As he waited in line approaching the starting gate for his first moto of the evening, Jacob Robinson’s gloved hands anxiously gripped and regripped the handlebars of his shiny Redline bike.

The rosy-cheeked 4-year-old from Cottage Grove was ready to roll.

”Rrrrooom! Rrrrooom!” he growled.

Through the face opening in his multicolored racing helmet, it was apparent that little Jacob was experiencing some double-barreled nasal leakage – nothing uncommon among kids of his age, and certainly nothing that was going to distract him as he engaged in his first media interview.

”Yep,” he said when asked if he enjoyed BMX racing.

Jacob is a young man of unlimited energy – but few words. Soon, he was out of the gate and pedaling as fast as his tiny legs would go, one of scores of riders racing Saturday night at Smith Rock BMX in Redmond.

The competition was part of the four-day BMX palooza billed as the Thousand Point Weekend, which concluded Monday afternoon with racing at High Desert BMX in Bend.

Hundreds of riders from throughout the region and beyond took part in the American Bicycle Association event. Jacob Robinson was among the youngest.

”He has four older brothers and sisters racing here,” said Jason Robinson, Jacob’s dad. ”And his mom races too.”

The Robinsons are a typical BMX family.

They routinely race five days a week, on their home track in Cottage Grove, south of Eugene, and at other nearby facilities up and down Interstate 5. Jason said they thought nothing of tossing their gear – thousands of dollars worth of bikes, helmets, jerseys, racing pants, pads and other protective devices – into their 15-passenger van and driving to Central Oregon for the holiday weekend.

They were only part of the throng of riders and families taking part in the big BMX festival.

”Every year, we’ve grown in numbers for this event,” said Tim Walker of Bend’s High Desert BMX, noting that the 2004 races marked the fourth annual Memorial Day weekend series here.

Walker added that competitors came to Central Oregon from all over Oregon, as well as from Washington, Idaho and California. On Sunday, he said, the Bend facility was host to a track-record 274 riders racing in 57 motos (flights) in a double-points state championship qualifier.

Saturday night in Redmond, track officials said nearly 300 riders were on hand to race in a triple-point Redline Cup qualifier. And while the points were the big attraction, better race conditions also contributed to the influx of riders.

”It’s raining in the (Willamette) Valley,” said John Skelly of Smith Rock BMX. ”That brings ’em all over here.”

And he meant all: Young and old, male and female, in classes from novice to cruiser to pro.

”A lot of it (the draw) is the tracks,” said 24-year-old Adam Treadwell, an A Pro Class rider from Portland. ”And it’s the people you’re there with and racing with. Good competition makes it fun.”

Treadwell found plenty of competition. Waging a weekend battle with Danny Joyce of Maple Valley, Wash., Treadwell placed first Sunday night in Redmond after finishing second to Joyce in pro-class racing Saturday night at the Smith Rock track and again in Sunday’s daytime action at High Desert BMX.

Walker said that while both local BMX organizations are thriving, there is opportunity for more racers to join in the fun. He explained that about all one needs to get started riding bicycle motocross, in addition to a bike, is a protective helmet, a long-sleeved shirt, long-legged pants and, Walker recommends, riding gloves.

Though many racers invest hundreds of dollars or more in their bicycles, bikes need not be expensive or fancy. In fact, said Walker, just about any bike will do, so long as it is equipped with the proper pads and has no reflectors or other items that could potentially break off the bike and become a hazard on the track.

Additional personal padding and safety accessories, while optional, are a good idea, based on some of the knee-scraping, elbow-skinning, body-bruising accidents that were part of this weekend’s action in Central Oregon.

”We have 5-and-under (age) classes, and we had some riders who were over 50 here,” said Walker, himself a competitor in the Thousand Point Weekend. ”There’s no limitation, if you want to get on a bike and go.”

Contacts for High Desert BMX are Walker, at 383-1062, or Sunny Harmeson, at 317-0680. The contact at Smith Rock BMX is Skelly, at 815-2174, 548-1460, or 548-4540.

”Anybody’s welcome to come out at any time,” said Walker. ”And once they come out and give it a try, I can just about guarantee they’re gonna get hooked.”

Bill Bigelow can be reached at 541-383-0359 or bbigelow@bendbulletin.com.