Canard Looks To Anaheim I
Cycle News Staff | December 16, 2010
Trey Canard will be making his debut as a factory rider this January, lining up in the 450 division at Anaheim I as a teammate of Josh Grant at Team Honda. The redheaded Okie is coming off of a big win this summer, overcoming a huge deficit to win the 250 outdoor AMA National Motocross title over Christophe Pourcel.Canard also had a bit if success on the 450 during last season’s Supercross series, riding a few of the east coast rounds. He is currently training at his home near Shawnee, Oklahoma, where Cycle News spoke with him about his off-season.Do you train any differently when you’re getting ready for Supercross, as opposed to getting ready for motocross?The biggest difference, with motocross you basically have a full season of racing under your belt because you’ve just finished up the supercross season. So the core preparation isn’t as critical, because you are basically riding off what you’ve built during supercross. Off-season for supercross is a lot different. Before the Supercross season, I think tensions get high and everyone is excited because they have new bikes or new teams and there’s a lot of anticipation. Really, the training never really stops, but for supercross you might go more intensity when you’re riding and maybe shorter motos, but you still do sprints and motos. The main thing for me is just to not over think it and to enjoy it.Some of the riders will build obstacles that are identical to those that will be found on certain tracks during the season. Is that something you will do?Yes and no. You can try to duplicate the tracks but it’s never the same. You show up and it’s completely different than the track map. So I try not to get too carried away with that and just worry about the preparation – not focusing too much on predetermined outcomes, because it’s never the same.Is there a different mindset for Supercross?For outdoor races, you can kind of let the race come to you. I think more people get tired in outdoors and more people get frustrated in outdoors, whereas supercross, the motos aren’t as long and there aren’t as many elements in supercross, because it’s not nearly as hard. So it’s different between the two. It’s just super important to get good starts in supercross and put in consistent laps – make sure you hit your lines and carry good momentum.You’re moving up to a 450. How are you adapting to the big bike?With the 450 I have to rethink things a little. I’ll have to put a little more focus into it, but for the most part it will be basically the same. I think the big thing is on the 450 you have to be a lot smoother. Make sure I respect it and not get out of line, where on the 250 I was at the point where I could ride the thing as hard as I could. It’s a totally different bike and I think it actually suits me better where I can actually ride to my limits a little more and actually go faster. It’s a different style, for sure, and a different class and different riders. Overall, it’s going to be tough but I think I’m ready to take the challenge and do the best that I can.Let’s talk about your specific program. You have Timmy Ferry helping you this year. Tell us what Timmy brings to your program.Timmy’s help was huge this summer; I have a lot of respect for him and I think we have a really good relationship as far as the training goes and we’re also really good friends. I think he’s been a big part of the success. He’s more than just a trainer; he’s also kind of like an advisor. He’s also a riding coach and someone to just calm me down and reassure me. We talk on the phone a lot and we spend a lot of time together.Does he set up a workout schedule for you, or how does that work?Tim works closely with Dean Golich from Carmichael Training Systems. That’s who he worked with when he was racing. So Timmy sets up the training schedule and we just communicate about how it’s going for me. He helps me keep everything in prospective as far as training and riding and traveling and photo shoots and everything also that comes along.Once the season gets here, how will you change your weekly routine?It’s gonna stay basically the same, but I think the effort is going to be a little bit lower. You will have two travel days you don’t normally have during the off-season, so you won’t have as much time. I learned a lot this summer about having a full season. You just have to stay on top of it and not do too much or too little. It’s about finding that sweet spot.Did you learn anything about yourself this summer, coming from so far down to win the 250 outdoor title?I think what I learned is that I just need to believe in myself a little bit. If I believe in myself then things can happen. I got a few gifts this summer and I can’t take complete credit for it. It was an awesome series and it’s something I will always remember and hopefully it’s something I can pull from for years to come.
