There was plenty of action this weekend at the third round of the Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship. After being the pit reporter for the first two rounds, our own jet setter Jason Thomas went to Germany over this past weekend to do TV for the MXGP round at Teutschenthal, while Will Christien handled the pit reporting in Colorado. Knowing he would keep close tabs on the racing stateside, we fired some questions his way to ask some thoughts on Thunder Valley.
So much talk of elevation at Thunder Valley. Overrated? Does it really matter?
Yes, it definitely matters. The motorcycles are way slower, riders are more fatigued than usual and on a hot day, it’s even worse. Now, if you’re asking if the results are all skewed because of it, that’s a different question but the changes in how the bikes feel and riders perform are notable regardless.
Everyone can say "all I need is a start" but what kind of pressure does that put on a guy like Levi Kitchen leading a moto for the first time ever? We see a lot of riders tighten up in that situation.
I think it comes down to preparation. If the work has been done and riders believe in their ability, the start is often the last piece of the puzzle. For those who are less prepared whether from injury or otherwise, it can make things worse. David Vuillemin has a theory that if you’re going to be a seventh-place guy, it’s a much better look to get a bad start and work up to seventh than holeshot and fade to seventh. The result doesn’t change but the optics and overall impression are drastically different. Makes sense.
Talk about Kitchen's riding style. He's a tall guy for a 250 but he uses it well.
Being taller provides leverage. Those long legs can be a nuisance in deep ruts but if the rider learns to make it an advantage, they can really benefit. Kitchen has also figured out how to corner with both feet on the pegs, lessening any problem he might encounter by sticking out his long legs entering a corner. I witnessed this benefit firsthand with my former teammate Michael Byrne. He was able to lean much further forward than I was simply because he had more body to utilize. He could shift his body weight around to gain traction when needed and also maintain weight over the front end when exiting the starting gate. If the front end wanted to rise, his lean would offset that much more so than I could manage. I would have to hedge with the clutch while he was still accelerating unabated. That subtle clutch engagement makes a huge difference when riders are battling for inches right out of the gate.
How about that battle with Roczen and Tomac in the second moto? Explain how Kenny was able to ride defensively and fend off the attacks, especially as they raced up the start straight and through the first few turns.
Both of those two are champions and have tons of experience. Further, they have been battling each other for a decade. They know each other’s tendencies and also share trust. Kenny knew that Eli wouldn’t do anything drastic and similarly, Eli knew that Kenny wouldn’t T-bone him if he tried to slingshot around the outside of him. When there is trust, I believe the racing can be ratcheted up a notch. Tomac would never, in a million years, try that outside move on Barcia. These 450 guys know who they can trust and who they can’t. Their decision making is based around that, too.
Were you surprised with Roczen’s fight down the stretch?
I was but maybe I shouldn’t have been. His track record at Thunder Valley is simply incredible. Something about the venue gels for Roczen and I would guess his confidence was higher, too. He wasn’t able to fight back that same way at round 2 so maybe this win will give him a boost moving forward.
Track changes were made to slow the track. Fan, or no?
Having raced Thunder Valley several times and also knowing the sketchiness that those sections brought, I liked the changes. Was it a perfect racetrack? No, it really never is. But when you have sections that repeatedly take down the sport’s elite, maybe change is called for. Tracks don’t have to be incredibly fast to be difficult. High speed and entertaining racing are not mutually exclusive aspects to the sport. Anytime a promoter or organizer sees something that can be better and actively pursues that, I will be very slow to judge.
