Location:
BMX Track at Slough Bottom Park
Norwich
Norfolk
Date of installation: 2009
'Norwich Flyers' Championship BMX Track
The thrilling new track just completed at the end of 2008 for the Norwich Flyers was launched with a regional competition which saw plenty of action!
Wicksteed Playscapes, who re-surfaced this exciting track for budding and established BMX-ers, was delighted to be involved in the transformation.
BMX racing has been an organised sport in the UK since the early 80s, but featured in the Olympic Games for the first time this year, so it's now enjoying even greater recognition. Girls are becoming increasingly keen on the sport, too; thanks, in abundance, to Shanaze Reade who is an impressive Quadruple World Champion. The Norwich Flyers Club even has a dedicated girls group at the Sloughbottom Park site to further encourage female inclusion in the sport.
Norwich City Council chose Wicksteed Playscapes for the refurbishment of the 350m track and Paul Nicholson from the Council commented: "We have received an excellent product and service from Wicksteed - now Norwich has a track that BMX-ers can really get going on".
600 tonnes of aggregate (no less) plus tarmac was used on the project and Tim Gregory, who heads up the Norwich Flyers BMX Club, was keen to point out just how "awesome" the final result is: "Thanks to the enthusiastic and dedicated work put in by both Norwich City Council and Wicksteed Playscapes, the city now boasts one of the best National Standard BMX tracks in the UK.
Tim continues, "To be quite honest, the finished product has exceeded even our high expectations and the facility is now both durable and weather-proof. So, instead of having to spend hours maintaining the facility as we did before the transformation, the Club can now get on with introducing new members of the public to the sport whilst also developing our existing athletes."
Experienced riders take the jumps, berms (banked turns) and lines around the track at breath-taking speeds which requires great skill and concentration of course, but there's always room for novices and Tim is really enthusiastic about encouraging beginners to go along and try out the track for themselves. BMX racing is a challenging and exhilarating way to keep fit and active and a great place to meet new, like-minded mates along the way, too!
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Experienced riders take the jumps, berms and lines around the track at breath-taking speeds
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