Amazing Old School BMX Photos

March, 25 2009 by Harrison Boyce

Old School BMX Polaroids

Cameron from Hidden Clothing hit me with an email containing an amazing collection of old school BMX Polaroids. The photos came from a guy he works with, and they are apparently him and his friends when they were younger. It’s incredible how well these photos sum up what it’s like riding bikes when you are young and I really feel like this is what BMX is all about… All I can think about when I look at these photos, is the time in my life where I had not quite got into the whole BMX scene. I was riding bikes every day, but it was more of just curb jumps and flyouts. Me and my friends were still discovering BMX magazines for the first time and the whole idea of BMX was just so fresh! Some of my strongest memories of BMX are from those days. Big thanks to Cameron and his co-worker for hooking up the photos!!

Check them all out after the jump –

Tags: BMX, old school, Photography, polaroids

JFry

Cross ups, bunny hops, tabletops … just was thinking of the old Kuwahara’s and Redline’s which is how I ended up here. Can’t believe 30 years have gone past.

I had one of each, I was so lucky as we were basically on the welfare, but my dad found each one used from guys he worked for/with. They cost around 100.00 used, and the old man wouldn’t let you forget that either … but I know he had to do other shit so I could ride. He knew what the rich kids were riding, which always impressed me when he showed up first with the Redline, which was stolen and he replaced it with the Kuwi … tuff wheels and all.

Awesome pics.

Thanks for the lump in my throat.
PANK

GOVNO!
http://eclectica.co.uk/ Mark Bell

Amazing pics—a huge wave of nostalgia is washing over me as I look at them. I’ve got a ton of old BMX pics from the ’80s and you’ve inspired me to dig them out. Great post!
Ugo COPPOLA

Excellent post! Worth seeing to understand what it’s all about. Thanks
http://vimeo.com/kero KERO

they’re so beautiful…oh my god lucky you!!!
D

That wheelie photo is priceless! I wish I had photos like that of me and my buds hanging out back in the day.
Aldobmx

Very nice !!! muito bacana ver essas fotos por aqui afinal de contas a história do bmx vem de longe e vem da maneira que a gente aprendeu aqui praticando muito e se ferrando bastante mas acima de tudo com um imenso sorriso no rosto !! bmx até o fim !! abraço aos brasileiros que vão ler isso aqui !!!!
Frida’s Boss

I love them as much as the others, but I believe these were taken with a Kodak Instant Colorburst, not a Polaroid.
These pics instantly (no pun intended – hey-oooo!) take me back to growing up in Florida and watching the older kids while I rode around on my Big Wheel.
Punyx

Thanks a lot for this set. I´ve been remembering thos old good days in San Pedro, México on Sunday noon, jumping and falling on BMX bikes.
Tut

I have about half a dozen photos (from my mom’s 110 Instamatic, whose strap was always in the way) of me and my friend on our BMX bikes from the late ’70s. The chrome one was a Schwinn S2000 as far as we knew. Not nearly as actiony as the Polaroids above, but what do you expect from the middle of Iowa?
http://www.kevingrayphotography.com KG

So GREAT! Takes me back to 1984! SE Quadangle, Van Halen, braces on my teeth, and scraped up chins! Thanks for posting this!
Rob

Wow. That was my era. Brought back sweat memories of building jumps, trying to go bigger and bigger, seeing how many of our buddies (lying down) we could jump and Mom putting iodine on cuts and grazes.
Matt

Hey guys, grouse pics. Im ustralia and late 70′s early 80′s wa my era.. a crap load of memories. I love it..
Cheers
Matt
Jered

Great pics! Heck yea! These are my homies from Beavercreek Ohio!
http://www.willinoisbmx.com willinois

Yep, looks just like photo’s of my friends and I at that time in Illinois.
john

great site. why the fuck is it marked by google as dangerous website???
http://www.toddbank.com Todd Bank

Nice photo’s, great times back then.

Check out my older bmx photo’s

http://www.fatbmx.com/modules/news/article.php?storyid=4033

Or google; todd bank in the beginning
leon

Hi there is amazing to see how these began making stunts with all those rusty bmx bikes, now everything is different, the rims are wider and the bike itself is being reinforced in certain points, that’s good to know we were born on that age in the middle of 80′s
DMG311

Awesome pics! That was my whole life 29 years ago. Jumps, tricks, racing, etc. All my buddies had Redlines, Mongooses, Raleighs, Diamond Backs, Hutchs, Kuwiharas and a couple of Thrusters. We rode from sun up to sun down in Memphis, TN, and also raced for a local bike shop. I recently got nostalgic and have been on a mission to try and re-create my ’81 Redline MX-II. It was white frame/forks, with all other parts in blue anodize. It had Suntour VX cranks, KKT Lighting pedals, Suntour hubs, Suntour seat clamp, Redline brute stem, Proline V-Bars, Oakley 3 grips, Dia-Comp front/rear brakes, Shot gun II seat, and Comp III tires on Araya 7 rims. I have spent a small fortune so far in doing another bike and still have a couple of parts to locate. Thanks for posting and bringing back some great memories!
Nsra65

→ DMG311
08/26/10 – 7:47 pm
Awesome pics! That was my whole life 29 years ago. Jumps, tricks, racing, etc. All my buddies had Redlines, Mongooses, Raleighs, Diamond Backs, Hutchs, Kuwiharas and a couple of Thrusters. We rode from sun up to sun down in Memphis, TN, and also raced for a local bike shop. I recently got nostalgic and have been on a mission to try and re-create my ’81 Redline MX-II. It was white frame/forks, with all other parts in blue anodize. It had Suntour VX cranks, KKT Lighting pedals, Suntour hubs, Suntour seat clamp, Redline brute stem, Proline V-Bars, Oakley 3 grips, Dia-Comp front/rear brakes, Shot gun II seat, and Comp III tires on Araya 7 rims. I have spent a small fortune so far in doing another bike and still have a couple of parts to locate. Thanks for posting and bringing back some great memories!

Hey DMG , You said something about Memphis . Right .
http://freecarinsuranceinformation.com/ car

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Misterchevy73

does anybody remember the goby frame?
James Pearson

anybody know how I can get some advice on what kind of old school se frame I have? The back part of the frame is stamped with se and one side has a 0 stamped into it. Can’t find a serial #. Any info would be greatly appreciated. jamespearson79@Yahoo.com
Dgbichito6

Kick ass!!! I want to go back in time,just tap my heels and ( i wish i was home, i wish i was home)
http://www.digicycle.net/ Tucker

sick
skippingdiscman

Some great shots here! Thanks for posting. Them were the days no cell phones, no helmets, no high tech shoes, no cans of Red Bull. Just riding and jumping all day with your friends wearing normal street clothes. That’s what it was all about. Our parents had to DRAG us into the house for dinner.
richard goodger

love this set of photos, nice stuff