 Adrienne
Cooper
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#14 Date of birth: 12/19/89 Types of competition: Motocross Favorite place: Barstow, Vegas, Glamis, Imperial Dunes Favorite track: Glen Helen Worst event ever: Second Moto on April 4th 2004, I was in mid air over a tabletop and I had just caught first place and I endoed. Best race: First Moto on April 4th 2004. Most embarrassing moment: Don't have one Highlights of career: 3rd place in ITP Quadcross 2003 Favorite quad: Honda 400EX Favorite sports: Basketball and RACING!!!!!!!!!!!!! Sponsors |
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 Friday, 5 November 2004, By Rhiannon Potkey 14-Year-Old Rocks Quad Racing World The transformation begins the moment Adrienne Cooper mounts the powerful 380-pound, four-wheel machine. As she straddles the seat, her green eyes dance with fire. She grips the handlebars, and her face tightens with determination. The 14-year-old Simi Valley, Calif. resident exudes confidence. "She is a different person when she gets on that bike. It is like her whole attitude changes," said Adrienne's father, Julius Cooper. "She is just so focused and so driven to race hard and win." Cooper is one of the up-and-coming female quad off-road racers in Southern California. Having swept the last six races in the ITP QuadCross Series, she is battling for the No. 1 ranking in the women's beginner class. Cooper can clinch the top spot with a win in the season-ending race on Dec. 5. While many assumed she would follow in the footsteps of her basketball-playing older sisters, Tawnee and Teresa, Adrienne wanted to carve her own path in the dirt. "I wanted to have my own individual thing, so I got into something else," said Cooper. "My sisters love basketball, and I love racing. It is a lot different, but a lot of fun." Cooper knew she wanted to race quads since she was a little girl riding recreationally on family trips in the desert. "I like how aggressive and challenging it is and the rush of adrenaline you get," said Cooper. "You have to really love it to want to be in it because you are taking a big risk being out on the track." More than any jump or turn, the biggest obstacle Cooper had to overcome was convincing her mother, Jeanne, to let her compete. She finally gave the OK a year and a half ago. "It took me a while, but she knew I really wanted to do it," said Cooper. "She said if I was careful I could. I was really excited because most moms won't even let kids ride because it is really dangerous, so I was lucky." Jeanne Cooper still can't watch the start of her daughter's races when the riders jockey for position around the first turn It didn't help that Adrienne's first crash going off a table-top jump happened directly in front of where her mother was seated. "I went over the handlebars. Fortunately, I wasn't hurt," said Cooper. "My bike flipped a couple times, but I got back on and finished the race." Cooper's parents were hesitant at first to invest too much time and money into their daughter's racing. But once they realized it wasn't just a whim, they gave their full support. They recently had her sponsor, Denton Racing, modify her Honda EX400 with new shocks and an upgraded engine. Cooper's win streak started when she got the blue No. 14 bike back. "She was a little afraid of it at first, but once she practiced a few times she got really comfortable," said Julius Cooper. "Her confidence has built up and she is really smoking the field." Cooper takes her race training seriously. She and her father travel to Glen Helen Raceway every other Thursday to practice her jumps and turns on the course. They watch videos of Cooper's practice sessions, and those of professional riders to help improve her technique. "It's just like basketball, you got to be practicing every day shooting free throws to get good," said Julius Cooper. "It's the same with quads in my eyes." With strength needed to control the bike around the track and over jumps for up to 14 miles, Cooper lifts weights in her backyard and runs on Simi Valley's cross country team to build endurance. "That is pretty awesome for girls to be racing quads. And they are not going around there at a snail's pace either," said Julius Cooper. "Her bike will do about 90-95 mph. On straightaways she is doing about 40, and then going into turns and jumps." Roy Bloodworth, whose daughter Brittany races with Cooper, has seen a progression in Cooper's skills. "She has got the potential, and has definitely improved since the first time I saw her ride," said Bloodworth, a quad racer himself. "I notice this year she is starting to do more jumps and handling herself over obstacles better." In what is still predominantly a man's sport, Cooper believes women are beginning to break down walls at the track. "A lot of guys say girls can't muscle the quad around, but once they see you race they give you a lot of respect," said Cooper. "They have to watch you race before you get respect. They are not just going to hand it to you, you have to earn it." Aside from the joy she gets while racing, an extra benefit of riding is the opportunity to bond with her father. The two spend most evenings together in the garage listening to music and tinkering with their bikes. "That is my favorite part of the day," said Adrienne Cooper. "Just us out there messing around and making sure everything is perfect with the bike. My dad is a good mechanic, and I learn something new every day from him." In January, the duo plans to start traveling to national events for the first time to give Cooper more experience and exposure. Her dream is to turn professional, and view life from an 18-wheeler and motorhome while touring the country. "It seems really fun going out to races and being around the track," said Cooper. "You are also a role model for little kids who want to race. They admire you for being who you are." At a recent race, Cooper was side-by-side at the starting gate with her idol, Angela Moore, the top women's professional rider. "I was real intimidated by her and her big bike. She started in the gate next to me and I asked her how long it took her to go pro," said Cooper. "She said it took her 20 years and a lot of hard work. But at 14 she was just like me. Ten years later, she is No. 1. I hope I can do it in less time than that." venturacountystar.com. © 2004 Scripps Howard News Service. All Rights Reserved. |
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