The 2012 Schwalbe British 4x Series started in the sunshine at Leamington Spa, with such stars as 2010 Elite World Champion Thomas Slavik and DH ace Manon Carpenter in action.

Love Not Money riders were competing in several classes, with the 2012 season marking our first entry into the sport.

The Leamington track is an old BMX facility so suited riders from that background. With Saturday taken up by open practice, there was plenty of time for old hands and newcomers alike to get some quality runs in on the track with the famously relaxed 4x atmosphere meaning it seemed more like a fun day on bikes rather than essential practice.

It all helped though as come Sunday the action was intense! Slavik and fellow Elites Scott Beaumont, Lewis Lacey and Nathan Parsons all made the track look deceptively easy and Charlie Green had a great battle with Manon in the Elite Women’s class, with each showing skill from their respective main disciplines (BMX  & DH)

Martin Dorn was in action in Seniors and was riding well until a crash that left him with a handlebar to the stomach blunted his attack for the day. Shay Casey was in the thick of the action in the Juvenile class but a mechanical issue meant the first moto was his lot for the day! Rooster was riding with a back injury in Masters but made it round (albeit at the back!) to complete a quiet but positive entry into 4x racing for the team.

With a fantastic atmosphere at the event the weekend was enjoyable on and off the track. The series moves on to the fast PORC track on April 29th

Rennen Design Group are supporting the Love Not Money team by supplying us with their precision made chainrings, each one expertly crafted in the USA. Rennen is a rider owned company, dedicated to producing top quality BMX race equipment.

BMX race bikes are some of the simplest cycles out there, with one brake, one gear and no suspension, but what componentry there is must be up to scratch as BMX racing is also incredibly an demanding discipline. The Redline Flight frames the Love Not Money team uses are engineered to perfection to withstand the rigours of racing and this is the attention to detail Rennen devote to their chainrings; each one CNC machined to the tightest tolerances to create strong, lightweight and durable rings that work perfectly.

Rennen’s support allows LNM riders to adjust their gearing to suit different tracks, as well as expressing their taste with differnet colours available.

For more information on Rennen and to order, please visit

www.rennendesigngroup.com

or follow Rennen on Twitter

@RennenDesign

The third round of the BMX National Series is in the books with numbers down on the previous round but the action was as hot as the sun beating down outside.

With Cruisers kicking things off again on Saturday, followed by SX in the evening and the 20″ schedule on Sunday there was plenty to keep the Love Not Money – RSD Sports team riders occupied over the weekend.

Day one saw our boys on the big rigs all reach A Finals; Scott Dominguez racked up a 2nd in 13-14′s, Chris Potter finished 4th in 17-29, Mark Ferguson matched that with 4th in 30-34, his best ever Nationals result and Damian Mead rounded out a great day of 24″ action with 7th in 35-39. Chris also got in the mix in the Supercross racing and made it to the quarter finals, an excellent day’s work!

Sunday was a very early start as the clocks went forward, but despite the uncivilised hour the Love Not Money riders were bright eyed and bushy tailed and got stuck into the racing. Harry Ives was first up and was in mid pack in his motos but his 5th place in the semi saw him have to settle for a B Final place, where he finished 2nd.

Fin Mead was in fine form in 11′s, with wins in his first two motos. He chilled out in his 3rd and was disappointed to finish 5th… That’s some competitive streak he has… 2nd in his semi netted an A Final place and a fine 7th spot. Fin also managed to add to dad Damian’s stress levels by thinking he’d left his phone at their hotel… after much phoning of the hotel and searching, Fin remembered he’d put it in his kit bag…

Shay Casey had a day to be proud of, with a 1-1-1 through motos, 1st in his quarter and 2nd in the semi. Come final time he battled winner Euan Hunt to the line but had to settle for 2nd.

Shay battling World #4 Ross Cullen

Scott Dominguez was in the thinck of it on 20″ in 14′s and came away with 4th place for his efforts. Style for days and a big hit with the ladies.

16′s saw both Matt Saunders and Mike Njuguna in action, with both making the semi after looking good in motos (Mike with 2-2-2 and Matt with 4-4-3)  Mike made it through and went on to take 4th in the main, whilst Matt had to settle for 6th in the B.

17-24 has been the largest class of the series so far and despite an overall dip in rider numbers still attracted 37 riders for round 3. Shane Dean and Josh “Peeebz” Nicholas both made the quarters, with Peeebz pulling off berm moves in his motos that wouldn’t have looked out of place in a pro main, but neither could advance beyond that stage. Chris Potter didn’t make it out of the semi and added a 7th in the B to his weekend tally of results. Shaun Issitt took time off from his main career as official provider of SchweepStake services to the BMX Community to make it to the A Final where he was gutted to finish “only” 6th. Apparently he’s 23 but is in his 20th year of racing. Investigations haven’t been able to confirm whether he started very young or is actually a remarkably well preserved 33 year old.

Ross Gill was looking to repeat his round 2 performance of making the Main in 25-29 but was the unlucky 9th man and didn’t make the cut. Joe Davenport made it through to represent Love Not Money in the A Final and experienced some bad luck of his own unclipping whilst avoiding other riders but entertaining the crowd with a beautifully executed x-up on the 2nd straight once it was clear he couldn’t get back into contention. 7th place for Joey D on the day.

With Dave Ives forced to miss his first National race in a decade due to work committments, that wrapped it up for the LNM team in round 3. Overall the Love Not Money – RSD Sports team has moved up a place to 9th with some strong positions for several riders as we enter the oudoor part of the season; Harry lies 8th in 7′s, Fin is 7th in 11′s, Shay is an excellent 2nd in 12′s, Scott is 6th in 14′s and leads 13-14 Cruiser, Mike is 2nd in 16′s, Shaun is 6th in 17-24, Ross lies 7th and Joe 8th in 25-29, Chris is 5th in 17-29 Cruiser, Ferg is 4th in 30-34 and Damian is 8th in 35-39!

Thank you to the riders for thir effort, friends and family for the support and of course our sponsors without whom this wouldn’t be possible; RSD Sports, Redline, O’Neal, Evans Cycles, Rennen, Lizard Skins, Pedro’s and Honey Stinger.

Thanks to Rob Dean for the excellent pictures in this report (and to Tom Jeffries for the pic of Scott on Cruiser)

The National Indoor BMX Centre in Manchester has sometimes been controversial; the vast cost, the fact that it was an investment in what some consider a small sport and even the location have all been debating points in recent months. Events like the second round of the British BMX Series underline one essential fact though – the centre is a fantastic gift to BMX racing in Britain!

Weather-proofing never seemed important in our outdoor sport, but the Indoor has allowed top quality training and racing throughout the winter when many tracks are closed due to poor weather and damaged tracks. So, whilst the rain came down, the Love Not Money stars came out and shone on the track!

Round 2 saw the team debut the new race jerseys, designed by team rider Mark Ferguson who is a graphic designer in his day job with his company Very Own Studio. The tops, produced by team sponsor RSD Sports feature a superlight fabric that allows vibrant printing without distortion whilst still retaining strength, a feature tested by several team riders over the course of the weekend!

With racing switched to the same format as the British Championships, which sees Cruiser racing on Saturday and 20″ racing on Sunday, the event ran far more smoothly than the first round which was blighted by delays. Saturday night also saw another Supercross race, with Love Not Money – RSD Sports rider Chris Potter in action against some of Europe’s top pro riders, including Team GB’s Liam Phillips!

The big rigs action was every bit as intense as the small wheeled variety of Bicycle Motocross and saw Fin Mead take up the challenge in 9-12′s after some fine tuning of his Redline with our Pedro’s tool range. Fin came home with a fantastic 4th place, he’s now qualified for the 2012 World Championships in Birmingham on the 24″ as well as his 20″!

Scott Dominguez is no stranger to double duty and day one saw him in the mix in 13-14′s finishing in an excellent 3rd. Chris Potter warmed up for his crack at SX with a cracking 4th in 17-29 and Mark Ferguson rode brilliantly in 30-34, looking set to record his best finish in 4th down the last straight until a clash of wheels saw him sample the track surface and relegated to 8th.

35-39 is a tough class with all killers and no fillers! Damian Mead and Dave Ives are Love Not Money -RSD Sports’s battlers in this class and both were in the mix making it out of motos and into the hotly contested semi. Being drawn together in the same semi gave less margin for error and both riders gave it their all to try and make the main. That honour went to Dave as he crossed the line in 4th, one place of his team-mate. Damian was diappointed to miss out on the main, somehwere he’s been a regular visitor too in recent years, but a solid 7th in the B Final is a useful result when series points are tallied. Dave ended day one of his racing with 5th in the A Final.

The SX racing saw some of the most exciting action these shores have seen in a very long time, with Liam Phillips taking the win to the crowd’s delight. Chris made the monster start hill and daunting first jump look easy and finished in 40th, with 6th in motos his best placing. A great result from him, especially when you consider he’s barely ridden the pro line! BMXKit.com/Hunter Racing’s Vilma Rimsaite is co-sponsored by LNM and is no stranger to 8 metre hills and world class competition. She took 2nd in the SX on Saturday. For the record, Vilma’s favourite Honey Stinger flavour is the peanut butter energy bar!

Day two was another early start and straight into action was Harry Ives our youngest rider. “H” was looking good in motos but just missed out in a tough semi. He put a smile on everyone in the LNM team area’s faces though with a commanding win in the B Final (leaving proud dad Dave to wonder why he doesn’t do it in the semi’s too!)

Fin showed that he’s as good on his 20″ as he is on Cruiser and was once again the only rider in his 11′s motos to clear the first jump. He got a brilliant 6th in the main.

Shay Casey is well used to getting big air on the tough Indoor track and he was once again fearless in 12′s, at the front of all his races and coming home with a superb 2nd place in the Main.

Scott was also meaning business in his races, but had a tougher time on 20″ and missed out on the main. His B Final win goes some way to soothing his disappointment though!

16′s is no easy class, but Love Not Money – RSD Sports has two guys who make it their own; Matthew Saunders was looking set to make the semi in Rd 1 until an uncharacteristic error on the last straight saw him crash out. No such problems this time as he made it to the B Final and grabbed a very respectable 4th for his efforts. Keep your eye on him, he improves every round! Mike Njuguna is relaxed on and off the track – his smooth style took him all the way to the main where he took a brilliant 3rd place.

When we say 17-24 is stacked, we really mean it; 55 riders making it by far the biggest of the weekend, with 4 LNM boys in the mix! Josh Nicholas continues to improve each round, with some fantastic moto placings that show he’s a real contender. 3rd in moto 1 was followed by him sitting 2nd into the last berm in moto 2 when a clash forced him wide and took him from a comfortable qualifying position to having it all to do in moto 3. This was a moto with his team-mates Chris Potter and Shane Dean in, so all were going all out for the top 4. in 4th, 5th and 6th (Peeebz, Chris and Shane) down the 3rd straight, a rider crashed leaving no room for Peeebz and Chris to take evasive action and down they went. O’neal kit and RSD jerseys dusty but undamaged, they picked themselves up and headed for the line.

Shane and Chris had done enough to make the quarters but Peeebz had to steel himself for a run off. battered from the crash, he missed out on the quarters by a place. Shaun Issitt had been faring better then his team-mates and was the only LNM rider to make it to the semis, but he was disappointed not to make the Main. 1st in the B Final made him the best of the rest on the day though.

Ross Gill and Joe Davenport are our men in 25-29, a small but nevertheless fast and physical class where no quarter is asked for or given! Joe improved his results every moto, but couldn’t make the Main. Ross may give away size to several of the riders in the class, but what he lacks in stature he more than makes up for with speed and determination. Battling to the A Final he finished with a great 6th place. Both riders had done enough to qualify for the World Championships!

Masters is an incredible class; full of riders with talent and years of experience of top competition on the big stage. The first round featured former Elite World Champion Dale Holmes taking the win, Round 2 saw “Doc Smooth” Dylan Clayton take the spoils. Quality field from top to bottom. Dave was in the mix all the way through and 2nd in the B Final in such illustrious company is a fantastic result! He also added qualification to the Worlds on 20″ to his spot on Cruiser.

Overall, a fantastic weekend of action with a brilliant team atmosphere in the tents. Thank you to 2024 Magazine’s ace photographer Spencer Moret for the superb pics of the Love Not Money riders in action and a massive thank you to our super sponsors RSD Sports, O’Neal, Evans Cycles, Pedro’s, Lizard Skins, Honey Stinger and Rennen, without whom we couldn’t do this!

The Love Not Money – RSD Sports team finished with impressive results in round 2 of the series at the National Indoor BMX Centre in Manchester.

With record numbers of riders signing up to compete, the action was switched from the planned double header to a format matching the British Championships; with Cruiser racing on Saturday and 20″ on Sunday. A mind blowing 890 entries from 770 riders took to the track over both days.

The Supercross race on Saturday evening saw some of the best riders in Europe take on the fearsome 8 metre hill, and we’re proud to say LNM’s Chris Potter signed up and finished a fantastic 40th in his debut SX race!!!

Overall, Love Not Money riders entered 19 National Series classes in round 2 and finished with; 9 A Final places (3 podiums) and 6 B Final places (4 podiums, 3 wins).

Thank you to our sponsors RSD Sports, O’Neal, Evans Cycles, Honey Stinger, Lizard Skins, Pedro’s and Rennen for the help and support!

The first ever National race at the £24million Indoor BMX Centre attracted the biggest rider turnout in over a decade with 710 signing up to face the challenging track. At stake was the glory of winning a National round as well as the prize of qualification for this year’s World Championships.

With Saturday’s Supercross showcase race having set the standard high, Sunday saw the action begin early with the Cruisers and youngest riders up first. Harry Ives had a great day in 7′s with a superb 2nd in the B Final to show for his efforts. He may be young but he didn’t seem overawed at the track or the scale of the event!

Fin Mead was LNM’s next rider up, hailing from Somerset he hasn’t had chance to get to grips with the track like his northern team-mates but that didn’t show as he rode brilliantly to a B Final win in 11′s. Mark Ferguson was representing in 30-34 and got through to the main taking 7th, a solid start to his season and his goal of at least 6th overall in the class. Damian Mead was right in the mix in the tough 35-39 class, making the main and coming away with 7th. He finished 4th overall the last two seasons so is a real contender in the class.

Shay Casey and Scott Dominguez were both doing double duty on 20″ and Cruiser meaning they had a very long day! Shay took the 9-12′s National Series title in 2011 so rode up in 13-14′s, alongside new team-mate Scott, for more challenge. Both riders made the track look easy with incredible skills on display delighting their fellow LNM riders and other spectators. On the big rigs, they made the A Final with room to spare and Scott narrowly lost out to Talent Team rider Paddy Sharrock, no stranger to the Manchester facility! Shay took 7th to round off a great day on 24″ wheels for the boys.

On 20′s they were in fine form too, with Shay getting the team’s best result of the day in the shape of 2nd place in 12′s. Scott made the A Final in 14′s  and came home in 5th, both are riders to keep an eye on not only for their results but the way they fearlessly jump the track!

16′s is a tough class with a lot of young talent. Love Not Money has two who rank up there with the best of them in Matt Saunders and new team-mate Mike Njuguna. Motos were no problem for either rider and they were drawn in the same quarter final. Matt was running 2nd with Mike 3rd down the final straight when an uncharacteristic crash left Matt in the dirt and out of the semi. 29th was his result but his riding on the day rated a much higher place. Mike went on to make the A Final and a strong ride netted him a great 5th place.

The posse of Love Not Money riders we have in 17-24 were in the thick of the action with Shaun Issitt taking time off from his busy schedule of interviewing other riders for the official edit of the weekend (the camera loves him) to make the main. Peeebz was storming through his motos to the delight of his team-mates with a 3-3-2 to make the quarters, where a 5th place left him disappointed not to advance further. His riding shows his potential and he’ll be hungry to build on a great opening round performance. Shane Dean is one of the youngest in the class and certainly felt like he needs some weetabix as he rode well but went out in the quarters finishing 25th for the day. He’s got bags of talent so will come back brighter!

Chris Potter was doing double duty and had encountered the rigidity of the stewards earlier in the day when they refused to allow him to get his bike in time to make his semi in 17-29. He compensated somewhat by winning the B on the big rig. On his smaller wheeled bike he impressed by making the B Final where he grabbed 6th place. Shaun took 5th in the A Final behind riders who raced Elite last year, showing he’s one of the contenders in the class. Overall out of 52 riders (by far the largest class on the day) LNM riders took 5th, 14th, 17th and 25th.

25-29 had two of The Brotherhood in the mix, it’s a small but physical class and Joe Davenport survived an interesting experience where he was forced to transition from the pro line to avoid a crash. He missed out on the final by a single point and vowed to come back stronger next round. Ross Gill was in his first National action since a very nasty crash at Redditch last year, he took 11th on the day in a solid outing.

Dave Ives was back on his preffered 20″ after a year spent focusing on Cruiser in 2011. He was always in the hunt in a super tough Masters class, which featured the likes of Dale Holmes, Dylan Clayton, Daz Reidy, Alan Hill and Tony Fleming, all World class riders. Three of last year’s top eight didn’t make it out of motos. Now that’s a tough class… Dave made the B Final and ended 5th, a brilliant result that validates his decision to return to the little bike.

Overall, Love Not Money had 15 riders in 18 classes and finished with 8 A-Final appearances and 5 B Final appearances including 2 wins!

With the countdown well underway to the 2012 BMX World Champs at the NIA in Birmingham, the website has all the details for riders and spectators;

http://www.bmxworldchamps.com/

It’s taken a while, but it was worth the wait! The Love Not Money clothing range is now available to buy online. The format for now is an interim shop whilst we sort the tech stuff out; check out the pages for Men’s, Women’s and Hoodies and get in touch at rooster@lovenotmoney.net we’ll check stock, calculate postage and reply with PayPal payment details.

The Children’s range will be online soon!

It’s now just under nine weeks until the first race of the 2012 British BMX Series

The event will be held at the fabilous new National Indoor BMX Centre in Manchester, £20million worth of BMX race goodness. It’ll be the same format as the British Championships; Cruisers on Saturday and 20″ on Sunday to give the venue chance to run a National without the added stress of a double header weekend.

This traditional double header format will return for the next rounds of the Series, also held at the Indoot Centre, on February 18th & 19th.

The 2011 National Series came to a thrilling climax in Manchester, with Love Not Money – RSD Sports claiming a title and capping the season in style.

Manchester was the finale to a brilliant year of National Series racing for LNM; as we’ve proved we’re a force on the circuit with race wins, high finishes and many finals appearances.

Shay Casey clinched the 9-12 Cruiser title with two wins, giving him 7 out of 8 (with a 2nd place in that round) for the season in a class he only picked up later in the year! Shay also rode brilliantly on 20″ all year, finishing 4th overall.

Roy Sutton has been battling all year with Dave Ives for the title in 30-34, with the wins divided between the two of them. Despite winning 3 rounds and never finishing worse than 2nd, Sutty lost out to Dave for the overall title.

Shane Dean clinched 8th overall in 16′s with a great weekend of riding, making the main on Sunday. Shane has been pushing himself hard this season and has suffered more than a few crashes as a result but always picks himself up!

Matt Saunders ended the year on a high too with some excellent riding at his home track, netting high finishes in his motos and a great weekend at his home track making the A Final on Saturday (7th) and the B on Sunday. Matty continues to develop as a rider and has a bright future as he’ll be moving up to 16′s next year.

Matty Glynn has continued his progression in his first year on 20″, with a pair of B Final appearances in Manchester. Since making the switch from Cruiser, he’s become comfortable on the smaller bike and has acquitted himself well in the tough 17-24 class.

Shaun Issitt is still out with an injury but finished 18th overall, with Matty 19th,  in 17-24, after only racing 4 rounds! He’ll be back in the class next year which may see a change to 17-29. Ross Gill and James Tresman also missed the Manchester rounds with injuries but like Shaun are aiming to come back brighter in 2012.

Thank you to our sponsors RSD Sports, One, O’Neal, Honey Stinger, Deb, Sutty’s Hoops and Very Own Studio for the support. Next up; THE BRITS!

all pictures in this report courtesy of Rob Dean