Champion Cycles originally opened in August of 1998. The owners, Mark and Kim Osborne, came up with the idea as a way to obtain the hard-to-find parts that their son, Zach, needed to continue to compete at the National level on the all new KTM 65. Later, Al Albiker was brought on as a partner and became instrumental in designing and engineering many of the modifications that are used by racers worldwide on the KTM Mini's. Champion was, and still is, the "Official Amateur Support Team" for KTM at all the amateur nationals. As Zach became older, he and Al played a very important part in the development and testing of the 85SX. While the trips to Europe and beyond were a lot of fun and very important to the future of KTM and all it's riders, there were also certain constraints placed on the entire Champion Cycles family. During the summer of 2004, Al and the Osbornes began discussing the possibility of selling Champion Cycles. While at a race in Tennessee, the idea was passed on to one of their friends, and customer, Darren Jernigan. Darren was a fifth generation farmer who also had a young, up and coming, son in the motocross world. Farming, while offering many benefits, requires a tremendous amount of time and dedication, much like motocross. No one at Champion Cycles knew, but Darren and his wife Daphne, had actually discussed the dream of owning Champion Cycles in order to devote more time and effort to Brent's racing career. After some discussion between parties, an agreement was reached in November 2004 for the purchase of Champion Cycles by the Jernigan family. Along with this decision came many sacrifices, moving away from home, selling out of the farming business, taking a chance at something they were unsure of, etc. In 2006, Champion Cycles was recognized at the KTM dealer meeting for outstanding SX sales in North America, finishing the year in second place. In 2007, Champion received top honors by finishing first in North American SX sales, quite an accomplishment for the new owners and customers. In April of 2007 the Jernigans chose to expand their horizons by purchasing Land and Lake Polaris, Arctic Cat, Can-Am, and Sea Doo. (hence the name change Champion Outdoor Sports) The Jernigans hope to continue the same growth they have enjoyed with KTM. The Jernigans bring the values and morals that have been instilled for generations, along with the experience of being a customer, with them to the powersports industry. They pledge to treat everyone with honesty and integrity, and welcome the chance to make new friends and customers.