Personal History
Hi. My name is Declan, I am 9yrs old and I have just began learning how to ride dirt bikes in October 2022. I got my first dirt bike, my Kawasaki KLX 110 for Christmas 2022. I ride as much as possible locally with my family and friends. My parents surprised me for Christmas with a KTM 65sx that my Dad and I rebuilt and I am now competing with it. I also rode a Kawasaki 90cc ATV and a Kawasaki Brute Force 300 ATV. I like to ride trails as well as tracks. I am still learning so I tend to be a little cautious, but I improve with every ride. I love to play baseball and golf as well, besides my favorite sport of fishing. I have competed in the Under Armour Junior National Tour locally. I play baseball for Surfside Beach Sports Association. I spend my free time playing with my brother and my best friends, who also ride dirt bikes. We love to watch Motocross on TV and you tube as well as play motocross games on XBOX.
Riding Goals
In 2023 have accomplished my first goal of learning how to ride my klx110 and have now moved up to my 65sx which I am currently competing with while learning at the same time.
For this upcoming year of 2024 season, I will be competing in the 65cc 7-9C class and the 65cc 7-11 Open class with Southeast Motocross Association-SEMA. I cannot wait to see what my progress will be from my first year of racing. I will be riding my 2023 Yamaha yz65.
Competitive Highlights
In my first ever race I finished 9th overall out of 10 riders on a sand track which felt like I was riding on the beach. I received the "Warrior Award" for sticking it out and not giving up despite the fact that I was competing against riders who were on 65cc bikes, while I was on my 110, and they had more experience than I do. The track was described as one of the toughest tracks to ever be raced on as it is a sand track. We also battled many storms that day as well causing some very muddy and slick track conditions.
October 7 I raced at Pineville MX in the Bar to Bar Series and I finished 4th in the beginner class and 3rd in the Jr class. These were my first top 5 finishes!
October 15 I raced at Myrtle Beach ATV & MX Park in the SEMA 2023 series and I finished 10th in the Beginner Class and 13th in the Open Class. I also received my new 2023 Yamaha YZ65 on October 13th at the track as a surprise from my parents. I cannot wait to see my progression in the next few races on my new bike.
2023 was a tough year for me as I never rode a dirt bike, let alone raced before. I started on a KLX 110 then moved to a KTM 65sx and then to a Yamaha 65yz. I have had to learn 3 different bikes and i struggled with each, until I found my comfort zones. The Yamaha is by far my favorite bike. I finished the SEMA-Southeast Motoscross Association 2023 Series with 12th place in the 65cc 7-9C class and 14th in the 65cc 7-11 Open class. I really enjoyed racing with everyone at every race and met some really great families. I cannot wait for our banquet at Great Wolf Lodge on January 27th to see everyone again and then get the 2024 season started.