It’s just not easy for a young rider to get a break in the world of professional motocross. Just ask Teddy Maier. The talented Iowan has been a regular fixture at the Toyota AMA Arenacross races for the past couple years and he even competed in the East Coast Supercross Lites series last year, finishing in 8th place overall. Still, when it came time to prepare for the 2008 season Teddy’s phone wasn’t ringing. So, he signed with the TiLube Honda Arenacross team and went back to work banging bars in arenas across the country. He’s already got a couple wins this season and he is currently fourth in points. We spoke with him this week for the Sponsorhouse.com Privateer Profile.
Racer X: How are things going for you so far this season?
Teddy Maier: Good, just really busy doing the arenacross thing. It’s been pretty up and down so far. It’s hard to be consistent in that type of racing. We’re just trying to dial the bike in more and more and go from there.
I saw that you won Dallas already, so you’ve had some good rides.
Yeah, I won Dallas and also Kansas City.
Arenacross is a tough sport. The few I did in the past reminded me more of roller derby than motocross. It’s like a street fight on a dirt bike.
It is definitely a different style of racing, that’s for sure. You have to be aggressive to do well.
Are you planning on racing any Supercross after the AX season ends?
I want to. There are only three rounds left after our series is done. I might finish those off. I want to do them on a bike that is really good. It’s almost not worth doing if you don’t have a really good bike. You just end up hurting yourself more than helping. I did sign a Canadian nationals deal with Leading Edge Kawasaki. They are the factory MX2 team up there. So, I’m stoked that I have that all put together for this summer.
How are the split rounds working out? I’ve never seen a series where there are two events on the same weekend that give out points towards a championship.
It’s not fair, really. When you are racing for a title you should have to compete against the very best guys every single time. I don’t know why they tried that. Maybe they are just going to race on Saturday nights since the Friday night show draws a weak crowd. I don’t really know.
I know you aren’t riding in Iowa right now. Where are you living?
I have a cousin that lives in Cedar Hill just south of Dallas. I’ve been riding with the Whartons and Shannon Niday and my cousin. So, that’s a good program for me.
Do you get home often?
Yeah, I’m actually going home this week for a while. We have some indoor places that we can ride so it’s not too bad. You don’t have to freeze your butt off trying to ride outside.
What are you goals for the rest of the season?
I want to get in the top three by the end. I need to get my starts dialed. My starts haven’t been good and you can’t win from the back in this sport. I’m not that many points behind Sellards, Smith and Johnson so I’ll just keep working at it.
Good luck in the last seven rounds. Who do you want to thank?
Ti Lube, Honda, Moto XXX, Storm Lake Honda.com, Tamer, Race Tech, Moose Racing, Sidi, Leo Vince, Pro Taper, BooKoo, Motion Pro, Engine Ice, Scott, Works Connection, RK Chain, Pirelli, Hot Cams, Pro Clean, Podium Ink, Cometic, IMS, Pivot Works and Hinson racing.
