So tell everyone a little about yourself.
I'm 23 years old from Prospect, Ohio. I’ve raced for 5 years in motocross and this is my first year racing the full GNCC season. I’m also newly engaged to the Women's ATV Motocross champion, Megan Manshack.

Congrats! So how did you get started racing?
I got started racing in an odd but kind of cool way. My dad, Doug Shepherd, used to race the pro class back in the in 90's and I really wasn't into it. My dad had a bone stock quad sitting in the garage right after I graduated high school and I got the bright idea I wanted to race just once. Well, let’s just say once is all it took. I’ve now raced 5 years and loved every minute of it.

And what brought you into the GNCC world?
I ended up giving GNCC Racing a try thanks to my great buddy Justin Stark. He was always on me about getting me to race one. Finally I cracked and raced First Year Racer at the Ironman GNCC on a bone stock quad again and had a blast. After I did that, the following year I hit a few more, and this year decided to make a run at the points in the XC2 Pro Am class.

What's it like contesting both the GNCC and ATV Motocross schedules?
Racing both GNCC and ATV Motocross for the full season in both series is a pretty tough and definitely keeps me busy. When you’re not working on stuff, you’re riding it or traveling to get there. It takes a toll on the body that's for sure.

Between the two, which is a bigger challenge for you?
Between ATV Motocross and GNCC, I would say GNCC comes more naturally to me but it’s more physically difficult than motocross. Motocross takes more time on the quad to get everything dialed in and working for you, but I feel like you don’t have to be in quite as good shape to race motocross as you do GNCC.

Which do you feel like you have more fun doing?
I'd say I have more fun racing GNCC because it's more of a challenge just to finish the 2 hour race, let alone be up towards the front doing it. And also I do all my own mechanic work so when the quad and I both finish, it's a big accomplishment to me.

Is it ever a tough transition going from motocross to the woods on back to back weekends?
Switching back and forth between the two is not too big of a transition. The only thing I really struggle with is getting too hyped up at the beginning of a GNCC race. Sometimes I forget it’s not a 15 minute moto and 2 hours is a long time.

So how has your 2014 GNCC season been going?
The 2014 season has gone really well for me in GNCC. I’ve finished every race, which is a big goal for me. I'm not sure where I sit in points, I'm just out there trying my hardest and going to see where I end up I've finished in the top 10 a few times and I’ve been consistently staying there, which was also a goal for me. In motocross this season I've struggled a lot and had some bad luck, but that's part of racing.