Cindy Hart: More than just Doug's Girlfriend
By: Ryan Webb

Cindy hails from Salem, Wisconsin. She is actually Doug Gust's girlfriend, but if you ever watch her ride, that won't be the only reason that you recognize her. She is relatively new to the sport of atv racing, having only been on the circuit since last year, but she is a quick learner. She is truly making a name for herself in the women's B class. She rides her #88 Suzuki like she has been on an atv for years, but until she started seeing Doug, she had only rode bikes and snowmobiles. Doug actually convinced her to ride an atv, and she took to it quick. She was tearing up the circuit until an unfortunate accident took her out for a couple races. Now, she's back on track and tearing things up. I caught up with her at Red Bud, and she let me know what was going on.

R450: So how's the track here at Red Bud?
Cindy: It's pretty good today. It was a lot rougher yesterday. It seems pretty smooth.

R450: How do you like racing atv's?
Cindy: I love it! I started racing because of Doug. I came to the races and saw the women's classes and thought what the heck. So, I started racing last year.

R450: Well, you look good out there. What position are you in right now?
Cindy: I'm in second place in women's B class.

R450: So you live in Salem, have you lived there all of your life?
Cindy: No, I actually grew up in Illinois about 30 minutes from Salem.

R450: So what have you thought of the tracks so far that have been on the circuit?
Cindy: They're pretty good, but a lot of them seem like they could be TT tracks with high speeds and blue grooved. I didn't like Virginia, because that's the one that I crashed at. I thought that was a dangerous track. I like this track. I like them rough though so Echeconnee was my favorite track.

R450: So Doug's mentality has worn off on you a little bit as far as the type of tracks, hasn't it?
Cindy: (Laughs) Yeah a little.

R450: So, what did you think of Glen Helen, since it was the first west coast race in years?
Cindy: I liked Glen Helen. I liked it because the jumps were all safe. It was a good endurance track. Everyone could do the jumps. There were a lot of high speeds, but I did like that track.