Cycle News

VOL. 52 ISSUE 50 DECEMBER 15, 2015 P95 'I'd rather be in this situation do- ing something I love than work- ing 9-5 at a job I don't like.' It's all perspective." And another part of having staying power in the pros is to make sure you prioritize your life properly. It's a lot easier to eat, sleep and breathe racing when you're 17 and it's all new to you all the time. It's something else when you're in your mid-20s, have won a bunch of titles, and you're looking for some time to recharge your batteries. "It doesn't take a rocket sci- entist to figure out what you're feeling when you're burned out," Dungey said. "We were talking earlier about how a career could be longer, but with our sport, it really is just a year-round thing. It's not a bad thing, but it's not the type of thing you can do into your late-30s and your 40s. We as riders have to remember it's a short career and you got to make the best of it. Even though the grind gets tough now, it's go- ing to make you better in the fu- ture. You have an opportunity to set yourself up to have a family and to take care of them and be a little bit more financially set up, too. There are a lot of positives. A guy like myself, I've invested too much time not to make the most of my professional career. It's constantly training every day and the riding. Lots of riding every week." But at his age now, Dungey knows that if he wants to stay competitive during the racing sea- son, he needs to make the most out of his very limited time off. "We get about two full weeks off a year, which is fine—I wouldn't change anything—but you definitely make the most of those times when you're away from your job and away from your training to spend with your newfound priorities. Don't forget, he raced the MXoN six years in a row prior to this year's event. "After the fact, my brother had it recorded, and I did watch it," Dungey said. "But that's another scenario that shows exactly how burnout develops. And that's why I felt like it was best to sit out the des Nations, because so many years that I've done it, and I ignored the feeling that I should take the time off, and then I go race. Then I get back and then I get my time off, and well it wasn't enough time and I'm already right back to it. It's about resting your body and your mind. If you don't do that then you don't prepare. I owe it to myself and my sponsors and the people around me to be at A1 100 percent, healthy, fit and ready to go, but also mentally recharged and ready to go after another season." And more people benefit from Ryan Dungey's success than the people you think about. We'll get into that shortly. TRAINING POWER There was a lot of discussion early in 2015 about Dungey beginning to work with trainer Aldon Baker. With the hundreds of stories written about Baker's racers, starting in 2001 with Ricky Carmichael, it used to be kind of a novel thing to point out that Baker is undefeated as a trainer with racers who fin- ished their AMA championships (didn't drop out injured), but at YOU'VE ALWAYS GOT GUYS WHO ARE COMING TO TRY AND KNOCK YOU OFF THE TOP AS WELL. IT'S A HEAVY LOAD. THE NUMBER-ONE PLATE, THERE'S A LOT THAT COMES WITH IT. family and friends," Dungey said. "You've got to enjoy it. There's a lot of good in this deal, and we get to travel a lot of places, a lot of cities, get to see a lot of cool things. There's a lot of complaining in the sport but in the scheme of things we're pretty spoiled and we're in an awesome position. But spend- ing time with my family—my wife—is really important to me." So, for the people who were wondering why Dungey sat out this year's Motocross of Na- tions in France, it's about these

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