Santa) got me my very first dirt bike for Christmas. That very morning once I learned how to start it. I rode till dark. The addiction had started. Over the years I rode various other off road machines. Varying from other dirt bikes to ATV's and even a rail buggy. Around the time I was 16 I began to venture into the competitive side of riding. Saving my money up from a long summers hard work loggi
ng with my stepfather. I bought a used 95' Yamaha YZ-250. Honestly I don't know why I jumped to such a beast, but I did. Soon I was riding Hare Scrambles and Motocross. The YZ-250 was a beast. Just too much bike for me to handle. I did my best and crashed hard when I did. It taught me a lot about power management and how to ride loose. Then came graduation from high school and on to college. During my college days I traded in the muddy boots for a stretched street bike. Again, I don't know why I decided on a Kawasaki ZX-1100, but I road it for what seemed a million miles. The Kawasaki allowed me to venture into drag racing. My experience with motocross starts really played a big part in my low reaction times and great launches at the strip. After college I bought myself a 02' Ducati 998 Bayliss Edition. She was and still is my most cherished bike. Once I even did a track day at Road Atlanta. Many looked at me as if I was crazy for having it out on the track. All I remember is that I didn't stop smiling for weeks after. Now the collection began. Soon I picked up a friends 05' MV Agusta F4, then a little CRF 50. Later I bought one of the first Aprilia SXV 550's. I have to say that it was the most fun I had had on a bike up until I began racing. Maybe one day Aprilia will redesign it and put it back out on production lines. Later came the 07' BMW GSA1200. The ol' "Burrito". I rode this beast for nearly 3 years constantly. Trekking out in all sorts of weather conditions. It never once failed and is still going strong till this day. Then the track bug bit. One of my closest and best friends kept trying to get me to buy a track bike. After a few years of persistent and well placed encouragement. I finally took the plunge. Having always wanted a 750 and knowing my track history of buying machines I had difficulty handling. I set my sights in on a 2011 Suzuki GSX-R. It was perfect. Low miles and in excellent condition. Right away the bodywork was removed and the bike was sent to Livingood Motorsports. There they did a complete track conversion. What I got back was a machine both dependable and fearsome on the track. After a test run at Road Atlanta and then Barber Motorsports. I entered into only 3 races in 2013. Only due to being near the end of the season. Over the winter I continued to modify the bike to be better suited for the track. Planning to commit to a full season with WERA in 2014. Soon February rolls around and the 2014 WERA season is underway. I was able to make every race but one. Coming home with 6 ~ Top 3 Overall In Class, 14 ~ Podiums, and 31 ~ Top 5 Finishes. Now I'm going on my 2nd season with WERA. Planning on working my way up into Expert and then on to earning enough points to qualify for AMA. Big goals are ahead and I'm so looking forward to the challenge.
