Innholdsfortegnelse for April 2016 i Transworld Motocross

“IT’S BEEN A LONG DAY WITHOUT YOU MY FRIEND, AND I’LL TELL YOU ALL ABOUT IT WHEN I SEE YOU AGAIN.” —WIZ KHALIFA The risks involved with our sport are huge, and the chance we all take each and every time we throw a leg over our motorcycles is something that we should never take lightly. For most of us, our love of motocross and the enjoyment that it brings us is a worthwhile trade-off for the dangers associated with it, and the risk-versus-reward factor is something that we have all accepted and live with. This month I was deeply saddened when I learned of the tragic passing of Cloud Toda. If you’re a loyal reader of TransWorld Motocross, you already know Cloud’s story: The Japanese factory Suzuki racer was…

Riding a mountain bike is a big part of Christian Craig’s training program, and especially so since he moved to a home in Corona, California, right at the base of the Santa Ana mountain range. Currently lacking a bicycle sponsor, the GEICO Honda rider invested thousands of dollars into his personal top-of-the-line mountain bike because he really values the cardiovascular gains that time in the saddle yields. “For me, mountain biking is the only type of training that allows you to get your heart rate up to the levels they reach in Supercross,” Craig says. “Climbing a steep hill will get your blood pumping, plus you get the reward of coming back down afterwards. Of all the ways to train, I’d say that mountain biking is the most enjoyable because…

And so it was. Chad Reed then left the Monster Energy building, his next move to undergo shoulder surgery before heading back to Florida to gather his thoughts, do some research, and begin vigorously working the phone and making calls all over California. What would his future hold? At that point in time, even Reed didn’t know. Mitch Covington, vice president of sports marketing at Monster Energy, was behind his desk that day in Corona when Reed walked into his office and spoke to him about his immediate and future plans. “I was struck how passionate Chad was about finding a way to keep racing at that point in his career,” reflected Covington, who brokers all of Monster’s global motocross programs. “The fire was still burning down below to win…

Rider: Alex Frye Hometown: Denver, Colorado Years Wrenching: 4 Rider: Alex Frye Past Riders: Brandon Rangel, Matas Inda, Nick Schmidt, Davi Millsaps Most people working within the motorcycle industry come from humble beginnings of two-wheeled dreams at a young age. Colter Ahrens, whose story is no different, grew up zipping around on the family Suzuki JR50, and he later bought a bike of his own at age 16 after saving enough money from working a part-time job. Riding and racing locally for fun, Ahrens eventually discovered that this passion for motocross would evolve into a career down the road, and the path he followed came after a decision to change schools during his first year of college at Colorado University in Boulder. “I spent a large part of my childhood…

ASTERISK AC SYSTEM Price: $59.99 What It Is When you exercise, acidity levels in your body rise and this produces fatigue. The most natural response is hyperventilation, or deep mouth breathing. Mouth breathing, however, expels higher levels of carbon dioxide than nose breathing, and the most desirable combination for your body to produce maximum energy is a low pH level and a higher concentration of carbon dioxide. In a nutshell, what does this mean? Breathing in and out through your nose while riding will allow your body to absorb oxygen into your bloodstream more efficiently, thereby producing greater energy and mental clarity. Breathing through your nose during strenuous activity is harder than mouth breathing, though, and that’s where the Asterisk AC System comes in. The Asterisk AC System is a…

If there’s one thing you could never accuse KTM of, it’s conforming to the norm. Whether it’s linkage-less rear suspensions, electric starts, hydraulic clutches, Torxhead bolts, 13 mm-head bolts, push-button locking gas caps, ODI Lock-On grips, or even Dacromet-treated bolts, the Austrian manufacturer always has—and always will—do things its own way. Take the Factory Edition machines for instance: While the “Big Four” Japanese brands seem to follow a pattern of introducing an all-new machine every four years with minor updates in between, KTM introduces new machines every half season. Instead of waiting a full model year to incorporate new technology and/or address current shortcomings, the Factory Edition race bikes offer not only greater performance, but also serve as an accurate prelude of what’s to come in the next year’s standard-issue…

Andrew Short is one of the last remaining members of the old guard, a man who has seen the sport change substantially over 16 years on the starting line. He was here for the switch from two-strokes to fourstrokes, the economic golden era in the early 2000s and the financial fallout over the last seven years, and the progression of riding styles. Short has remained a constant through it all, and every alteration has helped him become one of the best riders in the sport—a front runner in the field that’s turned over more than a few times. Alas, Andrew Short’s time is coming to a close, and at the conclusion of the 2016 season, he will step away from professional motocross. Retirement has loomed over the Coloradoraised, Texas-residing racer…

When it comes to making your own rules on a dirt bike and pushing the boundaries of Mother Nature’s landscape, there’s nothing that really compares to freeriding. Some riders excel on natural terrain and find that their passion lies in creating their own playground within a landscape’s canvas. Enter Jeremy “Twitch” Stenberg, a decorated freestyle veteran who started riding the hills as a kid and followed his dream to becoming one of freestyle motocross’ most well-known icons. Sure, Twitch ran the contest circuit for years and shined in front of sold-out crowds, but when you ask him what makes him happy on a dirt bike, his answer will be “a day in the hills after a good storm.” “All I need is a shovel, a dude with a camera, and…

TWMX tester Jason Jones couldn’t believe the big power output of the JGR MX Honda CRF450R. “JGR MX IS BEST KNOWN FOR THEIR TEAM OF FIRE-BREATHING YAMAHA YZ450FS, BUT TRUST US: THE TEAM IN NORTH CAROLINA CAN MAKE ANY BRAND MOTORCYCLE OUTPERFORM YOUR WILDEST DREAMS.” If money were no object and you could build your bike up any way you wanted, which route would you take? Knowing well that an unlimited budget is the stuff dreams are made of, we usually err on the conservative side when it comes to building project bikes for TransWorld Motocross. But after visiting the JGR MX facility in North Carolina this summer, we decided that it was time for a dream build. The Honda CRF450R is one of our favorite bikes to spin laps…

KENNY “TACO” BELL | PALA RACEWAY, CA P: MIKE EMERY D : NIKON D4S, NIKON 14 - 24 MM 2.8G, ISO 125, 1/1600TH @ F5.6 FLASH: TWO REMOTE-TRIGGERED OFF-CAMERA STROBES CLOUD TODA | 774 COMPOUND, JAPAN P: DONN MAEDA D : CANON EOS 1DX, CANON 70-200MM 2.8L, ISO 800, 1/1600TH @ F9 JUSTIN BOGLE | PETCO PARK , CA P: RYNE SWANBERG D: NIKON D4, NIKON 300MM 2.8, ISO 2500, 1/1600TH @ F3.5 PENING CEREMONIES | ANGEL STADIUM, CA P: RYNE SWANBERG D: NIKON D4, NIKON 14 - 24MM 2.8, ISO 50, 30S @ F16 JASON ANDERSON | ANGEL STADIUM, CA P: MIKE EMERY D: NIKON D4S, NIKON 300MM 2.8, ISO 4000, 1/1600TH @ F4.0 COOPER WEBB | PETCO PARK, CA P: RYNE SWANBERG D: NIKON D4, NIKON 70-200MM 2.8G,…