Twins Cup racer Brett Donahue has been with MotoAmerica since October 2020 in
MotoAmerica’s return to Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Since then, he has done many rounds
and has had lots of experience at the highest level in the USA.
Brett first started racing motorcycles on a 1974 Bultaco 250 at a small dirt track in Pease,
Minnesota. He continued racing dirt tack until he was 18 years old. He then got involved with
the Central Roadracing Association in Brainerd, Minnesota, in 1988. Donahue built his skills and
started racing AMA in the Harley Davidson Sportster Performance Series in the ‘90’s. When
asked about Daytona in the ’90s vs now, he told me that he enjoys the structure of MotoAmerica
compared to AMA and hopes that we will be able to continue building the fanbase so that we can
see the stands filled like they were in the ’90s.
In his everyday life, Donahue is an outside account representative for Klim, who sells
motorcycle and snowmobile gear. He travels through Minnesota and the Dakotas to help
motorcycle and snowmobile dealerships maximize sales of Klim gear. He said he has been
around dealerships his whole life, which has helped him to make connections in the motorsports
world. With all those connections, Brett says it is still hard to get support from companies being
a privateer. He said that MotoAmerica has helped with this by releasing their attendance
packages, which can show us how many people were at the events, he uses this to show potential
sponsors how much exposure they can get by supporting him.
When asked about what a typical MotoAmerica weekend looks like for a privateer he
said, “The smaller teams and privateers definitely have a lot more work to do, because they don’t
have as many hands on deck, so to speak.” On a typical Thursday at the racetrack, Brett, his bike
builder Andy and Brett’s wife Patty spend their day getting their RV to the right spot, setting up
their paddock area, setting up hot pit lane, getting tires changed, picking up fuel, putting the bike
through tech, going to the riders meeting and getting everything ready for the weekend. On
Fridays, Donahue says he is up early making sure his tire warmers are plugged in, fuel is in the
bike and that his bike is ready to go for the day. He then takes time to focus so that he can be in
the best position in practice and qualifying, which will help him be ready to go when the races
come.
Donahue said that the hardest part about racing MotoAmerica is having the time and
money to travel and pay for racing. He then told me his favorite part about racing with
MotoAmerica is being lined up on the Twins Cup grid. Seeing people such as Alessandro Di
Mario and Avery Dreher who are incredibly fast and less than half his age is “pretty rewarding to
be able to go and ride at that next level” he said.
Outside of MotoAmerica, Brett races with the Central Roadracing Association in
Brainerd, Minnesota. He also coaches with Zalusky Advanced Riding School all around the
Midwest.Being a part of the MotoAmerica community is a great experience. At times it is hard, but
it’s rewarding for riders like Brett Donahue.
By Graham Williams
