When I raced BMX back in the late seventies, it was all about who could jump the “whoops” all in one go.
Now the whoops was a combo jump at our little BMX track in South Tweed Heads that consisted of three relatively small, yet quite strategically spaced jumps. Upon first approach one could easily be tricked into believing that to jump all three was quite easy. You could generate quite a lot of speed coming of the preceding berm, which allowed for some riders to launch with an effortless ET style leap, seeing them land smoothly on the back of the third jump. Oh how many times I tried! Unfortunately for me with my red steel framed “Trakmaster” this was only ever a dream, although the day I made it over the first two in one go was quite a proud moment! I also recall that the only race I ever won at this track was when this jump was the scene of a ten bike pile up, so there was a benefit sometimes to being only able to make the first two.
The X-Park in Deodoro is going to be home to the worlds best BMX riders. And the scale of this track is really very impressive. It is made even more dramatic as it has been carved into the side of the hill which links to the White Water Stadium and the Mountain Bike track. Good luck to all the riders and may they all make the “whoops” here in Rio!
Happy eight days to go! “Pedals Set!”