2008 was a great learning year for me because I got incomparable coaching from my father, Scott Stump who is a veteran of the sport and two time 883 Grand National Champion in racing Dirt Track. I was able to travel a lot and race all of the East Coast and Midwest regional events, improving with each race. My advancement on the track only increased my excitement for 2009!

Highlight of the Season:

The 2008 racing season came to a high point when I received an invitation to the Road Racing Red Bull US Rookies Cup tryouts at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, Alabama in October. There were 117 kids from 10 different countries all over the world trying to make only a 23 member team! The program was split into two sessions, and my session was Saturday morning. I focused on qualifying and did my best to become one of the 42 semi finalists. After the days session, everyone got together in the main area of the complex to hear if we had made the final round. When my name was announced as a semi-finalist, I ran immediately to hug my Dad. Without his coaching and support I would not have been able to have that moment, and he was so proud of me.


A lot of great riders had to leave in defeat, but I had another day to show what I could do on the road course. And I certainly did. That following Monday I had an excellent day of riding in the semi-finalist round. At the end of the day, the riders were told that we would be notified about whether we had made the team or not. Unfortunately, before the team was announced, KTM Motorcycles, one of the main sponsors, had to pull out. Therefore, the US Rookies Cup for 2009 was cancelled, and I had to put the dream of joining the team on hold.