In 2019, Ethan Asher was seriously injured in a car accident. In the span of a month, Michael Hooper, Talan Hooper and Josh Ashcraft built a track, solicited donations from local businesses and held a motocross event that ended up raising $6,000 for Asher.

That’s how Race 4 Recovery started, and its motto remains “No one rides alone.” 

At the Park County Fair this year, the group is going bigger and better than ever with two events. The Outlaw Rodeo is scheduled for  Wednesday, July 27 (see related story), and the Mixed Motocross Race will be on Friday, July 29. 

Each event the nonprofit holds raises funds for a specific beneficiary or for general operational expenses. 

The motocross event it held last year at the fair raised over $12,000 for Stephanie Warren, a Powell Middle School teacher who was diagnosed with breast cancer.

The Outlaw Rodeo will raise money for operations, and Friday’s motocross race will help Macey Bernstein. The mother of three young children was diagnosed with Chiari malformation, a condition in which the part of the brain that controls balance, called the cerebellum, extends out through a normal opening in the skull where it joins the spinal canal. The cerebellum then pushes down into the spinal column. The disease can cause headaches, difficulty with coordination, dizziness and speech problems. 

Race 4 Recovery has continued to improve on its events. After each race, the trio asks the racers what they liked about the track and what they didn’t. So each track design gets a little better than the one before. 

Ashcraft said group members completely changed the design this year from the one at last year’s fair. Overall, he said, it’s more challenging, but they modified some of the obstacles to make them more manageable for the smaller bikes. 

“It’s got a few of the same obstacles as last year, but we’re going to turn it up a little bit this year,” Ashcraft said. 

Talan said some of the riders remarked that the lanes were too narrow, especially around the turns. So Race 4 Recovery is going to make the track easier for more riders to pass each other and navigate the turns. 

The jumps are also redesigned so that riders will get plenty of “air time,” Ashcroft said. 

As with all of the group’s designs, this track is going to have a little of everything. Talen’s advice to riders is to come prepared. 

“Be ready for everything, because everything is in it:  endurocross, motocross, flat track, supercross – and then some,” Talan said. 

The race is for all ages and experience levels. The entry fee is $20, and registration forms can be found at the fair office, on the fair website, at the event, or by going to tinyurl.com/2p95fjnv. 

Pit gates open at 7 a.m. on July 29. Racers should use the Hamilton Street entrance into the fair. Registration is from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. for pros and non-pros, and late registration (for pros only) is between 3 p.m. and 4 p.m. Practice will be from 10 a.m. until noon., and pros will have another practice session from 4 p.m. until 5 p.m. Non-pro heat races will run from 1 p.m. until 4 p.m.

Each rider gets two pit passes, but additional passes can be purchased for $15. 

All riders and pit crews must report to registration in order to get a pit bracelet and sign a waiver. All riders are required to have a helmet, motocross boots, long-sleeved shirt, pants, and eye protection. 

Spectators can head into the grandstand at 5 p.m., and the main event starts at 6 p.m.