Hawk's series and competed directly with Acclaim Entertainment's Dave Mirra Freestyle BMX. Despite a planned release in fall of 2000, the game was released in 2001 for the PlayStation and Game Boy Color, followed by Dreamcast, Microsoft Windows and Game Boy Advance.
Taj Mihelich is a World Champion American Freestyle BMX rider. He is widely considered one of the most influential BMX riders of the golden era of BMX.
Daniel Dhers is a Venezuelan professional BMX rider. He is currently sponsored by Red Bull, POC, DC Shoes, Specialized, Albe's Mailorder, Sony and Verizon. Dhers lived in Greenville, North Carolina, known as Protown USA because of the concentration of BMX riders that live there, including Dave Mirra. Dhers in 2013 opened in Holly Springs, North Carolina a public mountain biking, BMX, and skateboarding park, the Daniel Dhers Action Sports Complex.
Seth Kimbrough is a professional BMX rider and musician, appearing as the vocalist for Mortal Treason. Seth is sponsored by Hoffman Bikes and The Shadow Conspiracy. Seth is heavily involved with motorcycles, track riding and mountain biking. He currently resides in Knoxville, Tennessee.
A BMX bike is a road sport bicycle used for racing or stunt riding. BMX means bicyclemotocross.
Edward Lynn "Eddie" Fiola is an American former professional freestyle BMX rider, and a film stuntman.
Martti Kuoppa is a Flatland BMX rider from Finland. He is widely recognized as one of the most skilled and most original riders in the history of the sport. He has invented and innovated many tricks on his quest for originality. He dominated the major contest scene between 2000 and 2002 as the winner of the BMX - flatland event at X Games VIII and has competed in and won a number of contests all over the world, such as the BMX Worlds in Germany in 2002. He has produced video parts and a solo DVD entitled Moments(Diversion TV). He was plagued by injury around 2005 due to practice of flatland. He has shared many online edits that show his continuing quest and hunger for originality. One project, Ground Tactics, provides a forum and contest for flatland riders around the world. At the heart of Ground Tactics is "hardcore flatland skills" and the promotion of originality and creativity. In 2012 Kuoppa announced his retirement from flatland riding to concentrate on other aspects of his life.
Robert Lewis Osborn is a BMX rider. His father Bob Osborn started BMX Action magazine. He, along with Mike Buff and Bob Haro are considered the forefathers of BMX freestyle, a style of BMX bike riding that involves flatland and ramp tricks.
Chad Degroot is a freestyle BMX rider from Green Bay, Wisconsin. He's widely regarded as an influential rider because of his trick innovations that contributed to the development of flatland BMX.
