INTERVIEW
P58
US MOTOTRIAL CHAMPION PATRICK SMAGE
Smage says
that he's not
a natural at
trials riding
– he's had to
work for it.
I wouldn't be where I am today. It
was all thanks to my dad's crazy
idea of turning what was a plain
storage shed into what made me
get where I am. Thankfully, now
I can travel in the winter to better weather, so I don't have to
spend all winter in an icebox full
of rocks."
This past year, the Sherco
USA-backed rider claimed his
sixth US trials title, which threw
him into a tie in that category with
one of his mentors, Ryan Young.
Young is a big reason Smage
was able to take the talents he
developed in his barn and convert them into titles. Not only has
Young coached Smage over the
years, but Young has also served
as Smage's minder at the events.
"My dad took me as far as he
could and then Ryan stepped in
at the perfect time," says Smage.
"As a minder he is second to none
and just having him at every section is a huge confidence boost.
He knows trials better then anyone and working together to win
championships has been a great
experience. I used to watch his
training DVD almost every day
before riding, and he can still critique my riding if something isn't
working."
Like most kids who start out in
trials, which is a relatively small
sport here in the United States,
Smage had no illusions about
fame or fortune when he decided
to get into the sport.
"I still can't believe what I've
done and where I have been,"
says Smage. "When I started rid-
ing it was just something fun to
do with my dad, I never thought it
would take me all over the world,
eventually competing against the
best there is. I always thought it
would be cool to ride a national or
go watch a world round, but never
thought I would do what I have
done. Looking back, it has been
quite an adventure. And now to tie
Ryan with six titles is awesome. I
have looked up to Ryan since before I knew him and I owe a lot of
my success to him."
What attracted Smage to trials was a desire to be constantly
challenged. It was also a sport he
could practice on his own.
"I loved that about the sport,
that you could always make
something harder and continue
to challenge yourself, and I found
