Lane 8 BMX Podcast

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Race Lee was born in Wichita, Kansas but was raised in Derby, Kansas. He started racing when he was 6 years old. He says he wasn't all that good at it when he started. He grew up racing Emery Park BMX which is the same track his dad used to race when he was a kid. He says the scene in Kansas when he started racing wasn't very big. Yet, it didn't take him long to move up to expert. 

Race says he considered himself a pack rider until he was about 15. He says winning his cruiser main at Grands changed a lot for him. He says that race helped him get picked up by Full Tilt. Riding for Full Tilt has given him a chance to travel to Minnesota to race and live. Now, he's working for Fritz and the gang and living full time in the Land of 10,000 Lakes. 

Currently he's racing 21-25 expert. 

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Brandon Roharik started learning how to ride a bike at 4 years old. His uncle used to race in Florida so he eventually ended up on a BMX track. At first Brandon wasn't really into the racing side of things. What hooked him on riding and improving his skills was some trails down the road from his house. He says those trails truly helped him improve. In fact he still rides those trails to this day. 

When he did hit a track to race he says Ohio racing was tough. So tough it was hard for him to move up to expert. Brandon eventually began killing it locally in races. He began venturing out to nationals. At 17 years old he got picked up by All-Tow factory team. He began traveling. One year he says he missed 40 days of school because of all the travel. 

Brandon says getting on Standard changed his mindset on racing. He says he was dealing with a bit of burnout. Brandon says Standard gave him the opportunity to not f worry about team sheets to being able to ride what he wanted. Brandon turned pro with Standard. He says his first race was Powder Springs and it was rough. Brandon says it took him a while to feel comfortable where he was at. 

At the moment he's in a transition phase of his pro career. He's in nursing school, doing some coaching and looking forward to the Vet Pro class. 

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Dwaylon Carter didn't start racing BMX until he was in his 20's. He would see flyers in a local bike ship about racing. Then a couple of friends got him on the track and the rest is history. According to Carter he wasn't very good when he started. In fact he says it took him about five years to see any progress in his riding. From that time he's won a number of nationals and even earned N.A.G. plates. 

In 2010 Carter and friend started Lethal Threat Racing. He says he wanted a team that was inclusive and family oriented. The team began with around 15 riders and currently has 20 riders. In his words it's quality over quantity. 

Now if you know anything about Dwaylon Carter it's that he's a workout king. If you check out his instagram account you will see him constantly and consistently workout. His nickname around my house is the "plyometric man." 

Currently Carter is working as a firefighter in Maryland. He has 3 kids with another baby on the way with his lady. 

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Emilio Falla is from Ecuador and currently living in California. When I spoke with him he had just flown in and hit practice at the Lone Star National in Houston, Texas. That race was the last elite race he did in his career before switching to Vet Pro. 

Falla started racing at 3 years old. He was a kid full of energy. In front of his dad's office in Ecuador was a BMX track. So, his parents took him over to the track and as they say the rest is history. He would eventually become the first world champ in Ecuador's history. 

Falla was a natural on the bike and his list of accomplishments back up what I'm saying. He was 18 times national camp of Ecuador, 7 times Pan American Champ as an amateur, and has 2 bronze medals in the Pan American Championship in elite men. Oh, did I mention he's done two Olympics to boot?

Currently he's racing Vet Pro and working for Bombshell. Falla is married and helping to raise three great kids. I'm happy for this man...life is good. 

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Michael Bias is somewhat of anomaly when it comes to New Zealand BMX. He spends his entire season racing in France for BMX Besancon. It was Michael's dream to race in France and now he's living the dream. His teammates include the reigning u23 World Champ Leo Garoyan to Jeremy Rencurel. Michael is getting the opportunity to race Euro Cups, the Coup de France, and World Cups. If you've never heard of the first two race series just recognize they are very tough. 

2023 is an important year for Michael when it comes to chasing Olympic points. So racing World Cups and other qualifying races will be at the top of his list. 

I spoke with Michael when he was back home in New Zealand on a break. By the time you listen to this episode he will be back in France for his team presentation plus preparing for the coming season. 

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Patrick Coo started riding and racing at Bellflower BMX track in California. He knew right away BMX was his thing. He says he progressed quickly. On any give day he would be around pros like Maris Stormbergs, Matt Pohlkamp to Javier Colombo. Patrick got his first win at a national while he was an intermediate. 

Patrick says when he started racing in California racing was alive. He says depending on the track you could get 50-60 motor at a local track. 

The teams he's ridden for vary from Havoc, Bike Alley, Hyper, Phoenix, Yess, Full Tilt and currently Velocity. 

His choice to turn pro was to help the Philippines get Olympic points. Patrick says it forced him to work on his gates, fitness and get organized. 2023 is an important year for Olympic points. So, he'll be doing the entire World Cup calendar plus a number of races in Asia. 

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Tyler Smith didn't make it to Grands in 2022. He was injured. He went from leading 26-35 expert to finishing off the year N.A.G. #8. He's philosophical about the situation. Tyler says it was supposed to be his last race. Instead it has given him motivation to continue to race and eventually race Vet Pro. His focus is clearly on Worlds 2024. 

Tyler started racing when he was 11-years-old and he never really stopped. The Georgia native living in Florida has ridden for some iconic BMX teams over the years. He's ridden for Haro/Promax, Answer Squared, Throwdown to currently hitting the tracks wearing Corsa Wear and 110% Nutrition. 

This season Tyler expects to race a lot criss crossing the country before turning pro again. 

This interview was a lot of fun and Tyler is a great story teller. I hope you enjoy. 

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Shane Harlow's racing has been on a different path the last couple of years. He got married, had a kid, and bought a house. He isn't training and racing as much but the desire to win is still there. Grands for Harlow went like this...he made all five mains he entered and he didn't finish worse than 4th in any of the mains. 

Harlow's been riding BMX track since he was 4 years old. And he began racing nationals at the age of eleven. He says improvements were a long process. Harlow's first race was at Paris BMX. He says he was one of those kids who simply loved to ride his bike so riding the track was fun. Check this out, from the age of 4 to 27 Harlow has no gaps in his racing. 

Currently Harlow is works as an electrician. He rides for Elite Vendetta and he's currently N.A.G. #4 in the 26-35 expert class and N.A.G. #1 in cruiser 26-30.

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Mrs. Kittie says she got started racing in Bmx on a dare from her son. Her first race was the Mother's Day race in 1988 at a track in Iowa. She didn't but she was hooked on Bmx ever since. When Mrs. Kittie started her journey into Bmx she was going on 40 years old. Around that time Iowas had seven tracks. Soon the family would venture out to neighboring states to compete. Here's the thing, at the time there were no women's classes so she raced with the men. 

At the time Mrs. Kittie primarily raced NBL in and around the DesMoines, Iowa area. She not only raced NBL but she got involved in the board and was at one time volunteer of the year. One of her biggest accomplishments was helping to start the 80/35 BMX track. 

On average Mrs. Kittie races 50-60 times a year. Plus she's done every Grands since 1990. And  this is a woman who has had both hips and knees replaced. At 75 years old this former teacher and principal doesn't appear to be slowing down. 

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Jason St. Romain is Louisiana native. He was raised in New Orleans but now live in the Baton Rouge area. His first bike race actually wasn't a BMX race but something like a cyclocross race. He finished paying off his Auburn that he had on layaway and started racing unsanctioned races. Jason says he wasn't very good and it took him a while to win a trophy. He eventually turned expert when he was 18. 

By the time Jason was 20 he was pro. He and a friend agreed to turn pro after the NBL Grands on year and that's what he did. His first pro race was in Florida. Jason was pro from 2000-2006. He reclassified when his son was born. 

In this episode Jason and I talk about racing as older men, joining Claiborne with his son and racing Grands in 2022.