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Red Bull
/ Suzuki's Dustin Wimmer |
Pickerington, OH (11/5/2008) -
The American Motorcyclist Association (AMA)
is proud to announce that 2008 ITP Tires/Moose
Racing AMA/ATVA Pro Champion Dustin Wimmer
is one of five nominees for the 2008 AMA SPEED
Athlete of the Year award. The winner will
be announced at the 2008 AMA Pro Racing Awards
Banquet on Sunday evening, Nov. 23, at the
Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum in Leeds,
Ala.
Dating back to 1976, the AMA SPEED Athlete
of the Year award is the highest honor bestowed
to a professional motorcycle racer competing
in AMA events. Past recipients of the award
include such legendary names as Bob Hannah,
Scott Parker, Kenny Roberts and Ricky Carmichael.
The nominees so far announced for the 2008
award include AMA Flat Track Champion Kenny
Coolbeth, AMA Superbike Champion Ben Spies,
AMA Motocross Champion James Stewart, and
Wimmer.
Wimmer, from Center Valley, Pa., won five
of the 11 rounds on the ITP Tires/Moose
Racing AMA/ATVA Pro Championship calendar.
The 21-year old opened the season with two
wins, then held off a charge by veteran
racer and defending champion Joe Byrd. Wimmer
won the title by 67 points, with 438 to
Byrd's 371.
"It feels great to be nominated for
the AMA SPEED Athlete of the Year award,"
Wimmer said. "I worked hard this off-season
and during the racing season to win the
championship this year. It's a great thing
to be on top of your sport, but it's going
to be harder to stay on top."
Wimmer said that the major lesson he learned
this year was the importance of patience
to develop the consistency necessary to
win a championship.
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AMA Pro ATV Champion #191 Dustin Wimmer
with his new red number plate in action |
"I learned how to focus more on working
harder in the beginning part of the race
so I could relax more by the end,"
Wimmer said. "I had a lot more motivation
for this year because I was runner-up the
last two years. Another lesson I learned
is to relax when you're not in the lead,
just work your way up slowly. You have 25
minutes to do it, so don't rush it and make
a mistake."
Wimmer's first full year as a pro was 2004
after dominating the Pro-Am 250 and 250
A classes in 2003. Wimmer started racing
in 1996 when he was 9.
To see first-hand whether Wimmer wins the
AMA SPEED Athlete of the Year award, attend
the AMA Pro Racing Awards Banquet, where
AMA Pro Racing will honor its professional
champions, joined by their families, friends,
fans and industry leaders. Held at the Barber
Vintage Motorsports Museum, the banquet
will take place among a collection of more
than 1,200 historic and popular motorcycles.
Tickets to the AMA Pro Racing Awards Banquet
are $125. Tickets to the AMA Sports Awards
Banquet, which honors the champions of AMA
Sports events on Saturday evening, Nov.
22, are $85. Tickets can be purchased online
at http://www.americanmotorcyclist.com/.
A downloadable registration form is also
available. Printed orders can be faxed to:
(614) 986-1962, Attn: Cyndi Freeze-Cain;
or mailed to: AMA Racing, Attn: Cyndi Freeze-Cain,
13515 Yarmouth Drive, Pickerington, OH 43147.
About the ATV Association
(ATVA):
The ATV Association ("ATVA")
is the official sanctioning body of the
amateur division of the ATVA ITP/Moose ATV
National Motocross Championship Series Presented
by Parts Unlimited. The 9,000-member ATVA
is a sister organization of the 260,000
member American Motorcyclist Association
(AMA). ATV racing has experienced phenomenal
growth in recent years, and continues to
gain momentum and support, outselling off-road
motorcycles annually. Each ATVA round attracts
hundreds of racers who compete for bragging
rights to one of 31 amateur national titles.
For more information, please visit www.atvaonline.com.
About the ATV Promoters
Group (ATVPG):
The ATVPG is composed of the individual
promoters that host the AMA ITP/Moose ATV
National Motocross Championships, presented
by Parts Unlimited. The goal of the ATVPG
is to raise awareness of ATV motocross through
the production of professional and amateur
championship racing events. For more information
on the ATVPG and the ATV National events
they produce, please visit www.atvmotocross.com.
About the ITP/Moose
ATV National Motocross
Championship Series Presented by Parts Unlimited:
The AMA ITP/Moose ATV National Motocross
Championship Series Presented by Parts Unlimited
is the nation's premier amateur and professional
ATV motocross series, and competes at top
motocross facilities nationwide. The 11-round
series features the Nation's best racers,
teams and sponsors, and is America's largest
and longest-running ATV National Motocross
series with more than 20 years of competition.
The series continues to expand and produce
top talent from the amateur ranks, while
keeping close to the grassroots fun that
makes people love to go to the races.
Series sponsors include
title sponsors ITP Tires and Moose Racing,
and presenting sponsor Parts Unlimited.
Premiere and Feature sponsors include ATV
Sport, Moto Tees, Scott USA, Maxxis Tires,
Elka Suspension and H-Bomb Films/Division
Four. Associate sponsors include Weekend
Warrior Trailers, Denton Racing, and Hinson
Racing. Media partners include ATV Insider,
ATV Rider and ATVRiders.com. For more information,
please visit www.atvmotocross.com.
