Dirt bike rider, 13, lets it roll

By Sophia Fischer sfischer@theacorn.com

SPEEDSTER-Dean Thirkill, of Agoura Hills, coaches his daughter Shelby before a desert dirt bike race.

Even at age 5, Shelby Thirkill, of Agoura Hills felt the need for speed.

Today the Lindero Canyon Middle School eighth-grader is the youngest and only female dirt bike racer in her Southern California motorcycle club.

"Shelby is one of the few 13-year-olds that we see out in the desert racing motorcycles, which is pretty impressive to me," said Eric "Big E" Wohlers, president of the Four Aces Motorcycle Club.

Four Aces includes 65 members from Paso Robles to San Diego. Its members are mostly males, with only two women older than 50.

Thirkill admits that it’s sometimes "weird" being the only girl in the group, but she says she gets encouragement from other women riders during races.

"Not a lot of people do this as a sport so I feel like I’m accomplishing something," Thirkill said.

When her club meets other clubs at races, she sees more women, but they are still a minority. Out of about 500 riders at any given race, 100 will be women, according to Thirkill’s mom, Kris. Thirkill is ranked 43 out of that 100, based on races she has placed in.

"Her all-out goal is to be the youngest top women’s racer in the history of desert racing," Kris said.

Racing is not the only factor that draws Thirkill to the sport. The desert itself holds an attraction for her that is almost spiritual.

"The desert is so quiet," Thirkill said. "There is no pollution, no buildings. If something bad happens at school I know I can get away and go to the desert.

"Sometimes when I’m riding I’ll stop, shut off my bike and just sit for 10 minutes. I just seem to fit in there."

Thirkill got her start in racing from her dad, Dean, who’s been riding for the past 10 years. Dean began giving Shelby rides on his bike when she was a 1-year-old.

When Thirkill was five she begged him for her own dirt bike, but she hadn’t yet learned to ride a bicycle. Dean made a deal with her.

"She had to learn to ride a bicycle first—without the training wheels," Dean said.

Thirkill rose to the challenge, got on her bike and rode immediately. She held her dad to his offer and the following weekend got her first dirt bike, a tiny Yamaha PW50 for beginners.

Today she rides a much larger Yamaha TT-R125L for mid-size riders. She wears about 20 pounds of protective gear, including riding pants, a jersey, chest protector, leather boots, helmet, gloves, and goggles. Even so, she had a scare in August of 2003 when she a bad fall at the start of a race in Mojave.

The beginning of any race involving hundreds of bikes kicks up clouds of dust and general mayhem, earning that part of the race the name "the bomb."

In this particular race Shelby had started off routinely, with her dad following behind her as he does on all of her races.

In the thick of the bomb, she suddenly came to a six-foot crevice in front of her. With racers all around, she could not swerve to avoid the hole. She tried to jump it, but her rear tire caught the far end of the hole and sent her flying 30 feet in the air.

After landing on her bike, Thirkill suffered multiple contusions, abrasions, bruises to her kidneys, but Kris said it would have been much worse if not for her protective gear.

"All of her safety gear did exactly what it was supposed to do," Kris said.

Racing in the desert is not easy. It takes skill and stamina to be able to complete races which take several hours on a 30- to 40-mile course for novices and 70 to 80 miles for more experienced riders. Trails are rugged and uneven, sending riders along terrain filled with rocks, dirt, bumps and obstacles.

"You can’t sit on your bike because it’s so rough. You have to stand to use your legs as shock absorbers," Dean said. "You get up into the mountains and ridges and you see amazing things."

The Thirkills drive their camper to the desert most weekends during racing season from Jan. to June and from Sept. to Dec. They’ve become close with other racing families, developing friendships and looking out for each other.

"Hundreds of people came up to our trailer to see if she was OK after her accident," Kris said. "The camaraderie is just so unbelievable."

Thirkill’s favorite place to race is Red Mountain, located about 45 miles northeast of the city of Mojave.

"It’s got a little bit of everything on the course, easy and challenging at the same time, hills, rocks, and great scenery," she said.

Thirkill does much of her own bike maintenance, from lubes to changing air and oil filters.

"I just love everything about riding, the wind blowing in my face, being on a big, fast bike and being able to control something," she said.

For more information, visit www.fouracesmc.com.