Roczen

Bold title I admit but check out what I have to think.

He is young and full of talent... check.
He HAD an ego that started in Texas and went beyond Alaska.
With no one to challenge him last year after Dungey broke his neck, he dominated the series. All those wins building up (false) confidence and (true) ego.

I felt the first race he didn't squash everyone he might fell a little vulnerable.
My how that came to be.

Last week after he couldn't shake Dungey, who BTW figured out how to make time in the whoops stalking Kenny.
After the race Ken spoke with, I think it was Steve Matthes, and he said he actually felt better after this race (narrowly beating Dungey) he felt better than the week before...?  WTF?  He felt better to barely edge out Dungey rather than win by 16 seconds...hmm. Sounds like damage control to me.

Kenny was fast last week but to me he looked off in the bowl turns. He was moving around on the bike in ways that to me just didn't look Roczenish.

I still can't figure out how he crashed. I think it was a meltdown, really. I'm not saying he threw it away on purpose, but something was going on in his head. How about all the pressure to win? Everyone basically expecting Roczen to win the title before it even got started.  Imagine the pressure? It must be monumental.

Poor kid, there is talk of him returning to outdoors later. Yeah it will be later imo. Like next year. He has much more than broken bones. His elbow was seriously dislocated as well as his wrist. These will take much more rehabilitation than the broken bones. And then his broken confidence will haunt him... like the amazing fastest man on the planet. He never did recover after RC smoked him. Oh and can't forget Eli Tomac. He is suffering the same right now. He found another gear but couldn't handle it and boom went his hopes.

So I don't know who will eventually read this. I would never put these thoughts in Ktalk because the trolls would ruin any chance of discussion.
I hope some fellow dirt bags will come on board with this topic. I'd love to hear others opinions.

I think KR will come back, but he will not be the same rider. The damage is done and while his body may recover with time, his mind will not.
He was in panic mode and riding over his head in the first laps of the race, it was either lap 2 or 3 he nearly threw it away in a rhythm section that had to be a pucker moment for him. He was bucked off of the bike from trying to make up time in a sketchy rhythm section that other riders were changing the timing due to the track going away and getting tougher each lap.

So you noticed as I that his riding and line choices didn't look normal. I've watched that race 4 times already and though Kenny doesn't look like he's on the ragged edge he certainly didn't seem himself. Hard to put my finger on exactly what I was seeing, but it left me waiting for the crash.
Perhaps my opinion was tainted as I knew the race results before watching.
He's no doubt very skillful but also he's been riding on that 'winner's high' feeling like there is just no one that can beat beat him. How can a young gun not feel that way? I guess crashing their brains out and losing a series in a heartbeat can teach them a different mindset when/if they reach the top again.

I wish other would chime in but seems it's just stick and shift...

Watch from 1:28 to 1:36 and you see him hanging on for dear life coming out of the right hand corner, then blowing the next rhythm section.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ygrDZuxllCE

He has not learned patience, he likes to try and win the race in the first couple of laps.

Orange has talked about it over at the other site, and the trolls don't believe him.

We were taking about this on the dirt bag FB page. I think it is a career ender. He almost lost his arm. Just don't see how he ever regains full use

I have to agree i do not believe that his arm will ever be the same, movement ect.

Shiftpro your thoughts that something with Roczen was not quite right were mine also. At A-1 after his first interview and away from cameras he was sucking air big time as if he was out of breath, i believe that each race up until his crash was taking a toll on him. I do not believe that he was in the physical condition that he was leading everyone to believe that he was in and he was in a do or die mode on the track. Unfortunately what i thought would happen happened.

Not only his use of arm, but his mind...
Not as sever as James Stewart, but along the same path.
When a young kid receives so much attention from their brilliant skills or perhaps, big balls to hold the throttle open whatever it takes, the pressure to continue being the "fastest man on the planet" must tear them apart. Stewart was done after Carmichael held up, and the whole world was expecting to see James (including James) to go on and win everything forever. The poor little kid never learned how to lose. That was not in his cards.
Well I don't see Roczen with the same win win record of that James had nor was the pressure on him equal to that of Stew. Nonetheless Kenny was probably over confident and really, EVERYONE (except us smartypants old guys) thought he was the next champion. Then his move to Honda only increased the pressure as well as risk vs reward.

Yeah and Eli will be going back for more surgery too before the end of this year.

And I don't think Roczen got 'bucked off'. In his mind he got 'bucked off'. He choked, simple as that. In the desert, WFO 7th gear goat trail, we do not look at the rocks and cactus, we only look where we want to go. Kenny I think was 'seeing' a big shit crash and so he made that come home.
He was lucky he lived, actually. An impact like that can send a forearm or rib right through the heart, and I don't mean figuratively like Kenny, if he heals, will have to face.

Yeah, Eli has me concerned he is a free agent after this season and this is putting pressure on him to perform. I want him to finish healthy and not follow in Roczens foot steps.

That isn't the first time Roczen has had that sort of get off. When we were bench racing about who was gonna do what, I told the rest of the Dirt Bags, it was Roczen's to lose this year, but basically any of the 3 (Roczen, Tomac and Dungey) were the favorites, just all a matter of who stays upright. Kroc and Tomac just don't have that historic consistency. Both, when on, are cuhrazy fast, but you just get that feeling watching them they are always one step over the line sweet Jesus and it is just a matter of time before they go down.

Roczen is lucky to have his arm and like Shifty said lucky to be alive