Motorcycle Explorer September 2016 Issue 13 | Page 103

Jimmy Lewis Bio
Age:48
Profession: Boss JLR Inc.
Career Highlights:
Dakar Podium Finisher and double class (twin and single cylinder) winner
4X International Six Day Enduro Gold Medalist
ISDE Silver Vase Junior World Champoin
Overall Winner Baja 1000
Overall Winner Dubai Rally
Champion Adult Mini-Bike Racer
Education: BA in Communication Arts
Former Jobs: Firewood company owner, Professional Rider for KTM, Kawasaki, Honda and
BMW, Editor of Dirt Rider magazine, Off-Road Editor for Cycle World Magazine,
Development rider for motorcycle companies
Hobbies: Ultra running and running for beer, Mountain Biking Tandem with Heather, Surfing
and Stand Up Paddling, Trail and Adventure Riding
Favorite Food: Mexican
Favorite Drink: Coke and water, Red Bull, Cheap Beer
Favorite Music: Anything
This bio was originally run on the official BMW race
team web site and translated loosely to English.
Enjoy! flat-twin. Jimmy feels content in the German BMW
team: he values its good organization and the fact
that many tedious tasks are taken off his hands.
Jimmy Lewis actually loves three things: his home
state of California, riding a motorcycle and the
deserts of this world. “I guess I just like to be free.
To ride a bike and be at one with nature is the
greatest thing I can imagine.” For those who have
seen Jimmy Lewis, the American from Santa Monica,
tackling the sand dunes on his BMW R 900 RR, it’s
almost as if the bike were part of him. This is Jimmy Lewis’s fourth entry for the world’s
toughest desert rally, and he’s determined to pull
off a victory this time: “I shall be riding to win. The R
900 RR is terrifically good, it’s developed
tremendously and is even more reliable than before.
But I shall be biding my time: the Dakar is a very
long event. I may not be the fastest, but I
understand technical matters and I’m a good
navigator.” Jimmy, who is 32 years of age,
demonstrated that he’s already in top form in
November 2000 by winning the four-day UAE Desert
Challenge event through the sands of the Arab
Emirates, with a supreme demonstration of riding
and navigational skills.
Jimmy discovered his love of motorcycles at the
tender age of eight. I used to roar around the
neighborhood for as long as I was allowed!” His
mother wasn’t very keen on the idea, but she
hesitated before depriving him of what was
obviously his favorite hobby. “My parents imposed
just one condition. If my school grades were OK, I
could stay out as long as I liked. That was what took
me through the school leaving exams so
successfully!”
Since that time, Jimmy Lewis has developed into an
experienced rally rider and technical expert. Last
year he was third in the Paris-Dakar Rally, on a BMW
R 900 RR. It was a notable success for him and a
splendid return to motor sport for the BMW ‘Boxer’
Jimmy Lewis keeps fit with every possible form of
sport that he can pursue in California. He feels just
as much at home on the surfboard as on the
snowboard, the skateboard or the mountain bike.
Professionally too, Jimmy Lewis is often to be seen
on two wheels: he edits the off-road magazine
“Cycle World”, which will publish an article about
him next February.
jimmylewisoffroad.com