The grind is real for "Filthy" Phil Nicoletti, who is back on a bike and trying to recover in time to make the last few rounds of the Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship. Luckily, even with a jacked up arm, he's able to answer your questions. We don't think he's happy about it, but what else is new?
Got a question for Phil Nicoletti? Send it to Phil@racerxonline.com.
(Note: Some questions have been lightly edited for clarity.)
The question I have for ya Phil is this: How much different is the suspension that only factory riders can acquire and say the best suspension a privateer or even an amateur can get their hands on? Would pretty much anyone be able tell a big difference or is it only people who are at least a decently fast who can really tell the difference? Thanks for your time.
Jesse
Jesse,
Depends what class you’re talking about. The 250 class has a product rule, so anyone can run what those guys have. The Star guys run KYB suspension and you can purchase that same stuff from Technical Touch or Enzo Suspension. The 450 guys, like Tomac, Anderson, Roczen? No, you can’t buy it.
I always get a get a laugh when someone says, “If I had factory suspension that they would do a lot better.” Yeaa, that might be the case, but you still aren’t going to do what Tomac, Anderson, and Roczen do on the bike. It’s not all about the suspension. It’s about the guy valving it. That’s the key. Doesn’t matter what brand bike, what brand suspension, it all about the trust you have in the guy doing your stuff.
Phil,
What happened to your arm, mate? Saw your post saying it’s not coming together as quickly as you’d hoped.
Cheering for you in Australia.
Dundee
Oii Mate,
I broke my Ulna bone right next to some older hardware that’s been in there for 17 years. My bone was a tad displaced. I got four different opinions from doctors. Three out of the four said to get surgery, saying it’ll never heal right, and you need to take the old plates out, and put a new but much longer plate in. They’re acting like it’s a simple as that! I trust doctors as far as I can throw them, that’s why it’s always good to get opinions, and trust the ones you have. Remember, they make money when they do surgeries. My worry was trying to take out plates that have been in there for 17 years. That’s not easy on the body, as the bone grows over the screws and plates. It’s not as simple as it seems. Trust me, I know. I went through it with a femur rod, which I left in two years long, no less 17! So I trusted the doc that did my ACL last year, and he told me my muscles/body would pull the bone back together. He told me it would be 8-12 weeks depending, and skipping surgery would save a lot of trauma on the body. I was a bit skeptical not doing surgery, especially when you have three other orthopedic doctors telling you the opposite. Obviously as a racer, I put in my mind it would be eight weeks and I could make it back by Millville. Yeah, already looking at the calendar three days after take a trip to Endonesia! But as the eight week mark rolled around, and I was trying to ride, I still had a lot of pain. I’m not a puss when it comes to stuff like this, so I tried to push through it. I would try to time it and see how long I could go before my arm gave out. It took two weeks before I could actually handle breaking bumps and jumps. Ugh. So I knew then I’d only make the last four nationals. That’s longer than I wanted it to be. So words to the wise, be cautious of some doctors.
Hey Phil, RedBud was this weekend. All the riders talk about the crazy parties at that race but do any of them ever actually get involved? Have you ever snuck over to Lot B and checked out the festivities?
Michigan Man
Michigan Man,
I’m bummed I missed RedBud. I was actually at the airport Thursday evening to head up there but my flight got canceled, so I decided to bail on the trip instead of making it a hassle to go. There is no better time at a national like RedBud or Unadilla on a Friday night. I’ve never experienced Lot B at RedBud, but I’ve had my fair share of Unadilla back in the day before it became more “tame.” It’s a blast. When I was on an 80, I couldn’t wait for amateur racing to finish so I could witness the Zombies on Friday night. It’s quite the life experience for a kid.
As far as Pro’s hitting up Lot B on a Friday night, not so much. Well, let me rephrase that. Not anyone that takes it serious will be there. Racing or riding after being hungover is miserable when it’s just for fun. But doing it and trying to be top 10-12 at a national? Nahhhhhh. I know some elite guys have got away with it in SX, but that’s a totally different ball game.
