Chase Brennan is one of 40 to reach MotoX Nationals

By Tommie Brown, Staff Writer

Sometimes a tiny person can do great big things, and Menifee’s own Chase Brennan is proof of that.

This month, 7-year-old Chase took the win for the motocross regional championship. Having just turned 7, Chase won the title for the 4-6 age group.

It's a feat that no motocross athlete should take lightly. With this win, Chase will head to the national championship at the end of July to compete against other regional winners nationwide for the big prize.

Beginning his career at just 3 years of age on a PW50 bike, Chase has been a natural at the sport since he was able to ride.

“I remember the first time he rode,” says Alissa Brennan, Chase’s mother. “He hopped on a PW bike, which usually need and come with training wheels. But not Chase. He jumped on that bike, took off, and never looked back.”

In a family of five siblings, only one other sibling, older brother Hunter, has taken to the sport. While both parents dabbled in motocross, neither have had the same experience or success their young son has.

“We’ve never pushed anything on him,” says Alissa Brennan. “He’s respectful and kind of quiet; he always wins the character awards at school. His attitude is awesome towards it, and he’s a natural for sure.”

As Chase heads into the Loretta Lynn National Championship in Tennessee, he will be facing 40 other racers in his division. While 40 small motocross riders racing on one track may seem like a lot, only 40 racers in the entire country win this opportunity.

“When you’re in this world, Nationals is a huge deal,” explained Alissa. “This is a very difficult sport to become something in. A lot of good kids get overlooked. But this is their shot at making something of themselves in this sport. This is where the sponsors find you, where you get to start racing seriously. It’s a big deal.”

However, with a big opportunity and a big family comes a big cost.

“We were all so excited about it, and then I realized, wait ... I have to send a family to Tennessee for this,” says Alissa. “This is important to him, it’s his dream. And it’s also important as a racer. It’s amazing what he can already do, I can’t imagine what he’s going to be doing at say 12 years old and older. So we just really want him to have this experience.”

In hopes that if all the stops are pulled, finances can come together for this trip, the family has started their own donation page online. But the long-time community members and military family aren’t just expecting hand-outs to get Chase to where he wants to be.

“Of course we welcome anyone who wants to help, but we also want him to work for this,” says Alissa. “We want him to be a part of making this possible. So if anyone has any fundraisers or things like weeds needing to be pulled, things a 7-year-old boy could do, just let us know.”

To donate to the Brennan family’s race to Nationals, visit their donation page, email them at alissab32@gmail.com, and follow along with Chase’s journey at their Instagram page, @brennan_boys2.

The Loretta Lynn National Championship takes place from July 29 - Aug. 3 in Tennessee, and will be televised live everywhere.