Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

INTERViEW National Trials Champion Geoff Aaron II 64 or Geoff Aaron, winning the AMA /NATC National Trials Championship wa sn 't a matter of if he could . Instead , it was a matter of wizen he would . "I was get ting close r and closer every year," said the quiet, ye t amiab le 22year-old from Co nnecticut. "I figured that it was only a matter of time." A matter of time, indeed . After winni ng the 1988 High Schoo l Champio nship, Aaron decided to make the jump into the championship class in '89, rat her th an s tay and defend h is High School title. The choice proved to be a good one, as he finished his rookie sea son in the pr emier division ranked eighth in the nation. Aaron continued to im p rove the following ye ar, finishing third overall in '90. The next three years saw him finish second overall, behind si x-time Na tio na l Cha m pion Rya n Young . Many expected him to dethrone Young in '92 or ' 93, b u t according to Aaron, "little things" kep t him from living up to those expectations. It wasn't until 1994 that Aaron finally accomplished hi s goal, winni ng five ationa ls en route to earning his first ational Championship title. "I finally got the job done," said Aaron: "It was tough to be second three years in a row . The re was pressure from myself, as well as from everybody else. After the final National, I felt like 1 ha d brain da mage or something. I had .been so focused all weekend long that I was totally mentally drain ed . It was a big relief to have finally met my goal." It's obvious that Aa ron is goa l-ori en ted, but the Na tiona l Championship wasn 't always one o f h is p rio rities . Unlike ma ny of tod ay's motocross, road race an d dirt tra ck stars w ho beg a n competing at a very yo ung age, Aaron d idn't th row a leg over a mo to rcycle until he was 13. Because of the rugged terrain near his Redding, Connecticut, home, yo u ng Geoff decided that his fir st moto rcycle should be a trials machine, r a the r than a high-tech motocrosser. . "I got the bug from looking at magazines and stu ff," said Aaron. "I figu red th at an MX bik e wouldn't be th e hot se tu p for trail riding in my area, so 1 started to look for a trials bike." Aar on's first bike was a 1976 Yamah a TY175. "It was a real beater," Aaron said, with a laugh. "But I got it for $115. That's a lot of mowing lawns, man ." Thoug h he was heavily involved in the usu al school sports - basketball, football and soccer - Aaron bega n to spend more a nd m ore ti me pla yin g o n h is m oto rcycl e. After about six m onths, word of a nearby trials reached Aaro n and he persuaded his father into letting him enter. "I rode the full-on beginner class, but I finished third out of six guys," he said. "From then , I was hooked." By mid 1985, Aaron had really begun to compete, and reports that he moved _ up in class fairly quickly. Thanks to the ' rocks, log s and hills in hi s backyard, Aaron was able to spend hours and hours a da y practicing. The trusty TY175 made way for a brand-new '86 TY350, •• 1 1 . By Donn MaedaIPhotos by Martin Belair and that' s when Aaron really began to shine. " It was cool ha ving a brand-new bik e," sai d Aa ron . "A ll of a sud de n, I had a mon osh ock and I could actua lly climb up walls. When I got that bike, I was just ou t of th e Novice class and I began to ride the Intermediate class at the Nationals. "I'thrashed myself pretty hard at the Nationals. It was a pretty rude awakening. 1 didn't totally die, but the'sectio ns were harder than anything I'd ever ridd en on before." The 1987 season saw Aaron win the Advanced class championship in the local New England series, and on the National level, he fin ished fifth in the High School class. In ' 88, Aaron co ntested the enti re National series, and walked away with th e H igh Sch ool N ati on al Cha m pionship. "By that time, I was really serio us abo u t tr ial s," said Aaron . "I go t some new Yarnahas and rode every single da y. I was nu ts. I wore the bikes ou t and had to keep getting new ones. I had go tte n good e n o ugh to need g o od machinery." Though he was eligible to stay and defend his title in the High School class, Aaron d ecided to m ake the jump in to th e prem ier Championship di v ision. "The High School Championship was an ego boost, tha t's for su re," Aaron said . "It helped out my confide nce level, becau se I knew that lots of High School Champions had gone on to be National Cha mpions or top -TO contende rs. I was psyched to win the High School Championship; that had been a goal, My next goal wa s to mov e in to the Championship class and do well." Aaron's fir st year in the toughest . class saw him learn a great deal. After fin ishing 15th a t the ser ies opener, Aaron s te ad il y progres sed and imp roved throughout the series. At the series finale, he finishe d second, bettered only by Young . Aaron ended that seaso n ranked eighth overal!.

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