By: Harlen Foley
Interview:
Keith Little - Lonestar Racing, Honda, DG ATV MX
Racer
Keith Little turned Pro in 1997 and finished out
his rookie year with a 6th place finish in a combined
MX and TT Series. The following year, he earned
his first podium finish the Challenger Raceway TT
event. In 1999, Little would get his first taste
victory in the TT series and would on to win the
overall twice that year, but yet a MX podium still
eluded him and after several very successful years
in the TT circuit. Little finally became a threat
on the MX track in 2003, when he finished on the
podium five times and finished out the season in
third place in both the MX and TT series. That year
his success was contributed to his own custom Lonestar
Hybrid Hybrid CRF450, which definitely made a difference
on the MX track for Little.. In 2004, Keith Little
debuted his Lonestar Racing Rig and his new production
ride, the Yamaha YFZ450. The new YFZ rocketed Keith
Little into the spotlight as he reached the podium
in all seven rounds of the TT series and squeezed
out the National Championship by one point over
Tim Farr. Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to
return to the podium in the MX series where he finished
out season in eighth place.
With a TT National Championship under his belt,
Keith Little became a Factory support rider in 2005
and set his sights on a repeat championship in the
Extreme Dirt Track Series. After three podium finishes
and a win, he tied Harold Goodman for the points
lead heading into round four at Elizabeth City.
That race, disaster struck when his engine sprang
an oil leak and end his hopes for a repeat championship,
but a series finale win would allow him to finish
out the TT season in third place. Keith Little’s
biggest accomplishment of the year would be on the
MX track where he earned himself his first overall
win in (surprisingly enough) the Lonestar State,
and he would go on to finish out the year once again
in eighth place.
With the 2006 season set to begin in only a few
weeks, we couldn’t wait to find out what he
has been doing over the winter and his plans for
next year, so here is what he had to share with
us.
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| #12
Keith Little -- Ten Quick Facts |
| Birth
Date: |
12/30/1977 |
| Weight: |
160lbs |
| Hometown: |
Russellville, AL |
| ATV: |
Honda TRX450R |
| Occupation: |
Pro ATV Racer |
| 1st ATC/ATV: |
Honda ATC70 |
| Started Racing: |
13 Years Old |
| Favorite Track: |
Echeconnee, GA |
| Favorite
Racer: |
Tim Farr, Shane Hitt |
| Favorite Food: |
Steak |
|
ATVriders:
What have you been doing over the winter?
Keith Little: When the Extreme Track Series
ended, I took some time off from riding and went home
to Alabama, but after the GNC Banquet, I went out to
the west coast to race the Baja 1000. I returned home
again for Thanksgiving, and then I went back out west
to Phoenix, AZ to start working on building my Honda
450R for the 2006 season. You
are making the switch from Yamaha to Honda?
I was talking to some of the guys at Honda, and they
made me a good offer to race for Honda in 2006. I
was looking to try something different, and actually
up until I raced the YFZ450, I never raced any other
ATV besides the Honda. I started my racing career
on a Honda 250R, and then I made the switch to a Lonestar
CRF450 before production rule went into affect. At
the time, the Yamaha was the easiest ATV to get because
they came out before the Honda and since the Yamaha
was working well for me there was no reason to switch
at the time.
After
I won the Extreme Dirt Track Championship in 2004,
Yamaha offered me a support program for 2005, so I
stayed with Yamaha for another year, but for 2006
I am happy to back on a Honda.
What
type of support are you receiving from Honda?
I can’t disclose the actual details of my agreement
with Honda, but I would consider myself a Factory
Support Honda Rider since I am dealing directly with
Honda for my ATVs, parts, and contingency.
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|
Keith
Little testing his new Honda 450R at Glen Helen
Raceway |
Will
the Honda Factory Support Ride affect your race program
any for 2006?
Not really, I will still be traveling to the races
in my Lonestar Rig and running my own race program
as I did in the past, but I will just have Honda support,
which is basically just like Tim Farr’s and
John Natalie’s support programs this past year.
What
are your initial thoughts on the 2006 Honda TRX450R?
I am feeling really fast on the 450R, but I am stilling
running a stock engine with only an exhaust, so I
really haven’t had a chance to feel what the
engine is capable of yet, but as far as the way it
handles and corners, I am really happy with it even
in close to stock form.
How
would you compare your new Lonestar TRX450R to your
Lonestar Yamaha YFZ450?
The biggest difference I noticed so far is that the
Honda feels more agile and responsive than the Yamaha
when pitching them into a turn, and I am still working
on setting up my Honda’s since I just received
them recently.
Are
you going with the Electric Start or Kick Start Model?
I actually held out and waited for the kick start
model to become available, which is why I am a little
behind on getting them setup for racing.
What
was your reasoning on waiting on the kick start model?
I went with the kick start to shave a few pounds since
they are six pounds lighter, plus having a kick start
eliminates a lot of possible problems that could cause
a DNF, and in the past, I have had electric problems
which left me sitting on the side of the track, so
I decided to stick with the a kick start.
Who
are all your sponsors for 2006?
Lonestar Racing, American Honda, DG, Sparks Racing,
Maxxis, Ohlins, QuadTech, Tag, Streamline, FOUR, Axcalibar,
IB Racing, Division 4, Precision Racing Products,
Rath Racing, Douglas Wheel, DFR, Ogio, Works Connection,
Hinson, SIDI, Honda Pro Oils & Chemicals, K-Fab,
Blur, DVS, Longshore Cylce Center
You
mentioned Division 4 (Wes Miller) as Sponsor, so how
was it racing for Wes Miller’s H-Bomb Team in
the Baja 1000?
It went pretty good, I started the race and was going
to be running the first two hundred miles, and for
the first hundred miles things were going great as
I was leading the race, until I got a flat tire, so
I stopped and fixed it, but as soon as I fixed it,
I had to stop again to fix another flat in the rear.
Shortly after fixing my second flat, the tire went
flat again because the plug must have come out, so
at the point, I decided that I was losing too much
time stopping to fix the flats, so I rode the remaining
60-80 miles to the next pit to for a new tire and
handed over the Honda to Jeff Hancock with the team
in third place and about twenty minutes out of the
lead.
I
imagine at that point, you were wishing you had Tireballs?
Yeah, everyone has been saying that to us, but we
still ended up finishing in second place behind Wayne
Matlock’s Team
| |
| Keith
Little throwing roost on his Lonestar CRF450
Conversion he raced before the Production Rule
forced him to retire this incredible creation |
How
would you describe this year’s Baja 1000?
For me, it was the roughest course that I have ever
run down there because it was rocky and really whooped
out.
What
are your race plans for 2006?
I was planning on racing the Pro Quad Stadium Series,
but it was canceled, so I am going to be doing all
the ATVA MX Nationals and ATVA Extreme Dirt Track
Nationals. Also, what ever they end up doing with
the MXi Series, I hope to get to race as many of those
as I can, and I will be racing in the Baja 1000 again
in 2006.
Any
other exciting plans for 2006?
Yeah, I am getting married on June 2nd to my fiancée
LeAnne McReynolds. We have been together now for ten
years, so it has been long awaited.
| |
| Keith
Little won the Extreme Dirt Track Championship
in 2004 on a Yamaha YFZ450, and he feels confident
he can win it again on a Honda TRX450R in 2006 |
Where
will the big day be held?
We are getting married on the beach in Fort Morgan,
Alabama
In
closing, do you have any predictions for the upcoming
year?
I can see myself winning the Extreme Dirt Track Championship
again, and I am looking for a top three finish in
the ATVA MX National Series.
Thanks
for your time, and I wish you the best with your new
Honda ride.
Thank you, and I will see you at the races.
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