February 16 2006 is when my obsession with riding motorcycles began. I can still remember that first ride home on my 2006 Honda CBR600RR. My legs were trembling from the rush of adrenaline that I was overdosing on by the time I reached my house. Looking back on it, I laugh at the fact that I was petrified of leaning the bike through the turns and how I thought splitting lanes was the most insane thing I could possibly do at 10mph.
I knew nothing of bikes when I made my first purchase and I still know nothing about bikes, I just know more than I did when I started and have managed to increase my skill level exponentially. It took me six months and twelve thousand miles to finally realize that I needed to experience riding on a race track. However I didn’t want to simply go to the track without first having the proper gear, this is when I discovered that I do not make enough money to keep up with my obsession and its’ growing expenses. Luckily I was able to scrounge up enough money to buy myself all the necessary equipment and managed to sign up for three track days in the same week, two at Thunder Hill and one at Laguna Seca.
The only problem was that I didn’t have a trailer, this resulted in long cold rides to the track on my bike giving me time enough to accept the fact that I was about to be risking my life and my bike at the track. Despite all the crazy looks I received each time I arrived at the track on my bike I was always met with open arms from fellow riders and was given several riding tips which helped me on the track. It only took one day at Thunder Hill for me to realize that my bank account was forever going to be empty, but that one day at the track vastly improved my riding ability.
With each day at the track I can feel the improvement in my riding capabilities and my love for motorcycles increasing. It wasn’t until after riding at Laguna Seca that I decided I was going to join the racing circuit in 2007. But that came to a halt when I crashed my bike at Infineon Raceway the day before my first race. I then went through several months of physical therapy and I am finally ready to have another go at racing, this time I'll be joining the 2008 season mid stride and I'll have a lot of work ahead of me to catch up but I have confidence in my abilities. It’s time for me to a chase after something that is larger than me, it is time to pursue a dream.