SETH DENNIS: LOCK DOWN
Everybody across the moto industry is dealing with the coronavirus pandemic a little bit differently and a lot of that heavily depends on where you live. All of the public tracks in California are closed for instance, so riding availability is limited to private facilities and compounds. Things are a little bit different down in Florida with some tracks staying open and lots of people continuing to ride, so we caught up with the Lil Ripper himself, Seth Dennis, on his way back from a day of riding to see how he's been spending his time since the coronavirus pandemic began.
So you just got done riding today, how was it and where'd you go?
I rode Spyder today, it was a little dry but it was pretty cool. I haven't been there in like five years.
Yeah that's one of the only hardpack tracks down there in Florida near you, right?
Yeah, it's definitely different from all the other tracks but I like it.
What have you been doing with all of this extra playtime you've had?
Yeah, I've just been playing around outside, swimming. I've been trying to keep myself busy around the house. I play catch with my dad, football, frisbee and that kind of stuff.
How often have you been riding? Has all of this disrupted your normal training routine?
We've been trying to ride as much as we can really, just to ride and have some fun. I was training with Jack (Pullen), he's over here from South Africa training for a bit. Unfortunately, a couple of days ago one kid ran into him apparently and he broke his foot, so it's just me right now.
We know you're pretty big into MX Simulator, who do you normally play online with?
Usually, I just play with random people, it doesn't really matter to me. Occasionally, I'll hop on with my friend Brandon Eade and just ride a couple of tracks with him.
Do you watch any of the pro races that they do on YouTube every week?
I don't watch it every week but I try to watch some of it and so I'm not too far behind. I've been downloading all the replica supercross tracks and they're really fun. I haven't raced an event yet in MX Sim, so that's definitely something I'd like to do.
Are you close to being able to compete in one of the pro races?
Ehhh, probably not pro. I'll probably do the rookie events; I'm not the best at MX Sim but I'm better than some people. That game is...phew...if you don't know how to play it, it's rough. It took me like three years just to get used to it.
Tell everyone how the racing went for you at the beginning of this season before all of this started.
Yeah, before all of this it was going good, especially at Daytona. It went as planned in the 65 classes but not on the 85. I got like 6th or 7th in the one 85 class and then I crashed really hard in the rollers in the second one. Spring A Ding Ding went a little better, but I'm still not there yet. Hopefully, soon I'll be able to win some stuff on that 85.
Yeah, you won a lot last year in the 65cc classes. Is your main focus this year to improve on the 85 and step your game up there?
Yeah, I've definitely been training on the 85 a lot to try and get used to it and try to get up front.
You've definitely had some close battles recently with Canyon (Richards) and Cole (Blecha) in the 65cc class, what's it like racing those two?
Yeah, it's definitely battling with Canyon and Cole and all of them. Cole Blecha is definitely the underdog in the class and he's fast sometimes...like sometimes he's really fast. Canyon is pretty fast, too, but I'm trying to up the pace and go faster.
Caden Dudney is also another one of your close rivals on the track, but you guys are also pretty close off the track. Talk a little bit about that.
Yeah, Caden is definitely a good friend. I've been calling him these past couple of days just trying to stay in touch, playing some Fortnite, and trying to stay busy and not just sit around.
When do you think we're gonna be going racing next?
Hopefully as soon as possible. I'm definitely looking forward to Loretta's and hopefully they don't change anything and they can keep the Regionals and all that.