5 Minutes with…Alex Ray | Presented by FXR
By Billy Rainford
We grabbed Alex Ray for a quick chat this past Saturday night in Kentucky | Bigwave photo
Tennessee native, #314 Alex Ray, has made a name for himself by making mains on Saturday nights and being a regular on the Pulp MX Show. The likeable rider has had a busy schedule and logged a lot of air miles, lately. We grabbed him for a quick chat at the end of the night at the first round of the Arenacross Tour in Bowling Green, Kentucky, this past Saturday night.
Direct Motocross: We’re here at the first round of the Arenacross Tour in Bowling Green, Kentucky, and we’ve got #314 Alex Ray here at the end of the night. Before we talk about how the racing went on this evening, you’ve been doing a little bit of jet-setting, some globe-trotting. Tell everyone what you’ve been up to, lately.
Alex Ray: Ya, this summer, actually, I got an opportunity to go over to Australia and do an outdoor race. It went pretty good. I didn’t have the best suspension set up over there because I didn’t take my stuff, but the bike was good. The track was just really really rough. Unfortunately, I did a lot of crashing, but overall it was a great experience.
After that, rolling into the off-season, I ended up going to Stockholm do a Supercross in Sweden. I did pretty good over there. Me, Adam Enticknap, Dustin Pipes, Freddy Noren, Benny Bloss, and a lot of fast guys were over there and I ended up doing really well. I crashed in the first main but after that I put in some consistent finishes.
Then recently, Steve Matthes got me in contact with the promoters in Finland, so I went and did the Tampere Supercross. I was lucky enough to be hanging out with The Newf (Ryan Lockhart) and (Kyle) Springman over there.
Alex has been racing all over the globe, lately | Bigwave photo
Was there any shirt ripping?
Oh ya! The shirt actually did come off. I was lucky enough to experience that, also. That was actually really funny.
What about Journey?
No, no he didn’t do any karaoke but it was a fun time. I had pretty bad arm pump there so he helped me rub out the forearms. So, now whenever I say that I won in Finland, I say “WE” did it because I’ve got to give a little bit of glory to him.
And now we’re in Bowling Green. The track is really tight and loose here. Being on the big dog 450, it was really tough to get that thing to turn. Luckily, the Husqvarna and Noleen Ohlins suspension I have tuned worked really good.
We came away with a couple consistent finishes with a 3rd in the 450 main and a 4th in the Clash. Overall, it was a good night, safe, and Im headed back to Club (MX) to keep training for Supercross.
You mentioned earlier that you had a bit of a close call in that Clash for Cash main. What happened out there?
I got cross-rutted before the whoops and pretty much rode a Superman all the way through them. I did everything but crash and got a little sketchy but hey, it happens.
He raced with Canadians, Ryan Lockhart and Kyle Springman, in Finland at the Tampere Supercross last month | Bigwave photo
So, is this the only AX Tour round you’re going to hit? What are your plans after Club?
Honestly, I don’t know. I’ll probably be at Club until December 9th and then I’ll be headed out to California to start my suspension testing and stuff like that. A1 is closing up pretty quick, so we’ll just get some last-minute training in and carry that through the season.
I’ve got a pretty good base – Brandon and Roman and Sarah, and even the nutritionist over at Club, they all do a really good job to keep me prepared for the races to come.
Did you know that Americans make fun of Canadians for calling a sofa a “chesterfield?” And what town in South Carolina is Club MX in?
I did not know that. And it’s in Chesterfield. Ya, that’s weird, huh?
So, what are your plans for Supercross?
I honestly don’t know. I haven’t heard anything yet, so if anybody out there wants to help a privateer, that’d be great! Plans are, right now, that I’m still going to have help from the sponsors I had last year, but I don’t think the team is going to be as big, but, either way, I’m going to show up and race. I’m gonna do what I gotta do!
What do you think about some of the changes to the schedule?
Ya, I’ve never raced Minneapolis, but I have raced Seattle. I’ve raced at Salt Lake, also. I’ve been in the Supercross game for a few years now. Those places were really fun to go to. I’ve got some buddies up in Seattle. I’ve got Brad Nauditt upon there, so I might go hit him up when I’m up there.
I’m ready to get to California and really start breaking down footage with my mental and riding coach, Brian MacDonald.
So, if something concrete doesn’t come up, you’re still going to hit the whole series?
Oh ya, definitely. I may have to sleep in the van and rough it a little bit…maybe do some Pilot showers, but it ain’t nothing I’ve never done before!
Whether or not he gets help, Alex plans on doing the entire Monster Energy AMA Supercross Series this season…but he’s open for a ride! | Bigwave photo
You mentioned a couple of your sponsors, but who would you like to thank before we let you get out of here?
First off, I’d like to thank my mom and dad, they’ve helped out tremendously. My dad got me into this whole racing thing. Spider Energy, TXS Productions, FXR, K1 Speed, Husqvarna, Dirt Tricks, Dedicated Ride Company, No Toil, Dubya Wheels, Yoshimura, MotoSeat, Pirelli, Vertex, Hot Cams, Vortex Handlebars, Steve Matthes at Pulp MX, EKS Brand, Arai Helmets, Mobius, Sidi boots, 2XU Moto, Rekluse, Noleen J6, Ohlins, and The Newf.
So, if anyone is reading this and they’re looking for a rider, Alex Ray is available. Thanks for your time, and good luck.
Ya, and if anyone wants a replacement, God forbid anybody gets hurt, but it’s a rough sport and anything can happen, give me a call!
Ok, thank, Alex.
Thank you.
