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Ask Ping

Ask Ping

August 26, 2016, 12:00pm
David Pingree David Pingree
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Hey Ping,

Ken Roczen has made it known throughout the industry that he is a fun loving guy and cannot function under the close scrutiny of some big brother watching his every move; he underlined that with his shirtless, beer drinking appearance at the post race press conference after clinching the title this past weekend. My question is, how would the most easy going, fun- loving guy in the pits go to Honda of all places? Isn’t Honda the company who prohibited their star rider McGrath from riding Jet Skis on Lake Havasu in the midst of the 90s craze? I gather they are known to have the furthest reaching corporate policies in the pits.

Predict the outcome of that pairing for the “long term” as it was inked to be!

Cheers,
Oliver

Ken makes out with his trophy, nipples out.
Ken makes out with his trophy, nipples out.

Oliver,

You make a good point. Honda likes their riders to be a little higher and tighter than some of the other manufacturers. If Ken thinks he’s going to be walking around with his nipples hanging out under the Honda tent while cracking beers and revving the shit out of his bike on the stand if he wins next year, he has made a major miscalculation. The bottom line in all of this is cold, hard cash. Honda hasn’t been able to win regularly since they lost Carmichael and Roczen is their golden opportunity to get a proven title winner early in his career. And Roczen, well, he likes money as much as he likes cold Coors Light. Time will tell if the laid back style of Kenny Roczen blends with the professional, all-business vibe at big red.

PING


Hey there Ping. 

I wish I was writing in on a good note….  Obviously everyone knows how dangerous motocross can be and riders accept that fact.  I watched my best friend paralyze himself in a crash and lost another friend to a neck injury a couple years ago.  My question is where is the line drawn between a “man’s track” and plain dangerous?  Jessy Nelson got hurt from insane track conditions.

When I began watching the first moto at Unadilla, I was shocked to see how gnarly the ruts and track were (on the opening lap of moto one)!  Unadilla gets extremely rough, but it was on another level.  Guys were bottoming out in every corner.  I know the track crew tries to do their best to smooth out the tracks between motos.  They needed to do some major work before the motos even started in my opinion.  I hate to see riders get hurt, as do all of us.  I just think that there has to be some wisdom used by personnel when conditions are too sketchy. 

Your thoughts, Sir? 

Prayers for Jessy!

Josh Clark
Colorado

Stay Strong, Jessy!
Stay Strong, Jessy!

 Josh,

There isn’t a motocross fan who isn’t absolutely gutted about what happened to Jessy Nelson. None of us would wish that injury on our worst enemy, let alone one of the friendliest guys in the pits. If you haven’t donated a few dollars to help out one of our own already, do it now at www.road2recovery.com.

As far as track prep goes, I have a hard time arguing that we need smoother race tracks. If anything, rougher tracks tend to keep speeds down, which makes a major injury less likely. Obviously first turns need to be kept flat and jump faces that are deeply rutted should be addressed, but saying that we need to knock bumps and berms down flies in the face of what makes motocross so amazing. I would much rather argue for fewer CC’s than smoother tracks. Trust me: Track owners and race promoters don’t want to see riders hurt either. They are making the best decisions they can in a very time-sensitive situation on race day. Here’s to a full and miraculous recovery for my buddy Jessy.

PING


Dear Mr. Ping,

How do team mechanics get paid, especially when their rider is out hurt? Let's use Carlos Rivera as an example, with the Dunge out for the rest of outdoors does he get laid off like a contractor, paid vacation or does KTM have him working in the mail room at corporate?  Obviously he is not getting bonuses from his rider so I imagine it must hurt in the pocket book.

Thanks for your response

Mr. Hose dragger, aka evidence eradicator.

P.S. On a side note, why is it when I am on the scene at a vehicular assault and specifically tell you guys to avoid the pieces of car on the road (aka Evidence ) you guys still manage to run over it with your shiny red trucks?

Be safe,
Yzchris76 

"… and then Roger had me get him coffee and make copies of stuff. Anyway, I’m glad we’re racing again."

Chris,

Don’t cry for Carlos, he’ll be fine. As one of KTM’s finest technicians he has solidified a place for himself in that organization. Even though he isn’t on a normal routine, Carlos has plenty to do around the shop. They could have him assisting with engine development, going testing with Ryan Morias or building bikes back to stock to sell to dealerships at the end of the season. He’s also gone to a few races even since Dungey has been out, assisting the other team mechanics. It isn’t sweeping up and cleaning toilets, but I’m sure he’d rather be winning races on Saturday with his rider. Most mechanics are employees, though some teams hire them as contracted labor. While these guys keep getting their bi-weekly checks when their rider is out, the bonus stream [or in Carlos’ case, the bonus river] dries up completely until they get back on the podium. Carlos won’t need to start muling drugs across the border to pay his mortgage but I’m sure he’s anxious for Ryan to start winning again.

PING

Have a question for Ping? Email him at ping@racerxonline.com.

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