Ewart takes on Nashville USA

Nashville is a place that I have always wanted to race at. The City is large & vibrant, heaps of cool things to see & do. The Nashville track is a Heritage NBL track from way back & home to the 1983/86 Murray World Cup of BMX. The track layout has changed a bit since then, only for the better I reckon! Its a free-flowing track, with Ample passing opportunities. The start hill is very flat, with not much height, so you need to be strong to get out in front. (something I must work on).

Practice day was fun, I got used to the track pretty well. The only stumble was I did flip over the gate. The starter said its impossible to go over it..."Its too quick!" Yeah Right... Ive got pretty quick reflexes. Its a pity that i bruised my ribs & banged my knee. This did hinder my gates & acceleration all weekend.

Day 1: I felt pretty good. I ran 3rd in my first moto on Cruiser, so I had to qualify via moto 2, which I did & qualified for the Main. I made the semi final on 20” and transferred to the main also. The competitors are fast and have great gates and pull down the first straight. In the Cruiser main I got boxed in a bit, but managed to finish 5th for the day. The 20” Main worked out a bit better managing a 3rd place. Im pretty stoked to make the Podium in my first USABMX National of the year!

Day 2: Started off with a super hard moto (Just about everyone from the previous days main). I managed to swoop into first out of turn 1, then promptly washed out. Oh Joy.. The 20” worked out a bit better with a 3rd, so I had to do the 2nd moto on both bikes. Round 2 on the Cruiser I got swooped by John Pringle & missed the main by one spot. On the 20” had fast guys in there, but managed to win & transfer to the Main. Main time I got tangled on the 2nd Straight with Drew Motley & decided its easier to let him go, than both of us binning it headfirst into turn 2 at 50+! So I wound up 5th.

Day 3: I was suffering with Jet lag and getting very tired. Not Fun... But then came the racing. Moto 1 on Cruiser, I transferred to the Main with a solid 2nd place. On 20” moto 1, I managed to get a win! Yes, Saved some energy by not having to do moto 2. Very Cool. In the Cruiser Main, I managed a solid ride into 4th place for the day. The 20” main, was loaded with Talent. It got very messy, but kept it upright and finished in 5th Place.

All up, Im pretty happy with my results. I had a couple of setbacks & Jetlag, but to make 5 out of 6 Mains is pretty good, especially after what I went through at the end of last season. A BIG Thanks to the crew at Crisp Bros Racing, Mac Components, Jay from Shaw Signs, Mitch from Mitchram Industries, A'ME Grips, Activlab Aus, Howie from Lucky Bling, Trent from Rocket Custom Designs &and to the Shredders for the training! Only 12 weeks to go and I'll be off to race in the USA again. This time at Louisville (Kentucky) & Melton in Canada.

Cheers to everyone for your support. Image by Shayne Ross