It’s one thing to see the factory riders we see on TV every Saturday night or in a racing environment, it’s another thing to see them far away from the spotlight, in their natural habitat, like an animal in the wild.
“Hey Keefer, you want to go to Florida and train with Aldon Baker and the Rockstar Energy Husqvarna race team? Oh, and you'll be paired up with RJ Hampshire while you’re here!” This was the question that media relations manager Andy Jefferson asked me over the phone while I was at the track, and I gladly accepted. I thought how many times would I get the chance to learn from one of the best motocross trainers in our sport? Not to mention get to soak up info from one of the best 250 riders out there right now. Oh, and the preferable icing on the cake would be that we had a day to ride some 2022 Husqvarna FC’s as well as check out the new 22 Rockstar Editions.
The trip started out when we had to meet Aldon and the boys at 8 a.m. for a road ride. This was scheduled to be the recovery or maybe even a rest day for the riders, but they were kind enough to get out of bed on Sunday to pedal with us media goons. Aaron Plessinger, Malcolm Stewart, Dean Wilson, RJ Hampshire, Jalek Swoll, Stilez Robertson, Mike Brown, and Aldon Baker all were there and not in a pissy mood at all. I apologized to all of them before the ride that they had to ride with us half-assed physical specimens. What’s unique and cool about all of these guys is that they all genuinely have fun with each other and get along. At any point of the day, you can find them joking around, taking trash as well as motivating one another. This is a dynamic that I have not quite seen with other teams I have been around. Jalek and Stilez are the jokesters of the group, Deano is kind of like the dad to the two, Mookie is one liner king, and RJ is laid back and chill. AP is the smiling, carefree guy that is down for any conversation when you’re ready. All of these guys gel together, and each bring something unique to the team.
![Kris Keefer]()
Kris Keefer Courtesy of Husqvarna ![Kris Keefer alongside Dean Wilson]()
Kris Keefer alongside Dean Wilson Courtesy of Husqvarna ![The cycling squad.]()
The cycling squad. Courtesy of Husqvarna
What was supposed to be a recovery ride soon was a ride that the riders said was a little harder than what they usually do on recovery days. Aldon led a pack of professional athletes and some media schlubs around a circuit that was harder than the riders initially expected. Being back in the peloton listening to the guys jokingly yelling at Aldon, “Hey mate, we going the right way today?” or, “Hey Aldon, what day is it again?” We averaged 19.2 mph on a 20-mile circuit and my heart rate averaged 156 with a max heart rate of 188. So, to say it was a recovery day for me would be a lie. Breakfast included no pig so unlike what Ice Cube told us way back in the 90s, today was NOT a good day for me. I was looking for bacon, cheese, bread, any one of my breakfast go to’s, but I came up empty handed. Aldon and Husqvarna made sure that there was proper/clean fuel catered so to say that I missed some of my routinely fixings those past few days would be an understatement. Hey when they said we were ALL in, they meant it!
Husqvarna packed a lot in the short amount of time we were in Clermont, Florida, and even scheduled some Top Golf with the riders/mechanics and initially I wasn't going to go as I had to get some work done, but then it happened. One of my top three most attractive motocross wives would be there! Deano brought his beautiful wife Sarah, and I was lured to play a game that I really don’t care for. Yeah, golf! However, it was really cool to hang out with the riders in a relaxed environment and see them all interact without the thought of dirt bikes or training. As fans of the sport, I think sometimes we lose perspective that these incredible athletes are just like you and me and love to talk about other things like sports, politics, marriage, kids, etc. This experience was unexpected, but nice to see as I regained my faith that all factory riders are not robots. Oh, and it was cool to get a picture with Sarah! Hubba! Hubba!
The Husqvarna FC 250/450 Rockstar Edition reveal was up next that evening at Aldon Baker’s property and as you expected the new Rockstar Edition has the same updates as the KTM Factory Edition, but the Husqvarna body layout is different as well as the volume of the airbox. You can check out all the features in this 450 Words post.
Monday was the day we finally got to ride Aldon’s back sand track, but we were only able to ride the standard 2022 FC 350/450s, which to me wasn’t a big deal because I just wanted to ride. First however we met the whole team and AP over at Aldon’s house to start off with a morning 20-mile bike ride, which was surprisingly not as hard as the previous day, but still averaged around 18 mph. Once everyone was done, we met the crew back at the Baker’s Factory and were ready to rip. Josh Mosiman and Travis Fant (Motocross Action Magazine), Ryan Nitzen (Cycle News), and Pat Foster (Swap Moto Live) got to spend a private ride day on Aldon’s sand track, and I took full advantage of it. I ended up doing 39 laps total (thanks LitPro) and was a little tired because it was actually 80 degrees in December in Florida. Oh, and riding Florida sand is not like California sand. The bike moves around A LOT more underneath you! The cool thing about the media guys I was with was that none of them bitched about the workload that was laid in front of us (not easy for an average guy) and everyone genuinely enjoyed their time. This is rare thing in our industry, not to mention that it’s rare on factory teams, but more on that later. As we were in between our private motos on the sand track we would dip over to watch the boys over on the SX track as they were riding a ton of laps on this particular day. From my vantage point Mookie was the fastest guy during the moto as his entrance speed in the whoops is still mind blowing. AP looked to be the second fastest and RJ/Deano had their own separate battle. Jalek was out there grinding away as well but looked a little flat and Stilez wasn’t riding due to a shoulder issue. Once everyone was done, they huddled together near the EZ-UP that was placed near the track and all of them downloaded their session to one another as well as the mechanics and team manager “Scuba” Steve Westfall.
![The introduction of the 2022 Rockstar Edition Husqvarna FC 250 and FC 450.]()
The introduction of the 2022 Rockstar Edition Husqvarna FC 250 and FC 450. Courtesy of Husqvarna ![The 2022 Rockstar Energy Husqvarna team.]()
The 2022 Rockstar Energy Husqvarna team. Courtesy of Husqvarna ![The 2022 Rockstar Energy Husqvarna team race machines.]()
The 2022 Rockstar Energy Husqvarna team race machines. Courtesy of Husqvarna
![Keefer training at Baker's Factory.]()
Keefer training at Baker's Factory. Courtesy of Husqvarna ![Aldon Baker (left) with Keefer.]()
Aldon Baker (left) with Keefer. Courtesy of Husqvarna ![Keefer under the watchful eye of RJ Hampshire.]()
Keefer under the watchful eye of RJ Hampshire. Courtesy of Husqvarna
If bicycling and riding almost 40 laps on the sand track wasn’t enough, we had an hour-long gym session with Aldon, AP, Mookie, and RJ. The gym session mostly consisted of a circuit work out that included most of the body. A lot of that was balance work which is important when it comes to riding a dirt bike. The gym session was fueled by RJ’s country music mix and a lot of laughs. These guys work hard but have fun while they are doing it. Even Aldon cracked a few laughs. When all was said and done, we left the Baker’s Factory around 5 PM. It was a full day!
I really enjoyed this experience as I know not many people get to work this closely to the top athletes in our sport, not to mention do the same workouts as they do while doing it alongside them. The riders and team all seem to enjoy being there, doing the work and helping one another. All of them at one point or another said they are willing to share whatever info/tips they have to another team member at any time. There was no filter, nothing left unsaid and if you’re doing good, you’ll hear it, but if you’re doing bad, they are willing to help you get better. It’s really interesting and shocking to see. I am a fan of the HBO football special “Hard Knocks” and it felt like I was a part of a motocross series similar while I was there. I left home for California a fan of these guys as humans and respect the hell out of their workload/ethic they put into their craft. I lived out a real-life HBO special! Thanks Husqvarna and thanks AP, Dean, Malcolm, RJ, Jalek as well as Stilez for letting a dez rat like me be a professional again for a few days.
Images courtesy of Husqvarna
