Copperas Cove alum races professional motocross

By PAMELA GRANT

Cove Leader-Press

Copperas Cove graduate Kyler Hawkey is making his dreams come true.

Hawkey graduated from Copperas Cove High School in 2017 and is starting to make a name for himself as a professional motocross racer.

Hawkey said that he began racing at five years old, riding dirt bikes alongside friends and family.

“It was a fun thing to do,” said Hawkey. “As I got older, I realized that I might be able to make something out of this…It went from a hobby to a more serious thing until it became a career.”

Hawkey said that finally being able to do motocross racing as a career gives him a sense of fulfillment, but it’s something that he’s constantly working to get better at as well as working to better himself. Hawkey spends at least two hours at the gym every day. He added that his father is a huge source of motivation for him to keep going and to never give up.

Hawkey is still working full-time as a plumber which he says keeps him humble.

“What I’ve achieved doesn’t change me,” said Hawkey.

Still, it has not been an easy journey for Hawkey.

“I honestly almost quit,” admitted Hawkey. “You have bad days. Things don’t go right and it just keeps happening. You get to that point where you get burnt out, but deep down you reflect and know that this is what you really want to do. No matter how hard things get, don’t quit…Don’t ever lose sight of why you started.”

For Hawkey, it’s important to encourage other children to follow their dreams and that’s why he likes to do things where he can encourage others.

Saturday morning, Hawkey was present at the Williams Ledger Elementary/PSI Delta Sorority car show along with his girlfriend, Ruth Lautenschlager, and his mother-in-law, Leslie Lautenschlager, an interventionist teacher at Williams Ledger Elementary.

He said getting to attend an event in the town where he graduated is humbling.

“It’s something that you always want to happen, but something you never thought would happen,” said Hawkey. Hawkey attended Fairview/Miss Jewell Elementary School, but his mother-in-law teaches at Williams Ledger Elementary and invited him to participate in the event.

“He likes to give back to the community and kids,” said Hawkey’s mother-in-law, Leslie Lautenschlager. “He likes to inspire them.”

“I like being involved with people, said Hawkey.

He was glad for the community support and the fact that his girlfriend and mother-in-law also support him with his girlfriend constantly travelling to Hawkey’s races to show her support.

This year, his racing travels have taken him to the Glendale Supercross where he competed in the 250SX Futures class, in Arizona, and to the Arlington Supercross, where he competed in the same class, right here in Texas, as well as to racing events in Amarillo, Colorado, North Carolina, and Oklahoma.