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The fiftieth running of the Hangtown Motocross Clas- in Schoolboy 2. That’s pretty insane for me; going
sic featured a fitting throwback to the days of old with from the podium nearly every race but never on top to
the addition of the 125 All-Star race, pitting various amateur riders against former pros and local Joes on a track prepped for the nation’s best riders. Rumblings around the pits and throughout the campgrounds that flank the course implied loads of excitement for the two-strokes to hit the track, potentially even more so than the big show itself. The casual attendees were excited to get a gander at Ryan Villopoto and Will Hahn on their YZ125s, or Jimmy Albertson blitzing a tricked out TM, but those with a bit of insider informa- tion were quick to suggest another competitor. Aiden Tijero has won fifteen of the eighteen classes that he’s entered throughout the year on his Orange Brigade backed KTM 125. The teenager out of northern Cali- fornia made some changes to his program in the 2017 off-season and has elevated his game drastically as
a result. He’s been the man to beat throughout most of the major amateur races at the beginning of 2018, winning the majority of the motos he’s contested from his home state of California all the way to Florida. Ti- jero grew up watching Villopoto dominate the competi- tion en route to four Monster Energy Supercross titles as well as multiple Lucas Oil Pro Motocross cham- pionships, and he was ecstatic at the opportunity to race one of his childhood idols -- not only did he get to do that, he won the race. We got together with Aiden and glanced over the details of the 125 All-Star race at Hangtown to get the scoop on how it all went down as well as his plans for the remainder of the rounds.
You’ve had some of the best results of your career in the amateur ranks at the beginning of 2018, take me through the off-season and the spring races.
Going into Daytona, I started training hard about three months before. I was never the top dog; I always po- diumed nearly every national, but I never really won. Coming into this year I knew that I wanted to make it happen, I was tired of just being the guy just below where everything was happening. Literally, I was there but I wasn’t noticed at all. I decided that I wanted to take it serious and I started living down south (in Cali- fornia.) Once we got to Daytona I won two titles there; I didn’t get the third one because I ended up falling and finished fourth or something like that. So, I was heading into Spring A Ding Ding and Freestone with a boatload of confidence and wrapped up two titles and a second at Underground. Freestone had one of the deepest fields and it was actually where I raced the best --I got three championships which was School- boy 1, 125 B/C, and 250 B Limited, and I got second
winning almost every single one of my motos that I’ve raced this year.
How extensively did you change up your training regiment moving down south?
Daily life has changed dramatically for me. I was going to the track once or twice every couple weeks when I was at home in northern California. I went
to high school my whole freshman year; this is my
first year doing it online. So, I was doing the whole going to high school, come home, ride once a week
or once every two weeks, and I’d just go from there.
I never really took it serious and I never did much in the gym aspect either. So, this year when I was back in southern California I’d be going to the track three
or four times a week and that’s not including what I was doing on the weekends. After training I’d go to the gym for an hour with Ryno or on a mountain bike ride; it’s almost like a daily thing of training. Now after I ride dirt bikes for training, I’ll go out and ride again just because I love it so much. You can see my videos and everything, it’s just different now.
Did that allow you to improve just based on the talent that you were able to sur- round yourself with at the track?
Yeah, that’s another thing. In northern California there’s nobody; I can’t gauge myself off anyone, I can’t do anything. In southern California, you can go to the tracks and you can ride with the pros; it’s com- pletely different. Plus, you also have kids in my class that I had to literally chase down and now I’m hope- fully starting to pull away from them a little bit. I never was faster than everyone and I’m not saying that I am now, but I’m trying hard to be.
What was your first reaction when they announced the 125 All-Star race?
I was honestly so stoked about it. We didn’t know for sure if I was able to do in the beginning, because last year I wanted to do it but I wasn’t allowed to because it was a pro event, and if the B riders rode it then you would be forced to move up to the A class. This year we luckily got the rule changed where it could be both A and B and you won’t get moved up. So, after hearing that Hahn and Villopoto were racing...it was insane, I wanted to race it.
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