AcadianaRacing.com

July 2010 Interview with GNCC Pro Chris Bach & Mechanic Ben Weathers
By Lucas Comeaux

Chris Bach and mechanic Ben Weathers are weekly viewers of AcadianaRacing.com and they were nice enough to take time away from their busy schedules to do an interview! 22 year-old Bach jumped up from the Open A class this year to pursue the highly competitive XC1 Pro class, and after 9 rounds in and 3 podium finishes he's sitting in 5th Overall. That's even with an unfortunate DNF (zero points) at Round 7 in Somerset, PA. He's ahead of guys like Kailub Russell, Jesse Robinson, Nate Kanney, Jason Thomas, Glenn Kearney, and many more.

Left: Bach and Weathers once again hanging out on the podium...this time after Showshoe, photo by Shan Moore (cropped).

AR: First off congrats on an awesome year. Have you lived in Indiana all your life? How did you get into racing dirt bikes?
CB: I have in fact lived in Indiana my whole life. I have grown up in Crown Point, and grew up racing local District 15 hare scrambles. My dad got me riding when I was 3, and racing probably around 7.

Looking back, what are some of your proudest accomplishments as an amateur?
Going back, my amateur career on a local/regional level was pretty memorable. I raced D15 and Mid-South Winter Series races, and hit a few select GNCC races a year. I won a lot of championships on mini bikes, and quite a few on big bikes as well... but I think my entire Amateur career can really be summed up by one moment, and that was winning the 2009 AMA Grand National Cross Country Amateur Rider of the Year award by finishing 14th OA in the series. I'd say that's my proudest moment of my amateur career for sure.

What kind of advice would you give top regional level riders if they’re thinking about taking the step up to chase their dreams in the GNCC or WORCS series?
If you're thinking about making the move into the national races, make it worth you and/or your families time and money. If the national series is something you want to go after for real, then you have to take it seriously.. if racing is something you do strictly for fun or for casual enjoyment, then make sure to keep that in sight. A lot of guys who love to ride dirt bikes go to some of these nationals and get caught up in the race and the competition and the drama and get kind of burnt out on the whole deal and forget why they came in the first place. If you're going for fun, that's awesome, keep it fun. If your going for championships, don't plan on just showing up at the races and doing well... you're going to have to put your work in during the week. EVERY class at GNCCs and WORCS races are STACKED!

Photo by Shan Moore

Generally speaking what kind of training goes into preparing your body for 3 hours of abuse?
My program is pretty open and well rounded. I do a lot of everything really. Some guys spend a lot of time in the gym, and not a lot on the bike, or a lot on the bike and never in the gym, or a lot of cycling or something. I try to get my workouts switched up every few weeks so I don't get bored. But what is consistent is a nice mix of Road Cycling, Moto, and light gym sessions (if any during "in-race" season). In the offseason there is a lot more gym time. Race season is basically about maintaining what you built in the offseason, so I spend a lot of time just working on my form, doing different cornering drills and sprint motos and stuff.


	Photo from RPM's website / right by Shan Moore

Is it what you expected or even harder?
As far as 3 hours being tougher or harder then I had expected... not really. I enjoy the training, and I like seeing the results in my body's performance gains over time. I work my butt off during the week so that when I show up on the weekends, my 3 hour race is the easiest part of my week. The physical fitness part isn't hard... its trying to ride at 100% for 3 hours MISTAKE FREE that's hard. One mistake and you could lose 10 seconds, you could lose 2 minutes... and with the caliber of riders on that XC-1 starting line, it can be very very tough to regain that lost time.

Photo from RPM's Website

We found your website but looks like it hadn’t been updated in a while. Are you about 21 years old now? Still 6’3?? Do you find being tall helps on the technical courses like Snowshoe?
Site needs to be updated.. but you'd be surprised how many people DON'T go to it... the ROI on that is kinda obsolete now I think. It takes a good amount of time to keep a website updated with new content (as you know).. and I much rather spend my time reaching out to sites like AcadianaRacing.com to promote and do interviews and stuff. I turned 22 in April, and I'm still 6'3. Being tall definitely helps on some of the gnarlier tracks when its tough and technical.. I can use my height to my advantage for sure when you have to paddle through stuff or get hung up and need to dab a foot. But I actually find it a disadvantage sometimes too... Tall guys can fall into bad riding habits really easily just because of how our bodies fit the motorcycles, so I spend a lot of time working on fundamentals and form to make sure I keep my skills fresh and avoid any unnecessary injury.

Very impressive ride at Snowshoe - tell us about your day.
Snowshoe was awesome. Kanney and myself have gotten pretty close over the course of this season, and for some reason we just kind of started this friendly rivalry the last few races. And with me going up to Nate's before snowshoe it just escalated the trash talking, which got so intense that it almost felt like there was no other race that weekend. It was Bach vs. Kanney, and no one else. Both of us wanted to beat each other so bad that we even had our mechanics talking trash to each other! Over dinner Saturday night, Nate and I had said how it didn't feel like a real race, it just felt we were going out there for bragging rights on each other. When the race started, and we got out front together it felt just like we were trail riding up in NY. We were having so much fun that all the pressure was off the race and I think that helped a ton in my result.

What did you spend the $3k on?
I didn't spend my 3k on anything yet because there's a 3 day business hold on my bank deposit because its an out-of-town check haha. But I really don't have plans for it.. just putting it in the bank. I spent a lot of money last year racing out of my van, much like I was at the beginning of this season... and since I've been doing well I've actually been able to start a savings account.. so I'm just kinda trying to build that up a bit so I can have some security for once.

You spent some time with Kanney before the race, did ya’ll find some time to have a little fun or was it all training and riding?
Up in NY, we basically just hammered rocks all day for like, 5 days straight. For most people yes, it would be considered training non stop. We race motorcycles for a living... as long as I'm on my bike I'm having fun.. and being able to ride terrain that was basically all new to me and learning new things every time we went out was awesome. Never once did it feel like work at all. I even saw a bear on one of our trail rides.. a real bear.. in the woods. It was like some national geographic stuff.

Photo by Shan Moore (cropped)

Wow, nothing like a bear for motivation to keep riding! You’ve gotten on the podium 3 times this year and are currently 5^th in the GRAND NATIONAL CROSS-COUNTRY SERIES nine rounds in…that must be a good feeling!
Its a good feeling... but having done as well as I have, I've kinda grown not so happy with my current point situation. My results show 5th in points.. but I had a DNF in PA, where I scored ZERO points. Unlike most of the other guys who DNF, they at least make a lap or two, and score points.. even if its 5 or 6 points.. its still points. We in the xc-1 class get no drops, so the DNF/no points race in PA really killed me. Also, the NC race that got called early, I was battling with Mullins for like, 4th place when they called that race. They scored the race on the last completed lap instead of the last woods check, and I got scored for 7th not 4th or 5th, which hurt as well. I've had an OK season so far.. 3 podiums, a 4th, a 5th, a DNF (mechanical in PA), a 7, and an 8. Not so great, but not bad for coming out of the A class either.... I have to keep telling myself to not get ahead of myself and that I still have a lot of time to learn and get good at this pro racing thing. Sometimes I get ahead of myself because I want to win so bad and I want to be that "top guy"... but it will come, just have to keep plugging away.

We asked Ben Weathers about working with Chris this year: [Note: Ben was a top regional woods racer himself]

Well, It kinda happened real quick after Round 1 of this year. I have known Chris a few years now, he came down to my house in Tallahassee when I lived there a few times with Dustin Gibson. Then from there we just stayed in touch and he would call from time to time to ask questions about bike stuff or just questions about the motorcycle industry in general.. Then before the season started this year we talked alot about , his training, bike prep, and his race program in general. So that's the short storey on how we met & where we are today.

My view on Chris' success this year has been his program and that was a main topic of one of our many conversations last year... He stayed at my house for the Steele Creek GNCC last year and we talk at length about having a program for success. We pretty much covered the bases before & after the Steele Creek GNCC. One thing he needed to see was that he had the speed to win not only Open A class which he was in last year but XC1 class too. So, after that race Chris and I broke the event down by lap times and then tried to view a positive out of a getting beat that day.

So, then I actually set down myself and looked at his lap times from the prior GNCC's to find positives in his results. Chris left my house and started training hard the rest of the season. Which lead him to stay focused and win top am last year.

Chris is pretty easy to work with actually we get along great on and off the track.. So that definitely helps when it comes to set up or trying something new on the bike. We have the resources to change the motor anyway we want by way of WMR and we can change suspension set up any time with GDR. So with all this and the help from KTM, Chris' trainer, and his dedication the program for 2010 has been successful.

As far as any slip ups or loose bolts by me.... I think I have not made too many mistakes as for as spinning wrenches this year... Atleast on the race bike .:) The race bike gets gone over pretty intensely before it leaves the shop and at the track so nothing comes loose.

Back to Chris...What are your goals for the second half of the season and even beyond that?
2nd half of the season I want to just keep improving. My bikes are really good right now, but we are always brainstorming and trying new things. It seems like every time we come up with an idea and we test it works out that it makes the bike a little better. Then we test again and it gets a little better. I just want to keep testing, keep training, and keep building my program. The results will come eventually, and I know everyone is waiting and wanting me to get that 1st win, but really its just about building a solid program that is going to make my career long and fulfilling. I'm going to be around for awhile, so I think I can afford to take the time now to learn as much as I can.

Photo by Shan Moore (Georgia)

Have you had any discussions with teams about next year?
As for 2011, I've had some ideas and some other stuff come across my table already, so we are discussing those options right now for sure, but I've been REALLY focused on racing and just doing everything I can to be a better racer at the next event and have sort of put all that stuff out of mind. Now that we are on summer break I can go back and kinda learn all about what's on the table, what I am looking for, what other people are looking for... this is all new to me, so before I do anything I need to learn how it all works first.

The GNCC series seems to be doing an awesome job. You’re on the inside…how do you feel about the series as a whole? How would you feel about more optional extreme obstacles?
I think the series is doing great. We have a pretty decent TV package right now which is huge. I'm not sure how I feel about optional extreme obstacles. Would it be cool? yes... Is it the right thing to do.. probably not. If you want to race over extreme obstacles, go race endurocross. Our courses and series is pretty fast and dangerous as is... we don't need to add to it. I think the series needs to come up with a way for fans to be more interactive from the paddock area. Either tracking riders with GPS on a big screen, or live feed from a helmet cam like the outdoor nationals have... Something like that would be cool to have at the track for fans, spectators, and the teams. If you could get that kind of technology to the people at home I think interest in the sport would grow, in turn leading to a bigger tv package, in turn leading to outside sponsors, in turn leading to more teams and bigger salaries.

Photo by Shan Moore

You’ve also raced WORCS and OMA events. Would you like to see a BIG one-off event held in the central part of the country that would be a one-race showdown between the top riders in each race series? (9-Hour / 3-man team setting would be cool?)
Don't we have that already? called ISDE? I think its a cool concept for sure, but I think any time you take east coast guys vs. west coast guys, some one is going to cry about it. If you make it too much woods, the worcs guys will cry, if you put a big jump in the track, the east coast guys will cry about it. Cool concept that I would love to see come about.. however I don't think you would ever get a LEGIT race. Someone would have problems and excuses would be flying..

Photo from RPM's Website

Folks that help make it happen?
It's crazy that this season is already over 1/2 way now. Seems like just a few weeks ago I was scratching my head wondering how in the heck I was going to make it to the races this year. The people that stuck behind me at that point deserve the most credit. Performance Super Cycle, Clockwork, Ride PG, Genuine Dirt Racer, WMR, FLY, Scott, FMF Sidi, Renthal, Maxxis. Big Big thanks to Ben Weathers and Bart Hayes at RidePG/GDR, George, Stan, Bob and Joe at WMR, Jeremy Ketchum at KTM North America, and of course RPM Racing Team and their associated sponsors for picking me up and helping me stay up front.

Thanks very much for taking the time and good luck during the second half of the season!
Thanks! Hope to see everyone out at the races. We're pitted next to the factory FMF/KTM semi with our own E-Z up, so don't be afraid to come say Hi!

Bach's RPM Racing Team Page Here.

		April '10 Interview with Dirt Rider Magazine's Chris Denison Here "...We new-gen off-roaders are getting a lot more respect and notoriety from the MX world, and I think that will carry over into seeing some new faces at the off-road events in the next five years..."

		March '10 Tuesday Toolbox Interview with Rachel Fluharty Here "...I want to be the best in the world. I'm just trying to ride with these guys and be the best..."

		March '10 Racechat with DigitalOffroad.com Here "...I actually enjoy the racing a lot better in the XC1 class. It seems that there is a mutual respect kind of thing, and everyone is clean and the caliber of riders is 2nd to none..."

		March '10 Dirt Rider Magazine Industry Buzz by Fly Racing Here "...Fly Racing team rider Chris Bach exploded on to the XC1 Pro Class scene with a veteran performance at round one of the 2010 GNCC series..."

		August '09 Tuesday Toolbox Interview with Rachel Fluharty Here "...If I can do something I love for a career then that's what I'll do-even if means living in my van..."
	Left: Photo by Shan Moore (cropped)

Performance Supercycle KTM Press Release Here
"...I'm really excited to be back on KTMs for 2010. I have been on KTMs through most of my amateur career, and to be back on orange with a great shop like Performance Supercycle is a great feeling. I know I have the right group of people behind me this year, and with this deal finally coming together I can get down to business and start focusing 100% on testing and training to make my rookie Pro season successful..."