Q&A with Supercross competitor, Eagle Mountain’s Brandan Leith

Grip it & Rip it
    The Sun Advocate recently talked to Eagle Mountain native Brandan Leith, a 250SX rider who competed last week in Salt Lake City. He spoke to the Sun Advocate about what kind of work goes into being a Supercross rider, if he does any free riding off the track and whether racing in his home state  will feel different compared to the rest of the circuit.
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 Q&A with Brandan Leith, 250SX Supercross rider
SA: How did you get into riding dirt bikes?
BL: I got into riding dirt bikes when I was 4 years old. My dad brought home a little 50cc motorcycle, which is the smallest one they make and pretty soon after that we went to our first race and then we have been doing it since now and I am 21 years old now.
SA: How many years have you been in the Supercross Circuit?
BL: Two years.
SA: Will racing in your home state be different compared to the other races in the circuit?
BL: It will be a little different but in a good way. I think it brings a lot of excitement and you always want to do good but you really want to do good in your home state.
SA: What does training for Supercross entail? Where? How much time?
BL: A lot of cardio training. When we are on the dirt bike, it is max heart, which for me is anywhere from 185-195 for upwards of 20 minutes. So to train for that we do a lot of cardio workouts as well as a lot of strength workouts because the bike is 225 pounds; you have to be able to be strong to control it so it is a lot of cardio and strength workouts. I do a lot of workouts with a mountain bike. I do a lot of mountain biking. A lot of weight training as well at the local gym.
SA: Who is your biggest role model?
BL: Ricky Charmicheal is the greatest motocross racer of all time. I have always looked up to him since I was 4.
SA: I noticed you don’t have any sponsors on your bio sheet, is that true? Is that challenging?
BL: We have a couple local ones like Duff Shelley in American Fork but no major sponsors that helps us financially. Its an expensive sport, so to not have any financial help is really tough to make it to all the rounds without that financial support.
SA: Out of all the tracks on the Circuit, which is your favorite? Why?
BL: Salt Lake. Just my hometown race and I love sleeping in my bed the night before, waking up and going racing.
SA: What is your main goal for the Salt Lake race?
BL: My main goal for Salt Lake is to make another Main Event and hopefully finish inside the top 15.
SA: Where do you see yourself in the next 10 years?
BL: Hopefully racing dirt bikes is the hopeful thing at least for a couple more years if we can keep improving otherwise I would be working for my dad in Stewart’s Heating and Air Conditioning in Eagle Mountain.
SA: Do you do any free riding out of practice? If so where?
BL: We do a little bit but every time we go out on the bike there is a purpose behind it, usually doing laps or working on a certain thing.
SA: Your race in Seattle was your best race of the season, what did you do different?
BL: We just had a really good day in Seattle. We were excited to be there and we got a pretty good start and just rode how we knew we could and didn’t get nervous or tight or have any of those jitters.
SA: What’s the hardest part about riding motocross?
BL: It takes a lot of work from being physically in shape to having a good motorcycle to eating right to being mentally strong out there. That’s probably what’s the hardest thing.
SA: What has driven you to go this far in the sport?
BL: It’s really just been a goal type of thing. Like we reach one goal and we want to do better. Then you set a new goal and you want to get to that next goal. And that’s all I’ve really known and I’ve been racing since I was 4 years old. So we want to get to the top of it and just make sure all those years were worth it.
SA: When you were 4 years old, did you expect to be this far in the sport?
BL: I don’t know if we expected it but we hoped we would be there.
SA: What do you do during the off season?
BL: A lot of mountain biking. I love to mountain bike, I love to snowboard, and hang out anywhere in Utah really. I love Utah. So I love to go hiking, snowboarding, mountain biking, fishing, all of it.
SA: Have you visited Carbon County before?
BL: Yeah there’s a fun track down in Carbon County. It’s a fun one. The dropoff is cool. I really like the guy who runs it. He’s a good guy, he puts on a really good race. He’s really professional.
SA: Do you have interest in freestyle motocross? Is there any tricks you can do?
BL: No I do not. The biggest trick I can do is pulling a tear off off my goggles. Take your left hand off and rip it off to clear your lens.
SA: What does race day look like as a Supercross rider?
BL: Race Day we usually wake up probably around seven. We eat a healthy breakfast. Then we do a warm up, an exercise warm up. Go to the track. Then you have one free practice which would be ten minutes long so its not timed then you go into two qualifying sessions which are 10 minutes long and that will determine your gate pick for the heat race at the night show. If you make it to the heat race they take the top forty out of qualifying then the rest have to go home and top forty go to the heat. Then you’ll do a seven minute heat race and top nine will go the main event then the rest go the LCQ and the top four from the LCQ will go to the main event as well and then in the 250 class we have a fifteen minute main event at the end of the night.
SA: What’s the worst accident you have had on your bike?
BL: I had a bad one when I was about 13 years old. I cased a jump and I didn’t even crash, I just cased it and all the pressure went to my legs I broke both of tibs and fibs. I was out for about 6 months. We were in a wheel chair for about four months. Yeah it was tough.
SA: If you could switch life with any motocross rider, who would it be?
BL: Whoever is winning that night.
SA: What is it like lining up at the gate? What is going through your head?
BL: It’s pretty stressful. Its really nerve racking. There is everyone in the crowd. You know you put in all this work and its just for that race so you really want to do everything you can to have a good race and its very stressful and nervous but exciting at the same time. Just making sure you have a good start so you can be up front with the fast guys and run their speed.