Do you believe anyone can be pro if provided the same opportunity?

Us mx bros are just hella stupid at long term planning. But really good at reacting to things on the fly.

Dazzy Lawrence could make Jeff Walker a top 5 guy in 12 months.

Its not nature, its nurture.

A vast majority of the pros couldn't organize a piss-up in a brewery.

Every single modern talent has a great team behind them who the real credit belongs to. The rider is just the vessel 

I've often wondered about this. Kind of like when you crash and everything seems like it is going in slow motion. Do some top tier athletes have the ability to process a lot more information than most of us? I have also read some studies that debunk this and say its not necessarily true but I just don't understand how Jett and Eli can do mock 3 through ruts, bumps, and changing terrain without being able to mentally process how the bike and body are going to react before they hit the obstacles. 

"barring physical or mental disability"

I borderline test mentally handicapped, and I raced a few seasons of supercross.

"if you want something bad enough you'll find a way"

"We can work with talent"...lol.

That is one of the great mysteries of Mx… you can be busting your ass to get better for years… and then some kid just shows up out of no where, with much less effort… and just has “it” …and subsequently shows you the fast way around…. K

If this premise was true then it would be a disrespect to the physical ability motocross takes, because I could have worked harder than anybody in the world and had all the generational wealth and there's still no way my body would ever enable me to be in the NFL or NBA. Maybe the MLB as like a second baseman.

Top 5 where, ?

I believe anybody can be fast / good rider and have success at the local level with hard work & dedication. I don't believe everybody can be qualifying for nationals fast....no matter how much work they do.

I've seen it with guys trying to qualify for Loretta's. Some just don't have it. 

This might be the shittiest take on vital i've seen in awhile. If all it takes is the team, why was Villopoto more successful than Weimer, why aren't all Baker Factory riders multi-time champs? 

AMA MX

Lol

Because Weimer wasn't raised having to provide for his family thru his amateur mx results.

Because Baker is mainly a fitness coach.

Weimer's family sold their Farm to get Jake where he needed to be....I'd say he was raised with plenty of expectations from his family to succeed.

On a side note, if you really wanna be a Pro....throw your bike in a crate and ship it to one of the flyaway MXGP races, they will let anyone line up at those just to fill more gates.

He isnt even the fastest dude in ohio . 

3rd at a pro am is  a Really good finish, congratulations.  There’s a few big money pro ams left this yr.  I checked lap times of a smaller pro am 250a vs the 125 class. Get back to around 12-14th & there times r about equal.  It’s not that the 250a riders r slow it’s that the 125 class is that fast.  Shocking really.  Not saying I,m a expert but I think a top 5 125 rider could finish aprox 12th probably at best at a pro am. A 125 dominate rider would b in the top 8 @ some pro ams. Only problem is 8-12th doesn’t pay much. 

I'd like to add that on some days riders are often very fast. There have been days when I felt invincible and didn't even have to try. Now, I've been riding for over 40 years and I still don't know how to replicate that. The pros have those kind of days more often (or always). 

The same is true for certain tracks. I knew a guy once in my 125 Intermediate days who could hang with me at Competition Park. He was hard to beat, honestly. But then he raced his first race at Glen Helen in 125 Beginner and got smoked. Weird, but true. The track was different enough that it messed up his game.  

Yeah I believe it. Look at the Dutch riders in the 2-st days. They podium at s sand track the next week they don’t qualify at a non sand track.  My local hilly never worked & very slippery track.  I Love the layout but not being able to get Really aggressive throws me off. I compare it too riding a rough ice track with hills, etc. I do Love riding it tho. It really sharpens your skills quick.  The best way is just too concentrate on perfect body position & flow. The carving a side bank being super aggressive like Sunday is all wrong. It’s almost like ice riding with no ice.  I just shorted out a little like I wanted to kill the silk bank & throw in a crazy line

I ve taught art . I know it's different to sport or MX .but I strongly feel the same about it . I can tell after the first 30 mins , if someone can learn to be really good at it . Or they can spend every day for the rest of there life doing it and still won't get great at it.  I think u need talent to start with then lots of hard work.  If u have zero talent stating out Mx doesn't matter how much u spend or practice u will never make it as a pro.    Other example is I have a friend who started Mx late in life , like 30 . He does everything wrong . terrible style, but since day one , riding a bike for the first time had unreal corner speed . Some people just have " IT " ..

Even tho I don't agree . I think making Jeff Walker a top 5 guy would be easier than making most people good enough to be a pro. Like some of the population find it hard to catch a ball . We all know these people, in gym class growing up. Zero coordination. The idea you could just take that person and train them to be a pro Motocrosser is insane.  But he / she is probably brilliant at math or something else . 

Absolutely if you have the talent you need the team and the program now.

But all people do not have the same aerobic, strength/flexibility, proprioception/balance base or top end.  Nor can you make someone who lacks killer ambition and drive make those sacrifices without destroying the personality.  

I saw this pretty early with my son's comp soccer.  There are kids who have talent but lack desire; kids who have desire and lack talent, and parents who make their kids without talent or desire aspire to something they don't want to be or can't achieve.  And there are lots of "coaches" ready to take your money and shine you on about that.  

I have thought about this many times.  

I have a friend I grew up with who literally raced a handful of times a year.  He was very athletic with minimal body fat.  He would show up at a National Level Amateur Race and run Top 10 in the B Class. I had to eat a certain diet, train and ride whenever possible to keep him in sight. It just pissed me off he’s over there slamming beers and eating Big Mac’s all week and still faster than me on race weekend. It was definitely genetics.

On the flip side in College I wrenched for Steve Childress in the 90’s. He won 3 amateur titles at Loretta’s (beating Bradshaw and Emig for the A Class in 89). He raced through the early 90’s and was a regular top 10 guy in SX and Nationals. Though when we played sports such as Basketball, Tennis, etc. I was just as good if not better. So it’s definitely not all athletic ability but a combination of athletic, track intelligence and huge balls. After crashing he would be faster and the majority of us are not wired that way. He’s a dentist now so needless to say he was a smart guy.

My son has raced since he was 5 and he’s a good rider. Local B rider but not on a National Level by any means.  There are times he has flashes where he’s really fast but only if someone makes him mad etc. So that tells me the ability is there but he’s not willing to risk the injury or thinks about it. It’s a mental thing.

So to make it to the top or even to local A Status you must have it physically, mentally and the desire. Money is not the key but if you have all 3 it definitely helps.

Bingo, i am a weekend warrior,  but def better playing hoops. Skill is far more important than fitness.in any sport. Once you reach a certain level, ya need the whole package

I truly believe the difference between good and great is zen.  Becoming one with the bike and the dirt.  When you can unconsciously feel and predict what the bike is going to do at any moment and use position and throttle to maintain almost effortless flow...that results in consistency.  That's what we witness at a national.  Comfortable consistency.  Until shit goes sideways.

If you read my post above...I want to add...if you watched Jett this summer...he is the probably the perfect example of how to ride a dirt bike on an MX track.

I seriously doubt he can tell us "why or how" he is so successful.  He'd probably say "hard work" or great bike but it is obvious that he FLOWS better than the rest.  He, the machine, and the track never fight each other.  They become one.

I reckon most of us know that feeling.  If I ever had 3 laps in that zone...I was fucking pumped.  Imagine an entire season in that sweet sweet spot.

I have always believed its a vision and mental processing power super computer quick. Nothing else kicks in until that works. I was so bad at looking ahead just local average b rider. It seems  like Jett looks so far ahead at super speed it looks smooth and easy. 
 

so no. That ability is either there or it isn’t. If you have it, then the work and dedication, turning off the fear come into play. 

You need more than opportunity to be a success. Many people aren't prepared or capable of taking advantage of it when opportunity comes along.

The first question, you need to ask "Does Talent Exist?!"

To trace the origin of the word 'Talent', we must go back to 800 BC. In the works of the Ancient Greek poet Homer, we can already find the first references to talent. In his work, Homer praises 'the gift of God for song' (talent?) possessed by Demodocus.

In the Odysseus story, Demodocus is a blind storyteller and troubadour at the court of King Alcinoüs.

Later, the Ancient Greek rulers also used the word 'talent' to convince their slaves that they had been brought to our Earth by God to serve them, and therefore, they had not been given any talent to do other things, let alone play a role in the lords' games.

However, in Ancient Greek, 'talenton' was also the word for weight and was used to express a currency unit, such as payment with talents of silver. So, when we look at the use of the word 'talent' in relation to the slaves, the lords could have also meant: 'You don't have enough money to count in our society; you are not important enough to participate.'

All of this in mind, knowing that every fellow human being, regardless of their origin and color, can excel in what they choose. Like Lewis Hamilton shows in Formula 1, but also Christophe Lemaitre, who became the first white man to run 100 meters in under 10 seconds. Knowing that diseases are not punishments from God or penance for a past life, ... in short, many of the beliefs that existed 2800 years ago have proven to be false. Therefore, I can confidently say that talent does not exist.

We do not receive talent from a God or the universe. What we do inherit is what is in our DNA, and within that, there may be factors that make children more suitable for sports A or B. But even that is relative. If we were to examine the DNA of Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, and Eden Hazard, we would almost certainly not find a specific DNA code that we can link to their abilities or 'talent' as professional footballers."

The words above are a piece of a work I'm writing and still studying. But to answer your question: Everyone can become a AMA Champion, WC Champion. Definitely in a very technical sport as motocross. Look at Alex Martin and Ken De Dycker both riders couldn't be more apart from physique but both where pro motocross riders who made more then decent money. Same with David Vuillemin and RC. So everyone can become champion because it's 90% working hard and listening to the right people and 10% luck with injuries if we talk about MX.

See to Jett Lawrence he knew that listening to Greg Moss, Stefan and Harry Everts would make him better. Hunter had some problems with Harry' menthality and workd with Greg Moss in Australia and Stefan and Harry Everts and after their fall out he worked with heiko klepka (Roczen) and a short period with Ken Roczen who was in Germany for some rehab. Now they are working with Byrne if I'm not mistaken?! In all kinds of sport but without a doubt in motorcross, parents keep their grip to tight on their kids or drop them on "champ farms". Keep involved and bring in people (former riders - not active riders because they are still to self focused on their own career) who know a thing or two and who can connect to your rider.

This is so true with me. I have days everything is just firing and I'm on it! I'm nothing special but I'm ok. I'll run at the front of 30+ B and 40+B. But I've had days where I get in a zone and I'm on the gas everywhere. Notably through corners. I'll drop in behind A riders and it takes them laps to drop me. I'll think I've finally found something with my riding and got some new level of speed. The next time I ride it's gone and I'm just normal me again lol. 

I agree with this . It's a mental processing thing . Here s an example.  I am an artist and I have low latent inhibition. The best way of explaining that ,is in art college we went to a room every day for a class. Then one day after a few months I came up to the door and the door knob was the colour pink. When I went in I asked the teacher why the hell is the door knob pink . But here's the funny thing . Out of a class of 30 I was the only one to notice it . I found out later the teacher does it every year . And he says every year there will only be a handful who notice. What this is , is latent inhibition. You get use to doing an activity and once you know how to do it you block out all the unimportant things ie, colour s , what the door looks like, etcand there s no need to think about how to do it . It's like taking a short cut in your brain. Someone with low latent inhibition will kind of like be looking at the door for the first time ever time. This makes u very observant eg .good for art, etc.    Imo . I think top MX riders have the opposite high latent inhibition. They are able to block out all the noise . There brains can process faster.they are nearly on autopilot. This is also why I think all great riders are terrible when it comes to seeing yellow flags . They are that locked in it like a train on a track .            Ps. Anyone who thinks different talent s don't exist is crazy . It's normally followed by now buy my book , or do this course etc.