By HAIDEN JORGENSON
Sophomore
Los Alamos High School
A few years ago, I would go down to the BMX track in Albuquerque a few times throughout the year. Despite my love for the sport, I could not frequently participate because the 2-hour drive to Albuquerque was too time-consuming.
According to the Sports Planning Guide, BMX has been on the rise over the last decade, and from the years 2013 to 2016, made a 43 percent jump in people riding bikes, making it one of the hottest outdoor sports. All of these new people who have gotten into BMX over the last few years have created an amazing, supportive community. I believe that constructing a BMX track in Los Alamos will allow people of all ages to experience a fun way to exercise and socialize with friends and family within a welcoming community.
A BMX track is a perfect place for people to compete while still having fun with the people around them. With a BMX track in Los Alamos, people can race others their age, and if they win enough of these small races, they can race at a national level through USABMX. This can be an amazing experience for competitive athletes who are looking to compete at a high level and win.
Even if a person does not want to race competitively, they can come to the track and have fun for the day without the pressure of racing. According to BMX Insider, everyone would be able to race at the tracks–from little kids still on strider bikes to people 40 years or older. This provides opportunities for families to hang out at the track, race together, and socialize with other families. Kids would also race each other, giving them the opportunities to make friends that are interested in similar activities.
BMX is a great form of exercise that is extremely fun. Pedaling through the track involves a lot of leg power, and pumping over the obstacles on the course works the upper body. It also improves your cardiovascular system, helping prevent heart disease as well “as lower blood pressure, cholesterol, and heart rate.”, as said by Health Fitness Revolution. BMX as well burns calories fast, which also has plenty of health benefits. The sense of community around BMX also reduces stress and increases the confidence levels of people that may not be involved with sports or exercise at the time. These benefits can help a lot of people in this town who may be dealing with physical or mental problems. Kids who are not involved with team sports could find that BMX is a great way to exercise and make friends.
The closest BMX track to Los Alamos is in Albuquerque, which is quite a long drive for some people to make. This long, 2-hour drive from Los Alamos to Albuquerque limited the number of times that I was able to compete; and this caused me to eventually stop competing altogether. People from White Rock, Espanola, Pojoaque, etc. can come to Los Alamos for the day instead of driving all the way down to Albuquerque.
A BMX track could as well impact local businesses and generate tax dollars. After a long day of tiresome racing, people are going to want to eat some food, and will probably eat at local restaurants or shop at local stores. It will also help local bike shops, who can make repairs on people’s bikes and sell needed gear and other bike-related necessities. When a BMX track was built in Knoxville, Tenn., the budget was large but would “generate tax dollars for the city that will pay off significantly,” according to Knox News. I believe that a BMX track in Los Alamos will be similar to this, and the county would gain money from building this track, despite the large budget needed to construct the track. USABMX even offered to build the track for free (besides lodging and food costs), which is a great opportunity for the county to add a new recreational activity to this town.
Approving the construction for this BMX track will benefit a large amount of the people in Los Alamos. It will establish an amazing community that will openly welcome anyone into the awesome sport of BMX. Kids who are not interested in team sports may find that BMX is something that they love and can make friends who also love the sport. Families who want to get active and bond while doing so can find a great place to socialize. Athletes can come to the track and do what they love, compete.
Not constructing a BMX track here in Los Alamos will cause people similar to me to lose interest in the sport, and possibly sports altogether. I believe that building this BMX track will bring back my love for the sport of BMX and cause other people to keep or develop a passion for the sport.