2016 USA BMX Mid America Nationals

Filed under General on August 13, 2016 | Comment(s)

Raytown BMX has hosted several nationals in its 17 years in existence and this year was the best that we’ve ever seen it. The combination of the some reworked sections on the track, fresh asphalt all over and an awesome shade structure in staging put a smile on every racer’s face in the place.  With this race being one of the last of the year we were expecting to see racers from near and far. Deserae Romero and quite a few of her Factory Rift – Tangent cartel compadres made the trek out from California.  Rah-Rah made the best of her trip and took home two wins in 9-10 mixed open and two wins in 10 Girls. Avent’s Eli stanton was a little closer to home and was the man in 6 & Under Open and won convincingly on his home track. We’re sure that Jiri and the boys over at Avent - Bombshell are ecstatic with their youngest factory ripper’s performance. Have you seen the Daylight? We couldn’t see much of anything after laying eyes on Levi Huvard’s super polished Daylight ARC-1 prototype. It has to be one of the best looking and highly anticipated frame releases in quite a while. The bling must have also got to his comp in 9-10 Open on Saturday. He’d go on to claim victory. 

Eleisa Owens got off to an excellent start on both days in 31-35 Womens Cruiser but languishing close behind was “Ride Like a Girl” head honcho Carley Young. Young was riding a dj mountain bike but it didn’t slow her down a bit. On day one she’d pass Owens just before the finish line.  On day two Young would make an aggressive pass in the 2nd turn and never look back. Carley is making a big push in the class and should definitely earn a grey plate to go with her current W4 ranking.

Michael Villanueva handily won both 9 Cruiser and 9 Expert, capturing his first double double. He reminds us of a young Donny Robinson, smallest one on the gate physically but always at or near the front of the pack. Hard work pays off and Michael will be one to watch in the years to come. The best roller skater in the land, Old School Scott Sloan, didn’t have an answer for Missouri native Alfonso Giaganti in 51-55 Cruiser. “Papa G” has burst on to the national scene in a major way and we expect to see him on the gate in Tulsa on Sunday night for sure. 17-18 Experts Collin Schmidt and Makieva Hopson split wins in the class. Both will be moving up to 19-27 in the next few months and should be making apperances in the NAG 5 Challenge. Have you ever run into someone that you haven’t seen in awhile at an unexpected location? Thats what happened to the 41-45X group when Drew Downey showed up and put a whippin’ on ‘em. 

As we wind down to the grand finale of the 2016 USA BMX National Series each remaining score becomes more and more important. Missouri was no exception and the vast attendance shows it to be true. The past and present crew at Raytown BMX have created an extraordinary race course that will provide enjoyment to many for years to come.