Northfield Teen Making Noise As Professional Motorcycle Racer

by Dan Seufert
Weirs Times Correspondent

Ben Gloddy of Northfield has won a lot of motorcycle racing honors in his career and is considered to be one of the top talents in the business. He’s regularly seen at the nation’s top racing venues looping tracks at more than 100 miles per hour, taking home top honors while doing so. He’s so well-regarded, in fact, that last year he began teaching people how to ride, professionally and for fun. Two weeks ago he showed a 10-year-old how to ride his first motorcycle.
But Ben doesn’t have a driver’s license. Though he drives at a very high level and very high speeds on a motorcycle track, he has one problem when it comes to cars.
He’s only 14.
He looks forward to getting his license in a few years.
“Yeah, that will be cool,” he said. “Then I can drive myself to my races.”
Gloddy started racing early in life, at age 4, in part because he was raised around motorcycles. Born during Motorcycle Week of 2005, his grandfather, realtor John Ganong (whom Ben still refers to as “Papa”) is an avid motorcyclist who has attended every Bike Week since Ganong was a teenager.

Ben first started driving on a four-wheel all-terrain vehicle, and then progressed to a small motorcycle. His friends and family friends were regular summer and winter motorcycle riders and racers, and once he began racing, he was hooked.
“The speed is fun, but it’s really all about the competition, racing each week against your friends to see who can get the big trophy,” he said.
It soon became apparent to his mother, Christina Day, and his grandparents that Ben had found his destiny, despite the dangers involved.
“When he first came to me and said he wanted to race motorcycles, I said ‘no way, I won’t allow it,’” Day said. “Three months later he was racing his little motorcycle around, and I realized I was going to support him in any way possible.”

“When he started,” said Ganong, “I wasn’t sure whether it was a good idea, and when I first saw him race, I said to myself, ‘Okay, you’re scaring the crap out of Papa.’ His grandmother has a hard time watching even today, but we’ve gotten used to it and now we love it.”
“Now it’s like second nature to him, though I still get nervous when he goes with the crowd of other motorcycles into the corners,” his grandfather said.
With the help of friends and mentorship programs, Ben started competing with his 300 cc bike in events around the country, and became a regular racer at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon.
At age 13, he was one of only two young racers selected to participate in the Penguin Racing School Mentor Program in Winchendon, Mass. and in that year he became the youngest racer in the Loudon Road Race Series history to be named the Vanson Leathers Rookie of the Year.
When he turned 14 earlier this year, he made his debut as a professional motorcycle racer in the MotoAmerica Junior Cup for Quarterley Racing OnTrack Development, finishing once in the top three and three more times in the top five. MotoAmerica hosts races throughout the United States, but due to his age at the start of the season, Ben was only able to compete in 11 out of the 17 races. He finished his 2019 race season with three championships. He was the Loudon Road Race Series 500 Supersport champion, the 500 Superbike Champion and the New England Sport Bike Championship undefeated Lightweight Champion. He also set the 400 cc lap record aboard his Freedom Cycle Kawasaki Ninja 400 at the Loudon Road Race Series.

He finished his 2019 season with 22 top-three finishes, 16 of which were wins.
“It’s amazing to see what he can do out there now,” Ganong said.
Eric Wood, president of the Penguin Racing School, agreed.
“He is one of the most gifted young racers in the nation,” Wood said. “He has a unique combination of talent, drive and personality that will lead him to success both on and off the racetrack.”
Gloddy is now seen as one of the top young racers in the nation.
“Working with Ben over the last two seasons has helped me re-energize my passion for road racing,” said John Grush, Operations Manager of the Penguin Racing School. “It has also given me hope that we have young generation of riders like Ben that can help elevate the sport.”
“Ben is an inspiration to all that are fortunate enough to be around him,” Grush said.

A home-school student, Gloddy has kept up with his learning via virtual classrooms, and has made many friends of various ages in his sport. He recently lost one of his closest friends, Jamison Minor of Barrington, who died at the age of 21 in April of 2017 after a crash at a race in Charlotte, N.C.
Gloddy still gets emotional when asked about Minor. He wears highly protective gear, like a motorcycle suit with an airbag built in, to make sure he’s riding as safely as possible.
“It’s scary for us, but he says (racing) doesn’t scare him, and he loves doing it. As long as he’s happy doing it, I will support him the best I can,” Day said.
“I think it’s just awesome to see how far he’s gotten and how he handles all of it, even the loss of his friend. He’s so graceful,” Ganong said.

Ben is already looking forward to next season, when he plans to ride in a big race in Daytona Beach, Fla., among other races, thanks to help from local businesses who sponsor him. His sponsors and some of his races can be viewed at his website, bengloddyracing.com, and he can also be found on Facebook or Instagram @BenGloddyRacing.
He needs more sponsors as he continues his career as a professional motorcycle racer. He hopes to reach the highest levels of motorcycle racing, but to do that he will have to move his racing to Europe, where professional motorcycle racers make the same yearly salary as some players in the National Football League.
He won’t lose sight of the family and friends who have helped him become a pro at age 14. And he has dedicated his career to Jamison Minor.
He has the full support of his family, Ganong said.
“He’s really something,” he said. “The way I look at it, he could be doing a whole lot worse things than he’s doing right now in today’s day and age. And he’s still excelling,” he said. “A lot of kids his age aren’t.”