Just a few of the NCY crew

North County Yamaha, one of the largest and longest running dealerships in southern California provides a great deal of support to racers at both the amateur and professional level.  I spent the day under the awning with NCY and got to know some of the team members, track side support staff, as well as some of the riders and their families.  I was very impressed with their presence considering this was an amateur ride day not your standard pro level motocross or supercross race.  They were on hand offering support not only to their riders but other racers as well.  I saw countless riders come to the tent in need of parts, tire changes and even one rider who snapped a break lever on the first lap of his moto.  They swapped it out and he was back on the track in a matter of minutes.

The more I dive into this industry, the more I enjoy meeting the people behind the scenes helping those of us out on the track stay there.  I met countless parents working hard to ensure their child has the best chance of succeeding, a friendly NCY mechanic named Ryan who is pursuing his passion and working towards making it as a full factory race team wrench and even had an enlightening conversation with the 30 second board start girl.  Turns out she’s got just as much brains as beauty.

Check out the gallery below for photos from the LHNW Amateur Ride Day at Pala Raceway with North County Yamaha.

Be sure and tune in, we’re very excited about this opportunity to step into the spotlight.  Questions regarding the broadcast, viewing options etc contact info@LocalHeroesNW.com

Born and raised in Lewiston Montana where the cattle outnumber the citizens almost four to one, Tyler first hopped aboard an ATV at the age of 16 and caught the bug.  Bad.  Toting his stock Kawasaki KFX 400 in a horse trailer, still leaking horse manure, Leary placed first in both motos taking the overall in his first ever amateur race.  Addicted to the thrill and adrenaline that comes with racing, he went on to win the pro class championship the next two years battling his friend and fellow pro racer, TJ Dietrich.

Now attending college, he’s forced to drive 150 miles to find a track that will allow quads so to save time and money he was introduced the sport of freestyle motocross.  Riding in Racetrack Montana with pro FMXers Coy Cooper and Keith Sayers, Leary found a new passion in floating through the air barely attached to the quad.  His offroad crew consists of Cooper, Drake Johnson and super fast local Drew Duncan.  When the weather’s not conducive to riding ramps, the boys head for the dunes where none of them hesitates to air it out at over 100 feet.  LHNW photographer Ethan Strouser joined Leary for a recent dune outing and his report was simply, “Tyler is a madman.”

As mentioned, Leary is as crazy if not more so on a sled than he is on a quad.  He fell into snowmobiling by chance as he tagged along with a high school friend on a family sled run.  He picked up his first sled while still in high school and it didn’t survive its maiden voyage.  Not long after he attracted the attention of an Arctic Cat dealer run by Dan Killham.  Killham offered him a spot racing snow cross which thrust Leary headlong into the sport.  Still relatively inexperienced on a sled, his head down wide open approach paid off as he took third in his first race of the MWR series.

A true enthusiast, Leary is most at home filming and free riding in the backcountry with is his friends.  His backcountry shredding has attracted numerous film producers including 3SW films, MontanaRush.com and he even rode in a pilot episode for Fuel TV with iFProductions.

Leary has opted to remain out of the spotlight as much of the scene allows the outrageousness on sleds to pour over into their lifestyle and he’d rather go without.  Not that he’d have time for it anyway.  The senior at Montana State University is working towards a degree in Industrial Technology with an Associates in Metallurgy as well as earning his personal training certificate for kicks.  Outside of the classroom Leary works as an equipment operator and vies for the occasional midnight study break on a street bike.

Family is of utmost importance, while they wish he would choose safer hobbies they support his ambition toward something he loves.  He hopes to ride an FMX show someday just for the experience of wowing a crowd and offers special thanks to his Arctic Cat teammates Steven Winkels and Jate Heaps of PFR Suspension.

We’re confident there’s a lot in store for this overworked, under paid athlete from up north.  His passion for life and his hobbies is contagious and we’re excited to see what the future brings.

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After a severe crash not too long ago, Lauren almost hung it up for good but like so many in this sport, once she was back on her feet it was back to the track. The mere fact that she’s seeking to make a name for herself in womens motocross proves that she’s a fan first and a racer second.  Womens motocross is far from glamorous as it receives no TV coverage, little media attention and only a select few can earn a living from racing alone.  For many who compete it’s out of sheer love for the sport.  We were impressed with Lauren’s willingness to get out on the main track and bang bars with the big boys.

A forward thinker, Lauren plans to attend college in the fall but has no intention of giving up her passion.  “I want to have something to fall back on if I don’t make it but I’m going to give racing everything I have.”  We wish more people took Lauren’s approach.  Nothing says you have to choose one or the other and she’s making a wise decision in the event that womens motocross doesn’t pan out.  Lauren’s confident that no matter what the end result it will be a fun ride getting there and we can’t agree more.  After all, the ride is what we’re all about.

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Despite some bad luck this season, Tim is sitting just outside the top ten in the series points chase with three rounds remaining.  Tim is a consistant top ten finisher and even managed to holeshot ahead of the entire pro class at the Lake Havasu round.  Electrical issues forced a late start at the second round in Primm Nevada resulting in a 15th place finish and despite a nasty get off in Adelanto, Tim managed to hang tough for two grueling hours and finish 14th.  Tim was running top ten at the recent Cahuilla Creek round until he lost the bearings in a front wheel resulting in a severely damaged hub.  His pit crew managed to swap out the hub in record time and get him back on the track.  Tim would settle for 14th on the day and retain his eleventh place position in the season points standings.

The younger Shelman, Allie Cat as she’s known at the track, is making tracks and sitting comfortably atop the points standings in both Womens B and 12-15 Production Sport.  With the exception of a 4th place finish in Primm Nevada, Allie has taken either the first or second spot on the podium at every other round in the Womens B Class.  In the 12-15 Production Sport Class, Allie has maintained her lead with consistent top five finishes including a win at the opening round in Surprise Arizona.

Stay tuned for more WORCS coverage as the series heads to Olympia Washington the end of July.

We never really intended to dive into the world of snowmobiling but we’ve been getting a response from the sled crowd so we figured why not.  The goal of Local Heroes Northwest is to bring exposure to up and coming athletes and help them get the support they need so they can maximize their potential.  Taylor Fisk is one such athlete and this kid’s got a lot going on, sponsors listen up.

Taylor recently landed himself on the cover of Whiteout Magazine for his skill on a sled as well as a dirt bike.  Check out the May/June issue of Whiteout Magazine for Taylor’s feature.  The 17 year old Spirit Lake native has experimented with all forms of powersports from dirt bikes to quads but found himself at home on a sled.  Like many young riders today trying to make it without any form of real support, Taylor found himself being limited by his equipment.  Though he didn’t let that stop him,  mom and dad finally agreed and helped him out with a new sled for the 2010 season.  With minimal seat time, Taylor has already surpassed what he could do on his previous machine.

I respect people like Taylor.  Anyone can sit back and complain about the limits of their machine.  Hardcore people go out and get the job done despite sub par equipment.  Visit any motocross track in the nation and you’ll see people on bikes that far surpaces their ability.  Point being, if I can beat you on a stock quad, you don’t need to be riding that built to the hilt machine your sitting on.  Give it to somebody like Taylor who’s already proved himself as a wildchild behind the bars of a sled and watch him go to work.

I firmly believe that perseverence pays off.  Stick with anything long enough and you’ll at least get your shot.  Taylor’s working hard to make things happen and for this young ripper it’s only a matter of time.  Check back regularly for updates on Taylor and watch his rags to riches story unfold.  It’s gonna be good.