Years Through the Gears

A glimpse in the life of professional rider Damon Huffman

by Stephanie Elgin
 
He began riding at the age of four and turned professional by age 15.  With two Supercross titles, one World Supercross title and taking first at the U.S. Open, it’s no wonder this professional was one of six invited to represent the U.S. in the very prestigious International Six Days Enduro (ISDE) event in Portugal in October.  He’s Santa Clarita’s own, Damon Huffman.
Professional rider Damon Huffman has called Santa Clarita his home since he was 12 years old. He graduated from Saugus High and currently resides in Westridge with his wife, Heidi and two sons, Max and Oliver.  Damon has had an amazing career over the past 19 years, racing Supercross and Motorcross for 14 years, taking a two-year break and returning to the sport successfully.  Damon remains to be a factory racer, currently racing for one of the top teams, Monster Energy Kawasaki.
“My father bought my sister and I a little Italjet 50cc.  We’d go camping in the desert and take it riding around our campground.  I picked it up really quick. A friend’s father noticed me riding and said I should give racing a shot.”
New to the racing scene, Damon entered one of the local competitions.  “I was in Levis, cowboy boots and didn’t even have gloves.  I just basically showed up!”  Damon did really well in the competition and eventually entering more races.  “It became the family thing to do every Friday night.”
Damon picked up many sponsorships along the way and by the time he was eight, he was the top amateur rider in his age bracket in the country.
Taking his love for the sport and entering many more competitions, as many as 36 competitions a year, Damon became a huge success.  “We went everywhere,” states Damon, “to Tennessee, Oklahoma, we’d drive and sleep in my dad’s van.  We were definitely roughing it.”
By age 17, Damon was a factory sponsored Suzuki rider with a salary “I was a senior at Saugus high school, but was always out of town at weekend competitions.  I didn’t even go to my prom!”
Damon’s popularity increased when he won the Anaheim Supercross in January of 1993.  “I was only 17.  I raced on the weekend and on Monday morning I was back at school.  It was who I was.  It was what I did – I raced.”
One of Damon’s memorable races was when he beat Ricky Carmichael in 1997 at the Troy Ohio National.  “I remember the details of that day exactly, even what I had for breakfast.  I also remember having the magic that day.  Both races were super hot, and it was very humid.  Carmichael has gone down in history as the greatest of all time.”
Another memorable moment for Damon was winning the ‘98 U.S. Open in Las Vegas. “It was an inaugural race, and I was coming off an injury, the $100,000 prize was nice, too,” he smiles.  “But nothing beats the European Supercross races.  You get a whole different vibe there,” states Damon.  “Some of my best memories are there.  The fans are louder and crazier!”
On October 12 through 17, Damon will be joining six other riders and representing the United States at the International Six Days Enduro in Portugal.  The ISDE is one of the oldest off road motorcycle races, having been around for over 84 years, and is said to be like the Olympics of the off road world.  Each country sends a team to represent their nation, and this year, Damon Huffman will be joining Destry Abbot, Kurt Caselli, Ricky Dietrich, Nathan Kanney and Timmy Weigand to represent the United States.  “I’ve always known about the ISDE, but never imagined I’d be participating in it.  My off road results were really good and I was really happy to have been selected on the team.  I couldn’t say no.  I have the riding part down, it’s just a different format than I’m used to – longer stages, longer rides.  But I’m looking forward to it.  It was quite an honor to be selected.”
His advice, “Riding is my focus.  Being in sports kept me out of a lot of trouble.  Whatever sport you do, you can make a great living from it, but it all comes down to being dedicated, sticking with it and staying focused.”
For more information on the ISDE visit www.isde4teamusa.com.