Several racers — car and motocross — of a variety of ages are making names for themselves with standout performances on the tracks. The season heated up during the summer months and continued to stay busy for some competitors right through Thanksgiving. Here are some of the highlights:

Damian Buccieri

Buccieri, a 9-year-old motocross enthusiast, raced the Winter Olympics Mini O’s in Gainesville, Fla., during Thanksgiving week. He was not able to qualify for the main race but had quite a showing in the qualifying round with a first-place outcome. This is a large armature national race in which riders from throughout the world compete. Buccieri was racing against the best in the country

Buccieri won the MSC 60cc 6–9-year-old class championship this fall. He has competed in more than 15 races in 18 race series. Buccieri also won his first Jr Mini race at Diamond Back MX on his 85cc bike.

The motocross competitor trains hard with AMA Pro Rider AJ Catanzaro at his home tracks Milford Riders Club and CT Motocross in Rocky Hill. His 60cc bike wears the green and white colors of the Sandy Hook Elementary School.

Thomas Johnson

Johnson, a seventh-grader at Newtown Middle School, is a motocross racer at Milford Riders Club. He is 12 years old and has been riding motocross from the young age of 3, and racing since he was 6 years old. In his first race at he placed first on a KTM 50cc. For two years after that he switched to the Cobra 50cc and received first-place honors. Johnson then moved to a Suzuki RM65 and is now riding Suzuki RM85s.

Harrison Schreiner

Schreiner just completed another successful off-road motorcycle racing season riding for the Good Vibrations Off-Road Racing Team. This season he competed in the Netra Hare Scramble Series, the AMA National Hare Scramble Series, the National GNCC Racing Series, and the Netra Enduro Series.

He finished second overall in the 2013 Netra Hare Scramble Series, which has a schedule consisting of 14 events held throughout New England. Schreiner was consistently in the top five all year, chalking up a victory at the Catra Black Fly Event in New York. Another highlight from 2013 was a commanding victory at Round 7 of the AMA National Hare Scramble Series in Virgil, N.Y. He finished the 2013 race season October 27 with a third place finish at Netra’s Black and Blue Enduro in Stafford.

Schreiner has been racing off-road since 2003 when he rode in Netra’s first PeeWee Scramble. He is a Newtown High School graduate, Class of 2012, and is attending Franklin Pierce University in Rindge, NH, majoring in Mass Communications. He served as an instructor at Netra’s Youth Clinic and organized a Netra Youth Junior Enduro; both events took place in Thomaston this season. He is also a multi-time Connecticut State BMX Champion, enjoys mountain biking and snowboarding.

Sponsorship this year came from Spectro Oils, Echo Bay Marina, Interstate Batteries of Fairfield County, Stamford Motorsports, MSR Racing, Pilson Communications, Northeast Diving Services, Federal Auto Seat Covers, C-Cycle Suspension, JP Maguire Property Damage, Bluewater Marine, Precision Propeller, Kellogg Marine Supply, Koritko Insurance, and CrossFit RedZone.

Schreiner displays the Newtown Sandy Hook School Ribbon on his race bike, and flies a Newtown flag from the race trailer at all the events.

Steve Kopcik

Kopcik races in the Young Lions division. He competed in 38 races and his worst finish was ninth. Kopcik earned 28 top-five and seven first-place finishes. The strong results put him 13th in the country and third in state of Connecticut in points.

Kopcik finished second behind the wheel of his Legends car at Waterford’s Wacky Wednesday championship. Throughout the season, he raced at Waterford Speed Bowl, Bethel Motor Speedway, and Seekonk Speedway.

His sponsors are Hocon Industrial Gas, David Smith Racing, A Sign Depot, Newtown Pools, Whitney Family Racing, and NJK automotive LLC.

Kenneth Canfield

Kenneth Canfield, age 9, races in the Junior 1 Eagle Division at the Nutmeg Kart Club that races at the Berlin Fairgrounds. This is his fourth year racing. His overall finish was third in the Junior 1 Eagle Class this year. Throughout the season he consistently placed in the top three. There are 12 races a year. Canfield works on the kart every weekend with his dad and his kart has the number 33 in honor of his great-grandfather’s stock car that he raced at the Danbury fairgrounds in the 1970s. Canfield’s kart is green and white this year to honor the victims at Sandy Hook Elementary School, since he was in the building, in fourth grade on 12/14.

Evan Latte

Latte is a 12th grader at Henry Abbott Technical School in Danbury. The 17-year-old competes in the Nutmeg Kart Club at World of Wheels Speedway in the 15 years old and up Pro Clone Division. He finished the season in fifth place in points, despite missing three events due to injury and surgery.

Latte had a Feature Race win in April, a third place finish in an October race, and came in fifth in the World of Wheels Summer Shootout. He is coming off back-to-back NKC Pro-Clone Season Championships in 2011 and 2012.

The ninth-year racer is sponsored by Nuclear Turtle Motorsports, FedEx Express, and Infiniti Racing Chassis.

Cole Latte

Latte, a 12-year-old, is a seventh grader at Newtown Middle School. He belongs to the Nutmeg Kart Club, World of Wheels Speedway, and competes in the 10–12-year-old WKA Junior 2 Division.

Latte earned the NKC season championship this year. He participated in 12 events, earned 12 poles, and had a dozen feature wins. Latte was the first driver (from any class among Junior or Senior) to earn every pole and every feature win for the entire season at the Nutmeg Kart Club. He was also the 2013 Summer Shootout Junior 2 champion.

His sponsors are Nuclear Turtle Motorsports, FedEx Express, and Slack Racing Chassis.

Morgan Danuszar

Danuszar, 18, competes in the Nutmeg Kart Club in the Lite Division and placed eighth among 13 racers this past campaign. She was a strong competitor in a very competitive class of senior drivers. Danuszar suffered a concussion during the ninth race of the 12-race slate and had to finish her season as a crew chief and provide team support from the sidelines.

Kelsey Danuszar

Danuszar, 13, competed in the Junior 3 Class Division at the Nutmeg Kart Club. She finished in third place in the 12-15 year old age group. Danuszar finished her season with two feature wins. The Junior 3 Class this year was one of the larger classes at Nutmeg with nine competitors each race. The 13 year old racing enthusiast is an eighth grader at Newtown Middle School.