CELEBRATION, Fla — In a sport where men traditionally are found revving engines and speed-shifting, a 24-year-old woman is taking the throttle and gaining speed.
Amateur ATV racer Angela Moore says she's ready to make history at ESPN's Great Outdoor Games VI, which will air on ESPN and ABC July 13-17.
Moore is the only female competitor in the ATV Four Wheel Frenzy event. She is challenging reigning ATV MX Champion Doug Gust and 22 other men for $10,000 and the first ever Four Wheel Frenzy title bestowed by the Games.
Four Wheel Frenzy and other Great Outdoor Games events will take place at Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex, July 7-10.
Moore hopes that her participation in the event will help promote women in outdoors sports.
"When people think of ATVs, they think of utility bikes with gun racks, clunking through the mud; they don't think of women on ATVs flying and racing through the air," Moore said.
But the Arizona resident is on a mission to change the perception that ATVs are for boys only.
Ordinarily, Moore says fans are stunned when they see her pull alongside her male competitors at the starting line of an ATV race, but their surprise doesn't affect her.
"The main response I get is a shocked look," said Moore. "Shocked that I and other women can go out and do very well."
More and more women are participating in ATV racing. This year, 57 women competed in the Women's Grand National Motocross Series. Plus, Moore continues to raise the bar for women by winning five Women's Grand National Motocross Championships and being the only woman to earn the prestigious 1998 Randy Howard Memorial Award, which recognizes professionalism in ATV sports.
With 12 years of experience in ATV motor racing, Moore is still considered a rookie compared to her counterparts. And Moore is not underestimating her Great Outdoor Games competitors, since some are professionally ranked in the Grand National Championship Series.
"I am an amateur going to the Games, so everyone is my main competition," said Moore.
Despite Moore's amateur ranking, she believes her hard work is paying off and is honored to be invited to participate in the Games. She is eager to set a record at the upcoming Games and believes any woman, with practice, can rise to the top in ATV racing.
"Being there and competing with professional riders is awesome in itself and I am the only female doing it," said Moore. "I am woman. Hear me roar!"
Fans can catch the Great Outdoor Games live July 7-10, 2005 at Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex and Tenoroc Shooting Sports and Training Facility.
Admission to the 2005 Great Outdoor Games at Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex is $5 per person per day, with children 10 and under free. Admission to Tenoroc Shooting Sports and Training Facility is free. Re-entry is allowed each day.
Tickets can be purchased on ticketmaster.com through June 26 and purchased at the door the day of the event.
The Games will be aired on ESPN and ABC Sports July 13-17, 2005. Click here for the broadcast schedule.
