Los Angeles – When Jay Eggleston began riding a BMX stunt bike in 1985, he pretty much knew every other BMX rider in Colorado. Twenty years later, that’s no longer the case. But it’s a good bet they all know him.
Growing up in Denver, Eggleston, 33, is Colorado’s undisputed king of BMX vert riding, the high-flying discipline in which riders float above a wooden halfpipe, combining big air and gyroscopic spin tricks. The George Washington High School and University of Colorado graduate is a seven-year veteran of the X Games, the 2004 BMX World Championship “High Air” champion and second overall at the world championship vert competition.
“I saw a Mountain Dew commercial way back when in the mid-’80s with guys doing tricks on ramps and I decided I wanted to get one of those bikes,” Eggleston said of his start in the sport. “I started riding flatland, actually, just doing tricks on the ground. Then my dad let me build a quarterpipe in the driveway, and I started hitting that and doing some airs on it.
“Eventually I hooked up with some other guys who had a vert ramp and started doing tricks on that. We started our own team called the Lip Lords and we started doing shows all over Denver and Colorado and it kind of went from there.”
Known for his smooth style and large airs, Eggleston discovered what would become his career at an ideal time for the sport. The X Games embraced the event of BMX vert since their inception 11 years ago, and the discipline has grown rapidly among a generation that ranks the X Games among sporting events such as the Super Bowl and the NBA playoffs.
These days, BMX biking ranks 11th for teenage boys and 15th for girls in the Teenage Research Unlimited “What’s In” survey. Action sports in general ranked fifth among boys and seventh among girls, while BMX star Dave Mirra ranked 15th overall in TRU’s survey of the 50 most popular athletes.
“It’s big in Colorado. It’s not quite as big as skateboarding, but it’s getting there,” said Eggleston, who – despite reaching the summit of the 100 tallest peaks in Colorado – admits he doesn’t own a mountain bike.
“There’s always new kids on bikes doing amazing stuff. Back when I started, if you saw a kid riding down the street on a BMX bike, you’d definitely stop and talk to him. Now it’s just commonplace to see that. It’s great to see it grow.”
Eggleston placed ninth in last week’s X Games vert contest, which was won by Jamie Bestwick of State College, Pa. Not bad for a guy who had to shovel snow off the driveway to practice as a kid, before the X Games Skate Park opened in Golden, where he dials in new tricks now. It’s likely good enough to keep him interested in competing for at least another year, despite what may seem like an advanced age for an action sports athlete.
“It takes a long time riding vert to become consistent,” he said. “I’d say you probably have to ride 10 years to compete at the level where we’re riding (at the X Games). It’s not hard for a kid to get into it, but to compete at this level, it takes a long time.”
Scott Willoughby can be reached at 303-820-1993 or swilloughby@denverpost.com.
