Senior KX Rider
Super Power AssClown
- Nov 9, 1999
- 8,575
- 0
from racer-x
Racer X: Steve, it’s been reported that you signed with the ECC Suzuki team for 2003. Can you talk for a minute about the deal?
Steve Lamson: Yeah, it’s all out in the open, so I can talk about it now. I’ll be riding 125 West Coast supercross and the 125 Nationals for them. It’s turning out to be a real good deal for me.
I understand they’re offering $1 million for a championship – is that true?
Yeah, it sure is. They have a $1 million bonus for winning the 125 Supercross or Motocross championships. It’s a very good incentive program!
You rode a factory Suzuki early in your career. Have you ridden one of the ECC Suzukis to see how it compares?
No, I haven’t actually been on one of the bikes yet. Right now I want to stay concentrated on Husqvarna until my contract is up at the end of the year. That’s what they’re paying me for, to ride for them, and that’s what I’m going to do until my contract is up. When I’m officially done with them, I’ll start riding the Suzukis.
Many people were surprised when you left your own successful Honda-supported team and signed on with Husqvarna for the 2001 and 2002 seasons. What prompted the switch?
It was a very hard decision to make. Both Honda and Husqvarna were offering me pretty good two-year deals, but Honda wanted me to run my own team, which would have taken a lot of expense. I just looked at the whole picture, and with the money and everything, I felt that signing with Husqvarna was better for me. I wanted to concentrate more on my racing than racing and running a team. I’ve never looked back and said I made a mistake – Husqvarna has been very good to me the last couple years. They are a great company to work for, and I feel bad about leaving them.
Husqvarna has been very successful with motocross in Europe. Even though Travis Preston won a supercross here last year, what will it take for them to really succeed in American supercross and motocross?
I think they really just need a couple of top riders - and to just keep plugging away. You can’t just take a good team and expect them to win races in the first couple years. There is a lot of development and a lot to learn. They’ve really done a heck of a lot in the last couple years here in America, and the bikes are amazingly good. It’s just going to take a little more time and having some quality riders.
Getting back to you, Steve…. After crashing and suffering a compound leg fracture early in the supercross season, you returned to racing at the Glen Helen motocross series opener. How’s your health right now?
It’s doing okay now, although when I rode at Glen Helen I wasn’t even close to being 100 percent. It was a bad move on my part to race there. Every time I got on the bike, my leg was killing me, but I wanted to get back out there for Husqvarna. It was just way too early for me to come back, and I actually did more damage to it, and it didn’t end up healing correctly, because I kept beating it up. It was a severe compound fracture, and the bone ended up going through a bunch of nerves. It just has taken a long, long time to heal.
Like many racers, you’ve been injured on and off throughout your career. Has this been your most serious injury?
Well, when I look back at it, with the pain I went through and how long it has taken to recover, it’s probably been my most serious injury. I don’t really feel like it’s affected me in my riding, but the healing process has just taken so long. I had never had a compound fracture before, and the pain I went through in the beginning was unbelievable. But it’s finally all gone back together and healed up.
What are you hoping to do in the remaining nationals?
I just want to consistently be in the top ten. The first two nationals at Glen Helen and Hangtown, I don’t even consider that I was racing, because my leg hurt so badly. Then I took another month off to further heal up. I had some mechanicals at Budds Creek, so I consider Red Bud my first real race back. I was close to getting in the top ten there, so that’s my goal for the rest of the races this year. I’m just going to keep training and plugging away.
It seems like you have been doing a lot of media-related activities, starting out with a small role in the Disney movie Motocrossed, riding with skateboarder Steve Caballero at Hangtown, and recently riding at the new supercross venue in San Francisco, Pacific Bell. You really enjoy working with the media, don’t you?
Yeah, I really do – and I wish every rider looked at it this way. When you get an opportunity to do something like this, lots of the guys aren’t that interested and don’t want to take the time to do it. But I look at it as good for myself, the team, and all my other sponsors. Husqvarna has been pumped with it.
Finally, you had a bit of an off year in 1999, then came back strong in 2000, winning the Hangtown National and leading the points in the 125 nationals for a while. After have a tough year in 2002, can you come back and win again in 2003?
I definitely think I can! It’s been a long time since I rode 125 supercross, but I have no doubt in my mind that I can get on that bike and do really well. I still feel I have it in myself to win. The last couple of years at Husqvarna haven’t been that great injury-wise, especially this year. But yeah, I think I can definitely come back strong and healthy in 2003 and win a championship.
Racer X: Steve, it’s been reported that you signed with the ECC Suzuki team for 2003. Can you talk for a minute about the deal?
Steve Lamson: Yeah, it’s all out in the open, so I can talk about it now. I’ll be riding 125 West Coast supercross and the 125 Nationals for them. It’s turning out to be a real good deal for me.
I understand they’re offering $1 million for a championship – is that true?
Yeah, it sure is. They have a $1 million bonus for winning the 125 Supercross or Motocross championships. It’s a very good incentive program!
You rode a factory Suzuki early in your career. Have you ridden one of the ECC Suzukis to see how it compares?
No, I haven’t actually been on one of the bikes yet. Right now I want to stay concentrated on Husqvarna until my contract is up at the end of the year. That’s what they’re paying me for, to ride for them, and that’s what I’m going to do until my contract is up. When I’m officially done with them, I’ll start riding the Suzukis.
Many people were surprised when you left your own successful Honda-supported team and signed on with Husqvarna for the 2001 and 2002 seasons. What prompted the switch?
It was a very hard decision to make. Both Honda and Husqvarna were offering me pretty good two-year deals, but Honda wanted me to run my own team, which would have taken a lot of expense. I just looked at the whole picture, and with the money and everything, I felt that signing with Husqvarna was better for me. I wanted to concentrate more on my racing than racing and running a team. I’ve never looked back and said I made a mistake – Husqvarna has been very good to me the last couple years. They are a great company to work for, and I feel bad about leaving them.
Husqvarna has been very successful with motocross in Europe. Even though Travis Preston won a supercross here last year, what will it take for them to really succeed in American supercross and motocross?
I think they really just need a couple of top riders - and to just keep plugging away. You can’t just take a good team and expect them to win races in the first couple years. There is a lot of development and a lot to learn. They’ve really done a heck of a lot in the last couple years here in America, and the bikes are amazingly good. It’s just going to take a little more time and having some quality riders.
Getting back to you, Steve…. After crashing and suffering a compound leg fracture early in the supercross season, you returned to racing at the Glen Helen motocross series opener. How’s your health right now?
It’s doing okay now, although when I rode at Glen Helen I wasn’t even close to being 100 percent. It was a bad move on my part to race there. Every time I got on the bike, my leg was killing me, but I wanted to get back out there for Husqvarna. It was just way too early for me to come back, and I actually did more damage to it, and it didn’t end up healing correctly, because I kept beating it up. It was a severe compound fracture, and the bone ended up going through a bunch of nerves. It just has taken a long, long time to heal.
Like many racers, you’ve been injured on and off throughout your career. Has this been your most serious injury?
Well, when I look back at it, with the pain I went through and how long it has taken to recover, it’s probably been my most serious injury. I don’t really feel like it’s affected me in my riding, but the healing process has just taken so long. I had never had a compound fracture before, and the pain I went through in the beginning was unbelievable. But it’s finally all gone back together and healed up.
What are you hoping to do in the remaining nationals?
I just want to consistently be in the top ten. The first two nationals at Glen Helen and Hangtown, I don’t even consider that I was racing, because my leg hurt so badly. Then I took another month off to further heal up. I had some mechanicals at Budds Creek, so I consider Red Bud my first real race back. I was close to getting in the top ten there, so that’s my goal for the rest of the races this year. I’m just going to keep training and plugging away.
It seems like you have been doing a lot of media-related activities, starting out with a small role in the Disney movie Motocrossed, riding with skateboarder Steve Caballero at Hangtown, and recently riding at the new supercross venue in San Francisco, Pacific Bell. You really enjoy working with the media, don’t you?
Yeah, I really do – and I wish every rider looked at it this way. When you get an opportunity to do something like this, lots of the guys aren’t that interested and don’t want to take the time to do it. But I look at it as good for myself, the team, and all my other sponsors. Husqvarna has been pumped with it.
Finally, you had a bit of an off year in 1999, then came back strong in 2000, winning the Hangtown National and leading the points in the 125 nationals for a while. After have a tough year in 2002, can you come back and win again in 2003?
I definitely think I can! It’s been a long time since I rode 125 supercross, but I have no doubt in my mind that I can get on that bike and do really well. I still feel I have it in myself to win. The last couple of years at Husqvarna haven’t been that great injury-wise, especially this year. But yeah, I think I can definitely come back strong and healthy in 2003 and win a championship.
