From 5-years-olds to Olympians at the BMX Raceway

By Christian Price, News9.com INsite Team

YUKON, OKLAHOMA - Every weekend families travel to Yukon to strap on helmets, pads and attitudes just to race other dirt lovers at Yukon's BMX Raceway.

Titian Burris is the Vice President of the Board of Directors of the raceway.  He said that riders of every age take advantage of the American BMX Association sanctioned track.

"It's all run by volunteers," Burris said. "It's a non-profit organization. It's for any kid, any age level, boys and girls, men and women. We have racers that are 5-years-old, all the way to in their 50s."

On any given night, dirt track superstars can show up unannounced.

"Some of the guys that actually come out and ride at our track are people like Mike Day," Burris said. "He won the silver medal in the Olympics in Beijing, China recently."

The sport of BMX is all contingent on the rider themselves.

"It's an individual sport," Burris said. "Anybody can do it and that's the cool thing about it. It's not like you have to join a team or anything like that. It's an individual sport. It's a family sport and it's really a great experience to come out and do."

Getting started in the sport itself isn't as expensive as you might think. Basic equipment is all that you need. And if you're missing something that you need to race, you can even borrow it from the track.

"All you really need is a pair of jeans and a long sleeve shirt," Burris said. "If you don't have a helmet, there are loner helmets that we can loan them. As far as the bicycles go, as long as it's a BMX style bicycle, 20 inch tire and rim, and no pegs. We got to take those off for safety issues, but pretty much any 20 inch bike will work."

The track is well equipped for all day riders.

"We cook burgers and hot dogs," Burris said. "We have the whole racing experience. We have covered bleachers and everybody comes out and has a good time."

Click here for race times and directions at the BMX Raceway.