Spinaroonies: A Brief History of BMX Spinning Tricks

 

Days ago, as I write this, Mike Varga landed the first 1260 air (that's 3 1/2 spins folks) on a BMX bike, on a halfpipe.  It was so crazy, even Mike's tire had its mind blown.  As fate would have it, I happened to be there when Mat Hoffman landed the first 900 on vert in a contest, 32 years ago, in the Spring of 1989, in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada.  As an Old School BMX blogger guy, I decided this would be a good time to go back and look at the history of aerial spins (not flips, just spins) in BMX history.  Here goes. 

Blogger's note (11/24/2021):  I wrote this blog originally in July 2021, on my WPOS Kreative Ideas blog, the blog I was doing primarily at the time.  Since I' moved back to this blog, I decided to bring this post back here, so you know I haven't forgotten about BMX.  I'm also going to put this post on Freestyle BMX Tales, where I'll do most of my Old School BMX posts from now on.

Bob Haro- forwards 540 on wedge ramp and rollback 360-  1980- This video says Bob is 22 years old, and he was born inJune of 1958, so this is 1980, or early 1981.  That's the very early days of BMX freestyle as a demo activity, years before the first competitions.  The rollback to 360 by Bob Haro (1:22) is probably the first spinning trick on a BMX bike.  I'm pretty sure the front wheel 360 spin came later.  Bob also does a solid forwards 540 on the wedge ramp at :27.

360 flyout attempt, out of a concrete banked bowl, 1980???- 1:03 in this clip.  Reportedly near Sydney Australia, according to the comments.  Riders unknown. 

Andy Ruffel- 360 jump in 1983- 26:05 Andy also does Old School 360 bunnyhops, also called 360 floaters BITD, at 25:32.  He also does a front wheel 360 on a wedge ramp at 21:44.  Oh, and don't play chicken with airplanes, they have propellers.

Eddie Fiola- 360's over small doubles (by today's standards) in races in 1983?  1984?  I remember reading an interview with Eddie Fiola in 1983 or maybe early 1984, where he said he had done 360's in  BMX races over doubles.  I actually asked Eddie about this a few months back.  If I remember correctly, I think he said they were about 2 foot high doubles, maybe 8 feet apart, standard for BMX tracks in that era.  No photos or video for this, but I did get the story straight from Eddie himself. 

R.L. Osborn, front wheel 360 on a quarterpipe on video, 1984.  This Mountain Dew commercial, which featured R.L. Osborn, Eddie Fiola, Ron Wilkerson, and bike stuntman Pat Romano, aired nationwide on network Tv in the summer of 1984.  I was about a year into learning tricks on BMX bikes myself, and RAN to the TV to see this commercial, every time I heard the music start.  As a high school kid in Idaho then, I'd never seen a 540 on a quarterpipe, or a front wheel 360, which is what R.L. does here at :27.  It took me all summer to figure out what R.L. was doing, we didn't have a VCR, and no one I knew to tape the commercial in those days. Also R.L. with a 360 lake jump at the end.

Legend has it the Woody Itson did the first 540 on a quarterpipe, about halfway up the ramp, sometime about 1984-1985.  While known as mainly flatland rider to us younger guys of that era, Woody rode jumps, skateparks, and ramps, as well, in the early days.  I can't confirm this, so if anyone can, let me know.  

Eddie Fiola- 360 flyout on quarterpipe to deck- 1984.  It's at 1:33 in this clip.  This one is at the AFA Master contest in the old Surf Theater parking lot in Huntington Beach, in the late summer of 1984. 

Hugo Gonzalez- 360 out of the halfpipe into the banked area at Del Mar skatepark- 1985- It's at :43.  540+ jump off pier into ocean at :37, alley-opp 270 flyout onto roof at 1:22.

Eddie Fiola- 540 in the Pipe Bowl, Pipeline Skatepark in 1985.  To the best of my knowledge, this was the first 540 on video in a skatepark, though not the first 540 on a ramp.  Leave it to the original King of the Skateparks, Eddie Fiola, to bust this one first.

Josh White- One of the first 540's on a quarterpipe, on video- 1985- It's at 1:29 in this clip.  This is the Huntington Beach, CA AFA Masters contest in 1985, in the old Surf Theater parking lot.  At the time of this contest, Josh White was a completely unknown amateur from Oregon, so you can bet he turned some heads blasting huge airs, and a 540, at this comp.  He debuted to the rest of us in a feature interview in FREESTYLIN' magazine, in the August 1986 issue, and was riding for the GT factory team by then. 

Brian Blyther- One of the first 540's on a quarterpipe on video- 1985-  It's at 2:11 in this clip.  This one is also at the AFA Masters contest in Huntington Beach in 1985.  Brian Blyther was a Haro team rider, and one of the top skatepark/vert pros at the time.

Mike Dominguez- 7'-8' high 540 (judging by sprocket height)- 1987- It's at 9:33 in this clip.  AFA Masters contest in Oregon. This was in the 8 foot high by 8 foot wide AFA quarterpipe, with no vert. 

Craig Campbell- Wall ride to 360 (aka 540 wall ride)- Spring 1988- It was the first 2-Hip Meet the Street contest in Santee, California, at one of Dave Voelker's favorite riding spots.  Street had been emerging, but there had been only one contest in NorCal, no one really knew what to expect at this comp.  Craig Campbell blew everyone's mind pull this wall ride to 360 out of nowhere, at 4:53 in the clip.   

Jeremy Alder- the world's first barspin air- 1988-  In a small East Coast contest at the Crownsville Fairgrounds in Maryland, Jeremy Alder, largely unknown to West Coast riders, stepped up the game with the world's first barspin air.  It's right at the end of the video, go to 3:50.  He also does a couple of half barspin airs early on, a couple really big 540's for that era, and a 360 flyout to abubaca.  Jeremy was sponsored by Haro Bikes for a couple of years.  Progression.

Mike Dominguez nearly lands a 900 in fall 1988- 4:55- Mike Dominguez claimed to have landed 2 or 3 900's on his own ramp, months before Mat Hoffman landed the first one in a contest.  But there was no video and no photos.  Some people believed Mike, some weren't sure.  At 4:55 in this video, shot at the 2-Hip King of Vert finals in September or October of 1988, Mike hucks a 900 attempt and just barely misses landing it.  I believe Mike on nailing the 900.   About six months later, Mat did it with several camerasrolling (including mine, as Vision cameraman), and made the 900 official.

Mat Hoffman- first 900 on vert in a contest- 2-Hip King of Vert, Spring, 1989.  Kitchener, Ontario, Canada.  (My angle of that 900 is at the end of this clip- 14:43).  None of us knew he was planning to try that (except Steve Swope), until he tried the first one.  Mat missed the first attempt, and landed it on his second try.

Mat Hoffman- First no handed 540- 1989- It's at 1:34:00 in this video.  Mat actually pulled the no handed 540 the contest before this, at Woodward in Pennsylvania, but I couldn't find video on YouTube.  This is the 2-Hip King of Vert after that, in Colorado Springs.   I was the cameraman on this shot, and the video (Ride Like a Man) was edited by Eddie Roman. 

Craig Campbell with the first dirt jump 720 on video- 1989- In this Ozone freestyle team segment on Home Turf, a local San Francisco Bay Area TV show for kids, Craig lands a 720 at the Calabassas jumps in San Jose, at 1:49.  This video has interviews with Craig Grasso, Craig Campbell, and Pete Brandt, I believe, and there's some funny stuff.  It's worth watching the whole video. 

Ride Like a Man- 2-Hip/Eddie Roman directed video- 1990- 3:32- Maurice Meyer- 360 street abubaca.  4:02- Eddie Roman and ?, 360 down 6 long steps.  7:06- Rider?- 360 nsoepick over spine.  13:04- Rider?  Flatland body varial spin thing around the seat.  22:06- Vic Murphy?- fastplant to 360 on flat.  24:44- Mike Krnaich- tailtap 540 on spine.  28:34- Bob Kohl- tailwhip drop-in on 8 foot ramp.

 The Ultimate Weekend (my self-produced video) 1990-  Chris Moeller with the biggest 360 over doubles on video at that time- 35:45 (Mike "Crazy Red" Carlson lands a toe dragger tailwhip earlier, same session).  Keith Treanor with the first 360 over a spine on video- 22:12. Gary Laurent also does one at- 22:56 (same session).  Josh White, lookback 360 (on a flyout)- 23:59.  Josh White, one hand one foot 360 (flyout)- 24:13.  Keith Treanor, big one hand 360- 25:25

Eddie Roman's Ride On video-1992-  Intro- Huge 360 over doubles(rider unknown).  Dave Voelker(?)- turndown 360- 1:39.  First no handed 360 on video (?) Rider unknown- 1:55.   There will be more, I need to watch this whole video again...  

Mat  Hoffman jumps three flaming cars on Stuntmasters- 5:53.  1991or 1992?  Crazy as it sounds, I got this idea underway, but never knew the stunt actually happened.  I was working at a TV production company in 1991, and sent some footage from the 2-Hip King of Dirt at Mission Trails to motorcycle distance jumper Johnny Airtime, who worked in the other office.  Much to my surprise, the BMX stuff blew his mind, and he wanted to know what kind of real stunts a BMXer might be able to do.  Johnny and I threw ideas back and forth over the phone, and came up with a 360 over three flaming cars.  I was trying to hook up Chris Moeller or Dave Clymer for the gig.  Johnny had sen footage of Mat Hoffman, and asked, "Could Mat do it?"  I said, "Yeah."  I quit that company about a month later, but the Stuntmaster's show happened, and Mat did the stunt with ease.  In a side note, according to Mat's book, it was Johnny Airtime, on this stunt show, who told Mat that if he wanted to do bigger airs, he needed a bigger ramp.  Mat and Steve Swope built the first 20 foot tall mega quarterpipe soon after.  

Todd Lyons- fastplant to 540- dirt quarterpipe jump- 1993-  It's at 20:10.  Todd Lyons boosting a new spin at Twin Palms in Riverside.  

Jay Miron- First public 540 tailwhip- 1998- at 8:24.   There's a lot of vert ripping in this clip, by Miron, Dave Osato, Tony Hawk, and others.  That rollback nosewheelie tailwhip to drop back in thing Jay does?  WTF?  Never seen that trick.  I'll make you watch the whole clip to find that one.  The info says this was a small comp. at BC Place.  Sponsored by Kokanee beer!  Canada, eh.

Mat Hoffman with the first no handed 900 ever- 2002- At the X-Games.

Mike Spinner- First 1080- 2007- He talks about the whole thing in this 27 minute video.

Mike Hoder- 360 down El Toro 20 step- 2012- At 3:20.  There are a ton more big 360 and 180 drops in this video as well. 

Daniel Sandoval- First 720 tailwhip to barspin- 2012?

Crazy Shurva- bunnyhop 720 and 360 tailwhip bunnyhop- 2014.

Nitcholi Rogatkin- mountain bike 1440- 2017- That's 4 full spins, corked out.  That's the record right now on a jump, and 3 1/2 (1260), in the video at the top of this post, is the reigning record on vert.

 Dennis McCoy- Longest span being able to do BMX 900's on vert-1990-2021?  First 900- Summer 1990- in Indianapolis, IN.  900 at age 52 in 2018.  That's a 28 year span of being able to land one of the craziest vert tricks ever, on video.  I believe he has pulled at least one 900 in 2021, stretching that span to 31 years.  DMC continues to amaze us all.  

What about the women?  BMX freestyle has been a boy's club from the start, but since girls like racers like Deanna Edwards and Cheri Elliot, and freestylers Krys Dauchy from Ohio and Alma Jo Barrera from Texas in the 80's, there have been some women riding hard on BMX bikes.  So here are some of the best women's clips of spinning tricks from recent years.

Women spinning tricks in 2019- Mexico City Van's comp-2:28- gnarly backflip attempt.  3:06- Macarena Perez- Tailwhip air.  7:00-Natalya Diehm- tailwhip jump.   

Top Ten Women's BMX tricks compilation- 2021- :02 Macarena Perez- backflip over box jump.  :07- Nikita Ducarroz- 540 on vert.  :16- Charlotte Worthington- Flair on vert.  :20- Shanice Silva Cruz- front flip on box jump.  :26- Hannah Roberts- tuck no handed 360 jump.  :29- Hannah Roberts- double tailwhip jump.  :39- Hannah Roberts- triple barspin.  :43- Hannah Roberts- double truckdriver jump (360 barspin to barspin).  So yeah, there are a lot fewer women riders than men, but they're holding there own out there at the parks.

This blog post got out of hand real quick.  I did a similar post about backflips a while back, but there are a lot more spinning tricks.  I could watch and dig into old videos, and add 100 more variations to this list.  But I'm going to stop it here.  I did say a "brief" history of spinning tricks.  The idea for this post, after seeing Mike Varga's insane 1260 on vert, was to show the long and continuing progression on the basic idea of spinning your bike around, one way or another.  I seriously never thought a 1260 on vert would happen.  

The craziest thing about this post is that I couldn't figure out who did the first truck driver, a 360 over a jump with a barspin.  Logic would say Chris Moeller might have been the guy, but I was roommates with Chris for quite a while in the earl 90's, and I think he was the 2nd or 3rd guy to do one.  Maybe Tim "Fuzzy" Hall did it first?  But I'm not sure on that, the first and most basic 360 variation.  

I also found tricks and clips I had no idea existed, like Andy Ruffel doing a 360 on film in 1983, and the Australian video supposedly from 1980.  This post is not complete, by any means, but I've got a lot of the firsts, or firsts on video, in a timeline in one place.  That was the basic idea, to see when spinning tricks and certain variations began, and how they fit into the 43 or so years that BMX freestyle has been a thing.  Thanks, as always, for checking out my blog post.  I'm not going to do as many Old School BMX posts as I have in years past, I've written well over 1,000 already.  But I'll try to make the ones I do good ones. 

What's a Spinaroonie?  Listen to Eddie Roman's color commentary, 4:58 in this clip.  I was the cameraman for that footage, by the way.