Shane Watts

Shane Watts (born 7 November 1972), is an Australian former professional motorcycle enduro racer. He won the 1997 125cc World Enduro Championship as well as several Australian and American national off-road championships during his career. Known for his unpredictability and disregard to injury, many call Watts the "Travis Pastrana" of off-road racing. He has been featured in several films, including Common Ground and Moto3. He has made several instructional DVDs and owned and operated the DirtWise Academy of Off-Road Riding.

Early years and personal life Watts was born in Maffra, Victoria, Australia and began riding motorcycles at the age of five. He spent many years riding through the club/amateur level, progressing quickly and earning many titles along the way. Money was always tight in the early stages of his racing career. To earn money he started a four-year apprenticeship as an instrument technician at an on-shore gas refinery at the age of 18, and later worked on oil rigs for short periods of time. International career The majority of Watts' titles were earned in Australia and Europe. He first won the Australian Enduro Championship in 1993, the same year he first received his sponsorship from KTM (a sponsorship that lasted until 2004). He continued to win the overall championship up until 1999 and later won his class championship in 2006. The year Watts turned pro, 1996, he won the Australian 500cc Motocross Championship. He was also named the World Enduro Champion in 1997, and the following year (1998), was the International Six Days Enduro Overall Champion. Watts accomplished this feat on a 125cc motorcycle, which was previously unheard of. With such an accomplished career in Europe, Watts headed to the United States.

U.S. career Watts first came to the United States in 1999 with the help of KTM to compete in the Grand National Cross Country series. He soon began winning races, but incurred a knee injury that prevented him from competing for the 1999 title. He returned the following year as the first non-American to claim the title. At the time the series was still growing, and Watts continued to help draw a crowd. He was described as "brash" and "outspoken". He would show up to a wide array of events and consistently gained the attention of race fans. He would sleep under his van in a sleeping bag the night before a race, do burnouts at the starting gate of a race, and many other things to gain the attention of race fans. He acquired a large amount of injuries that prevented him from continuing to compete at the highest level.

Riding schools Watts' riding schools known as DirtWise Academy. He traveled across the United States hosting many of these schools each year. The school received reviews from many magazines including Dirt Rider. In the Dirt Rider article Watts says that the focus of the academy is "...making everyone a safer, more confident and more comfortable rider through a higher skill level."