Tim
enjoys some top-notch coaching about how to
rail those ruts, under the expert eye of Gaz
Wright from N-Gage…
The last time I reported on my progress with
the YZ125 I’d just had my suspension lowered
and tweaked to perfection by Kiwi at Endurotech,
and thank heavens that Kiwi managed to squeeze
me in when he did.
Our busy schedule meant that the morning after
collecting the Yamaha from Kiwi’s workshop
I was driving up drizzly A1 with the bike in
the back of the van, heading rendezvous with
the N-Gage motocross training academy and its
head coach Gaz Wright, a forthright-yetjovial
Yorkshireman who reminds me of a mixture between
Boycott and Alex Mcleish.
My attention was first drawn to N-Gage coaching
via occasional MotoX contributor Mike Garth,
who wrote the short series of sports psychology
articles that we featured a little while ago
(MotoX 46-48). However, Mike’s impressive
credentials notwithstanding, I still needed
convincing; I’d already attended a couple
of motocross training schools while I was racing
regularly during the 1990s and, to be honest,
I gained absolutely nothing from the experience.
The quality of training on those occasions wasn’t
up to much; the ex-pro rider hosting the day
did his best but while he was adept at demonstrating
what to do in terms of basic riding techniques,
when it came to breaking everything down into
its constituent parts and explaining how he
did it he wasn’t so hot. In fact he didn’t
really do it at all.
Not surprisingly the experience left me with
a rather dim view of motocross coaching, but
I was nevertheless intrigued by N-Gage, their
impressive presentation certainly looked convincing
and when I spoke to Gaz Wright on the telephone
his promise to send me home a changed man, allied
to his overwhelming enthusiasm, persuaded me
that this might be worth a go.
According to Gaz, N-Gage is mainly aimed at
expert to pro level riders but rather than merely
taking a bunch of guys to a track, showing them
some riding techniques and leaving them to get
on with it, the N-Gage method comprises a highly
detailed coaching program built around each
individual. A coaching course can span several
weeks or even months and the expected level
of
commitment isn’t too dissimilar to the
lifestyle that a top team demands of their stars;
riders training with N-Gage are regularly fitness
tested and sometimes even expected to give samples
to check that they are following the strict
guidelines regarding exercise, nutrition and
hydration. If this all sounds a bit heavy, it
nevertheless reflects how seriously N-Gage are
about taking their guys to the next level. Fortunately
for me, my fat old body wasn’t scheduled
to be scientifically probed for
weaknesses, I was just there for a one-day boot
camp and when I rocked up at the private practice
track near Doncaster I wasn’t holding
out much hope for a successful day. A week of
heavy downpours had turned the track into a
morass of gloopy black sand covering a layer
of lethally slippery hard pack. The conditions
made the jump-faces too treacherous to tackle
safely and our original plan to spend the day
doing jumping practice was abandoned in favour
of some cornering drill instead.
 Before
we started Gaz took me for a walk around the
track, asking me questions about my riding likes
and dislikes. I didn’t realise at the
time but Gaz was using his psychology training
to suss out my personality type, which would
help him work out which was the most effective
way to drum the info into my thick head!
Gaz likes to kick off the training with a 20-
minute moto that he uses to identify the rider’s
problem areas. Watching me wobble around those
first few laps probably provided enough material
to keep him busy for a year!
I struggled around the track living up to my
nickname (Tortoise or Skoda, whatever you prefer!)
and I was beginning to worry that I had bitten
off more than I could chew. However, under Gaz’s
patient eye we set about learning the basics
of attacking the scary-looking rutted corners
and, after a couple of hours of extremely intensive
riding, I was competently carving perfect lines
through the series of really tough ‘S’
bends that Gaz had isolated as our training
zone.
 Gaz
doesn’t merely watch you and then pick
apart your riding, he showed me endless times
how to follow the correct technique and if I
did something wrong – which was quite
often – he’d help me analyse what
was happening and identify any mistakes so that
I could rectify them as we went along.
Finally dialling-in those ruts – including
a huge 85-foot bugger that snaked through the
gradually drying terrain – I felt sooo
sweet, but make no mistake, it was bloody hard
work and by the end of the afternoon I was shattered!
Mind you, it was well worth it to finally feel
as though I was making good progress. The newly
set up YZ125 helped to boost my confidence because
it feels so easy to ride compared to when it
was standard. Whereas it never seemed very sure-footed
before, especially when the going was wet, now
the bike tracks much better and despite the
very tricky going the front end didn’t
suddenly wash out, which I hope was also partly
due to my much-improved riding skills under
Gaz Wright’s superb tutelage.
I found Gaz to be the best instructor that I
have ever ridden with, he doesn’t mess
about but he is very good at getting you, the
rider, to think about what’s happening
on the track and garner a better understanding
about not only how to use the right riding techniques,
but also why these techniques work, which goes
a long, long way to making you ride better.
I have learned loads from riding with N-Gage
and I will definitely be up for more training
while I prepare for a re-match with Mr Smug,
A.K.A. Swanny.
|
 N-Gage
N-Gage fitness training
is devised with input from Sheffield Hallam
University, who helped train Olympic boxing
silver medallist Amir Khan and the rugby world
cup winning England team. Sports psychology
also features prominently in N-Gage’s
philosophy
and Gaz Wright certainly knows how to push the
right buttons to unlock what makes an athlete
tick. For more information contact, tel: 07771
866787
Article Taken from MOTOX
Magazine Issue 53
www.motoxmag.co.uk |
 |
