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October 2011 Interview with LA's Jason Harvey

By Lucas Comeaux

 

 

Jason Harvey from Prairieville, LA came out swinging this year in the LACC Series!  Eight rounds in he's still leading but Vaughan and Beebe are starting to close in and are only one point back once you consider drops.  The championship will come down to the wire - enjoy this brief interview with Jason Harvey:

 

 

How’s work going today / what do you do for a living?

 Work is good, busy.  I am an Architect and Project Manager for the Division of Administration and manage buildings in the State Capital Complex and others throughout the state.  We have a little over 4 million square feet that we take care of.  Between the projects, tenant moves, and red tape that we have to deal with, things rarely slow down too much.

 

 
Harvey and Vaughan by Christina Carter
So Vaughan & Beebe are closing in but they pretty much have no more drops…what’s your plan of attack for these last two rounds? 
Getting good starts!  In our type of racing I feel the start is a crucial part, as dust is usually a factor that we have to deal with.  I really have to focus on getting out front and then just running my race.  Haddox is always a force to contend with, especially on the start.  So, good starts and keeping the bike upright. [click on picture toward left to see #44 Jake Haddox]

From what I understand you’ve made a couple minor bike changes?

Yeah, I have been trying to find a setup that I like.  I am not a big fan of the oversize tank on the Suzuki, but I cannot afford to stop to pit and it would be cutting it too close to not stop.  I added a taller seat foam to make it a little easier to get my weight up on the tank with the oversize jug on.  If I took a spill my bars would always twist in the mounts and I would have to get off and try and jerk them straight which is a serious pain in a**.  Reed put on to a good set of clamps  and they have been a huge improvement.  I went back to the stock pipe and shorty silencer for now and I am trying a new tire setup that is supposed to work best with the Tubliss systems I run.

 

Great job with consistency this year and wins – you’ve won two rounds this year and two other podium finishes.  There are other riders out there that seem to have the speed but we just don’t see them up there  - what’s the secret? -mental and in shape?

Those are definitely two main factors.  Being in shape is a no-brainer if you plan on being competitive in any sport.  But, I would have to say that I think the mental aspect is more important.  You can be in great shape and mentally psych yourself out which can lead to into all kinds of problems (armpump, fatigue, crashes).  While I know who I need to beat, it doesn’t really matter at the race because my goal is always to ride as fast and as hard as I can without crashing until I see the checkers.  I am racing the clock moreso than an individual.    My advice is to ride your race and stop worrying about where everyone else is at.

 

What do you do to stay in shape?

I workout most days at lunch for about 45 min.  My workouts mostly consist of plyometrics / bodyweight exercises.  Weight training is often incorporated, but compound lifts opposed to fixed are used.  For example, instead of spending an hour and a half doing good mornings x 4 sets of 10, power cleans x 4 sets of 10, and shoulder press x 4 sets of 10, I will do a good morning into a hang clean into a shoulder press 4 sets x 20 with limited rest between sets.  You will get twice the workout in half the time.   I can assure you your heart and lungs will know that it is harder.  Unfortunately I don’t have the time to ride very often, so I have to do what I can to train the same muscles used when riding.

 

How did you get into riding?

I grew up trail riding Wilson at the Plug Fouler’s Riding Club.  A few SERA and LACC riders (Chad Roy, Ashton Vidrine, Jimmy Dunn) I grew up riding with.  My first bike was a PW50 with training wheels when I was 2 and a half.  It’s funny, but I don’t think I learned to ride a bicycle until I was probably 5 or 6.   Some of my best memories are of us play riding on hills out there (we have some video of it floating around somewhere).

 


Harvey has some good style on a motocross track - photo by Christina Carter 

 

Awesome ride at the Nat’l Enduro in LA – how did you like it?

 The National Enduro was great.  It was the first re-start format enduro that I had ever ridden, all the others were timekeeping which I was never a fan of since I didn’t have the proper equipment and know how to do it.  Stephen Reed brought it up and invited me to come and ride with him on his row, and I jumped at the opportunity.  It was definitely a tough race endurance wise.  I kept fighting leg cramps bad in the last two sections for some reason.  All in all I accomplished what I wanted for the day.  I wanted to compete with the top SERA riders that were there along with Zach Ingram from AR.  At the end, I was able to top the SERA guys and Ingram so I was excited.  I definitely look forward to making it out to more enduros.

 

Assuming you’ll be in the top 3 overall at the end of the season would be up for being on the top pro team at The Off-Road Cup representing the LACC Series?

 Absolutely!  We need to bring it back to LA.

 

First 3 purchases after winning the Powerball?

 Pay off all debt, camper for the races, new bike.

 

Thanks a bunch, we appreciate it - good luck at the next two!  Anything else?

I definitely want to thank all my family and friends that have been supporting me throughout the season, my sponsors Cycle Gear and Raceworks for helping me to get my bike dialed in, and especially my wife and two girls for allowing me to do something that I love.

 

 

Thanks Harvey for taking time out for the interview and good luck!

 

 

More Pictures:

 


by Jenny Comeaux - Harvey 1st

 


by Chris Shows

 


Harvey by OutOfBoundFilms

 


by the LACC Series Staff - Harvey 3rd

 


by Terrie Shaw

 


by Chris Shows

 


by Viola Ford

 


by Viola Ford

 

by Chris Shows

 


by Chris Shows

 


by Christina Carter

 



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