Nice! What shutter speed? You got it perfect. There's just a little bit of blur on the rider and everything else is totally smeared. I love that! I like the expression on the rider's face, too.
I can't tell if you did, but it doesn't look like you used any flash. I generally set my exposure a little dark for a shot like this and use the flash to make the rider pop more.
Photo-John
John, I was trying shutter speeds from 1/20 to 1/80 and I had the most success around 1/60 to 1/80 with this one taken at 1/80. I only tried a few using flash, which did give them some pop, especially with the riders in the shadows, but the recycle times were so slow, it didn't seem productive to shoot that way. I also realized that the shadows were actually working in my favor in some instances since they helped to degrade (in a good way) the parts of the pics that were not in focus.
My neighbor has a Quantum. Maybe I can borrow it next time and try to get some flash captures. I love to try new (to me) things and this seems like it would work.
BTW: I imagine I would have to set the flash at 2nd Curtain Synch to get the correct effect?
What flash are you using? The 550 should be pretty quick. That's what I use. If you want more speed it's a power pack that you need. Switching to the Quantum flash won't help with speed. But the light quality might be more to your liking. I have a friend who shoots mountain biking with a Q-flash and the light is very nice.
Photo-John
