Alma Jo Barrera BMX Freestyle

 If you were a BMX freestyler in the 1980's, you know there weren't many women in the sport.  One of the few busting moves then was Alma Jo Barrera out of Texas.  Above we see her doing a stomach stand at the Velodrome at Cal State Dominguez Hills in Carson, California in 1987.  In the lower picture we see her doing a classic surfer, also at the Velodrome.  She competed against the guys on a bike at a time when there were very few women in action sports at all.  Surfing and inline had some women ripping it up in those days, but BMX freestyle and most other sports were nearly all men.  Along with Krys Dauchy and a couple others, Alma Jo was breaking new ground for women in sports. 

Both drawings are Sharpies on paper, the top one is 18" X 24", and the lower one is 12" X 18".  #shadowsandsharpies.

Alma Jo and Ali

Alma Jo Barrera of Texas was one of the few women to get seriously into BMX freestyle in the 80's.  I got to know her then, and we reconnected on Facebook a year or so ago.  She asked me to do a series of drawings for her.  This one, of her and her dog Ali near a river, was a new challenge for me.  With my style, faces don't always come out well, and I'd never drawn rushing water, which is a lot trickier to do than it sounds.  But I gave it my best shot, and added the color bars top and bottom to play off the color in Ali's collar.  Sharpies on paper, 18" X 24".