BIKE LIFE vs BMX! Whats the big difference?!

Bike life to me, is anything on 2 wheels. Always loved bmx for it's style, so when i decided to get back into cycling (i'm in my 40's now), my 1st choice was a bmx!

There’s no such thing as a “Bike Life Bike”. “Bike Life” was a hashtag that went viral when a YouTuber named “Oneway Corey” went viral in Philadelphia for riding wheelies for very long distances through his city with a ton of kids taking up multiple car lanes in the streets. It was during the times when SE released the BIG RIPPER. Since the BIG RIPPER was Corey’s bike of choice for doing wheelies, that particular model gained extreme popularity along with the hashtag #BikeLife. I believe this led directly to the immediate growth of the SE Big BMX sales to the point where SE quickly started to release more models of big BMX bikes. It quickly became a movement that caught on like wildfire throughout the inner city streets of the eastcoast especially in Philly/NY/NJ/CT, where crews of kids are ripping “12 o’clock wheelies” in large groups right in traffic. I believe the majority of the “BikeLifers” have bypassed learning about the overall history of BMX and might not even know they’re riding a big BMX bike. They might just think it’s called a “BikeLife” bike based on the trend alone. That’s my observation on the “BikeLife” culture. Great vid. Great topic.

I started riding again in my 40's. Back then to get a 26" single speed BMX cruiser in the UK you were pretty much limited to SE's. So I got a DC edition Quadangle. I thought the #bikeslife thing was an SE marketing thing. Life got in the way of that now ten years later I've just bought a Subrosa 29 Mallum. I don't think I fit the #bikelife #wheeliebike scene. I'm just a fat bloke trying to stay alive by way of BMX. Great channel. Really informative.

Bike life bikes are made in a way that makes it more comfortable to sit and pedal long distances. That's why some ride outs are pretty long. Its about being out side pedaling in the sun having fun. The biggest difference in bars is backsweep but most ride what they like so theres no wrong answer.

I’m just getting back into riding. Trying to influence my son to ride. It’s been nearly thirty years since I’ve owned a Bmx. This channel is a great resource. Thank you for what y’all do.

I’ve rode hybrid commuter bikes the last 20 years, and recently made some friends on some group rides that all rode big tire bmx. I didn’t like standing out so I decided to try one and love it. To me, it’s basically a urban/modern take on a beach cruiser. We’re all just a bunch of old farts that want to look cool when we ride, but we’re to old, fat, and have bad knees to be doing tricks on 20”.

Could phu do a video on bmx 20” bikes vs dirt jumpers for dirt jumps? Keep up the good videos Alfredo and the team!

I think the 24 inch are the sweet spot 50% freestyle and 50% cruiser

Thanks for always clarifying PHU 🫡. Don’t forget to follow us on Instagram @_epicbmx and @alfredomancuso

I agree with you guys, I see a small bmx bike and big bmx bikes, I just like to ride period. I would like to know the difference as well. Great channel guys always happy to see new videos. I support anything bmx, I personally like the racing bikes myself, but enjoy riding at the beach too.

I recently picked up one of those 29" watermelon High Cs just to cruise around on and i love it. It's great out of the box but i did upgrade the seat/post and brakes.

Epic bikes forever ! Thank you so much for this channel I love this with all of my soul and you remind me of an old school brother of mine Thank goodness

I took a 700c commuter bike and put a bmx stem & 8" bmx bars on it, best comfort upgrade IMO.

All 3 of those are definitely bmx bikes. In my day we just called the bigger ones cruisers. The biggest cruiser they had back then was a 24 inch. Bmx is definitely evolving.

Great knowledge!

I grew up in the 80's with BMX and back then, they were all 20". I consider that a BMX bike exclusively. The other stuff are new school derived from the original which again was 20".

Also there’s several terms for a bigger BMX Bike to distinguish it from traditional 20” BMX Bikes. I’ve heard it being called Bikelife bikes, Big Boy BMX, Big Bike BMX, wheelie bikes, and just traditionally called BMX Cruisers referring to any bike 24”, 26”, 27.5, and especially 29” bikes. To me they’re all the same no matter what you call them and if they’re used for ride outs and wheelies and wheelie tricks. And I’ve seen people use all of them for ride outs and wheelies. It’s just easier to wheelie 27.5 and 29” bikes though, so I’ve heard. They’re all part of the same BMX family imo

Thanks for telling me about the museum the other day when I called in. Big ups and I'm getting some black widow pedals.👍👍

I modified my Felt Red Baron (24x3" beach cruiser) with BMX forks, BB, stem, and pivotal saddle... klunker style bikelife.

I've got a 29" a 26" se bike and a few cruiser bikes, you can wheelie any bike, at my age, I'm just out enjoying the ride, maybe a few stair cases from time to time.