January 20 - A Rookie’s Perspective by Jake Morman

Jake and I sat down last night and had a long talk about the situation with Red Bull. Here is what he has to say:

First I wanted to let everyone know that I am okay and that I understand that this can happen in racing. So with that said, I would like everyone to get a "Rookies" perspective.

I was one of twenty-three kids that Red Bull gave the opportunity to chase their dreams. We were given the opportunity to travel coast to coast as well as some of us to Europe. We were given the chance to race on premiere tracks like Barber and Laguna and for the first time in over 100 years we were the first to race a motorcycle at Indy. On top of that, we were recognized by some of the big AMA teams, we got to race at the same events as Moto GP, we were recognized in magazines and had our races televised on Speed. I even got to be their poster boy for their t.v. commercial.

Among the other things Red Bull did was provide breakfast, lunch and dinner for us and our families, they spent crazy money on our gear that we got to take home at the end of the season. We were given a mechanic, a suspension guy and most of all, the Coach that most would die for, Kevin Schwantz.

We received unlimited amounts of Red Bull delivered to our homes which I am sure some of you would have killed for (ha ha).

This season with Red Bull has been one of the best things that could have ever happened to me, it has given me confidence, it has taught me communication skills as well as life skills.

Being part of that kind of professional and classy organization has been an honor and I feel blessed to have had the opportunity, if for only one year but feel that I have gained ten years of experience. All I can say is I have no regrets and no hard feelings towards Red Bull and I want to say THANK YOU to every one that was part of it!

One of the other positive things that have come from this is I will get the chance to race with my SEMRA family more often and hang out with my friends from SEMRA. Though I will miss the friends I made with Red Bull.

Last but not least, I want to thank each and everyone of you for your year long support while I went through this journey. I would not have been able to make some of the rounds if it had not been for you.

Thanks and I hope to see you at the Races!

Jake Morman
"The Squirrel"