Hi Aaron! Glad to have you join us. You do not need to register with the GNHC to race. You will however need an AMA card at most events to sign up. That is a great bike to start with and you can get going without too many modifications. Any of our racers will be happy to give pointers and answer any questions you have. A few of them sell easy bolt on parts to help with your conversion as well. You can reach out to Jeremy DeRuyter, JJ Flairty, Josh Young at the Shop Dayton, and many others.