Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/127746
before making the jump to the pro class? I don't know. I haven't really decided yet. I guess we'll play it by ear and see what happens. You've been a Fox rider for a long time. Do you have one of those real long contracts like Reynard? No, I sure don't. I just have a one year contract. But I have been riding for them for a long time. Besides the Mini Pro at Mammoth Mountain that pays money, have there been other ways for you to make money racing in the mini class? No, not really. I don't get paid because I'm not pro, but oh, well. . What about the contingencies and stuff like that? Oh, yeah, Kawasaki Team Green has a great contingency program, and I get that. But it's not money, it's just for parts and stuff. What about your sponsors, do you have any bonus contracts? No, not really. You're always hanging out, sporting your Fox casual wear and your Oakley glasses. You seem to be pretty fashion conscious... Is there a pro rider that you look up to or try to be like? . No, I don't really have a favorite pro rider. When I go to the races, I like watching them. I just like watching good racers and trying to pick up on their skills and all that. Yeah, I'm pretty good friends with some of them. My cIo est pro rider friend is either Brian Swink or Jeremy McGrath. When you watch the pros race, do you just spectate, or do you study their lines? I just look at their lines. I just like, well, I ju t liKe their riding style. I love their riding styles. Who has the best riding style, do you think? I don't know, probably Jeremy. Who would you say your riding style is most like? (Laughs) I don't know. At your high school, does everyone know what you do? Yeah, pretty much everybody does. So are you one of the real cool dudes at school? I guess so, at school. In junior high everyone always knew what I did, too. They liked it. Robbie Reynard told me once that he used to wear his brand-new boots to school to break them in, do you have any stories like that? (Laughs) No, I don't have no stories like that. I take a magazine to school every once in a while to read and because my friends like to read through them too, but thai's about it, that's the only racing stuff I take to school. Do any of your friends at school ride? No, not really. I got a couple of friends, just like locals, weekend warrior, but that's about it. Your driver's license isn't too far away, is it? Yeah, f get it on my 16th birthday in couple months, coming up in November. I took driver's education last year in school, and I'm doing pretty good with my practice. I can't wait. I understand that you and Danny Hamel were pretty good friends. Yeah, we went to the Kawasaki dealer show together. He did a lot of shows with me and we got to be real good friends, and it was just a bad thing that happened. Does that change your outlook on racing as a career? Not really. You've got to be careful what you're doing. I mean, anything can happen, you just have to watch out. But I try not to think about tha t. Change of subject. What are your favorite kinds of tracks? I like big, wide-open tracks with sweeping turns where you can take totally different kinds of lines, and I like frontbrake rights too, where you have to charge the turn and just lay it over. I like tabletops, that's probably my funnest jump. What do you think your strength is? My endurance. I have real good endurance. I can ride forever. I practice motos and I never get tired. Do you watch what you eat? Yeah, I try to keep my weight down. Do your friends at home have a hard time understanding why you have to train all the time and watch what you eat? No, I have one real good friend and he has posters and stuff up in his room. He knows quite a bit, he comes out sometimes and watches me. He's pretty cool. Most of the guys at home know what's going on. What's it like having kids your own age ask you for an autograph? It's pretty cool, I guess. Do you ever get recognized away £rom the track? Uh, no, not too often. Obviously you want to make racing your career. Are you planning on going to college? Yeah, I do want to race for a living. I'm not planning on college, only if something happens to where 1 couldn't race no more, that's the only reason I would go to college. Other than that, I'm hoping to go professional. You were saying that you don't have a favorite pro rider, but when you first started did you have an idol? Yeah, I liked Jeff Ward becasue he was small, and I was small like him. Any brothers or sisters? No, I'm an only child. I kind of wish I had a baby brother to race the pee wee class or something. So is there a special place at home for all your trophies? Yeah, we put all our trophies in our guest bedroom. I don't really know how many I have. Maybe around 200. Probably about that many, but I couldn't tell you to be truthful. I have no idea. Bet you can't wait to win money instead. Yeal), that'll be bad. You won almost every amateur title this year and for the past few years. Are you gonna miss that feeling of dominance - of just knowing that you're gonna win? Yeah, probably so. I like going to the races and knowing I'm gonna win. At the Lake Whitney GNC Finals I crashed and got a second. Was that hard for you to deal with or did you take it pretty well? I took it pretty well. Everbody, even the winner, knew that 1 crashed and that's the only reason he beat me. Usually when I crash, I'm usually in the front. You don't seem to be stuck-up or cocky, you're real friendly and take time to speak with everybody who wants to talk with you. I don't want people to think that I'm cocky. I'm just like any other fifteenyear-old. Yeah, pretty much just like any other kid. ~ 11