Growing up, racing Loretta Lynn’s was never on my radar. There were a few years I can confidently say I could have qualified, but my parents could never afford for me to go. My dad always told me if you are fast enough, somebody will find you. He was not wrong, but news flash; I was never fast enough, and I was never found.
I chased the dream for a few years as a night show Monster Energy AMA Supercross/local AMA Pro Motocross Championship national guy. A pro “career” like mine is a dime a dozen, but I suppose I am in the small percentile of racers who have gotten to line up in a stadium full of 50,000 fans and I will forever be grateful for that.
I still enjoy racing as much as ever and can still compete at a decently high level, but the days of chasing the dream are behind me. For 2024, I needed a new challenge to feed the competitive flame that still burns inside of me. Loretta Lynn’s was one of the few unchecked boxes on my racing to-do list and it was an easy decision to give it a shot. My failure as a professional racer created an opportunity to race the 30+ Sportsman Class, a class that is competitive, yet realistic for me to be in the mix. In case you didn’t know the 30+ and 45+ classes at Loretta’s are labeled as “Sportsman” classes. This means you cannot race these classes if you have scored pro points.
My debut at the Ranch was an eye-opener. Firstly, I understand why my parents could not afford to go. It is no secret this race is an investment. Next, I learned what hot weather really was. Being from New England, I had never felt heat like that in my life. It was so hot and humid last year it was legitimately hard to breathe. I had to learn the track too, but in all honesty, I had watched so many laps of that place on RacerTV it was not particularly difficult to learn the layout and the obstacles. The conditions and the prep are what makes it so difficult. I started the week slow with crashes and straight-up bad riding, but by the end of the week I was getting better. One of the biggest things I learned in 2024 was how much experience could have helped me throughout the week. And with that I decided I could not make my Loretta Lynn’s experience a one and done.
The worst part of Loretta’s is qualifying for the actual race. This year I caught a case of Loretta’s fever. I went all in and committed to multiple regions. Luckily I did because I showed up to my first regional at Ironman with a flair up of an old injury and could barely circulate the track on Friday practice. After making the 14-hour trip to Indiana, I had to give it a go. My motos on Saturday were bad, but in a small miracle, the riding had somehow loosened up my injury and Sunday I was basically 100 percent. It was bizarre, but I was able to get a moto win on Sunday and get my ticket in 30+. Unfortunately, no ticket in 25+ and so I was forced to utilize my second region to get that done. It is worth noting that while I say I went all in with two regions, some families hit three, four, maybe even more regions to ensure a spot on the gate. The commitment and dedication to getting to this race is borderline psychotic.
