Village bike track to take world stage

Iván Diaz Burlinson said the race festival would be the biggest event that has even been held in Chopwell

A bike track built for village children during lockdown will soon be used for an international competition.

Chopwell, in Gateshead, will join Kathmandu, Colorado, Abu Dhabi and Cape Town as one of the venues used for qualifier races in the Velosolutions UCI Pump Track World Championships.

Community group Ride Chopwell helped bring the race to the village and will host a two-day festival, where riders of all ages and abilities can compete.

The group's chairman Iván Diaz Burlinson said: "This is literally a world-class track, it rivals the best in the world and it has just been heaving ever since it opened."

Mr Diaz Burlinson said he set up Ride Chopwell to give something back to his community.

He said, like many villages, Chopwell lacked things for children to do, so he made sure the pump track was designed to cater for all levels of ability.

Pump tracks are designed to be ridden without much pedalling and rely on riders "pumping" their arms and legs to generate speed as they travel around high corners and over rollers.

Chopwell's facilities include a white track for beginners and a red track for more advanced riders.

Chopwell pump track has a white course for beginners and a red course for more confident riders

"You can ride it as a beginner or as a pro rider and the great thing about the design of this track is it can be used like a skate park," Mr Diaz Burlinson said.

"So you can get laps in, you can jump on it or you can use it for tricks.

"We get parents and their kids all riding together and we've got local BMX racers who come down to use it for their training."

The festival will take place on the weekend of 14-15 June and will include live music, food vendors and merchandising stalls.

Saturday will feature races for junior riders, those over 40, and for those with scooters.

The elite races will take place on Sunday and the four fastest men and women will win a place in the finals in Switzerland.

New generation

But despite the high profile race taking place in the village, Mr Diaz Burlinson's main priority has always been for the track to benefit locals.

He came up with the idea for a track more than five years ago and, with backing from Gateshead Council, the track officially opened in 2020 during lockdown.

Since then, a new generation of riders has grown up around it.

Ashton is one of many children who ride scooters and bikes on the track

Ashton, a regular at the track, said: "It's really fun to socialise with your friends and ride all around the red track and go up over the hills."

Ten-year-old Tom and his brother Felix, seven, will both be competing in the junior event next month.

"It's exciting," Tom said.

"It's just a really good thing for all the community to get together."

Tom and his younger brother Felix will be taking part in the festival's junior competition

Mr Diaz Burlinson hopes having an international competition on their doorstep will be inspirational for young riders.

"It's going to be amazing for the community," he said.

"It gives local kids the chance to compete on their local track.

"It's going to be about the biggest event that's ever happened in Chopwell."