Photo by: Hoppenworld
These “Privateer Showcase” interviews presented by Race Tech Suspension at MotoXAddicts tell the stories of the guys in the trenches week in and week out just trying to chase their dream of racing in Monster Energy Supercross. While the riders at the front of the pack get the money, the T.V. time and the glory that goes with it, there’s a huge pack of kids just hoping to become regulars in the main events. We will talk to them and get their stories about trying to break through to that next level with little or no help.
This week’s “Privateer Showcase” features privateer Supercross rider Deven Raper. Back in 2009, Deven turned professional with a 250F and a dream, and up until this year’s East Rutherford Supercross, Deven had not made a Monster Energy Supercross main event. The local professional from Arizona has been a regular in the Monster Energy Supercross show, but making the main event remained out of reach for nearly six full years of racing. I’ve used the words “no quit in them” to describe riders in the past, but that’s never been more fitting than when talking about Deven Raper. The kid raced nearly 60 Supercross events before finally reaching his dream of racing the main event.
I can’t imagine what it had to feel like when he finally got the job done last month, but it must have felt good because the #447 backed it up by making the main event again the very next weekend at the Las Vegas SX finale. In the end, Deven scored three hard-fought points—19th in East Rutherford and 20th in Las Vegas—in those two main events but, most importantly, will take that new confidence with him into the 2016 season.
Last weekend at the 2015 Hangtown National, I noticed Deven’s name on the entry sheet and decided to give him a call to talk about his 2015 Supercross season, his plans for the summer and what it felt like to accomplish his goals after so long. You can read Deven’s story in the interview below.
Deven, where do you currently live?
I’m based out of Long Beach, California right now. I live in Arizona, but my dad is working out here as a crane operator and I have a trailer in a trailer park in Long Beach. I have a little shed we keep my bikes in. We make it happen.
Not exactly the glamorous professional Supercross/Motocross life—a trailer park in Long Beach. (laughs)
No, definitely not. Trailer park living for sure. (laughs) I definitely lock that shed up pretty good.
I noticed you at Hangtown last Saturday. How many outdoor Nationals do you plan on hitting?
Honestly, just the West Coast ones. In Supercross I did all seventeen rounds except for Atlanta 1. That was a long series to do on my own. I did Hangtown last weekend, and I’ll do Glen Helen and Washougal. Washougal is more like a vacation in July. It’s pretty hot in Arizona, so it’s nice to go up there and hangout.
Yeah, It’s not easy doing all the events you do without much help. How did you get to sixteen Supercross races?
With the help of Gus [Decker] from Team Gus. Without them taking my bike from round to round, I definitely wouldn’t have been able to drive to all of them. I just have a little Ford Ranger truck. Yeah, Gus took my bikes to the races and I flew in. We just used the money you made one weekend to pay to get me to the next one. It worked out.
You made the main event at East Rutherford SX this year. Was that your first-ever main event?
Yeah, that was my first. I came really close once back in 2011—I raced 250’s from ’09-’11. I made about half of the night shows in 2009 coming out of amateurs. As an amateur, I pretty much just raced locally and never did Loretta’s or any of that, but in 2011, I was running 7th until the last lap in my heat race and endo’ed over the bars. They replayed that all week on TV. (laughs) That sucked. So, yeah, it was extra special to finally make it in East Rutherford after trying for six years.
Yeah, to accomplish something like that after six years of pounding it had to feel good. What was that feeling like when you knew you made it?
It’s still so hard to explain. I just kept shaking my head in disbelief. It was like I couldn’t believe it happened. It was such a relief because the series was coming to an end and I was giving it my best effort but wondering if I was ever going to make it. Before that, I would get a great start in the heat and couldn’t really do anything with it in the heat or the semi. Then in LCQ’s, when I had my best chance, I’d get a crappy start. That day, though, I was getting great starts in everything, and I just had a feeling all day I was going to make it. From the time I woke up that morning I was like, “We’re doing it.” I just figured out the difference between knowing and hoping I was going to make it to the main event, and that was a magical experience. It was a huge relief and a milestone I’ll remember for the rest of my life.
Did you have any family or friends way out in New Jersey to share that with?
Yeah, I did. It’s weird because I’ve known Gus from Team Gus for a while, but he had John Garrett driving the rig to all the races. John was my mechanic all year, and throughout the year, we became really good friends. After sharing a moment like that together, he’s definitely a friend for life now.
Then you backed that up with a second-straight main event appearance at the finale in Las Vegas. Was it one of those things where now you knew you could make it so it got easier?
Yeah, like I said, the power of knowing versus just hoping is huge. I wasn’t riding that great during practice and qualifying all day in Las Vegas, but I had to pull it together. I had a friend there with some potential sponsors for next season, so I wanted to do it again. Vegas was a little bit harder than New Jersey for me, so I had to really dig deep and focus.
What year did you turn pro?
2009 was my first year. I was 19. I’m 25 now.
What do you say to people out there that think if you can’t finish in the top ten or get enough sponsors to make a good living doing this, the sport is too dangerous so you should quit and get a real job?
I’ve had a real job and it sucks. (laughs) So, I’ve tried everything and nothing is as good as this. I just want to accomplish my goals, and I think because I’m accomplishing them, it will be easier when I do decide to get a real job. It would have been so hard to walk away from it without saying I made a main event. It’s not like I’m stopping there, though. Now that I’ve seen some results, I want to take it as far as I can.
I know the Supercross purse isn’t huge, but are you able to scrape out a living?
Definitely not in outdoor motocross, but in Supercross, I did it by financing my bike and having a sponsor like RJC Racing that helped me out with a chunk of cash to get started. Then, if you at least qualify for the night show, that money will get you moving on to the next weekend, but if you’re making main events, you’re definitely making some money. If you get 20th, that’s $2000 instead of $1000. Basically, it costs about $1000 to get through a weekend. If your riding for Gus, you have to pay him a couple hundred to take your bike to the races. There’s entry fees, flights and all that. Also, Kawasaki contingency will get you another $500 for making the mains, so if your making mains, you can definitely profit $1500 off a weekend.
I’ve heard your name a lot over the years in Supercross, but not as much outdoors. Have you raced much of the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship?
I haven’t. I’ve only done Hangtown, Washougal and Glen Helen really. In 2010, I made the trip out to Red Bud and Millville.
Last weekend at Hangtown, you were 53rd out of 73 riders in qualifying and your consolation race didn’t go well. What do you think you need to do to get into the top-40?
I was honestly having a great season in Supercross and didn’t ride moto til the week after Vegas. I came in very unprepared, and Glen Helen is usually better for me than Hangtown, so we’ll see this weekend. But I’m going to be working so hard this summer towards next year’s Supercross season.
You did all the rounds for the 2015 Supercross season, so you must be getting some help somewhere. Tell us about your sponsors and who helped you in 2015.
Yeah, there’s RJC Racing, Race Tech Suspension, Thousand Oaks,Tire Empire, O’neal, Rekluse, ActionRideco, 100 Percent, Asterisk, FMF, RK Excel, Dubya, Renthal, Ride Engineering, Acerbis, Silo Creationz, Motofoundryhank, Dunlop, Ryno Power, J and J Performance, MX Shoppe, Crank Works, Injectioneering, Tokyo Mods, Shoei, Engine Ice, Vertex, Hot Cams, VP Race Fuel, NoToil, Team Gus.
