So far it’s been a challenging season for 16-year-old Ryder McNabb as he’s had to battle through adversity right from the opening round of the Triple Crown Series. After winning Round 1 in Kamloops Ryder ended up getting sick with the flu during the week and although he recovered from that quickly, the illness left his body drained. This made the next two west rounds difficult and when the 250 series headed east Ryder was well behind in the points standings. However, proving his toughness Ryder has clawed his way back into the championship chase and after taking his second win of the season this past weekend at Sand Del Lee, he sits just one point back of Mitchell Harrison for the overall lead in the 250 class.
MXP: Hey Ryder, that was a hot day at the races. How are you feeling?
RM: I’m feeling okay. I’m a little sore but overall I’m good.
Before we get into today let’s talk about yesterday. You went over to Dylan (Wright) with good intentions to practice some starts and make some improvements. But things didn’t go well did they?
No, it didn’t go well at all. We were practicing some starts and on one of them, I got offline and into some long grass and then hit a rock and crashed. It was a hard one and I ended up injuring my back and shoulders. I was so sore last night and this morning, but we took some Advil and I guess the adrenaline kicked in and I made it through the day.
Well, you did more than make it through the day. You rode great in both motos and ended up taking your first overall win since the opening round.
Yes, it was a good day for sure. In the first moto, I got a great start and was able to get by Piccolo early and then just rode my own race. It was hot today so I tried to conserve some energy for the second moto. In moto 2, I didn’t get off to a great start and I think on the opening lap I was outside the top 20. From there I just tried to pass as many riders as I could and try and put myself in a position where I didn’t lose too many points. During the final few laps I got lucky as Harrison went down and then in the final corner Racine had some bad luck and he went down. So 1-1 on the day was awesome and now I’m just one point back of Harrison in the 250 points.
Yes, I supposed you did get a little lucky in that second moto, but sometimes you earn luck and I feel like you did that today. This track is fun but it’s always been tough to pass on so you did well to come through the pack like that.
I had some good lines in a few sections which helped. But I made some passes early when the riders were still bunched up together. Like I said though, I did get lucky at the end because at about the halfway point my shoulders kind of locked up, and at that point I was willing to settle for third. Anyway, that’s racing and I’ll take it.
Well, you definitely had some speed today as you turned in the fastest lap time in both motos. During the second moto, your best time was on lap 3 while charging from behind. That’s impressive!
I guess I was in a hurry at that point. (laughs)
Over the years we’ve seen athletes in all sports have some of their best days when they’re injured or sick. This appears to be the case with you today. Why do you think that is?
It’s funny, Dylan told me the same thing this morning. He said that some of his best rides have happened when he’s been sick or hurting. I think it’s because it takes a little of the pressure off that you normally feel and then you just focus on riding the bike. I don’t know, whatever it is it seemed to work today.
Today must feel good because so far this season, other than perhaps the opening round, things haven’t gone the way you thought they would.
No, it’s been tough so far. As you said, I had a great opening round but then I got really sick during the week after Kamloops. I couldn’t even get out of bed for a few days. Then in Round 2, I hurt my tail bone and in Round 3 it was 100 degrees and my body was still hurting. However, we regrouped during the break and in the last few weeks I’ve been better and I’ve been able to make up a lot of points. Now, we just have to keep the ball rolling.
For sure! So you’re off to Riverglade for Round 7 next weekend. What is the plan for this week?
I think I’m helping Dylan with a camp here tomorrow and then on Tuesday, we’ll drive to Moncton. On Wednesday we’re going to ride and then on Thursday, we have a team get-together with Easy Cleen, one of our sponsors. That is about it so the week should be pretty busy.
That does sound like a busy week. But I’m sure it will be good to get out to the East Coast early and acclimatized yourself. Well Ryder, it appears that you have things back on track and that you’re feeling good. Congratulations on today and good luck at Riverglade.
Thanks Palms! I really appreciate it. Hopefully, we can keep things going and try and get that red plate back.