When the first UTV came off the assembly line everyone thought “That is a great way to off road and see the country”. But when the second UTV came off the line I’m sure thoughts changed to “I bet I am faster than that one” and UTV racing was born. Fast forward several years and the first generation of UTV racers are grown adults with families that are looking to pass their passion down to their children. These younger racers have had some hurdles to go over to be able to compete in organized racing as the rules were initially set up with adults in mind. One of those young racers who we have worked with for years is Cam Mapes. Cam started out in the lite class racing a RZR 800 to learn the ropes of UTV racing and to hone his driving skills. He has had the support of his entire family over the years working long nights and weekends to get the machine ready or travel to and from races. Cam has since graduated up to the Heavy class of UTV racing and is running a RZR XP 1000 and is showing great promise as a UTV racer. He has learned valuable lessons while working with fellow racers and series owners that will stay with him for the rest of his life.

While UTV racing is a very small portion of the industry we enjoy, it is (like the auto industry) what drives progress and innovation to make all machines better. If you see a youngster who is interested in this sport we love then we encourage you to help them get involved in any way you can. Maybe it’s racing, or maybe it’s not. But I’m sure we can all agree that a young Cam Mapes learning to work on and maintain his machine is better than one who is glued to a TV.