photo credit : Mariah Lacy
“ I think I was born with a dirt bike in the garage ” says Shawn Clark , when asked about how he got his start .
The southern Indiana native started riding at three-years-old and would begin racing shortly thereafter . Shawn got his start riding motocross and was a talented rider from a young age . He made his first trip to the world-famous Loretta Lynn ’ s Amateur National at age seven and would return ten more times before his amateur motocross career was finished .
Although , Shawn never won a title at “ The Ranch ” he finished runnerup multiple times to riders like Davi Millsaps , Josh Lichtle and Broc Hepler and mixed it up with James Stewart and Ryan Sipes on several occasions .
Shawn first got his start in the professional ranks in 2004 with Team Green , a Kawasaki supported venture . Growing up in Indiana meant snowy winters , not exactly the dream scenario for a motocross rider . Due to the weather Shawn spent a lot of time racing barn races , which featured tight turns and aggressive tactics .
With his experience on the tighter tracks Shawn decided to start off in the AMA Arenacross series . At his first ever AMA Arenacross race Shawn led the majority of the main event until a crash with a few laps to go caused him to place fifth . He was still able to turn some heads and the next year he received a full ride with Kawasaki to compete in Arenacross .
Shawn was not your traditional pro motocross rider . He started out in the Arenacross ranks before trying his hand at supercross , at the time that was the opposite way of doing things . Shawn also attended public high school while he was racing pro , which is virtually unheard of .
This limited which races he could attend , so he kept his focus on Arenacross . In 2006 , Shawn would go on to win the AMA Arenacross Lites championship .
After his title , at the ripe age of 20 , and in his prime , Shawn decided to step away from racing professionally . “ I ’ ve always had a really strong faith ,” says Shawn , “ I just felt like God was calling me to step away .” Although Shawn says he did not quite understand at the time , it turned out to be the right decision as a shoulder injury hindered his ability to ride . “ I ended up dislocating my shoulder seven times and had to have three surgeries to try and fix it , I would not have been riding anyway .”
After retirement Shawn went and earned a bachelor ’ s degree in Sports Ministry and a master ’ s degree in Divinity at Indiana Wesleyan University . Shawn would also serve
VOL . 6 ISSUE 3 - MARCH 2021 // PAGE 67