BMX
C
arley Young has represented her
hometown across the nation
and the world—having won
local, regional, state, national and world
championship titles in BMX racing. Here
in Pittsburgh, she strives to inspire others
to give her passion a try and find a new
hobby in BMX racing.
Carley Young, 35, lives in Forest
Hills with her boyfriend and their two
dogs—Harley and Louie. Young was
born in Philadelphia and has lived in
Florida, North Carolina and eventually
Pittsburgh. “My moves have always been
centered on benefiting my cycling career
and finding places where I can ride all
year round,” she says.
When Young graduated from high
school, she and her mother opened an
Adult Family Care Home to take care of
her grandmother. She went on to study
Small Business along with Fitness and
Nutrition in college, but when she moved
to North Carolina, she decided to go back
to school for Web Design and Interactive
Media. Now, “Living in Pittsburgh and
getting a teaching job has inspired me to
go back to college for Early Childhood
Education,” says Young. Today, she is
a full-time educator at the JCC in
Squirrel Hill.
Young started racing BMX when she
was just 6 years old. “I tried other team
sports and they never seemed to fit quite
right,” she says. Young began racing in
Philadelphia at a track called Bensalem
BMX. “I lived most of my childhood at
the BMX track since that is the place I
was most comfortable being myself,” she
recalls. “I loved racing because it allowed
me to express how I felt inside and I
could be myself on my bicycle.”
Since that time, Young has won many
local, state, regional, national and world
titles. When she turned 16, she began
racing professionally and started to earn
cash prizes instead of trophies. After a
very successful professional career, in
2016 Young decided to reclassify and race
amateur again. “Since the professional
racing scene was more geared toward the
Olympics, I wanted to take my cycling in
a different approach,” she says.
“I love to inspire, motivate and educate females in the cycling
community. I coach all over the U.S. and even overseas for some
World Championship events. I have girls all over the country
wearing the Ride Like A Girl jerseys proudly. I’m thankful to be
able to give back to a sport that has given so much to me.”
Young and other BMXers are thankful
to have two open-to-the-public tracks
in Pittsburgh. One is Westmoreland
BMX located in Northmoreland Park in
Apollo, and the other is South Park BMX
located in Bethel Park. When the weather
is cold and riders need someplace to
practice, they head indoors to The Wheel
Mill located in Homewood. “We have a
thriving BMX scene in Pittsburgh and
have brought home many titles to this
great city,” notes Young.
She does a lot within the BMX
community to help grow women’s cycling
as well. From coaching BMX racers to
perform their best, whether male or
female, to teaching kids how to ride
bikes for the first time at The Wheel Mill,
Young strives to inspire young athletes.
She has her own team called Ride
Like A Girl. “My mission is if you’re
going to ride like a girl, then ride like
the best,” says Young. “I love to inspire,
motivate and educate females in the
cycling community. I coach all over the
U.S. and even overseas for some World
Championship events. I have girls all over
the country wearing the Ride Like A Girl
jerseys proudly. I’m thankful to be able
to give back to a sport that has given so
much to me.”
Young represented Team USA
in this year’s world championships,
held in Brussels, Belgium, in July. She
traveled with another Pittsburgh family
overseas to compete in her age group.
“Unfortunately my tire blew out and I
did not make it to the final eight, who
receive world championship awards, this
year,” she says. “It was a great experience
though, and I trained and pushed myself
really hard for this race.
“Racing has molded me into the
woman I am today and I’m thankful that
my brother introduced me to this sport,”
Young continues. “Riding a bicycle
gives you freedom to make decisions
and feel in control of the direction you
are heading. The community of people
who are in the sport are amazing and the
people I met on my first days at the track
I am still friends with today.”
She was scheduled to spend
Thanksgiving weekend in Tulsa,
Oklahoma, at the biggest race of the year,
competing to be the national champion
in both 31-40 women and 31-35 women’s
cruiser, and adds, “My mother at 60 just
decided she was going to start racing, and
it is amazing to get in the gate and ride
with her after all the years she supported
me on the sidelines.” n
WOODLAND HILLS
❘
WINTER 2019
11