The light turns green, the starting gate clangs down, and they’re off on one of the hardest action sports on the planet: BMX. No motor to help out, just a small bike pedaled as fast as its rider can go, while continually balancing on an ever changing track and trying to pass as many other riders as possible.
At the finish, after hitting bumps and jumps and the big tilted turns called berms, some riders can be heard gasping hoarsely for air. A moto, a start-to-finish ride around the track, usually takes a little over a minute, but the intense energy required uses — and builds more of — a rider’s ability to use oxygen efficiently.
Nearly every town in America has a BMX track on its outskirts. Some are mild and easy to navigate, others are world class, like Rad Canyon on the outskirts of Salt Lake City. Some tracks provide little more than BMX practice elements, others tightly test the rider’s skill.
There are reasons why a BMX track builds skills in those who ride hard on a track. It requires precise balance at all times, throughout an ever-changing track, thus a rider physically learns the elements of balance in many different positions. That helps in a lot of sports where balance not only allows you to accomplish what you want, but protects from injury; sports such as skateboarding, cycling and mountain biking, use of terrain parks and other action sports.
In BMX, each breath must be planned and timed. That helps an athlete in other sports as well. Most athletes know instinctively that a breath should never be taken during the ‘effort’ phase of a movement. That’s why a deep breath is taken in during the downward part of a squat, not during the work of lifting the weight. Learning how to time your breathing during a moto will add that skill to all your other activities as well.
Another skill this sport teaches is looking ahead and choosing the right line. If you’re gaining on someone, you must mentally measure where they’ll be on the track when you catch up and plan your line accordingly
You may be wondering if you can handle BMX if you’re over 30. Yes, you can; if you go at the right time. Most tracks have one or two race days a week, with other days set only for practice. Few riders usually show up when the track first opens on a practice day, so you may have only one or two other riders in your practice motos. That’s a good time to go, especially if you’re using the sport for conditioning. While young teens are the most avid competitors, many older adults also ride the track with gusto
Now, the down side of BMX: It’s a risky sport. In fact the major difference between BMX and a game of hockey is that during your two-minute shift in hockey, you play your position and skate to help your team score. In BMX, you compete against everybody in your moto. Sometimes the desire to win makes a rider take risks they normally wouldn’t take. Yet there are many families where the entire clan races: dad, mom and all the kids. There are even semi-motos for the little kids, using only the tail end of the track. A three-year-old being pushed by a proud parent is delightful to see.
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Wina Sturgeon is the editor of the online magazine Adventure Sports Weekly
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