Regional & King of BMX at Emerald Coast Dirt & Vert

“Ok, first off I would like to thank all the people that volunteered this weekend. Without folks like yourself, the NBL could not hold races like this. Second, I’d like to thank everyone who came to the race from the southeast (Louisiana, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, South Carolina and North Carolina were all represented). Trust me when I say that every shovel load, every sandbag, every thing that was done was done with all of you in mind…….to make your long drive well worth it when you got here. Our hearts go out to those who were victims of the harsh rain/storms/tornados in central Florida and we keep you in our prayers.”"Yes, my microwave sucks, so warming up anything took way too long……especially hot chocolate. But I will say for the record, and Bill Young as my witness, I was ready with biscuits and coffee at 5:45am Saturday morning. What the heck a grown man wanting hot chocolate instead of fresh brewed coffee has to complain about….I don’t know…..LOL-J/K npsarider! Thanks also for the products donated from Bawls! Riders told me that they liked the subtle changes to the track, nobody got hurt bad (a few scrapes happened, but that’s racing) and for how much rain we battled the week before, the track did awesome. The only thing some riders were thrown by is our gate. The platform is a little flatter angle than the gate that drops to the hill, so it does feel like a tad bit of a drop in…….smooth- nothing harsh. Just different than most gates out there I suppose. To quote my good friend and Elite Masters #1 rider, Kiyomi Waller who stopped in for the weekend, “” What gate problems? It’s a gate…….a gate that everybody has to start from. If all gates/hills/tracks were the same, BMX would be boring. To be honest, I didn’t even notice it…….I thought it was fine. Fun track……really good flow…..fun to race.”" Now for some weekend highlights…… Barry Nobles came down to race, host a clinic and compete in the ‘King of BMX’ contest Saturday night. He had a great weekend. The Clayborn AA (OK, Elite Men….whatever) showed skill and power by winning both days in Elite Open, then passed on those skills by teaching the ‘Halftime Clinic’ on Saturday, then had a down to the wire battle with Tyler Sparr in the ‘King of BMX’ contest Saturday night. The points for the King of BMX went this way- after the park and dirt jump comps…..Tyler with two firsts (2 points) and Barry with a 2nd and a 4th (6points) and all Tyler had to do was to stay one overall point ahead of Barry with the timed ‘sprint lap’ on the BMX track left to win it. If they tied in overall points, the victory would go to whoever won the timed lap (due to athletics only as the deciding factor-no judges). After the first run through of times, Barry smoked the comp with a 29.57 and stood firm to watch the rest battle for position. Tyler’s first run had him in fifth (he pulled a tail whip over the doubles just to impress his girlfriend). If he could not move up a notch, he would lose his crown from last year…….all eyes watched as he dug deep on his second attempt…..and……..he posted a time that bumped him into fourth and reclaimed his title- King of BMX! Somebody needs to sponsor this kid as his skills on a bike are beyond description. Results for the groms (amateurs)…. 1. Chris Norberg 2. Nick Britt 3. Alex Ahrhart Big thanks to Bill at Supercross BMX for the frame fork and bars for the overall winners! Results for the Studs (open money class)…. 1. Tyler Sparr 2. Barry Nobles 3. Jason Sherrill Thanks to Moe’s Southwest Grill, Covenant Covenant Community Church, Beachside Motors, Allen’s Towing Service and Emerald Coast Dirt & Vert for contibuting to the prize money for the studs class. We had 42 motos on Saturday and 35 on Sunday…….about what I expected and was pleased to see all the Floridians who weren’t scared off by this lower Alabama weather. (Trust me though- I will plead for a warmer date for next year!). Dave and Erma were pleased that the race went off without a single hitch and did a superb job of steering the ship as it were. If everyone were to tell the NBL what a great place this is to host a national, we could have even a bigger and better (or warmer at least) time with a facility that lets everybody ride the skatepark and dirt jumps while the race is going on! Big soccer fields for ample pit area and fun games of football/soccer/softball while you wait for the next moto…..all within hearing distance for knowing when your next moto is coming up. Hotels less than a mile away, Florida’s best seafood restaurants close by and the world’s whitest beaches less than 5 miles from the track. LET THEM KNOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thanks to XTRSKN, Performance BMX Distribution, Moe’s Southwest Grill and of course Emerald Coast Dirt & Vert for making this happen. It has been and always will be all about fun here at Emerald Coast Dirt & Vert. I will try to get pics up ASAP. THANK YOU ALL FOR COMING! -Bill Madden Emerald Coast Dirt & Vert owner and operator”