Alligator farmer ranked 6th in nation
Jerry Savoie grew up in Luling and is best-known as one of the few alligator farmers to hatch white alligators. But soon he may also be known as a world champion motorcycle racer.
Savoie, 50, is the only rider on his new team, White Alligator Racing, but he is already out-performing competition veterans.
After only four races, he is No. 6 in the country in points, which are based on wins and qualifying.
“We’re doing good, we’ve got great expectations,” Savoie said. “I hadn’t been on a bike in over 30 years and I decided to just get out there and give it a try, so I’m feeling pretty good.”
Savoie broke records racing motorcycles in the 1970s when he was a teenager. He raced while he attended Hahnville High School, where he graduated in 1977, but gave the sport up in 1979 to raise a family.
“I stayed in touch with my old buddies that used to race and they kept calling me and asking me to come out racing with them,” he said. “A year ago, I decided to buy a bike and go to the track to play around – I was hooked. It was like I was 16 years old again.”
After that, Savoie traveled to Indiana and bought a pro stock motorcycle team and hired a crew, including crew chief Mark Piezer, Carman Wilcox and Jeremy DeRoche.
He also attended Star Racing School in Georgia to make sure he was up to the task.
Savoie’s goal is to make it to the world finals in California this November.
“We’re going to be there – I promise,” he said.
The name for his racing team – White Alligator Racing – was chosen because Savoie is one of the only alligator farmers in the world to hatch albino alligators. He said he thinks of the alligators as his mascot and hopes to one day be allowed to bring them to the track and display them. He thinks this would help his cause: racing to save the wetlands.
“I’ve been an alligator farmer for the last 25 years and I see the marshlands of Louisiana just disappearing at enormous rates,” he said. “I want to bring awareness that this problem does exist because in the next 25 years, (the wetlands) will be almost all gone.”
While Savoie said his alligator business has been good lately, he relies on the wetlands for the 60,000 alligators he harvests each year. He said he is also concerned about the shrimpers, crabbers and fishermen who rely on the marshlands.
“Without any marshlands this is all going to go away,” he said. “I am trying to bring awareness to the people that are listening at the races.”
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