April 16. 2014
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Page II
Vancouver
East County
Beaverton
Alberta
North Portland
Kidz On Da Track SSÄSK.
by D onovan
M. S mith
T he P ortland O bserver
California dirt ramps turned out to be the launch pad to a
bit of a dream for Harold Ridge. He heads a BMX racing team
in the Portland area.
As a kid in San Francisco, Ridge and his older brother
Kevin would often find themselves fashioning their own dirt
ramps and racing around their Hunters Point neighborhood.
“BMX was really big in the early 80s, it got bigger. But
that’s what we did to have fun,” he says.
Now an adult, and a Portlander for well over a decade,
Ridge has pedaled BMX racing into the hearts of many in the
city. His 32-person squad has racers as young as 3-year-old
all the way up to 48.
Ridge says it’s almost unbelievable the growth this team
has seen. Originally the unit was almost completely fraternal,
the players included his son and daughter, a nephew, two
nieces, and two of his son’s friends.
Since then his daughters and nieces have left, but the team
continues to prosper. In a recent state tournament, it placed
3rd overall.
As the team continues to elevate, Ridge is reaching out to
other members of the community, especially people of color,
and explaining how the sport is one that is financially
accessible.
It doesn’t take top-of-the line equipment to get involved;
in fact the first race is free.
T hese bikes have a lot of different styles and sizes. Just —»
to get started you don’t have to spend a lot of money on a
bike to get on the track,” he says.
Once a bike’s been acquired. Ridge says you just head
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