Ramyller Alves describes his 2018 season as a good one that provided quite a few learning opportunities. He made five 250SX East Region main events in 2018 and finished 29th in the 250 Class in Lucas Oil Pro Motocross. With his rookie season now over, Alves will be heading to MX207 in September for the Racer X Maine event as the defending 250A Class champion. We caught up with Ramyller to chat about 2018, future plans, and what keeps him coming back to Maine for one weekend each fall.
(Note: This interview was conducted via iMessage and has been lightly edited for clarity.)
Racer X: Right out of the gate, sum up your 2018 season... go!
Ramyller Alves: Looking back at my 2018 season, I’d have to say it was a good one. Learned many new things and gained tons of experience, which will benefit me tremendously for the 2019 season. I did face a lot of adversity throughout my season in both SX and MX, but I feel like it just made me a stronger person mentally.
Riders mention that often: learned new things. Care to share something you learned?
You’re right [laughs], you hear many riders use that term. Supercross/motocross is a sport where we are always learning; every weekend we learn something new. I feel like you can never stop learning in this sport. A couple things that I learned this year is the level of intensity these riders race in and the duration of it. It’s very high and it’s pretty much the whole race in both SX and MX. That’s something that is totally different in the amateur ranks. Another thing I learned in my rookie year is how important the start is. [Going] back to the intensity topic, when you get a good start, you’re mixing it up with the top guys and you automatically get into that high level intensity, which is where you want to be rather then starting mid-pack where the intensity is much lower. Many more little things I learned as well.
Speaking of high intensity, are you planning to defend your 250 class title at the Racer X Maine Event this year?
Is that even a question? You know it!
Well, you are on the event shirt this year.
That’s awesome! I spoke with Danny [Stuart] from MX207 a couple days ago and he told me I might be the one on the event shirt. Can’t wait to see it!
You’ve been coming up to MX207 for quite a while. What brings you all the way up there from Florida?
Yes, I have! First and foremost, the track and the whole facility. MX207 is no joke—one of the funnest tracks I’ve ever ridden my bike on. Good dirt, awesome jumps, amazing scenery, all-in-all great atmosphere. All the staff and employees there are also great people, and of course that pro purse, baby!
Funny you mentioned jumps. My next question is about that gnarly scrub you threw there back in 2015. Do you remember that? The thing went viral.
Of course, I remember that [laughs], I still get many DMs and mentions on that scrub. The funny thing is that, during the race when I scrubbed it, I had no idea I went that low—it felt normal, and then after the race, Tom comes over to my pit and shows me the video. After watching the video, I jumped that jump straight for the rest of the weekend [laughs], watching it kinda scared me because of how low I went. You can see in the video that my bars almost hit the face, and that could’ve been bad.
That’s awesome. I heard you may be running some number-one plates on your bike this year. That’s pretty cool!
Yeah, for sure! Definitely very cool. It’ll be the first time I ever run a #1 plate and, [I] hope I can run many more #1 plates in the future.
Awesome, we’re stoked to see you there in a few weeks. Let’s quickly talk about 2019. What are your plans for next season? Anything lined up yet?
Can’t wait! I’ll see you guys there! My plans are to race both SX and MX. My goal for SX is top ten and eventually work my way down to inside that top five. I truly believe I can achieve that every race weekend, as I already achieved it once and came close to it many times in my rookie year. I was able to finish ninth in the 250 main at Daytona this year, which felt amazing! In MX, also shooting for that top ten. As of right now, I have nothing lined up yet.
To recap, 2018 was pretty good, the Maine Event is stellar, and 2019 you have goals to crush. Sound about right?
Yeah, perfect!
Right on, man. Anyone you’d like to thank before we wrap this up?
Yes, for sure! Couldn’t do it without my team, EBR Performance/Altus Motorsports Yamaha.
All my sponsors: Tucker, MX Locker, Super Charged, Moto X Compound, 222 Bike Cleaner, Answer, 100%, Gaerne, Bell, Ethika, Bills Pipes, Ankle Savers, Pro Taper, VP, Rekluse, Galfer, TM Design Works, Dunlop, Cycra, Vertex Pistions, Ride Engineering, Nihilo, GET, SDI, Hammer Nutrition, and RK Stone Works.
And as always, the Lord Jesus Christ for keeping me safe and being with me always, and my family and girlfriend.
