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Half of the 2006 racing season is over but you haven't heard the name Kurt Caselli very much. That's because the KTM racer, a.k.a. "Special K," has been spending most of his time in rehab, get- ting his rebuilt knee back into working order. Caselli used his leg as a landing gear from a jump, which didn't make his knee happy at all. That was about sixth months ago, and he is just now riding again, making his debut at the just-con- cluded World Enduro round in Italy. We caught up with Caselli recently in between practice sessions at Glen Helen Raceway. cn: So what did you do to your knee, and how did you blow it out so badly? kurtcaselli: I damaged the A CL, menis- cus, and the PCL, and had them replaced by cadavers. I was at Perris [Raceway in California]; it was stupid. It was at the end of the day and was taking my gear off and a buddy goes, "C'mon, let's go out one more time." I cased a double with my foot out and tri-podded my leg. The bottom part of my knee popped out and was dislocated; it actually popped back in when I took my knee brace off right after I did it. I had surgery just five days after I did I did it. cn: How disappointing was that to have that happen right at the beginning of the racing season? kurtcaselli: I was pissed. I came home a few weeks after surgery and I gave my bikes back to [Mike] Chavez, my mechanic, and said, "K eep 'em, don't even let me near 'em." I didn't want to be tempted to ride. It was hard because you feel fine, but the ligaments have to re-attach, so I just took my time. I actu- ally started riding in about four and a half months, which was still a little early from what they said, but I was doing therapy three days a week and have a really good therapist who is training me right now. [The knee] is good; I've got all my range of motion back and everything. It's still a little tender and gets sore after I ride for a while, but nothing bad - feels fine. cn: So why did you make your return at the W orld Enduro? kurtcaselli: We want to do really good in the Six Days this year, we're putting together a Junior team and, hopefully, try to win it. And so, I wanted to do a lot of World Enduros anyway this year, and they have the two coming over here in Canada and New York. So, for sure, we were planning on doing those, but I wanted to do as many as I could besides that - but I got hurt and screwed that up. Italy came along right about the right time for me to start riding again, about the same time as the WORCS race in Washougal, but I figured the World Enduro would be a little easier - I could go at my own pace, and I'm not racing heads up with guys - but then it turned out to be pretty tough. After the first day, I felt pretty sore, my knee was swollen and everything else started hurt- ing, like all of the muscles I haven't used in so long. But I think everybody else felt the same, so it wasn't too bad. I didn't feel that I lost a lot for being off the bike for so long. cn: So your first race back turned out to be one of the toughest W orld Enduro rounds in quite some time. kurtcaselli: It was so rocky, I mean, I went to the Wisp [GNCC] last year and I thought that was rocky, but that was nothing compared to this place - pure rocks, hard-packed with rocky down- hills. The whole 30-mile loop was noth- ing but rocks. I sat down maybe five minutes out of an hour-and-a-half of riding. And that was on the roads when you could sit down and rest - it was tough. cn: What are your plans for this year's ISDE in New Zealand? kurtcaselli: Hopefully , they'll [AMA] put me on a team. I don't know what they're thinking - they have an option of picking two of the Trophy team members. Hopefully, they know that I want to go, and they put me on the Junior team. David Pearson quali- fied, and also Ricky Dietrich, it's looking like, hopefully, it will be myself, David Pearson, Ricky Dietrich and Russell Bobbitt, who did really good in the Qualifier back East. cn: It appears that a strong effort is being made to win the Junior W orld class this year. kurtcaselli: Yes. My dad [Rich] has been doing a really good job for the last whole year putting together sponsors, title sponsors, and other guys that want to help out. So he's got a lot of money backing the Junior team, which is per- fect, because usually the Juniors don't get any money to go over there. It's only the [World] Trophy guys that get their package paid, so this will be a good opportunity for, one: to have all of us go over there without having to pay too much money, not have to worry about that; bring friends and family that are there to help and support us, and it should be a really good chance for us to win the Junior team. For sure, we're going to have competition from Spain and Italy. But I really think that we have a good shot at this, and if I ride like I always do, just finish - a good, solid finish - get a gold or whatever, if all of the other kids do the same, I think we'd have a pretty good shot at winning. cn: Which bike will you ride? kurtcaselli: A 250 two -stroke. I usually always ride those in the World Enduros and also in the Six Days. I feel like I can ride them pretty hard and throw them around and kind of do what I want, espe- cially if it gets muddy or something, the four-stroke isn't real good in the corners in the mud. Kit Palmer JULY 5, 2006 • C Y C L E N E W S 16 Kurt Caselli: Special K 1 Year (50 Issues) Only $45.00 SAVE 70% Off the Cover Price 6 Months (25 Issues) Only $23.00 For Fast Service Call: 1-800-831-2220 Order Online: www.cyclenews.com Stay Informed... Subscribe to TM ®