Interview with Robert Kramar prior to WORCS Round 2, Mesquite MX Park Let's start with taking a minute to introduce yourself to the Mesquite faithful.  Tell us about yourself and your racing background. My name is Robert Kramar from Gilbert, Arizona.  I race #119 in the Expert and Pro-AM class in the National WORCS Series on a Honda TRX450R.  Unlike most riders/racers that have grown up riding quads, I purchased my first quad in 2003 and started racing two months later.  This is my fourth year racing the WORCS series, and I can't believe what it has grown into.  Besides WORCS, I try to stay diverse by racing motocross, woods off-road racing (GNCC), and even some quad supermoto for those flat-tracking skills. Round 1 was a mudfest, tell me about your race on Saturday. The valley was hit with some rain on Thursday, which made for some sloppy practice on Friday, and some remaining mud corners and sections for Saturday.  During Saturday the track started drying out, and presented some great racing.  My production A race had a record 46 entries, and I pulled off a 6th place with my Kenz Cycle Tech Walsh Race Craft Honda.    I heard Sunday was quite different, tell me about that. The track couldn't take anymore water, and it rained 12 hours non-stop Saturday night and Sunday.  It presented the WORCS track crew with the worst track conditions in the history of WORCS racing.  After cutting the starting gate and 4 miles of track, at noon we staged and started in the parking lot, jumped a berm, and onto a 2 mile track that on average was under about 18" of water.  Mud is one thing, but water is an enemy of motors and equipment.  50% of the pro class never made it one lap, and only 6 finished under their own power.  In the Pro-AM class, I was one of the many unfortunate riders to never make a complete lap.  I lost some valuable points in Round 1, but with 7 rounds left, I look forward to getting back on top. You raced WORCS in Mesquite in 2005.....what did you think about the track? Mesquite is a great track.  It has a great combination of motocross, a fun hill climb out to the off-road, some wide open desert sections, a few water crossings, and lots of sand washes.  We even get to blast through some farm land before returning to the motocross section. Tell me about the new race motor you are bringing to mesquite and how you expect it to perform. Starting after Round 3 at Lake Havasu, all Pro and Pro-AM riders are being required to run production quads with a max of 450cc motors.  Production requirements are stock frame and geometry, and stock center cases.  The limit of 450cc just evens the playing field.  With the start of the new season, I decided to have my motor builder, Kenz Cycle Tech of Mesa, Arizona, build a pair of race motors that will have the durability to withstand a 1.5 hour WORCS race, but have the power to grab the holeshot and allow me to stay out front.  I debuted the first motor on Saturday at Round 1, and spent most of the race learning the motor and where the power was.  Quite the challenge when you have your hands full of a WORCS race. What are you looking to achieve in 2008. I placed 4th overall in Pro-AM for 2006, and 5th overall in Pro-AM for 2007.  I spent last year dealing with some equipment and motor issues, and now that I have those worked out, my goal for 2008 is to work my way to the top and be standing on one of those three boxes when the dust settles in Taft, California for the awards ceremony. You are one of the only riders who compete in the entire series by yourself and on their own dime, tell me about the challenges of being a true privateer. It is a challenge racing a national series being the racer, mechanic, cook, and driver.  My father tags along when he can to help drive, which is a great help so I can get out of the drivers seat for an hour, but other than that, all responsibilities are on my shoulders.  It teaches you a lot about maintenance and prepping when you don't have anyone else to rely on.  It also teaches you to cherish the support you do receive, no matter how little it is. I know you have many sponsors who support your racing effort, who would you like to thank? I'd like to thank the Lord, my family, and my 2008 sponsors for getting me to where I am today, and keeping my race program moving forward: * Kenz Cycle Tech * Walsh * Laker Custom * LTE Exhausts * RPM * HiPer Technology * Mark Elliot Photography * DFR * Flexx Handlebars * IMS * CP Pistons * Precision Racing * Master Designs * Spider * Gorilla Powdercoating * Regina * ProArmor * ASV * QuadTech * ScottUSA * EVS * SixSixOne * RB Components * PowerMadd * Sidewinder Sprockets * Hardkor Engineering * Galfer * Klotz * 488 Web Design   Follow Robert's season on his new website www.robertkramar.com