A little trip down memory lane @ Legacy.

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bnd
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Location: Cottonwood Heights, Utah

A little trip down memory lane @ Legacy.

Postby bnd » Mon Jun 09, 2014 5:20 pm

So it's been awhile for us breaking in a new rider. My son races 6 novice but has been racing since he was 3 3/4. I remember the ups & downs we went thru with him learning the ropes & it's still like that. One moto he's out for a Sunday cruise, the next he looks like Robby Patterson. He's pretty much doing it all on his own now & other than some advice & cheering, he's got to figure it out on the track.

Last Saturday night at Legacy we brought out our nieces daughters, 4 & 7. They were totally gung ho about racing bmx. They would come over & race up & down our street getting ready for the big night. So we went out, I took the 4 yr old & 7 yr old Dad takes her. So I load her up in the gate & everything is fine but as the cadence starts she takes her feet off the pedals (for some unknown reason) & gets the last second jitters. Too late, the gate drops & she coasts down the first straight. She makes it to the dub going into the 1st turn, goes up almost to the top & then I see her riding backwards, flipping over & laying there. Ohh man.

So we sit off to the side of the track & she's crying but ok. She's saying she doesn't like this & she's done. OK I said so we ride the rest of the track but I'm right behind her,letting her know I'm there. Her older sister had almost the same experience but made it over everything.
So after the tears stopped we gave it another try, as soon as she loaded up in the gate she got spooked, changed her mind & wanted out. I pulled her out without a second thought.

My daughter still races strider/newbie so we asked if they wanted to do that & they said sure. By the time practice was over they were riding the 3rd & last straight pretty good & got their confidence back & had a great time.

Here's some advice for parents who are new to the sport with young kids.

No means no! - When a kid starts screaming up on the gate it means their scared, bottom line. Don't force your kid to ride if they don't want to. Don't get mad at them either. Iv'e seen that play out over the years when kids starts crying & kids Dad gets super bent that it's playing out that way. Just back them out easy, watch some more laps then ask if they want to try it again. If they don't, well, there's another race next week or open practice mid-week.

Take advantage of the strider/ big wheel race. - Legacy makes it fun. Some practice, 3 motos (YEAH!) & medals for everyone. If your rider is riding a bike but just isn't feeling the whole "ride the whole track thing" just yet, this is perfect to test out the waters.

After the girls got their medals it was "I can't wait till next week" talk all the way back home. I'm not sure if one or both will be ready for the big show but they certainly are working towards that goal.

So here's a little tidbit for the novice racer parents, if you see something you don't like or see an obvious infraction (like I did in the 6 novice main) feel free to tell an official right away. They will try their best to make it right but don't act like it's the end of the world, it's just a bmx race & a local novice race at that. This class is where the racer AND the parents learn the ins & outs of bmx racing. If your kid is getting cut off at the 30ft line, don't freak out about it. Let an official know & they will handle it. When that happens in expert, yeah, then you can freak out (j/k).

b.
“Sometimes if you want to see a change for the better, you have to take things into your own hands.”

User avatar
bnd
Information Minister
Posts: 2863
Joined: Fri Apr 30, 2004 11:01 pm
Location: Cottonwood Heights, Utah

Re: A little trip down memory lane @ Legacy.

Postby bnd » Sat Mar 21, 2020 9:10 am

Bump!

This is a great story I wrote up 6 years ago.

b.
“Sometimes if you want to see a change for the better, you have to take things into your own hands.”


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