Sheeny- The Double Backflip legend

Josh Sheehan- Australia's motocross flame

Image credit: Josh Sheehan website

In 2014, South Africa experienced one of the greatest events when Xfighters graced its shores and fans of motocross came out in their numbers, and in September 2015 the quarterfinals brought flames to every single stage with these athletes doing the most crazy stunts that seem impossible but they made it look so easy.

The L.A Dosage, however, had an opportunity to go and cover this event and had opportunities to interview some of the great athletes that came to showcase their mad skills on African soil. First interview was with Australia's Josh Sheehan who does wonders and feels at home when he is up in the air with his Honda CRF 450.

Here is what the 29-year-old Aussie had to say when we interviewed him before the qualifiers:

The L.A Dosage: What inspired you to go into motocross?

Josh Sheehan: As a kid I loved anything – cars, bikes – anything with motors and wheels. Motocross really just appealed to me; I really enjoyed it. I basically loved racing, being competitive as a kid, so that got me going. I went from racing to the freestyle scene, and that was something new, it was learning tricks every day. I’ve just always enjoyed either going fast or going high in the air, it all just appealed to me.

The L.A Dosage: How old were you when you started riding?

Josh Sheehan: I learnt to ride a farm bike as soon as I could touch the ground. I got my first bike at 14, and started racing at 17, and I did my first freestyle competition at 21.

The L.A Dosage: Tell me about your signature move, the double backflip. How did that come about and why does it work for you so much?

Josh Sheehan: The double backflip is a scary one. I was talking about it with a friend and he said, “Do you think you can do it?” I tried competitions work so well. Later I was at Travis Pastrana’s house and I tried a few tricks and they just worked. Whether it’s my body size or the 450, I just got the rotation right. He said, if I could do that, I might win X Games, so that motivated me. I learnt to use it in competitions, got consistent, and yeah, it has since worked for me.

Image credit: Josh Sheehan Facebook

The L.A Dosage: How does it make you feel when you perform this particular stunt?

Josh Sheehan: It scares the crap out of me.

The L.A Dosage: What training do you go through to keep physically fit?

Josh Sheehan: We do have to do a lot of riding and that’s physically demanding sometimes – your legs and back have to handle the impact. I also do recovery- I might do cycling, running, maybe swimming to recover from injury or just after a big ride. To try and keep fit and strong I do a bunch of weights, gym, rowing, exercises like that to try and keep fit and strong.

The L.A Dosage: Describe your emotions when going into such competitions – before and after.

Josh Sheehan: Before, there’s always the nerves – you just kind of want the week to be over. It’s tough – there’s a lot of pressure, a lot of stress, but we try and be more relaxed and have fun out there – if we’re having fun then things work better. After the event it’s all happiness, provided it runs safe. One of the riskiest things is the injuries so if we can finish the weekend injury-free and stress-free then we’re happy and can go home safe.

Image credit: Josh Sheehan.com

The L.A Dosage: Who is your role model in motocross?

Josh Sheehan: My role model in the sport is definitely Travis Pastrana. When I was growing up he loved doing crazy things, but he seemed fairly normal whilst doing so. He just loved doing fun and crazy things.

The L.A Dosage: What are your goals for the rest of the year?

Josh Sheehan: I had a bit of a rough start to the year so I want to improve on that and hopefully get some better results. The goal is to always stay safe while doing it – no one loves injuries.

To know more about Josh Sheehan and his crazy double-backflip you can follow him on the following social networks:

Facebook: Josh Sheehan

Twitter: @sheenyfmx

Instagram: @sheenyfmx

Website: Josh Sheehan

Till next time. . .