The Breakdown: L.A. SX Technique
Friday, January 27, 2012 | 9:50 AM
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PrintBy: Matt Walker
This week in The Breakdown, I want to start by talking about a few things from LA.
First, my heart goes out to Trey Canard and Ryan Morais. Man, I had to look away on that one. I’ve also had my jaw wired shut and my back broken simultaneously. I know the pain and the rough road that lies ahead. Get well soon, guys.A lot of people have asked, "Could it have been avoided?" Well, not this crash. Things come at you fast, really fast, in the opening stages of any SX race. But in the 450 class it's rare that a rider doesn't jump the triples in a main event race because of the abundance of power. Had Canard not had the tuff block cover he too would have jumped the triple and we would not even be talking about this. He backed out at the last minute and Morais had no idea until he was going off the lip of jump. A very scary thing to have happen to a rider. It makes you wonder, why we can't find a cover that's built into the tuff block?
The other big news from L.A. was James Stewart’s take out on Jake Weimer. Let me give you a few different scenarios and you can decide for yourself what you think happened.
1) James was tired and frustrated cause Weimer had led him for five laps. He didn't want to deal with him anymore so he knocked him down.
2) James made a basic block pass but Jake didn't let up so he fell down.
3) (And this one is my pick) James doesn't have the confidence still with the front end of his bike, so instead of making the block pass then turning down (like it’s normally done) he follows through by going up high, taking Weimer down in the process. Remember most of James's crashes come from tucking the front end.
Now let’s get into a few photos:
Cudby photos
Each week I'm more and more impressed with Eli Tomac. You see how in this first picture he is sitting down with perfect form, except his head is a little forward. Through the sequence you will notice that he adjusts how far forward his head is.
When you’re cornering you don't want the mouth guard of your helmet to be over the crossbar pad. If your mouth guard is over the pad, you’re putting a lot of weight on the front end and the bike will have a tendency to want to tuck or wash out.
Also look at his right toe. You see how he is using the rear brake with toe pointing down with heel pointing up. You do this with your toe as opposed to your heel so you can get a better feel for how much rear brake pressure you’re applying. When you’re doing a start like Eli and you have the holeshot, you want to make sure your form is perfect when you’re on the binders.
Cudby photo
In this heat race, RV has it dialed. It’s patented RV style. His feet are on the pegs early, he's standing up, and his elbows are down so he doesn't lock bars with anyone. Notice how his throttle hand is lower than the clutch hand. This isn't necessarily a good thing, but that's a common occurrence with any pro rider because so many of them have broken their right wrist—it seems to get injured the most. Also note the gate Villopoto chose here: it is middle to inside. Normally that gate is do or die. But if you have a lot of confidence in your starts and you know you’re going to get a good start, that's the best place to be. Notice how Windham chose the safe route on the inside. That's generally the safe line, but if you get a bad jump the riders it can easily shut you down. Notice how Villopoto is still on the throttle while Windham is already braking. Look at K-Dubs front fender and see how it touches the tire. That's how you know he is hard on the binders, while Villopoto is still accelerating.
Matt Walker is a former professional motocross racer that now owns and operates the newly-formed Moto X Compound. One of the country's largest MX training facilities, Moto X Compound is located one hour south of Atlanta in Forsyth, Georgia. For more updates, follow Walker on Twitter #mattwalke122 or head to www.schoolofmotox.com.
Did you like this article?
Check out THE WHOOPS
in our Latest issue of Racer X available now.
They are, quite simply, the most challenging obstacles in motocross and supercross. We look at the whoops through the ages, and through the eyes of the racers who have mastered them. Page 164.
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Give us more of this stuff. Please.
MORE FROM MATT WALKER!!! wish he was still racing so i could hear him tell it like it is on the podium
This sould be a weekly article! Keep it coming Matt!
x2 on what Browndogg wrote. This is good stuff.
As Jake was going down, he should have reached out with his left hand, grabbed the back of James jersey, and snatched his punk ass off the back of his bike.
Was a good read, something different. We all know Notebook-Redux-Observations are pretty much the same thing, and Open Mic is just PulpMX podcasts typed up.
@drkelly
do you have to say something negative on EVERY article that mentions Stewart? take a look at your past comments...
you really must hate the guy...
A must read already.....
Pizzacorner, a lot of the interviews in Open Mic are ones I do, and they're only available through Open Mic--it's not all pulpcasts. So don't miss out!
Pizzacorner, a lot of the interviews in Open Mic are ones I do, and they're only available through Open Mic--it's not all pulpcasts. So don't miss out!
YES!! more of this. Get someone to take sequence shots and have Walker break down who is doing what right and wrong. The interviews are stale. I don't care what they have to say.
Also make a message board, so we can track our posts and clean things up. This isn't the 90s!!
Oh I know, I read every article and listen to every podcast. I tend to criticize over compliment, just how I work a lot of the time. Take my comments with a grain of salt, but the best thing would be to just ignore them.
YES!! more of this. Get someone to take sequence shots and have Walker break down who is doing what right and wrong. The interviews are stale, I don't care what they have to say.
Also make a message board, so we can track our posts and clean things up. This isn't the 90s!!
I dont totally agree with the comment about Windham being on the brakes already. It looks more like the holeshot device. It looks like they just came off the gate and everyone is still on the gas.I still like these articles
It looks like Canard is maxxed on front brake (rear wheel is in the air) to maybe cut under RV in the corner (versus get pinned on the outside) since RV has position, but RV has chopped the throttle, perhaps leading up to Canard being slowed up and causing him to square the corner even more, snagging the tuff block cover. I am amazed at how fast things happen at the start!
It is impossible to have too much of this stuff IMO. Matt, next week, could you talk about how riders balance whoop settings (stiff front) versus cornering settings (softer front) and who is doing what?
What a great article, love this column, Matt Walker has a future in this maybe.. Very good.
I believe my post may be a little redundant, but I believe in strength in numbers. With that said, I agree with all of the above, Matt did a great job and I like this new column. Keep 'em coming.
I finally registered with racer x to say this article was epic. More please.
Yes! Definately a good read. Matt won me over as a fan in Millville when MA800 had his first race ae. "Believe the hype" t shirts all over the place, such a bold statement- and to this day hasn't really happened. He was bullying MA at the riders meeting and on the track. Was so much fun to watch. Then he stayed on a few days at a friend of mines place. Wish I would have known he was there, I could have went over and met him. Oh well, my lose, but have been a fan ever since. Way to go Matt.
Good info Walker, easy to follow. Keep it up!
Wow guys thanks a lot! I really appreciate all your comments. Wanna thank RacerX for allowing me to do it.
My whole career as a rider I was confrontational and outspoken. That us not a trait that I am proud of anymore. This has labeled me a liability for a lot of things excpecially trying to get a TV job.
I am a hundred times better at coaching than I ever was as a rider that's why 5 years ago on my 25th birthday, I chose to walk away and help riders.
These Breakdowns are done in about 10 min after I get the photos. Dissecting stuff comes easy for me, but I am in no manner trying to put any rider down in my column. I'm trying to help you the readers learn to be better and safer riders by learning from these pics.
RacerX is working
On getting some pics that help my column this weekend at the race. Next week should be a good one. Thanks again for everything.
M@ Walker
Cool-he read our comments and appreciates them! Wish everyone else did!! Thanks for the response Matt.
Bucky. I'm here for you bud. Helping others is what I love to do most. I do appreciate your feedback. Thanks and keep reading. !
Although I only just signed up. Follow me on twitter
#mattwalker122
Matt, don't change. Theres nothing wrong with being out spoken and in your face mantality. People just can't handle it and automatically go on the defense. I can't stand people who sugar coat and shoot sun shine up my ass. Look at Reed. Tell it how it is and people will respect. Thats one reason i'm a Matt Walker fan, except for that time you ran me off the track at Budds Creek in practice many years ago. Don't worry I didn't crash and I only called you a few bad names. All part of the sport and much respect for ya, keep up the good work on Break down.