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CLUB HISTORY

Centenary Plains BMX Club

1985 – Saturday race day.

Saturday race day 1985

Centenary Plains BMX Club started in 1983, only 3 years after BMX Queensland formed as an organisation.  Local Youth living in the developing area presented a petition to Logan City Council for a BMX track.  Land was allocated at Waller Road, Browns Plains and machinery supplied to shape the basic design but due to lack of interest nothing further developed. 

 

In November 1984, a parent whose son was already involved in BMX and new residents to the area, stumbled across the overgrown complex by accident.  Consultation with the local council followed and once again they stuck their necks out by supplying a drott in February 1985 to rough out a track to a new design.  Parental interest was still non-existent and local kids had become sceptics, but with a bit of coaxing, no money for machinery and a lot of broken promises by some operators approached.  Work continued over the next few months with a group of approximately fifteen or so local kids, armed with picks, shovels and wheelbarrows.

In July 1985, Ian Tremble, Jos Custers and John Clifton made an appearance at the track and along with Don MacLachlan formed a committee.  Don MacLachlan as President, Jos Custers as Treasurer, Dot Clifton as Canteen Convener (from a tent), Steve Greep as Track Maintenance and the Project Officer was Anne Codega.

 

Local Bobcat operator Glen Sweeney donated several hours of his time and with a hefty donation of concrete from the then Pioneer Concrete Browns Plains, it was professional worked by a Beenleigh concreter Joe Moratti and a state of the art starting gate was built and donated by Jos Custers. This saw a dream realised and the first official race meeting for the then Browns Plains BMX Club occured  in September 1985, boasting 56 riders.

Looking down the third straight into the last corner. 1986

The Club was successful for the next 10 years producing State, National and World Champions.  In 1995 it hosted its first Qld Title's and has held many major events over the years. Until 1998, when the club had no one to fill the committee positions and was on the brink of closing down.  Centenary BMX Club had been running since 1980.  It was originally situated at Mt Ommaney Jindalee and moved to the bottom of Sumner Park in the early to mid 1980’s.  The club struck a problem in 1998 when Brisbane City Council resumed land the club was situated on.  Centenary BMX Club Committee members Eroll and Kaylene Domin put their heads together with the only committee member left from Browns Plains Club, Anne Codega and come up with the obvious solution.  Browns Plains BMX Club had the venue and no committee and Centenary BMX Club had a committee and no venue.  The two clubs merged and the Club was renamed Centenary Plains BMX Club in 1998.  The rest is History.

 

8 year boys first straight 1985

March 1986, saw 90 riders regularly competing with numbers peaking at 117,  For the clubs first open day in May 1986. The club managed to procure a major sponsorship from the equally new and very modern Sunnyhill Tavern (soon to be renamed as the Runcorn Tavern) With encouragement from the Southern Zone, Butch Broomfield and the support of nearly every club in the South QLD, one of  the biggest Open Day  ever held in this era was realised, with a total of 522 competitors. 

 

The club grew fast in the next 2 years, with the introduction of a canteen, lights, a state of the art Selby Electric Starting Gate mechanism (replacing the old foot pedal start ) and a commentary tower to call all the action.  

Start hill and second corner. 1987

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