First Superbike win 2001 Road Atlanta

Toward the end of the 2001 season all of the hard work and perseverance paid off and Jamie earned his first AMA Superbike win in the Big Kahuna at Road Atlanta. .Jamie and the team worked on their chemistry for almost two years and won a few more 600 Supersport races.

After evaluating the performance of the team and the rider, Jamie and Yoshimura decided to part ways at the end of the 2002 season. The consistency wasn’t where it needed to be and Jamie felt like he was pushing a little too hard, taking risks and chances on bikes that were not exactly suited to his riding style. The realization came that the grass wasn’t always greener on the other side.

Jamie and wife, Rachel

Jamie’s wife, Rachel, has been a big influence on his life. She has been by his side since before they were married at the end of the 2002 racing season, always lending her support and encouragement. Jamie and Rachel sat down and took some time to reflect on the past few seasons and his career as a whole. They came to the realization that his “win at all costs” mentality wasn’t getting him where he wanted to be. He was tired of pushing a bike beyond its limits and ending up getting hurt. With her help, he came to understand that he didn’t have to win every race to be happy with his performance.

Late in the 2002 season, both Yamaha and Kawasaki decided they would pull out of AMA Superbike class and focus mainly on the 600 Supersport class. Never wanting to let him go after the 2000 season, Factory Yamaha again approached Jamie to join them and go after the 600 Supersport Championship in 2003. Jamie was comfortable with the people at the team and knew their equipment would be top-notch. Though he would not be competing in Superbike, he felt that this was the right move to make at this stage in his career.