MotoXAddicts gave Chris Blose a call to talk about the breakthrough season he’s had this year on the Hart&Huntington/Dodge/BelRay team. Chris is only in his second season in the Supercross Class and is certainly turning heads. He has—through eight rounds of the Monster Energy AMA Supercross series—made it into every Main Event so far and sits 13th in points having finished as high as 11th in the Main Event in Oakland.
Chris is about as determined as it gets, and is one of those guys that knows where he belongs and will stop at nothing to get his #38 into the Main Event. Chris, in the first four rounds of the series, was the king of the LCQ’s. I dubbed him the “freight train” in Phoenix when—facing not transferring to the Main Event in fourth with two laps to go—Chris put his head down, pushed Tye Simmonds out of the way and, in the last half of the last lap, made a last ditch effort that sent Jared Browne off the track and Chris into the Main.
Desire like that is what keeps the fans watching our great sport, and Chris is one of those guys whose desire is never a question. I called Chris while he was driving out to do some testing, and he was more than happy to talk with MotoXAddicts on the way.
Chris, what is up?
Just driving out to a local MX track. I figured we have Daytona coming up so I’d do a little outdoor riding.
So you consider the Daytona SX more of an outdoor race?
For sure. It has a little SX in it, but it’s definitely a man’s track?
You raced Daytona last year, right?
Yeah, last year was the only time I’ve raced it, and it’s brutal.
Do you ride much outdoors? I know with your H&H deal they don’t do the Nationals.
Well, when I was with the Troy Lee Designs team we raced outdoors, and I think we did five or six of them. Before that, I did some outdoors, but it was all on my own, full privateer-style.
How do you like the H&H deal?
It’s been good. The team’s awesome. Since Dodge came on board, it really stepped up the program. The big thing I like is that everyone is there has fun. I mean, on the weekends we’re there to race; it’s all business. Not much tension at all as long as we go out and do our jobs.
How’s Kenny Watson to work with as a team manager?
He’s actually really good. Kenny has been around a long time, knows everyone in the industry and really knows what he’s doing.
How long have you been riding professionally now?
Since 2005. I turned pro at 16 years old, raced the 4-stroke Nationals,and won that title on the 250f. I started racing SX in 2006 as a privateer. 2007, I rode for the Wonder Warthog team when it first came about and Suzuki Fun Center in ‘08. I worked really hard, got better and better, and ended up having a breakout year in 2009 on the Troy Lee bike. Then last year—my first year on the 450—I rode the whole year with a broken navicular bone and struggled. Now we’re at 2011, and it’s going good.
Yeah, I heard about the navicular. You rode with it the whole year?
I had a pre-season crash, went and got it X-rayed, and they said it was just a sprain so I kept riding through it, but the pain wouldn’t go away. At the 2010 Vegas SX, I decided to have Doc Bodnar take a look at. After he X-rayed it, he said your navicular has a break in it, not just broke but broken pretty bad. So I went and had surgery on it and made it back in time for X-games.
So you’re healthy now, and considering the field—and the fact that you’re making every Main Event—I think you’re killing it. What were your expectations for this year, and are you exceeding them?
As everyone knows this year the class is stacked, and I’m happy to make every Main Event. 11th is my best finish so far, but I really think I belong up in the top ten. It’s definitely gotten better since the beginning of the season, and with working on set-up, the bike’s gotten a lot better. Once we got the set-up figured out, things got better, but I’m still kind of lacking on my starts. To try to improve my starts, we actually went back the drawing board this week to figure it out.
So with starts do you think it’s mostly a confidence issue?
It can be a confidence issue for sure, and with all the talent and past champions on the line, nobody is getting a bad start and coming through the field—other than say a James Stewart, and even he may have problems.
Yeah, I couldn’t imagine trying to come through this field right now. Heck, even making the Main is a huge accomplishment, and you’ve made them all. Have you ever had a year like this where you made every Main?
In my first couple of years, I didn’t. I didn’t come up doing the whole big amateur scene events like everyone else. I kind of did my own thing and built myself up. Then, when I went pro, I had to come up being a privateer, so in the first couple of years there were some Main Events I would miss. Last year, I didn’t make the Main Event in the opener at Anaheim I, but the year before, on Troy Lee designs team, I made every one. This year, hopefully I can keep the ball rolling and make every Main Event the rest of the way, and get better every race. I really want that top ten.
Are you looking forward to Daytona?
Really I am, but I’m not. Everyone knows that track’s brutal. It’s going to be a tough race for sure. The track has sand whoops, a square-edged kicker, breaking bumps, ruts, and on SX suspension, it’s gnarly.
So do you guys run closer to an outdoor set-up suspension-wise?
No, we stick with SX settings. We may soften it up a little, but other than that, our game plan is SX settings for the most part.
Anyone that hasn’t been living under a rock for the last week knows you were in the middle of the whole Reed/Stewart situation in Atlanta. Chad’s already come out and said it was 100% his fault. What is your perspective on what happened there?
I knew he was coming up on me when I saw a couple blue flags. When I see a blue flag over a triple, I’ll try to spot where the guys are at, so I knew over the triple, Chad was right behind me. I thought I’d just go through the whoops then step-on and step-off to the outside. As you know, they were going at an unbelievable pace at that point. I went to the outside, and to my surprise, he was on the outside of me. I didn’t think that’s where he would go, so it just ended up being a wrong place at the wrong time type of thing. I was thinking I’d give up the race line which was on the outside. I for sure don’t want to be “that guy” that gets in anybody’s way racing for the win. It ruins the race.
Chad Reed said exactly that. He just guessed wrong on where you would be. I noticed your tweet to Chad basically apologizing and realized how tough of a position that is to be in.
It’s no one’s fault, and in the tweet, I just wanted to clear things up. I really respect him Chad and appreciated him saying publicly that it wasn’t my fault. It’s just one of those things that can happen.
Did you watch the race? What did you think about the Reedy pass on James?
Yeah, I watched the race. It was a very aggressive pass, and he just wanted to win. I think Chad would have won if he didn’t get hung up with me on the outside of that corner. The pass was a desperate last effort, and I think Stewart may have done the same thing if the roles were reversed. They both want to win really badly.
That’s all, Chris. I really appreciate you chatting with MotoXAddicts and hope your already stellar year continues. Good luck in Daytona!
No problem. Thanks for the interview.
Follow @dandunes818 and @MXAddicts_com for any and all racing news and info. Also, check out Chris’ sponsors: Hart & Huntington, Dodge Motorsports and Belray.
