Column: Letsroll with Nick Kouwenberg!
Nick Kouwenberg is fast, talented and a jack of all trades. Kouwy may seem relaxed and jovial when it counts, but the Astes4-Tesar Yamaha rider knows better than anyone where the throttle is! MXMag is honored to introduce the ex-EMX250 and European MX2 Supercross champion as our newest columnist.
I have no idea what it says above or what the intro sounds like, but I think it's a cool column. And if you had asked me to write something like that a few months ago, I wouldn't have believed it myself! After my European title in 2015, I had quite a shit year last year. It didn't go the way I wanted it to, nor the way she did JTech saws. So what I showed in 2016 was not good (enough). As a result, my phone wasn't exactly ringing off the hook with offers. In fact, it was eerily quiet, nothing happened. Although that may be an exaggeration, I will tell you more about that!
Even at the Kouwenberg house, the roast chickens don't fly in the mouth, so I had to go to work. That's how I started working in my mother's company. We make pallets, boxes and crates and that's how I ended up in the production workshop. At the same time, I had planned to do some more riding as a hobby. Before that I had bought a Yamaha 450 myself. I continued working for three months. Meanwhile it was too Gert-Jan Vorstenbosch still come along with a nice plan: “I still have a Yamaha YZ250F here, wouldn't that be something for you to take to Valkenswaard?” That way I could put myself in the spotlight and who knows where that would take me. After that calendar change in which Trentino was placed before Valkenswaard, we thus had a double goal to participate in the EMX250 in both Arco di Trento and Valkenswaard.
My winter was therefore very amateurish due to circumstances. Some riding with my 450, but due to the combination with work I had little time to train, and there was no budget for parts either. However, little by little, Gert-Jan's plan took shape Outdoor Racing that made a YZ250F available through Yamaha Netherlands. Gert-Jan then arranged the tuning with De Jong Tweewielers. Then a training bike was added and so we had a base to start from. First I participated in the Dutch Masters Of Motocross in Oss and then also the ONK in Markelo. That went well straight away. In Markelo I even won both heats. I dropped out of one moto in Oss, but the other moto was quite good. Not immediately a surprise for myself because I know that I can ride at the top-5 pace of the World Cup riders if necessary. Because I used to fight with men like Brian Bogers en Thomas Kjer Olsen I was comfortable with that. However, I couldn't keep up the pace because I had ridden the bike far too little.
De privateer dream turned out to be quite difficult in practice. Getting support for parts this late in the season was virtually impossible. So buy it yourself. Arrange your own administration and so many little things more. However, completely out of the blue, I received that offer. Bee Astes4-Tesar Yamaha could I Roan van de Moosdijk to replace. Roan was unfortunately hurt and they urgently sought a solution. For myself that was a huge step forward to be able to drive again in a professional, well-structured team. On the other hand, it was also very delicate. With Gert-Jan Vorstenbosch and the other people who wanted to help me, we almost had everything in place to start as a privateer. I just felt guilty about that. I had to call people all week to discuss and explain the situation. However, once I started working with the new team, a weight was lifted off my shoulders. It immediately becomes clear that they have things well organized.
It's crazy how quickly my life has changed twice. Normally I worked 32 hours a week and then I tried to do some physical training at 6 in the morning or after work. And then drive on my free afternoon. If you have never been in that rhythm, such a schedule will be quite disruptive. That's why I have a lot of respect for boys who can train for their sport like this. I have not regretted for a second that I focused on that comeback at a certain point. In addition to the EMX250 With the official Yamaha team I also ride the Swedish championship for a local team, JWR (Johan Westermark Racing). Last weekend I came second in the first round of the Swedish MX2 Championship with two holeshots. Not bad as an entrance!
During the period when it became clear that I would go to Astes4-Tesar Yamaha, things suddenly became super hectic. There was actually no time to test the EMX250. Just as the decision was made, I was in Sweden testing with JWR! Monday evening when I came back from Sweden I was home for exactly one hour. Quickly pack my things, load the bus and go to Italy! Arrived at the track the next day and tested immediately. I can tell you that it was a tough week. I had some bad luck in Arco, but in retrospect I should have been on the podium there too. I was in the top 3 in the first moto when I had some kind of electronic problem. In the second moto I went off at the start. Then you have to get from last place to nine, so it is of course difficult to climb onto the podium!
Valkenswaard was heading in the right direction. I was more consistent and thanks to two third places I became second in total. That's what we're going for, of course. My goal is that EMX250 title recapture. At the moment, as a 25-year-old, that is the highest achievable in MX2. It's a great challenge and I'm taking it on in a smart way. You have to keep your wits about you and stay consistent, that's how I did it in 2015!
Speaking of using your head, by the way. I still have to talk about my Brazilian adventure this winter. By means of Honda Brazil I was invited to participate in the final round of the Brazilian Championship. Actually it was a test for both parties. If I liked it, I could ride the entire championship for this year. And that also included a nice contract. Once I received that nice offer, it was no longer necessary for me! You can earn some nice money there, but you shouldn't go there alone. Since I go everywhere alone, it wasn't an option. I was just robbed in the middle of the street, they opened the door of my car! Really intense. I thought "Check it out, I don't need to be here.“I experienced quite a bit there during a week and a half in Brazil. It is an incredibly beautiful country, but I felt anything but safe there. Separate!
I want to go this weekend Kegums going for the podium again. With a competition every week I have the feeling that my rhythm is getting better and I want to continue that trend. Compared to the other guys, I spent much less time on the bike this winter, but fortunately I do have my experience. I want to aim for the podium every round and I want to become the constant factor in the championship. The level of the EMX250 simply remains very high. Every year again. In my opinion, to win you have to have the speed of the top 5 in the World Cup. You also see this confirmed with the EMX250 toppers who transfer or the champion the following year. Or if one of those top EMX250 guys comes to MX2 with a wildcard. Immediately they have the speed of the top-5 to top-10. If you don't have that top-5 pace, there will always be someone faster in the EMX250. If you ride well in the European Championships then you have earned it. There are more than 80 riders who want to qualify and the first 10 are just accelerating very well. You don't just get on stage. You really have to enforce it. This makes the EMX250 one of the most beautiful classes in my opinion.
In addition to the technical people on the team, I also feel very supported by David Philippaerts. He is now a rider coach at Astes4-Tesar Yamaha. First of all, it is of course cool to work with someone I looked up to as a young rider. In addition, you can tell by everything he does or says during such a race weekend that he knows exactly what he is talking about. He knows when and what to say to a rider. In addition, David always remains calm, someone who gives confidence. Nobody expects me to become EMX250 champion again. Who has won the European Championship twice before? That's why I think it's such a cool challenge. Hopefully you can enjoy that battle! If you have any comments or comments about my first column, please let me know. If you have any questions that you would like me to answer, please let me know. You can also simply leave your comment below!
#letsroll
Kouwy
Photos: Yamaha Racing, Huub Munsters, Nick Kouwenberg archive
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