With the amazing form of Marvin Musquin and the arrival of Ken Roczen it was easy for many of us to totally forget about Osborne.

I gave Zach a call on his mobile today and he wasn’t around, so I left a message on his answering machine. An hour or two later the friendly rider from Richlands, Virginia called back and gave us some idea of what he has been up to and what we can expect from him in 2010.

MXlarge: Zach, thanks for calling back. What have you been up to lately?

Osborne: I came back and did a couple of Supercross races and they didn’t go so great, then I went to Norway after that for 10 days and trained with Kenneth, then I went home for Christmas and New Year and then I started riding on January 5 with Jason Dougan at my place in America. We put in a lot of hours and tried to get some work done. I am in Norway at the moment training with Kenneth.

MXlarge:  I did an interview with your team-mate Jason Dougan a week or two ago and he mentioned that you are working with former GP racer Kenneth Gundersen, but it’s a bit of a secret. Can you fill me in on the secret?

Osborne: I don’t want to talk too much about it, but I have worked with Kenneth before and he is a really nice guy and he said he could take an extra rider on now, so yes, that is working out well. We have a great relationship now.

MXlarge: Last year obviously didn’t go to plan, can you explain what happened?

Osborne: Well, it didn’t start too bad, up until Portugal it was going to plan, obviously Faenza was a mess for me, but in Bulgaria I was 10^th overall and I won in Turkey, I was just coming on strong, fourth in the championship, then the bike just stopped at the face of a jump and I broke my wrist, but that was something that was out of my control, then I just tried to come back too early and I didn’t really feel good until the end of the season when I finally came back. I felt like I was proving myself until the accident.

MXlarge: Marvin Musquin really improved when he moved to KTM last year, what can we expect from him this year, do you think he will be hard to beat?

Osborne: I mean he is going to be a strong guy, but there is going to be a bunch of guys, I think the whole top ten is going to be fast with Simpson, Frossard, Roczen, Paulin, so many guys. I feel like I can be a contender and put it up front. My program is good and we have Cosworth working on our engines, so that is a big deal.  I’ve been to the shop of Cosworth and I was so impressed, they have a really special facility and they will build us engines.

MXlarge: What is your schedule for the coming two months before Bulgaria?

Osborne: I have the two British Championship races and then it’s Bulgaria. Those two British Championship races will probably be mud races and I am looking forward to that, I’ve been practicing my mud skills, put in a lot of hours in the mud and also sand in the winter. I am a hard pack guy, but it was always damage control in mud before.

MXlarge: Did you notice Jimmy Albertons results in Mantova? Do you know Jimmy at all?

Osborne: Yes I did notice. I also know Jimmy, and have known him for a while. I think he will be okay this year. I mean I wasn’t surprised  with his results in Mantova. Sprint racing is something we are familiar with in America and he did well in those sprint races. I think he will be top ten most weekends, but the sand will be tough for him. I mean in America they talk about Southwick, but Lierop and Lommel, that is real sand, we don’t see those types of conditions in America.