Cambridge BMX Club racers Josh Cavanagh and Kellee Cryer.
The Kiwi boys competing in the Mighty 11 test over Labour Weekend have won the Trans-Tasman Trophy back from their Australian counterparts.
Cambridge’s Josh Cavanagh and Joel Runciman competed in the Trans-Tasman event earlier this year in Australia – which pits a team of four 11-year-old Kiwis against an equivalent Australian team, in what is the only teams’ event for BMX racing. The Aussies took home the 40-year-old trophy in June, and when the competition returned for its New Zealand round at the North Island BMX Champs in Pakuranga, the Kiwis beat the Aussie boys 107 to 88.
Josh made the retrial for the New Zealand team in the recent round, and Joel was placed reserve, still training with the team and competing on site in the North Island Champs where he placed 7th in his age division final and 3rd in the Mighty 11 open class.
The Mighty 11 open class was open to all those who trialled for Mighty 11s, and in the final race Josh technically finished first, but because he crossed the yellow line on the first corner he was relegated to 8th.
Josh Cavanagh won the Mighty 11s trophy with the New Zealand team and brought home the trophy for best rider on the team.
“I was a bit disappointed, but that’s BMX,” said Josh, explaining how he had thought it was that race alone that would determine who won the best Kiwi rider. “When I got called up on the stage it was a bit of a surprise,” he said, winning the trophy as the Kiwi rider who placed the highest across all Mighty 11 races.
“Racing with my mates was a highlight because it’s the only event where you get to race as a team, so it’s really different,” he said, adding that the competition was heaps of fun, “apart from the people who crashed”.
Another Cambridge BMX Club rider, Kellee Cryer, competed in the Mighty 11s girls’ team which lost to the Aussies. Kellee also finished fourth in her final Mighty 11 Open Class race. “I was really excited to race the Aussies because I’ve never done that before,” she said, adding that she enjoyed making new friends and racing against the boys.
The opposing teams took part in team bonding activities during both rounds, swapping jerseys at the end and signing each other’s plates. “As much as it is a BMX race it’s a cultural experience for these kids too, making new friends across the ditch,” Josh’s mum Shelley said. “They all rode amazingly, they have improved so much since they first started.”
