Twenty years ago, in a Tennessee town far, far away a young man by the name of Chris Caylor took his first ever ride on a modern day sportbike. That first ride seemed simple enough. A thirty minute joy ride on a friends Honda Hurricane proved to be quite fun for Chris. What he didn’t realize though was that the innocent little joy ride had stirred up quite a storm within him. In a short period of time, Chris had already purchased his own sportbike and began to mimic what he was seeing on television. The problem was that he was doing this on his own personal racetrack better known as Deals Gap. A crash and a year later, Chris’s first trackday was inevitable. Southeastern Sportbike Association was hosting a trackday at Talladega Gran Prix Raceway in the spring of 1994. Chris attended the event and had a successful first outing by turning quick lap times and more importantly making no major mistakes. Following Chris’s first trackday, a transformation began to take place. He was ceasing to be Chris Caylor and was becoming more and more the Opie Caylor that we know today. Opie’s first full season of racing was with WERA in 1996. Following a mediocre beginning, Opie concluded that season with strong results at the Grand National Finals. During the off season, Opie was developing a friendship with Robert Nutt, who owned his own successful AMA race team known as Kinko’s Kawasaki. That friendship proved to be fruitful for Opie. Robert was sharing with him that which he needed to know, to become a successful racer. Opie put that knowledge to good use in 1997 and kicked off his first expert season with really fast lap times and a strong second place finish in the Mediumweight Solo 20. Motorcycle roadracing in the Southeast would never be the same! Just like Opie, 17 years have now sped by. Opie has amassed over 150 race wins and 15 national titles. Opie won the AMA’s highly coveted Horizon Award in 2002 and went on to represent the United States in the Worldwide GSXR Cup Final in France the very next year. Opie even has two AMA Pro Racing podium finishes to his credit, as a complete privateer. Along the way, Opie has worked with such greats as 1993 Gran Prix World Champion Kevin Schwantz and top-tier AMA Crew Chiefs like Grant Matsushima and Barry McMahan. In true Opie fashion, it’s only fitting for his professional racing career to culminate with his most successful season ever. On his CayloR-Made Motorsports built 2011 Suzuki GSXR1000, Opie captured 17 race wins from 19 starts. His only two losses of the season were when he finished second with identical gaps of .001 of a second! So, with a 90% win rate in 2011, Opie has decided to step back from motorcycle roadracing as a professional rider. “It’s hard to believe that 17 years have gone by since I started racing. I know it’s been a long time. My right leg has been killing me lately! I guess it’s because I’ve been kicking ass for so long. I’ve just decided to give it a rest. In all seriousness, the last couple of seasons have been great. I’ve been so fortunate to have raced at a time when the talent at the WERA National level was so deep. It was only a couple of years ago when Tray Batey, Lee Acree, Robert Jensen, Jeff Wood, John Jacobi, Mark Junge, Dane Westby, Cory West and Taylor Knapp were regular fixtures in that series. I might win a race one weekend and get 7th the next! I’ve also had the pleasure of working with the entire Dunlop Tire family! Jimmy Allen will always be a hero of mine! His crew though is second to none! Cori, Romo, Sabastian, Bru and even Paul Von Dunlop himself! I love those guys! Mike Fitzgerald of Thermosman Suspensions is literally a suspension genius. I have to also thank Lee and Wayne at Komodo Gear as well as Bruce Porter at Arai Helmets for keeping me safe! Plus Richard, Kyle, Brooke and the rest of the entire M4 family! To all of my fans, friends and competitors over the years, I simply say thank you! I will carry all of the memories, both good and bad, with me for the rest of my days. I’m so blessed to have had the opportunities that I have. There is a new goal though. Through my shop, CayloR-Made Motorsports, I want to give back to the sport by supporting the next generation of up and coming racers by sharing with them all of my knowledge and experience. Knowledge and experience gained by working with some of the most prolific people in the paddock. Fortunately, I was listening to them and I still have a pretty good memory! I’ll be at most of the WERa races throughout the southeast this year helping out those in need. I will also been instructing at the Schwantz School for the tenth year. And if I’m not at either of those places then I’m back at CayloR-Made Motorsports taking care of my customers. I hope you’ll stop by when you’re in the area. And lastly, from the bottom of my heart, thank you all! It’s been a great ride!”