Joe Dirt MotocrossPark,  run and managed by Joe Kunkel, has a lot of passion behind it's story. Read on to learn about how we got started.

 

"If he built it, did they come?"

 

 

 

 

According to Kunkel, they've been driving in droves, revved-up to peel a li'l rubber and to tear up a li'l of the terra firma at the Joe Dirt Motocross Raceway.

 

"It's been really cool," Kunkel confesses as he looks out onto his massive track. "Seeing the faces of kids light up when they first become involved in motocross."

"What can be better than that?" he grins as he glances over at a motocross kid gunning his engine.

Kunkel should know.

He says he's been riding a dirt bike his entire life.

"Our parents actually encouraged my older brother and I to ride motorbikes," Kunkel recalls. "Joe started riding when he was real young. Me? I started riding when I was pretty young too."

"It kept us out of trouble," he says, "It kept us motivated, and, more importantly, it kept us out of our parents' hair."

For Kunkel, motocross wasn't just about the riding. He loved the excitement that came whenever he raced.

"I decided to turn pro," he remembers, "and was on the motocross circuit for a number of years. I raced around here and when I went to school in Florida."

Returning to his hometown of Hinton, Kunkel didn't want to give up his need for speed.

"I was getting a little too old to race," he admits, "but I certainly wasn't too old to ride."

"Don't think I'll ever be too old to ride," he says with an assured smile.

But where would Kunkel do his riding?

As it turned out: there was no place like home.

"I remember our parents building us a place to race our motorbikes when we were kids," Kunkel points out.

"Um, it looked nothing like this," he says as he gestures to Joe Dirt Raceways' professional-sized motocross track overloaded with natural terrain features with varying amounts of man-made jumps.

Kunkel, who owns Dave's Electric, along with his welding fabricator brother Joe, decided to turn the empty spot in back of their parent's home into the fully functional motocross track.

"We started off small," Kunkel says, "and just kept adding on to it."

This year, the brothers are adding lights to the track to allow night racing.

"We don't make a dime off of this track," Kunkel contends. "Everything we have just goes back to the track."

Listening to Kunkel talk, one get the impression he wouldn't want it any other way.

"We're doing this for our own enjoyment," he says seriously. "We're also doing it for the kids."

"We want kids to have as much fun with motocross as Joe and I did as kids," Kunkel adds.

And, sure enough, on a sunny June afternoon, there were approximately 20 racers ripping through the dirt at Joe Dirt.

"People get the wrong idea about motocross," Kunkel informs. "They thinks about a bunch of kids who want to joyride around."

"Motocross is a sport," he continues, "that requires training and safety and being able to think on your feet."

It may also prove hazardous to your health.

"But you can get hurt playing football or basketball," he interjects. "And the injuries you might sustain in those games are a lot more hazardous than the ones you'll sustain in motocross."

Kunkel enjoy the familial feel the sport produces.

"When we have a race," he smiles, "the entire family turns out to see him compete. You'll see mom, dad, all of the brothers and sisters in the stand. cheering on their favorite racer."

According to Kunkel, it's not only kids who love to roaring on his track.

"We've had riders as young as five," he notes, "and we've had riders as old as 50."

Ben Doehrman is probably somewhere in the middle of that age range.

"I love motocross," the Holstein man says while taking off his helmet. "That's why I've been doing it for the past 15 years. I love being on my bike and I love having all of this power at my fingertips."

Motocross also provides Doehrman with quite a workout.

"Motocross racing requires a lot of upper body strength," he points out. "After all, it's tough enough controlling a 250 pound bike without having a 20 pounds of mud coming at you from all directions."

The best part for Doehrman?

Pretending he's his favorite superhero.

"Man, when you're coming off that hill," Doehrman comments, "you're airborne! When you're flying through the air, you feel like you're Superman!"

"And that's pretty cool," he smiles.

Zach Campbell doesn't look like he wants to be Superman.

Wearing all black, he does have a shot of becoming Zorro though.

Campbell is already a six-year veteran of the sport.

Which is pretty impressive since Campbell is only 11 years old.

"I got started when I was five," he explains. "My dad used to do it so that's why he taught me how to ride a bike."

In Campbell's case, motocross is quickly zoom-zooming into a family affair. He's sharing his need for speed with his eight-year-old brother Zerich.

"I started riding when I was four," Zerich pipes in.

"Motocross is exciting," Campbell says, "I love to make the big jump."

"Seeing Zach out there on the track riding a motorcycle bigger than he is is pretty scary," his mom mentions. "My stomach turns every time he does it."

Zach rolls his eyes at his mom.

"But I also see him being smart and responsible on the track," she adds. "I'm also seeing him have the time of his life out there too."

"That's what motocross is all about," Kunkel observes. "What kid doesn't want to go fast and play in the dirt and have fun?"

"What adult wouldn't want to do that," he asks with a smile.