by: Michelle Pawelski
Chris King first discovered motocross at age 8, but it wasn’t until his 30s that the thrill of a dirt bike truly gripped him. One ride around a cul-de-sac on a friend’s new bike was all it took. By the next day, he owned one himself. A few weeks later, a road trip through South Dakota sealed the deal. “It was a life-changing experience.”
Soon, Chris was racing alongside his stepson, a passion that sparked an idea during their first competition. “I saw the way they were managing the data; essentially, it was pieces of paper taped to the wall,” Chris said. “They would have the order of the races, who was racing, then every single racer walks up to the wall and takes a photo of the paper. That was a big eye opener.”
Drawing on his longtime career as a software developer, he set out to transform the extreme sport’s race-day experience. His vision became Adrenaline, a startup now changing the way motocross events are run.
Adrenaline is a comprehensive track management platform for off-road motorcycle racing — streamlining ticketing, registration, and race-day logistics into one seamless system. Designed for organizers and racers alike, it simplifies operations to deliver engaging, well-run events from start to finish.
A native of Kansas City, Chris started writing software code in his early 20s — for fun. He lacked formal education but immersed himself in the field and has been there ever since. He worked at a company in Kansas City in the late 1990s, soaking up all the knowledge he could. “It was a great learning experience. I had a great boss who trusted my skills. They basically said, here is the admin password, eight servers, 60 computers and 60 phones — just take care of it,” Chris said.
In 2007, he left Kansas City for a job in Sioux Falls where he continued to build up his resume and learning opportunities. Six years later, Chris moved farther west, landing in Rapid City and getting a remote job as a video game engineer. “I love South Dakota. It is so welcoming and easy. I’ve really grown to appreciate everything here,” he said.
It was in 2023 when Chris’s passion for writing software code and off-road motorcycles collided. He bought his motorcycle, started practicing, and entered events alongside his stepson. “I was not in physical condition to do it, but I went gung-ho, being both motorcycle parent and racer.”
Along with the competitions, Chris began sketching out the idea of what would eventually be Adrenaline. “I started toying with it on the side as a hobby, figuring out what the app would be like and some of its core functionalities.”
The idea didn’t fully take shape, however, until life forced a turning point and Chris was laid off from his job. “A lot of people in the industry were getting their jobs cut,” he said, adding that he would be one out of thousands of people applying for one job. “It was intense.”
But it was also the push Chris needed to try something different. “The idea of owning a software company was intimidating, but in that moment, I knew it was the right thing to do.” While jumping into entrepreneurship was scary, the support and encouragement around him made the journey easier.
Chris met with Elevate Rapid City, who recommended he contact Wildfire Labs, an early-stage accelerator that helps entrepreneurs build and launch their software products. Through Wildfire, he reconnected with longtime friend and entrepreneur Mike Vetter, co-founder of Wildfire Labs, of which he is a recent graduate.
His time in Wildfire Labs gave him the tools to build a robust app that streamlines racing events from start to finish. With Adrenaline, promoters can create and publish events, handle registration and check-in, and manage live scoring and timing — all with results delivered straight to participants’ phones.
Currently in early launch with invitation-only access, Adrenaline is already generating positive feedback. Chris is eager for the next phase: touring around motocross races with Tom Glanzer, his director of operations, to promote the app.
“It’s remarkable how many little coincidental things in my past have come back to aid me in the situation I am in now, being a founder of a startup and working in this new territory — things that happened in the past that I may not have appreciated for their value at the time, but now I realize the valuable lessons learned and am grateful they happened.”
Photos courtesy of Shiloh Francis
The October 2025 issue of Elevate Magazine is now available! Inside, you’ll find inspiring stories of innovation, leadership, and community across the Black Hills.
This story was originally published in the October 2025 issue of Elevate Magazine.
