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<p>Throughout the course of our sport’s rich history, racers have proven time and time again that the quality of your mechanical equipment will only get you so far. Countless racers have been awarded factory contracts only to ride around mid-pack all year; conversely, we’ve all seen talented racers have breakthrough performances on substandard bikes, motors or suspension components. While being part of a good team with dialed equipment can mean the difference between winning the main and not qualifying for it, there comes a point where the bike only matters so much and the quality of the rider is the determining factor in results. No matter how fast a guy’s motor is or how well his suspension works, if his fitness isn’t there, it won’t mean a thing in the end.With race teams streaming truckloads of resources and endless man-hours toward the pursuit of perfect machines, it’s easy to ignore the specifications of the riders themselves. That’s why Dirt Rider conducted the Ultimate Rider test: to shed light on the stats of some of the sport’s top pros and determine what makes up the “ideal racer.” To do this, we surveyed a sampling of supercross riders who represent the entire population-tall and short, big and small, fast and incredibly fast-to see how the average top supercross racer measures up in terms of cold, hard numbers. We’ve also asked the riders to shed a little light on their own physical traits and makeup. Individually, these statistics are the racer’s equivalent of a factory bike’s parts list, and provide a very personal glimpse at how each of these riders is built. When combined and averaged, we believe these numbers represent the Ultimate Supercross Rider-the ideal set of proportions that are the universal standard for the perfect supercross rider.<strong>Greatest physical advantage:</strong> “Maybe my heart. I don’t really quit.”<br /><strong>Greatest physical disadvantage:</strong> “Probably my heart [laughs]. You know, sometimes I push a little too far, but it’s just one of those things.”<br /><strong>One thing I’d change about myself:</strong> “Well, I probably wouldn’t change anything for what my sport is, but if I could be taller, I could scare people a little bit more. I’m like a midget.”<br /><strong>Top three favorite foods:</strong> “Chicken because that’s basically all I eat, pizza, and I like eggs a lot.”<br /><strong>Top three favorite exercises:</strong> “Weight training, cycling and riding. That would be my deal… and golf.”<br /><strong>Greatest physical advantage:</strong> “I have a great body size-not too tall or too short, which helps me stay compact and neutral on the bike.”<br /><strong>Greatest physical disadvantage:</strong> “Nothing comes to mind.”<br /><strong>One thing I’d change about myself:</strong> “I’m happy with what I’ve got; my parents did a great job!”<br /><strong>Top three favorite foods:</strong> “Thai food, Japanese and Australian works burgers-so yummy.”<br /><strong>Top three favorite exercises:</strong> “Cycling, swimming and running on the beach.”<br />*Biggest Guns! **Largest Neck!<strong>Greatest physical advantage:</strong> “I guess it’s my long legs that make it so I’ll never topple over. In the whoops I never have to worry about the bike hitting me in the butt or having it tip over.”<br /><strong>Greatest physical disadvantage:</strong> “I think my center of gravity is higher than most which makes me a little bit top-heavy and it’s easier to get cramped on the bike.”<br /><strong>One thing I’d change about myself:</strong> “I’d like to be lighter. I’ve been 190 pounds since my 125 championships and it seems like I’ve always packed around more weight than most just because of my build.”<br /><strong>Top three favorite foods:</strong> “Sushi, Mexican food, potato chips.”<br /><strong>Top three favorite exercises:</strong> “Riding, road biking and throwing around the weights.”<br />*Biggest Guns! **Largest Neck!<strong>Greatest physical advantage:</strong> “I have a strong butt and legs. I think being thick is an advantage.”<br /><strong>Greatest physical disadvantage:</strong> “I don’t have one!”<br /><strong>One thing I’d change about myself:</strong> “I don’t think I’d change anything.”<br /><strong>Top three favorite foods:</strong> “Mexican, Italian, sushi.”<br /><strong>Top three favorite exercises:</strong> “Schwinn Air Dyne, weight lifting and mountain biking.”
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Greatest physical advantage: “I have long legs and a lot of strength, which is a good combination!”
Greatest physical disadvantage: “My weight is my biggest disadvantage. I am just too heavy!”
One thing I’d change about myself: “I wouldn’t mind being smaller and more compact.”
Top three favorite foods: “Italian, pizza, chicken.”
Top three favorite exercises: “Cycling, gym, yoga.”
*Longest Wingspan! **Biggest Quads! ***Biggest Calves!Greatest physical advantage: “I guess it seems like at the end of the motos I can turn it up and I’m in really good shape toward the end. I do get tired and hot, but that doesn’t seem to affect me as much as it does other riders.”
Greatest physical disadvantage: “I think there’s definitely stuff I need to work on…we’re not all perfect. But I can’t pick anything out.”
One thing I’d change about myself: “I’d like to be a little bit bigger up top-upper body strength-wise.”
Top three favorite foods: “A good hamburger, steak sandwich, sushi.”
Top three favorite exercises: “I wouldn’t say I love them, but it’s riding my motorcycle, road biking and hitting the gym. I do what I have to do.”
Greatest physical advantage: “I have really good eyesight, and I think that helps a lot on the track.”
Greatest physical disadvantage: “My height. I’m kind of short!”
One thing I’d change about myself: “I wish I was more flexible, like gymnast level.”
Top three favorite foods: “Sushi, pasta, cool ranch Doritos.”
Top three favorite exercises: “Cycling, lifting weights and riding motos.”
Greatest physical advantage: “I have really quick reaction time. I do a lot of eye/hand coordination when I’m practicing.”
Greatest physical disadvantage: “I lack speed in the whoops. I’m more of a motocross specialist, but I’m trying to make supercross better for me.”
One thing I’d change about myself: “I’d be a little taller so I could hit the whoops a bit better.”
Top three favorite foods: “Chicken, steak and vegetables.”
Top three favorite exercises: “Motocross, road biking and I love to go to the gym.”
Greatest physical advantage: “I don’t think I have anything that really stands out.”
Greatest physical disadvantage: “Nothing major.”
One thing I’d change about myself: “I want better reaction time.”
Top three favorite foods: “Guacamole, spaghetti, fajitas.”
Top three favorite exercises: “Cycling, tennis and riding motos.”
Greatest physical advantage: “My endurance. I can ride for however long I need to, whether it’s 30 minutes, an hour or two hours.”
Greatest physical disadvantage: “My ability to sprint and breathe for the first three or four laps of the race isn’t that great. But the opposite of that is I’m able to have endurance for long periods of time.”
One thing I’d change about myself: “Honestly, if I could make myself tan. I like to be outside but the sun kills me with these freckles. My one change would be to be able to stand in the sun without putting sunscreen on.”
Top three favorite foods: “Tostitos chips, ice cream, pizza.”
Top three favorite exercises: “Honestly, I don’t really like to do anything (for training) except just ride. Can I say supercross, motocross and trail ride?”Greatest physical advantage: “My fitness. That’s one thing I really work on, to be strong.”
Greatest physical disadvantage: “My arms are long, so when I bench, it feels like it takes forever to get to the top. It feels like it takes 10 seconds to come down and another 20 to push it up.”
One thing I’d change about myself: “Maybe just more fitness. I’m happy with my physical side of things and wouldn’t trade it for the world. More and more fitness wouldn’t hurt.”
Top three favorite foods: “Granola and yogurt, pasta, Panera sandwiches.”
Top three favorite exercises: “Road biking, Stairmaster and the gym-both free weights and machines.”
Greatest physical advantage: “My endurance is pretty good. I spend a lot of time on the bicycle so I’m right there with everybody.”
Greatest physical disadvantage: “If I had to complain about anything, it’d be my wrists and wrist strength since I’ve injured them so many times.”
One thing I’d change about myself: “I wish I could take away all my injuries. But with each injury, I’ve learned something so there’s good and bad with everything.”
Top three favorite foods: “Mexican food, breakfast, Sour Patch Kids candy.”
Top three favorite exercises: “Riding motos, cycling, weight training.”
Greatest physical advantage: “I’m a lot stronger than I look. I bench right around 210.”
Greatest physical disadvantage: “I have super, super short legs and a tall torso. When I do starts-now with the new rule you can’t have blocks-sometimes I can’t touch the ground, and then I’m kind of in trouble.”
One thing I’d change about myself: “Maybe more tan so I’d look better.”
Top three favorite foods: “I love any kind of pasta, can’t go wrong with steak, and I love breakfast foods like eggs, bacon, toast-all that stuff.”
Top three favorite exercises: “Road biking-we do that so much you learn to like it. I really, really enjoy lifting weights. If I didn’t ride dirt bikes, I’d probably lift weights every day and lift heavier weights. I like swimming, too, though I don’t do it too much.”
Greatest physical advantage: “I have a really strong core which gives me great all-around strength.”
Greatest physical disadvantage: “My height-it would be easier to recover from mistakes if I had longer legs.”
One thing I’d change about myself: “I want Lance Armstrong’s lung capacity!”
Top three favorite foods: “Italian, sushi, steak.”
Top three favorite exercises: “Cycling, running, weight training.”
Greatest physical advantage: “I was born a little stockier and growing up I was into wrestling, so I think I’m pretty strong on the bike.”
Greatest physical disadvantage: “I don’t feel like I have any disadvantages, I just make it work with what I’ve got.”
One thing I’d change about myself: “I wouldn’t change anything. I’m blessed with what I’ve got. People taller than me have made it happen and people shorter than me have made it happen.”
Top three favorite foods: “When not training I really enjoy Chinese food. As far as training foods I like chicken and rice, and pasta with salmon.”
Top three favorite exercises: “My trainer has me do some pretty unique stuff, like the ladder run and the tire flip like the Ultimate Fighting guys do, just to get me a little stronger, and my third favorite is cycling.”
Greatest physical advantage: “My fitness. I work pretty hard.”
Greatest physical disadvantage: “I’ve never really thought about it… Maybe some small nagging injuries, and I like to eat junk food. I get a snack in here and there, not too often, though.”
One thing I’d change about myself: “Be a little stronger, have my arms a little bigger.”
Top three favorite foods: “Steak, chicken, and my father’s chicken and dumplings.”
Top three favorite exercises: “Mountain biking, road biking and back exercises in the gym.”
*Smallest Guns!
For The Ladies
As many of our readers know, racing a motorcycle isn’t just for the boys. Although she isn’t a top supercross rider (yet), Team Honda/Red Bull’s newest recruit Ashley Fiolek was more than happy to flex her guns for the DR tape measure, as was current Miss SX Casey Edmondson. While we didn’t count these ladies’ specs toward the Ultimate average, they do show how two females in the sport stack up physically when pitched toe-to-toe with the top SX specialists.Greatest physical advantage: “I’m light!”
Greatest physical disadvantage: “Leg reach-my feet can’t always touch the ground.”
One thing I’d change about myself: “I’m fine with how I am, but I could use a little more strength and wouldn’t mind being taller.”
Top three favorite foods: “Sushi, steak and Red Bull!”
Top three favorite exercises: “Road biking, rowing and strength training.”
Greatest physical advantage: “I can hold a Monster can like nobody’s business!”
Greatest physical disadvantage: “My big boots are hard to walk in.”
One thing I’d change about myself: “I wish I had a bigger butt to better fit in clothes.”
Top three favorite foods: “Chicken, salad, chocolate.”
Top three favorite exercises: “Weights, running and cycling.”
The Ultimate Supercrosser VS. The Ultimate Off-Roader
As you may remember, we recently surveyed some of the top EnduroCross racers in the country to determine the stats for the Ultimate Off-Road Rider (see the January 2009 issue of Dirt Rider for the full story). So, how does the ideal off-road rider compare to the Ultimate Supercross Rider? For starters, both the off-roader and the supercrosser are 5’9″ tall, and both are 24 years old. However, that seems to be where the similarities end. The ideal supercross racer is lighter than his off-road counterpart by approximately 14 pounds, which accounts for the average off-road racer wearing a larger jersey, glove and pant, as well as having a bigger foot by one and a half sizes and a roughly one-inch bigger neck. The Ultimate Off-Roader has a 3.7-inch average wingspan advantage as well. But in spite of the off-roader being larger and heavier, the Ultimate Supercross Rider appears to be stronger; bigger biceps, calves and quads attest to the additional muscle that these riders possess. This demonstrates the surprising muscle mass that many of the smaller-framed supercross riders have. Or maybe it has something to do with the fact that over half of the off-road riders we surveyed labeled pizza and ice cream as favorite foods!
