In Preparation: Mid Season Burnout
Friday, July 8, 2011 | 12:00 PM
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PrintWith seven months of racing already complete and a full half of Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross still to go, it’s safe to say a lot of riders are headed to “overitville” when it comes to training, riding, traveling and racing. How do they keep it fresh? Our own David Pingree explains.
Seventeen rounds of supercross are in the books and we are now halfway into the 12-round national motocross championships. Its hot and humid, the motos are long, your body is tired and likely ailing from some type of injury. And so, not surprisingly, it's at about this time that a lot of guys start getting burned out. How do I know? Well, let's just say I have some experience in this realm.
Photos: Simon Cudby
The riders fighting for race wins and championships don't suffer from this quite as badly. As you can imagine, it is easier to put the work in and grind through the pain and the monotony of 40-minute motos during the week when you are seeing results on the weekends. But the guys finishing outside the top ten, or finishing short of their personal goals, start to lose motivation and begin counting down the days and hours until the final moto at Pala Raceway in September.
How can these guys stay motivated for the rest of the summer even though they are having their asses handed to them every Saturday?
The first thing they need to do is set some realistic goals for the remaining rounds. If you were hoping for a podium going into Hangtown but you haven't been inside the top five in a moto yet you might need to rethink your goals. Maybe it's a top-ten finish or a fifth in a moto. Or maybe you just want to qualify for the motos. Set up a graduating set of goals to give you something to focus on and achieve.
It also helps to mix up your training. Try changing up the way you do your motos during the week. Instead of two 40-minute motos try doing three 20-minute motos to keep your intensity level up. Work on sprint laps another day and do motos with a friend who is similar in speed on another day.
The way you train can also help. If you usually run several times a week try doing something else like swimming laps or hopping on a road bike or a mountain bike. One of the best ways to keep it interesting is to find a trainer that mixes up his routine. Charles Dao of Icon Sports Performance is notorious for changing up his exercises and keeping things interesting for his athletes.
"I know it can be a grind for these guys with the travel and pounding motos out in the heat," Charles explains. "I try to mix up our program to keep these guys focused and looking forward to putting in the work. At the same time I can continually keep their bodies guessing and get the most from our workouts. Because we have a weekend off coming up I’ve actually told my riders to take this week and go have some fun. If they can do some surfing or play some tennis or do something active that they really enjoy it will give them a break and make it easier for them to hit it hard again next week."
The final thing that may help from losing another rider to a supercross-only contract, or a job at Taco Bell, is to get some rest. Riding, training and traveling takes its toll on your body and with a weekend off coming up it might be a good idea to just sleep in. Hold your couch down. Watch Jersey Shore reruns. And then, just when you can't stand to see a bunch of over-tanned, steroid-filled idiots fighting and drinking any more, it will be time to get off the couch and get back to work. Fist pumps!
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I like to watch re-runs of the golden girls and sip pedialyte when i'm feeling burned out.
When I'm feeling burned out, I change my focus to even a bigger grand illusion. A night out at Golden Corral with 2, not 1, but 2 300 lb fat chicks and all the Pabst Blue Ribbon on tap that I can drink. Then after that, watching Tonewall and Jairtime on the Springer show. I like to set my sights big. It's important to keep dangling the carrot or something, to keep yourself motivated. No Victory or Defeat, just keep Dreaming!
Really now, racers at the pro level typically don't lack motivation. Hell we raced EVERY weekend in NESC unless Southwick National or Unadilla was that Sunday. I didn't burn out but i would run out of money... Anytime a pro feels like he's burntout he should work a 40hr week painting houses or mixing and pouring concrete patios, or shoveling manure on a farm, fit in three days of riding, exercising, cleaning air filters and goggles, change suspension oil, and load the truck up for the race. It would make their everyday training seem like fun then. We root for the lunch pail guys because we can relate and appreciate the work they put in.
Burnt Out or lack of motivation? I realize that these guys train and ride with intensity for about 10 months a year. I know they put alot of hard work in, but jd805
has good point. These guys are young and should have lots of energy. So to hear a young guy say he is Burnt Out is more like a Cop Out. I remember when I was in my early 20's, and my dad asked "whats wrong with you" and I relpied "I burnt out I guess". He laughed his ass off, and told me "son, you don't know what burnt out is". But as time goes on, I'm learning what he meant.
Ping, you never raced 17 rounds of supercross and a whole summer of nationals ever.
czmark- dont think a carrot is going to be a good lure for the heffers you are wining and dining at the Golden Corral to get into their pants....- Perhaps a slab of of bbq spare ribs or a troff of those powered mashed potatos smothered in gravy might work out better for you.... oh and dont forget fishing line rated for a marlin.....
@mbmoto, I'll give that a try, thanks!
Burn Out = I am tired of getting my ass kicked every weekend!!!
@jd805- after years of identity searching and trying to discover who I am, you just summed it up in few minutes "The lunch pail guy". Thanks, now I can rest easily and move forward in my life.
craphead Ping raced plenty......Plus he rode 2 strokes for plenty of yrs....wasn't it well know the 4 stroke was the lazy mans bike??? Just a thought
@jd805
Couldn't agree more. Working 40 plus hours a weeks and then going racing on the weekend makes you burnt out. These guys have it pretty good. They are making millions of dollars do something that they love.
Burnt out = loss of perspective. Making a living as a professional athlete is very tough, but not one day goes by where I wouldn't trade the possibility of "burning out" for the chance to take something that I like to do and turn it into a daily grind that I hate.
@czmark, always get a grin thanx man. I ordered the dejavu channel so's I could watch sanford n son whence my grind of walking the dogs (yes walking) gets to be too much. Ever see the hills in northern ontario? wifes a nurse, so she wont let me sit here and seize up, I dont think I would but......who knows. These guys that have the factory rides and what not, should enjoy the ride and do whats required without a lotta belly aching. Why its called a "job" Like 99.9%dont make it to that level, and have found the alternative not so great either, enjoy, cash the checks, and do the work Can't feel sorry for em.
@motocrossjoe589, I was wondering where you were at buddy! Enjoy the grin!
@joemotocross589, my bad, still working on my caffeine fix for the day. All this talk about racing in the heat just wears me out. Even my recliner seized up yeasterday. Mid 90's and that thing was rocking @ about 80 till it froze up and pitched me on the floor. ha ha
HOWL, ty .......maybe i better start wear'n my helmet in the chair? lmFao!
czmark, that last one was classic!! jd805, I remember those NESC days racing in the snow at the start and end of some seasons it was so long!! Southwick was 3 1/2 hours from me and it always seemed the 250C class was last. I'd get home at 1 in the morning and still make it to UNH Monday morning and then my 2nd shift job in the evening. Waterboro was way easier, only 1/2 hour away!!