Justin Gibson loves to spend time on his dirt bike and recently the Andalusia High School senior began competing in local motocross events.

“I just love to get out there and ride,” Gibson said. “When I was younger, I got really into motocross.”

Well before he could legally drive a vehicle on the road, Gibson started ripping up the tracks on his dirt bike.

“I was probably around 5 when I first starting riding,” Gibson said. “I saw it on TV and just thought it looked really cool, but I never thought I would get one. My parents got me one, though, and I really loved it.”

After learning to ride, Gibson began competing in amateur events around the area.

“When I was about 7, I started competing in motocross events,” Gibson said. “It was a lot of fun, but I ended up having to get out shortly after for financial reasons.”

The layoff from the sport lasted nearly a decade before his passion track brought him back this past year.

“I never wanted to get out in the first place, but I just had to at the time,” Gibson said. “This year the opportunity came up for me to get a bike, and my step dad convinced my mom that it was time for me to get back into motocross.”

Gibson said that it’s now a lot easier to spend a lot of time on the track thanks to Greenacres Motocross just outside of Andalusia.

“It’s really nice to have Greenacres right here in Andalusia,” Gibson said. “I ride there every week, and they have races once a month. It’s very convenient because I can just leave my bike down there.”

Greenacres also has their own motocross series that Gibson and other racers participate in.

“They have there own series with different classes for all skill levels,” Gibson said. “That’s cool because there aren’t many places around here like that. It’s a lot of fun out in the series, and I’ve made a lot of new friends. The best part is when you are having a close position battle with someone of a similar skill level.”

On Sunday, Greenacres will host series races beginning at 10 a.m.

“There are usually a good bit of people that show up for the races,” Gibson said. “It’s a lot of fun on race days. They will have food, vendors and racing pretty much all day long.”

Gibson said that he hopes to continue riding for as long as possible.

“I don’t think I will ever want to give it up,” Gibson said. “Hopefully, in the near future I can become pro. I’ve been training a lot with the pro at Greenacres. He works with me different stuff. That is another benefit of having a place like this around here. I can come during the week and work on particular sections of the track, depending on what I’m working on. A lot of the training is really just about getting seat time. I spend a lot of time working on cornering and ruts just trying to get it perfect. ”