With a price tag of nearly $7 million, this is not your ordinary BMX track. Known as the Presbyterian Sports Medicine BMX Supercross Track, this facility is designed to attract large events, including national and international competitions, as well as daily riders from the local community. It will be one of the premier facilities in the world and will garner immediate attention in the BMX community. Opening is expected to be Spring 2014.

Similar in size and scope as the London Olympics BMX track, the Rock Hill facility is estimated to be approximately 450 meters in length, cover an area about the size of a football field, and be formed from enough dirt to fill more than three Olympic swimming pools. Turns are typically asphalt, and the start ramp, which is approximately 30 feet high for the experienced riders, is expected to have a unique gripping surface to aid race starts. A standard BMX track is expected to be built in tandem with the larger, Olympic style track, making the facility very versatile and open to riders of all abilities.

Here is a draft mockup of the facility as it may sit in conjunction with other facilities at the Rock Hill Outdoor Center.

Spectators will enjoy fast and intense racing that showcases some of the best local, regional, national, and international riders. In addition, training classes and practice times will offer up and coming riders a chance to develop their skills and enjoy the sport. Riders from around the world are expected to visit, train and race, perhaps for extended stays, due to the unparalleled access, unique layout, and favorable weather.

The Presbyterian Sports Medicine BMX Supercross Track joins the recently opened Giordana Velodrome and 10 miles of mountain biking trails at the Rock Hill Outdoor Center. Cyclocross and a closed-circuit road course are also expected to be built, making the Rock Hill Outdoor Center arguably the most impressive permanent cycling facility in the world.

We are proud of the vision and efforts made by so many to bring these facilities to reality. We commend the City of Rock Hill for recognizing the economic impact, community benefit, and overall
commitment to world class sporting venues that shines through these facilities.

Ride Rock Hill is dedicated to bringing these facilities to life by giving our readers great content across all the cycling venues. Come along for the ride!

The post BMX Track Approved by Rock Hill City Council appeared first on Ride Rock Hill.

I am down 2 more lbs putting me at 247.5 lbs. The weight is coming off thanks to coach Andrew Crater and nutritionist Debbie Milne. I am stoked for the upcoming weeks.  Make sure you stayed tune in 2 weeks track racing starts and its going to be a party!

The post Another Great Weekend! appeared first on Ride Rock Hill.

Cindy and Peter discuss how they met, why they love riding, and what it’s like to be a cycling couple.

RRH: You’ve been married for how long?

Cindy: Twenty-one years?

Peter: Twenty-one years, Twenty-two in October.

RRH: And when did you get married?

Cindy: 1991.

Peter: October 5th, 1991.

RRH:How did you meet?

[both laugh]
Peter: We actually met in a a bar on Friday night. It was called Moxy’s, which became Manzettis, which became Paco’s Tacos.

Cindy: It was the Southpark watering hole, where everyone went on Friday night, so this was a Friday night at the end of September in 1985.

Peter: I walked up to her, and she was wearing a perfume I knew the smell of, and the first words out of my mouth were “Hombre Rose.”

Cindy: And I thought “That’s wild, I just bought this perfume.” Come to find out his mother wore it. Iguess I am a classic person, I like Audrey Hepburn’s style. But I had just bought it and it was weird that he knew what it was!

Peter:So I said that to her and she was taken aback and then basically said “Go away.” All she told me that night was her first name and where she worked.

Cindy: I think I told you my full name, but I wouldn’t tell you anything else.

Peter: So I spent Monday calling her at where she worked.

Cindy: [laughing] Tracking me down.

Peter: Today they would call it stalking.

Cindy: We finally touched base –

Peter: And I invited her to go to lunch on I think it was Wednesday, but I was in a business meeting down in Greenville, South Carolina, and it kept running longer and longer, and I kept calling her until finally I said “Let’s have dinner.” She agreed and both of us hung up and said “What did I just do?” But we had a good time at that dinner and it went on for two bottles of wine.

Cindy: I didn’t get home until 2 AM.

RRH:How long have you both been riding?

Peter: Well I got my first 10 speed back in high school, so I’ve been riding on and off since high school, for what’s that, 40 years?

Cindy: Then you quit about ’91, ’92, and you, well, creeped back up the scale, and you got back into it about ’97? I looked at him and said “You love to ride. Go buy a bike.”

Peter: [laughs] “Go loose weight.”

Cindy: You were over 200 pounds.

Peter: I was right at 200, which for 6 feet isn’t bad, but it isn’t great.

Cindy: So he got a bike, he started riding, he would go out early in the mornings.

RRH: [To Cindy] So how long have you been riding, and how did you get into it?

Cindy: I was always an exercise person, I’ve always done exercise classes so I got into spin classes. So I did that for a few years, and then finally both of you kids were going to sleep away camp, and it was your dad’s 50th birthday. So I decided I would take him on a bike trip. And I found one that was in thesame place we had had out honeymoon – Seattle, San Juan Islands, Victoria, and I thought, “that would be great!” Never ridden an outdoor bike in my life.

Peter: We got home and she was hooked –

Cindy: I kept saying the whole trip “This is the best birthday present I ever gave anybody! I am having so much fun with your birthday present!”

Peter: She liked the idea of a bike, so I went to the Big Stampede out at the speedway, and I found a beautiful Orbea frame that she still rides today and components and I built the bike up for her.

Cindy: Actually I got all his old components. Every time your dad upgrades, I get the rejects. But the rejects are really good!

RRH:So that was about six years ago?

Cindy:Yeah, six years ago.

RRH: So you both ride road, that’s your discipline.

Cindy: I do not ride anything else, I’m not comfortable.

RRH: But you both also do time trials?

Peter: Yes.

Cindy: I haven’t in a long time.

RRH: Is there any other discipline either of you would like to try, or are you just gonna stick to roads?

Cindy: I’m sticking to road, I’m telling you, mountain biking, I can’t take both my feet out, and the thought of not being able to get out scares me, with the way the terrain changes so crazily. At least with road, you see things a little further in advance and you have some time to sort of think about what
you’re gonna do. And cyclocross I totally don’t get, for me, its like the X-Games!

Peter: I like cyclocross. I think it looks really neat, but I just don’t want to buy another bike.

RRH:You want to but you’re not going to.

Peter: Yeah, I enjoy watching my daughter. Mountain biking looks like fun, but it’s a time issue.

RRH:So when you ride together, is it kind of easy going and friendly or is there competition involved?

Peter: Competition between us? No. We ride hard with a group, but it’s not competition between us.

Cindy: Your dad is really great about taking care of me. He comes back for me or he pushes me up a hill, I wait for him –

Peter: Remember, she’s dropped me on Snake Mountain.

RRH:[to Peter] So a couple years ago, you started the COCAC, the Corner Of Carmel And Colony

Peter: Oh it was more than a couple of years ago. Probably closer to seven.

RRH:Six or seven years ago, and you decided everyone on this ride would need nicknames, so for you and your wife you came up with…?

Peter: For me? I’m YFL, Your Fearless Leader. She is Wife Of Your Fearless Leader, or WOYFL.

Cindy: Or “Waffle”, as Riley Grier likes to call me every now and then.

Peter: [referring to Grier] “The Mayor.”

RRH:So give me a funny story from riding or from your relationship in general.Cindy: Oh God! [laughs]

Peter: What’s a funny story in riding? Uh… what’s a funny story in general? I mean the way we met was kinda funny.

Cindy: Our engagement was kinda funny.

Peter: Oh yeah that’s pretty funny.

Cindy: We dated for a long time. He took a long time to propose to me, really. I was pretty much done with him. After years of dating and one break up and get back together, I was done!

Peter: Well the funniest part about that was that she was done, and the night I was gonna propose to her, we were at a restaurant, and this was my last chance, but she figured, if this is gonna be one of the last times, she was gonna order everything she could find on the menu market price.
[both laugh]

RRH:So would you say that cycling plays a really big role in your relationship?

Peter: Yes.

Cindy:Yeah.

Peter: Yes, because, I’d say for a couple reasons, one we enjoy it, number two is we talk a lot about it, it’s something in common –

Cindy: And we vacation around it. We like it. I mean, wasn’t it hard to go to San Antonio and not ride? I always go places and say “This looks like a great place to ride here, I want to go for a ride!”

RRH:Would you encourage cycling for couples? Do you think its a great thing for couples to do together?

Cindy: Oh yeah!

Peter: I think it is, now if they are competitive with each other in more than a friendly way –

Cindy: Not good.

Peter: No. you can be a little “hey I’ll race you here” but if you’re like really “I gotta beat you” or –

Cindy: If you’re dropping your spouse and never helping them, then it’s not fun.

RRH:So what is your favorite part of cycling? You can answer to that separately first and then talk about it as a couple.

Cindy: Challenging myself. And the people, I really like the people.Peter: Yeah, I’d say the social aspect of it.

Cindy: Not that I can always talk when I’m riding, but it’s really fun, all these people are fun people to be around. And it’s a healthy lifestyle.

Peter: And I’d say that those are my answers too. [laughs]

RRH:So I guess that’s also why you like it as a couple.

Peter: Yeah.

RRH: What cycling feats do you hope to accomplish together?

Cindy: I’ve got my bucket list.

Peter: Riding many of the famed climbs in Europe. Alp D’Huez –

Cindy: Tourmalet –

Peter: Ventoux –

Cindy: I don’t know about Ventoux for me. What about Luz Ardiden?

Peter: Luz Ardiden, that’d be good. And then we can go over to Italy.

Cindy: I don’t know, some of those are brutal. And then there are things here. I’d like to do Snake Mountain a little better than I did it last time.

Peter: Oh and in the West –

Cindy: Bryce Canyon –

Peter: Zion. And Fenwick.

RRH:So do you still think you’ll be riding together in 20 years?

Cindy: I hope so.

Peter: Provided we’re alive.

RRH:Don’t say things like that in front of your daughter!

Cindy: Okay, I’m about to be 50. Our bicycle trip there was a guy –

Peter: Eighty.

Cindy: 80 years old! And he was doing darn well. So yes.

RRH: Who do you think will be faster at that point?Cindy: I don’t think it matters, I just think we want to get from A to B!

Peter: I don’t think it matters.

Cindy: Your dad’s always gonna be faster – except up a hill. [laughs]

RRH:Last question. This a hypothetical situation question.

Cindy: Oh boy.

RRH: You’re on a tandem bike. How long do you last?

Cindy: When we first did a tandem bike I hadn’t been riding very long, we did not have the same pedal stroke. Now we do. I think our cadence is closer, I think we could ride a tandem much better together now.

Peter: I think we’d be fine. We’d probably get tired going up hills because it’s very hard to go up a hill on a tandem, but I don’t think we’d get upset with each other.

Cindy: No, because I’m on his wheel a lot any way or he’s on mine.

Peter:I think we’d last until we couldn’t.

The post I Married A Cyclist: A look into marriage between cyclist. appeared first on Ride Rock Hill.

The leader of the women’s suffrage movement was behind women cycling, that should be enough for us.

There are lots of benefits for women to get into cycling. One of the most popular reasons is for a healthy lifestyle. According to Women’s Health magazine, a 135-pound woman can burn up to 488 calories in an hour if they ride 12 to 14 mile per hour. If you live within five miles of your work place, the 20 minute bike ride can burn over 3,000 calories if you ride to work twice a week(that’s burning well over the amount of your chocolate strawberries, champagne and cheesecake you scarf down tomorrow). Those calories translate into losing a pound of fat in a month. Riding also tones the legs, but what most people don’t know is that working the handlebars works out your arms too. Other health benefits include boosting energy levels, protecting your joints, and lowering blood pressure and cholesterol.

burn over 3,000 calories if you ride to work twice a week (that’s burning well over the amount of your chocolate strawberries, champagne and cheesecake you scarf  down tomorrow)

But, yeah, we get that. It’s pretty self explanatory to why we should get our behinds on a bike. We all know that it can only help. Why else should we care?

One woman can be the reason behind multiple generations riding bikes. Women can also be the reason their friends get into cycling. We talk, we share everything with our friends. We do things in groups, from shopping to yoga to going to the bathroom together. If one woman starts cycling, she will most likely invite a friend, who will ask another friend, who will ask another, until the whole neighborhood is out riding bikes.

An easy way for local women to get behind cycling is to go ride the Rock Hill Outdoor Center. Between the Velodrome and the mountain bike trails, there are a few different options for anyone wanting to ride. The support of local women is very important for the success of the Outdoor Center. When you aren’t sure what to do with the kids one weekend, take them out to ride. Getting them away from video games and the computer for a couple of hours will start to get them active in a healthy lifestyle. It will also give them a place to go back to when they are teenagers with the BMX Super-Cross track. By one mom taking her kids there to enjoy a day of riding, she can be ensuring that the Outdoor Center has people coming back to it for years.

Sara Allen
Coker College ’15
sara.allen@coker.edu

The post Galentine’s Week – Why women should care about cycling appeared first on Ride Rock Hill.

Well the ladies here at Ride Rock Hill are taking over. We’re doing away with the typical Valentine’s Day posts and are having them replaced with Galentine’s Day. “But, Kayla, I thought you called it Galentine’s Week,” you said. Why, yes, yes I did. We’re calling it Galentine’s Week, because frankly, we needed more than a day.

This week we are highlighting women in cycling. Ranging in topics of : why we should cycle, what it means to be a female athlete, the women cyclists we’ve met, oh and a fancy feature of a lady cyclist.

Don’t worry we will still have a regular Valentine’s Day post for you on Thursday, I know the men were worried about that.

Order will restore here at RRH, as soon as we’re done bragging about how awesome we are.

The post Galentine’s Week – this is happening. appeared first on Ride Rock Hill.

Friday Night Racing

March 1st- September 27th (All Categories)

Giordana Cup Races

May 18thand August 17th (All Categories)

SC/NC State Championships

September 21st (Elite M/W, Juniors, and Masters)

USA Cycling Mass Start National Championships

August 22nd-24th (Elite M/W)

The post 2013 Racing Schedule Announced ! appeared first on Ride Rock Hill.

Motorpacing 

Closed track time for Motorpacing will begin in March

 

Volunteer’s Official Clinic

For more information/to RSVP: anderson/biz@gmail.com

 

The post The latest news from the velodrome! appeared first on Ride Rock Hill.

Just a recap on last week, I updated you guys with results on my first race in Florida and how it didn’t go as planned but was an awesome experience!

This week training went well. I did intervals to rehab the knee and get prepared for this weekend’s race, at the first 1st weekend of the Greenville Spring series. I have lost 1 pound this week bringing my self to 249 lbs (haven’t weighed that since late middle school)  pretty prou. I have a goal for 50 more lbs! Plan for this weekend is to race hard and top 10 in both races Saturday and Sunday.

Make sure to come find me before or after the race to get something cool from Ride Rock Hill!

Make sure you’re following my self John Croom on twitter, as well as Ride Rock Hill for live tweets and action for this weekends races!

The post Settling into the Saddle – Week 3 appeared first on Ride Rock Hill.

Just a recap from that last post my name is John Croom and I am a first-year racer. I have been dieting and training very hard with help from my coach, Andrew Crater, and my nutritionist, Debbie Meline. When I started training, I weighed around 275 lbs and have brought it down to about 250 lbs. I am hoping to lose 50 more pounds while working my way up within the racing scene, and this where you can stay updated on my progress.

I was in a really comfortable position and just got pushed into the curb on the inside and ate it.

So, an update for this week, I am rehabbing from a wreck at last weekend’s crit race in Florida. I was in a really comfortable position and just got pushed into the curb on the inside and ate it. I tried to race the next day and got in the break; it felt great until my knee just began to throb and I just pulled out of the race. I had a great time at the races and learned a lot.

Greenville Spring Series next weekend.

Now that I have the first race behind me, it’s time for team training this weekend preparing for the Greenville Spring Series next weekend. This weekend and the beginning of next week I’m looking to open my legs up pretty well, and get well-rested to post up better results than Florida. I am quite excited to put up some positive results for my team, Carolina Break. Stay tuned to track my progress.

You can personally follow me on twitter to see more pictures and get more details of what I am up to!

The post Settling into the saddle – Week 2 appeared first on Ride Rock Hill.

So, we sat down for our weekly meeting, and I awkwardly asked John if he would be willing to write about his experiences. Ever since I came in contact with John—that sounds like contagion—I mean after meeting John, this training has been a big part of his life. In the past we have done a lot of interviews and posts with cyclists at times in their lives that they were already racing and damn good at it.

But, what about the people who don’t know how to get started and people who are getting there? As John mentions in his article, he is an unconventional cyclist and I think there are a lot of us out there.

We’re calling upon cyclists of all shapes, sizes, and levels to join John and document your road to racing—see what I did there? That’s called a pun. “Road” to racing, because some of you race on the road. I’m not known for my wit. Anyway, please share your own stories and help encourage John through this experience. So, thanks to John, and to his eventual millions of fans. We aim high.

P.S. : The title is pending. In the running: “Sexy Saddle”;”Cycling Chronicles”;”250m to Greatness”; and my personal favorite “Peddler on the Roof.” Vote now!

Kayla Dugger
Director of Operations
Ride Rock Hill, LLC

This series, (insert title here would love your opinion on it), is going to describe my daily training and nutritional intake, as well as track my progress as an athlete. I will describe my on, and off, days through races and training. This blog is to show that i’s never too late to start training and potentially racing.

I am currently a Cat 5 racer that weighs 250lbs (and dropping), that is doing this “diary” to track my progress from now until the end of the year. I have many goals that I am hoping to meet, and I’ll share some of those in the next blog. Stay tuned weekly for my updated posts!

I will be racing all of the upcoming weekends, so hopefully these posts will get longer. I’ll keep you up to date on racing events and some parts of my training plan.

Today was another day of training by getting over a head cold with some secret remedies. My day consisted of a hot yoga class in the morning and an easy ride at night on the trainer, in preparation for the race this weekend in Deland, Florida. This weekend will consist of a 40-minute criterium race on the first day and a 49 mile road race on the second.

Make sure to stay tuned for updates on the results and daily updates on my progress and training regimen!

The post Settling into the saddle: Week One appeared first on Ride Rock Hill.