Vo Knows

Ahh motocross and beloved muscle memory. It truly amazes me how fast once can get back in riding shape. I’ve been off a dirt bike for well over four months due to my second knee surgery, only getting back in the saddle two weeks ago. And the first time I rode… well, damn, was I out of shape. Five laps and I could barely hang onto the bars, whisky throttle over jumps and making scary mistakes. Hence, I figured the road to riding shape would be a long and hard one. Thankfully it’s been surprisingly quicker than I anticipated. Why? Muscle memory.

I’m full-bore back into my training schedule, as I’m getting ready to road race later this month at a WSMC club event and then in American Superbike in July for a feature (stay tuned for more details on the big racing project soon). I’ve since ridden MX four times in the past two weeks, while also hitting the gym. In fact, I just returned from a fabulous day at Piru Motocross Park, bombing around a rutted and muddy but still amazing track. And the best part? Forget five laps. I could easily put in a 30-minute moto with far less fatigue than the short sessions I was able to do before. Thank goodness.

While the road to full recovery and being in shape enough to hustle a 190-hp Suzuki Superbike at AMA race pace will take awhile, it’s nice to know the basics of riding and the initial strength lost comes back quickly. I was getting worried there.

Also, speaking of racing, I hope all of you have signed up for MotoUSA’s Fantasy Racing by now. The first round of World Superbike is in the books and it’s time for the bench racing to get going! And if you haven’t signed up, be sure to get on soon, as you can still make the opening MotoGP round in April. As for you moto nuts, we have the AMA Motocross Series in the works and will be ready for you to start making picks soon.