Shepparton BMX Club faces potential of months away from track

By Daniel Webb

Dec 7, 2022

Empty: Shepparton's BMX track has been dubbed ‘‘unrideable’’ due to flood damage. Photo by Megan Fisher

Shepparton BMX Club could be facing months on the sidelines with the recent floods making the track unfit for use.

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Revealed via a post on the club’s Facebook page on Tuesday morning, the statement said Greater Shepparton City Council had assessed the track as “unrideable”, with it potentially “months” before this changes.

Shepparton BMX Club committee member Levi Collins said members had already felt the impacts of the facility being closed.

“There were Australian titles a bit over a week ago, so kids were unable to train for that,” Collins said.

“They had to travel to Bendigo or Melbourne to get training in, so that was a bit of an inconvenience.”

Not only did the floodwater impact the track, but also the club’s buildings, with significant water damage to much of the organisation’s belongings.

“We had to throw out most of our stuff that we have accumulated over the years,” Collins said.

“Our fridges, freezers, helmets, gloves and gear that we lend out to kids to come and try and all that sort of stuff.

“So we have to try and reclaim all that sort of stuff and we can’t use the track until it gets evaluated and deemed safe to use again and the same with the buildings too I suppose.”

With the track out of action, Collins outlined a number of ways in which riders were honing their skills away from the dirt.

He said Christmas was usually a quiet time of year anyway, with numbers building up throughout January.

“Maybe we can just utilise the netball or basketball courts beside the track or maybe the velodrome and just do some sprint work or a little bit of off-the-track skill work, balance stuff,” he said.

“You can do stuff, but track is definitely the best type of training.”

Set to host the BMX National Championships in October next year, Collins was hoping members could be on the track soon, with demand for people wanting to practice for the nationals set to increase.

“For the young kids they just want to ride the track and stuff, but for the dedicated training people, most of their stuff is nearly all away from the track anyway with gym and sprints,” he said.

“But for the young kids they just want to ride the track and have fun, they’re not getting to come and do that, so hopefully they don’t lose interest in the meantime and we get them to come back.”