The 2019 TRA Double Cross and Dirt Jump Comp went down September 21, 2019 at the TRA compound near Bethlehem Pennsylvania, home of Posh and Catty Trails. The pro invitational fundraiser event, presented by S&M/FIT, drew 37 BMX riders from across the country and also debuted TRA’s first 26” Double Cross event featuring 11 riders. The 2-man course featured full-on trails style jumps with minimal pedaling, lots of pumping, and plenty of air time, close racing, and lead changes. After the race, an open wheel dirt jump comp was held on the same course with best run judged by the Posh and Catty locals, including 2019 NORA Cup winner Jason Lonergan.  With support from Odyssey, Empire, Powers Bike Shop, Dirtsculpt, Five Ten Footwear, Blackmans’s Cycle Center, Axlerad Screen Printing, Action Wheels Bike Shop, Penn Skate Skatepark, The Wheel Mill, and STAY STRONG, the event featured a $1500 pro purse with a winner-take-all cash prize in each class.

With a full field of top riders from all disciplines, including top trail riders like Clint Reynolds, park riders like Vinny Mannino, and vet pro racers like Brian Streiby and Josh Smith, there were a lot of different BMX styles on display. Similarly, various styles from downhill racers to slopestyle riders were represented in the 26” class. Once the racing started, all the different styles came together for some very intense, wild racing in both classes. In 20” Double Cross, Vic Behm continued his winning streak from the first event, followed by Colby Benoit and Josh Smith taking the final spot on the podium. In 26” Double Cross, Nick Fix edged out David Lieb, who took the 3^rd podium spot, and went on in the final race to pump past top downhill racer Mauricio Estrada down the first straight to take the win. The event concluded with the open wheel dirt jump comp which was held over the entire course. Clint Reynolds manualed the roof jump and 360 turndowned for 3^rd place while Mason Ritter saran wrapped one-handed his way to 2^nd place. The rest of the competition knew they were in trouble when top 26” slopestyle rider, David Lieb dropped in for his first run. With triple truck drivers, corkscrew flips, big 360 tables, and a flip whip, David destroyed the entire course and was clearly on the next level.

Everybody was stoked on the vibe and overall feel of the event which brought together all the different wheel sizes and riding disciplines to make for a super fun event that served as a fundraiser for TRA’s continuing mission to build its first public dirt park. Big thanks to all of our sponsors and volunteers who worked tirelessly to make this event a success.

Results:

20” Double Cross:

1st       Vic Behm

2^nd       Colby Benoit

3^rd        Josh Smith

26” Double Cross:

1^st        Nick Fix

2^nd       Mauricio Estrada

3^rd        David Lieb

Open Wheel Dirt Jump Comp:

1^st        David Lieb

2^nd       Mason Ritter

3^rd        Clint Reynolds

2019 TRA 20″ Double Cross Podium: 1st Place – Vic Behm, 2nd Place – Colby Benoit, 3rd Place – Josh Smith

2019 TRA 26″ Double Cross Podium: 1st place – Nick Fix, 2nd place – Mauricio Estrada, 3rd place – David Lieb

2019 TRA Open Wheel Dirt Jump Comp: 1st Place – David Lieb, 2nd Place – Mason Ritter, 3rd Place – Clint Reynolds

TRA BMX is proud to announce the 2019 TRA Double Cross and Dirt Jump Comp.  Presented by S&M/FIT, this pro invitational fundraiser event will take place September 21, 2019 at the TRA compound near Bethlehem Pennsylvania, home of Posh and Catty Trails. The event will include over 30 top dirt riders competing for a $1,500 Pro Purse and include two contests: the Double Cross – a one-on-one downhill trail race with both 20” & 26” classes, and an open wheel jump comp, all on the same course. With support from Odyssey, Empire, Powers Bike Shop, Dirtsculpt, Axlerad Screen Printing, Action Wheels Bike Shop, Penn Skate Skatepark, and STAY STRONG, plus coverage by Our BMX, DIG, Elevated Visuals, and more, the event is being held to raise funding and awareness for TRA’s first public dirt park in the USA, to be built in the Lehigh Valley area.

The TRA Double Cross course features massive bowl jumps with nonstop downhill trail action by Dirtsculpt and brings together some of the top riders in BMX & MTB for an epic contest with a backyard vibe and a worldwide reach. The course design is 100% trails, built the way riders across America build for themselves every day.  

This private non-profit fundraiser event is intended for riders, trail builders, industry and media, dirt park operators, and families who run BMX tracks to come together and experience the future of BMX competition in a form that can truly grow the sport for riders of all ages across the USA. The event will be limited to the first 40 riders entered and attendees to the capacity of our 1 acre field parking area. If you are interested in competing or attending, you must contact TRA BMX for an official invite. Per TRA rules, no clipless pedals or carbon fiber bikes are permitted. This is a family-friendly, alcohol free event held in a manner that respects our neighbors and zoning ordinances.

For more information, check out www.TRABMX.com. You can also check out Posh and Catty trails at www.PAWOODS.com and see behind-the-scenes footage from Dirtsculpt, the creative force behind some of the world’s largest BMX dirt events including ESPN‘s X-Games and more, at www.Dirtsculpt.com.

TRA BMX proudly supports Posh and Catty trails.  Check out this awesome 4th of July Jam edit by Jess Grinager.

Get ready for the annual TRA Fast as Hell Comp on Saturday, October 20 at the Annual Catty Halloween Jam!  There will be 3 classes: Kids (14 & Under), Ams (15 & over) and Pro (18+).  The kids class will run on roller run starting at 12:45 PM.  The Ams and Pros will run combined starting at 2:00 PM on Fonzy to ’79, with each class scored separately.  Registration is from 11 am to contest start time.  Awards will be presented at 3:30 PM, with awards to 3rd place.  1st place Pro will be awarded the 2018 Pro belt and a 50% cash payback prize.  Each class will have approximately 20 minutes to run, and riders can take as many runs as they want (usually 3 or 4 laps) during this time.  Each rider’s fastest run will be used to score.   To keep the contest fun for everyone, there is no running order.  You simply put the TRA mini plate on your handlebars, get on the hill, and go.  Once your front wheel crosses the starting line, the TRA staff will handle the rest.

The contest is open to all ages and wheel sizes, MTB’s welcome.  Suspension forks and any motocross style bicycle components can be used.  But of course under TRA race rules, road bike components (clipless pedals, carbon fiber frames/forks, belt drives, etc.) are prohibited.  Enjoy some real BMX racing on real BMX trails!

It’s spring build season at the TRA BMX compound.  Every year we keep 60,000 sq. ft. of jumps and turns running all summer long without the need for daily watering or tarps.  The rugs we use let us get it going after a long hard winter without the need for hand shovel stacking and packing…not something we ever thought would be possible when we started.  Heavy snow, strong winds, and frost are all part of winter trail life in the Northeast.  And when the spring thaw comes, it’s time to get the jumps running and coated before the thunderstorms start.  While the techniques shown here may seem obvious for those who have been doing it for decades, there are lots of new builders out there just starting out.  For those of you who’ve asked us how we do it, this article is for you.  We want to spread the knowledge so our sport can grow and the next generation can start out with better tools than we had.  Rugs, ATV’s, soil hardeners…all of these can be used together or alone to make life easier at the trails.  Once the surface is properly prepared, maintenance is a breeze.

Under a blanket of snow, all the transitions are perfectly preserved using layers of tarp and carpet.  A row of logs across the top and a row of pallets across the bottom keep it all in place against the winter winds.

Utility ATV with car tires. We use these at the trails too. Combined with carpets over the winter, this cuts shovel packing down to almost zero.

Hoses are neatly coiled in cans over the winter.   You can drop 1000′ of hose in no time using the cans to avoid tangles.  We run four 250′ sections so multiple sections of the track can be reached as needed.

ATV first roll.  Dark areas show the frost that hasn’t been rolled in yet.  You don’t have to rake or pick up rocks…just roll it right in and watch last year’s surface come right back.  We roll once to keep the moisture in and again for final prep before applying soil hardeners.

This turn was prepped in less than two hours on a berm that was untarped  all winter.  A few light shovel pats to press in any raised tire marks and it’s ready to spray with soil hardener.

Soil hardeners make the impossible possible.  We go all Summer long without the need for tarps or watering.  During the Summer’s strong torrential downpours, there is barely any erosion damage.  We’ve started using this at Posh on the pump loop and on some of the bigger runs as well.

The last two straights of the TRA pump track are soiltac’ed and ready to go.

We’ll keep updating this article as we go.  Ride soon!

The 2017 TRA Fast as Hell Comp was held at the annual Catty Halloween Jam. With riders from all over the world roasting the big runs, pumps loops for riders of all ages, Halloween costumes, and a bunch of fun contests and raffles throughout the day, the jam serves as both a fundraiser and end-of-year party for riders trying get their laps in before the Northeast frost.

For this years event, TRA expanded the Fast as Hell Comp to include both a kids and a pro class. Amateurs were split into 14 & Under and 15 & over age groups. The pro class was 50% payback, winner-take-all, with all proceeds going to the Posh/Catty non-profit Lehigh Valley Bicycle Association. The riders also competed for the TRA pro-belt, courtest of S&M, FIT, Empire, Dirtsculpt, and Axlerad Screen Printing.

The older amateur and pro classes raced on “Fonzy to 79”, a 40 second run with lots of jumps, turns, and speed changes. The younger amateurs raced on the downhill pump loop which featuring a newly built starting hill and wooden over/under bridge. Each class was run for 30 minutes and were riders allowed to take as many runs as they wanted. Scores went by fastest time for each rider.

In the 14 & Under kids class there were 5 riders including girls and boys ages 8 through 12 years old. 8 year old Jake Rutkowski was on top of the podium with 9 year old and TRA regular Chase Delfino in 2nd. 12 year old Velicity Miller showed that girls have a place on the podium too with a 3rd place finish.

In the 15 & Over amateur class, 1st place went to Ever Peacock with Noah Oliver in 2nd. At 17 years old, Ever just missed being able to enter the pro class but proved himself with a time that would have put him 3rd place on the pro podium. Look out for Ever in 2018!

In the pro class, Evan Eisenhard completely dominated, winning the pro belt and first place money with all of his runs going faster than everyone else in the comp.  2nd place went to three-time TRA Fast as Hell comp champ Chopper Daily who came back to the podium with a vengeance this year. Third place went to “City Boy” John Lynn, rocking the only kind of spandex TRA will allow.   Get ready for more TRA BMX racing in 2018!

2017 TRA Fast as Hell Comp Results:

Pro
1. Evan Eisenhard
2. Chopper Daily
3. John Lynn
4. Greg Custer
5. Chris Bird
6. Michael Gentilcore
7. Zack Andringa

15 & Over Amateur
1. Ever Peacock
2. Noah Oliver

14 & Under Amateur
1. Jake Rutkowitz
2. Chase Delfino
3. Velicity Miller
4. Olivia Miller
5. Mia Custer

Catty Halloween Jam, TRA Fast as Hell Comp – Pro Class Results: Evan Eisenhard 1st, Chopper Daley 2nd, Jon Lynn 3rd. These riders set the trails on FIRE!

15 & Over “Fast as Hell” champ Ever Peacock wasn’t quite old enough to race pro but he sure was fast enough…his time would’ve put him on the pro podium! Look out for him next year.

In the 14 & Under “Fast as Heck” class, Jake Rutkowitz (right) edged out Chase Delfino for the win. Velicity Miller took 3rd and was on road before she had the chance to stand on the podium with the boys, but she made her mark nonetheless!