I went to two bike shops in knoxville this afternoon and didnt see one single bmx bike.This is pathetic is there no kids left in my area? I felt like there was something wrong maybe I didnt have any fun on these bikes but I know that is way wrong these shops are lacking I did see a 16 inch bike but no 20's or 24's.Why cant they offer something for kids,its like they dont want them to have fun with friends outdoors and stay inside and not experience things.The cheapest bike at one shop was 775 what a joke its bad enough not having kids bikes and not offer affordable ones also.I understand advancements in bikes ,materials,better quality how about a better price and a variety! I am sorry for the rant but I had a crap child hood and it would have been way worse had it not been for BMX! Bikes were an escape for me and great experiences that I carry with me today and mechanical ability developed from working on bikes.What can we do???

They've thrown in the towel to Walmart and Target, etc. to carry bmx.

rick nailed it. The big box retailers have pushed many bike shops out of business, and those that are still around have specialized to a "higher class" crowd that want MTBs or road bikes.

Fortunately for me, there are two or three bike shops in relative close proximity that still carry BMX products(but nothing like in the early '80s), but more and more people are running into the same situation you did today....

Now thats NOT COOL :mad:Suport your IBD as best you can and not Dans comp or Wally World They are out for numbers only Your small IBD can get the thing they all have and MORE you just have to ask the right Person in the right Shop! just my 2 cents

one of the shops was a fuji dealer he said he would order me any SE I wanted he seemed like a decent guy he had the 16 inch.He has a relatively small shop in a nice area and had some high end bikes but wheres the stuff for kids? I wasnt happy with department store bikes even my Stu replica that I had to have even though I was on a loaded up mx2.I wish kids a chance to have what we had!

I here you El Cid,but most shop carry the parts and bikes there is more of a demand for in their stores.BMX and times have changed Its called BIG BOX vs The Little shops :mad:If you help the little shops they will help you all the time

If I had enough money and had an agreement with the owner I would buy some bikes at his price mark them up enough to cover shipping and assembly and try to get some kids on some bikes.I would like to assemble and do that I just need to unload some car parts and a few of my personal bmx items before I talk to the owner.

I have to jump in here as the father of two young kids and say a few of the things that keep kids off of BMX and all other bikes these days are the following.

video games

Computers (like the one I'm typing on now!)

the Internet (MySpace is way scary!)

DVD's

cable TV

skateboarding (cool but it's the truth)

Lame, tired parents who won't get off the couch to ride with their kids.

Did I say video games?!

When I was a kid riding BMX (modified Schwinn Stingray, Webco, Redline - still have it) in the 70's the only thing that we had to do besides ride bikes was watch three network TV channels and play Atari. Believe me after a little Partridge Family and Pong it was back to riding our bikes!

What can we all do? Over the next year take 10 kids out to your local BMX track so they can check out the races. With a little luck 1 or 2 of them will stop text messaging each other every five minutes and discover an awesome sport and way of life!

Thanks for listening.

Keith CoBen
Register Your Support Today
www.ElkGroveBMX.com

Keith I am glad you posted up,we need to start getting other kids into it.I live on 2.5 acres I would love to have a practice track in my yard and I would let kids ride if their parents supervised.I need a bobcat and some dirt then get some oldtimers to help build it.We will have to do something to keep our sport alive.

Knox bykx
3029 N. central ave
Knoxville TN 37917
865-406-7885
Russell Yarnell owns this shop and it is all BMX. He has quite a bit of NOS VBMX stuff also. He is a super nice guy and they have a ramp out back, at least they did. They have a pretty big crew that they ride with.

problem #1:

when i was 6, i already knew how to ride a bike and my parents had no idea where i was from the minute i got home from school till dinner. same with all the other kids in my neighborhood. we all had bikes and we all used them. no one knew or cared where we were, as long as we showed back up at home.

today, kids are not allowed out of their parents sight, for fear of the bogie man. so... they sit in the house entertaining themselves with all the above listed stuff. no need for a top end bike if you aren't allowed to ride it out of sight of your house.

El Cid, I would think your 2.5 acres would do nicely. As it is the city of Knoxville offers nothing to cater to those interested in anything other than stick and ball sports. There is a 4x track, some North Shore style trails, and some really good dirt jumps in Knox county near Solway. This was put on land that the county has approved for this use and maintained completely by those of us that ride.

better have a really, really good liability insurance policy....

Being the parent of 3 children, ages 9, 6, and 3, all of which ride with me whenever possible, the idea of letting them ride off all day on their bikes is a bit scary. We live in a quiet part of the city, but still have quite a bit of traffic.

Their local school yard is just around the corner, and I believe the two older ones are at an age that they can ride their bikes there and play with friends, my wife is still a bit overprotective and rightly so.

Her sister was abducted and murdered on the way to school not far from where we live and where my wife grew up. That was 1975, so I can't imagine the world has gotten any better since then.

So the "bogie man" as you call him is a reality for her, and keeping an eye on our kids and keeping a tighter leash on them is worth whatever freedom they might not have. Can't really compare it to the freedom I may have had growing up in the suburbs, and riding all day till dusk. Coming home only to eat, drink, and take a leak. I hate to say it, but those days are over if you want to see your kids graduate high school.

I say, get out there and ride with 'em.

Topbubble and Tim you are sooo right!! Get them out and Ride and take Pics so they can see how much Fun it is! most shops can't sell you the bike Not assembled because of product liability to sell the item to you!

Nemo sorry to hear about your wifes sister that had to be tragic.Kelly B.thanks for the info.Chep you ride out that way much? I basicly live 7 miles from the end of pellissippy in maryville/rockford.there used to be 2 tracks here what happened?I though I saw what looked like a bmx track by the knoxville police garage a few years ago.

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better have a really, really good liability insurance policy....

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If you get an ABA sanction you'll be insured. Call the ABA and ask to speak w/ John David.