High Altitude Action

At 5,312 feet in elevation, ABQ’s Spring Nationals is the highest elevated race on the national circuit.

Albuquerque is a unique city. In fact, it is the highest metropolitan city in America. Geographically, it is located in the center of New Mexico. And to many racers, it could very well be thought of as the center of the BMX universe. Especially when you consider that Albuquerque is equidistant from Los Angeles to Kansas City, equidistant from New Orleans to San Francisco, equidistant from Phoenix to Denver, and smack-dab in-between Salt Lake City to Dallas. Which makes it a perfect location for a national.

In what has become a May tradition, Duke City BMX once again hosted the Spring Nationals; as they have since the Falls of 2006. The Duke City changes almost every year, and we’d have to say this year’s layout was one of our favorites. The triples into turn two, and the skatepark-like bowled-exit out, looked fun and were great for photos. Perhaps due to the altitude, many commented that the track felt long.

Factory-wise, the entire Doublecross crew, SE Racing, Alpha, Supercross and a small contingent of Free Agent, Velocity and J&R Bikes racers were out to battle for the factory points. Of all the teams present, we’d have to proclaim that the FallRisk Racing crew out of Arizona were the true standouts. It’s hard to miss them in the red and yellow, with flying skulls a blazin’ on their chests.