24th-Annual Roadracing World Young Gun Honors:
By David Swarts
Roadracing World started this exclusive special feature recognizing the most promising young road racers as an answer to pessimists who claimed America had no new, up-and-coming young racers. This edition of the Roadracing World Young Gun Awards marks the 24th consecutive year of showcasing an abundance of new talent.
Roadracing World Young Guns have won:
FIM MotoGP and FIM Superbike races and World Championships;
AMA Pro races and Championships, including eight AMA Pro Superbike Championships;
A KTM RC Cup World Final race;
The Daytona 200 (8 times);
WERA National Endurance Championships and WERA National Challenge Championships;
ASRA/Formula USA Grand National and CCS National Championships;
AMA Road Racing Grand Championships and Horizon Awards;
USGPRU National Championships;
Many regional and local titles.
The competition has continually become more intense as more – and younger—racers with higher levels of accomplishment are nominated, and the level of achievement required to make the grade keeps getting tougher.
We’ve spent the last several months accepting nominations and evaluating road racers between the ages of 11 and 18 (as of the start of the 2020 season) who have, at a minimum, won Expert-level road races and/or Championships on a 125cc two-stroke/250cc four-stroke or larger racebike or had outstanding results as an Amateur/Novice. Most of the riders included here have done far more than the minimum.
The young riders recognized here are the most promising young road racers in North America. All have earned the title of Roadracing World Young Gun.
We will feature one Young Gun per day, presenting them in alphabetical order.
Torin Collins
Age: 14.
Current home: Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
Current height/weight: 5’2”/122 pounds.
Current school grade level: 9th grade.
Began riding at age: 5 years.
First road race: 2012, Calgary, Alberta, Alberta Mini Road Racing Association, Youth 6-9, 3rd place.
Current racebike: Honda NSF250R.
Current tuner/mechanic: Reale Avintia MTA Junior Team.
Primary race series: European Talent Cup.
Top sponsors: Cycle Works Motorsports Calgary, GFF Motorproducts, SBK Paint, JP43Training, Bickle Racing, SpinCore, Motorrev Suspension, Spears Enterprise/Spears Racing, Yogadotcalm, Novalda Coaching.
Recent racing accomplishments: 2019 season, finished 15th in British Talent Cup (best race finish was 7th); 2018 season, selected to join 2019 British Talent Cup, won EMRA Lightweight Superbike and Lightweight Open Championships (11 wins, set 2 class lap records), multiple race wins in 2018/2019 CVMA Winter Series, won UtahSBA Moto3 race at Utah Motorsports Campus; 2017 season, won 7 CMA Mini Road Racing National Championships, won 2 FIM Mini Road Racing Championships, won 8 races and set 2 class lap records during 2017/2018 CVMA Winter Series.
2020 racing goal: Finish in the top 10 in European Talent Cup.
Racing career goal: Race in the Superbike or MotoGP World Championship.
Racing hero: Jack Miller.
Favorite track: Chuckwalla Valley Raceway.
Hobby: Riding motocross, ice riding, gaming, soccer.
If I wasn’t racing I would be…: Playing soccer.
