Chris Gosselaar
Team AMSOIL/Chaparral/Honda

Click on pictures for larger images

At any race track, watch Chris "Goose" Gosselaar ride, and you'll be amazed at the confident ease he has as he wields his Honda CR125R. Then realize that, at 22 years old, he has nearly two decades of racing experience.

"I got my first bike when I was about 3," Gosselaar says. "My dad taught me how to ride. I loved riding. I remember, when I first started, every day begging him to let me ride in the back yard."

His first race came when he was only 4 years old. And although he chose to try some other sports for a while, he couldn't stay away from motorcycles. He started up again in 1991, graduated to a Honda CR80R four years later, then a CR125R two years after that. "I started racing a lot," Gosselaar says. "But when I moved up to 125s, I knew this was what I wanted to do."

Some would say a racing career was inevitable for the youngster--especially a career on Hondas, especially the CR125R. His father, Mike Gosselaar, has worked for Honda's factory motocross team for more than 20 years, guiding one of his riders to two consecutive AMA 125 National championships. In fact, ever since turning professional in 1998, Chris has ridden CR125Rs every year but one. "I've ridden CR125s for a long time," he says. "It fits my style the best, which is to just go for it."

Similarly, Gosselaar has a preference for a particular style of racing, too: Supercross. "I'm more of a Supercross rider," he says. "I like the jumps, being technical. Outdoors you have to hang it out a little more. It's more wide-open.

"I think, to make a good Supercross rider, you need to be patient, and your rhythm has to be there. Whereas outdoor, you can make mistakes and make up for it. Supercross tracks are shorter and you don't have the time to make up mistakes."

Not that he makes many mistakes. Goose and his Honda finished fourth overall in the 2002 AMA 125 Western Region Supercross series, and third overall in the season-ending 125 Supercross Shootout, ahead of teammates Travis Preston and Michael Byrne. And at the prestigious 20th annual Bercy Supercross in Paris, France, at the end of the 2002 season, Gosselaar came home second overall, again ahead of Preston.

The 2003 season will be Gosselaar's second straight year with the team, and he'll continue to concentrate on the 125 Western Region Supercross series, as well as the 125 outdoor Nationals. "I want to win," he says. "I want to do the best that I can do."

With his wealth of racing experience, his familiarity with his CR125R, and the backing of the championship-winning Amsoil/Chaparral/Factory Connection/ Honda team, it's only a matter of time before Chris Gosselaar rises to his potential and starts winning--big.