Ken De Dycker Live from behind his PC
Dear K9 supporters and future supporters, friends and enemies!
It would have been fantastic to share my happiness in this way after a fantastic Dutch GP! Unfortunately... because as you know, things turned out completely differently in Valkenswaard. Because this is my first column since the start of the GP season, I would also like to return to the past GPs. Only because it has to be done! No, seriously now. The three Grand Prix so far are actually all counteredSorry, that's disappointing, it's in nice Dutch. There hasn't been a match yet and I went home with a satisfied feeling. Certainly not Valkenswaard, Friday morning I suddenly suffered from an infection in my right arm for no reason. I came second in qualifying, but on Sunday my arm really played tricks on me. You try to compensate for that with the other arm and that only makes it worse. From lap 1 in the first heat I had sore arms, it was even difficult to hold the bike. The steering therefore didn't work at all and I also didn't find my way on the Eurocircuit this year. In my opinion it was too easy and there were certainly too few lines. It was a little better on Sunday, but there was only one line to pass... so I didn't think it was great.
Mantova was relatively good on Sunday after a disastrous qualifying race. I ended up fourth in the GP while I was only 19th at the start because I fell twice on Saturday. Bulgaria wasn't what it should be either. As a result, I am now fifth in the World Cup, and I cannot and should not settle for that. My goal is the world title, but the way things are going I can't get involved in the fight. It is sometimes strange to immediately hear certain rumors, like now, when things get tougher. My manager Git even received a phone call: “What about Ken and H*n*a?” Of course she came out of the blue: “Um, then you really know a lot more than we do!” What a bad story. In the meantime, we continue to look hard for solutions for the engine with the Yamaha Monster Energy Ricci MX Team. Although the solution to put things in order is simply not easy to find. I have sometimes jokingly said: “Then I will buy a motorcycle from the store and we will make do with it!” My team manager Ilario Ricci is very passionate about it. If possible, even more than myself. That man would give an arm and a leg to get everything ready. The Sölva suspension is now doing fine, but the right feeling with the engine as a whole is not yet there. I will also learn more about how the States handle the set-up of the YZ450F. It will be fine, but better today than tomorrow!
We'll take a different tack. Soon there will be people with tissues ready at my camper! No, rather like in Valkenswaard. In collaboration with my sponsor Starmeal, supporters were offered treats. A nice action. The Belgian Championship competition in Beervelde is also always fun. This Saturday the first race in the Belgian Championship, or rather the MX Pro Series, is on the program in Beervelde and I am really looking forward to that. The course designer Alain Roels always does his best to make something beautiful out of the course. Journalists often ask me whether I have absolutely set my sights on that MX Pro Series title this season? Because I've been close to it several times. Of course I want to do well, but you won't hear me tell you that I will just become a champion or that that is the only thing that matters. I look at it from match to match and no matter how nice such a title is, my top priority remains the World Cup.
Anyway, it is also a great reunion in Beervelde with the owners of the Meganck-Collewaert sand quarry. They are really people with a passion for motocross. I sometimes go there in the summer together with Dieselpriem. Not that I have home advantage this weekend! Because we usually go jet skiing in the local waterhole. Although we have also gone pit biking there before. Speaking of pit biking, I have included a photo of my new pit Monster above. Not bad huh? I recently finally got MX VS. ATV Reflex played. Definitely recommended for the game birds among you. And what was quite funny: even for a professional motocross rider, the new controls - where you move the handlebars with one stick and the other moves your body - is really not easy. Or is the game so realistic that it is now more difficult for me to play on the PlayStation? Hahaha. What also struck me, although it is a detail, is that sometimes the sound of the engine and the music are not completely in sync. Well, it's certainly not disturbing. Besides, I now have to get back to work. My Gianni Mota is already heating up and with the succession of matches and traveling there is not much time to play. By the way, I heard that Manuel (Priem) is now also competing in the MX Vs. ATV has made a deposit and it will beat me by a lot because I have a lot of free time! He is welcome, as long as he is back in real life again soon. Good luck Manuel!
And to you, thank you for your support and for reading the column to the last line!
See you around,
Photos credit: CDS, Massimo Zanzani, Keenomx
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