Winfield native pedals his way to motocross success

By the time Seth Klinger reached his second crossroads, he knew what to do.

Growing up in Winfield, Klinger saw friends and acquaintances fall into questionable – often illegal – activities. Klinger understood that he was in danger of following a similar path if he didn’t find something more productive.

“Unfortunately, some of the guys that I hung out with that were older, they kind of hung out with a bad group,” Klinger said. “I knew that if I ever stayed in my hometown after high school, it was never going to go good. I left Winfield the week after I graduated.”

By then, Klinger had chosen bicycle motocross as his productive activity. It began as a hobby, but it soon presented Klinger with another decision – attend college or pursue a career in BMX.

Since BMX is a sport largely for younger athletes, Klinger was certain of his choice. Eight years later, the 26-year-old Klinger is a prominent figure in his sport, and he competes Saturday in the prestigious Red Bull Dreamline dirt jumping event near Asheville, N.C.

“Whenever I first started riding with those older kids (in Winfield), I wasn’t anywhere close to their level,” Klinger said. “But having dudes that were so much better than me, it was easy to progress, myself, a lot quicker. I started learning those things quicker, and at a young age you start thinking that something could possibly be there.

“But I never thought, ever, about going pro when I was 16. That was just never an option.”

It became an option about three years later, when Klinger was weighing the benefits of continuing his education following graduation from Winfield High. He received a call from Dennis McCoy, a well-known BMX competitor, who pointed Klinger toward a camp in Woodward, Pa., known for turning out extreme athletes.

Klinger excelled at the camp and left any other plans behind.

“I was in between going to college or doing that, and my dad said, ‘You have to take a chance and just go for it,’ said Klinger, who currently lives in Austin. “Once I got out there, things just started moving quickly.”

BMX is a sport that often requires patience within people who don’t possess that virtue. It can take years to perfect the nuances required to control the bike on a ramp or on a dirt course like the one on which Klinger will be competing this weekend.

Klinger needed patience before his career, when he was learning how to execute tricks all professionals most possess, and during his career as he became more successful in a sport where only a few can gain mainstream fame by winning at ESPN’s X Games or earning high-profile endorsements.

Klinger hasn’t quite reached that rarified territory, but he may have mastered patience when he missed riding in 2011 because of a severe knee injury. Klinger has also cracked his skull and suffered other injuries that aren’t as serious but can similarly affect his performance.

Knee injuries are particularly debilitating for an athlete such as Klinger, described as a powerful rider because of the air time he gets on his jumps.

“It’s really unfortunate,” Klinger said. “When my second (knee injury) happened (in 2011), it was like the week before some of the biggest contests of the year were about to go down. The pain was terrible, but the pain from knowing I was going to miss everything and spend the entire season under the knife and then hanging out and rehabbing, it was just awful.

“When you’re in those situations, all you do is stay involved in BMX, like through online or whatever. You’re just feeding to come back and ride. It’s more motivating, I’d say, when you’re injured. You’re watching everything go down, and you just want to get back on it.”

This story was originally published October 10, 2014 at 7:26 AM with the headline "Winfield native pedals his way to motocross success."