The Cauley's: Texas State BMX Finals

This past weekend we went to Desoto (outside of Dallas) for the state BMX championship. On Saturday they had a double points race, which we wanted the boys (we were there with Jeanette and Ethan...Larry came up Saturday night) to race to get used to the track and to check out the competition. He was in 1st in the first moto but the kid in 2nd place ran into him and they both crashed. He qualified in the 2nd moto and took 2nd place in the main. And then there was the stomach cramp. Jacob immediately started complaining of a stomach cramp when he came off the track after the main. It quickly escalated and he was doubled over in pain, which we are not used to seeing with him. At that point I (Shane) decided we needed to see the paramedics seeing as how Jacob was writhing in pain. I carried him to where I thought we would find them on site (they are usually there for big races) but couldn't find them. I asked a track official and they called the paramedics for us. Luckily there was a firestation literally next door to the park. About 5 minutes or less later a fire truck and ambulance roll into the park. Jacob's pain had subsided a fair amount and they checked him over and decided it was just a cramp. Better safe than sorry as they say. Jacob recovered quickly and was like new less than an hour later.

Sunday was the big race. We had to be there at 8am. Racing started at 11am and didn't end until about 3pm. We had so much fun watching the kids race. Jacob had a bad gate (meaning he came unclipped and was in the back of the pack) in the 1st moto. He qualified in the 2nd moto in 1st place. He took 2nd place in the main. Basically what that means is that he is ranked 2nd in the state of Texas for his class....8 intermediate. The kid that beat him was racing at his home track and is also the only other 8 intermediate kid faster than Jacob in the state. Actually he did win but you will see in the video that Jacob is the faster of the two riders judging by the 1st and 2nd straightaways. Jacob just got out maneuvered in the turns and rhythm section by the local kid who knows the track. This is called local track advantage :-)

We are so proud of him. He is very fast on his bike. What he lacks at this age is strategy. That is something that is learned and we can already see him learning some. Here is a video of the main event. Jacob is in lane 3 from the right out of the gate and is first into turn 1, then the race get's very interesting. He is wearing the white/orange/turquoise team jersey.

Bryce did really well both days at the track. He just checked out all the people and did lot's of smiling. Unfortunately, nighttime was not as pleasant. Sleeping in the same room with a 4 month old that doesn't sleep through the night is not easy. Essentially, we threw all the sleep training out the window. Every time he made a peep we plugged him with a pacifier. It wasn't all bad, but we were tired when we got home. Our friend Jeannette was a big help with Bryce at the track (Thanks Jeannette!) Also, our friends, really more like family, Sherry, Jack and Steven from Dallas came to watch Jacob race. It was cool to have them there and Sherry won the 50/50 drawing for $250! Made the trip well worth it for her. Here are some pics of the weekend.

Chillin' like a villain...