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What it Takes
An interview with Hamish Dobbyn, one week after taking third place in the 2009 Junior MX World Championship was an opportunity to find out and learn ‘how does this guy make the podium?’
I knew that Hamish had been troubled by injuries (knee displacement and shoulder), had recently switched to Team Green, and had joined the MNZ Training Squad three months prior to the event - all of which made it clear his results were no mean feat. Not least was the impact these changes would have had on preparation and build-up needed for such a prestigious event, making fitness programmes and bike time difficult to implement. I intended to seek answers, basing questions around Hamish’s personal goals, professional achievements and challenges to come.
I asked Hamish if ever, is the challenge too big? He hardly paused. “Nah, never! The challenge is never finished. Third, that was that challenge, now I’m focused on getting my injuries fixed. MX is challenging, that’s what we do, it’s what I enjoy.”
HD’s honest appraisal on what matters personally as well as professionally prompted a re-cap of the two-day event at Taupo. Asking his thoughts on what was most important going into the Junior Worlds, he said it was not to underestimate how strong riders like Eli Tomac (US) and Tye Simmonds (Australia) would be at the end of each race. “Tye and Eli have so much experience; they stay strong till the end of the moto. Their mental strength as well as being physically super-fit keeps them so focused on the track. Both have just finished race season in their home countries and for NZ riders, our last race at national level was in March at the Auckland Champs. Most important were my injuries. Friday I couldn’t do a press-up because of my shoulder and with no ACL and no MCL in my left knee, any tweak would have definitely affected my racing. Mostly, I had an open mind. I knew I couldn’t give 100 per cent but the last thing I was going to do was give up.”
Listening to Hamish gave greater awareness on the extent of his injuries, how they affected his riding as well as the decisions he made on the track. They were never far from his mind. “I tweaked my knee in both motos and had to choose lines that were a safer option. Eli passed me on outside corner after Centrepoint. That line carried more speed but I had to settle for the tighter line to save tweaking my knee. I couldn’t risk taking fast ruts because if my left leg touched the ground, I would have been history. It was just smart to lose a bit of time, maybe half a second and save my knee, rather than make up time and potentially lose the race.”
It was obvious to anyone watching the racing over the two-day event that riders were continually challenged – physically, mentally and technically, no more so than in the sawdust section. “I just love it”, HD continues. “The sawdust section is my favourite part of the whole track, and in fact of any track in the world that I have ridden. I think riders overestimate what it takes to go through the sawdust section. Sure you have to fully commit, but it has so much give, the bike absorbs the bumps, there are no kicks, and I just go in pinned – it’s all about attack.”
Comments like these give an insight on HD and what it takes to make the podium. His use of positive thought to stay focused, determined and mentally strong is credible. To say that’s easy to learn would be an understatement for any rider. So how has it worked for Hamish? Does it come down to the power of the mind? He replies, “Yes, definitely the mind is the strongest thing out there. If anything my injuries gave me time for mental preparation. Training the brain on how to ride the bike perfectly without being on it. At night I would go over perfect lines to take, technique, visualise going round the track. The head is the strongest point. I can’t think, what if I blow a berm, what if I crash? It has to be perfect visualisation. Standing, sitting at the perfect time, leg out, smooth throttle, speed. Sure, injuries knock you back, but I learnt a lot from it. Maybe if I was on the bike the whole time it wouldn’t have worked out as it did. The mental side of MX is a hard thing to learn, I haven’t really got it yet, but I know I did everything I could before the World’s, there was nothing else to do but be mentally prepared.”
Developing mental toughness comes with experience riding and racing on the track, sitting on the sidelines, thinking and waiting to get back on the bike. Knowing that a boost of confidence will be needed come race day. HD has worked at it all. Learning when to zone out, when to tell yourself ‘you’re the best out there’, and when to put nerves and adrenalin on hold till racing is over. This process became clear at SummerX 2007 when he rode in the 450cc class alongside Daryl Hurley and Josh Coppins. “I talked myself into not being psyched out, not to worry who was on the line, and not to think what could go wrong. Riding overseas in Australia and Europe added mental toughness. Now I chill out on the line. At Taupo, waiting behind start gate, it was more like, picture how to do it, holeshot this, zone out from everyone else, be a bit cocky. I even daydream a bit, I make sure I’m not too pumped, not worked up. You can get freaked out otherwise. Every time I get behind the gate, I do the best I possibly can and give 100 per cent. That’s how it was at Taupo.”
His words reveal what he values as important. No more so than his appreciation of support that comes from being part of a team. A team of dedicated, motivated and committed MX die-hards, giving their best to the riders on and off the track. I had to wonder though, was it a concern switching to the Kawasaki Team three weeks before worlds? Or was it more a shift in gear towards positive change? The reality was, less than 30 hours bike time from January due to injuries – no gym, no weights and no core work up to four weeks before the event. “I was just riding in the weekends. Nine club days for the whole year. I’m not organised at all – I wasn’t actually getting any benefits from what I was doing. The shift to the KX helped me put structure in place, thanks to the efforts of Craig Guy, my mechanic and others in the team. Craig has taught me heaps, his knowledge and experience from working with Cody Cooper in ’08 is invaluable. I totally trust what he says. If he held pit-boards up during practice, qualifying and racing that said Stop – come in – make up another position – that’s what I did. Ultimate trust in my mechanic, respect for my peers and never say die support from Dad makes achieving goals possible,” as results proved at Taupo.
Having achieved such a result, was Hamish pleased? To say the least, HD’s answer was surprising, “It was cool to be third, but I still see it as the second loser on the track. Personally, I haven’t achieved what I wanted. I don’t feel any different now, than before. I wanted to get on the podium, but also for me, the challenge is I want to win. It has opened up doors for the bigger win, yet at the end of the day, as much as third is good, to me it’s still failure. None of us want to be standing on the bottom step of the podium- there is no other position other than the top. Basically, third showed me that I can do it, professionally it has given me a lot of drive to do it, and personally I’m not going to let anything stand in my way.”
Wrapping up the interview simply was not going to do justice to Hamish’s thoughts on ‘what it takes...’ The challenges, changes, the perseverance needed to achieve his goals, the mental strength, technical ability and physical stamina all culminated to make standing on the podium possible. All of which shifts the focus to the future. Knee surgery in September, followed by six months recovery and recuperation. His goals for 2010 are to compete in the Australian MX Nationals with the emphasis on achieving consistent results over all championship rounds. As HD puts it, “It will be tough, but anything is possible.” For Hamish, the future was another challenge and as I learnt and found out throughout the interview, one that would not faze him, only keep HD’s motocross career, as always, an open book.
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