Hooligans on e-Bikes tear up Eastfield BMX Club track used by Olympian Bodi Turner
The Eastfield BMX Club in Kilsyth served as a springboard for BMX Olympian Bodi Turner. E-bike riders have torn it up, leaving dozens of young kids without practice facilities.
Young e-bike “hooligans” have drawn the ire of an Olympian after his hometown, volunteer-run BMX club was vandalised over the weekend.
BMX athlete Bodi Turner believes it was a group of recalcitrant youths who damaged the track at Eastfield BMX Club in Kilsyth, which has left dozens of young kids without practice facilities for the near future.
Mr Turner, who represented Australia at the 2016 Olympic Games, is a life member of the club having started his BMX career at the track from the age of four.
Speaking with the Herald Sun following the incident, Mr Turner said he was “incredibly disappointed” by the selfish actions of those behind the stunt.
“The BMX track is a place for people and families to come socialise, ride and enjoy without the hassle of fear of getting injured due to (the) vandals’ damage,” he said.
On Monday evening, coaches and volunteers arrived at the club to find significant damage had been done to the track over the weekend, with deep grooves in the surface making riding untenable.
Mr Turner said the actions of the unknown vandals was not isolated to this one incident, adding the club had contended with similar damage on an almost fortnightly basis.
“We have a recurring issue where young teens think it is OK to ride powerful electric bikes on our track,” Mr Turner said.
“Our track is not designed for these bikes, and our members work tirelessly to keep this track maintained for the BMX community.
“After this past weekend, the track has suffered so much damage that our young riders may not be able to get around the track safely.”
As a result, Mr Turner said practice had been cancelled due to safety concerns, with volunteers joining forces on Tuesday afternoon to try and repair as much as they could.
He fears the damage is so extensive that it might affect whether or not the track is ready to race on by January, which is peak season for the sport.
The regular misadventures of these e-bike riders has also become a “kick in the guts” for the wider BMX community, according to Mr Turner.
“This is a common issue at every BMX track, these bikes are too powerful and too dangerous to be ridden on a purpose-built BMX track,” he said.
“We hope parents can educate their children about how dangerous these bikes are and what it costs the clubs and community due to their damages.”
Eastfield BMX Club president Tegan Barthelson said the “hooligans” behind the damage had affected the 110 active riders at the club, 90 per cent of which were young kids.
“We have had to cancel coaching and training sessions tonight, which means somewhere between 20 to 50 riders cannot train on the track,” Ms Barthelson said.
“It means coaches are not paid for their session and it means the little money our club receives from training nights is lost.
She said volunteers had put their hands up and come together to spend several hours repairing the track, which is open to the public and requires continual fixing so the community can keep using it.
Originally published as Hooligans on e-Bikes tear up Eastfield BMX Club track used by Olympian Bodi Turner
