Adding to the myriad local Canada Day celebrations taking place this weekend, Cochrane BMX will host the Alberta Provincial BMX Races 3&4 at their local race course over the July long weekend.
Spectators can take in the action at the track up on the hill on the northwest corner of Highways 1A and 22. Racing starts at 11 a.m. on July 2 and 10 a.m. on July 3.
The “motos” (BMX terminology for heats) will feature a variety of expertise and age levels, with participants ranging from five to 50-plus years of age.
This is one of a series of races that take place over the summer, allowing racers to earn points towards the season-capping provincial championships, scheduled for Sept. 10 and 11 in Stony Plain.
Cochrane BMX’s communications director Kelly Bell said they expect about 100 riders from Cochrane to be participating throughout the weekend.
“It’s a great opportunity to be outside and watch some great racing,” she said.
Bell declined to single out any specific riders as rising stars, adding the club as a whole tends to be competitive at these types of events.
“It’s a very community event – we all sit together and cheer other team members on and are very encouraging,” she said.
During the lunch break, younger kids will be encouraged to bring their strider bikes (bikes with no pedals) out onto the course to get a taste of the fun. There will be food trucks on site as well.
Bell says the little ones on the strider bikes are always entertaining to watch.
“Once they get their balance and they get going, and they have momentum, a lot of them just pick up their feet and keep going,” she said.
The strider riders typically range from two to five years old, she added.
The provincial race weekend is too busy for Cochrane BMX to offer track time to first-time pedal bikers to try their hands at the sport, but the club encourages new riders of all experience levels and ages to come out for a spin around the track on Mondays and Wednesdays from 6 to 7 p.m. The entrance is the road opposite the entrance to the RancheHouse, on the corner of Range Road 23 and Highway 22 – just past where traffic is being controlled as construction continues on the new interchange.
Interested novice riders can register online to come for a visit before 5 p.m. at cochranebmx.com.
