GNCCRaccing.com: What have you been up to lately?

Josh Toth: I’ve been staying busy this off-season, training and riding in South Carolina at Battery Park. I headed south around Christmastime and I was down there until January 24th when I got my arm pump surgery. I took some time off to recover from that, and then it was straight into round one of the Full Gas Sprint Enduros in South Carolina, before heading to Kailub’s here in Florida.

Did you really feel a difference in your riding post-surgery?

Yes, it has been  huge help riding this off-season, and I’ll have more confidence going into races knowing that I won’t get arm pump.

What else have you been doing this off-season to prepare for your XC1 debut?

I’ve had a really good training program thanks to my trainer, Charlie Mullins – I ride, run, road bike and mountain bike throughout the week. I even did a couple of cross-country mountain bike races and duathlon (running/bicycling race – like a triathlon without the swimming). I’m very happy to have him putting together my training schedule again this year.

Sounds like a solid program! Did you have any issues getting used to or setting up the bigger bike?

We had to make some suspension changes from last year because of both the bigger bike and the slightly different chassis on the 2019 KTMs.

Are you looking forward to moving up into the top class?

Yes, definitely! I’ve had a good few years in XC2 and have been pretty successful there. Obviously there will be new challenges and tougher competition in XC1, but it’s where I belong. I have the best bike and team behind me, so I believe it’s going to be a great year!

Growing up, did you ever think you would make it into the pro ranks?

Growing up, I always wanted to be a professional motocross racer because we would always go to Southwick and Unadilla every year. I grew up riding with my friends and family and just enjoying it – I wanted to be a pro racer, but I knew the chances of making a living were slim. By this time I was also racing mostly off-road, and knew that there were even fewer jobs out there for that then there were in moto. I just thought it would be great to have a cool job related to dirt bikes. But I kept improving each year, and then when I got support from Ross at Trail Jesters, I started focusing on racing more and more. And in a short period of time I had a cool job racing my dirtbike (laughs)

What do you hope to accomplish this season?

During my rookie year in XC1 I am aiming to be fighting for a podium spot each weekend, and I hope to get an overall or two by the end of the season.

So far, what has been the highlight of your racing career?

The highlight of my career would have to be winning the XC2 championship for sure. But there’s so many highlights within that – the 15 or so XC2 races I’ve won in over the last couple years and the few times I’ve been on the overall podium.  Winning a National Enduro Overall was another big one for me this past year as well.