CAMERON REID is still a teenager but old enough to know the latest generation of aspiring BMXers have never had it so good.
The 19 year-old is taking part in this weekend’s UCI BMX Racing World Cup in Glasgow, part of an elite assembled cast of Olympic champions and other renowned riders from all around the globe eager to showcase their talent to an appreciative Scottish crowd.
It is the first international BMX event to take place in the city since the 2018 European Championships, another chance to utilise the £4m facility constructed in Knightswood for that event and now used regularly by clubs including Western Titans, Glasgow Riderz and Movement Park as well as schools and community groups.
It supplements the track that opened in 2014 in Reid’s native Cumbernauld in the shadow of Broadwood stadium. That remains the University of Stirling student’s home turf, and the one where he has honed the skills that have led to him becoming a multiple Scottish and British junior champion.
Reid, though, was riding a bike long before that opened and can still remember the primary school days when the facilities were not always as pristine or inviting.
“The BMX scene kind of went into a lull for a while after the 1980s boom but with the introduction of the Knightswood and Cumbernauld tracks it’s taken off again,” he explains.
“The Cumbernauld track is just 10 minutes from my house so that’s been a great addition and made a real difference to me and others in this area.
“Before then we just had an old 1980s dirt track to practise on, not far from the current facility. So to go from practising on that in the early days to the indoor track in Manchester was quite daunting.
“But for kids nowadays it must be great to have such good facilities on our doorstep when they’re looking to progress. The young ones have got it easy now!
“I’ve just finished my first year doing sports science at Stirling so I’ve now got the whole summer to train and race which is great. My long-term plan is to go and do a masters in physiotherapy as that’s the career path I’d like to go down but I’m just really focusing on my cycling for the time being.”
Scottish Cycling saw the potential in Reid from a young age, making him the first BMX rider to be supported at Performance Development Programme level. He is grateful for that backing and also credits his dad, Raymond, for being the main driver behind his rise to the top.
“It was a friend from school who first got me into BMXing when I was about seven,” he recalls. “He had a spare bike and asked if I wanted to come along and try it and we both ended up joining a club called the Cumbernauld Centurions. He ended up quitting after a week but I’m still going strong.
“The club wasn’t much and was based at the old track but my dad took over as chairman for about seven years and ended up helping to get the Cumbernauld track built.
“My dad stepped down as chairman a few years ago but he still rides as well actually in the 50+ categories. So he’s just enjoying the bike now instead of having to do all the other admin stuff.
“It was great to go out on rides with him when I was younger although from about the age of 12 I was able to beat him and he didn’t really like that!”
BMXing isn’t in the Commonwealth Games but will take its place in the first-ever combined cycling world championships to be held across Scotland next year.
“I’m hoping to do well enough this year in the under-23 events to try to get picked for the worlds next year, especially with it being on home soil again. That’s my aim over the next 12 months.”
This is Reid’s first season at senior level and he, wisely, places no huge expectation himself ahead of this weekend’s World Cup in a field that includes Tokyo Olympic medallists Beth Shriever and Kye Whyte. Simply competing, rather than spectating, is a privilege enough.
“I’m really excited to compete, especially in front of a home crowd,” he adds. “It’s great to have such a prestigious event in Glasgow for once. To be able to ride it rather than watching it on TV from my bed or my living room will make a nice change. It’s quite surreal actually to be competing.
“It’s my first World Cup so I’m not going with a specific result in mind. But I’ve had a fair amount of training both myself and with Team GB so hopefully I can make it through a good number of runs and have a productive weekend.”
Tickets for both days remain on sale via Ticketmaster, priced at £15 for adults and £10 for kids.
