Last weekend after the third round of Monster Energy AMA Supercross in San Diego, the top three in each class met with the media in the post-race press conference. Jase Macalpine of Gypsy Tales Podcast asked all the riders how they felt about in ear communication during the race. Could it work? Let's see what the riders think.
So, similar to what you'd see at F1, NASCAR with spotters, as the top tier dudes in the sport that would actually be using this, can you see a place for some in ear communication? Maybe like on a lapper situation, you can get told that Eli is a lap down. Eli can get told to pull over. Could you see a world where that's valuable to you guys as racers or would it just be really annoying?
Aaron Plessinger: I mean, I’ve thought about it before. But I think, for them to talk to us, I think that would be...something. But for us to talk back, I don't see that happening! [Laughs] I mean, it would be sick, but I don't know, I think we're so in tune and to have somebody, like, if Jade [Dungey, mechanic] came on and was yelling it would kind of knock me out of focus a little bit, I think [Laughs]. But I don't know, I could be wrong. It’s something to test out for sure.
Cooper Webb: I think it would be huge, especially from a safety aspect, if there's a rider down on the backside of the jump, I think like how it is the other [sports] where you have a one communicator that just tells you, “Hey, number whatever you're getting lapped moved aside,” or “Hey, there's a rider down in this section." Like AP said, you don't want someone yapping in your ear telling you what lines to do and all that. [If that happens] You might wanna throw your helmet! [Laughs] But I do think something simplistic and just from that side could be a potential for sure.
Justin Barcia: Yeah, I agree. I think that'd be really good. Yeah, like tonight I was behind [Jorge Prado] for like three laps. I was thinking, "Surely he hears my bike so he should move out of the way." But yeah, I think they should. I mean, let's innovate the sport more and more. We're already making the sport better and better and better, it seems. So, let's just try something. It's super easy to come to the track during the week and put something in our helmets. But yeah, it would have to be someone that's like super simple, monotone voice.
Plessinger: Yeah, yeah.
Webb: “Hey Siri” [Laughs]
Barcia: [Laughs] We need Siri in our helmets that’s it.
Plessinger: Yeah, you’d have to have someone very monotone. Just like calm. Nothing like crazy. [Laughs]
Barcia: I can think about J-Bone [Jeremy Albrecht] in my helmet, my old team manager…
Plessinger: “DO THE JUMPS! DO THE JUMPS!”
All: [Laughs]
Barcia: I love J-Bone, but maybe not J-Bone [in my helmet].
Garrett Marchbanks: I think I've definitely thought about it at times. I mean, I've definitely had a walkie talkie in my helmet at one time. My dad built it when I was a kid and tried to talk to me and that didn't go very well! So, I don’t know how well it would be if someone was talking to us on the track. I think tonight, definitely, it would have helped me in my situation. It seemed like around the 12-minute mark, I was getting held up pretty bad by some of the lappers and I think that could have helped my situation a little bit.
Nate Thrasher: Yeah, I think it's tough too because I think sometimes they put the blue flag out too early and we’re not on the guys at that particular time and then they have to wait and wait and look back and look back. The leader is always the toughest going through. So, yeah, it's a tough situation. I don't know if they can do anything, but it would help us for sure.
Jordon Smith: Yeah, I've never thought about like one general person to be able to talk to every rider. But I did see something about that maybe on Twitter or something a couple of weeks ago. And I mean, if you figure it out it may be a good thing, like if it was a very minimal, you know, but it's also hard in mud race. Like, we're lapping guys that may have their best race ever going, you know, and there's one good line out there, and they don't want to get out of a good line for us, and I don't blame them. You may race your whole life and have one shot at a top 10 or top 15 at supercross and that's it. So, it's just a tough situation. I mean, I think the lappers are just part of it, it sucks sometimes but it's part of it.
