‘I went from riding all supercross to a crazy hard mud race on a brand new bike I’ve never ridden before. Those women are no joke especially when it comes to a mud race. They are phenomenal racers!’.
What a challenge Jordan Jarvis took up. The American already has a full-plate racing AMA SX Futures Championship Women’s class which she is leading, and somehow slotted in making debut race entry in 2020 Women MX World Championship Opening Round at Matterley Basin.
Travelling to other side of world, racing new WMX Series on new bike at venue Jordan had never even seen before would have been testing enough- but add to the mix racing a muddy, sodden track – pushed Jordan to limits of ‘outside comfort zone’.
Which is what Jordan is all about- a character filled with deep desire to pursue her sport no matter what odds are stacked against her. Was she discouraged- yes! But down on the whole experience- hell no! Jordan has faced plenty of obstacles and challenges in the past to rise above the ‘this is not working’ and come up with ‘this worked’!
It takes alot to face situations which for reasons beyond one’s control affect and change an athletes direction. One such situation arose when AMA Women MX Championship was cancelled completely, and all WMX riders were relegated to race in Amatuer status of the AMA Amateur National Motocross Championship.
Not only did Jordan re-think and re-strategise on how to deal with the set-back, Jarvis put plans in place to race WMX at Loretta’s, race SX Futures Women’s class to gain all important SX points and race AMA Outdoors MX Championship 2019 and 2020.
Hard work- you bet! Which leads to Jordan’s thoughts on racing WMX Round One in the UK at the weekend. Saturday’s delayed Race 1 placed Jordan on back foot experiencing racing in the mud against seasoned Women riders. Sunday’s Race 2 proved much better with a dried out track. Jordan proved her talent to race up pointy end of class, vying for another opportunity to race against the best women in the world later on in the WMX season.
#301: ‘It was a wild weekend. It was very cold and rainy all weekend. I went from riding all supercross to a crazy hard mud race on a brand new bike I’ve never ridden before. Those women are no joke especially when it comes to a mud race. They are phenomenal racers and it definitely has discouraged me. I want more chances to go over and really prove what I can do’.
What really stood out for Jordan was: ‘It was crazy to see how many women were there racing. It was so professional. It was amazing to see the support that those women get’.
‘The mud definitely made it hard. Those women get to ride mud all the time and in the states we just don’t get to do that often. It was very difficult to learn the track in those conditions’.
‘Unfortunately the mud didn’t really clear up much through out the weekend. Riding a new bike also made the conditions harder. Everything felt so foreign to me but it was still a good change of scenery. I still enjoyed everything that happened’.
And Race 2- drier track conditions gave Jordan greater confidence to put her skills to the test, battling with Kiara Fontanesi around 7th place with Overall place of 9th in WMX Round One.
301: ‘Race 2 was definitely better conditions. I was riding better but I struggled on the start of each moto. I worked my way from the back both races’.
‘The final moto had me and one of the women battling together pretty hard and we were still putting down some fast laps at the end of the race. The track wasn’t as muddy as the first moto but it was still pretty wet and sticky’.
‘I’m pleased with how I rode for the most part but not so much the Overall. I know I could have been top 5 if I didn’t have some issues but I’m walking away safe and healthy with a ton of knowledge for the next race I do. I know my strengths and also my difficulties so I know what to fix for the next time’.
With plenty of new-found knowledge stored in memory bank, Jordan pays tribute to what the experience meant to her and plans for competing in WMX Rounds later in the season before heading back home to race SX Futures remaining Rounds.
#301: ‘I think I figured out how to ride the mud a little better. I know how important a good start is but these mud races definitely reassure me that they can be everything some times.
‘I think we are going to try to do the Final Round in Italy. Unfortunately we have other commitments in the States which are going to prevent me from doing the whole season’.
‘I want another shot to show what I can really do. Mud races are difficult to show your full potential. I know I can run up front with those women and I just want a shot to do so. I was off pace a little bit this weekend but not by much. I know what I can do I just need to show everyone else’.
Header Photo: Jordan Jarvis Photo Credit: MXGP
Words: Sharon Cox.
Comments are closed.