HOME ARTICLES FORUMS COLUMNS GALLERY STORE SPONSORS CONTACT US  

MOTOGIRL

FAST THOUGHTS FROM JESSICA LEE

Tuesday May 22nd, 2007
Dedication, Passion, and Drive...That's racing!
I love watching a racer who gives 100% each time they grab hold of the handlebars and twists a throttle. Motorcycle racing takes dedication, dedication, and dedication. In order to be the best you have to train like a champion; you have to spend days on end at the track testing your limits and expanding your skill level. Most racers who are on their “A” game all of the time have spent many hours each week preparing for every event. We all know that even if you spent everyday of your life training, come race day you still might make mistakes.

That is exactly what happens to every single rider but the difference between a great rider and an “ok” rider is that when the great rider crashes he/she will get right back up and fight for a podium spot. That right there will prove who is emotionally and physically dedicated. I had to say something about this because it has always amazed me how a rider who is passionate about the sport will race even while injured! Actually, that’s perfectly normal in our sport and that’s just another way dedication shows through.

This past Saturday I raced at one of our local tracks. The race was part of the FL MX Magazine Moto-X series. Although it is just amateur motocross the many hours each racer puts into their bikes, practicing, and preparing their gear is displayed through clean dirt bikes (oxymoron?), perfectly organized gear, confident riding styles and smiling parents. Even after practicing for a while a rider will still have pre-race jitters and that can also cause mess ups during the event. That is what happened to me, I had been training at this one track week after week but for some reason I was so nervous. When I lined up on the starting line for the first moto there were angry butterflies in my stomach; huge angry butterflies. It is super hard to explain the feeling of being on the starting line. Sitting on your bike and seeing the 30 second board go up is a crazy feeling. It’s all about being nervous but super excited and the rush of adrenaline when the gate drops is something that only a racer can understand.

Being nervous is normal but I’ve learned it definitely isn’t the best thing because when you’re nervous, you start having weird thoughts. Thoughts about crashing or getting hurt run through you’re head. On Saturday I let my nerves basically control me and I ended up having one of the most embarrassing starts! I did a huge wheelie then my left hand came off the handlebars, and it threw me on the ground. I hit a guy next to me and took him out but thankfully my bike was still running, I got back up and won the moto! I really do not know what was going through my mind that made me rev my bike too much. After the race I was super embarrassed but was also laughing like crazy. I told my friends I should have got back up and threw my hands in the air and said “tah-da welcome to the show” but oh well I’m glad I made it somewhat interesting. I came home that night with the hardware (trophy) and a pretty sweet bruise on my arm. As of now I am 2nd in the series points so wish me luck!

Racing motocross has given me a lot of confidence and pride. I know I’m part of something very cool and I have goals for myself. It makes me strive to do my best in everything. It is kind of funny but through racing I have figured out what I’m made of. I know, I know… you probably don’t want to hear all this mushy kind of talk but hey it’s the truth! For example both my big crash in January and then my hilarious crash on Saturday made me push myself to get back up. It reminds me of the song “Stand” by Rascal Flatts. Listen to the lyrics of that song and it will definitely remind you of how racing goes.

Well, besides motocross I am so excited about MotoGP this season. I wonder if Nicky Hayden can keep the crown or what if Casey Stoner grabs it? He has been super fast. The Ducatis are doing great at pulling out of the straight aways and in a few races Valentino Rossi has had trouble catching up to Stoner! In the AMA I am amazed at how many red flags there has been in the supersport class this season;pretty crazy!

I hope you enjoyed reading about my thoughts this week. It is finally summer and my parents just bought a new 2 seater turbo charged Honda jet ski. I have been practically sleeping on that thing! So, I’m going to go ride it then eat dinner and tonight the new season of my favorite show Rob and Big on MTV starts tonight! It is hilarious…if you get a chance, watch it! I garuntee you will laugh! =)

As always,
Live. Laugh.Love.
Ride like there's no tomorrow.

P.S- Here are some pictures I found from my friends and I in CA for my birthday a little while ago for the Anaheim 1 supercross, and a few others I thought were pretty cool!







Posted by Jessica @ 2:48PM  -  Permalink  -  0 Comments  -  0 Trackbacks
Tags:     

THE AUTHOR


Jessica "Motogirl" Lee is a 34 year old motocross racer and journalist. Born into a family of motorcycle enthusiasts and industry insiders, she has been riding and nurturing a passion for motorcycles from the age of four.

RECENT ENTRIES


Archive

All photographs by Jessica Lee unless otherwise noted
© 2000-2025 Bikeland Media Inc. All rights reserved.