The Jay Miron Hoffman Bikes Frame
Before we even get into discussing Jay Miron’s signature frame with Hoffman Bikes, let’s take a moment to acknowledge that Jay had previously rode both the Condor and Big Daddy as his personal rides during his time on Hoffman Bikes. The Condor was too big and the Big Daddy was too small, but Jay is one of those riders that can adapt to any and everything, which he did throughout a 20-year plus pro career. Maybe it’s just me, but seeing Jay blast a no-footed cancan at height on a bike with an 18.75” top tube always blew me away.
Enter the Miron, or Punisher, or Bottle Rocket frame.
Jay wanted a frame with middle of the road geometry, a very laid back seat tube angle and a top tube design that ovalized as it neared the seat mast and seat stays. The end of that top tube would go on to feature a bottle opener. And here is where I lay down the law: I’m not making any jokes about Canadians drinking beer so let’s get back to the frame. Only one was ever made, and Jay rode the frame after leaving Hoffman Bikes to join the new Schwinn team. He took the top tube design with him and enjoyed years of success on Schwinn before forming his own brand MacNeil (which he left in 2010.) And that’s where the story gets interesting.
Schauff, a German brand, produced their own version of the Hoffman Miron frame in small quantities as the “A-Bomb” and loyal Miron fans sought it out. In addition, several riders have created their very own renditions of the never-released frame, with tribute builds a plenty flooding BMX Museum and Facebook. It’s really a unique situation: The frame never even made it into production, but loyal Miron fans wanted it so bad they they made it themselves.
And then there is the original: Allegedly, Jay kept it in his possession for years, but gave it away to a collector in the U.S. who runs the Instagram account Midschool_BMX. It’s now built back up and restored to resemble the original incarnation of the setup Jay rode, and it’s straight up amazing that it still exists. While this bike may have seen more shine time in Jay’s post Hoffman Bikes days, it’s also a reminder that Jay devoted his life to riding. He quit GT, moved to Oklahoma City, worked 60 hours a week to build bikes in the Hoffman Ramp Room and continued to progress his riding at an alarming pace on top of that.
He didn’t just ride BMX, he lived it and pushed it as far as he could before signing off on his own terms. Jay officially “retired” from BMX over a decade ago, but people are still chasing his legacy. And that’s important.
Thanks to Midschool BMX and Gary Sansom for advance research help on this. Long live the laid back seat tube angle!
Edit: Bryan Baxter, former graphic designer and technical wizard of Hoffman Bikes, sent over the original graphics for the Miron frame.
