INTERVIEW
P78
ANDREW DELONG
DELONG TIME
IN COMING
STORY AND PHOTOGRAPHY BY SHAN MOORE
W
hen all of the seconds were counted and recounted
at the end of the Concho National Enduro in Texas,
there was a new name emerging at the top of the
leaderboard – Andrew DeLong.
DeLong, though, isn't new to winning, in fact, he's already
won the first two rounds of the GNCC Series in the XC2
(250cc) class, but winning a National Enduro is new territory
for the 22-year-old FAR Husqvarna Team rider from Morgantown, Pennsylvania. And his win aboard his FAR Husqvarna
TXC310R also put Husky back on the top step of the podium,
something the once iconic brand in enduro hasn't been able
to accomplish since the early 2000s. It was a great day for
DeLong, Husqvarna and the Fred Andrews-run FAR Husqvarna Team.
After the enduro, we sat down and chatted with DeLong
about his winning ride.
You started off the enduro season with a pair of seventh-place finishes, then you come here to Texas and
win. What got into you here?
I think it all boiled down to attitude. When we rode down
in this area a couple of years ago, I didn't much like the terrain and so I didn't have fun. I didn't do very good, either. So
this weekend, I just decided to come here and have fun and
have a good attitude. Once I started having fun I started going
good. I think that's all there is to it.
You were fast right from the get-go.
Yeah, I started off pretty good and I was second fastest
in the first test, just a few seconds off of Thad DuVall's time.
Then in the second test, I was second again, just a little behind Charlie Mullins. So I thought, 'wow, let's try to keep this
going.' So I just tried to keep it going. I didn't win any tests, but
I was all top fives, which is a first for me. And that was enough
to get the win.
You already have some great rides so far this season,
have you changed anything regarding your riding style?
Andrew DeLong
talks about his
first ever National
Enduro win
