Bill Bethsold ignored that rule.

His first gift to his son Troy was the jersey he wore 30 years ago when he was a BMX rider.

Troy is now one of the top 10 BMX riders in the country for his age. He is 10 years old.

I had the privilege of spending a recent Saturday morning with Troy Bethsold at the BMX track. The dirt track was beautifully manicured and every bump, jump and turn was perfectly watered down, packed and ready to go.

It was a great morning, that is, until they handed me a bike to ride. Now the bumps and hills looked like gigantic cliffs. And, I learned real quick that these bikes come with only one brake. This was on the right-hand grip of the handle bar. Everyone knows that a bike has two hand brakes; one for each hand, right?

My greatest challenge as I negotiated each upcoming jump was to pedal fast enough to get up the hill but not too fast to actually get "air." I wanted to live to write about my first BMX experience.

Troy takes those jumps with a tad more speed than I do. He loves to get air. As a matter of fact, I saw him get enough speed and air to fly over two consecutive hills.

Troy started riding when he was 7 years old. He practices every Wednesday night and competes on the weekends.

"He has a ton of friends out there, and it's kind of like our family," said Nancy, Troy's mom. "We love the competition because it is an individual sport. He has his own destiny. The harder he trains, the better he becomes."

While I was at the track, there was even a group of kids that came for a birthday party. Riding BMX bikes on a competition track: a much better idea than Pin the Tail on the Donkey.

The bonus feature: No referees or coaches for parents to yell at.a

What a great sport for kids. Competition, physical training, lots of life skills, discipline, skill development, relationships, all wrapped up in a bike and a track.

Troy competed in the Grands in Tulsa, Okla., in November, the big national event for BMX every year. He finished fourth.

I got to see his room filled with trophies. He has over 100 trophies after only three years of riding. These trophies fill all his bookshelves and take up over half of the floor.

"What are you going to do when you win more trophies? Where are you going to put them all?" I asked him.

"Mom and Dad need to buy a bigger house." Troy answered.

You just can't get away from the high price of youth sports!