I got my first bike when I was 7 years old. It was a Honda Z5 with indicators and a headlight just like a road bike but a smaller version. I managed to knock off every single indicator because the place I learn’t to ride has a lot of trees! Don’t know how I managed to stay in one piece because I remember that my reaction to heading off track and straight for one of those trees was to shut my eyes and hope for the best.
My next bike was a Honda XR8. I got that around age 9 and raced enduro’s and natural terrain tracks at my local club. The suspension was so stiff on that thing that I used to get bucked around, feet off the pegs like I was in a rodeo.
I finally graduated to my first motocross bike after that at around 1 and raced junior motocross at a more professional club about 4kms away from where I lived. I was fortunate enough to get 2 bikes so I could race in the 6cc division as well on a Kawasaki KX. I think I managed to go from an ordinary to an intermediate rider because in one of the races riding my KX6 i was trapped under the bike because I lost it on a corner. The flag marshal didn’t release I needed help until the whole field had left me for dust. When I finally got going again I had a whole bunch of anger that I channeled into my riding ability and picked up my game because of it.
After not riding bikes from around age 14, I got hold of a Kawasaki KX25 at age 34. On my first days riding I thought I was still on a KX6 and lost the front end so many times on the corners. It that was just on the mini bike track. I then ventured out onto the intermediate level track and hit the jumps, landing nose first, tail first. I was all over the place as I couldn’t seem to get my weight in the correct position. By the end of the day though, I managed to clear an 8ft table top. Looking back I think I was a little silly, but the table top had a whole straight before it to get your speed and body position just right.
So then comes the local motocross club where I starting racing in the Veterans class a couple of years later. I raced the vets and open C grade on my new CRF45R. What a beast it was compared with the KX25 2 Stroke. I rode nearly every weekend for almost 4 years. Racing once a month for 1 months of the year. I did improve a heap during that time but I never progressed from C grade and remained mid pack in the Vets. I managed to score a few trophies because I was there every weekend but others weren’t so dedicated.
You can only improve your riding by riding more. However there are certain techniques that will help you progress to the next level. Trying to master these techniques will of course come at a price which means you will most likely crash when you are trying to push yourself. And that I did, many times but I also got better! There are a heap of tips on this website which will give you ideas on what you need to focus on to improve your riding style. Look ahead, elbows up, don’t coast, weight the outside peg, hug the tank, on the brakes or on the gas!
But that said, the most important thing to learn and the one thing I couldn’t master was corner speed. Taking a corner at amateur speed is whole lot different to taking it like an A grade or Pro racer. I did feel like I’d managed to rail corners when I was at my peak but most of the time I couldn’t do it. It is a state of mind that you need to control in order to attack the corners at high speed. The feeling I got when I managed to do this well was when I though I was coming into the corner way to fast and kind of slammed into the berm and bounced my way out. Not that the bike actually bounced but that the kind of intensity you need.
But all in all, the fact is that if you enjoy riding dirtbikes, whether it’s on a motocross, supercross or freestyle track you just need to enjoy it. There will always be guys that are faster than you. Yes, even Ryan Dungey gets beaten some days, but what’s important is the way it makes you feel. If its not the best thing you’ve ever done then maybe it’s not for you. But if you persist, you will get better. Try to identify and focus on one thing you can improve on. One step at a time. Don’t try and ride above your ability because it will come back and bite you, big time. Soil samples ain’t no fun after all.
Just remember that you don’t suck. There is always someone that’s slower thane you to