By Danny Brault

Photos: Jason T. Griffiths

Last year Canadian motocross fans were awarded a Christmas gift from Clear Channel Entertainment: Two rounds of the THQ World Supercross series to be held in Toronto and Vancouver. Not only was it an opportunity for Canadians fans to see a full-on supercross race, but a chance to watch the G.O.A.T Ricky Carmichael on his new Makita Suzuki ride. After sitting out  the 2004 U.S. Supercross series to allow his knee to heal, RC used the Canadian races as a warm-up for the 2005 season; it proved wise as he won both rounds, then the World and U.S. Supercross series and the outdoor championship. RC will return to Canada on Dec. 3 for the Toronto round, along with Bubba, Reed and Windham. We need to get Canadian fans pumped for the WSX rounds, so we figured what better way than to speak with the champ himself.

RXC: Hey Ricky, how are you doing?

Ricky Carmichael: Good, good.

How has testing and everything been going for you this fall?

Everything’s good, you know, just another year trying to get ready as usual.

I was surprised to see you on the 450 at the U.S. Open, why did you decide to ride that bike instead of your two-stroke?

It was just kind of a test, we’re testing to see how that thing would work in race conditions and I didn’t really have much time to get ready and ride the two-stroke. So I felt a little more comfortable riding that bike for that race; it was a handful.

Have you made up your mind what you will on for the U.S. Supercross series?

As of right now, the two-stroke.

Did the World Supercross rounds give you a jump on the competition for Anaheim last year?

Yeah,  I think that was a great decision. It gave me a jump start and everything turned out good. Not only did it benefit my season, but at the same time I had a great time going to Canada and seeing Toronto and Vancouver and different cities; it was a great time.

How did the people treat you?

The people were great, like I said it was a great two weeks and a great test for me. The whole thing was a great experience.

Did you and your wife Ursula have a chance to check out the cities and be a tourist?

Absolutely. Every night we went out to different restaurants and tried to check the scene out. It was fun, those cities were different, it was good.

Do you have anything special planned for your visits this December?

Not really, it will be kind of cool again, I’m looking forward to going. I thought both cities were different and nice in their own way. Nothing’s really planned, just looking forward to going and there is going to be a lot more competition there and it’s going to be fun.

So Chad Reed and James Stewart will be coming up this year?

Yeah everybody. Reed, Bubba, Windham … it should be a full house. It should be good for racing in general and the Canadian fans.

Each spring Jean-Sébastien Roy heads down your way in the winter in train. What has your experience with JSR been like?

I think he’s a great guy, he’s not like a leech or a mooch. It just seems like he comes, and rides and he’s up for anything I want to do and he’s just not a nuisance to my program; he’s a hard-worker.

When he comes and stays with you, do you guys train together or is just riding?

No, it’s mainly at the track. He stays quite a ways away from my place, so I just see him at the track everyday.

We also wanted to say thanks too, for running the Canadian flags on your jersey all year.

Yeah I just thought it was something cool. It was another great Fox idea. Scott Taylor is a great friend of mine and works for Fox, and he came up with the idea and shot it past me and I said, ‘Heck yeah.’

Do you have any special ideas planned for the seat of your pants at Toronto and Vancouver?

We’ll definitely have something special on there, but we can’t let you guys know. But we’ve got something special planned….

Last year you were treated as the underdog heading into the supercross series, but after winning the title do you feel like you’re the guy everyone is chasing?

I think that I’m the guy that the competitors are chasing because I’m the guy with the #1 plate. From a competitor’s standpoint, I’m the guy they want to beat.

Your schedule is now pretty much all year round, with 16 supercross races, 12 outdoor nationals, the Des Nations, the U.S. Open and then it’s right back to WSX. How do you keep from burning out?

It’s getting really, really busy. It’s a lot of racing, but it’s something we know we have in front of us before we go into the season. But I think sometimes we underestimate it as the year drags on, it kind of wears on you even though you know what you have in front of you and on your plate.

How do you deal with it?

I try to set goals, and I try to make it fun and I try to get longevity out of things; get my program to where I don’t get burnt (out).

You’ve come a long way through your career, and from your riding to the way you handle the media, you just seem to do everything right. How do you maintain that all the time?

[Laughs] I just try to be the best that I can, and I really try to work on the places that I struggle. I think that every year that goes by, I get smarter and better with setting up my bike and a little wiser and my whole deal gets better.

Just after watching you win so much, I wonder if anyone will ever beat you.

My day will come, that’s for sure. It will come. Every guy has his day, it’s just a matter of when it happens, not if.

Well thanks a lot of Ricky.

Hey no problem, we’ll be seeing you.