Cornered by makeshift walls in the family’s custom, black Chevy box van, a young Andrew Short leaned over a battery-operated 12-inch television. He watched old tapes of motocross races and dreamed of becoming a pro, trying to pick up tricks.
His father, Howie, called the van home because of how often they were on the road. In a three-year period they traveled more than 168,000 miles from their Colorado Springs home to motocross events. In that time they heard their fair share of doubts about Andrew’s future in the sport.
Those days are gone.
Short, 22, now flies to races and rakes in a six-figure salary as a member of Team Honda’s 125cc motocross team. This weekend, he will receive a welcome-back as he competes in his backyard at the Pro Motocross National at Thunder Valley in Lakewood.
“It’s going to mean so much to me coming home and performing in front of my family and everyone that has supported me,” Short said. “I’m so blessed and lucky to be where I am at today.”
Short credits much of his success to his family, especially the talks he had with his father on the road.
“We would talk about life in general: racing, sex, drugs, faith – that kind of stuff,” Short said. “Our time on the road was our time. We bonded.”
His father never saw the long drives as taxing. “It was a labor of love,” Howie Short said.
They lived off of Andrew’s mother’s casseroles on the trips. They lived in a 6-foot area that housed a foldout bed, couch, sink, a shower that worked intermittently and luggage. Separating the space was a wall; on the other side were Short’s bikes, gear and gas cans.
“We did whatever we could,” said Short’s mother, Shirley, who made some of the trips. “We didn’t necessarily have the biggest nor nicest motor home, the nicest bikes or anything like that.”
As an amateur, Short struggled. He never finished close to the top five until he won the biggest amateur race of the season at Loretta Lynn’s Ranch in Tennessee in 2001. Even then, people in the motocross community called him just a good rider.
Living in Colorado didn’t help. The mecca of racing is the West Coast, and because of that, Short was continuously being passed up by sponsors.
But, it became an ally for him.
“It helped me a lot because I didn’t have as much,” Short said. “I didn’t have much of a choice. I had to work hard.”
But Shirley, a kindergarten teacher, and Howie, a dentist, didn’t want their son to make racing a career. They wanted to make sure he finished high school in case his racing didn’t pan out.
But Short’s racing career blossomed soon after he graduated from Pine Creek High School. He turned pro at age 17 and later moved to Murrieta, Calif., to improve his chances at gaining exposure and sponsorships. He found his niche riding supercross, winning the 2003 Dave Coombs Sr. 125 Shoot-Out, Bercy Supercross and, this season, the Houston 2005 supercross after runner-up finishes in three earlier events.
His parents are now ecstatic over their son’s career choice.
“I didn’t think it was going to happen,” Howie said. “We’re thrilled for him, of course, and proud; he gets to live his dream.”
Short took his first 125cc motocross podium this season, placing third in Mount Morris, Pa., in May. Earlier this month, he had two third-place finishes in Buchanan, Mich., and is currently eighth in the points standings.
His next chance comes Sunday in front of a home crowd, a familiar park, in altitude he’s accustomed to.
Asked if this weekend was going to be his best shot, Short smiled and said: “Definitely. If there’s a place to do it, it’s here.”
Pro Motocross National at Thunder Valley
* What: Seventh of 12 events in the 2005 AMA Motocross Championships
* Where: Thunder Valley Motocross Park, Lakewood, 701 S. Rooney Road (between Alameda and Interstate 70 on Rooney Road)
* When: Saturday, Sunday
* For information: 303-697-1003
TOP RACERS
250cc: Ricky Carmichael, James Stewart, Chad Reed, Kevin Windham
125cc: Andrew Short, Ivan Tedesco, Nathan Ramsey
Saturday
12:35-4:05 p.m.: Practice
Sunday
9-10:30 a.m.: Practice
10:45 a.m.: Completion, qualifying races
12:30 p.m.: Opening ceremony
1 p.m.: 125 Moto 1
2 p.m.: 250 Moto 1
3:30 p.m.: 125 Moto 2
4:10 p.m.: 125 victory circle
4:20 p.m.: 250 Moto 2
5:10 p.m.: 250 victory circle
TICKETS
Adults: $40 (two days), $30 Sunday only. Children 6-12: $20 (two days or Sunday only)
For additional information: www.mxthundervalley.com
Staff writer Bryan Chu can be reached at 303-820-1979 or bchu@denverpost.com.
