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Sport

Caroline chases Olympic dream

February 3, 2012
Caroline chases Olympic dream

They're three simple words Caroline Buchanan hopes can inspire her to Olympic glory.

But the phrase ''chasing dreams Dane'' embroidered on her race kit is so much more than a slice of motivation ahead of the London Olympics.

It's a tribute to one of Buchanan's best friends - Dane Searls - who died on the Gold Coast after falling from a hotel balcony in December.

The pain and heartache of losing someone so close is still raw.

That's why Buchanan had her Olympic inspiration stitched into her racing pants.

The BMX star wants to make sure Searls is with her as she pursues the gold medal she desperately craves.

''I think about him every day, he's a big inspiration for what I'm trying to do,'' Buchanan said as the emotion of Searls' death hit her again.

''He was one of my closest friends and chasing dreams is something he always said, so I'm following it.

''I've never gone through something like this before ... I've had family members pass away, but not so close to me and so unexpected.

''It's emotionally draining and it's a shock, but I've got that little quote from Dane for my inspiration.''

The emotions will come flooding back tonight when former BMX Games champion Cam White dedicates his Hillside Dirt Jam at Wamboin to Searls' memory.

Adrenaline junkies will flock to the backyard jumps at White's property for the competition of high-flying stunts, which is in its sixth year.

It was an event Searls dominated. He was crowned ''king of the hill'' the three times he competed.

That's why there will be a sombre touch to this year's event.

A group of daredevils who spend their lives living on the edge and doing backflips 10m in the air will likely be reduced to tears.

Buchanan will be trackside, as will Searls' mum Jenni and brother Ryan.

But the 21-year-old Canberra rider won't be launching herself off the massive jumps.

Her goal this year is to make it to London.

It has been her main focus since BMX was added to the Olympic program for the Beijing Games in 2008.

Despite being supremely talented, Buchanan was too young to go to China.

For the past four years she has been patiently biding her time, sacrificing the ''normal life'' to ensure she peaks this year.

She desperately wants to win gold. And if she continues her recent form, she will be one of the main contenders.

Buchanan is ranked No.2 in the world and has been ramping up her training in Canberra.

The ACT Academy of Sport athlete has never lacked motivation.

But losing Searls put everything in perspective.

Only days before Searls died, he conquered his biggest hurdle - a world-first backflip off a 20m dirt-to-dirt jump.

''He achieved his biggest goal and my biggest goal is winning that Olympic gold,'' Buchanan said.

''You can't count your good friends on one hand and he was definitely one of my closest.

''He'll always be close to my heart. I'm excited for this weekend, it's going to be like a celebration jam for Dane.''

White is credited with helping Searls make the transition to massive dirt jumps. The pair became close when Searls would travel to stay with White in Las Vegas and they would return to Australia to build jumps at Wamboin.

Searls became a pioneer of BMX jumps and he finished his ''giants of dirt'' project before he died.

The idea of the project was to construct the world's biggest jumps west of Brisbane.

The four jumps in a row were 10m, 11m, 15m and 18m.

There will be a moment of silence before the competition begins and White has renamed the trophy the Dane Searls King of the Hill.

''He was just a normal dude riding like the rest of us, but after a competition in Whistler in 2006 he just went to a different level to everyone else,'' White said.

''He was so comfortable on such big jumps and not scared to throw massive tricks off massive jumps.

''Searlsy would make the rest of us look like amateur kids, he was that far beyond everyone else and no one could touch him [at Wamboin].''

White is still trying to make sense of Searls' death. But while the event is about paying tribute to his mate, he doesn't want to dwell on the sadness.

''Searlsy wouldn't want it that way,'' White said. ''He was unbelievable, an inspiration to any rider out there. And this is his yard. He rode it better than anyone I've seen.

''It's tragic and what happened sucks, but Searlsy wouldn't want us being here upset, he would want us to start throwing down as best we can. And that's what we'll do.''