Racer X Online - Motocross & Supercross NewsRacer X Online

  • Latest
  • Features
  • Breaking News

Racer X Online - Motocross & Supercross NewsRacer X Online

    • Facebook
    • Twitter

    Used to sign in with your email and password, or a different site? Sign In Now

    .

    Create an Account

  • Features
    • 10 Things
    • 30 Greatest AMA Motocrossers
    • 3 on 3
    • 250 Words
    • 450 Words
    • Ask Ping!
    • Bench Racing Ammo
    • Between the Motos
    • Breakdown
    • Exhaust
    • How to Watch
    • Injury Report
    • Insight
    • In the Mag, On the Web
    • Longform
    • MXGP Race Reports
    • Observations
    • On This Day in Moto
    • Open Mic
    • Polls
    • Privateer Profile
    • Race Day Feed
    • Racerhead
    • Racer X Redux
    • Rapid Reaxtion
    • Saturday Night Live
    • Sign of the (Lap) Times
    • Staging Area
    • The Conversation
    • The List
    • Wake-Up Call
    • Where Are They Now
  • Multimedia
    • SX Preview Shows
    • Classic Pix
    • Instapics
    • Photo Galleries
    • Podcasts
    • Racer X Podcast
    • Racer X Tested
    • Racer X Films
    • Video
  • Races
    • Series Schedules
    • TV Schedules
    • Teams
    • Results
    • Champions
    • 2018 Numbers
  • Results
    • Points Standings
    • Race Results
    • Riders
    • The Vault
    • Loretta Lynn's Vault
  • The Mag
    • Subscribe
    • Current Issue
    • Gift Subscription
    • Back Issues
    • Customer Care
    • Dealer Locator
    • Sell Racer X
    • Free Stickers
  • Shop
    • Latest
    • Features
    • Breaking News
    Results Archive
    Supercross
    Minneapolis
    Articles
    450SX Results
    1. Eli Tomac
    2. Jason Anderson
    3. Marvin Musquin
    Full Results
    250SX East Results
    1. Jeremy Martin
    2. Zach Osborne
    3. Jordon Smith
    Full Results
    MXGP of
    Portugal
    Articles
    MXGP Results
    1. Jeffrey Herlings
    2. Antonio Cairoli
    3. Tim Gajser
    Full Results
    MX2 Results
    1. Jorge Prado
    2. Thomas Kjer Olsen
    3. Jed Beaton
    Full Results
    GNCC
    Camp Coker Bullet
    Articles
    Overall Results
    1. Kailub Russell
    2. Thad Duvall
    3. Ricky Russell
    Full Results
    XC2 Pro Results
    1. Josh Toth
    2. Ben Kelley
    3. Austin Lee
    Full Results
    Supercross
    Foxborough
    Articles
    450SX Results
    1. Marvin Musquin
    2. Eli Tomac
    3. Jason Anderson
    Full Results
    250SX East Results
    1. Zach Osborne
    2. Jordon Smith
    3. Kyle Peters
    Full Results
    Upcoming
    Supercross
    Salt Lake City
    Sat Apr 28
    Articles
    Upcoming
    MXGP of
    Russia
    Tue May 1
    Articles
    Upcoming
    Supercross
    Las Vegas
    Sat May 5
    Articles
    Full Schedule
    450 Words: Barcia’s View
    Jason Weigandt

    Jason Weigandt

    450 Words Barcia’s View

    March 24, 2014 4:00pm
    by: Jason Weigandt
    Advertisement | Advertise with Us
    Presented by:
    • facebook
    • youtube
    • twitter
    • Website
    Advertisement | Advertise with Us
    • Home
    • 450 Words
    • 450 Words: Barcia’s View - Supercross

    Yamalube oils, lubricants and care products have been proven to enhance performance, lower ownership costs and lengthen the lives of Yamaha motors. Give our entire line a test drive, and we think you’ll find you’ve changed more than your oil; you’ve changed your entire experience.

    Advertisement | Advertise with Us
    Rogers Centre Toronto, Canada Toronto Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship
    Advertisement | Advertise with Us

    Considering how Justin Barcia seems to thrive so much on combat, contact and conflict, you’d expect him to show up every weekend with a huge scowl on his face and fire in the eyes. But in Toronto we saw something else: A smile. And … glasses?

    “There’s a place in Tallahassee I’ve been working with, they do some vision stuff like reaction and stuff like that,” Barcia explains. “They’re like, “We need to check your eyes first.” I don’t think I’ve really ever had my eyes checked since I was a little kid. Come to find out I’m pretty damn blind!”

    Now Barcia is wearing glasses throughout the day, and experimenting with contact lenses while riding. So far, he’s been unable to get used to it (he tried contacts during Daytona practice, but had to stop and rip them out) but he’ll keep experimenting and may consider Lasik surgery. All this talk about not being able to see leads to an elephant in the room that even someone with 20/15 vision would notice.

    Barcia was having fun in practice, throwing HUGE whips, which he says translated over to the main. 
    Barcia was having fun in practice, throwing HUGE whips, which he says translated over to the main.  Photo: Simon Cudby

    The guy who can’t see sure does bump into a lot of people, eh?

    “Sorry everyone but the only reason I’m Bam Bam is because I can’t see!” he says with a laugh.

    You’d be surprised how often Barcia laughs at the races. There’s a big disconnect on the intent of Barcia’s aggression. It may appear that he comes to each race on a suicide mission, to hunt and kill (or, Seek and Destroy as his intro music says). But to Barcia, the hard passes are just part of the game, just racing, and not personal. To him, it’s supposed to be fun, and he’d be happy if everyone else got in on the action, too.

    “That’s what I think this sport’s losing a little bit, like the Bob Hannah era,” he says. “Sometimes I tell people I was born in the wrong era because I would have loved to bang bars with those guys.”

    It’s fun for Justin, but it doesn’t work for everyone.

    “The whole Bam Bam thing this year, obviously people have been talking about it huge but what I’ve said, in my opinion, I put myself in a few bad situations, but I don’t think anything’s been more out of the blue than my 250 days,” he says. “I think people just get the wrong impression of me sometimes. Yeah, people call me Bam Bam and stuff, but I’m just an aggressive rider and I want it really bad. But then you can say other guys want the same thing really bad, I understand, but not everyone’s the same. I think, all in all, my aggressive riding hasn’t been that bad. There was the whole [Malcolm] Stewart thing, but that was just wrong place, wrong time a little bit.”

    The first sign Barcia doesn’t think a little bar banging will hurt anyone is that he enjoys getting it just as much as he loves dishing it out. We can name plenty of riders who tired of Barcia’s riding, but virtually no situations where Barcia called foul when someone rammed him trying to make a pass.

    “I love it because I’ll just give it back,” said Barcia. “Last week, [Andrew Short] Shorty was like, “Dude, I would have done the same thing.” I’m like, man, I haven’t heard anybody say that! I respect that guy more now! I was just trying to make the damn pass. That track was so hard to pass on. Then I get home and people are like talking shit about it. I’m like, Shorty was stoked, I was stoked… Shorty had a great finish. It’s crazy. It was fun!”

    Barcia had more fun in Toronto because he did well. He led a bunch and finished second—still good considering the season he’s had. Plus, considering James Stewart’s incredible run, you could argue Barcia as “first mortal.” Even Barcia had no choice but to give it up to the man who went from 14th to first.

    “You never can think you have it [the win] in this sport, I’ve learned that,” said Barcia after spraying the podium champagne. “I’m thinking just lines, lines, speed, no mistakes. Had a few mistakes unfortunately, rode a little tight. James rode good. He just rode really good. I rode good, but not the best.”

    Barcia had his best finish of the season in Toronto. 
    Barcia had his best finish of the season in Toronto.  Photo: Simon Cudby

    Barcia was glad to list out the reasons for his improvement in Toronto. First, of course, was starts. “Number two would probably be bike setup,” he said. “I usually don’t change my bike before the main event but I was struggling in the heat race and the team came up with a good suspension setting, front and rear. It was awesome. The Honda Muscle Milk guys did good on that. Number three would be I bonded with the track well. I had fun. Threw some big whips, Racer X, your guy Cudby captured those. I was stoked on that. I think probably number three would be the biggest thing: just had fun and liked the track and rode like myself a little bit. I’ve been kicking myself in the butt this whole year. It’s just little things. When there are five, six guys going so fast, and the littlest things on the bike and not getting starts, all those little things add up. It’s taken way too long to get these things fixed. And unfortunately that’s a bummer and took me out of the championship, and some big crashes too. There’s not a ton of races left but looking forward the outdoors and the future, for sure.”

    While Barcia is usually smiling before, during and after the battle, this year has indeed been a serious matter.

    “I should be at home right now pouting, the way my year has been,” he says. “It’s been really bad. On and off the track it’s been pretty tough. I kept mentally strong and fought through it and didn’t let anyone’s words hurt me.”

    Advertisement | Advertise with Us
    • Lemoine, Enticknap, Blair on the Pulpmx Show Lemoine, Enticknap, Blair on the Pulpmx Show Mon Mar 24 3:55pm
    • Breakdown: A 6th will lead to a 4th Breakdown: A 6th will lead to a 4th Tue Mar 25 10:25am

    Motocross & Supercross News - Racer X Online

    122 Vista Del Rio Drive, Morgantown, WV 26508 | 304-284-0084 | Contact Us
    ©1999 - 2018 Filter Publications LLC. All Rights Reserved.
    Terms of Use | Privacy Policy
    designed at: Website DesignImpulse Studios
    Subscribe or
    Renew
    Now
    for as little as $9.98 a year!
    Learn More