Toward the end of the 250SX East Region last season, Mitchell Oldenburg was unsure what his future held. His deal with Jimmy Albertson’s ARMA Energy Yamaha team was supercross only. The team might have been able to get him to a few nationals, but Oldenburg surveyed all of his options and thought he may head north to Canada. His stint with the Yamaha team had been his only shot with a team as a professional. Before that Oldenburg had spent his pro career traveling to all of the races in a van with his brother.
The story of Oldenburg was that he always had speed and when he stayed on two wheels he would finish inside of the top ten. Albertson took note and then the TLD/Lucas Oil/KTM team did as well. The TLD crew needed a fill-in for the injured Darryn Durham and Oldenburg got the spot for the nationals.
Oldenburg performed well enough to secure a full season with the team in 2016. The first few races this season saw the same as usual: the new-age “Flying Freckle” had speed but made mistakes, and crashes followed. Finally, two weekends ago in Oakland, Oldenburg put together a career-high fourth place finish. He then backed that up with another fourth this past weekend in Glendale.
We caught up with Oldenburg on Tuesday morning before heading to the test track to get his take on his season thus far.
Racer X: What’s going on Mitchell?
Oldenburg: I just finished a bike ride in this nice weather. It’s going to be 86 degrees today.
Oh, just rub it in man. We have about four inches of snow in Cincinnati at the moment and it’s still coming down.
Oh, wow. That’s nice (laughs).
Let’s get down to some business. You’ve finished fourth the past two weeks, which is your career-high. What’s clicked for you?
The first three rounds didn’t go the greatest for me. I had a bunch of speed, but not enough brains in my head. I felt like I had to win it right then and there. I ended up putting myself on the ground the first three races. I was not riding smart. So I took a step back and slowed myself down a little bit. I’m now taking it turn-by-turn and lap-by-lap. Things are clicking for me lately and I’ve been working hard, which is finally starting to show.
Okay, so basically going into the season you felt pressure to perform right off of the bat. Were you just overthinking everything?
Yeah, no one was putting any pressure on me but myself. I think I just put too much pressure on myself. When I went out and qualified fourth at Anaheim 1 I was like, “Man, I really can do this.” I just felt like I had to do it right then and there. It’s a nine race series and we have plenty of time, so there is really no need to go out there and kill yourself right away. It took me three rounds to figure that out, but I’m learning. Now, I’ll keep building off of these fourth places and come out the next two weekends in the top five or top three.
One of the things I’ve heard about you and seen for myself is the fact that you’re lightning quick at certain times. Now you’ve started to translate that speed into results.
Sure, I can go that speed for a lap, but fifteen laps in a row without any mistakes is what I struggled with in the beginning of the year. I’ve just been trying to figure that out and slow myself down. I’ll give it 95 percent instead of 100, just so I can make all of the laps. If you get on the ground you waste 20 seconds. I need to keep it on two wheels and continue to be smart about my racing. That’s the biggest thing I’ve learned the past five weeks.
How much do these finishes help your confidence?
It’s huge. I’m excited to come back and do more work during the week. When you have rough weekends you question yourself. You wonder why you’re working this hard when it’s not working out. You start to second-guess yourself. When you get the good results and you can see the progress it’s easier to go to work on Monday. You want to bust your butt to get ready for the next weekend.
This season so much hype has been around (Cooper) Webb and now he’s starting to make mistakes. In your opinion how do these mistakes help the rest of the field?
It’s unfortunate for him. I don’t like to see other riders struggle, but that’s part of the game. For some people they use it as a confidence booster, but I like to just focus on myself. I take one thing at a time however it comes to me. If the opportunity arises and I get the chance to get on the podium I’m obviously going to take it. I just focus on myself and do my own thing.
I always wonder how much a rider focuses on what everyone else is doing. I guess some riders use it to an advantage and others don’t.
It definitely helps when you’re out there racing and you pass a gnarly dude who is getting good results. It gives you more confidence and gives you more fire to charge and get the next guy. I think it’s just a confidence booster to be on the track with everyone, especially when you pass and battle with them.
Did the track in Glendale suit your style? What did you think of the layout?
Yeah, it was all right. I loved the start and how long it was. It’s always a good track when they can build obstacles that are big and safe. The whoops definitely weren’t easy and they were giving people fits all night. I think I made it through them all 15 laps and I didn’t have any mistakes through them. I’ve been a fan of the tracks lately. I like the West Coast tracks better than I do the East Coast.
It was refreshing to see the Glendale layout. You got to leave the stadium and come back in after the tunnel jump. It seemed like after the tunnel jump it was a bit fast and sketchy heading into the triple.
I definitely over jumped that triple to flat the first time I tried it (laughs). You would come in way hotter than you would think on that. It was a really cool design and the stadium itself was cool as well. Everything was cool last weekend.
It seems like lately the designs have been focusing on building the biggest whoops possible.
Yeah, I don’t know if I’m too big of a fan of that. It is what it is though. It’s the same for everyone. I just take it for what it is.
From just hoping to get to go to all the races outdoors last year, to where you are now, it’s got to feel pretty good seeing how far you’ve come.
It’s been a long time coming. I feel like I’ve deserved this shot and I’m trying to make the most of it. I always like doing the best I can with what I’ve got. Now I’ve got the best bikes possible, the best people around me, and the best trainer. Everything is working out for me and going in my favor. I have no excuse not to progress and be the best I can be. Looking back it’s been a good learning experience. I’ve learned a lot through the process and I’m looking forward to being a champion here in the future.
When you say you’ve learned a lot is that because of the team teaching you, or is it things you’ve learned about yourself?
It’s a little bit of everything. Up until last year I had never done a full season of outdoors before. I had to learn all of the tracks and learn what I had to do during the week with my body. With the team they expect a lot out of you, but at the end of the day they will do everything they can to help you. It’s good because we have a lot of good vibes under the tent. It’s a lot of good pressure to test your limits and that allows you to push yourself to be the best you can be. It’s not just my brother and I in a van just winging it. It’s a group of guys who are here to help you win. It’s an awesome experience to have a bunch of people believing in you.
It seems like once a rider who has been a struggling privateer gets a chance at a factory team, there isn’t any looking back. You don’t let that chance go to waste.
It’s not like the work gets any easier. You have to do everything you can to make sure you have a ride for the next year. You don’t want to go back to your van. It’s a lot of work to be on a team, but it’s more work doing it on your own and spending your own money to go racing. For me, I’d rather put in the work now and make sure I have a spot for next year, rather than waste this opportunity and go back to a van.
Now you find yourself as the lone wolf underneath the tent with Jessy (Nelson) out.
That sucks too. Jessy and I put in a lot of laps together before the season and it sucks to see him go down like that. Knowing Jessy he will be back strong and ready to roll. I’m not sure exactly when he’ll be back though. When he does he will be ready to fight for wins.
What are you working on this week to get you to that next level?
I’ve got the same game plan. My first four or five laps in the main event are pretty slow. It takes me a little while to get going, so I’ve been working on my sprint speed at the beginning of my motos. That should help me stay with the top group towards the end of the race and put me in the position to battle for podiums. I just need to put my laps together, think about myself, and not race anybody but the track. I’ve got to go get it done now.