Page 62 - ISSUE-5-PULSE-BIGBOYTOYS

THE END OF AN
ERA
ROGER HAYDEN
He competed in his first race at the age of six and earned the AMA Horizon Award in 1998 (ironically named after his brother, Nicky, after his untimely passing in 2017). Roger made his professional debut in 1999 at the age of sixteen years old at Road Atlanta. At the time, he was often referred to by family and friends as ‘Porkchop’ due to his unlikely stature as
a motorcycle racer. Nonetheless, he scored an impressive fifth-place result in the AMA 750cc Supersport race. His results continued to improve and he eventually scored his first AMA 450 Superstock podium just one year later at the age of 17. Hayden has slimmed down since his days as a rookie on the scene, running the gamut of professional road racing as he’s dipped his toes into a multitude of different racing organizations throughout his career. In the same fashion as the rest of the Hayden brothers, Roger cut his teeth on the dirt track, providing him with a hefty advantage when he finally hit the asphalt full-time. He balanced racing flat track, sportbikes, and going to school as a teenager before eventually switching his focus to the AMA Road Racing category. In the prime of his dirt track career, Roger finished alongside his
62 THE PULSE • ISSUE FIVE
>>