Limestone Coast riders contribute to South Australia’s BMX title

Superclass Crop Dsc 8274  TBW Newsgroup

Superclass Crop Dsc 8274 TBW Newsgroup
AGAINST THE BEST: Blue Lake BMX Club’s Cody Jelleff (right) pushes pedals with the top men in the superclass event on Sunday, where he finished fifth, after a win in the 17-29 men on Saturday. Picture: THOMAS MILES

THE Blue Lake BMX Club was a hive of activity over the weekend, with two days of pedal-pushing action.

On Saturday the club held the annual SA v Vic championship, which saw the host state come out on top with some solid results from Limestone Coast riders.

That was followed by the fourth round of the South Australian state series on Sunday, again showcasing the talent the Blue Lake club has on offer.

The home club riders claimed a total of 13 podium finishes over the two days, in an impressive performance on their home track.

Blue Lake BMX Club coach Stephen Jones was impressed with the results over the weekend as well as the turnout, which saw 217 riders hit the track.

“We had great weather and thanks to all our hard working volunteers the BMX facility looked amazing,” he said.

“A lot of effort has gone into track upgrades and trying to give people a reason to come down here so it is good when you put in the effort and it works.”

As a coach, Jones was pleased to see riders turn their hard work into results.

“It is nice to know some of the effort you put in does filter through onto the track,” he said.

“As a former rider it is a nice feeling to know you have passed on some of your experience onto the younger ones.”

To add to the success of the weekend, South Australia had not won the battle of the states for some time, making the result all the more sweet.

“I think Victoria has won the last four or five years, so it was about time South Australia won it,” Jones joked.

The verdict came down to the superclass results in the end, with SA taking both the men’s and women’s honours through the Cove BMX Club’s Matthew Tidswell and Tea Tree Gully’s Marisa Peressoni.

From a local perspective, Cody Jelleff was one individual who stood out, as he won the 17-29 men class on Saturday, before testing himself in the superclass on Sunday.

Although he finished fifth in the “pro” event, it was a solid effort for his first attempt.

“He did really well,” Jones said.

“He rode a good, clean lap and got a decent result, which was well deserved.”

Tyson Jelleff also fared well in the 17-29 men, finishing runner-up to brother Cody on Saturday, before claiming the honours for the class the following day.

Kain Jelleff put in two consistent days of racing to finish fourth in the 17-29 men for both events.

The 8-10 girls also saw the home club well represented, with a second place to Lily Kradolfer and fourth to Lilly Jones in the SA v Vic final.

Jones backed up that performance on Sunday to win the 8-9 girls.

Peter Jelleff finished a credible second in the 40+ men’s class on Saturday, followed closely by Bradley Scott who made a comeback to the sport and finished third in the final.

Both riders carried consistency into the following day’s racing, as Peter Jelleff claimed second in the 35+ masters open wheel class and Scott finished third in the 35+ men.

Young-gun Trae Wilke rounded out the 13 boys podium on Saturday, while Jade Jennings put in a top performance to finish third in the 14-29 women.

She went one better on Sunday when she contested the 14 girls to claim second place in the final.

After a fourth-place finish in the 10-11 boys on Saturday, Jaiden Picken stepped up to win the 11 boys with ease on Sunday.

There was the opportunity for even more Blue Lake success, but a few incidents saw riders drop out of contention.

“Unfortunately we lost a couple of Blue lake riders in practice, being Jaques Aslin and Gabriel Jones,” Jones said.

“Jaques was a real contender in the 10 boys class and Gab was having his first shot at a big event after only starting racing three months ago.”

Sheridan Picken was also showing form and won her first moto on Saturday, but a crash on the final straight of her second race saw her miss the rest of the competition.

Overall the weekend was deemed a success and Jones said everything ran smoothly and on schedule.

“Everyone did their bit and it all went quite well,” he said.

“The event was up on entries compared to other years with an increase of 50 riders and we are hoping with some extra work we can restore the event to some of its former glory.”