History

WALSH Race Craft originated in 1996, in Chet’s Speed Shop, Preston, Connecticut, by Michael David Walsh Senior & Junior. Senior was an established fabricator in the world of auto drag racing and junior was an aspiring fabricator and ATV enthusiast. At 16 years old Mikey began competing at Southwick MX, Southwick, Massachusetts, on a HONDA TRX250R. Shortly after, he began to upgrade the ATV, his first venture in the fabrication of ATV suspension components was a swingarm, and from there WALSH Race Craft was born. In the fall of 1997, we set up shop in a small vacant area of Mr. Walsh’s David’s Cafe building, Mike engineered and fabricated, with his younger brother Nate running a small lathe and lending a hand, we established the company and went to work.

In 1998, while racing on the first WALSH Race Craft TRX250R frame kit, at Frozen Ocean MX, Auburn, New York. Mike Walsh attracted his first customer, Peter Chesson, who purchased 2) TRX250R frame kits for his sons Jamie and PJ. PJ went on to win the  250A class national championship aboard the WALSH Race Craft.

In 1999-2000, we worked with Harold Goodman, developing the TRX250R based YZ400F powered hybrid, one of the first of its kind. We competed against Kory Ellis on a Laeger similar hybrid, in a class that paved the way for the 4-stroke phenomenon..