Tracy Press

 
Young racer chases after cross-country, track titles

Danny Hutchinson, shown with his 85cc Honda motorcycle, recently took on motocross after years of participating in cross-country motorcyle races. Bob Brownne/Tracy Press

Danny Hutchinson had five months between his cross-country motorcycle races, but he wasn’t about to take a break.

In between cross-country races, he took on motocross, and learned that he’s good at both styles of off-road racing.

For both styles of racing, the Tracy High freshman has put himself at the top of the list of contenders in the 85cc classes in his age group. He’s second place in the 2008 Motion Pro Youth Cross Country Series, the cross-country “hare scramble” races hosted by American Motorcycle Association District 36.

After that series went on break in April, he worked his way into the No. 2 spot in the fall motocross series on Sacramento Raceway’s three-quarter-mile course.

Once the Motion Pro series resumes on Sept. 13, he will run both types of races.

“I like the hare scramble because I’m more of an off-road guy,” Hutchinson said.

Those races can go for miles across open country, usually for an hour or more. He thinks of those as endurance races compared to the dirt-track motocross events, which are more like sprints.

He’s been riding motorcycles since the age of 4, when he saw his dad, Steve, compete. When Danny started racing in 2001, he quickly discovered the challenge of racing through a crowd on a dirt track.

“My first race at Carnegie, I thought it would be easier. Once I was on the track, it was a lot harder than I thought it would be,” he said.

Hutchinson rode in hare scrambles through the next year, and then took a break so he could try out other sports, including football and baseball.

His interest in motorcycles prevailed, mainly because the cross-country races bring out the competitor in Hutchinson.

“When I’m racing, I just focus on being at the front and passing as many guys as I can,” he said.

Steve Hutchinson added that winning appears to be its own motivation: “Once he got his first trophy, his confidence grew from there.”

When the AMA District 36 opened the Motion Pro series in January, Hutchinson committed to starting every race. He and his motorcycle racing buddy, Colton Gangwer, fourth in the AMA standings and also a Tracy High freshman, have been in eight events so far this year. Those include Hutchinson’s first-place finish in the C Division in the Desert Challenge in Salt Wells, Nev., on April 5.

Hutchinson races in the Phantom Youth Hare Scramble in Hollister in March. Courtesy photo

“I was hoping I’d do good, but I didn’t know I’d be this high in the rankings,” Hutchinson said.

“We did the motocross just to keep him in shape,” Steve added. Now Hutchinson is in the running for the Sacramento Raceway trophy with three races left to go in the current series.

That will put him on one dirt track or another for nearly every weekend through the end of November, when the Motion Pro Youth Cross Country Series ends with the Wilseyville Youth Hare Scramble on Nov. 22. Steve said the family hopes Hutchinson’s success will gain him more sponsors. Dennis Ward, owner of the Opera House on Central Avenue and Colton’s grandfather, supports the racers.

Between races, Hutchinson has to find time to train. That includes strength training with weights and bicycle riding along a dirt track near his home in Banta.

“You can’t go out there if you’re not in good shape,” Steve said, adding that he hopes the motocross races make a difference when Hutchinson gets back onto the longer courses. “You only get better riding the bike.”

• We want to hear what you have to say. Comment on this story at www.tracypress.com, or to reach Sports Editor Bob Brownne, call 830-4227 or e-mail This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

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written by trmom , September 03, 2008

Go Danny

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written by fordoni5 , September 03, 2008

Thanks Bob,
we love to see these positive stories on kids in our town. great article.

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written by peepspeer , September 04, 2008

Great Job Danny! Keep it up.