BMX riding is for all ages
Kidsday reporter Quinn Burke from Wading River Elementary School doing BMX stunts. Credit: Burke family
The next time you talk to your friends, ask them if they have heard of BMX. I bet they will say no. BMX is racing bikes on a track with a lot of jumps and turns.
In order to participate in BMX, you need to have a bike to start out. You can use a regular bike, but you will eventually need a special racing bike. A racing bike has a simple, strong, rigid frame and no suspension. Some popular brands are Redline, Haro, Chase, Alpha and Box.
The next things you must have are a full-face helmet, a long-sleeve shirt and pants. Some other things that are good to have are gloves, knee and elbow pads and a chest protector. If you don’t wear gloves, you will get blisters or road rash on your hands.
If you don’t know how to ride a bike, you can still ride BMX. There is a bike called a balance bike or strider bike, which has no pedals. At my home track, the youngest strider rider is 18 months old, so you really can be any age to race BMX. My home track is Shoreham BMX.
You can race on a team or as an individual. I race for a team called TLI, or Team Long Island. I like being part of a team because I have made a lot of friends and we learn things from each other.
BMX is fun in many ways. You get to jump things, do tricks, win trophies and the best part is, you get exercise while having fun. You also get to travel to other tracks around the world. Last summer I traveled to all different tracks around New York State.
Sometimes BMX can get crazy and people crash and get hurt. For example, at this year’s state championship race there were so many people crashing. I crashed with my teammate Marty. Even though there is a lot of crashing, BMX is the most fun sport.
You can learn more about the sport of BMX at USABMX.org.
Info: Shoreham BMX, Defense Hill Road, Shoreham; 631-821-5569; shorehambmx.org
