Training to Win an MX Championship: Seat time

There’s no substitute for running ruts! It’s part four of our series on how to train like a pro.

6 July 2015 Author Aaron Hansel

Competing at the top tier of motocross and supercross is no joke. In addition to superlative talent, today’s top motocross athletes must also be extremely fit in order to weather the exhausting, physical storm that is modern racing. As a result, most pro racers have stringent off-the-bike fitness programs that would leave the average person wrecked and begging for mercy. However, as tough as the off-the-bike exercise is, it’s a small portion of the overall load. In this edition of Championship Form, Aldon Baker, trainer to Red Bull KTM’s Ryan Dungey, Marvin Musquin and many more, explains why there’s no replacement for actual seat time.

The Main Course

“Seat time is essential for maintaining and building bike skills, but it also fulfils a big part of their exercise requirements. There’s nothing that can directly duplicate what they do on the motorcycle,” Baker says. “That’s the main thing that they do, and it’s what everything hinges around. Everything else, all the other exercises, are designed to complement the riding. You want to duplicate that repetition to be so natural, and in order to do that you have to put in a lot of seat time.”

The Workload

“I would say 80 percent of Ryan and Marvin’s day is based around riding. They have to do a lot of riding to keep their skills and focus up, and while they’re doing that they’re also maintaining their fitness. Actual riding time varies depending on if they’re training for motocross or supercross, but for supercross it’s at least an hour every time they’re riding, and you’re looking at at least four days of riding.”

“If you count up how many laps, including on race weekend, it’s a lot, nearly 1000 laps in a month. It’s up there! It depends on the athlete too, and where they’re at with their fitness – you’ve got to build up to that. Of course, a 250 rider isn’t expected to do all that when training for supercross [250 supercross races are five laps shorter than their 450 counterparts], it just hinges on how much race time they have to have and what they’re preparing for. I don’t think people comprehend how much really goes into it.”