MXA TAKES YOU TO THE AMA 450 NATIONALS ON A BUSMAN’S HOLIDAY

Last year, Josh Mosiman raced a stock KTM 450SXF at 2021 Hangtown National. This year, he raced a CRF450 at Pala and KX450SR at Hangtown, but they weren’t stock.

BY JOSH MOSIMAN

If you gave me Eli Tomac’s YZ450F, Ken Roczen’s CRF450 or Ryan Dungey’s 450SXF, would I be as fast as they are? If you gave Chase Sexton my CRF450 or Jason Anderson my KX450SR, would they still finish at the top of the class? This topic is usually brought up by privateer Pro riders who are trying their hardest to earn a paycheck while living their dream, and it’s brought up by die hard fans who intently study and watch Pro Supercross and motocross.

Many of our loyal MXA readers have heard my story before. Thanks to the support of our parents, my brother Michael and I were able to travel the world racing motocross from a young age, and I raced two full seasons of outdoor Nationals in 2016–2017, a season of Supercross in 2018 and two Nationals in 2018 (before an injury ended my season). Now, as an MXA editor, I’m thankful to have the opportunity to pop into the AMA Pro racing scene here and there—ever mindful that I’m racing in my role as an MXA test rider.

IT IS KIND OF LIKE A BUSMAN’S HOLIDAY, WHICH IS WHEN A BUS DRIVER TAKES A VACATION BY TAKING A BUS TRIP. 

It is kind of like a busman’s holiday, which is when a bus driver takes a vacation by taking a bus trip. I spend many days a week on a motocross bike for my job at MXA, and when I have time to do something relaxing, I sign up to race two 450 Nationals. Here are the details of my two-week busman’s holiday to Pala and Hangtown

PALA NATIONAL: At Pala, the toughest sections were the two short downhills. Both of them have jumps at the top that land you straight into ruts with major bumps in them. If you overshot the jump, you landed in some very treacherous ruts. If you cased the jump, you bounced off the landing and then landed in some very treacherous ruts. Add in the fact that the take-off is blind and you can’t see the ruts until it’s too late. You just hope that they haven’t changed from the lap before. This was my first time racing a National at Pala, and I thought the track layout was better than what I’ve seen there in the past, but the conditions still weren’t ideal. When I last raced the AMA 450 National Championship series, the Southern California round was held at Glen Helen.

At Pala, it is extremely tough for spectators to park, find a good view of the action and leave the track. It took two hours to leave the parking lot after the race.

Josh started out his day at Pala on this Honda CRF450 Works Edition and ended it on a hybrid CRF450/CRF450RX built-from-parts bike.

HANGTOWN NATIONAL: Hangtown always provides a challenging track. This year, two spots stood out as extra tough. A brand-new lane was created in the back section, behind the small pond that’s surrounded by tall trees. Unfortunately, these trees made the craziest part of the track invisible to everyone, except the TV cameras, and those who ventured over to watch from the fence line couldn’t see the rest of the track once they got there. This section had a small, turning, table-top hip jump into a set of five, large, rutted sand rollers built into a steep step-up. The traditional line was to come off the hip jump and go double-double-single over the last roller (which was the biggest) and then launch the step-up. The fastest riders were jumping off the hip jump onto the first roller (my brother Michael was the first rider to do it in qualifying). I gained some bragging rights with my brother since I launched this jump twice in qualifying, but it wasn’t worth the time gained for me to do it in the actual 450 motos. The other tough spot was the downhill in the middle of the track. No matter how slow I went down it, I couldn’t find a smooth line.

ANALYSIS: It’s nearly impossible to find a local track to practice on that will prepare you for the Nationals. The National tracks are ripped deeper and watered more for a National than they are any other day of the year. Plus, they’ll usually throw obstacles in that make it even tougher. Sometimes it’s big jumps or steep hills; however, it’s not usually the obstacles that are the problem, it’s the bumps and ruts that’ll get you. A National track will make a top local Pro rider look like a beginner. The speed gap between Eli Tomac and a 20th-place privateer isn’t too big when you’re at the local track; however, when it comes to a National, the difference in lap times is almost sad to think about. 

Endless ruts are a common theme at the Nationals. This is from the mechanics’ area straightaway at Pala.

BUILDING THE MXA RACE BIKES: A KAWASAKI KX450SR VERSUS HONDA CRF450 WORKS EDITION

2022 HONDA CRF450WE: The 2022 Honda CRF450WE chose to race at Pala is an upgraded version of the standard CRF450 (it’s not a preview of next year’s bike like the KTM Factory Editions are). The main upgrades for the “WE” model are the coated Showa fork legs, as well as the coated and oversized 18-millimeter shock shaft, a Yoshimura exhaust system, mild touch-ups done to the cylinder head and an updated ECU mapping.

To turn the CRF450WE into a race bike, I brought the Showa suspension to Pro Circuit to have it re-valved to a stiffer setting specific for my weight and riding style. Then, I swapped out the Yoshimura muffler for a Pro Circuit T-6 exhaust system. I also was warned by Factory Honda that I should run an oversized fuel tank for safety. The 1.7-gallon stock Honda tank has been known to run dry (for top Pros) before the 30-minute-plus-two-lap moto is over, so we borrowed a Red Moto tank from the SLR Honda off-road team. It’s not a full off-road tank, just a plastic tank that’s 0.3-gallons bigger than stock. I also installed a Supersprox chain and a TM Designworks chain guide.

Josh Mosiman and mechanic Josh Fout on the line for qualifying at Hangtown with some heavy hitters. Josh made the Fast 40.

2022 KAWASAKI KX450SR: Thanks to Pro Circuit, for Hangtown I was able to get my hands on a set of factory Showa A-kit suspension from the Pro Circuit Kawasaki race team, with the  Pro Circuit linkage and the triple clamps that the race team uses as well. Then, I ran FCP Racing’s engine mounts and front motor mount bolt. I used the Pro Circuit Ti-6 exhaust system that comes stock on the “SR” bike. Team Kawasaki gave me a “factory race team spec‚“ spring-loaded clutch system (they replaced the Belleville washer spring with coil springs). Kawasaki also gave me a 1.8 radiator cap. Plus, I swapped out the 250mm rear brake rotor that comes stock on the KX450 for the 240mm one that comes on the KX250 (and KX450X off-road bike). To run the smaller rotor, we had to switch out to a smaller rear brake caliper bracket.

ANALYSIS: Here’s a list of parts that I used on both bikes: Dunlop MX33 tires, Guts Racing Wing Seat (with a bump on top for extra traction), Works Connection Pro Launch starting device, Twin Air filters, Acerbis skid plate, and Acerbis K-future hand guards (which mount to the clutch and brake perches rather than clamping onto the bar). I also ran Acerbis’ brand-new Metallica grey side number panels and rear fender with sparkling metallic Throttle Syndicate graphics to tie it all together. I used Phoenix handlebars (with ODI Emig Pro V2 lock-on grips on the Honda and Phoenix grips on the Kawasaki) and trusted ETS Fuel’s top-of-the-line offering, US MX K21 fuel, because it’s proven to make great power for the factory KTM/Husky/GasGas teams, and it runs stable without boiling in the long and hot 35-minute motos. It’s the same fuel I used when racing the 450 Nationals before coming to MXA.

I CONSIDER A “FULL-TIME” RACER TO BE SOMEONE WHOSE PRIMARY FOCUS IS ON RACING. AND REALLY, YOU CAN SPLIT THE FULL-TIME CATEGORY INTO TWO GROUPS—FACTORY AND PRIVATEER.

 Qualifying for a Pro National is no easy task, but keeping up with the top riders for 30-minutes is even harder.

FULL-TIME RACER: I consider a “full-time” racer to be someone whose primary focus is on racing. And really, you can split the full-time category into two groups—factory and privateer. With my younger brother being a GasGas factory rider, I know all too well how nice their lives are. My brother doesn’t worry one lick about changing air filters, installing fresh clutch plates, sending the engine off for a refresh or pleasing his sponsors. His job is to be physically and mentally fit enough to compete at the highest level on race day. On top of all his training before Supercross in the off-season, Michael was able to jump on the outdoor track during the Supercross season (in between Supercross training) to log over 30 total 30-minute motos at the track between March and the first round of the Nationals in May. Sometimes his trainer, Will Hahn, would have him do three 30-minute motos in one day, on top of his additional cardio and strength training throughout the week.

As for privateers who are full-time racers (like I used to be), the responsibilities are tenfold. I used to be the marketing guy, team chef, team manager and racer all at once. The job of racing a full season as a privateer is extremely exhausting, and, depending on how much support you have, it’s hard to keep up on training throughout the season. Yes, I had tons of help from my mechanic and my parents, but competing in a full season as a privateer is still a challenging task.

PART-TIME RACER: Currently, I fit into the category of part-time racer. As the Assistant Editor of Motocross Action, I’m not allowed to keep racing the Nationals if I don’t get my “work” done first. I didn’t do any 30-minute motos before the season started, but I did race as many local events as possible during the months leading up to the Nationals to “race myself into shape.”

ANALYSIS: There’s a big difference between my level of fitness as a magazine test rider and when I was a full-time racer. Before I had a top-level trainer and, even with my busy schedule of managing my little program, I could spend up to two hours with him in the gym three to four days a week. I also made time to ride my bicycle often as well. When the nerves are high, the track is rough and the pace is fast, you can’t fake it anymore. Your true endurance shows, and I struggled at Pala and Hangtown.

Josh and Josh on the line before qualifying session two (after swapping virtually every part on two CRF450s after an engine failure on lap four of the first 450 Qualifier).

AMA PRIVATEER  STRUGGLES: BROKEN BIKE VS. BROKEN SPIRIT

PALA: The biggest struggle of the Pala National started on lap four of practice and lasted for almost two hours until it was time to head out for the second qualifying session. In the first session, I got one parade lap to learn the track before the green flag flew and they started timing the qualifying laps. I rolled the track on lap one, got more up to speed and hit all the jumps on lap two, and laid down my fastest lap time to qualify in the top 36 of the 450 class on lap three (the other four riders for the 40-man main event come from the Last Chance Qualifier).

With how deep they rip the tracks at the Nationals, it’s always best to make a fast lap as soon as possible, before it gets too rough and the ruts get too deep. Thankfully for me, I was able to log a good one because my CRF450WE engine died on the very next lap. It started slowing down like I was dragging the rear brake, so I pulled off the track. By the time I got to the top of the hill, it died and wouldn’t start again. I made the long push back to the pits where my mechanic (fellow MXA test rider Josh Fout) helped me diagnose the problem. We tried the stock tank with the original fuel pump, checked the airbox, and replaced the fuse but found no solutions.

Luckily, I brought MXA’s CRF450RX that I race in off-road events as a backup bike. I had planned to only use it for spare parts, but when the first engine died and we had less than two hours before the next qualifying session, Josh and I decided it would be safer to swap bikes than to put the CRF450RX engine in the Works Edition chassis. Since the RX bike is just a stock CRF450 with a detuned ECU, bigger tank, kickstand and 18-inch rear wheel, it wasn’t hard to turn it into a race bike. We swapped the suspension, fuel tank, wheels, plastics and exhaust onto the RX, and called it good (the kickstand was already off). In the end, it was basically the same bike as before.

Swapping the parts over wasn’t too hard, but I made our job a real head-scratcher thanks to one mistake. When installing the Honda shock, I put the longer top shock bolt in the bottom shock mount, and Josh Fout started to tighten the nut; however, because the bolt was too long, the nut screwed in past the threads onto the smooth shoulder of the bolt where it got stuck. It took 20 minutes and help from Gary and Justin Jones (our Honda specialists in the pits) to pry the nut off. We made it to the start line with a few minutes to spare for our next qualifying session, but my lap time from the third lap of the first qualifier (when the track was the smoothest) earned me the 28th spot on the line for 450 Moto 1.

HANGTOWN: Luckily, we didn’t have any bike issues at Hangtown. The challenges weren’t mechanical here, they were physical. After racing two 30-minute motos at Pala, I was worn out going into the following weekend in Sacramento. Plus, I didn’t do the best job of recovering. In between rounds, I was busy catching up on work for MXA’s editorial deadline and getting the race bike together. Kawasaki gave me a new KX450SR for Hangtown, so I broke it in on Tuesday as a stock bike while Pro Circuit built my suspension. Then I picked up the A-kit Showa suspension, linkage and triple clamps Tuesday evening, installed them Wednesday morning at Lake Elsinore, and rode the bike for two sessions to test it out. Then, after installing a longer chain between test sessions, I was able to run the rear wheel all the way back, which the Pro Circuit team recommended.

After riding Tuesday/Wednesday, I washed bikes and packed the sprinter van Wednesday night, drove eight hours to Sacramento on Thursday and spent Friday working on the bike, with Josh Fout installing new graphics, grip tape, a Pro Launch device, wheels with fresh Dunlop tires, new Phoenix grips and the smaller 240mm rear brake rotor. Josh did most of the work, but I was still tired afterward! Then, after a day in the pits, I stopped at the grocery store to stock up on supplies, picked up take-out Mexican food for dinner and stayed up until 10:00 p.m. making my food for race day, which included pour-over coffee, eggs for breakfast, two pumpkin flax protein pancakes for a midday snack, and a protein smoothie for between the two motos.

By the time Saturday morning came around, I was tired and hungry. With my lack of preparation and additional nerves on race day, I wasn’t able to eat enough food to “catch up” on nutrition. Not to mention, Hangtown is a local race for me. I grew up two hours west of the track and raced there all my life. I had lots of friends come by the pits to see and talk to me, but that also depleted more energy and increased my nerves.

ANALYSIS: In the end, both struggles were challenging, but the lack of endurance and strength was a big factor in my riding at Hangtown. I underestimated how much racing two weekends in a row would take a toll on my body. I thought I would have recovered more easily from the first weekend, but that wasn’t the case.

MXA’S 450 NATIONAL BIKES: TESTING THE HONDA CRF450 & KAWASAKI KX450SR AT THE NATIONALS

HONDA CRF450WE: Although I had to switch to my spare bike, the CRF450RX, I don’t feel like it hindered my results. The only thing that was hindered was my jump off the start. The cross-country-tuned ECU settings on the RX engine aren’t as responsive or “snappy” off the crack of the throttle. I started next to Alex Martin in the second moto and was quick to react, but I was no match for him once we crossed over the gate and his YZ450F started hooking up. But, that didn’t bother me too much. As a mid-pack rider, a holeshot wouldn’t have made much of a difference in my results. If anything, the RX ECU helped me out once at mid-moto because it was mellower, making it easier to hold onto the bike for the two motos. Also, since our relatively new CRF450WE engine didn’t survive, I had faith in the RX engine because it had been raced in a several very long off-road event without an issue. As predicted, it held strong, even with almost zero maintenance on it beforehand. I raced with the same clutch and oil that I used when I raced the two-hour Lake Havasu WORCS race and a 45-minute SRA Grand Prix race two weeks prior.

Josh borrowed a 2.0-gallon Red Moto tank from the SLR Honda 0ff-road team to make sure he didn’t run out of fuel.

As for handling, I liked the Pro Circuit suspension, but the next time I will opt for even stiffer settings to get more hold up and less movement in the choppy stuff. It was a great setting on normal tracks, but with big bumps and steep inside rollers compressing the suspension lap after lap, I think I would’ve benefited from much stiffer valving, even though I thought that Pro Circuit went stiff enough originally.

KAWASAKI KX450SR: This bike was fun to ride! The Showa A-kit suspension with Pro Circuit clamps and linkage worked like a dream on the KX450SR. I was excited to ride with this suspension, and after one day of testing on it at Lake Elsinore on Wednesday before Hangtown, I felt right at home. Plus, the smaller 240mm rotor helped immensely. It’s crazy how the extra 10mm in size can cause you to lock up the rear brake so much.

The grey exhaust stickers matched the new Acerbis Metallic Grey plastic.

ANALYSIS: As MXA has explained before in other articles, A-kit suspension is built to tighter tolerances with higher-quality materials that hold up higher and allow suspension tuners to dial in the suspension, making it immensely better for fast riders. No, it’s not a fair comparison to put the production-based Honda CRF450WE up against the KX450SR with factory parts, but who said this was a comparison test? I simply went racing on MXA test bikes that I wanted to try racing at an AMA National or two..or four. I had access to factory parts from Pro Circuit, and I wasn’t going to turn them down!

Pro Circuit revalved the stock Showa components on the Honda CRF450WE, which were already updated over the stock CRF450 forks.

MXA’S Kawasaki KX450 Special Racer got Showa forks directly from the Monster Energy/Pro Circuit Kawasaki team for Hangtown—revalved for a KX450.

RACEDAY AT PALA: The first moto at Pala was brutal. I was mid-pack off the start and got a rude awakening to the craziness that is a Pro National. At nearly every AMA National I’ve been to, the track starts slick and muddy in each moto, but it’s even worse when the track is already dry to begin with. Because they don’t want to water mid-race, and they don’t want it dusty on TV, the track is soaked before the sight lap, and sometimes there are puddles in the ruts. The first laps are hectic. The Pala first turn was a stupid design with a tight, 180-degree corner followed by another 180 corner, a roller whoop section and two big jumps. Only the riders who got to the first turn in the front group got through it unscathed.

It’s always nerve-wracking jumping in a pack of 40 riders, but that’s what makes it so exciting. I also experienced Jason Anderson landing on my arm before the steep uphill in the back section. I thought I was on the very inside of the track, but Jason made a new line even further inside, and he launched off the inside single and pushed me out of the spot—that was wild. I dropped a few positions to cross the line in 28th on lap one. I was overwhelmed on the first few laps with how rough the track was and with how fast everyone was going around me. I went from 28th to 33rd before settling into a decent pace and actually making it back up to 27th. After having some fun for about 20 minutes, I got tired in the last portion of the race and dropped a spot late in the moto to finish 28th.

In moto two, I got a better start and crossed the line in 18th on the first lap, but my stamina wasn’t there. This time out, I had a first-lap collision with Justin Barcia. He tried to rail around the outside of me, but his rut launched him into my line. Luckily, I held strong. He bounced off of me, made the pass and kept going. We both stayed on two wheels. I dropped back slowly and ultimately crossed the line in 30th, giving me 28-30 scores for 30th overall.

Was Josh (171) beating Ken Roczen (94)? Nope, just getting lapped. The leaders lap well into the top-20 regularly.

RACEDAY AT HANGTOWN: When it came time to qualify on Saturday morning at Hangtown, I was excited to be the first one onto the track. For qualifying, they line everyone up in a group on the start straightaway in front of the gate. Luckily, I was in the “A” group for both weekends because I qualified for the motos at the final round in 2021 (Hangtown) and because I made the top 40 at Pala the week before. They line everyone up and wave the green flag once the practice begins. It’s not a gate drop, and not everyone races to be the first one on the track, but I certainly did. I was the first one around the track for the parade lap. They let you ride quickly on the parade lap, but you’re not supposed to jump any of the jumps. Eli Tomac also wanted to be the first rider on the track, so he passed me late in the lap, and we were one-two when the green flag flew and qualifying started. Once again, my fast time came on lap three when the track was the smoothest, but thankfully I made it through both qualifying sessions without any bike issues to qualify 29th overall out of the 84 riders who signed up.

As for the motos, I certainly had less stamina than I did at Pala. I even laid down in my van for 20 minutes between qualifying and the races to try to recharge my batteries. Then I finished my morning coffee and drank a MindFX on the starting line before we took off.

WHEN I THOUGHT I COULDN’T GET PASSED ANYMORE, THEY JUST KEPT ON COMING! I DROPPED TO 35TH, AND I HAVE ZERO EXCUSES. I DIDN’T  CRASH OR HAVE BIKE PROBLEMS; I JUST FINISHED 35TH. ROUGH!

Moto one was full of highs and lows for me. I was tired, but the riders around me were tired, too. I shuffled positions with the riders between 20th and 30th for the whole moto before ultimately finishing 26th. It was a huge mental battle on the track. I wanted to quit, but there’s nothing good that comes from that. I told myself to do my best in the first moto and try to get a good result without worrying about saving energy for the next moto. In my head, one 26th place finish means more than two consistent 30th places. In the end, I was happy to improve on my result from Pala the week before, and I almost passed for 25th place in the final laps.

The opening laps of a National are always full of chaos.

Moto two came, and boy was I tired. This time I found a gate next to my friend Shane McElrath. I stuck with him for the first 20 feet out of the gate, and then I drafted him into turn one. I snuck up the inside of the first turn and outside of turn two, though, to make up some spots and came out two positions ahead of Shane for some bragging rights against my buddy. I was 22nd when I came around on the first lap and slowly dropped backward. I hung mid-pack until about 10 minutes to go when the anchor came out. When I thought I couldn’t get passed anymore, they just kept on coming! I dropped to 35th, and I have zero excuses. I didn’t crash or have bike problems; I just finished 35th. Rough!

The Joshes: Mechanic Josh Fout (left) and rider Josh Mosiman not only did the Pala and Hangtown 450 Nationals, but also Washougal (on a 2023 Husqvarna FC450) and will be at Pala II on Saturday (on a 2023 KTM 450SXF). Stop by their pits and say “Hi.”

ANALYSIS OF THE FIRST TWO NATIONALS: No excuses. It was a humbling experience racing the first two 450 Nationals of 2022. I felt more comfortable on the 2022 Kawasaki KX450SR, but I wasn’t fit enough to take advantage of it. I’m thankful to my MXA coworkers—Jody, Daryl, Travis and Trevor—for helping me go racing, to Motocross Action for providing the opportunity and support to race the Nationals again, and special thanks to my fellow MXA test rider Josh Fout for working extra hard on my bikes at both races. As always, it was a learning experience, and I’m looking forward to being more prepared for the next one!