Riding High

Even before the incident that reduced his mom to tears and caused other riders to marvel, Aviery Hickey already had sufficient buzz in the motorcycling community, so he certainly didn't need the are-you-kidding-me moment that occurred a couple months ago.

Nonetheless, there is little doubt that the motocross race on Aug. 23 at Jeeps Cycle Club added to an already sparkling resume, and not simply because he won the race.
Rather, it's how he won the race - with a lacerated spleen.

Hickey, a sophomore at Valley Center High School, sustained the injury after an aggressive move resulted in a collision with another driver in a 250 pro class race. Initially, Hickey thought the injury was minor - perhaps a couple bruised ribs, at worst - so he simply wrapped himself up with an Ace bandage.

Thirty minutes later, he was back on the track, winning a 125 pro class race. A few hours later, he was in the hospital for the injury that could sideline him up to three months.

Clearly, motocross racing is Hickey's passion. Such love and dedication has helped him become a player at the national level and appears to have him on track for a professional career in motocross - dirt-track racing on a cross-country course with assorted turns and jumps.

His father Dan summed it up: "He's living his dream."

That's especially true lately as Hickey is coming off a productive and successful summer, most of which was spent in Texas where he stayed with relatives and trained daily with top drivers at River Valley MX in the town of Boyd. River Valley MX attracts the best of the best, Dan Hickey said, and proudly trumpets on its website that, "It's all about the dirt."

"Spending all that time down there, racing against those kids and adults on a regular basis really made him better," Dan Hickey said.

In June, Hickey accomplished perhaps his greatest feat, winning his first professional race (the 250A class) at the GNC national championships in Decatur, Texas.

Motorcycle racing is a family affair for the Hickeys. Dan's interest has rubbed off on the children, and mom acts as the family's manager. Little sister Harlie, 6, is already a state champion, and little brother Dayne, 9, also races. Hickey, who has been riding since he was 3, said he enjoys the individuality of the sport.

"You get to be yourself - that's where it gets me," he said. "I get to show off what I like to do, show my personality on and off the track. I'm just taking after my dad. I ride a lot like him. Real fluid, very rarely make mistakes, although I obviously make a few."

Hickey will soon enter a key phase of his racing career. This winter, he will begin competing in the Texas Winter Series - the first step toward his attempt to earn enough points to qualify for an American Motorcycle Association license.

"It's what I want to do, so I'm gonna put my head down and train and ride as much as I can," he said. "Hopefully, it will pay off and I can get my professional license."

First things first, though. As of the second week of September, Hickey was still nursing his injury but hopeful of getting back on his red Honda CRF 250 earlier than expected.

"It's killing me not to ride," he said. "It's what I love to do. It's what I've loved to do almost every day since I was 3 years