2011 INDUCTEE JIM ROWLETTE

ABA BMX Track Operator During The Early Days of BMX in Nebraska

Jim Rowlette was a pioneer in the sport during the early days of Bicycle Motocross racing. Jim’s son Chris began racing at the Gnarlsbad BMX track in 1981 and soon Jim was hooked on BMX just like his son. Jim became friends with Chris and TJ Heyden who operated the Gnarlsbad track and volunteered many hours to help run the races. In 1985 when there was no track in Omaha, Jim began the effort of finding a location for a new track. A perfect location was found and Jim’s Bellevue BMX track became a reality. In 1988 the Bellevue location was unavailable and Jim found a new location in Papillion, Nebraska. Jim ran the Papillion track until the early 1990’s. Without Jim’s dedication to BMX, hard work and long hours, BMX may have faded away in the Omaha area. He and his son Chris kept BMX alive and strong in Nebraska during the 1980’s. Jim was inducted into the Nebraska BMX Hall of Fame on August 27th, 2011.