Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

Young racer follows in his dad’s footsteps

Andrew Kovacevich

Courtesy photo

Andrew Kovacevich rides his 100cc mini-mini quad vehicle in a race.

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Andrew Kovacevich rides his 100cc mini-mini quad vehicle in a race.

Boulder City's Andrew Kovacevich, 8, got off to an impressive start this racing season.

He took second place in the Best in the Desert's Parker 250 Mini-Mini 7- to 9-year-old 100cc Mini-Mini quad division on Jan. 9 in Parker, Ariz. The race was the only Best in the Desert event for children younger than 12 in 2009.

"It was really fun. Last year, I crashed and took seventh and didn't get a trophy. I'm glad my dad got to see me race and I think I made him happy," said Andrew, a third grader at Martha P. King Elementary School.

The racers tried to complete as many laps as possible in a one hour period on the one-mile course. Kovacevich completed 11 laps while first place went to Markis Baptist, who completed 13 laps.

"I liked mostly going on the berms, because I could go on top and pass people," Andrew said. He added that he was nervous getting ready for the race because he crashed just two days before.

"I crashed last year in the race, then I crashed a couple days before, so I was nervous because I didn't want to crash again," Andrew said.

His father, Greg Kovacevich, also competes in the Best in the Desert racing quads. He didn't compete in Parker, so he could focus on watching his son.

"This race was strictly about Andrew. I couldn't have been prouder. He rode his heart out," Kovacevich said.

Andrew started riding quads when he was only 4 because it's a family pastime. He and his father ride in the desert nearly every weekend. He is already looking ahead to the 2010 race in Parker.

"Probably I'll get first next year," Andrew said.

Brent Hinckley can be reached at 990-7822 or [email protected].

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