 Rider: Quinn Wentzel Photo: Zachary C. Bako Joel YounkinsHigh Performance Coach Crashes happen. But a lot of injuries don’t have to. When you train the right way, you give yourself a chance to walk away, keep riding, and keep building momentum. Whenever you choose to compete in a sport like motocross or off-road racing, you have to accept that injuries can happen. If you can’t make peace with that reality, then the safest place is on the fence, watching.
That said, I don’t subscribe to the “it’s part of the sport” narrative when injuries happen like there's nothing to be done. I believe a large percentage of injuries can be reduced or even prevented if racers take the right protocols and give themselves a fighting chance in this sport. This isn’t a “5 best exercises” type of article. Instead, I want to give you a way of thinking, a holistic/big-picture approach to how you can stack the odds in your favor and make better decisions for yourself as a racer when it comes to keeping yourself healthy. The Foundation: Physical Preparation When injuries happen, they happen to your body. So how you develop and prepare your body for racing becomes your first line of defense. Look at the pros for a second. Some riders seem to break something every time they hit the ground. Others, like a Chase Sexton, can hit the deck at full speed and still line up the next weekend. That’s not luck. That’s preparation. Over the 15 years of my coaching career, thankfully, my racers have stayed remarkably healthy. I don't like to bring this conversation up, but I will for the sake of this blog. I’ve had one ACL tear about a decade ago and only a couple collarbone, rib, and hand breaks over the years. But the riders who train consistently and follow structured strength and recovery programs stay in the game and off the injury list. Yes, I've had many riders who have gotten seriously banged up from bad crashes, however, what I 100% believe that kept them on the track the next week versus the operating table, has been due to their commitment to their physical preparation. Why Strength Training Matters Strength training is your number one tool for injury prevention. It builds the soft tissue, strengthens the muscles that support your joints, and is especially important in motocross, it makes your bones stronger. Most injuries in moto are bone breaks, not soft-tissue injuries. Cycling alone won’t do this for you. It’s great for "cardio," but it leaves a lot of performance and protection potential on the table. Strength training should be in your program year-round if you want to perform at your best and protect yourself. We can even make a case for plyometric/shock training can be a huge help in preventing injuries as well. When executed properly, it will prepare you body to absorb forces better. For example, a mixture of calf raises and plyo jumps could potentially help reduce the risk of Achilles tendon tears on the track. When it comes to soft tissue, the knees and shoulders are common problem areas. People often ask me what I think about knee braces. My answer is: wear what makes you feel most confident. But more importantly, focus on what you can do to decrease your risk of injuring your knees in the first place.
Those details matter. They’re not flashy, but they’re the difference between “getting lucky” and being prepared. Daily Readiness and Injury Risk We all have a daily readiness level. If we could measure it perfectly, it would never be 100%. There’s always something, stress, lack of sleep, poor nutrition, sickness, emotional strain that affects your body’s ability to perform and recover. We don't live in some vacuum where everything is perfect. When readiness is low and stress is high, that’s when injuries happen. Your decision-making slows down, your reaction time lags, and your body becomes less resilient. When you crash under fatigue or high stress, your body also breaks more easily. That’s why I emphasize planning your training, recovery, and riding. If you’re trying to push through high fatigue or stack long days back-to-back without recovery, you’re not just risking poor performance, you’re putting yourself in danger. Understanding the Probability Game The more you ride, the higher your probability of getting hurt. That’s not to scare you, it’s just math. You can’t crash if you’re not on the bike, but you also can’t get better without time on it. The key is finding your sweet spot: riding enough to improve your skill and performance, but not so much that you’re just spinning laps and not moving a needle. That balance will look different for every rider depending on their experience, level, and goals. There's no need to fear riding, but you need to respect it. Riding Within Your Skillset A lot of crashes happen because riders push beyond their current ability level. There’s a fine line between challenging yourself and riding recklessly. If you’re crashing because things are happening too fast, you need to dial it back. Riders who race with proper technique and within their limits can correct mistakes in real time. Those who ride over their heads often can’t, and that’s when they hit the ground, hard. This happens from everyone from an amateur C-Class rider up through the top level of pro racing. It's not hard to determine who crashed because they made a mistake versus who is riding over their head... Know your edge. Train at it. Get comfortable there. As your skills improve, that edge will move outward. Step too far past it, and your risk of injury skyrockets. Final Thoughts Motocross will always carry risk, but you can dramatically shift the odds by being proactive. Build a strong, resilient body through year-round training. Respect your readiness levels. Balance volume with recovery. And ride smart within your own ability. Injury prevention isn’t about living in fear, it’s about building confidence through preparation and planning. When you prepare your body, manage your stress, and make smart decisions, you give yourself the best chance to stay healthy, keep progressing, and keep doing what you love. Stay out on the track, and out of the doctors office.
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