With his aggressive riding and can-do attitude, Jake Gillis has been carving out a winning niche on the amateur motocross circuit for the past few years.
This week, Jake, 12, will compete in the pinnacle event for an aspiring professional racer: the 2006 AMA Amateur National Motocross Championships. Held over a week at Loretta Lynn's ranch in Hurricane Mills, Tenn., the scrappy rider will race in the 85cc class for 7-11 year olds (birthday qualification rules put him in this age group.)
"I'm hoping to make pro," said Jake, who will be a seventh grade student this fall at Traverse City West Junior High, of his ultimate goal.
A racing standout since he began at age four, Jake qualified for "Loretta Lynn," as it is known, by winning a regional championship in Michigan in June. This is the first year he has really gone for this prize berth and he is thrilled to take it on. The lowest score, tabulated from the finishing placement in each of the three races, among the 40 or so competitors in his class will be the winner.
Typical of his positive mindset, Jake is going for a rare perfect 3, which means first, first and first place finishes.
"I just try to do my best, make myself go faster every single lap," said Jake, who is noted for his situational awareness, strength, competitive spirit and aggressive racing style. "I train to do my best and push myself as hard as I can."
His close-knit family will be cheering Jake on during his three motos this week: parents, Keith and Meredith, sister Rachel and grandparents, all of whom accompany him to races every weekend during the March-October season.
"They go out of their way and support me a whole bunch," said Jake of his family, adding of their nomadic lifestyle: "I love to travel."
Keith Gillis said that his son distinguishes himself from his racing peers because of his heart — the take-no-prisoners tenacity he shows on the track. Jake has been training for the past year with former pro Brad Kress, who is honing the boy's natural skills and prior training into a racing force.
Kress, the family and Jake see unlimited potential.
"To do this sport and to make it to the next level, you have to have the drive because it is so competitive," said Gillis, a detective with the Traverse City Police Department. "One of the things that his trainer has told me, out of the presence of Jake, is that he's never trained a kid that had as much heart and determination as Jake. That made me pretty proud."
Jake spends his off season playing hockey, where last year his maturity and leadership got him named captain of his peewee team. Also a standout hockey player with potential in that sport, he likes motocross better and misses racing in the winter. The family is considering wintering in Georgia at some point to allow year-round training for racing.
"Jake really wants it," noted Keith Gillis, a former racer and an experienced mechanic who lends his skills to both Jake's and other racer's bikes. "A lot of people push their kids into doing this or doing that, but that's not the case here. We support him in doing what he wants to do."
Mental toughness and clear goals keep him going through the challenges and hard punishment of a ride that includes high speeds, sharp turns and jumps. (Jake approaches all challenges with his characteristic aggressiveness: accelerate, accelerate, accelerate.)
Because his son is relatively small for his age and class of bike, Jake's father invented and installed an offset handlebar mount when he moved up a class this year. Jake also had to learn to start from blocks this spring when he started racing the taller bike.
"The hardest thing about racing is it's a physical challenge and you have to not mess up a single time," said Jake, who has acquired a host of sponsors over the years. "You have to correct things right away and not make the same mistake twice."
"If you mess up or if you crash, you have to put it behind you," he added.