COLE TRAIN:
COLE BLECHA
Cole Blecha stamped his authority on the 65cc class throughout the 2019 season, dominating the younger division in most races that he contested with a slew of podium finishes and overall victories. The Colorado native built his speed and confidence throughout the season and put it together at the Loretta Lynn Amateur National Motocross Championship, earning a 2nd place overall finish in the 65cc (7-9) Limited class. He hasn’t finished off the podium at any of the high-profile amateur races that he’s contested since then, most notably tearing it up at The Motoplayground Race at Ponca City with a pair of championships, finishing no worse than 2nd in any moto the entire weekend. Blecha has progressed into the 2020 season with the same sense of self-belief as he managed to grab a title in the 65cc (10-11) Limited class at Spring A Ding Ding, in addition to strong performances in his other classes. He’s been taking advantage of virtual schooling and finding more time to ride with his brother, Dilon, out at Station 5 MX in preparation for racing’s return. We caught up with Cole while he combed the grocery store for salsa supplies to chat about his riding program, playing with Legos, and the intensity in the 65cc classes.
What have you been doing during the quarantine lately?
Yeah, I've just been ridin'. We've been doin' some turn track Tuesdays and in my free time I'm usually hittin' water balloons with a baseball bat, buildin' Legos, and all that.
How's the riding situation been for you?
Yeah, we have a property out in Mack, Colorado -- Station 5 MX, we got some stickers made for it. We've had some people come over the last weekend and we've just been riding the big track, then we do a turn track Tuesday where we keep the track short so we can get it rough and gnarly.
So is that where you do the majority of your riding?
Maybe once or twice a week we'll go to the desert.
Do you like going out there and free riding a little bit and making your own tracks?
It's kind of fun, 'cause we still play and do our motos. Sometimes it's fun to go out there 'cause we get to see what my dad grew up on.
How have you guys been handling the training and riding situation not knowing when we're going to be racing exactly? Have you been doing more or less?
Umm, I think we ride a little more because we don't have to go back to school. I'm not homeschooled, I still go to public school and we go from 8 am to 4 pm. So now it's nice to ride from like 12 pm to 3 pm or something. We can get off of school and go ride and the sun isn't in your eyes like when we go at 4 o'clock.
So, you're getting a taste of the homeschool life during quarantine then?
Yeah, we're just shopping right now. I'm making salsa with my teacher tomorrow in a video chat. The teacher has been doing some Google Slides for us and it's been really good.
How is it for you training with your older brother?
It's really good. We'll do chase motos; so I'll start out front and he catches me and stuff. That really pushes us and helps with our race intensity. It's really good because I can learn from his mistakes on that bike (the 85) and just the suspension settings and all that.
Do you guys share a lot of that information when you're at races together to help each other out?
We share lines after every moto and we decide each gear set together every night.
Last year you ended up winning the 65cc Dirty 100 Championship, it was a really close battle between you and Seth Dennis. It really showed how competitive and intense that class can be.
Yeah, we just take it race by race and just have fun with it like we do every year. It's really good, it can really change at any moment or with any gate drop. I moved up into the (10-11) class and we've got the 11-year-olds, so all of them are fast.
How was it for you to make the jump up to the older class at Spring A Ding Ding? You ended up getting a title and a couple of overall podiums.
Yeah, like you said I got a title. It's hard in that (10-11) class and you've got those older kids, so you can't make any mistakes in that class. You can't afford to make any silly mistakes. If you make a mistake then the next guy is right on your butt.
What do you think of the track layout down there at Underground?
Spring A Ding Ding is definitely one of my favorite tracks. The dirt shapes up really good in the morning and the start is really good, there aren't really a lot of crashes in that turn. Those conditions are what we train for so it's good to see all that hard work pay off.
We've noticed that you have four number one plates at Ponca throughout the last two years. What about that place do you gel with so much?
Well, at Ponca we've got this really cool spot and we usually bring both of our pit bikes. Me and my brother have made this turn track in the woods, so that's usually like our warm-up.
Do you think that's the secret to your success there?
Umm yeah, maybe. Also, that's kind of how our track is -- the jumps, the straightaways, like deep and gnarly.
MX Sports put out their plan to do Super Regionals as a tentative schedule right now. What're your thoughts on that?
I thought it was really good; it's not the regular format, but I still think it's good 'cause at least it's not everybody going to Loretta's.
Do you know what your plans are for the end of the year with Loretta’s and the remainder of the season moving into next year?
Yeah, we'll probably finish out the year in 65cc (10-11). We won't be running (7-11) this year, we'll probably run both (10-11) classes or the (10-12) and (9-10).