Rounds 3 and 4 of the 2024 British BMX Series took place at Cyclopark in Kent. An incredible facility for BMX, road cycling, cyclocross, XC and a great skatepark too.
We arrived on Friday afternoon, parked the Adria motorhome, set the team tent up and then it was a couple of official practice sessions. The weather was, shall we say, breezy. Cyclopark had transformed into Cyclone-Park. However the show must go on and with a better forecast for the weekend, the team decided to utilise the Friday session to get used to the flow of the track. With a strong cross wind the session was simply about pumping around the track to lock in where the jumps were and look at some lines.
Saturday: Round 3
Saturday morning rolled around and it was time to get the show on the road. The weather was better. Cloudy, no rain and less wind.
In BMX riders have 3 qualifying races – called motos which qualify riders through to the knockout stages of quarter finals, semi finals and then the final.
Scott’s day got off to a perfect start, finishing 1st in moto 1. His speed was on point and he looked strong. In the second race he finished 1st again, leading the race from start to finish. In his final moto he took another win with the fastest lap of the day and qualified to the final as the number 1 seed.
In the final, Scott took his favourite gate 1. He wanted some space to the inside to simply focus on his first straight and not bang bars with the others in to turn 1. Making a great start Scott powered down the start, and led the race into turn 1. From here he rode a perfect lap and crossed the line beating his previous fastest lap and taking the win.
“I am stoked with that race. I gave it my all and to take the win is always amazing. That’s 3 wins out of 3 finals so far so I am buzzing. I have had a great day and it’s amazing to be racing in Cyclopark again” said Scott in the finish area.
Sunday: Round 4
After some great food on Saturday night and a decent sleep in the team Adria Motorhome, it was time for round 4 on Sunday.
In the motos, Scott looked on fire. He finished 1st, 3rd and 1st in his motos and was able to progress to the final with the 2nd choice of gate. In his second moto a huge gust of wind literally sent Scott off the track whilst leading! He battled back to salvage 3rd so was happy to not crash!
In the final, with 2nd pick, Scott took gate 2. He made a great start and rocketed down the start straight leading the race once again. Into turn 2 and the rider in 2nd was clearly setting his move up. On the third straight, Scott came up short on a manual and lost the lead. He battled all the way to the line but 2nd was all he had.
“That was another good day even though 2nd isn’t what we are here for. I am riding fast and feeling good. Now it is 3 weeks until the World Championships in USA and I am very happy with my leg speed. We will continue to push and make sure we are ready for a shot at World Number 1”.
Many thanks to all our team partners for your support.
All photos by Tony Twist.