Fish-Man. Sports science applied to BMX by Greg Barnes.

Whilst perusing a random sports health magazine that had somehow migrated its way into my chilly winter dunny a few weeks ago, I stumbled across a particularly interesting article on body types and athletic performance.  It suggested that some athletes have aspects of the body that are more suited to their sport than others, and helps explain exactly how they peak in performance. For example, multi award winning Olympian swimmer Michael Phelps has abnormally long forearms and double joints that allow for maximum propulsion in the water. These genetics mixed with the right dose of passion and determination can create the ultimate fish-man.
With this in mind, I pondered on the typical shapes of those riders that kill it on a BMX. When you look at the dudes who can boost high and with mass style on trails or a ramp, they quite often have a physique that is somewhat slender with light bones and slight muscles. This is what sports scientists label an ‘ectomorph’. The likes of Mike Aitken, Chase Hawk, Benn Pigot and Russell ‘Rusty’ Brindly all have ectomorphic body shapes.
Equally, street demons that have no issues with bombing a massive handrail for breakfast, quite often have some or all of these characteristics; large bones, a solid torso, low fat levels, wide shoulders with a narrow waist. These are what define a Mesomorph.  Dudes like Van Homan, Chester Blacksmith, Leigh Giason and Luke Bachelor all share these Apes like characteristics (on and off the bike. Ho ho).
Of course, this theory does not even touch on the mental working of these shredders. For example, what makes a flatlander obsess over a link for 6 hours, alone in a car park, in the middle of the night? OCD perhaps? And what in god’s name goes through the head of those ‘street gap artists’ that climb onto a roof with their bike and hop straight off of it. ADD? A disease with initials, that’s the worst kind! I’ve met plenty of riders/skaters who thrash and have had a dose or two of Ritalin in their time.
Perhaps the conclusion to this rant is just this, tall or short, skinny or fat, were all just a bunch of wierdos on bikes!