Adam McGill - 2013 Pont De Vaux Interview
By: Bill Lanphier

ATVriders.com: Even without rear brakes, you guys were posting lap times as fast as the leader. What's the technique in corners?
Adam McGill: The main thing was to avoid lappers. We'd run in high, cut down real tight, and then run out wide.

ATVriders.com: Were you going easier on the front brakes to save them?
Adam McGill: No, we were going in as hard as possible, using as much engine braking as possible, and hoping they'd last. They got a little spongy, but we never lost them.

ATVriders.com: Joel was having trouble kick-starting the CRF motor on the line. Why did Thierry [team manager, mechanic] go with that instead of a 450R quad motor?
Adam McGill: It's much lighter, easier to tune, and puts out ten more horsepower. Quads are going close to 100 on the fastest straight and you need power. Thierry didn't think he'd be able to build up the quad motor that far and also make it reliable. Once we got it started in the first session we passed 90 quads and finished 8th for that session.

Adam McGill airs out their Walsh Racecraft Hybrid Honda CRF450 ATV

ATVriders.com: How about vibration with the CRF motor?
Adam McGill: You feel a little more, but the performance advantage outweighs that. The whole bike has a lot of potential; we just need a little more R&D on it. 

ATVriders.com: How difficult is PDV on the body?
Adam McGill: People don't know what a rough track is until they've raced PDV. It gets as rutted and rough as a sand track. Then imagine 100 other quads on a track just 3 miles long for 12 hours. I'm used to racing for hours and hours but nothing like this. One whoop had to be three-feet tall. On a scale of 1 to 10, this track is a 13.

ATVriders.com:After all that, plus your mechanical problems this year, will you go back?
Adam McGill: Just finishing here is like a win, but it would be nice to take some "hardware" home with me. It is frustrating to travel half-way around the world and not do well, but there's no use getting down on ourselves. It'll take a couple months, but we'll sort things out. I know what it takes to win here, and I'd like to add PDV to my resume before I retire.