2019 MXGP Of Asia | Scene Report
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2019 MXGP OF ASIA | COMPLETE COVERAGE
PHOTOS | MXGP
John Kuzo is one of the few people in the paddock that tries to travel to as many international races as possible. The Rider Rep for 100% spends most weekends of the year at American Supercross and motocross events, but every now and then will hop on an international flight to check-in with guys in the MXGP circuit and make sure they have what they need. With stamps from Argentina, Qatar, Belgium, France, and more on his passport, Kuzo recently did the quick run to the other side of the planet for the 2019 MXGP of Asia round in Semarang. What was it like in Indonesia, a region where scooters are the preferred mode of transportation but racing is a little-known activity?
In the States, I’m here every weekend. For riders, I build four pairs for each round, plus parade lap and roll-offs for a day like Spring Creek. For the guys over there, I prep everything for them for each round but I’m obviously not there. I’ll go every four or five rounds and will take them goggles for the next four or five races. That’ll be six pairs per round, three for the practices and three for the races. So, it’s six pairs times however many rounds it’ll be between my visits. I always take the OGIO 9800 bags and I’ll have three or four of those, and when my wife comes, we might bring two more of those bags with clothes and everything else. It’s a lot of prep that I have to do periodically. I’ll start a little bit in advance by building goggles for the practices, then the races, and then have some sets with film systems ready. I try to keep them stocked with six film systems at all times, enough to get them through a full weekend, but they would almost never run roll-offs an entire weekend. But still, I want them to be good and will build more if it’s needed.
It was cool to go to Asia for Semarang. It was one of the tracks that was on my bucket list after I saw it last year, because the track looked cool and the fans seemed rad. It worked out this year that it was our weekend off.
I will go to Lommel here in a few weeks, that’ll be how I end the off-weekend from Loretta’s and depending on how things work out, with 100% sitting second in MX2 and in the top-five in MXGP, I might be at Turkey before des Nations.
It was 24-hours of travel to get there each way. Chicago to Tokyo was 13 hours, then Tokyo to Jakarta was seven hours. I landed in Jakarta at like midnight on Thursday and was at my hotel at 1:30 AM, then was back up for the airport at 4 AM to go from Jakarta to Semarang. I flew back to Jakarta from Semarang on Sunday night at 9 PM, then was back on a 6 AM flight Monday for the US. I’ve done it like that before, like when I went to Qatar. I’ll fly for 24 hours, be on the ground for 48 hours, and then fly back for 24 hours. I’m in the air about the same amount of time that I’m on the ground. Luckily, I had business class for the flights between the US and Tokyo, but beyond on that, it’s a lot of travel and your body not knowing what’s going on, making phone calls home at 3 AM.
The track in Semarang was awesome. Some riders complained about it, but when I walked it on Friday, I thought the layout was awesome. There are some huge jumps and the dirt is hard to figure out. It’s hardpack, but when they disc it, the dirt gets chunky and not a fine mix. It packs up really good and got crazy shiny on Saturday and Sunday. For a rider, I completely understood where they were coming from. For the fans, they were standing on fences and everyone rode motor scooters to get to the track.
I hung out with Sal from KTM and I think he had a lot to do with the track and everything down there, just because of how much he does with KTM in the region. There are so many Honda scooter stores and more people there on bikes and that know how to ride than there are here, for sure. There are ladies with their three kids on the back, weaving in and out of traffic. It’s cool how much they are into bikes. The guys that were local that rode, the talent level isn’t there, but they sure are happy and had smiles on their faces on the line.
I’m probably the weirdest eater in the world. I don’t eat fruits and vegetables and I don’t drink much water. My first times to Europe, I built a survival pack full of candy and drinks, because you can’t get Cherry Coke on Mountain Dew over there. You can get Coke and that’s about it. I went to Gautier Paulin’s house and stayed with him, but by the third day, he asked why I hadn’t eaten anything. I told him that I had my own kit and not to worry about it [Laughs]. I’ve learned to adapt and since I married my wife, I’m a much better eater. I ate with Coldenhoff and Ivo Monticelli in Asia for two nights and in the middle of the dinner, I didn’t even feel like I was in Indonesia with the steak and pasta and the amazing food. The prices are crazy. I was getting two meals and two Coke for like three bucks. Our money to their money is so different. I survived on this one thanks to the help of others, but when I’m alone and first started, I looked for anything Americanized.
The marketing that the did at this round was incredible. I got off the plane and saw signs, went out to the terminal where there was a 10×10 board you could get a picture with, all of the taxis and telephone poles. It was amazing. They are into it and once you go once, it picks up momentum. For the riders, it’s tough because they don’t get to ride during the week on some of these races, but if it was up to me, I would have gone to both Asia rounds and hung out in Bali with everyone. There are a lot of plus to some of the trips they get to go on.
They have it locked down at the European rounds and I think they are trying to find the right places to make the landmark rounds. They are talking to Australia and that’ll work because of the base there. I went to Qatar twice and the second year was better, I think it was the third or fourth year of the race there but seeing sheiks and stuff on the side of the tracks with camels was mind-blowing. It was cool for me, but I don’t the fanbase bought into it. I think they (the series) gets help from countries. Where we are at, it might be the city or the local chamber of commerce, but they don’t have the state backing to come in. The fans are unreal and they are behind their guys. If you go to Italy and someone cleans out Cairoli, they aren’t making it out of the parking lot. That’s what I personally enjoy, hearing the chainsaws and seeing the fans on the hills. When you’re in France and Paulin and Febvre come around, the fans go ballistic. How can you not get goosebumps with stuff like that?
