Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

Arenacross Champion Josh Demuth Josh Demuth used to like to party, now he likes to win championships. By DAVE DERINGER PHOTOS BY STEVE BRUHN first met Josh Demuth at the Troy, Ohio, National, when he was an up-and-coming, 17-year-old privateer. Foot loose and fancy free, Demuth was flaunting his tattoos and wearing flashy clothing, and I would not have been surprised if his only real concern at that time was where the next party was going to be. I could not help but be captivated by this "punk rocker," who also wanted to make it big in motocross. That was five years ago; today, you'd hardly recognize the guy. He's now a family man, with a wife and two children; he's found religion and simply takes life a lot more seriously now. And you might say that a product of this sharp turnaround is a National Arenacross title that he now holds, which is, no doubt, also a sign of Demuth's strength of character - when he decides to do something, he sticks with it. Demuth, who hails from Forth Worth, Texas, is now 23 years old and has a bright future ahead of him, and he knows it. He's now serious about his racing, his family and his life, and this became so evident to me after I got the chance to sit down with Demuth for a few minutes to do this interview. I managed to hook up with Demuth not long after he clinched the National Arenacross Championship and became the first rider to win the title following Buddy Antunez's five-year reign. We concentrated on his winning 2001-2002 season, his battles with Damon Bradshaw and Darcy Lange, and touched a little bit about the dramatic change in his life. Josh Demuth and his wife Holly met at an arenacross race In 2000. Today. they have a family and a number-one plate. I all, congratulations on AreQ First of Championship. How doesyourfeel to nacross it be the first new Arenacross Champion in five years? wow! It feels real good. It's something that I had set myself a goal for a long time ago and we just worked really hard for it and things came together. We said a lot of prayers and went to a lot of Brian O's [O'Rourke] chapel services, and I have a good family and good sponsors behind me and it all worked out. GOing into the series opener at Des Moines in November, what were your true expectations? Well, I wanted to win a lot of races and I worked my butt off all summer long. I was wanting to win the championship, but I didn't know if I could. After the first race, I knew that I had a really good chance. You started off the series strong, but Damon Bradshaw closed in and put some pressure on you throughout the next several rounds. Did you ever look up to him back in his day? Yeah, I looked up to him a lot when I was little and he was always one of my favorite riders. Getting to race against him was awesome. I got to actually pass and beat him a couple of times, so A Q A 42 MAY 15, 2002' cue I e ne""s Hmmm. It would have been even more tough. There were so many guys this year. It was crazy. I've never seen that many good riders at once in this series. A lot of them had a good chance to win every time they got on the track. It made the racing so much tougher on the rest of us. It would have been real good though. I know that he would have been winning some races and hopefully we would have had a great battle. I'd love to race against him again if he decided to come back too. What are your plans for the rest of this year? A that was pumping me up. We had some good battles every weekend and he closed in, but I was always able to stay a little bit ahead of him there. It was kind of a boost of confidence for me that I was able to hold him back there for as many weeks as I did. You never lost the points lead, did you? No. It was down to four points between us at one time and then we kept it within 15 to 20 points the rest of the time. Were you worried? A Q Yep, I was worried a bunch. I'm sorry that he got hurt, though. I don't like to see that happen to anybody. He'll be back, though, and I'll get to race him again. That brings up the next question. After his injury, how did you feel? What were your thoughts for the rest of the season? I honestly felt terrible for him; I know how it feels. Last year, me and Buddy [Antunez] were having a pretty good battle and I broke my arm. I know my injury was not as severe as his, but I kind of felt the same way he must have. I really look forward to racing him again. He's a real tough competitor and somebody to definitely look out for on the track. Darcy Lange kind of picked up where Bradshaw left off. Did you feel threatened by him at all and did you change your style or game plan at aU? Not really. I mean I've raced with Darcy a lot. We were on the same team [Carrollton Kawasaki] last year, so I knew a lot about him. Darcy's an awesome rider. He's matured a lot also in the last few years, so I knew that he would always be there and be a problem for me, but I had confidence that I could keep going as long as I was keeping myself safe on the track. How do you think the series would have been if Antunez would have stayed with it? A Q Q A we're going to hit all of the outdoor [Nationals] in the 125cc class on the YZ250F. At the same time, I'll get ready for next year's Arenacross Series, where I'll be carrying the number-one plate. I'll be riding for Shogun Yamaha again and it will be a factory-backed Yamaha Arenacross team, just like the other manufacturers have. Did you get a bonus from Yamaha for the championship? Yeah. I'd rather not say how much, but it was healthy. How did you actually hook up with and meet the guys from Shogun? Don't they have a road racing background? A friend of mine, D.L. Woods, told me about them. He said that Mr. Harvonik and Mr. Gremmels were interested in motocross. I don't think that they realized how big it was. They have now basically stopped their road race program to excel more in motocross. They own several shops named Motion Cyclesports, and Shogun is just the name of their racing team. I'm real happy with the way things went this year. Next subject. I've known you for some time and have seen you as a wildman doing crazy Q A A [ft~[?~ @@[]fjfJ[JJ]cf]DD ~ W@&JC? Total Arenacross Wins: 26 Total Series Points: 1163 Total Podium Finishes: 53 Total Dash For Cash Wins: 3 Total Dash For Cash Points: 89 Overall Dash For Cash Ranking: Second (Demuth and Darcy Lange tied in points in the Dash for Cash Series, but Lange had more wins (11) and took the DFC Champi· onship.)

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