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HORSEHEADS BMX SET TO HOST STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS THIS WEEKEND (24 PHOTOS) (2022-09-08)

By Brian Fees
Southern Tier Sports Report
HORSEHEADS — The best BMX riders in the state will be heading to Horseheads this weekend for the New York State BMX Championships being held at Horseheads BMX.

Gary and Sarah Bleil run the Horseheads BMX track and they have been working toward this opportunity.

“We are very excited,” Sarah Bleil said. “It’s the first time we have hosted the state finals since we have been running the track here. I know our local riders are really excited that they get the opportunity to participate in such a big race.

“It’s definitely a big deal for our track. The track community has worked hard to earn this race. Every year we put an effort to earn this race and last year was finally the year it happened for us. I know our local kids are excited they get a chance to ride at this race and also have relatives and all their family who are nearby come and watch them participate in such a big race.”

The racing starts at 2 p.m. on Friday and the finals are Saturday, beginning at noon.

“We are expecting hundreds and hundreds of riders from all over New York to descend upon the area as well as riders from surrounding stats as well,” Sarah Bleil said.

For area riders it’s nice for them to be on their home track for states.

“They have the home field advantage for sure, which is definitely a plus for all their hard work to earn this race,” Sarah Bleil said.

For Horseheads BMX it’s been a long process to get to the point of hosting this race.

“A lot of work for sure,” Sarah Bleil said. “It’s the pinnacle of our season, I’d say. Our season will keep going until at least the end of October, but this is definitely the biggest race of the season and the highlight of the season.

“The track is in the best condition it’s ever been thanks to an amazing group of volunteers at the track as well as the town of Horseheads and the Highway Department. They have all put in the time to make the track ready for such a great race.”

The drier weather all summer was a plus for getting the track ready.

“We were blessed with that dry weather,” Sarah Bleil said. “The track, it’s harder to work on it when it’s been raining a few days, you can’t really even ride or walk on it when it’s been raining for a few days, so the dry weather has really been a blessing, up until this week we have been lucky. We haven’t had to cancel too many events either.”

It has been raining a lot the past week, but the work to get the track ready had already been done.

“It was (tough),” Sarah Bleil said. “But, we stared our work early so we were ready. We’ll be back here tomorrow (Thursday), final touches, but the track was ready before the rain so we are good.”

A lot has been done to make the trek perfect for the state championships.

“We are excited,” Sarah Bleil said. “We hosted our state qualifier back in May so that was kind of a taste of things. Since then all the turns have been paved, so another improvement. We have gotten nothing but glowing reviews from visitors out of town. We have had a lot of visitors in the weeks leading up to Saturday’s race just to get a peak at the track and get some track time before Saturday’s race, and nothing but glowing reviews so we are excited to show it off.”

The event will bring in a lot of riders from out of the area, and the track, and the chamber of commerce, have been working to try and provide visitors with information about the area.

“We have provided them, lots of inquiries into local hotels, local campgrounds,” Sarah Bleil said. “We always give our favorite restaurant recommendations when we are asked where we like to eat out here. We are expecting certainly an increase in tourism for the weekend in the area.

“We also are lucky to have the Chamber of Commerce provide welcome packets for all the riders from out of town detailing a lot of the attractions in the area as well as lodging and things to do while they are here. So, thank you to the Chemung County Chamber of Commerce.”

Horseheads BMX is hoping for a big weekend, and if all goes well they are hoping this is an event they get more often in the future.

“We’ll see how it goes,” Sarah Bleil said. “Hopefully it will be a yearly thing, that’ always our goal.”
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Local riders go through a practice at Horseheads BMX on Wednesday. . . PHOTOS BY BRIAN FEES


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