(Continuing on from BSX2015: The Report Part 2)

The Eliminations

Open Men

Eliminations in an event like this have always proven to be a little unpredictable. In theory it’s pretty straight forward, it’s a one lap no crap type of deal. Two riders hit the track the first rider across the line progresses to the next round. Normally seeding would be a good prediction as to who might take the round win but history proves otherwise. When you get just one crack at it you have no choice but it lay it all on the line. Holding back hoping for the other rider to make a mistake isn’t a great tactic, nor is pushing outside your comfort zone as the smallest mistake can cost you dearly.

As a prime example in the first round of open men, the top qualifier in the time trial, Frenchman Julien Lukie was knocked out by 17th seeded American Nick Koehler.

The upsets kept coming in the second round (round of 16) as the top seeds toppled.

Josh Callan (ranked #2) has more BSX wins than anyone in the open mens class, he knows his way around the track. Eliminated early at BSX2014 when he slid out in the last corner you could see he was keen to take another crown, especially with Julien Lukie now out of the way. But like we said earlier BSX is an unpredictable beast. Levi Collins (ranked #10) has raced his share of BSX events, he’s made the finals a number of times but the win as always eluded him. When he knocked Josh out of the competition though he proved he could be a real contender in 2015.

After finishing the time trials ranked number 4 there was no doubt that Hayden Fletcher had his eyes on the prize, but a momentary lapse on the double exiting the first corner brought him unstuck, he left the track and the win was handed to Frenchman Simon Lukie (ranked #12).

The trend continued with Tom Siinmaa (#15) knocking out Matt White (#7), Max Cairns (#13) beat Joey Graham (#5) and Nick Khoeler (#17) beat Shane Rosa (#9).

Levi Collins and Nick Koehler continued on their winning ways through the round of 8 and found their way into the semi finals. Levi knocked out Josh McLean (#6), and Nick Koehler beat Max Cairns. While the giant killers were on a roll Wade Turner (#8) took the win over Simon Lukie (#12) ending the Frenchman’s chance for a finals berth. Bodi Turner (#3) also beat out Tom Siinmaa to progress to the semi finals.

The Turner brothers really turned it on in 2014 Bodi taking the win and Wade taking second, it was shaping up to be a repeat heading into the semis. That was until Levi Collins struck again beating out Wade Turner. Nick Koehler couldn’t keep the streak alive though, he had to settle for second and a spot in the B-final against Wade.

In the B-Final Wade and Nick were very close it was coming down to the last corner where Wade messed up on the inside and cut across into Nick’s lane forcing him off the track inches before the finish. With Wade relegated it was Nick who took the win and a third place overall.

In the A-Final it looked as if it would be a one horse race, let’s face it Bodi is on a tear and a full time race. Levi is a part time racer with a full time job, and he has his hands full with a young baby. When the gate dropped Bodi got out to a fast start leaving Levi in his dust, or so it would seem. Levi is the master of the small corners and in all of his races he got slow starts and was first to the tape. By the halfway point Levi had pulled slightly into the lead and surprised everyone when he took the win having exited the last corner with a lot more speed and taking the win by a wheel.

Open Women

Down to the top 8 of the open women’s class racing was going to be tough. Iesha Anderson was the favourite from the get go, her confidence and flow on the jumpy technical and tight track is almost unmatched. Youngster Jarrah Hecker proved he has what it takes to get in the mix, not only finishing second in the time trial but also beating seasoned women’s pro Grace Galley. To win the open women’s class at BSX jumping has proven a great skill to have, although Aislynn Weber showed you can get away with pumping and still make it to the semi finals.

There were no upsets in the first round, all of the top 4 women from the time trial made it through to the semi. That doesn’t mean they had it easy. The level of racing at BSX has increased dramatically these past few years, there is no room for error with racing this tight.

In the semis Iesha beat Ashleigh Gunn amd Jarrah Hecker beat Aislynn Weber.

In the B-Final while Ashleigh and Aislynn got out to an even start Ashleigh appeared to pull away slowly and take the win finishing in third place overall.

In the A-Final Iesha got the better start but Jarrah stuck with her, by the mid way point Iesha had just a small lead and when it came to the line Jarrah had to settle for second but can be proud that she finished only a bike length behind.

30 + Open Wheel

The 30 + Open Wheel class has a bunch of guys with BSX finals experience and a whole lot of first timers making for a good mix and plenty of action.

The top 8 riders from the time trial made it safely through the first round.

The big upset of the second round was Tony Harvey (#7) knocking Robert Slatter (#3) out of the competition.

In the Semi’s Anderson beat Harvey and McPherson beat McQueen.

In B-final it off to an even start, at the halfway point it looked like McQueen might have had an advantage. A brain fart in the fourth straight for McQueen saw him on the wrong side of the track and Harvey took the win. McQueen finished the race with a 360 on the last jump for the spectators.

The A-final started off even but Anderson slowly pulled away to a lead that McPherson just couldn’t pull in. Simon went on to take his ninth straight BSX win in the 30 + Open wheel class.

After all the bills are paid the current estimated total raised for the Royal Children’s Hospital is around the $5,000 mark, not too shabby for a days work. Easily putting the 10 year total of the event at well over $40,000 to the RCH.

We’d like to thank everyone who supported the event, no matter how big or small, you all made a difference.

BSX2015 is presented by BSX Inc/bmxultra.com & proudly supported by

Gold Partners
Dirt Designs (www.bmxultra.com/dirt)
Airsho
A-Team Distro
S&M/ECI

Silver Partners
Redline Bicycles/BMX International
SE Bikes/Oceania Bicycles
GHP/PKR
BMXMAD
WD-40 Bike

Bronze Partners
Travis Pope
Ringmaster Images – Action Sports Decals
Supercross BMX
Simon Anderson/Monza Imports
Lezyne/Monza Imports

About BSX

BSX (Bicycle Supercross) is one-on-one sprint trails style BMX racing on a backyard track built specifically to test a rider’s skills. The short straights, lofty jumps and tight corners are intense under race conditions, offering a fun and entertaining event for competitors and spectators alike. The event provides a unique experience for the local Victorian riders, as well as the interstate and international visitors during an off day of the annual BMX Victoria Track Attack series.

The primary goal BSX is to raise money for the Royal Children’s Hospital Foundation but there’s so much more to the event. It creates an atmosphere that words just can’t describe. Since the very first event in 2006, BSX has raised over $36,000 helping to providing the hospital with much-needed equipment.

www.bmxultra.com/bsx

About the Royal Children’s Hospital

The Royal Children’s Hospital is the major specialist paediatric hospital in Victoria and provides a full range of clinical services and health promotion and prevention programs for infants through to adolescents. Each year the Royal Children’s Hospital treats tens of thousands of children through our Emergency Department, inpatient admissions and outpatient visits. The Royal Children’s Hospital Foundation plays a vital role in providing additional funding to support important research projects and purchase state of the art medical equipment to ensure that every child receives the very best treatment now and into the future.