Choosing the best line, chasing the dream

SEELEY LAKE – "Dad, did we just do a wheelie?" Seeley Lake native Colby Evenson asked his father Errol. "It was scary, but from there I was hooked. I just wanted more and I wanted to go faster."

Colby, now 24, claimed the 2019 High Country Motocross Association (HCMA) 250 Intermediate and 450 Intermediate Class championship titles. He will join the professional class motocross racers next year, a dream that he has held since a child.

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Colby grew up riding motor bikes with his brother Christian and cousins. The Evensons would drive to Hungry Horse to ride and go to races in the area.

"As a kid I didn't know where we were going, but it was somewhere new," said Colby. "I was excited because I got to ride my dirt bike there."

The only thing he didn't like was the color of his Kawasaki KX60.

"It is green and purple. At a young age purple wasn't cool," said Colby. "But it was fast and it was fun and that is what mattered the most."

Early in the summer of 2016, Errol got a call from his brother at 1 p.m. in the afternoon. There was a Majestic Valley Arena Cross race in Kalispell and practice started at 3 p.m.

Colby borrowed his friend Bubba Wold's brand new bike and gear and Errol paid the race entry.

"There was no way Colby was getting out of this," said Errol. "He went up there right at the last minute and he pulled first place."

"From there it just kind of kicked off," said Colby about his racing career.

Colby's first race with the HCMA was June 19, 2016 in Great Falls where he took third in the 250 Junior Class. He hit three more races that summer racing in the 250 Junior and Open Junior classes. He placed 18th in the Open Junior Class and 26th in the 250 Junior Class.

Colby purchased his own Kawasaki 250 and raced it in 2017. At a race in Helena at the end of June, Colby went from last place to less than 30 feet behind the first rider in less than three-quarters of the track.

When the lead rider hit a mud hole, Colby ran into him and went down as well. They both got up and the other rider took off after exchanging apologies.

"In the go-pro you could hear Colby just kicking and kicking and kicking, trying to get this bike started again. His bike was flooded," said Errol. "He kicked so much he actually started gagging in his helmet. He was so exhausted."

Colby finally got the bike started again and caught all the way back up to the pack and placed 13th in the first moto, the name for a race in the HCMA circuit. In the second moto, he took third. His combined points placed him sixth overall in the 250 Junior Class.

"He couldn't really put out his full potential with a piece of equipment that wasn't doing what he needed it to do," said Errol. "When I saw that, it tore me up."

The next Saturday, Errol arranged to surprise Colby at a friend's house. He unloaded a new 2016 KX250F a block away and drove it to where Colby was hanging out. It already had the number 72 on it, his brother Chris's favorite number.

"I came around the corner and Colby lost it," said Errol. "I told Colby, 'No more excuses.'"

When Colby offered to help pay for the bike, Errol told him if he caught every race he could for the next two years, the bike would be his.

Colby hit every race for the 250 Junior Class. He started racing in the 450 Junior Class as well in August 2017. His goal wasn't for the points, it was another opportunity to practice.

"You can only go so fast over the obstacles. You can only go so fast around the corners," said Colby. "A lot of it is finding the fastest line and staying consistent. You find the bike that you are fast at and you just go like crazy."

In 2017, Colby finished second in the 250 Junior Class and 11th in the 450 Junior Class.

"[Once I got the new bike] my progression really went through the roof," said Colby. "I bumped up to the intermediate class and it just kind of flew like a rocket from there. My dad's been through thick and thin with everything to make sure we get there and collect the points and get to where we've gotten to now."

At the end of 2018, Colby took first in the 250 intermediate, 128 points ahead of second place. He also landed second in the 450 intermediate, missing first by only 41 points.

While he could have bumped to the Pro Class, Colby decided he wanted to take both the 250 and 450 championship titles. He stayed in the intermediate classes in 2019.

Out of 11 races, Colby landed seven first places in the 250 and six first places in the 450. He finished the season 202 points ahead of second place in the 250 Intermediate and 116 points ahead of second place in the 450 Intermediate. Next year he will step into the Professional class.

"You have to really be consistent, show up to every race and do well. That is what builds up your points," said Colby. "I was expecting some faster kids to be with me and I really just kind of ended up blowing it out of the water. After finishing this season really good in the standings, it's time for me to let someone else be first."

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Colby said 10 years ago he never thought he would be where he is now.

"I always looked at Motocross and thought I wanted to race for a living. When I did start racing, things started to come together and I got faster and faster. Now that I'm moving to the Pro Class, it has kicked in that a dream has come true," said Colby. "It goes to show if you really want something and you focus 100 percent on it, you can make it happen."

For the past two years, Colby said practice hasn't been a routine. He also does not have time to exercise outside of work and eating right is always a challenge.

"I stay as active as possible during the week and be ready for the weekend," said Colby. "Going into the Pro Class, if I want to be in the top five again, I'm going to need to change my work-out ways and practice a little more."

The biggest thing for Colby's improvement has been watching the faster riders and mimicking them.

"I try to collect what it takes to be fast and then break things down to how fast to go over a jump, the maneuvers it takes to be faster like staying low or beating someone around the corner," said Colby.

Colby added that seat time, persistence, dedication and consistency have also contributed to his success.

"There is always someone out there that is going to be faster than you. You need to look at what you can do to make yourself a little faster," said Colby. "Every second counts. When the gate drops for 20 minutes you are consistently going as hard and as fast as you can to be the first one to cross the finish line."

Along with being physically prepared, Colby said mental preparation is also key.

"You definitely have to push your boundaries out there," said Colby. "There are times when you are scared and you just have to commit. If you don't commit you are going to wreck."

When it is rainy and muddy, the mental challenge increases.

"You are just exhausted. You are falling over in the mud and you can barely keep your bike up. You want to pull off the track and you want to quit," said Colby. "But you know if you just keep going and finish, you will collect points and you will be on top."

Colby credits his Dad with helping him succeed on and off the track.

"My dad has been the fire underneath me. Whatever I can't make, he picks up the slack," said Colby.

Once Colby enters the Pro Class, he has the opportunity to race outside of Montana if he qualifies for the larger races. But for now, his goal is to continue to increase his time and see where that takes him.

"If you really want something, you can't stop," said Colby. "You just have to keep going."

While Colby does not have any official sponsors, he credits his dad, mom, uncles and "the family gang" for helping him get to the races. He also loves what he calls his "Moto family," up to eight families that meet up at the races and help each other out. He said even if he couldn't race, he would be there because it is a such a fun environment. He is also the oldest rider in "the family" and he loves helping the younger riders

"[He caught every race in the last two years] and this is what the outcome was. Now he is going to go pro," said Errol adding how proud he is of his son. "To see everything that has happened in his life and what he has gone through and to see him keep going and going and pushing for his goal...hats off to him. He gave it everything he had."

 

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