We're at Washougal. This is one of the tracks that you're traditionally very good at. So I would assume that's in your mind coming in here.
I like Washougal, I've gotten good results here for, for a while now. So yeah, I, hey, if I'm gonna be good somewhere, this is one of them.

So what are the expectations gauging last week, but coming into one of your best venues? 
Of course it's improvement. I don't even want to put a position on a goal. Just be better, have more intensity, and and finish better than I was the week before.

It's not going to be very hot tomorrow. Probably going to be less fading going on. Does that change your strategy in the race? Do attacks attack sooner because of that?
Doesn't change my strategy personally. I think it's just going to change the condition of this track a lot more. I think it might even be overcast from what I saw on my phone. So it's going to be maybe a little more rutted, a little more traction than usual in the afternoon motos.

Julien Beaumer

All right, man. You're coming off your first moto win and first overall win last week. How's the week gone for you?
Beaumer: Same as normal. Just clicking off my laps and enjoying it. Nothing changes

Nothing. Nothing at all? You didn't take a minute to enjoy it?
I had a nice steak on Saturday night. But yeah, that was about it. No, I just went back. Went back to work this week and. Yeah, just going to keep enjoying racing my dirt bike.

What about a momentum shift? I mean, you've been going super fast all summer anyway, but do you feel any added steam from this win? Like, you know, everybody says the monkey's off the back and everything, but do you feel you have any added firepower coming in this weekend?
Of course. I think coming off a win my first the first of my career, you obviously always have that little extra confidence. And I think for me it was just the like, I believed I could do it. And now it's one of those things. It's like, okay, I know I can do it. So for me, nothing. The expectation doesn't change. I need to be myself each weekend. And the person that raced on Saturday last weekend was me. So just keep doing what I've been doing and yeah, it'll come.

After being injured for so long, I, and I think a lot of other people were really surprised. Not that you can't do it, but like how quick, how fast you were immediately. Why do you think you have have been so fast this summer after being off the bike for so long?
I think just a big mental shift for me. Obviously you have an injury like that where my vertebrae exploded. If it were to have imploded, I'm paralyzed 100 percent. There's there's no getting out of that. So for me, it's one of those things where I'm just grateful to be here racing my dirt bike. And I think that kind of mindset has brought a different side of me. Now I can enjoy the weekends a lot better. I take it week by week. And I think it also changed the way I train for this. I had a really good camp in California. And then I went to Florida, got right back into the motos once I could ride. And I just felt like for me, this was a lot of, for me, redemption in a sense, like, yeah, I've, I've had the injury, things like that, but I wanted it to be different when I came back. And I think I've made it a little bit different for myself. So I'm excited.

Last question, you've been super gnarly at the end of these motos. You've been picking guys off at the end. It's going to be cooler tomorrow. So guys probably aren't going to slow down as much. Does that affect the way that you attack?
My thought process on it is, look, I've been strong late in the motos. Yes. With it being a little bit cooler, maybe they're going to have a little more steam. But that means I'm also going to have a little more steam as well. So I think overall I'm not worried about it. It's a dirt bike race. I think I need to be a little bit better maybe in the beginning of the race this week. But that also comes with a good start. So if I can get a good start, I think I should be in a good spot.

Levi Kitchen

It's been kind of a struggle this season, but now you have the points lead. Does that change how you approach things at all?
Kitchen: No not really. I mean I've just been approaching everything the same every weekend. And that's just to do the best and to leaveeverything out there on the track. That's my mindset, just take one bite at a time at this thing and see where we end up.

You've found yourself in the back a few times this season and you've charged your way forward and had some really great motos, I was just wondering if maybe you hang it out a little bit less now that you've got that lead.
There's too much racing left for that. I'm just gonna keep trying to execute the best I can. And if I'm feeling it, I'm going to send it for sure. You know, I want to get to the front and that's what I've been doing. That's what I had to do last weekend. In moto two, once I knew I was in a pretty good spot with Chance [Hymas] up front like that, you know, like that was a sign of maybe just being a little bit smarter. So I guess that could come in, but only if I'm up there would I do that. I need to start getting some moto wins again. That's the goal.

How much did you work on starts during the week? Because that's going to make a huge difference I think tomorrow with the cooler temperatures.
Yeah for sure. That's pretty much all I did this week was just starts. Yeah, my butt is still black and blue, so I didn't really ride that much. But I do think starts are going to be important. And yeah, with the cooler weather, everybody's probably going to go pretty fast for the whole time. We'll just we'll see how it plays out.

I forgot to ask you about that crash last week. Are you still feeling those effects pretty bad?
Yeah. I mean, I got a foot peg right up the butt. It was pretty insane.I don't have a limp anymore and I did a lot of therapy on it this week. So the good thing is I'll suffer tomorrow for an hour or whatever it is, and then we get some time off. So yeah, I can grit my teeth for an hour.

Dax Bennick

You were hurt for a little bit. I don't know if everybody kind of really knew about that and what that entailed. Can you just kind of fill us in and where you're at now from that?
Bennick: Yeah. Obviously my crash at Pala sent me back. Just hit my head pretty good. Just a little concussion there. So we wanted to make sure we took the right amount of time, and that's what we did. I tried to race that next weekend because I didn't really know how bad the symptoms were until I really raced. So unfortunately, we had to go through that and then took a couple weeks off. I feel like last weekend I finally felt more like myself. And really my whole goal was just to build. And that's kind of what I did last weekend. So I'm pretty happy with that.

Okay, so with that in mind, coming into Washougal what are the goals here for this weekend? It's definitely a little bit of a different racing surface than we've had all season.
Just to learn again, I've only been here once. And I would like to get a little bit better in qualifying. I feel like I struggle there a little bit. And then yeah, I think just build off last weekend. My fitness felt good and my starts were fairly good. So I'd like to have a little bit better start and just get time up there with the boys.

The weather is supposed to be in the low 70s. Some guys, they want it hot. What about you? Are you looking forward to the cool temperature?
It doesn't really bother me. Obviously you feel it, but I train during the week in Clermont, Florida, and it's pretty hot there, so it's honestly harder during the week training than it is racing on the weekend. So it's almost like you get a little bit of fresh air when you come here. I know not many people probably get tired in that, so you'll have to be intense from the start. But yeah, I don't really mind if it's hot or not.

Chance Hymas

If it's true that you're only as good as your last race, you're in a good spot right now.
Hymas: Yeah, not bad right now. Yeah. Last week was obviously really good. Still just building myself each weekend and getting better. A little boost of confidence. Confirmed that can still be good and still be the best guy. But yeah, looking forward to this weekend. I've been enjoying this summer. There's no pressure, just go out be the best Chance you can be every weekend and see what happens, you know? It's been fun

Last week you were amazing. Has this been kind of a slow burn for you? Because from the outside looking in, it almost looks like you turned a corner.
Yeah, it's definitely been a bit of a slow burn. Leading up to it. Like on paper, I've been one overall result better each week and even it's been like nine, eight, seven, like nothing crazy, you know, but obviously this last weekend, going 9 to 1, it helps  that trajectory a little bit. So no, I'm just kind of keeping the same goal of just trying to just build each week and be my best, the best version of me, you know? And if that's a, if that's a six six or a five five on the weekend, then you know, it's good. That's a win for me.

You like this track?
Yeah, I grew up doing Loretta's Regionals here. So I've raced here, not a lot, but I've done a handful of races here. So I've always enjoyed coming here. 2024 wasn't great. I got my ankle ran over at Millville the week prior, so I was kind of just like 10 to 12, just trying to get some points. So it wasn't a very fun day for me. But you know, I always enjoy coming up to the PNW, especially being out in Florida nowadays. And like, you don't get to see the mountains or all these trees like this. It's a good good scenic change for sure.

This is something I've been asking everybody. It's not going to be very hot tomorrow, right? So there's not going to be a whole lot of fading late in the moto. Some guys does that. Do you think about that when you're coming into the moto. 
Guys are going to be a little bit more on it this weekend. So the start is even more important. This track is generally pretty one lined as well. I feel like when you when you start gaining confidence that you can be strong towards the end of the motos, you almost hope for the hotter rounds, you know, because more guys struggle in it. But obviously where it's a little bit cooler tomorrow it's going to be like you said, less fades. So yeah, I think the only thing I would really more focus on is making sure I nail a couple starts.

Hunter Lawrence

Hey, man, it's really been fun watching you and your brother go back and forth. I'm kind of wondering a little bit, like with you guys riding so much together during the week, how much of a chess match does it come into because you guys know each other so well?
Yeah. Not not a crazy chess match riding with Jett during the week. We're both just kind of focused on what what we need. Obviously at this point of the year, he missed all of supercross. He's during the week maybe leaned towards maybe a little more laps, mine maybe leaning towards a little less laps for my you know my point in the season. Obviously been going nonstop since December and racing since January. So yeah, that's that's about it. But I mean, nothing crazy. Not what people might think. Put it that way.