Benton’s Cameron Cook recently competed in the largest amateur motocross championship event in the world. The 37th Annual Rocky Mountain ATV/MC AMA Amateur National Motocross Championship, presented by Lucas Oil, took place July 30 – August 4. Cameron competed in the highly competitive Special Limited class, where he/she placed a respective 12th.
Cameron took on over 22,000 hopefuls from across America to earn one of just 1,446 qualifying positions at the final championship. At the national, the entries for each class is capped at 42, making Cameron one of the top 42 racers in the country in his/her division.
In order to qualify for this prestigious event Cameron went through a two-step qualifying process involving Area Qualifiers and Regional Championships. 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. In total, there were 35 different classes of competition.
“It was a very difficult week at Loretta’s this year. Riders had to deal with heat, humidity, difficult track conditions and racing against the best competitors in their class from around the country,” said Tim Cotter, Director of MX Sports. “A solid finish at the event gives a rider instant national recognition and may serve as the first step in furthering their professional motocross career.”
Cameron, who attends Benton Elementary School in the 1st grade, has been riding dirt bikes since he was 3 years old.
This was Cameron’s 2nd trip to the Ranch for the national championship, and his best finish to date.
Cameron’s most memorable experience during this prestigious week-long event was getting to meet Malcom Stewart, almost pulling the hole shot in Moto 2, playing in the creek with his friends and family and most of all having a great finish!
Loretta Lynn and her family have been hosting the motocross event at their family ranch since 1982. The track is built on a section of Loretta Lynn Ranch and Campground in Hurricane Mills, Tennessee. The course contains a variety of man-made jumps, corners and other obstacles designed to test the skills and stamina of the racers. Cameron raced a total of 3 races during the weeklong event battling the varying track and weather conditions.
The race action was broadcast live daily at www.RacerTV.com, for a total of 40 hours of coverage including footage of Cameron In addition, two highlight shows featuring the event will air on NBC Sports Network this fall.
For additional information on the Amateur National, visit the official website at www.mxsports.com or call (304) 284-0101. Also, follow the official Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts for exclusive content and to catch the latest news.
About the 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 57 Area Qualifiers (February through May) and 13 Regional Championships (May through June), hosted at select motocross facilities across the country. The qualifying system culminates in the National Final (first week in August) hosted annually since 1982 at the home of country music star Loretta Lynn in Hurricane Mills, Tenn. Nearly 22,000 racers attempt to qualify in 35 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 company and sanctioned by AMA. For more information, please visit www.mxsports.com.
