BMX racers get some air
Posted By Kate Rosenberg on April 3, 2009
LUCERNE VALLEY – Riders from all over the western United States from ages 4 to 47 turned up at the local BMX track this weekend for a regional qualifying event of the National Bicycle League.
There were 98 riders in all, about 15 or so who hail from the area, said Diego Lopez, event emcee and organizer. Others came from as far away as Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico and Utah as well as Northern California.
On Saturday alone there were 25 heats in all, with boys, girls, men and women competing. Some nationally-ranked competitors were among them.
“They are broken up by age group and class,” Lopez said. “They are determined to be either a rookie, novice or an expert. There is also a separate cruiser class.”
In that class the participants ride bikes with 20 inch wheels instead of 24 inch wheels, he explained.
Around the track the Roadrunners and other local groups served up snacks and between heats music would play, making the race track a family-friendly and fun place to be.
Lopez, who has been running the track for about three years said that there were some mechanical problems with generators and the gate.
“We were out here at 10:30 last night with flashlights welding the gate,” Lopez said.
But everything ran smoothly for the riders, some of who may have now accumulated enough points to earn themselves a spot in the regional championship in Las Vegas in November, Lopez said.
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