This coming weekend — Sept. 26-28 — the USA BMX national circuit will return to the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, for the latest stop in its 29-race series. The entire weekend will be filled with non-stop bicycle racing on two of the three U.S. OTC’s BMX tracks.
More than 1,200 amateur competitors from 31 states are expected to compete over the three-day event on the smaller amateur track, while more than 150 of the fastest pros and Olympians from around the world will compete in the UCi Supercross World Cup Finals on Saturday afternoon on the London-replica course.
Thousands of BMX racers and their families from all over the world will converge on Chula Vista.
During the 11-month long season, the USA BMX national circuit stops in 22 different states and at 30 unique tracks and arenas. This 27th stop of the series will bring male and female racers, ranging in ages from 2 to 70-plus, competing for the weekend awards and accumulating points for national rankings and championships.
“USA BMX couldn’t ask for a more perfect place to hold a BMX race, than Chula Vista and the U.S. Olympic Training Center,” explained John David, COO at USA BMX. “Being at the Olympic Training Center is a great way to give our younger participants a feel for what it’s like to become an Olympic athlete, and to encourage their dreams. Our riders and their families, arriving from all over the country, will also get a chance to enjoy all of San Diego’s attractions and amenities.”
The family-oriented action sport of BMX racing has been around since the early 1970s. It was born when Southern California youth began converting their Schwinn Stingrays to imitate motorcycles, and held races in dirt fields.
Since those early days, the sport of BMX racing has spread worldwide, so much so, that it became an Olympic sport in 2008 with its debut at the Beijing Games. In 2012, at the London Olympic games, BMX racing was rated as one of the more popular sporting events — and it is within this USA BMX series that current and future Olympians will hone their skills for global competition. ??
Thanks in part to the exposure of the Olympics, along with the growth of second and third generations of racers getting their children involved in the sport they grew up in, BMX racing continues to grow in numbers and popularity with today’s modern, action-sport families.
Three major events will take place at the OTC-CV on Saturday, Sept. 27. The morning starts off with the Hall of Fame nationals for amateur riders of all ages, and is then followed by the international event: the UCi Supercross Finals starring former and future Olympians from more than 21 countries.
After all of that high-flying Olympic-level action, the evening winds down with the annual National BMX Hall of Fame induction ceremony. Six legends in the sport of BMX will join the 110 members, who have been inducted into the Hall of Fame since 1985. The Olympic Training Center is the full-time home of the National BMX museum, which is open to the public year-round.
The economic impact of these events is estimated to bring millions of dollars to the Chula Vista economy, and the event could not have taken place without the excellent support from the U.S. Olympic Training Center.
Spectating is free at the Hall of Fame national, but there will be a $10 per day charge for parking. The Olympic-level UCI Supercross and Hall of Fame induction ceremony are both ticketed events. Entry to the BMX World Cup Finals is $25, while the Hall of Fame Ceremony is sold out. ?
Chula Vista BMX is located above the main entrance of the U.S.Olympic Training Center, 2800 Olympic Parkway Chula Vista, CA 91915.
Action begins on Friday, Sept. 26 at noon with practice throughout the day; racing starting at 5 p.m.
Practice continues Saturday morning and national racing kicks off promptly at 10 a.m. with Strider (balance bike) racing for 2- 3- and 4-year olds, and should go on until 3 p.m.?
Following the Hall of Fame nationals is the UCi Supercross, which will be held on the OTC’s London Olympic-replica track. More than 100 Elite athletes and many of the 2012 Olympians will be racing for the UCI World Cup title. Gates open at 11 a.m. and racing begins at 1 p.m.
Following the UCi Supercross, 400 attendees will flood into the Olympic Training Center courtyard for the sold-out BMX Hall of Fame induction ceremony. Festivities on the red-carpet entrance begin at 6 p.m., with the first inductions beginning at 8 p.m.
Racing continues on the amateur track on Sunday, Sept. 28, kicking off at 8 a.m., with the main events starting at approximately10:30 a.m.
America’s fastest amateur athletes are all expected to compete at the Hall of Fame Nationals on the 1,100-foot long, slightly downhill course, made up of steeply banked asphalt turns and a wide variety of jumps and obstacles on each straightaway.
As the largest extreme sport in the nation, BMX racing is full of non-stop action. Up to eight riders speed down the starting hill, maneuvering over dirt obstacles and around banked turns in hopes of winning a 4-foot tall 1st place trophy.
On average, each race is a 35-second sprint, with full contact, close-knit racing and sometimes thrilling crashes and victories. Riders range in age from 2 to 70 and will be racing to amass points for titles in their age classes and the highly coveted USA BMX No.1 Amateur title for boys and girls.
WORLD CUP RESULTS:
The 2014 UCi Supercross World Cup wrapped up last weekend at the Chula Vista Olympic Training Center with Australia’s Sam Willoughby (elite men) and Colombia’s Mariana Pajon (elite women) each speeding to victories on the London Olympic Games replica course.
The United States secured a medal in both races: Nic Long finished second in the men’s field while Alise Post placed third in the women’s field. A total of 154 elite riders from 23 countries participated.
