"I Plan to Be 100% Ready for Outdoors" | Jalek Swoll on His Recovery

Before the season even began Rockstar Energy Husqvarna's Jalek Swoll had a crash that ended his hopes of a successful season. Jalek struggled in 2022 with adapting to the new bike and was looking forward to showing how far he and the bike had come in '23. Unfortunately, that was not meant to be. We checked in with Jalek to see how far along he is in recovery and what his goals are in this contract year.

For the full interview, check out the Vital MX podcast right here. If you're interested in the condensed written version, scroll down just a bit further.

Jamie Guida – Vital MX: Before the 2023 season started you had a spiral fracture of the humerus. How did that injury occur?

Jalek Swoll: It was just a normal day doing all the laps that we do in boot camp. It was honestly, really stupid. It was one of the easiest parts of the track. Uh, probably one of the safer parts of the track. I happened to slide off the face of this jump a little and it sent me into a high side into a single. The way I crashed seemed like something super savable, so I stayed in it. It was weird because the high side threw me and when I landed all my forward momentum just stopped and I went straight into the ground. But I was kind of hanging onto the bars at the same time. The motion of all that momentum stopping and all the movement that was going forward pushing me a certain way twisted my arm into a literal spiral fracture. So, it was pretty much like it twisted the bone into a break if that makes sense.

Vital MX: The humerus, I think, is the second biggest bone, if I'm not mistaken. So, very painful.

Jalek: Yeah, it was pretty painful, but it was weird. I was on the ground, and I feel I have a good pain tolerance. It was almost like a blur. I'm lying there and I rang my bell a tiny bit, so I'm coming to from that, just like checking myself out or whatever, and I don't even realize that my arm is broken. My eyes are closed, but I'm putting my hand in the air to make sure that Tom (Vialle), Brownie (Mike Brown), and Aldon (Baker), and everybody can see me. In my mind, I'm waving both my arms in the air, and I opened my eyes and it's literally just my right arm waving around. I'm like, “Oh, well, that's kind of weird.” I started looking to my opposite side and my arm was pretty much limp, just kind of laying over on the landing of this single. It was a weird feeling. I'm sitting there and, in my mind, I'm trying to move my arm and it's not going. Every time I try to move my arm I see my fingers moving, but I literally cannot move my arm. And it was the weirdest feeling. That was the worst part of the break, not the pain, but how weird it was sitting there not being able to actually move my arm. Just seeing it laying there.

Vital MX: We're about three months out from that. How are you now? How healed are you? What's the timeframe for recovery on that?

Jalek: I'm pretty healed up. I'm really close to being normal. As soon as the surgery was done you take a week for the inflammation to calm down. But I pretty much started as soon as I could rehabbing it. I probably should have just been chilling. But man, I really wanted to speed up this recovery process and try to get back as quickly as possible because it sucks sitting out. We all struggled last year with the new bike and new settings and all that. I felt this offseason we made a lot of progress, and I was riding well. I know a lot of riders say that and that's pretty cliche, but I really do feel ready to be on the box. It stung a little bit. But I'm not the only one. There are a lot of guys who are also hurt, so I'm sure everybody can relate to this. As of right now, it's not confirmed yet, but I plan on trying to get back going next week and at least get back to riding with wheels on the ground. Then slowly progressing back into it. I am feeling better and better every day. No better way to test the arm than to get back on the horse.

Vital MX: How prepared did you feel you were for this season? I know whoops were something that you really wanted to work on.

Jalek: I feel my struggle with whoops has always been a comfortability thing. It's pretty important in Supercross to be at one with your bike and last year that's what I struggled with. I never felt comfortable or knew what to expect. This time around I made huge strides. I do feel this was the most put-together and ready I’ve been coming into a season. It was a big focus to hit the whoops and get better in them. Also, the intensity around the track. I think this year would have been a good year. It would have been way easier if I were to at least have got one or two rounds in and then broken my arm so everybody could have seen what I had. Aldon was pretty happy with the progression the last week or two leading up. Same with Brownie. I was starting to get to the peak of what I could do right before the race. It just so happened that the crash happened, and I had to sit and watch. It's probably the best off-season I've had. I'm not trying to let you the break hold me back. I plan to get back and be 100% ready for outdoors and at least not dwell on the time that I've missed but make the most out of the time that I have.

Vital MX: How did you deal with the mental side of your season being over before it began? Do you have people you talk to about that stuff?

Jalek: Our season, it's a long season. But at the same time, it's really not, you know. I don't want to say I wasn't down because I was. But I've also been around enough and have seen a lot of riders go through this. I know it's a part of it. Everybody's going to have an injury that's going to halt them from racing. It just sucks that mine happened before we actually went racing. We do a really, really dangerous sport. Every time we're out on the track, not just racing, but the whole thing, it's a risk factor. We all know the risks that come with racing and doing what we love. It is what it is. You just have to take it on the chin. I was at least happy with how good my riding was leading up to the crash and feeling like I was unlocking some speed that I was trying to get to for a while. I have peace of mind knowing that I can do it. It comes down to lasting this next off-season and being healthy, and ready for the next Supercross season. I have a lot more goals in my career to show what I have. This year sucks having to sit out a whole Supercross, but at the end of the day, I'll have my opportunities sooner than later.

Vital MX: This is a contract year for you. How has the team been? You mentioned trying to be back and ready 100% for outdoors. That's very important.

Jalek: It's an important contract year. As long as I can get my arm back going for outdoors, it'll all be okay. At least I don't have a bigger injury like it could have been. It could have been a way worse injury than what it was. It was actually really close to a nerve. The break almost messed with the nerves, and I could have lost the use of my arm for 3 or 4 months before getting the feeling back. That's what settled things down for me, having the opportunity to get back this year. My main focus is on the outdoors. Making sure I do what I have to do there and show what I'm capable of. It's easy to be written off, especially after you have a down year like I had last year. I was fighting through the whole new process of learning a new bike, but also trying to find new settings and make the bike better. It felt like we were testing every round last year rather than showing up to race. That has nothing to do with the team or anything. That comes with a new bike, unfortunately. So, this year, being able to find new strides and some things that I felt were missing last year and being more comfortable this year, I feel like this year will be we'll be fine. Even though it's a contract year, I try to keep the pressure off as much as I can. Pressure is going to come regardless. It is racing and professional racing at that. So, there's always pressure. But if I go out and I do what I need to do and ride how I know I can ride then I'll be completely fine. At the end of the day, it's doing something that we love. Something that's fun. I’m trying to keep the fun in it and everything else will fall into place.

Vital MX: You mentioned the bike struggles last year and your teammate, RJ Hampshire, mentioned it a few times. He seems much happier with it. How much happier were you with the bike coming into the season? What was better?

Jalek: It's hard to say because so much was changed. We have what feels like a new bike. It is much different than what we raced. It's a much better bike. The guys worked really hard this off-season to find some comfort for all of us. We all have way different builds physically and different things that we're looking for the bike to do in certain situations. That was a big focus for the team with all the riders coming in. I felt they did a pretty good job of that, especially with the short time frame of our off-season. It was good work from the boys, and they got us a lot more comfortable. You can see it. Everybody's results have gone way, way, way up since last year. Malcolm was riding really good before his injury. RJ is fighting for wins in pretty much every race. Coop's in the hunt this year, so you can see it. It shows the work that was put in. I got to a good point in my Supercross training with the bike, but I haven't ridden our new stuff outdoors yet. I'm excited about that.

Vital MX: You were really tight with Stilez Robertson and Dean Wilson, who have moved on to different teams. Has it been a bit of a bummer not having your close buddies around?

Jalek: Yeah, of course. Those two are very different personalities. When you have two big personalities who get different opportunities, and they leave the team it's a big void. Those guys have been on the team with me since I've been pro with Husky. I've been around those guys for a long time, and I got so used to those guys. So yeah, it's a bit weird when they're not here now. I'm a little bit more used to it now that some time has gone by. The locker room definitely took a minute to come around. It's not what it was with Dean and Stylez, but Max is pretty funny. He's starting to come around, so we have our own little thing. We still know how to keep the fun in it. I see Dean a lot when I'm in California. I usually stay at his house. When he's down in Florida, we usually hang out a pretty good bit. They're always somewhat around. We FaceTime a good bit. I can't really get them out of my life. One of them calls almost every day. So, they're still around. They're good friends. We talk a lot. Those are good guys. I miss them, but it's kind of nice not having them around too. They get pretty annoying.

Vital MX: I'm sure you've been watching the races from the house. You've been at a couple. What has stood out for you this season watching as a fan, whether it be the 450-championship battle or either of the 250 coasts?

Jalek: I feel like there's a lot. 450-wise, it's been pretty fun watching that. Every year it kind of funnels into two guys. This year I feel like it's been a good variety of people who can win. I know (Eli) Tomac, Coop (Cooper Webb), and Chase (Sexton) have kind of, most people put them in the one, two, or three spot. But there are other people contending and capable of winning. That's what makes it pretty fun to watch, especially the battle between the top three guys. The 250 class I feel is always pretty wild. The main thing that's sticking out is really just whoever survives the 15 minutes. The race really depends on who just gets that good start and stays up. Everybody's racing so hard and fitness is so good and everybody's pushing, you know? Everybody's training with the top guys. Everybody's got top-level fitness. So, it's pretty tough to come through the pack now. The guys who are the most mistake-free are the guys that usually have a big gap and they're just riding by themselves during the Main Event.

Vital MX: Will we see another winner in the 450 class this season?

Jalek: Oh, for sure. I feel (Justin) Barcia is a good pick. I also feel Jason (Anderson) is due. He's had a few rough rounds finding himself on the ground a little bit more than what we normally see. His speed has been there all year. If he gets a good start and he's in the mix with those guys from the start of the race, he'll be due for a win. AP (Aaron Plessinger) as well. Everybody saw before his last lap crash in Detroit. Everybody was pretty heartbroken to see that. The 450 class has a variety right now, and that's what I was getting at earlier. This is one of those years where there are so many guys that can actually mix it up. That's what makes the 450 class pretty fun this year. I feel like this is one of the only years I can remember where there have been so many people that can actually get a win.

Vital MX: Give me your championship prediction for the 450 class. Whom do you have?

Jalek: I'm not going to piss off the Austrian brand. We're just going to go in house. I do see it being a really, really close championship. These guys are actually fighting tooth and nail every weekend. It's going to be close. It's probably going to end up being the last round that decides it. I'm excited to see it, especially as a fan. Since I've been out, I've had to really disconnect being a racer and I guess just being a fan. I would like to see a last round of the year, winner takes all kind of situation. For the fans, that's going to be the most exciting experience for Supercross.