Returning from one of the most dreaded injuries in motocross, Triumph Factory Racing’s Jalek Swoll delivered a standout P2 overall at RedBud with 6-3 moto scores in just his third race back from tearing his Achilles. In this Fast Thoughts feature, Swoll shares insight into his breakout result on Saturday.

Image: Octopi Media.

The return from injury and expectations…

We came in with the mindset of just trying to get some top 10s or whatever. I knew from the way I was riding in boot camp that I had unlocked a new level of speed where I felt like I could compete with anybody. But when I went down with the Achilles – I didn’t see it coming. I got back pretty quick for what the injury was, put a lot of time in. And yeah, honestly, I didn’t expect to, but when I got back at High Point, I knew once I was closer to 100 percent, I could be up here. I fully believe that. I just didn’t expect to be able to run up front at like 80 percent. That’s no knock – the guys are obviously ripping, and everybody’s fast and fit right now. I think that’s where I can really start to progress, when I get my fitness back, my fitness just isn’t there yet. I’m really digging the deepest I’ve ever dug in these motos just to finish. After Southwick, I was running fifth and had that crash on the last lap, and yeah, had some other stuff happen. I wasn’t able to ride this week, so I’ve kind of just been making it harder on myself this whole time. But for the most part, I’m proud of the progression, and I can only get better from here – it’s exciting.

Returning to full 30-minute plus two-lap fitness…

Well, getting that holeshot in the second moto gave me a little spark of energy. It lasted a little longer than normal, but normally I’m at the 15-minute mark with my tongue in the spokes, just hanging on. So yeah, it is what it is. I haven’t been able to really train like I’m supposed to since coming back from injury, and I’ve been having to cram in testing and all that while doing motos. It’s been pretty hard – and even then, I haven’t had much time to actually do motos. So yeah, I’m just playing with the cards I’ve been dealt.

Image: Octopi Media.

Pre- and post-injury bike development…

Yeah, obviously I have a bunch of teammates now, so it definitely helps. I mean, I feel like the bike was completely different, so it was hard for me to jump back in because I was just kind of getting on whatever they had developed throughout the year, and that’s not necessarily going to work for all of us – but I was given a good package. My suspension tech Drew has been killing it, and we’ve just been hard at work. Having Stilez [Robertson] has helped a lot too – he did a lot of the testing for me, and we ride pretty similar, so he’s kind of my guinea pig right now. I wasn’t able to ride this week, but he was able to get on the bike and figure out some things I was struggling with, and that gave me a few good directions coming into this round. We’ve got a good group. Like I said earlier, not everything just translates to being better, but for the most part, those guys have gone through a bunch of parts and made it so I don’t have to try everything. It’s been nice. It’s been good. A complete change of pace from last year, not having to test every time I race. It’s been a lot better for me, and even though I’ve only been back for three races, I can already see the steps we’ve made in that short time.

Changes to the bike upon returning to racing…

I mean, we were just winging it last year – we didn’t really know what to expect. I was the guy on the team, and I had to figure it out. And now, like you said earlier, it just makes life a whole lot easier. It’s different when you have teammates out there who can troubleshoot everything. We all seem to be heading in a similar direction now, so it’s starting to work out for all of us. I think the biggest change for me is we’ve done a lot of different motor position testing, and that seemed to help a lot. It’s only going to get better the more I ride. Like I said earlier, I just don’t have the riding time right now to want to go way off track and make a bunch of changes. I’m kind of riding myself back into shape, so it’s hard to come back from practice and say, ‘I don’t like this, go somewhere else,’ you know. The more I race, the more comfortable I’ll get, and that’s why I say I can really only get better from here. There’s still a lot of steps I can take in terms of getting more comfortable on the bike and making it easier to race. And once I’m able to get back home and do the motos with the boys, I’ll be able to learn even more.