Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

Wa s it weird getting on a road racer for th e first time, or was it eas y to adapt to beca us e it wa s a b ig Harley like your di rt tracker? It was a little bit different, but I think the main reason I got third was because it started to rain. It felt bett er being able to slid e. So was that the po in t - standing on the pod iu m at yo u r fi rst-ever roa d ra ce th at you de cid ed to go road racin g? I thought, "Hey this is fun . I definitely wa nt to do this some more." But at that time, I still wanted to be Grand National Cha mpion on th e dirt. The next yea r '93 - they ca me up with the HarleyDavidson 883 Series that had five di rt tracks an d five road races . Over the winter I practiced on the road racer a lot, an d I'll ad mit it - I had a change in atti tude as far as my perspective on racing and the typ e of racing I wanted to d o. I wen t to Daytona and wo n the road race. At that point, I started feeling comfortable dragging my knee. The first time I to uch ed my knee, I thought, "Well, I guess I'm getting there, getting u p to speed ." Later in '93, I test ed at Texas World Speedway on a Commonwealth Honda , then I raced it at Laguna Seca and go t seventh. . What was tha t like, getting on a "real" road racer for the fir st time? It was good . You know, that whole weekend I learned so much and started getting the feel for road racing . l ook in g back, do you th ink your ' 93 dirt track seas o n suffered because of • your road racing? As far as th e championship goes, yes. But as far as the individual races go, no. I w as hav in g fun . I sta r ted speaking w ith Honda halfway through th at sea so n about road racing, but I was actua Ily approached by Kawasaki first. Based on my 883 finish es and the prog ress I had made, I gu ess the int erest was there. So you signed with Smokin' Joe's Honda for the '94 season. Was that a thrilI, having your first-ever contract and salary? Man, it was lik e a dream come true. I had always dreamed of being a factory rid er, but I had always dreamed about be ing a fac to ry d ir t tr a cker. But for w ha tever reas ons, that dream was never realized . I signed a two-year deal - this is my second yea r. last year, you still spent some time dirt tracking for Bartels..• Well, I had told Martin Adams th a t I still wanted to go d irt tracking, and we wo rked it ou t so that I could d o so in my first yea r. I still felt - still feel - like I ha ve something to prove on the d irt. I mean, my atte ntio n is focused on road racing now, but I feel like I ha ve some unfinished bu siness dirt trackin g. There were rumors early this year that you were trying to put together a Honda dirt track program, possibly aboard Bubba Shobert' s old RS750. Were those true? There we re so me talks of possibly getting a Honda p ro gram togeth er fo r a limi ted schedule this year. But right now w here I'm at - leadin g b oth cha m pionships - maybe it's bett er that it did n' t happen. I believe that things happen for a reason, and right now I' m pretty busy. I'm really focused on road racing. Do you think that someday you're going to return and go after that Grand National win? Who knows. Right now I'm just looking towards the future in road racing. So obviously, your dream goals for yourself have all switched over towards road racing... Actually, I had always planned on going road racing after dirt tra ck. I have always wa nted to follow in the foot steps of Kenny Roberts , Wa yne Ra iney and Eddie Law son. I just said, "Okay, I' m goi ng to have to accep t the fact tha t I'm not going to become Grand National Cha mpion, and it's time to go on." Now my attenti on is focu sed on winning the 600cc Supersportand Superbike National Cha mp ions hips . So in the long run, do yo u see yourself... . World GP in the SOOcc class! That's what I wan t to do. For sure. Do you feel that you're ready to race a 500 right now? I don't kn ow... I guess I need to ride one, don't I? I'd like to get on a 500 and get a feel for one and go from there. At the moment, you're the guy that everyone is talking about, the guy at the center of all the rumors. How does that make you feel? I've heard you named as a possible replacement for Kevin Schwantz on the lucky Strike Suzuki... . It makes me feel good, but I've got a job ' to do, and I'm stayi ng focused on w hat I was hired to do . I'm fu Ily aware of all the rumors . I actu aIly have been con tacted by so me GP teams, bu t I tell the m that I hav e a job to do here and I have commitme nts made. I have a job to do, and right now we're doing it. With sev e n races l e ft, what is y o ur strategy? What is it go ing to take for you to win both titles? Well, I wa nt to win. I'd like to go out and win every race that I can and take the second place when I have to. At the Laguna Seca National, a lot of guys were pushing it and go ing coconut city, but you kept your cool, stayed up and got some points. What was going through your mind at that race, was it hard to refrain? You know, I learned a lot dirt track racing. You d on't win cha mp io ns h ips by crashin g. I have firs t-ha nd ex perience witli that. I have crashed a lot, and I knew that I didn't want to crash at lagu na. In a past interview, Ricky Graham said that he wanted to try road racing b ecause the d irt track scene is li ke a beer-drinking crowd, whereas the road race scene is like a champagne-drinking crowd. Do you understand what h e meant, and do you agree with that? I wo uld n' t 'go that far. In reg ards to tha t sta tement, th er e' s a lot more spo nsorship involved in road racing. More corp orat e s ponsors . More fa ctories. It 's hig her p rofile. I think that's w ha t Ricky meant. Was it uncomfortable for you at fir st being amongst a whole new set of people? Dirt trackers are known for lending each other parts and helping each other out, but now you're in a sport that i s too competitive to do such things. Yeah, it was really d ifferent. But I di dn't mind it, beca use I wasn 't ou t there racing with my fr iends. I came int o road racing with a job to do and I did it. Now, in '95, I have a few people tha t I ha ng out with and I'm havin g fu n. When you won both races at .Pomona, did you ever doubt yourself, thinking tha t it wa s a fluke because of the poor track conditions, or something? No . N o, not once. I had tested at enoug h "real" race tracks, tha t I k new exactly w here I was. I knew that I had the speed to win , an d it wasn't just because of the track . I think I backed those wins up at laguna Seca when I wo n the 600s agai n. I'm sure there are still some people that have their doubts. I be lieve in myself, an d if the re are those w ho do n' t, that's fine . The folks at Americ an Ho nda do ., and I d o. That's all that counts . A lot of people think that you're on the verge of something really big... WeIl, I would have to agree. Are you getting cocky? (laughs) N aw , I was jus t saying th at. What I'm sayi ng is that, yes , that's w he re m y goals a re. I'm gonna d o everything I can to reach my goals , and I think that I'm getting closer and closer. N o, I d on't think I'm cocky, but yo u have to be confident. You have to have confide nce in yourself, and you have to have goals. Are people treating you differently, now that you're the hot new rider? Yeah, people come ou t of th e woodwork w hen you start winning. I know who my real friends are, and I remember who helped me when my dad and I were busting our butts on the dirt track series. Your father Bob an d you are very close. It must have been h ard for you to come in to road racing w ithout your dad serving as chief mecha ni c. Yea h, it was real ha rd , bu t w e bo th knew that was what wa s going to have to happen. We knew that this was what I needed. At this level, this is not something that he and I could' ve hand led on ou r own. He still comes to every race, and oh yeah, he s t ill g ets hi s h an d s d irty. He works on the bikes, and he's actu all y employed by H on d a . T hat's n eat, we both ge t a paycheck n o w . I thin k that's good that he gets to help. I th ink it wo ul d d rive him crazy if he didn't get to. After you won at Pomona, you took a victory lap, dirt tra ck style. That's right. To me, that's what you d o. When you wi n, you take a victory lap with the check ered flag. You 're a good-look ing guy . Going from privateer dirt track er to fa ctory ro ad racer - ha s t h e qua l it y of the women imp roved ? (laughs) Oh, definitely . (La ughs) Hey dad, Maeda ask ed me if th e qual ity of the women has improved since I became a factory rider! (l aughs) S o, is it reall y like it se e ms? 0 0 group ies walk into th e pits an d hand you the ir pho ne n umbers? (laughs) Yeah, but we did that d ir t tracking! They have us sign their bodies, too. What's the b est place you ' ve signed your autograph? Hmm.. I'm not telling! Did you have any habits that you had to give up when you went road racing? Do you have to train harder, or not as ha rd? Well, w he n I was dirt tr ackin g I w as also going to college full time . N ow I deci d ed to dedicate my who le life to racing, so I've put coIlege on the backburner for no w. Now I' m able to train and prepare for the races fuIl tim e. Do you plan on returning to college som eday? At this p oint, I haven ' t reall y tho ug h t about it. I just want to focus on racin g right now . So tell me about your training regimen. Well, I run a lot. A whole lot. I also rid e my mo untain bike a bunch - I'm actually sponsored by Specialized bicycles. I ride my Ho nd a CR125 a lot. I hear that you're a bad -ass motocrosser. Naw. I ride a lot, bu t I don 't race. I have fun a t it . But yeah, I go pretty good . Whe n I was in California I go t to go riding with Steve Lamson a lot. Big doubles, no troubles? Yeah, big d oubles, no troubles . It' s the tri ples that I'm s till thi n ki ng about. (laughs) The trip les are tempting, but I do n' t wa n t to ruin my season. After the road race season is done, I'm going ou t to t he loc al tr a ck , I'm gonna roll the trip le once, then I'm go nna turn around and jump it. I know I can do it. Then 1'I1 tell all my friends , "See I knew I could do it!" You have a distinctive style on a road racer. I do ? What do you mean ? You have your head tilted differently, and your elbows are up higher. N o th ey aren't! Wh at are y ou talking about? Not any more ! Well, ma ybe sometimes... ex 27

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