In the late summer of 2018, my mom took it upon herself to clean out the garage. She found her old 1995 XT225 in the back and gave it to my dad to fix up and sell. I spent a month bothering him to let me help him fix it, and finally, in September, he agreed. He had already bought the parts needed to repair it, and we spent a whole day going over it. By the end of the day, we weren't sure if it would run, but after a couple of presses of the electric starter, the engine sputtered to life. Over the next few weeks, I spent all my time in the field behind our house, learning how to ride correctly. By May 2019, I was ready to participate in my first organized ride, and by June, I was ready to race. I bought my first "race bike," a 2012 TTR230. The first time I rode the bike was at a race, and I came in last place. Every race after that, I got better, and last season I placed 2nd out of 25 in women's enduro points and 8th out of 35 for women's C harescramble points. Making emergency repairs on a dirtbike is something that almost every racer has had to do at some point in their career. For instance, a rider can make repairs and modifications to carburetors on the side of the trail. Fuel injectors, however, cannot be. Fuel injectors need to be reprogrammed with tuners to make changes to them, and even that is not an option for some bikes. In the past decade or so, fuel injection has become increasingly more common on newer models of motorcycles. I have seen many people lose races due to failures in the injection systems, which inspired me to choose a path in computer science. As these changes become implemented into the sport, there is a disparity between the older and younger racers. The technology required to modify fuel injectors is not accessible to many community members. However, the actual problem is not necessarily an accessibility issue because if the technology were reliable enough, riders would not need the ability to modify the software. After speaking with people who have been in the sport for a while, their main problem is the reliability of the current technology. Trust in technological advancements is essential, and creating reliable software is crucial to move toward more sustainable options. Fuel injection is just one part of technology that promotes sustainable refinements. They are objectively more environmentally friendly and cost-efficient than carburetors, but people do not trust them. Growing up in the off-road racing community, I have seen the flaws of introducing new technology into the motorcycle community. Entering the technology field after college would allow me to participate in the innovation that is actively changing the world. I have seen how unreliable technology delays advancement; I want to use that experience to drive my career forward. Additionally, both engineering and motorcycle racing are primarily male-dominated fields. Diversifying both industries allows for more innovative ideas to be presented, especially in technology, as everyone's life experiences will enable them to offer something different. I plan to use the knowledge I gain from college and the experience I have from working on motorcycles to get a job designing control systems for motorcycles. I would love to be able to participate in the advancement of my sport. Additionally, many of the changes that companies are struggling to implement are more cost-effective for the rider and better for the planet.

I was confident I wanted to enter a career in the tech industry before I got to high school. I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to attend a technical school for engineering, where I could explore all aspects of the field thoroughly. I ultimately decided on a computer science degree to drive innovation in the field. This past spring, my uncle, an J.P. Morgan Chase Bank employee, took me on a tour of one of their office buildings and allowed me to speak to many of his coworkers in the field. This experience inspired me to choose a career where I can drive advancements instead of just implementing them. Since eighth grade, I have been active in my local off-road motorcycle racing community. Just in the time I have been involved with that group, I have seen countless changes implemented and withdrawn due to flaws in the programming of many control systems. My dream job would be to work for one of the major motorcycle manufacturers to help troubleshoot these issues. My unique perspective as a rider would allow me to have an advantage in the field, and I could use my personal experience to shape technology, such as fuel injection systems, that will change the sport. I deserve this scholarship because I am incredibly passionate about pursuing my degree. While I was in high school, I took many dual-credit and AP classes to get my general education credits out of the way. This fall, I will be entering my first year of college with 31 of the 45 required general education credits out of the way so I can put my entire focus into my major. While in college, I have a volunteer position within the motorcycle community that allows me to operate the software and programming needed for scoring. This job will enable me to give back to the organization and continue to watch the sport grow as technology changes while building my resume.

It's a cold, rainy morning in September. The cloud of exhaust and the smell of gas hangs in the air, but it is completely quiet. Hundreds of riders are sitting on the starting line, waiting for the green flag to wave, releasing them from their row. Then, all of a sudden, it drops—another cloud of smoke floats across the field. I can feel my pulse in my head, and the roar of hundreds of bikes is temporarily silent once again. My dad reaches across his bike to give me a fist bump and tells me to keep the "rubber side" down. The green flag drops once more, and we race off into the woods. In the spring of 2019, I joined the East Coast Enduro Association (ECEA) as a member of Competition Dirt Riders (CDR), a local motorcycle club. My parents joined CDR in the late 90s, and my father is still an active club member. In joining the organization, I became part of a community that spans Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and New York that has been consistently supportive in everything I do, both on and off the track. Racing dirtbikes has helped me build self-confidence, get inspired to start working out and become a more active community member. I bought my first "race bike," a 2012 TTR230. The first time I rode the bike was at a race, and I came in last place. Every race after that, I got better, and this year I am in 2nd out of 25 in Women's Enduro Points and 8th out of 35 for Harescramble Points. Due to the different locations of each course, there are races in the rocks and sand. While both take skill, going fast in the sand is easier. In the rock races, it is not about the speed a rider can carry but about the skill and thought they can bring to the course. If someone tries to speed through a rock garden without analyzing the trail, they will get stuck in a bad line which could lead to a punctured engine case or a derailed chain, effectively ending their race. Sometimes, when we get to a rock garden, people are stuck in the best lines forcing us to adapt and take the more challenging routes. The only important part of the race is considering our options and moving forward. The same basic approaches apply to real-life obstacles; they are all passable, depending on how thoughtfully we approach them. Last summer, my family and I learned through police intervention that my stepdad had been taking pictures of me through the bathroom window for a few years. This completely shook up my family and made my mother a single mother to myself and my two brothers. She has overcome all obstacles pertaining to what my stepdad has done and helped the family continue with our new version of normal. When it came to filling out the FAFSA, we were stuck with tax records with my stepdad's income still included, which put my expected family contribution at more than half of what my mom makes in a year. We received no federal aid but could take out enough loans to cover my first two semesters. The money from this scholarship would allow me to start paying off some of the loans and decrease the payments I will have to make post-graduation. My family and I may not be on the "trail" we saw ourselves on a year ago, but we have definitely made it work and are thriving in our current path despite the challenges we have faced.