A Granville County teenager was fatally injured at a local racetrack last weekend after his all-terrain vehicle struck a wall while he was practicing for a race.

Trevor Guess, 16, of Stem, died Saturday while en route to Albemarle Hospital for treatment of his injuries, his father, Tracy Guess told The Daily Advance on Thursday.

The collision occurred while the younger Guess was practicing for a Elizabeth City Motocross-sponsored race at Dixieland Speedway.

Tracy Guess said his son was rounding the track when his four-wheel ATV suddenly swerved right and hit a wall.

Guess said he didn't know if a mechanical failure or track conditions had caused the crash, but his son was wearing full safety gear. He said Southern ATV Association rules require ATVs to have engine-kill switches, and officials check safety gear and ATVs before races.

"They're very adamant about safety," Guess said. "It was just an unfortunate thing."

A spokesman for Dixieland Speedway said Elizabeth City Motocross had rented the track for its races on Saturday. Motocross officials could not be reached for comment.

Guess believes his son had been to the Dixieland track before but had never been able to race there until Saturday.

Guess said his son wanted to become a professional ATV rider. He'd formed a team, T&T Racing, with his twin brother Travis and had reached the Senior Production Class this year.

A rising junior at Granville Central High School, Trevor Guess was also the starting quarterback and middle linebacker on his high school football team.

The teenager also enjoyed baseball and water sports, including wakeboarding, but four-wheeling was his favorite past time, his father said.

"That was his life," Guess said. "That's what he wanted to do. His ultimate dream was to be a pro rider."

For Trevor Guess' funeral on Wednesday, as many as 100 ATV riders as well as a couple of motorcyclists rode in the procession. Several were pro ATV riders who were en route to a national racing event in Ohio, Guess said.

Guess said his son was a competitor, but never to the point of denying help to a fellow ATV rider. He recalled one occasion when a fellow racer needed a sprocket, and Trevor gave him his spare.

"He was well-liked," Guess said. "He never met a stranger."

As a testament to the teenager's popularity, approximately 50 of Trevor Guess' high school peers have visited his family's home in Stem every day since the crash, some of them staying until 11 p.m. at night, Guess said. Six of his son's friends in fact left the Guess' home Thursday for the first time since last Saturday, he said.

Guess said the Southern ATV Association has set up a memorial fund in his son's memory. Proceeds will be given to fallen and injured riders to assist them with medical and lodging costs.

"This is something Trevor would want," he said.

In addition to his parents and twin brother, Trevor Guess is also survived by two other siblings, Desmond Stephenson and Carmen Pearsall, and his girlfriend of three years, Brittany Harward.

Contributions to the Trevor Guess memorial fund may be sent to The Southern ATVA Promoters Group — Trevor Guess Fund, 2706 N. N.C. Highway 58, Nashville, NC 27856.