At full speed ... on two wheels
By YADIRA SANCHEZ OLSON
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Take a mental trip back to the ‘70s. It was the era that gave kids plenty of funky things to pass the time. There were the very first video games; the Rubik’s cube; watching your hair grow longer than your parents’ approval.
But while some kids were indoors playing Pong, others were outside cultivating their need for thrills by racing their bikes.
Originating in California, BMXing – Bicycle Moto X (cross) – became more popular everywhere in the U.S. in the 80s, when parks began to dedicate whole day sessions for “trick riding” after seeing the demand for BMX tracks.
Today, the city of Waukegan also has answered that demand with the Waukegan BMX Track located at the Callahan Park on York House Road in Waukegan.
“When I was a kid, I dreamed of having a track,” said Hector Mendez of Zion, track operator of the Waukegan BMX Track.
Mendez fell in love with the sport at the age of 13, when he visited his cousin in Puerto Rico and saw him ride. He has been BMXing on and off since then.
Mendez also is in the Board of Directors of the Northern Illinois BMX Club, which uses the track for races every Thursday and Sunday. The club has about 200 members from all over the Lake County area, including Grayslake and Lake Villa and as far as Racine, Wis. and Indiana.
And those members are not just children. Men and women of all ages are taking delight in flying off dirt ramps and speeding around mounds.
“This is a great family sport!” said Tammy Schulz of Kenosha, Wis.
Schulz began racing two years ago, but before that she was a self-proclaimed BMX mom.
“I watched and cheered on my husband and daughter for 10 years before I decided to do it,” Schulz said.
And now she wishes more moms would just try it. “I love it; it’s like a roller coaster ride but a little bit slower,” Schulz said.
Others have tried it and are now passing their love for BMXing down to their children.
Armando Martinez, of Chicago, used to compete in the BMX nationals in Mexico and is now encouraging his two sons, Alberto, 11, and Michael, 10, to pick up the sport.
“I like it; I have a lot of fun with my friends,” said Alberto.
And their mom couldn’t be happier about that.
“We make it a whole day family event [Sunday races],” said Patricia Martinez. “The kids get a lot of exercise and have fun doing it.”
This is the message that Mendez hopes that more parents would get. He says that parental support and encouragement is important for a young generation of BMXers.
“They are the seed of the sport,” Mendez said, referring to the young members in the club.
Some of them, such as Keaton Enright of Winthrop Harbor, are as young as 4 years old.
“He saw his big brother do it and he wanted to take part in it,” Keaton’s dad, Lee Enright, said.
The Waukegan BMX Track opened in 2005 and is open to the public from April through October.
The Northern Illinois BMX Club welcomes members of all ages and genders to join at any proficiency level – beginner, novice and expert.
The club also maintains the track every Wednesday by having volunteers do sweeping, raking and watering.
“Kids have so many choices now but if you have the need for speed, the Waukegan BMX Track is where you need to be,” Mendez said.
