Quill and Threadless:

A quill stem uses a threaded tube for the steerer and this always stays below the headset. A Threadless design by comparison is, as you might guess, without those threads, and it uses a clamp which stands up above the headset.
The quill design is pretty old-hat by now; most modern bicycles use a threadless variant, but you still sometimes see them on cheaper models and retro bikes. Threadless stems are now the industry standard, and are very useful given how easy it is to swap out one stem for another, for example one of a different reach, color or angle.

Materials:

Given how vital the handlebar stem is, it’s well worth giving some thought to the material it’s made from. The majority of stems are made from aluminum, although they are available in a wide range of metals including steel and titanium, and also some exotic blends like carbon fiber. A really strong steel stem should match your bmx frame in strength – though they tend to be heavy – and this old-school technology is often more reliable than the more exotic but brittle modern varieties of titanium or carbon fiber.

In conclusion:

A good stem can be had from any company, but it might be a good idea to stick to a top brand like Thomson, Odyssey or Macneil. With a high quality bmx stem, you can’t go wrong.

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Mountainboarding has had a tough start in life. As with anything else which emulates another sport to start with it is an uphill struggle. Being seen as a summer alternative frustrated snowboarders or landlocked surfers makes it a tough sell. There have been so many other candidates for this role over the years that try to recreate that carving sensation. Mountainboarding whilst far from a glamorous affair does truly appeal to the core image of extreme sports. What could be more core than chucking yourself down a muddy slope? The UK and the US have the largest mountainboard scenes, however the UK being so much smaller geographically has a lot more of a pro active scene. Competitions are run regularly on both a national and european level with riders battling it out in two main disciplines: boardercross and freestyle. There is also a downhill competition.

The centres created to teach mountainboarding, create areas to ride, and host competitions are typically made up of a nursery slope for teaching, a boardercross track and a few different freestyle lines combining jumps and rails. These are similar in many ways to BMX tracks. 2010 will see mountainboarding develop it’s own identity further and being seen more widely as a core sport.

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