Vital MX Pop Quiz: Paul Carpenter

Always popular with the fans, American Paul Carpenter ventured north this summer in pursuit of a Canadian National Championship. As we were browsing through the results from the Canadian Nationals, we were pleasantly surprised to see that he is sitting on the top of the points lead. Riding in the MX1 Class, the Monster Energy/Cernics/Kawasaki's Carpenter is definitely on a roll. The Ithaca, NY native has won three of five rounds and has a comfortable 69 point lead over Royal Distributing Stoneridge KTM's Marco Dubé.  We gave Paul a call to check in on him and see how he is doing.

VMX: Hey Paul, how is it going?

PC: Great, it is great to hear from you guys!

VMX: So you have a nice point lead going right now, how do you feel about that?

PC: It’s been good. Some of the guys have been real up and down and things have been going good for me and I have been riding pretty consistent, and that has allowed me to get some points, which is good!

VMX: We miss you at the races but it is cool to see how well you are doing up there!
 
PC: Yeah dude, it’s different, I really miss being around everybody. When you have been around for so long you get to know everybody you know? Canada is just different.

VMX: Do you feel a little like a stranger up there?
PC: Not really a stranger, I have actually met a lot of cool people. The first couple of rounds I didn’t really talk to anybody so that was kind of weird.

VMX: What is the whole vibe up there like?

PC: Overall, it’s pretty cool. Most of the people are very cool. There are a few people that do not think so highly of Americans, but for the most part they are all great.

VMX: How about the tracks and your equipment? You are basically riding the same bike you were riding here aren’t you?

PC: Yeah, I am on the same stuff, but the tracks are so hit and miss, it’s funny. One track will be great one week, but then the next week it might be real narrow, kind of set up a lot like an amateur track. I think the organization is trying real hard to make them all good though. Sometimes the tracks can be real one-lined because maybe they haven’t learned to bale one section to get guys to use other lines. They actually prep them real good and dig them real deep and they put a lot of prep work into the track, but then they allow everybody to run the one fast line and that stays the fast line throughout the day.

VMX: It sounds like this has been a real good deal for you so far.

PC: Yeah, absolutely! I am really pumped that I came up here. At first it was something that I didn’t know much about, and wasn’t really that keen on going there, but it has been an experience I have really enjoyed, and if the opportunity arose, I would do it again. We have got these next four races and hopefully I can have some more good luck and maybe be the defending champ, but we’ll see. That is still a few races away.

VMX: You have had some of your best success before in the Four Stroke Nationals. How do you think the two series compare, or do they at all?

PC: They are very similar, they all go to the same kind of tracks, and the racing is real close. To be honest with you, they are both almost one in the same. It is very close to exactly what I was doing there. You have different people and a different organization running it, but the racing is very much the same.

VMX: Speaking of the organization, how is the CMRC? (Canadian Motosport
Racing Club)

PC: To their credit, they are doing a really good job lately. In the beginning of the year we had some problems with yellow flags, and they may have had a teenager flagging and what not. And then they tried to enforce some crazy rules, like if you jumped more than eight feet on a yellow or something, you would get docked. They have a done a real good job changing some of those rules after seeing how it was affecting a lot of people and hurting them. They have been doing a really good job lately and I am real happy about that.

VMX: It sounds like they take advice well.

PC: Yeah, they do, that is what they have been doing the best. They have made it so on every Saturday after practice, they have a meeting with the top ten guys, to get some feedback from us, asking how the track is, and if any changes need to be made or anything else. Again, to their credit, they are really trying to listen to what we have to say and have been doing a great job. I think in the past few weeks they have made changes after listening to riders input, and not only has that made better racing, it makes it better for the spectators too.

VMX: Can you tell us a little bit about the race that got cancelled, or the situation that led to what was called a boycott and the riders wouldn’t race?

PC: I wouldn’t call it a boycott necessarily. It was more like an agreement by the riders and teams to just not race. They canceled the second 125 moto, or as they like to call it the MX2. But they said they still wanted the 250s, the MX1, to still race, but the track was almost impossible to get around. In the first moto, I think out of thirty-eight bikes, only seven of them crossed the finish line, running. The rest of them probably blew up. In the middle of the moto I had stop and add more coolant to my bike, the bike was just so heavy with the mud, and could barely push through the mess. They knew the MX2 bikes couldn’t make it, but they still wanted us to go out there. We pretty much said that if they weren’t going to run both classes, then we weren’t going out there. Somebody came up with the idea that we were boycotting it, but in reality they may not have made the best decisions.
It was a very long day that is for sure. No final decisions were made to cancel the race until about 6:00. Most of the riders were already in their street clothes and were ready to go home. All day they were changing their minds. They sent the 125’s to the line, and then pulled them off. It was a rough day for everybody. We are just trying to act like the race never happened and move on from there. After that race they (CMRC) started to really try and change for the better, which I believe they have.

VMX: So the team has a new sponsor in Monster Energy, how is that working out?

PC: Great! It is still the Cernic’s team with Billy Whitley and Derek Sorenson, and it is the same program, but now we have Monster on board. Monster Energy is the title sponsor of the circuit up here, and it is cool to be running a Monster bike. The fans all obviously love Monster up here, and the kids all come over to our truck and love it. It is working out great for both of us.

VMX: Any plans on coming back to the U.S. for some Nationals?

PC: You know, I am not real sure. Right now I am just kind of going week-to-week, and first I want to try and take care of this Canadian deal and get that Championship. But I’ve still got four races left and it’s not over yet, so I just gotta keep plugging along. After this is over, should an opportunity rise, you will definitely see me at some American Nationals.

VMX: And Supercross, you will be back for that right?
 
PC: Yes, I will be back for Supercross.

VMX: Is there anybody you want to thank?

PC: Yeah, for sure! I want to thank Cernics, Monster Energy, Pro Circuit, and Moto Options.

VMX: Thanks for talking with us Paul!

PC: Thank you too, I appreciate the call!