A news release from MX Sports Inc.:
Hurricane Mills, TE – Larry Fortin III of Tolland just made his dream come true.
The 11-year-old motorcross racer has qualified for the largest amateur motocross race in the world, the 34rd Annual Rocky Mountain ATV/MC AMA Amateur National Motocross Championships presented by AMSOIL at Loretta Lynn’s Ranch.
Fortin took on over 20,000 hopefuls from across America to earn one of just 1,446 qualifying positions.
Fortin, who attended Jimmy Weinert Motocross Training Facility in January and February has been riding since he was 2 years old, dirt bikes at 4 years old.
With the help of sponsors such as Manchester Honda KTM, Sign Connection, LLC, Tolland County Safe & Lock, Lew’s Cycle & Sled, LLC and his family, who help pay his way to the races, Fortin has had the opportunity to pursue his dreams.
He has won 12 races in 2013, and 15 races so far this year. Larry competes every weekend all over New England since no one under the age of 13 years old is allowed to race in Connecticut.
Fortin will make the long journey to Tennessee along with his parents, Aimee and Larry Fortin, grandparents Bridget and Arnold Kirby, Ruth and Bob Fortin. The race runs July 27 to Aug. 2, 2014.
The Amateur Nationals
“The Amateur Nationals at Loretta Lynn’s is the event every motocross racer in the country wants to compete in,” said Event Director Tim Cotter. “A win at the Amateur Nationals gives a rider instant national notoriety and can serve as a springboard to a lucrative professional motocross career.”
Most of America’s top professional motocrossers, including James Stewart, Ricky Carmichael, Travis Pastrana and Jeremy McGrath, have won AMA Amateur National Championships at Loretta Lynn’s.
The race is so prestigious that in 2012 it became part of the Red Bull Signature Series, airing race coverage on NBC for the first time ever. In 2013, the coverage of the Red Bull Signature Series broadcast LIVE coverage from Loretta Lynn’s on NBC for the first time ever.
In 2014, the racing will be streamed LIVE online all week long on RacerTV.com.
Fortin is just one of the over 20,000 that spent the last four months qualifying for the event. The top finishers in area and regional qualifiers earn a birth into the National Championship race at Loretta Lynn’s.
Racers may enter a wide variety of classes, from minicycle classes for children as young as four, all the way up to a senior division for riders over 50. There are also classes for women and classes for both stock and modified bikes.
The track is built on a section of Loretta Lynn’s Ranch and Campground in Hurricane Mills. The course contains a variety of jumps, corners and other obstacles designed to test the skills and stamina of the racers.
Most riders attend the event with the help of their families. In fact, many groups consider the event their family’s summer vacation. Besides races, the ranch provides family-friendly facilities including a game room, swimming pools, arts and crafts activities as well as a fashion and talent show.
Rocky Mountain ATV/MC AMA Amateur National Motocross Championship
The Rocky Mountain ATV/MC AMA Amateur National Motocross Championship is the world's largest and most prestigious amateur motocross racing program. The national qualifying program consists of 52 Area Qualifiers (February through May) and 12 Regional Championships (June), hosted at select motocross facilities across the country.
The qualifying system culminates in the National Final (first week of August) hosted annually since 1982 at the home of country music star Loretta Lynn in Hurricane Mills, TE.
Nearly 20,000 racers attempt to qualify in 36 classes for the 1,446 available positions at the National.
Christened "The World's Greatest Motocross Vacation", the National event serves as a launch pad for some of the biggest names in professional motocross and supercross, including Ricky Carmichael, James Stewart, Ryan Villopoto, and Ryan Dungey. The national program is produced by MX Sports, Inc., a West Virginia-based race production.
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