Gawler BMX Club members will be able to pedal a little faster following a $25,000 boost to their fundraising efforts thanks to a State Government grant. The Club is proposing to invest over $100,000 to upgrade their Willaston track and facilities to improve safety and increase use. Club representatives met with Local Member of Parliament, Tony Piccolo seeking his support to fill the $25,000 gap in their fundraising. Mr Piccolo wrote to the Minister outlining the Club’s case and stating that given the number of children and families involved, support was certainly worthy of consideration. Mr Piccolo said the Club sought assistance to “ensure the future operations of the club at a standard that is both safe, financially sustainable and attractive to new participants.” Mr Piccolo added that “the Gawler BMX club is an open track, meaning that the public can access the track every day of the week.” “Projects the club undertakes are priMarily to improve the safety of the facility and this has made this track very popular and used extensively by local families,” Mr Piccolo said. The club’s membership is just under 200 children, is very family orientated, has a strong focus on encouraging girls to participate, and the number of children with disabilities such a partial blindness, motor function disorders and mild to severe autism is steadily increasing. BMX is an international sport and with Australia gaining a high profile at the 2012 Olympics, this exposure has flowed onto the local BMX clubs, with the popularity of the sport increasing significantly in recent years. Club Treasurer Mr Tim Pengilly said “for children, BMX is a great pathway to other cycling disciplines and many great Australian cyclists (road and track) started their cycling careers in BMX racing. Mr Pengilly cited local Gawler residents Miles and Callum Scotson who were very keen Gawler BMX riders are now achieving great results in world track cycling. “BMX is a sport that can suit multiple members of one family. We have a number of families where one (or both parents) ride in the older BMX classes while their child(ren) ride in the younger classes,” Mr Pengilly said. “We currently have one family with three generations riding at our local race meets. It is a sport that encourages family participation. “Earlier this year, the Club successfully hosted the South Australian Titles with over 500 competitors from around the country and despite the 40 degree weather, there was a huge amount of support from the local community. Overall the project includes the installation of lights, laying of bitumen berms and the refurbishment of the track surface. Mr Piccolo said once this work is complete, it will ultimately result in a more sustainable, high quality and safety first facility and one of the best tracks in the State