As the last seconds of the final lap around the bike track come, Jayden Powell (12) pedals towards a victory for the Southeast Gold Cup Champions. Powell comes home from Dothan, Ala. with two gold cups, adding on to her collection of state champion plates. One day, eight-year-old Powell saw bikers racing at a track near her house while she was on the way to school. This sight was the beginning of her accomplished career as a high school professional bike rider. “[While driving] I asked my mom to stop and told her I want to start racing,” Powell said.

Powell and her parents were introduced to  Bicycle Motor Cross (BMX) Memphis at Shelby Farms Park, where she started biking and learning tactics and skills of racing, eventually creating a familial relationship with her teammates. 

“[After we stopped] and watched, one of the riders came over and talked to me and my parents about what [BMX] does and what it’s about,” Powell said. “He encouraged us to come back.”

A BMX career requires a large time commitment and a great amount of effort and work, not only from the rider but from the parents and guardians as well. Powell’s parents have committed just as much as she has, purchasing bikes and helmets, providing transportation and supporting her along the way.

“I got my first race bike for my 9th birthday [from my parents],” Powell said. “My parents put a whole lot of money on buying me things that I need.”

The boys to girls ratio at BMX is 5:2, with the youngest rider being three years old and oldest 80 years old.

“You race anybody…I [had to] race 60 and 70 year olds at a local race,” Powell said. “They are extremely fast for their age.”

Powell spent most of her summer days preparing for the new season with her dad, who is the track operator. Every summer, the slurry — a glue, clay, and sand mixture — and asphalt needs to be removed and replaced with a new layer. This removal and preparation took four months, and some days the Powells had to work for 12 hours a day.

“I mainly helped my dad and the other board members where I could, like pulling up slurry and asphalt, running a skid steer to move stuff, and all parts of the slurry process,” Powell said. “We had a lot of weather problems so we had to go back through [several times] and [add] some finishing touches.”

Crystal Davis, Powell’s former chemistry teacher, expressed how proud she is of Powell for doing this exhausting sport. 

“Just the advanced physicality of it and plus the strategy in the competitions [is a mental challenge],” Davis said. “[But] she is extremely passionate about this sport [and] I’m so glad she is doing it.”

While racing at an expert level, the chances of a biker running into another biker and causing injuries is very high. Powell mentioned getting several bruises, bumps, and cuts from practices and races. Besides the physical struggles, like many athletes, Powell had to overcome the emotional and mental challenges. 

“[I do feel nervous] when biking but you build up the mentality of ‘If I rack out, I will just back up and do it again.’”

Nevertheless, the enjoyment Powell feels while biking overcomes all the struggles she faces. 

“Riding distracts me from what is going on in life and gives me a group of people I can connect with,” Powell said.