2018 UCI BMX Worlds: The Big Finish
June 10, 2018 by bmxnews.org Editors · Comments Off
The 2018 UCI BMX World Championships came to an epic close Saturday, with a full day of Championship (aka Junior and Elite) Class racing. While the schedule called for the qualifying motos to take place on Friday, Mother Nature had other plans, as winds off the Caspian kicked up, so as to make the Elite side unsafe.
The single-elimination rounds were already scheduled to run under the lights, starting at 8:40PM, local time. So the motos, previously-scheduled for a similar timeslot on Friday night, would run Saturday at 6:10PM.
Unlike the Challenge classes earlier in the week, the Championship classes were not live streamed on bmxlive.tv, due to the sale of TV rights in various markets (including North America). Thus, every BMX fan with a computer or phone mobbed onto social media to try and find a stream–any stream, to see it live. One of the popular ones (and one we used, thanks to G-MO’s advice on Facebook) was on Azer TV, with commentary in the native language. Ah, the joys of the Internet.
Ultimately, we learned that olympicchannel.com was also streaming the action (thanks, Steve Diamond Elements), though it took a minute to find it; they had an image of a mountain biker, and only tiny-type mention of BMX in their headline (above). That one was better than the Azer TV stream, with Dr. Jason Richardson, and partner on the mic.
When it came time for the main events, four Americans were still in the program– Sephani Morin in Junior Women, Alise Willoughby and Brooke Crain in Elite Women and Corben Sharrah in Elite Men.
Of course it wasn’t all about Team USA. Russia, France and The Netherlands all had big horsepower at the top of the 8-meter hill when it was do-or-die time. Some did, some died (BMXically-speaking).
We could give the the play by play in written form, but for main events with this much action and changes in fortune, you need to see it in living color, via the vids below.
Plus, so-as to not spoil the many surprises to come, on the way to the above set of rainbow jersey winners, we’ll link the results after the video (opening in a new window or tab), instead of showing them.
Junior Women Main Event
Junior Women Main Event Results
Junior Men Main Event
Elite Women Main Event
Elite Women Main Event Results
Elite Men Main Event
WOW!…Just-WOW! As heartbroken as we are for Alise, Brooke and Corben, with their respective misfortunes in the main event, as BMX fans, racing rarely gets better than this. Any sports movie writer would do-well to model this event for their big finish.
A podium sweep by the Dutch Women, with two sisters in the Gold and Silver spots; a .006/sec upset at the line by a pair of French stars (who, by the way, went 2-3, in the same order, last year in Rock Hill); plus a relatively-unknown, but way-fast Brazilian, taking up the three-spot late in the lap in Elite Men.
And we hope you didn’t just skip the Junior mains. Both had a stack of names you will be seeing in coming World Cup, USA BMX and/or World Championship results, not the least of which are Indy Scheepers (NED), Avriana Hebert (CAN), and Stephani Morin (USA) in Junior Women; as well as Leo Garoyan (FRA), Juan Valencia (COL), Mauricio Molina (CHI), and Kye Afoo (AUS) in Junior Men, along with the other main makers.
The stage is now set for the 2019 Worlds, with the ceremonial flag having been officially-handed over to organizers from Zolder, Belgium. And it won’t be all-too-long til the world comes back to the USA in 2020, for a Texas-sized hoedown in Houston.
The reports coming back from challenge class families who made the trip are singing the praises of their Baku experience in a big way. Full disclosure: we were VERY skeptical of this location, and said-so many times, since the host city was announced. We were wrong in our assessment, which makes us more glad than sad. We’re betting that Baku hasn’t seen the last of World-level BMX Racing.
—Mike Carruth
Photos By Craig Dutton
Championship Class Practice, Day One
Championship Class Practice, Day Two
Craig’s Photos From Earlier in Worlds Week
Challenge Class Practice, Day One
Challenge Class Practice, Day Two
Streaming: UCI Worlds 14-Over 20″ Classes
June 6, 2018 by bmxnews.org Editors · Comments Off
Day three of racing at the 2018 UCI BMX World Championships will kick-off in Baku, Azerbaijan at 1:30AM US Eastern Time on Thursday. On the sheets for today will be 14-Over 20″ classes, including Masters (which is kinda-like US Vet Pro, but not-exactly).
In Masters, we’ll be watching 2017 champion Tyler Brown defend his W1 plate, as well as New Mexico flyer Tomas Fernandez make his way through the rounds. In the other classes, we’ll be watching for our beloved Team USA riders up-front, and in the viewfinder of on-scene photographer and friend-of-News, Craig Dutton.
The race is streaming live, or available on-demand after the final main event. Watch below:
While, or after, you watch the action, browse Craig Dutton’s photo galleries from the previous days. We will update this page with Thursday’s gallery, once it’s posted, so check back.
Top Photo: Team USA’s Keegan Steiger, 16 Challenge Boys. Photo by Craig Dutton
Photos By Craig Dutton
Challenge Class Practice, Day One
Challenge Class Practice, Day Two
Results
Streaming: UCI Worlds 12-Under 20″ Classes
June 5, 2018 by bmxnews.org Editors · Comments Off
Day two of the UCI BMX World Championships is in motion in Baku, Azerbaijan. Tuesday saw solid cruiser action, with the sole USA W1 plate going to Mckenzie Gayheart in 16-Under G cruiser.
Wednesday, it’s time for the 12-Under 20-inch classes. Team USA has a ton of horsepower ready to gate-up Read more
Streaming: UCI Worlds Cruiser Classes
June 4, 2018 by bmxnews.org Editors · Comments Off
The 2018 UCI BMX World Championships are about to step off in Baku, Azerbaijan. Tuesday is the first day of racing, with all the cruiser classes on the agenda.
The Challenge (Amateur) classes are being streamed live, via YouTube, and will be available for on-demand viewing once the race is over.
Here is the Cruiser stream:
Here’s the Challenge streaming schedule for the week:
Tuesday, June 5
09:30AM – All Cruiser Categories
Wednesday, June 6
09:30AM – 20″ Male and Female ages 12 and younger
Thursday, June 7
09:30AM – 20″ Male and Female ages 13 and older + Masters
*All times are Baku local. Baku is EIGHT hours AHEAD of US Eastern Time
We will be posting information for the Junior and Elite (Championship) classes that race on Friday and Saturday, later in the week.
Friend of News and long-time UCI photographer, Craig Dutton, is posting photo galleries, complete with offering his shots for sale to riders and their families. Check the link below to browse and/or buy.
**UPDATED** See link below for the Cruiser results.
Photos By Craig Dutton
Challenge Class Practice, Day One
Challenge Class Practice, Day Two
Links
2018 UCI Worlds Cruiser Results
USA BMX Releases First 13 Races of 2018
September 29, 2017 by bmxnews.org Editors · Comments Off
The first 13 stops on the 2018 USA BMX National Schedule were released late Friday. This schedule takes us through the end of May, and just prior to the 2018 UCI BMX World Championships.
As in previous years, we’re starting the season in Las Vegas in mid-January. That first race will also be the 2018 President’s Cup, and is a three-day race. There is only one other three-day race in the first part of the schedule, and that is the Music City Nationals in Nashville on May 25-27.
There will be two Worlds qualifiers—one in Phoenix as part of the Winter Nationals, and one the following week in Oldsmar during the Gator Nationals, as has been the practice in previous year.
The traditional mid-May spot of the Spring Nationals in Albuquerque has been moved up to March this year—March 16-18, to be exact. Temps top-out in the mid 70s that time of year in the Duke City, so it should be quite pleasant under the enclosure (or a polar wind tunnel). ABQ will also be a pro race in 2018.
We will be back in Desoto, TX after a few years away from the Metroplex.
Pro Series Wise, there will be six pro series stops from January to May (Phoenix, Oldsmar, Albuquerque, Rock Hill, Atlanta and Nashville), with Oldsmar and Carolina being North American SX series stops.
After a popular race in 2017, the tour will be back in Bako in May (as some are heading off to Baku).
The 2018 USA Cycling BMX Collegiate nationals will be wrapped inside the Cajun Nationals in early March.
Here is the grid, for your perusal:
The new year looks like it will have tons of big National series excitement in store. We are penciling-out the BMX News coverage schedule, and look forward to seeing you in the viewfinder in Vegas, and beyond.
—Mike Carruth
2018 UCI BMX Worlds May Go to Baku
May 30, 2016 by bmxnews.org Editors · Comments Off
Just when we finally got used to spelling Colombia with an o and not a u, it’s time to move on to our next spelling lesson: “Azerbaijan.” It has not been officially announced yet, but documents obtained by BMX News indicate that the 2018 UCI BMX World Championships will be going to Baku in the Republic of Azerbaijan.
The race is set for May 21-27, 2018, which is off the normal non-Olympic-year timetable of late July. The weather is much nicer in May, with an average high temperature of 64°F degrees, as opposed to the average high of 85°F in late July.
Looking at a map, you are confronted with the fact that Azerbaijan is in a pretty scary neighborhood, with Iran, Iraq, Syria and Turkey all in close proximity. That said, the US State Department does not have a whole lot to say in the way of travel warnings for US Citizens, aside from the following:
You should exercise caution when traveling to the culturally conservative and unrest-prone region of Nardaran, located 45 km from Baku on the Absheron Peninsula. Nardaran has been the site of several volatile anti-American and anti-Israel sentiments protests in the last several years.
and
Azerbaijan’s security apparatus is sensitive to photography, so both professional and tourist photographers have been stopped for taking photographs of facilities that may not appear to be sensitive, including oil fields, buildings, and public squares. It is strictly forbidden to take pictures of military installations and of military equipment.
Baku was the host city for the first-ever European Games last year. The race went off without a hitch, and all participants got out alive (that was a joke).
This news is just starting to take shape, so we will report updates as they become available.
—Mike Carruth
