Casper hosts 2023 BMX State Championship

CASPER, Wyo. (Wyoming News Now) - Riders from across the state traveled to Casper on Sunday for the BMX State Championship. The race was held at the Mike Sedar BMX race track. This is the biggest BMX race of the year in Wyoming, and competitors are vying for the top spots.

Jerry Adams is one of the oldest racers in the competition and has been racing for over 20 years. He said, “At my age, racing two bikes, if I win and I win that state championship, that’s pretty good for an old guy like me.”

Competitors of all ages are here at the championship, as young as two years old up to racers in their sixties. For many of these riders, the action and camaraderie of the sport has them hooked for life.

Jack Huss, one of the youth racers, said, “The thing I love most about racing is just getting on the bike and feeling that adrenaline when you jump. It’s just so much fun.”

Unlike some other sports, BMX racing is a sport that the whole family can enjoy. Moms Erin Matte and Lacey Mielke found their entire families getting involved with the sport.

Matte said, “My son wouldn’t shut up about it and so we let him come down and try it. Next thing I know my daughter’s doing it, I’m doing it, my husband races… It’s just a family thing now.”

Mielke found herself in a similar situation.

She said, “My kid brought home a flier from school and said ‘mom can we go?’ I said, ‘okay, we can check it out’. We checked it out, and now my other kid races, and I’m racing. It’s become that for us too, a family affair.”

Although the event is a competition, it is at its core a sport founded in friendship and togetherness.

Adams said, “The people in this sport, their all family. I mean, whether he’s a competitor or my friend… if he needs help on his bike or whatever… let’s get your bike fixed and let’s get you in the gate to race.”

Winners from Sunday’s race will have the chance to compete at the race of champions in Tulsa, Oklahoma this November.

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