What is the ‘sport of BMX racing’?

Anyone from ages 4+ to 70+ can participate, with racing from a ‘start hill’ over a track roughly 240 metres in length to the finish line. Each track typically has three berms (turns) and four straights. In each straight are features which enable the competitor to use his or her technical skills to help finish the course in the shortest possible time. Typically each race lasts 30 – 60 seconds.

Event Organisation

At large events riders will be racing in a single year age group. In smaller events riders may be grouped in age ranges (typically spanning a 2 -4 year range). 

At larger events with 9 or more riders in a class, each competes in 3 motos (races) with points awarded from 1st (least points) to 8th place (most points). The riders with least total points progress to 'knockout rounds' (in which 1st four race again , the other 4 eliminated)  until 8 riders remain to contest the final.

In local events where there are 8 or less riders, instead of a final – they have a fourth moto.

Technical & Race Skills

For the youngest riders strength and speed mostly determines the finishing order of riders. As the riders get older and faster – technical skills becomes more significant. It is the mastery of technical skills which allow riders to manual (wheelie) through or jump over features. 

Typically by age 11-12 competitors will need to have mastered manualling and jumping to win regional and national level events. National events are split between ‘challenge classes’ and ‘elite’ classes. Older riders wanting to do well, and elite riders will be doing plyometric, gym workouts (weights), and training on the flat (i.e. tarmac off the track) to maximise their performance. National level tracks may have extra straights that only the elites ride which have demanding features which can only be quickly and/or safely negotiated with a high level of technical ability. Only the elites may race from a 8 m high hill, whilst all other challenge classes race from a hill up to 5m.