JOSH OIE INTERVIEW
dfreygang
- February 25 2004
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As many of you probably know, Answer/Staats’ Mike Brabant and teammate David Herman diced it out in 15 Expert and had the place on its feet the entire time they were on the track. Mike led up until the third turn where he crashed, and David went around him for the win, giving Josh the #1 Am title. Saying it was an unbelievable race doesn’t nearly do it justice—you simply had to witness it yourself. Anyway, we e-mailed Josh some questions about what was going through his head during Brabant’s main, what it’s like being the new #1 Amateur, and about how that whole 10 minutes at last year’s Grands unfolded…
Go back to the Grands… You’re on the gate for your main. What’s going through your head? Get to the finish line before the other seven people in the gate! Stay relaxed and try not to make any mistakes in the process of getting there. This race counts the most out of all the races of the season…I need to win! That’s practically what I was thinking when I was on the gate…
Tell me about the lap - as much as you can remember… The gate dropped and I got a decent gate. I knew Andrew Mayfield was right beside me, so I held my line into the first corner. The second straight went well; I looked over my shoulder in the second turn and they were a couple of bike lengths away; I went through the rhythm well—no mistakes. Going through the last turn, I knew that I had taken over the lead in amateur points. After that, all I could do is wait for the 15X main…
After you won, did you watch Herman and Brabant’s main? Yes, I knew the title was determined in the 15X main. Either Mike Brabant wins and takes the title, or he loses and I take the title. I was watching the race from the third straight; that’s when I saw Herman pull right next to Brabant, maybe even pass him a little bit. They went into the last turn (I couldn’t see the last turn where I was standing) and I heard the crowd make some noise. I thought maybe Herman passed him or someone fell, which someone did, and it was Brabant. Right then I knew I was the #1 Amateur…
Did it surprise you that Herman was that close? Not at all, those two are at the top of their class for sure, and they battle at most of the races they go to. It surprised me that Herman caught up to Brabant in the rhythm, and that’s when it got pretty exciting—when they went into the last turn side by side. Then Brabant slid out…
What was the first thing that popped into your head when you saw Mike crash? The first thing I wondered was whether or not it was Mike or David; they both had the same jerseys and same helmet. I couldn’t see the last corner from where I was, so when I saw Herman come out of the turn and not Brabant, I got pretty excited.
Were you bummed for Mike? Yeah, for sure, I knew that he had been working hard. He went from barely making mains in the beginning of the year to dominating his class by mid year, a then to see the title slip away because of a slide out… Yeah I was really bummed for him…
Did you and Mike talk after the race? If so, what did you say to him? I didn’t talk to him after the races; I never caught up with him or found him to see if he was okay.
What was going through your head when Clayton handed you the cup? When he handed me the cup I was saying to myself, “Don’t mess up on the speech,” (laughs). I was worried I was gonna say something stupid in the speech, but it went pretty well. When he said, “I would like to introduce to you the 2003 #1 Boy Amateur” I was like, ‘Whoa that’s me!’ I couldn’t believe that I was the #1 Boy in the ABA… It’s been a dream of mine for a long time and it’s finally come true…
Where’s the cup now? Right now it’s under all these dirty clothes somewhere in my closet (laughs), just kidding. It’s in my living room with my plate on it and pictures of me when I was doing my speech with some riding photos as well!
Has it been hard getting motivated for another year of amateur racing when you’ve already won the title? No way; racing’s fun; that’s why I do it. Even though I won the title, I still want to win it again. I’ll get to race the NAG 5 Challenge this year, so one of my goals is to do well in that, plus try to get the #1 title back-to-back… That would be a good year.
Do you think you’ll have rider count to do it again? Yeah, I think so; I had the rider count last year and I raced the same people this year, so maybe I’ll add some riders… but we’ll see, it depends on the other classes also. 16 Expert will have a bunch of riders. The new class of 04′—17-18 Expert—might have the rider count as well. The younger riders always have a chance at it also… We’ll just have to wait and see what happens…
Did you know that if you do win again, you and Richie Anderson will be the only riders to ever win the #1 Am title in back-to-back years? No, I didn’t know that! That would be cool if I can get it again this year… I think I have the ability to do it again. Also, Richie has been a big help in my racing along with his brother Ronnie, and their Dad, Papa “A”… Come Grands time, we’ll see if I can do it again.
Do you have any other goals this year other than to repeat the title? Keep racing, do well in the NAG 5 Challenge, get the #1 Cruiser title, have fun, and keep helping other racers.
Okay, now let’s do a little word association… Tell me what comes to mind when you hear…
Andrew Mayfield - Stepped it up in the past year… Definitely a threat in the class—lots of skill and power to go with it. Congrats on your new ride.
Britney Spears - Dream girl…
Kyle Bennett - One of my favorite pros, can handle a bike better than most people… Whenever people talk about style his name always comes up!
Pro Sections - Remember at the Fall nationals in 02′, second lap in 13-14 practice on Friday? Yeah, it sucked laying on the ground then.
Trails - Need to start riding them…
Good Food - Carls Jr. and Arbys …I can live off those two…
First Straight Pull - Something you need to have to be a threat in most classes; luckily, something I’ve been known to have!
Thanks? Mom, and Dad, Team manager Pete Heil, all my sponsors, Toby @ Pro-Bike-Parts, Joey @ Answer, Alan @ FSA and ACS, Bruce @ ATI, Ray @ Fly Racing, Jason and everybody @ Staats bikes, Dave @ Hot Shoppe Designs, Finish line lube, Phil @ Spy Optics, also everybody that made me the rider that I am now—Burlin and Bubba and everyone at Supercamp, Richie, Ronnie, and Papa A, Kenny Perry, Alexis Vergara and his dad, my dad, everyone that I ride with at home, Jered Dahlgren, Matt Figone, AJ Flowers, Danny Essley, Garrett Nunes, Stockton locals, Mike Hughes, Matt Faulk, Kyle Biagi, Trevor Cummings, Sailors family, Chris Raza, TJ Johnson, Efriam Miranda, Paul Lange, and the whole Sac Town crew. Sorry if I forgot you!
ily, something I’ve been known to have!
Thanks? Mom, and Dad, Team manager Pete Heil, all my sponsors, Toby @ Pro-Bike-Parts, Joey @ Answer, Alan @ FSA and ACS, Bruce @ ATI, Ray @ Fly Racing, Jason and everybody @ Staats bikes, Dave @ Hot Shoppe Designs, Finish line lube, Phil @ Spy Optics, also everybody that made me the rider that I am now—Burlin and Bubba and everyone at Supercamp, Richie, Ronnie, and Papa A, Kenny Perry, Alexis Vergara and his dad, my dad, everyone that I ride with at home, Jered Dahlgren, Matt Figone, AJ Flowers, Danny Essley, Garrett Nunes, Stockton locals, Mike Hughes, Matt Faulk, Kyle Biagi, Trevor Cummings, Sailors family, Chris Raza, TJ Johnson, Efriam Miranda, Paul Lange, and the whole Sac Town crew. Sorry if I forgot you!
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