TITUSVILLE, Pa. (EYT) — As spring approaches, the board members and the competitors from one local racing venue are looking ahead to the start of a new season.
Drake Well BMX is a BMX bike racing track located in Titusville, Pa. It was founded by the late Rick Hipwell in 1979. Rick was employed by Cyclops Steel, the company that donated the land now known as the Ed Myer Complex along Allen Street in Titusville. Rick, his son Ricky, and a friend, Mark Biertciel, approached the city council about the project and were granted approval. With the help of other friends, including Lodge Biertciel, Ray Zunchinni, and Tom Shreve, the track was built, and racing began under the sanctioning of the Eastern Bicycle Association (EBA).
Rick Hipwell passed away in 1988, and the EBA folded in 1989, but Drake Well BMX was still going strong. Along with all of the other tracks in the region, it joined the sanction of the National Bicycle League (NBL), and the racing continued.