Wyndham Warriors BMX club is forced to shut down during winter due to not having any lights at the track

A leading BMX club in Melbourne’s west says it is being left being the big clubs in the eastern suburbs because of a lack of lighting.

A BMX track in Melbourne’s western suburbs is being left in the dark because of a lack of lighting with fears it is being neglected in favour of “clubs in the east”.

Riders at the Wyndham Warriors BMX club — which is set to host a major state championship meet this weekend — are forced to look elsewhere to train during the week, especially in winter, because of a lack of floodlights.

Club members have lobbied for lights, valued at about $400,000, to be installed for several years to allow them to hold midweek training during winter.

The closest they got was at the end of last year when former state Opposition Leader Matthew Guy promised to deliver the project as part of his election campaign.

Wyndham Warriors president Gary Morgan said the club couldn’t compete with “clubs in the east”.

“Once April comes around and daylight savings ends that’s it for us and now we’re struggling to get riders to get to the track,” he said.

“What always happens to our club is because a lot of the world championship events are held in Europe in July, a lot of people want to get out there and practice because they’re seeing what’s happening overseas but they just can’t out here.

“Unfortunately a lot in our club have been disappearing in the winter and some don’t come back.

“The weekends in winter are still packed but if you need to practice for a world championships you’re in trouble during the week if you’re from out west.

“The nearest club to Wyndham that has lights is Ballarat...we have such a massive catchment area and we have a massive BMX track but we’re just not up to the standard of the eastern clubs”.

The track is often used by riders and clubs to prepare for national and world championship events.

Mr Morgan, a 2013 world champion, said the Wyndham track was the “track to train on” for big events.

“Everyone has always said if you’re going to a world or national championships and you’re in Victoria you have to go and practice at Wyndham,” he said.

“Our track built by ex-world champions so it’s a high quality track”.

A Wyndham City spokesperson said council would look to have more conversations with the club about the project.

“Wyndham City is continuing discussions with members of the Wyndham Warriors regarding the installation of lights at their facility in Hoppers Crossing off Derrimut Road,” the spokesperson said.

“A full scope of the project needs to be undertaken, including costs and any impact of lights on residential homes.

“Once that is complete, any funding application will be assessed in line with Council’s ongoing Budget considerations”.

Since its inception in 2005, the Wyndham club has held some of the state’s biggest BMX events, including the 2017 state championships.

This weekend Wyndham will host the third round of the AusCycling state series, with 460 riders expected to compete.