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I was born in North Carolina. With a dad in the military, we moved a bunch growing up and I got to meet new people all the time. With three brothers, I always had others around to play team sports with and to compete against. I grew up riding bicycles in the dirt and really enjoyed competitive sports starting at an early age. I got my first motorcycle in high school, and after rebuilding it in my basement with help from my mechanic uncle, I sold it to pursue bigger and more exciting bikes. My next bike was a big Honda street bike, and I thought I had it figured out after riding it for a year or so. After getting out of school and traveling abroad with the military, I settled in Northern Virginia and on a newer 600. After being told by some friends that they thought I was a pretty good street rider and I should try going to the track, I figured I would give it a shot. I had some friends I had met that worked at a local motorcycle dealership and were attending a track day at Summit Point, West Virginia. I joined them, but didn't bring my own bike. One of my friends let me ride his RC51. Even in the rain, I was grinning from ear to ear inside of my helmet, and loving every minute of it. |
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After talking with more experienced track riders and other racers, I decided I wanted to give racing a shot. I had big dreams, but figured I would take it one step at a time. I attended the MARRC School, and received my race license the next morning. After post registering for a few lightweight races on an older used SV 650, and making sure I was to be grid at the back behind all of the "fast" guys, I eagerly looked forward to getting down to business. After starting in last place I was proud of myself for beating many other riders, even if I was wearing the giant blue shirt from the school only the day before. I knew that with enough determination and support, I could take this as far as I wanted to. |
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With only a few race weekends in 2005, I was determined to come back in 2006 and see how far I could go with attending only local races. With only five race weekends I finished 4th overall in one of my classes, and was eligible for expert status at the end of the year. I respectfully asked to remain as an amateur for the 2007 season. I wanted to give myself a fair shot at completing an entire season of racing at every track in my region. I thought that would give me a better lesson with regards to learning new tracks I had never been to before and racing on them. I also sought advice from a former racer I respected, and he told me that the only way to truly get to where I wanted to be in racing was to start riding and getting comfortable on a 600. |
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In 2007, I raced a '99 SV650 in 5 Lightweight classes. At the end of the season, I placed 2nd Overall in all 5 of the classes at the end of the year with multiple podium finishes. I also raced a '05 GSXR600. It was my first year ever riding an inline bike on the track. Even though I never made it to the podium, I finished 6th, 11th, and 14th Overall in all three of the Middleweight classes I entered throughout the year. Every weekend I had at least 8 races, and sometimes I had as many as twelve, just to get more seat time on the new (to me) 600. I had a very close friend of mine working as my crew chief and without his help, none of my results would have been what they were. He allowed me to focus on racing, and let me relax about the bike and whatever was for dinner or even how far we had to drive to the next race. I could only hope to have the opportunity to work with someone like that again in the future. |
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In 2008, I received my expert racing license and competed in the ASRA National Series Championship with a goal of overall top ten ranking in Middleweight Supersport, Middleweight Superbike, and Middleweight GP in the CCS Mid-Atlantic Region. I joined local riding legend and MARRC founder Roger Lyle and was able to do some control riding and instructing for him during his increasingly popular Motorcycle Xcitement Trackday and Roadracing School program. By the end of the seaon, I had gathered enough expert points to apply for a license to race in the AMA. |
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In preparation for the upcoming season, I am trying to keep fresh on two wheels at every opportunity that I can. I have a regular full time job, so I can't just go off and ride whenever I want. I try to make it down to the Cornerspin Riding School in North Carolina as often as I can, as well as ride indoor at a go-cart track near my home in Northern Virginia. I also recently started to watch what I'm eating, as I took off the last few months of training hard to get myself ready for the next year of riding. I think this upcoming year I will see the hardest training, the most riding, and the fiercest competition. As a training goal, I decided to do a mini-triathlon in August. I think that will help me with keeping my focus to build my whole body to be ready for the year ahead on the racetrack. |
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I hope to get onboard with a very highly ranked roadracing school as it will help me build my racecraft by working with and listening to other top rated instructors, and I will get a chance to get maximum quality tracktime. I also plan on getting out to some new tracks with some friends who are experienced former pro racers during the spring to kind of jumpstart this years' new learning curve. To top it all off, the two guys responsible for maintaining my bikes and crewing for my team will be on board at our races this year to put a pro spin on things to give me that edge that some of my competitors might not have. Right now I am collecting sponsorship and trying to scrounge up as many funds as I can to help cover the expenses of this outrageous addiction that seems to only get worse as the speed increases. |
