As humans, our bodies were designed (or evolved, depending on how your parents spent their Sundays) in a deliberate, specific way. Think about it: Your body follows your head. Your head follows your eyes. Your eyes follow whatever you train them to, meaning that you mentally have control over what you look at. And in motocross, where you look directly determines where you are going and how quickly you get there. Keeping your eyes up is one of the simplest ways to improve safety and carry speed on the bike, and yet many riders still can't grasp this indispensable concept. Honda Red Bull Racing's Ivan Tedesco sheds some light on the subject:
"Looking ahead is definitely important if you want to go fast. Sure, there are times when you need to look directly in front of you-like if you're following a rut-but most of the time you should be looking ahead for bumps, other riders and anything else that is ahead of you. It doesn't matter if you're cornering, jumping or just going straight; you need to look as far ahead as possible. Things come at you pretty quickly-especially outdoors because you are going so fast-so you need to remember to keep your head up and your eyes forward. This is something that I've had to work on a lot in my career, because sometimes I look right in front of my front wheel and a bump or a rut catches me off guard. The farther ahead you look, the faster you can go because you have more time to prepare for whatever is coming."
"Once you're in the zone and in that mode where you're not really thinking about it too much, your eyes will relax and your instincts will take over. At this point, you almost haze your vision because you aren't focusing on specific things in front of you-you're actually scanning the track. The more you focus on keeping your head up and looking ahead, the easier it will be for you to get in this mode. It takes discipline and a little practice, but if you can remember to keep your head up, you will for sure ride better."
For more info on Tedesco and the Honda Red Bull Racing team, check out www.redbullusa.com.