Chris Kovarik Interview from Fox Newsletter. Interesting....

[mudanoman]

Chris Kovarik Interview
Enjoy reading this exclusive interview of Team Fox/Intense rider Chris Kovarik, conducted by Fox Racing employee Rob Salcedo.

Name: Chris Kovarik
D.O.B.: 1st March 1978
Height: 5'11"
Weight: 180 Pounds

Career Highlights:
Norba 5th overall
Round 1, 1st / Round 2, 1st / Round 3, 33rd (Flat tire.)
Round 4, 1st / Round 5, 50th (smashed wheel)

UCI - World cup 3rd overall
1st Round 1 / 1st Round 2 / 9th Round 3 (broken thumb and rib.)
21st Round 4 / 3rd, World Championships Kaprun, Austria
8th Round 5 (world finals)

Rob Salcedo Where were you born?
Chris Kovarik Dandenong, Victoria- Australia.

R.S. Where do you live now?
C.K. Gold coast, Surfers Paradise, Australia. Q.L.D.

R.S. What's your favorite type of Music?
C.K. Metal

R.S. What is in the CD player?
C.K. TOOL

R.S. What's your favorite food?
C.K. Pasta, Taco Bell

R.S. Who are your sponsors?
C.K. Intense, DC shoes, Fox Racing, and Spy.

R.S. Who is in your daily crew?
C.K. There are not really many people to hang with around the area. There's David K. my teammate, funny guy.

R.S. Do you have any nicknames?
C.K. Karver is one that I heard recently.

R.S. How long have you been riding Downhill?
C.K. Since '96.

R.S. What other jobs have you had?
C.K. Before DH, I used to install steel fencing and pool fences, for three years, and before that I worked with my dad labouring and odd jobs around the town for two years.

R.S. Talk to me about Flat pedals. Why do you prefer Flats, over Clips?
C.K. I've been a flat pedal guy since day one. I've tried clips before but not long enough to get used to them. I'm going to try them again after this season, I think I could benefit from them on some courses. As for preferance I like the freedom of the flats and the way I can lean my foot on the pedal in the turns.

R.S. What do you do for training? (I heard you kill it on video games!!!!)
C.K. In between races I train on my cross country bike or some trails on my dual bike. I love the PS2 as well. I get in some good hours on ATV fury, I bring PS2 to the races it helps pass time in between practice days.

R.S. I know most of the guys racing DH these days wear a Dianese suit. I noticed that you run only the elbow and knee guards! And in the early days no pads at all! Why is that?
C.K. In the early days I couldn't afford pads, plus I was riding a hardtail so I wasn't going fast enough to seriously hurt myself anyway. I stepped up to my first dual suspension bike in 1998 and tried full body armour, but never liked it, so I just ran elbow and knee guards. I've been using Fox Racing elbow and knee guard since '99, it's comfortable for me. I like that.

R.S. Is there anything special about your bike setup?
C.K. I run full width handle bars with the front brake on the right side. That's about all.

R.S. What is your favorite Intense tire?
C.K. I like the 2.7 DH tire and run that on the front most of the time.

R.S. What do you like better, the Dual or the new 4 Man format and why?
C.K. I definitely like the new 4 man format...there's a lot more passing, crashing, action, etc. Definitely more exciting for the spectators and good for media and TV coverage, making our sport bigger.

R.S. Tell me about the infamous train jump for Chain-smoke 2! What happened?
C.K. The jump was originally built for a motorbike attempt, but one of the crazy local riders had other ideas. He jumped the 45 ft gap one afternoon and landed nose first into a massive front flip. He was unconscious for awhile, but had no serious injuries. A week later while the Chain-smoke Crew was filming with Michael Ronning we heard about the train gap from Glen Jacobs (Mud Cows MTB film maker) and decided to check it out. The jump looked intimidating and there was no room to stop after the landing, but we thought we could pull it off.

I decided to give it a go on the first day of filming. I took off with massive butterflies in my stomach. I launched the take off, all was good. I landed, but as the bike decompressed I was shot into the air and didn't stop until I hit a tree and a fence which was someone's backyard. I was pretty shaken up but thought with a few adjustments and a safety catch net it would be safer.

Three days later we had a 9 ft. high safety net set tied up between trees. The take off was tuned a little smoother, there was still a half hour till the train came through.

Michael and I were pretty nervous as we were practicing our run up. When we could hear the train coming we got into position. Someone was standing near the edge to give the go ahead. Michael took off straight, landed and cut the safety net with the sharp edge of the stem on his bike. He stopped when he hit the fence. He had hurt his shoulder, but other than that he was fine.

I took off when Michael landed...I landed off to the side so I wouldn't hit him. I landed in some long grass which grabbed my front wheel and threw me over the bars under the ripped safety net and onto my head and shoulder. I knew I had broken my collar bone straight away. I was taken to the hospital while the others cleaned up the scene of the crime. You can check out detailed footage on Mudcows 3 by Glen Jacobs.

R.S. You broke onto the scene on the Qranc team on a GT LOBO. I remember seeing you guys at Big Bear and Mammoth that year. As a matter of fact, I called you to win (in Mammoth) after seeing you in practice. All my friends thought I was crazy, but you pulled it out over everyone (I should have bet money!). How was that first season for you? And who were your teammates?
C.K. The first season was awesome! We traveled around the country in the Qranc van. It was a good experience. Racing against the fastest guys in the world was a real eye opener. Being on the same team as your countrymen was a plus, too. The whole team got along really well, I think it showed in our riding as a team. Nathan Rennie and I shared a room at the Qranc office, we had some really fun times there. One time a police officer had mistaken us for burglars and had us face down in the snow with a gun pointed at our heads. My teammates were Nathan Rennie, Johnny Waddel, Mark Rodgers and Chris Rodgers.

R.S. You haven't had very good luck in West Virginia for the last two years. What happened there for the last couple of years?
C.K. The first year in West Virginia I crashed in the final but was still able to make it down ok and got fifth on the podium. This year I front flatted but was still able to ride due to the thick side wall on the tires.

R.S. And in Vermont, the last 3 years in a row, the luck has been worse, right?
C.K. Vermont. Well this is where the NORBA Finals have been for the past three years. And for all three I have had to walk my bike or roll across the finish line. My rear wheel has blown up every time and every time the National title was at stake. I think that I am cursed on that course.

R.S. After the WC in Canada last year, you had to make a detour because of the Visa thing (and miss some races). How was that experience?
C.K. I was at customs in Canada and they started asking all these questions. They told me to take a seat while they searched my bags. I knew I was in some sort of trouble. They had found my Intense contract and my passport. I didn't have a working visa so they denied me access to the U.S.A. I had to fly the 10 hours to ***an and then the 9 hours to Brisbane where I live. I stayed home for 2 weeks and missed some races, which cost me a lot of points in the NORBA and World Cup races. By the time I got back to the U.S Intense had gotten me an athletes visa. Everything is set now so I can come and go as I please for another 3 years.

R.S. You are one of the fastest guys on the scene. Who in your eyes are the others that are going fast right now?
C.K. One guy that's been going fast lately is Johnny Waddel from Santa Cruz, he's stepped up the pace and is on form.

R.S. By now I'm sure you have heard that Nico has announced his retirement. Do you think things will be different next year?
C.K. Sure things will be different without the world champ, he's a rider that everyone wants to beat or be faster than. Now he's retired I think we're going to miss that competition. I think there will be some new faces on the podium next year.

R.S. What are your favorite two courses?
C.K. Durango was a fun course with steep and fast sections that's one of my favorites also Vermont was fun this year with the wide open sections and natural drops and it really made your bike work in the rough stuff.

R.S. Do you have any shout out's or thanks to send out?
C.K. I'd like to say thanks to Intense Cycles for the awesome bikes they give me, Spy Optics for the coolest shades and goggles and Fox for the best race and casual gear on the planet!!

R.S. Chris, good job this year. We are all proud to have you on board as a Fox Racing athlete.
C.K. Thanks for your time and we are all looking forward to next year! Good Luck Mate.