Colorado-based rider Gerry Signorelli may have discovered racing a little later than his competitors, but after his debut season with the BMW S1000RR, he is more than making up for lost time. In October 2010, his Racing for a Wish team celebrated winning the 'Masters of the Mountain Region' in the US, and was champion in the Open Superstock, Open Superbike and 'King of the Mountain GTO' classes.

"We won all the championships we tried for in 2010," says Gerry. What makes this even more remarkable is that it was his first full season as a professional rider and his first time on a 1000cc motorcycle. Furthermore, his achievements were on a stock machine and without the support of a crew or mechanic.

"We kept the S1000RR completely stock, even though we were competing against teams with lots of money to put into their racing activities," he adds. "The motor on the S1000RR has never been opened up, not even the valve cover has come off!"

 The 26-year-old started racing three years ago after buying a street bike during his studies at the University of Michigan and riding it in the mountains of Colorado for a couple of years. Then he decided it was time to get on the track. "A friend took me and I blew my motor," recalls Gerry, "but those couple of hours were enough to make me save all winter to buy a used race bike, a truck and a trailer to go racing the following summer." And Racing for a Wish was born.

 Gerry's Racing for a Wish team donates 15 percent of its sponsorship cash contributions to the Make A Wish Foundation. The charity, which grants wishes for children with life-threatening illnesses, is close to his heart because he carried out volunteer work at a children's hospital as a student. "Racing can feel like a selfish sport, so it's great to be able to help others," he says.

 The link to such a worthy cause also helps Gerry to gain additional promotion for his sponsors, including Pirelli and BMW. He first got involved with BMW Motorcycles of Utah after a Pirelli dealer in the region asked him to represent the brand. "Once I'd committed to Pirelli, I looked into what kind of bike it would be on," says Gerry. "BMW had so much buzz surrounding the new S1000RR that it seemed a viable option."

The Utah BMW dealer was happy to accept Gerry's proposal for involvement in the 2010 racing season. Due to a limited budget, the S1000RR has been kept as stock throughout the year. "We have made a good team, demonstrating the abilities of the new bike right out of the box. By the end of the first race weekend, I was able to set the fastest lap time around the track of any rider in any class, and was beating guys with heavily modified bikes," adds Gerry.

 In addition to his success on the track, Gerry has also been asked to showcase the S1000RR and coach at the renowned California Superbike School this year. His enthusiasm for the bike will surely inspire many other riders - whether they prefer to ride on the track or on the street.

 "The BMW is such a blast and exhilarating compared to anything I have ever ridden. The motor is incredible and it's easy to ride. When you pick up the pace, it's menacing - but in a good way! And the next corner comes very fast."

 Although proud of his success this year, Gerry is already turning his attention to 2011 and making his AMA Pro debut. "I have a lot of work to do to be able to line up the resources to allow that, but it is definitely the next step in order to be able to reach my goals of racing internationally one day," he says.

Until next year, he will focus on enjoying his physical training. "It's great having the off season to ride my bicycle in the Colorado mountains and do a bit of riding in the dirt and snow!"

 For more information, please visit www.racingforawish.com or follow Gerry on Facebook and Twitter.