The Moment: Atlanta
Monday, February 27, 2012 | 2:30 PM
The Moment is brought to you by Factory Effex who is a world leader in graphic kits, Custom number plate back grounds, high end Factory Wheel sets and components; specializing in cutting edge decorative accessories for your motorcycles and ATV.
Tweet
Advertisement | Advertise with Us
Share
Comment
Email
Print
Red Bull KTM’s Ken Roczen was one of the favorites for the East Region Lites title before the season started, but after two races he’s fourth in the points and a whopping 15 points down to GEICO Honda’s Justin Barcia, who has swept both rounds.
Roczen’s been fast, no doubt, but he’s gotten his third and sixth in two races the hard way. The first round he probably waited a bit too long behind GEICO Honda rookie Justin Bogle before he made his move, but all things considered, he did pretty well.
This past weekend, Atlanta seemed to be set up for “Kenny Time” as the German speedster qualified first, won his heat race and seemed ready to grab his second career SX Lites win—and maybe vie for the points lead.
But this column is called The Moment and for us here at Racer X, the big moment occurred when Roczen, after an unusually long gate hold, crept forward and hit the gate. And you can guess what happened next. The gate fell, Roczen’s Dunlop got stuck in it, and the pack of 19 riders sped away while Kenny pulled his bike back and started a good five seconds behind the last place guy.
Roczen would rebound to finish sixth, but the damaged had already been done.
Photo: Carl Stone
And with that, his work was cut out for him. He worked up well from the pack to end up sixth and was all over Darryn Durham for fifth—a spectacular ride by any measure. But in a shortened series, his sixth could be the one result that he looks back on at the end of the series that costs him. Remember there are ten points between first and sixth.
Afterwards I ran into Roczen in the lobby of the Atlanta Marriott hotel and I told him that it was too bad that happened but I thought he still rode great. He explained that the incident was really not his fault. He did not let the clutch out, but the bike started creeping forward on him (remember, the gate was held longer than usual) and he wasn’t too blame. This could possibly be traced to a clutch problem. He also backed that up on Twitter after the race to his fans, tweeting “So bummed. Thought we fixed it...” and then “Everybody thinks I counted and ran into the gate. NOPE. I’ve never even ran into a gate in my life unless there was a problem.”
Strange things can happen even in these short Lites series, and Eli Tomac’s big crash in San Diego proves big points can be made back up. But this one bad moment for Roczen just had a big impact on the early going.
Did you like this article?
Check out HIGH/LOW
in our Latest issue of Racer X available now.
Each of the five major manufacturers had its ups and downs during the 2013 Monster Energy Supercross campaign. Page 118.
Look for the verified symbol 
Impulse Studios
I give him props for his come back ride, he made short work passing people, needs to show his teammate how to do that. He and Barcia out front would be so fun to watch, differant styles, but both riding at warp speed! Wharton has been a nice suprise, after a year off he is just a tick off speed wise, maybe by the outdoors he will be ready to run the leaders pace, with out mistakes.... Durham and Baggett will be right there also, and you cant leave Bogle and Stewart out of the mix either...dang this east coast may be even tougher than the west ....
I thought they help the gate for a long time. To bad cuz Roczen had speed.
Clutch issue or 'learning curve'...?
Betting on the clutch. Kid's a World Champ.
K-Roc will give Barcia fits before it's done.
The MOMENT was when RV was .5 seconds behind Dungey on lap 12-13 entering the sand and left the sand 5 seconds behind! Far be it for any of the three suits in the booth to be actually watching the race leaders and mention that. Instead it was something like:
" and now a great battle for the lead, RV has pulled up on Dungey...and now lets take a look at Kevin Windham rolling around in 8th, what a swell scene, great guy, great career, 200 starts... RV is now pulling up on Dungey he's only 2 seconds behind! Don't worry that RV went down and none of our six eyes in the booth or the thirty cameras in the stadium saw that...if no one says anything maybe no one will notice! Good lord!
Uhhh...wait what happen to .5 seconds behind...
Yes bd25 Bogle has some speed!! Kid is going to be somthing. Wharton was my bro's darkhorse pick this year.
It was an unusually long gate hold. In fact while watching the start of the "250 Class" final I said to myself, "Why in the hell are they waiting so long to let the gate go?". It was almost as bad as A1, the Gate Wait.
kawak Funny but true!!! RV made up probley 10-12 sec during that race and still got 2nd!! His big mistake in my eyes was the first pass he tried to make when CS and RD were buched up in the corner and he tried to cut it in tight and pass them both. Bad move that cost him a few sec. If he just tucked in he could have made the pass one at a time. he knew he had the speed but tried to make it all happen in one turn.(corse at that point JS was gainiong on him sooo Tough to blaim him I guess but by the time he cought up again RD finaly got by CS so it made the job harder.
I think Blake is a bit under the radar, he is a character and that scares off some sponsers, but he has always been fast. I like the fact he doesnt trash talk and he will race you as clean as you want or as rough as you want, dont know him but i like him....and he is on a Suzuki (my brand) they dont have alot to cheer about ..lol
as for Bogle, he seems to have the image thing down, robbie has been working with him alot the last two years... plus being able to ride with Trey on his tracks is a big plus for him...he does have a big up side... I will be rooting for him,too since he is a fellow Okie, just 50 miles down the road...
Roczen's Master/ Slave Cylinders are being autopzied as we speak by the CSI moto master Roger D. IF this issue was truely clutch creep they will pin point the criminal seal responsible and the proper punishment will be administered. OR Roger will "pimp slap" K Roc for his premature reactulation on the line !
That is crappy for Roczen...usually its rider error when that happend.......But KTM seemed to have a bad night with the 250's.....or a bad day I should say... M. Stewart missed a practice and the LCQ beacuse the bike would not start and it sounds like K-Roc had issues with the clutch before the main.....KTM's still seem to be prone to malfunctions, so hopefully it doesnt bite Dungey....Does Bogle sing for a metal band??? He always sounds hoarse when he talks.....and he seems a little light in the lofers too....hmmmmm
When clutch creep is the problem, The front brake is the solution.
Maybe it was cable stretch? Oh, wait......not that.
Maybe Mookies' bike is just hard to kick start? Oh, wait.....not that.
KR is going to show us the goods soon, have patience fans.
And what is wrong with being a little light in the loafers?
Another Moment : JS7 had a solid 20 laps !!! Even though he was in 3rd, it was a much needed improvement and hopefully a sign of things to come....too late for title contention unless craziness comes, but atleast build it back up and run up front!
@ Bill C, totally agree. I thought ( in hindsite or course) had RV been a little more patient he would have made the pass. At the point where he attempted to run it in tight on what was a corner where you exit and hit top speed, RV should have waited.
Who am I to question how that guy passes but he was right on Dungey's rear fender at that point with plenty of laps left. We saw how well his bike had hooked up there earlier when he passed CS. If he would have just followed RD5 through there tight, he would have been right there with at least 5 laps to work on him. Instead the back end slid out, he got squirly and let the gap get back to 30 or 40 yards. At that point notice was served and Dungey stepped it up.
Credit to Dungey, he rode fast and finished the race out front. I like the guy a lot and would not be dissappointed if he won it all. I don't see it however, because RV is just too fast, too often and does not need a top 3 start to win. I just love the dudes agressive style. I like Dungey's fluid style but I don't believe he can start out of the top 5 and win. Unless of course RV and jS7 start 19th and 20th.
Can't wait for Daytona. That is going to be a show down with the 1, 5 and the 7 and absolutely nobody else in the field has a chance!
I would say it was my clutches fault if i did that... but i am sure he will come back firing
Remember A1 guys?? Long gate there also and the KTM250's all had clutch issues there during the race cuz of the long gate!!
I need to clarify here that in my 250 Words piece, I suggested that Ken may have released the trigger too early and caught in the gate, but I now realize he had a clutch problem. But my point is unchanged: Supercross is a game of inches, and those inches cost Roczen in Atlanta. Once he gets that sorted, I am sure he will be a challenge to win any of these races.
DC
MX Sports
Yes Red54m.... Daytona could be EPIC!!! Lets just hope RV,RD and JS all start in the top 3. Man would that be fun to watch!!
BillC, try this, "Villipoto was barely behind Dungey off the start, but Dungey rode a great race, and Villipoto couldn't get him." This is the fact of the Atlanta Supercross in 2012, deal with it.
Also, how hard is it to get a simple gate drop right? Come on AMA, FIM, Feld, somebody get on this and stop the nonsense.
I was thinking a clutch issue possibly too because he couldn't roll the bike back after he got free from the gate. I know they are hard to roll in gear, but it was more so than normal.
warrior462 relax, I said nothing bad about RD and his WIN so calm down.
.As for the gate drop it was under 10sec so "This is the fact of the Atlanta Supercross in 2012, deal with it"
.See your no dif than I am.
@KilloMoto--This article IS NOT ABOUT STEWART, please let go of his tip with your teeth and lets talk about the others racers out there...
Too bad for Roczen, he is fast and has a chance to maybe get a win ir two. This is Barcias title to lose, but I want to see Roczen battle with him, I know he has the speed.
They did hold the gate a bit longer than normal. Watching the replay on TV, It looked like he was fighting to hold the bike back and it crept forward on him. I've never had that happen with a hyd clutch. Seems weird.
As soon as they showed that it was Roczen that was hung up in the gate, I reversed the DVR and you could see he was having trouble moving the bike backwards, even when the front tire was free of the gate, and it looked like he had the clutch lever fully disengaged. So this, (IMO) clutch issue verified here today was suspect all along. Even though you know he wanted that extra nanosecond on Barcia, none the less. Ha!
@ KilloMoto Your comment was lame.
The kid is what, all of about 16 yrs. old?
His Voice is probably still changing.
How many Amateur MX titles did you win by his age?
Roczen didn't win his heat race Mathes
Guys i do not think it was the clutch. Roczen was trying to jump the gate.Do not think you can pass all those riders with a bad clutch.Hope he can get it together an give Barcia a battle for the title.East is tougher than west this year.
It did look like the bike wouldn't roll back as if the clutch plates were dragging. I can see that happening after sitting there heating the clutch plates and them expanding. I had a bike do that while practicing starts once. After I let it cool down, it was back to normal. Clutch abuse.
Another "moment" I was wondering about was the jumping after the caution lights came on issue. Has there been any clarification made today on that? I haven't seen anything about it today. I didn't notice it while watching the race. After seeing comments on here, I went back and watched again. The lights WERE on before RV made the turn. He didn't see the checkers in his heat either so I wouldn't think it was intentional, but it could have been BIG for him and whoever he narrowly missed. Curious.
RC said on TV that RV was OK to jump it but JS had to slow, ON TV the lights were white when RV hit it so i guess he is fine.
First it's Emig now it's DC didn't Bogel win the heat race? I checked the results again and it shows Roczen 2nd.... Bogel 1st....! Anyone who watches the race again will see that the yellow light was blinking, the yellow flag was waving right beside the light and the RED light was flashing as Villo turned the corner. Nevermind he almost hit the downed rider on the other side. Am I the only one who see's these things?
The lights discussion is old news. Yes the lights came on seconds before he was on the jump face.
Problem is these guys eyes are on that light tree when they are mid way through the straight section approaching the corner.
When the lights came on RV was already on top of (or clearing ) the last bump before corner entrance. In otherwords he was already setting up his corner with the necessary speed to jump the triple. When he looked at that spot (light box) they weren't on, his raciing line and eyes were already past it at the point when they did come on, then it is to late, no going back, already committed. No harm no foul, race results were not cgoing to change anyway..
He is fortunate to have not landed on the downed rider though because from a timing standpoint that was about as close as it gets.
When that crash does happen someday it is going to be an ugly one!
Funny JS and everyone else seemed to see the red lights.
JS was far enough back where when you are looking down the track you may see them. He also said he could not comment as to rather or not RV saw them.
Now your funny too!
by the way, the lights were flashing yellow when RV1 was on the triple. The red lights are on James car.
yes you can pass all those riders with a bad clutch dude. You EVER riden?
The bad clutch only makes the takeoff a pita, otherwise the bike still shifts, just not like a hot knife through butter, more like a butterknife through a burnt Totinos.
Coolhand...give that crap a rest...ridiculous.
BOGLE WON THE HEAT RACE! ROCZEN CRASHED! GET IT RIGHT!
Hope to see Roczen and Barcia go head to head this weekend.
THE MOMENT was a clutch slip and not rider error. WOW! who cares my stock 450 creeps up every time I race too. It happens. LOTS of ROC fans here homering every excuse in the book why he didn;t win Atlanta so why didn't he win Dallas then...?
No doubt he is really really fast but so are the entire top 5 guys around him too. Barcia is just better. It took me a few of my own races before I stopped making excuses and just had to realize I got beat by a faster more experienced and better prepared competitor when I didn't get a win. Barcia is all of those things to this entire class including the ROC.
Now as far as the KTM getting bashed for a clutch slip I will hold my anti-orange comments for a night in which RD doesn't hold off 19 other guys on better bikes for the win...LOL. CONGRADS to my favorite rider RD5 for doing it man. This is the story of the year to me. 2 wins early and only 10 back. Everyone in RV's camp is holding ther breath cuz they know a crash or some sort of kaos can come with that type of speed. RD5 will not have a chain fall off or run out of gas this year. Which is the only reasons he did not win both titles last year... But if my Aunt had a package she would be my Uncle...What if's..LOL
Sorry Red 54 but if you watch the show again, even pause it if you will, you CAN see the RED lights flashing in the top right of the screne while RV is in the corner. I would figure with all the yellows right in front of him, that are flashing and waving while he is entering the corner he would look up and definitely see the RED that I do when I watch it.. I guess if RC says he was good then he is.... same a fro and dc say roczen won the heat they should change the results page to suit their opinions!!
IMO Roczen jumped the gate. I have it DVRd and in slo-mo it shows his front wheel jump 6" forward (not creep) the spokes didn't move (meaning front wheel was off the ground) a dragging clutch doesn't do that. The replay zeros in on Roczen and he jumped the start. He just didn't want to own up to it, I don't think he was aware that they had it on slo-mo on TV.
If you guys want to see proof of the red lights go to Vital's forum. See you back here in a couple hours or so LOL.
Yellow lights at the turn with a yellow flag guy and red flashing lights are on the jump.
It shows red lights on when he's at the turn, sorry guys.
I have had that same kind of Clutch creep on the line when the gate is held for a long time...after watching Roczen all year in the GP's I was pretty sure it had to be something like that going on...He's young but he's got too much experience to make a mistake like that (without the gate flinching or something of the like). I was actually surprised that no other riders jumped when they saw him go as that happens quite often.
I have a helpful suggestion for the TV show photography- example: rather than keeping the frame on the leader as he goes by, and then following him with the camera all the way down the next straight- instead keep the camera stationary once in a while, so we can see where the riders are at behind him, and if they are catching up, especially on those ceiling down shots. Same goes for the beginning of the race, a little info of 'who is where' would be helpful, until the scrolling banner finally comes by. Not bitxching, just suggesting.
Count me surprised: I figured most guys on these boards raced but this clutch thing makes me think not.
Clutch creep after a long hold is a fact of life but seems a bit better than back in the day. I've only had hydraulic clutches on my trials bikes and, as great as they are, do tend to drag a little if adjusted for a short reach for the lever.
People are so silly. Yeah, everyone in the RV camp is "holding their breath" because Dungey is now 10 points back. Yet, in this article they call Roczen's 15 point deficit "WHOPPING". I'm not going to make any excuses, because Dungey won fair and square, "straight-up" or however else you want to classify it, but then others are claiming RV was "right behind Dungey" on the start. Why do people have to spin it even as the win is enough? RV was 6th on the 1st lap timed lap and he passed a bunch of people to get there. I have a feeling Stewart is going to cause some problems soon as he will be getting between Dungey and RV a few times. As for KTM, the win is great but when 2 of your top guys have some sort of bike problems on the same night....twice for each......not so good. I would be willing to bet that Dungey suffers some sort of mechanical issue before RV crashes himself into a DNF.
Roczens 15 point deficit is big because he has only 6 races to make it up. Dungey has 9 races to make up 10 points.
OK, mr race offical, you've made your point.....Now try not to burn up everybodys cluch this weekend, we know you're important and all......but drop the damn gate allready.
Those 10 points are huge because it means RD needs 7 wins and 2 seconds while RV only needs 3 wins and 6 seconds to clinch. Roczen would need to win all six to be assured of the title while Bam only needs 1 win and 5 seconds. Outside of this would require some luck intervention to happen.
Why not just put a count down clock to when the gate will drop? That way your favorite rider won't have a problem. Get real, it's moto/super cross racing. They stagger the start for a reason. Clutch creep? Maybe, over excited, maybe. But don't blame the gate, they KNOW that it can hold it for up to ten seconds.
@B-KR-- I would say the 15 point deficit Roczen has is whopping since it has come in only 2 races, and its a very short series in the 250 class.. Were Dungey has been at it all 8 races already and is down only 10. Dungey has more races to make up those 10 points than Roczen does to make up 15.
Even with just 6 races, 15 points back isnt "whopping". Easily attainable.
Barcia (and i like the guy), is bound to take himself with those unneccessarily aggresive passes. Thats all Roczen needs to make up a good half or more of those points.
Same goes for Dungey and his 10 back, but he has to get the start.
My brother was 28 points back with two races to go 2 years ago in the region 7 regionals, and won the championship.
@realmofo--- I did that just for you buddy!!!...Not sure why you get your panties in a wad any time Stewart is mentioned...I know, its not an article about Stewart, but I did comment on the Roczen subject matter before hand.. ..Again, I am not a "Stew-tard" or a "Reed-tard" or a " Hater" of any guy as you say.....Just a big fan of the sport and most my comments are to fire clowns like you up....its pretty funny...dont sweat the small stuff man....it will be ok..
The article is called "The Moment: Atlanta" I just simply added another "moment".....for shitz and giggles....
I think the RD5 win was a good thing even tough I am an RV1 fan and have been since he was on the 250's. It tighten things up of course but I think It made RV mad and he will come out swinging. If he would have clicked off another win he may have gotten a little complacent? Also looking forward to Bam Bam and KR to hook up on the track and see who has what. I think Barcia try to but a knobby mark on KR's back if he can't pass him clean. They are both very talented but overall I think Barcia is and will continue to be dominant. Can't wait for Daytona. I've got my over priced tickets and good seats and it's just an hour up the road!
@ TheChosen1,
Heck of a point. Well, Roczen AND Ktm's fault. The bike should be able to handle his technique which apparently involves revving while nibbling the clutch at the very edge of engagement.
nice, you make a great job on KTRoczen, you are a good boy!
Who the heck is Heinz Kinigadner? I'm he real Heinz!
c'mon good boys, distribution of lollipops!
the "other" said i'm the real Heinz, because i'm austrian
@KIllomoto--please, you are a Stewtard of the worse kind. I cant think of a last time you posted and didnt either cut down Reed or pump up Stewart. Get your lips off his tip for a while and we MAY believe you!!!