Cody O (Sumo CJ)
My family grew up riding dirt bikes as well as racing on and off since the 80’s. My uncle was 14 around the time I was 3-4 years old and was always on his Kawasaki KDX200 2-smoker tearing up the yard or blasting through single track trails in the woods. I remember there were days I would be playing in the house and would run to the window to catch a glimpse of the bike. Soon I became obsessed with going on his bike and wanting to ride one myself.
Unfortunately, my mom and her side of the family was always against me being on two wheels. Don’t get me wrong, in the meantime I definitely rode friends’ dirt bikes and ATVs and even my uncle’s Honda Odyssey buggy. In fact, I even remember learning how to ride on a friend’s Kawasaki KLX125 around the age of 9 in their backyard just to get some experience! He wasn’t so happy with the number of times I dropped the bike trying to take turns and learn how to control it, but what can you do?
By age 15-16 I was working with one of my uncles in his shop, learning how to work on cars and trucks, as well as installing lift kits and replacing stereo systems. I was also able to do some odds-and-ends jobs to be able to bring in some money so I could purchase my own toys. I remember the first day I took home my first bike: it was a 2001 Kawasaki KX125. I was already used to being on a 2-stroke prior to buying it, so I felt this was a great starting point. I changed little on the bike cosmetically but noticed I needed to fix some stuff with suspension and so on. This created projects for me to do and it was, all in all, a lot of fun.
By that point, I was ready and wanting to take bikes and the motor sports world as far as I could take it. J-Day Offroad is a huge race event in Massachusetts that the whole Northeast gets excited for. It consists of races that are 1-3 miles long with all types of off-road terrain. I typically took part in the woods rides the most, and from there I started to dabble into other J Day races and training on motocross tracks, all while taking to the woods in my free time to play around and explore with friends. It eventually became a hassle trying to only ride in designated areas and ensuring I wouldn’t get into trouble for trespassing – or towed. Those off-road shenanigans were time-consuming and even costly at times.
That is, until I was introduced to stunt riding by a friend of mine. Stunting came with the thrill and focus of riding the woods but without the restrictions I had encountered along the way. I was loving the feeling it brought and how simple it was to pack up fast and head to a local spot to practice. I then made my way to the South and met more people in the stunt riding community. While staying in touch with friends and family, I set out to venture off to South Florida. That’s when I came across GritShift – it’s now two years later and I have to say, I always knew this was where I wanted to be. The e-bike world has just only begun to take off, and I am ecstatic to take part in this journey with the greatest team. What we do here is amazing and as I am honored to help ensure all of our customers are taken care of.
