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 trying to chase their dream of racing professional Motocross. 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 guys just hoping to become regulars in the big show. 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” interview is with professional rookie privateer KTM rider Carlen Gardner. As an amateur, Carlen won a Loretta Lynn’s title, but for the most part, the Californian had been staying under the radar until the 2016 AMSOIL Arenacross series. In Arenacross, Carlen scored a few podiums in the 2016 Lites West Championship, won the Tacoma AX Lites West main event and finished the year fourth in the Championship.
When AX was over, the eighteen-year-old from Paso Robles, California loaded up his KTM 450 and headed to Hangtown to make his professional debut in the 2016 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship races. The #805 qualified in 34th for the motos in his debut and finished the day with a 28-27 for 29th overall. After getting his feet wet at Hangtown, Carlen went to Glen Helen and improved his qualifying spot to 30th and nearly scored his first professional points in the motos with a 26-22 score on the day. If all goes well, we expect to see a couple points on the board after this weekend’s race at Thunder Valley.
Not knowing anything about Carlen, we decided to give the teenager a call and find out where he came from and how he’s feeling after his first four professional motos.
Carlen, you’re obviously new to the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship scene, but you’re making the motos and almost scoring points in the 450MX class in your first year. Where did you come from?
Well, only the in the last two years did I become super serious about racing. Over the last six months, we’ve been making decisions on where I need to be for the next couple of years and what my program needs to be. I won a Loretta Lynn’s title three years ago in the 250 two-stroke class, but nothing came of it. That’s kind of when we hooked up with Race Tech and got that connection. I’ve only hit like Mammoth and Loretta’s and wasn’t able to hit all the major races during the year, so I’ve stayed low key. I was never a top guy, just top twenty or top fifteen at all these races. Over the last six months, though, I decided I needed to live down south and step up my program.
Who have you been working with?
I started training like crazy with Nathan Ramsey at the track and Eddie Casillas in the gym with the Mossiman family. I started doing pretty good, picking up speed and went for it at Hangtown to kind of see where I was just because I was kind of over the amateur scene. The plan was to see where it would go and to get my feet wet this year.
I was talking to a friend about you today and he told me you were going fast this year in the AMSOIL Arenacross series and even won the Lites West class in Tacoma. Was your AX success kind of a turning point on how far you might want to take this?
No, but Arenacross was a big confidence booster. I started coming down here and training in January and living down here. I didn’t have anything to test how my training was going, so when Arenacross came around, I used it to find out where I stood. That was the first showing point that my training was working and really beneficial for me.
You made your pro debut at Hangtown—qualified 34th and finished 29th overall—and just got done with Glen Helen where you qualified 30th and almost scored a point in the second moto with a 22nd. What do you think of the pace at this level, and where do you think you fit in?
I definitely believe I can get some top twenties and score some points. As of right now, I can do 35-minute motos, and I feel strong in them, but I don’t have that early race intensity. They go so hard, so quick for the first ten or 15 minutes that it’s hard for me to hang with the top twenty. By the time everyone runs out of gas, I’m too far back to get there. I hold my pace the whole way through and start chipping off guys as they get more tired. That’s where I’ve been getting my results. In qualifying, everyone can put down a fast lap, but not all of them can hold that the whole time. I need to work on my speed to get better qualifying times, and in the motos, I need to start better and try to run with those guys. Then my fitness will come into play and I can get some top twenties.
What played into your decision to race the 450 instead of the 250?
Money wise, it’s harder to put together a competitive 250F—also, the maintenance that is required to keep a 250F going too. For this first year, doing the four rounds we’re planning on doing, instead of paying so much to run a 250F, we went with the 450. Instead of putting a bunch of money into a 250 motor, we’ll run a 450 and put good suspension on it that’s competitive. I talked to a few guys and they thought it was a smarter move too.
I know Race Tech is helping you out with that good suspension, but you’re also one of the first guys in the 450 national class that’s on a Race Tech built motor. How are you liking it?
The Race Tech motors Andrew [Flores] built for me have been perfect for what I was looking for. He can make tremendous power gains with just a little work. The 450 was more of a cleaning up and small work because it’s a 450 and already has so much power. Andrew can build a very competitive and durable motor.
If ever there was a track you needed your motor on it was Glen Helen. That place was gnarly on Saturday. What did you think of the track? It looked scary.
It was scary, but that’s kind of my thing. I have my comfort zone and won’t go past it, so all these guys are going crazy and I’m like “Woah, what’s going on?” (laughs) I had a couple scary moments on those two big, huge jumps. I did the Trans Am race a couple weeks ago and cased that big triple step up. I didn’t even make it to the top, so that scared me. I didn’t want that to happen again.
What kind of results would make you happy at Colorado this weekend?
Of course I would like to score some points, but at least for the first four races I’m doing, I would like to at least make it into the motos without having to go through the consolation races. Being consistent every moto, too—whatever my speed is for that round, as long as I’m consistent with my finishes, I’ll be happy. If I’m able to run up in the top twenty, that’s what will really make me happy. But if I do that, of course I’ll want to do better. I’m never really satisfied. If I got points, that would be huge for me.
I saw you have MXAthletics listed as your sponsor on the AMA results sheets. What is that?
MXAthletics is me, my dad and my brother. It’s just what we call our company or call ourselves. If it ever turned into anything, it would be an amateur and pro program to help kids out. We would offer up programs or recommend certain things. Like an online site where someone would go to look for a certain brand of gear or a workout guide and diet recommendations for motocross. Anything motocross related we want it to be helpful for. It’s just something me, my brother and my dad have run since 85’s; our team name [MXAthletics] on the side of our graphics.
Anyone else you want to give some thanks for you get to the races?
Race Tech, Lazer Star lights AXO\, SIDI, 6d Helmets, Mika Metals, Von Zipper, Dirt Digits, Paso Robles Palaris Ktm , FMF, Works Connection
