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Published Monday, November 28, 2011 in Sports

Special

Brothers C.J., left, and Will Walker both finished first in the Thor Moto Madness Racing Series this season.

Walker brothers riding high on local motocross scene

By Chris Goltermann

The Newnan Times-Herald

Like most boys, C.J. and Will Walker learned to ride a two-wheeler at a young age. But their first bikes weren't like most others.

Theirs came with an engine.

C.J., age 8, and six year-old Will each finished first recently in the Thor Moto Madness Fall Series held west Georgia at motocross tracks in Bremen and Calhoun.

The brothers were dominant among nine weeks of racing. C.J. took first in the 7-8 year-old division of the 50cc motocross division, while Will - having switched his two-wheeler for a quad - came out on top in the mini-ATV category.

Both continue to thrive in an activity that they began even prior to the purchase of their first bicycles.

But for the brothers, no Schwinn could ever match the thrill of riding motorbikes than can reach speeds upward of 50 mph. After beginning to ride for fun on self-made tracks on the family's 17-acre property in northwest Coweta County, racing only heightened their senses to the extreme.

"You get to jump high," Will said, "and get so dirty."

Added older brother C.J., "I like to go fast. When you jump, it feels like you're flying."

Their father, Chris Walker, knew those feelings all too well growing up in Newnan. A top dirt bike rider by the end of his teens while competing with his cousin and future pro boxer Ebo Elder, Chris had dreams of first-place finishes as well before a wreck during his college years at age 20, forced him to think of his health -- as well as his studies.

Chris was a month away from the AMA National Motocross Championships -- better known as the Loretta Lynns which are hosted at the country music legend's Tennessee home -- when a practice crash threw him of course.

" I was twenty and lost a quarter or college and had to stop racing," he said. " My mom gave me the option to stop and she would pay for school or I could race and I had to pay for college."

Chris chose Plan 'A' and gave up racing while Elder went on to concentrate on his own budding boxing career.

But 17 years later, not to long after Will began to master walking and running, Chris came up with a plan to get back on his own wheels while introducing C.J., then four, to his own motorcycle by his next birthday.

Knowing his son would need a partner to ride with, Chris was able to convince his wife Karley, a physical education teacher at Arnco-Sargent Elementary, to allow both of them to get bikes.

"(It) worked to perfection," Chris said.

C.J. wound up with a Yamaha TTR-50 motorcycle -- with training wheels, of course.

A year later, Will got a matching TTR-50 for his third birthday.

The brothers spent their first two years riding just outside the Walker house, mastering their bikes and slowly beginning to venture further on the property. Chris eventually decided to cut a path for the boys out in one of the pastures and jumps were later added as the boys ventured further into their passion for riding.

Their love for racing soon followed, jumpstarted when Chris' aunt showed up at the house one day with an old VHS tape of Walker and Elder racing. Six year-old C.J. may have been instantly hooked.

"C.J. said, 'I want to do that, daddy,'" Chris said. "We started out by going to a couple of practice days at local motocross tracks before his first race. The night before the first race he told me he was nervous he could not explain it to me. I told him when the gate dropped he would forget about it."

While C.J.'s nerves may have lessened, his father had no idea what it would be like as a race observer, rather than one of the participants. In addition to safety precautions, most divisions have parents supervising on the course to make sure a fallen racer is attended to quickly and bikes removed from the course.

But even that doesn't settle nerves most race days.

"Little did I know I would be a nervous wreck," he said. "I still am every time they're out there on the track."

C.J. took second among six racers in his first-ever race in May. A month later, Will placed fourth in his first-ever race and one week after that, C.J. took home his first win.

"There's no fear to him," Chris said.

Eventually, Will swapped two wheels for four when a friend came over to his house with an ATV. He opened the 2011 season in the mini-ATV division immediately with two second place finishes before picking up the first of six wins in the Thor Series, taking below second only once all year.

"From the moment he got on it, i could see it in his eyes that this was his ticket," said Chris of Will's interest to riding mini ATVs. "We sold the motorcycle and the rest is history."

C.J., meanwhile, continued to excel in an ultra-competitive 7-8 division with four frontrunners. He had two first-place finishes and six second-place efforts. Each race consists of two motos with points added in each based on finish.

Father and sons all got a chance to race consecutively during the final week of the season, with Chris entering the 35-and-older division, which was scheduled in between runs by C.J. and Will.

"I was scared to death," Chris said, chuckling.

Along the way, C.J. has picked up a pair of sponsors, Decal Works and Martin & Slater Products, that have helped offset some of the cost of parts. Unlike two-stroke bikes from 20 years ago, today's four-stroke bikes with automatic clutches, can run as much as $4,000. They also require multiple setups based on terrain.

"That helps tremendously," Chris said. "You have front and rear sprockets and tires. Each setup is different."

C.J. is planning to run in at least one national event in 2012 as he moves up to the 65cc class.

While the Arnco-Sargent Elementary students (C.J. is in third grade, Will is in first) are equally active in youth football with the Sharpsburg Stallions and baseball in the Newnan Youth Athletic League, racing provides as much interaction between riders and their families off the course.

"The whole family is involved," Chris said. " Most of the events are all day or two day events and we camp out and spend all day together. We are always going 100 miles-per-hour on and off the track."

The brothers' younger sister Khloe, age 2, may be on pace to trump the entire family of racers.

"We can't keep her off the four wheeler, the baseball field or the football field," Chris said. "(She) might be better than all of us."

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