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Only $10 for all 2026 SX, MX, and SMX series.
Or Dungey, or RV.
RC was heads/tails above everyone else when he was racing, for sure. That said - the guys today are much more fit - better training programs, better nutrition, better injury prevention and recovery programs, better PEDs, etc. RC could certainly be competitive in terms of raw talent, but he would hit his physical limit much sooner. The 2026 athlete is optimized to operate at 95% of their maximum capacity for longer with a much lower risk of breakdown. It's really not debatable.
It's expensive as hell, I don't know how folks do it. We had gravel/sand pits around where I grew up to ride on, no one had any proper track. Nutrition? Beer and water. . .ham sandwiches and little Debbie cakes ..
Raced arenacross and got an eye opener....
Goodtimes ...
I'm inclined to agree. 1, 2 and 3 were all really good.
I'm a little biased toward Terrafirma 3, though. I was able to attend the premiere party at the Hollywood Bowl way back when it was released. Bunch of drunk MX guys went absolutely ballistic at the opening scene when Johnny Campbell goes flying past the camera at 100MPH. Jeff Emig was cruising around in his Shift leisure suit after winning the outdoor championship. It was a memorable night!
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Not debatable, true, because its pure speculation on your part.
What part, exactly? You don't think that athlete training, nutrition, recovery, etc. programs have evolved significantly in the past 20 years?
I really don't think that someone could put forth a credible counter-argument, but I remain open minded.
That would be a pretty epic night. can't imagine a bunch of MX guys getting wild at the Hollywood Bowl haha feel's like surf & skate are the only one's still having fun at film premiere's haha
The new generation could be in better shape but I'm pretty sure RC could go 100% for 2 36 min motos ? Where's the advantage ? Flexibility and strength ? Repair and recovery has advanced. Saying RC would run out of gas, eeehh I don't know ...
The methods used on RC are very similar to what is used today. No, I do not think that there have been big jumps in nutrition. The benefits and application of protein, carbs , fats remains very similar to this day.
I suppose if you're speak to hyperbaric chambers and things of that nature, sure. RC was getting 9-10 hours of sleep a night. Recovery, near covered.
Training can be a weird one and is probably the most subjective because one size fits all is near impossible. Baker worked for RC, RD, RV, while James and Kenny didn't really mesh with it.
Bottom line, once RC started his goat assent in 01, I can't picture a time he ever came off the track just smoked physically.
The Vegas race in ‘03? That was factory Kawi. He ran splitfire/pc graphics on his amateur bikes, but went straight to the factory team when he went pro. I think he had a factory Honda offer (there’s pic of him testing the bike) and probably used that as leverage to ride for factory Kawi and get his own gear deal. Give me a factory deal or I’ll go to factory Honda probably.
There is truth in what he is saying
PEDs and supplements are light years ahead of what they used to be, and that is a huge contributor to recovery
Food and nutrition are the same, but there has been advancements in specialty diets that helps recovery and even brain health.
There are also better ways to monitor the body now to help guys control over training and stress levels. I think it’s why the guys who grind now can go into their 30 and their bodies aren’t as tired. Eli said that he doesn’t train some days if his is overworked.
Aldons program with RC is drastically different now, it’s no more grinding till you drop, it’s trying to find peak performance and maintaining it.
But I do agree, RC would be fine endurance wise against the top guys, but as we seen, it’s not sustainable.
No big jumps in nutrition? The "macros are macros" argument misses the massive jump in how they’re applied. Back in RC’s 2006 era, it was just "clean fueling"—mountains of pasta and chicken to survive the grind. Today, it’s about metabolic precision. These guys are using CGMs (Continuous Glucose Monitors) to see exactly how their blood sugar reacts to specific carb sources. It’s not just "eating carbs" anymore; it’s using something like highly branched cyclic dextrin to keep blood sugar perfectly flat so they don't spike and crash mid-moto.
Hydration has gone from "drink a gallon of Gatorade" to custom sweat-profile mapping. They’re measuring exact sodium and potassium loss per hour to prevent the micro-cramping that causes arm pump. Plus, the focus on gut health and anti-inflammatory loading (like tart cherry or curcumin) means they can recover and hit the same intensity 24 hours later, whereas the 2006 guys were just chronically inflamed and overtrained. The fuel might be the same, but the timing and delivery systems are on a completely different level now.
Perfectly said.
i still watch Bar to Bar 2003 almost weekly.
For me, The difference watching the older racing is 2nd place wasn't good enough back then..
Watching RC send it was peak MX for me. Balls to the walls, white knuckle racing.
I saw him on a PC bike in 2001 at the Mini-Os, this pic is Loretta's though.
He ran the PC kits on his minis too, sooo sick
I couldn’t stop watching that! How’s that ever gonna be topped? Probably never.
Pit Row
You're making some great points, but we have to be careful to not imply that they were dragging knuckles 20 years ago either. AP is proof that you can still take a hit and have all the signs of overtraining even with the metrics you've posted.
When the rubber meets the road, and longevity aside, 2004 RC wouldn't get beat because of fitness in 2026.
I did enjoy your post though, sounds like you know some things.
I've always wanted to know the exact offset on the triple clamps and the C/L to C/L length of the rear link James ran. I'd pay dearly for those on his 04' KX125 & 05' KX250 2 stroke.
You can't take 2004 RC and assume if he was racing today he wouldn't be maximizing today's training and nutrition regime. What motivated him to put in the work and accomplish what he did in his era undoubtably would have motivated him today.
It always felt like RC hated losing as much if not more than he loved winning.
RC was so juiced up, he was probably the fittest mx athlete that ever existed
Here’s some twenty-four years old shtuff…..
Post a reply to: Damn. Has it really been 2 decades?