COEUR d'ALENE - Behind all that noise, jockeying for position and dirt stirring up at motocross racing at the North Idaho Fair is something that warms the soul.

Family bonding time is a theme at the races.

Promoter Chaun McAlister, in his 14th year of organizing the arenacross races at the fair, has plenty of family support.

His brother, Bart, is the announcer, his father, Mike, owns Motion Sports motorcycle shop in Coeur d'Alene and his mother, Jannice, helped promote the event before she died. His three daughters are also heavily involved as Aleece races and Celina and Klaire both work in the pit.

"It's a huge family-oriented sport," said McAlister while preparing for Thursday night's racing. "It's not just 17-year-olds showing up with a dirt bike in a pickup."

The age span between the racers lends itself toward entire families being involved. Some are as young as 4, including McAlister's nephew Branson, and McAlister recalls one from a previous year being 68.

"It's not just for kids or just for adults," McAlister said.

McAlister said his parents were involved with him with racing as a youth and now he's carrying on the tradition with his kids.

"There's a lot of opportunities to learn and have fun," he said. "There's a lot of similarities to life."

Some families, including the Pearces from Post Falls, camp out at the fairgrounds during the races.

Father Dan and his 11-year-old son, Derek, spend time tinkering on their motorcycles together.

"I'm a big believer in teaching the kids to work on the machines," Dan said. "That's what my dad did with me. If he wants to ride, he needs to know how to fix things."

Derek said he appreciates having a mentor in his father.

"I like it that he can be here with me," Derek said. "He's my mechanic."

The Pearces' three girls have also raced, but have settled on being a support staff for Dan and Derek. Wife and mom Heidi said motocross families get together between races for barbecues and camaraderie.

"The fair is the big reunion," she said. "Everybody comes to this one."

Derek said he enjoys the races at the fair the most because his friends attend to watch him in action.

"I love being out there and racing in front of the crowd," he said. "You can hear the people cheer."

McAlister said motocross is another activity that makes the fair a family-oriented event. He said he even markets the racing toward spectators that way.

"We've had a great relationship with the fair, and I don't see us going away," he said.

Dan Pearce, 38, said he plans to continue to race until he stops enjoying the sport.

"It's one of the few sports where a dad and his son can compete on the same weekend at the same place," he said. "They make for full days, but they are sure a lot of fun. We sleep well at the end of the day."

Dan and Derek both earned third-place trophies on Wednesday night, giving them hopes for more hardware heading into Thursday night's races.

"The smile on his face made the sleepless nights worthwhile," Dan said of his son.

Derek's bike had a mechanical issue last weekend, which meant there was a scramble to have it ready for the fair.

"He spent hours with me in the garage trying to get that bike going," Dan said. "I won't remember the finishes nearly as much as the time we spent together in the garage getting his bike ready to race and teaching him how to work on his bikes."

One of Dan's goals is to race against Derek some day at the fair.

"He'll kick my butt, but I'd like to be on the line with him at least once," Dan said.