BMX Keeping it in the Family

It's been a while since I've been able to cover a cycling event for the Press Room (and thereafter Scottish Cycling), but I was out to Cumbernauld today, armed with the camera and a foreboding sky, to see if I could get any sort of interesting shots in the gloom (and all the while remember to try and take in some of the details because I have to write up report as well).

They're a good crowd this BMX lot, and while the racing is a serious business (especially in the younger categories today), and there's obviously the odd spectacular moment (though today wheels stayed closer to the ground than is often the case for one reason or another), you get nice moments like this. Especially when there are some recent moves in British Cycling to limit competition for the kids (I don't know all of the background, but suffice to say if you're looking to grow a sport they're moving in an odd direction).

The wee man there I'd seen at my last even at Clydebank, and had helped pick up his bike at one ramp he couldn't quite manage to get the momentum to get up. Today he was rolling everything, and racing alongside his dad. Now this being the 'Novice' category his dad was something of a ringer, but the shorter rider won all three motos, and the final, pretty comfortably. Just nice they're more than willing to entertain that sort of thing in the Scottish National Series.

The track itself is a gem, hidden behind Broadwood Stadium (home to Clyde FC, who appeared to be having a behind-closed-doors friendly with Queen of the South). Big start gate, two of them in fact, and huge berms and tabletops and rollers. That's up to national grade, and apparently a European (or is it International?) grade track is going to be built in Glasgow.

All took place with hardly a drop of rain, which was remarkable after the downpours in Edinburgh in the morning, and then by the time I got home the sun was making itself known. So with us still in need of some seafood for dinner, I was onto my own bike, and remarkably with the legs feeling great despite not having had a ride since Monday, I knocked out a fun 10 miles to the fishmonger and back, with only one bit of muppetry on the roads as I also popped to a supermarket, with someone overtaking me as we approached a 90 degree bend, that I could take more quickly, with a pedestrian island in the middle of the road. Saved herself all of about half a second (seriously) in getting to the car park, which was about 10 seconds away. I'll never understand.

Cocktails then beer in the garden, dinner in the garden too. Decent Saturday.

Oh, and the fox kit has just visited again. And the Tour has started.