Racing Ahead: Alvin's Motorsports and Online Private School Journey

Athlete education is often complicated by the challenge of balancing academic responsibilities with rigorous training schedules. These commitments require exceptional time management skills and a strong support system to ensure student athletes can thrive both in the classroom and on the field.

Alvin, 15, who lives in rural town Whangarei, New Zealand, is one such student, whose passion for motorsports, in particular, riding his Yamaha R3 sports bike, has taken him on an incredible journey. Alvin shares his remarkable journey and the opportunities that CGA, an online private school for athletes, has provided to support his aspirations.

Finding A Flexible Solution

Alvin's journey in motorsports began a few years ago when his mentor, Jonathan, introduced him to the sport. As Alvin recalls, "I thought, ‘I want to do this too’, and then I started from there”. Since then, Alvin has visited a couple of tracks, including Hampton Downs in New Zealand and Morgan Park Raceway in Australia.

The missed opportunity at his previous school to provide Alvin with the chance to accelerate his studies and learn efficiently, so that he could continue his extracurricular commitments, led the family to explore alternative options.

The turning point came when Alvin travelled to Australia for a racing event. Despite sitting the exams in exam-like conditions while there, the high scores he secured weren't counted towards his final results; leading to a significant impact on his overall performance.

This experience resulted with Alvin's family exploring alternative options, searching for a school for athletes. That's when they discovered CGA, an online school for athletes that offered the flexibility and personalised approach Alvin needed.

Thriving At An Online Private School For Athletes

The transition to an online high school for athletes has been a game-changer for Alvin. The one-on-one attention from his teachers, the efficiency of the online learning platform, and the opportunity to tailor his academic schedule around his racing commitments have all contributed to his success.

He is currently a full-time student in the Da Vinci programme, where the personalised learning approach has enabled him to maximise his time and seamlessly balance his academic and racing commitments.

“I attend two - three hours of schooling a day and then two - three hours of homework and then some. That's normally Monday to Thursday We'll go down to the track and train in the afternoons and ride for the weekend, come back and repeat it,” Alvin shared.

The one-to-one instruction has also allowed him to build strong relationships with his teachers and truly engage with the material.

Alvin has flourished in his studies, particularly in subjects like English, where he has seen remarkable improvements: “It feels a lot more personal with the teachers. I get to know them better, and I think that’s really cool.”

"The flexibility has been quite amazing,"  Alvin’s mentor, Jonathan, shared. "There's been a couple of times we've been on the road, and Alvin's been sitting in the backseat of the car doing his physics class while we've been travelling."

Reaching New Heights in Motorsports

Alvin's achievements on the track have been impressive, with podium finishes in club races in New Zealand,  the Queensland Junior Cup, and the Supersport 300 class in Australia.

He's been selected to represent the New Zealand Trans-Tasman challenge at The Bend in South Australia with five young Kiwi competitors against five Aussies. It's part of the Oceana Junior cup competition which takes places at the final round of the Australian superbike series. 

While Alvin’s ultimate dream of competing in MotoGP or Moto America remains on the horizon, part of his university ambitions beyond high school include pursuing a career in mechanical engineering after university either in New Zealand or abroad - a perfect combination of his passion for motorsports and his learning agility.