Adam, you’re considered one of Monster/Team Green’s elite amateur MX racer right now, and you were recently injured; how has that recovery gone for you?

It was good. I haven’t really been hurt too much over the course of my career. I’ve been lucky enough not to be on the ground too much. I actually ran into a barrel the day before my birthday in October and I broke my arm pretty good. Never had felt pain like that before, so that was pretty gnarly. And I just came back from that. I felt good. I was just anxious to ride the whole time. It was misery for me not to ride. I felt like I had the same speed as I had when I came back. So, it was good, obviously. The Spring Nationals went really good for me in Supermini. And I felt like I recovered well. 

Is it hard to come back from an injury and not being sure if you remember what you’re doing on a motorcycle?

Definitely. It’s crazy, but I still don’t really think about it. I know it’s a part of the sport and I know that it happens. I just have to do what I know how to do, and it’s too much fun. Every now and again it could happen, but still the fun of motocross still outweighs the bad, so I’m still sitting good. 

You can minimize injuries, but you’re not going to get rid of them completely because the ground is harder than you are...

Definitely! 

I know you’re busy at Mammoth right now for the Monster Energy Mammoth Motocross. Have you ever raced Mammoth before?

No, this is my first time at Mammoth. I’ve never been and people have always told me how beautiful it is and just how cool of a race it is. Kind of like you’re on vacation. All the scenery, I feel like I’m on vacation. I don’t even feel like I’m here to ride and I don’t even feel like it’s a national. It’s cool, though. Monster set it up really cool. It kind of almost looks like something I would see in a dream; like some track I would have in a dream. It’s cool; just the whole environment of it. It’s a friendly environment. It’s got a cool little town here. Do whatever; mountain bikes, snowboards... It’s cool. I’m excited to race. 

Well, what do you think about the bike and how much slower it is at that kind of altitude? How much different is it to ride up there?

Well, altitude is going to affect anything but they told me it was going to be slower than normal and I set my expectations really low so that it seemed good when I got here. So, we’re good. Everybody’s bike is the same and it’s actually fun to me because it’s kind of almost like riding an 85 with big wheels and you can just kind of pin it everywhere. It’s fun. The track flows really good and it’s cool just not having to lift [the throttle] almost, if that makes any sense... 

It’s like riding a smaller bike, right? Almost like a KLX110 or something.

Yeah, like if the pro guys were to go back to 125s they would just be pinned. So, it’s cool. 

So, how old are you now? You’re fifteen?

Fourteen. I turn fifteen in October. 

You already ride with some of the top racers in the sport, but in the next couple of years, you’re going to be going pro and turning this into a full-time gig, I would imagine. What do you think about that?

Well, it’s cool. Even to me right now when I get to ride with guys like [Ryan] Villopoto and Chad Reed it’s surreal to me because ever since I was on little PWs I’ve been looking up to them. Like, even Villopoto on his 80, I was like, “Man, that guy’s going to go somewhere.” And just to get the opportunity to be with them and ride with them is amazing. And it’s obviously something that I’ve worked for my whole life. I saw it on TV and told my dad I wanted to be a pro just like Jeremy McGrath. So, I’m going to do everything in my power. I’m going to work as hard as I can and hopefully it’s going to work out and I’m definitely not going to leave anything on the table and I’m looking forward to something different. And to be honest with you it’s just going to be cool to be able to switch it up and I’m going to do my best, that’s for sure. 

How much longer until you make your debut on a 250F?

Well, right now I’m 105 pounds and Bones [Bacon, at Pro Circuit] says I have to be 120. 

Yeah, I’d say at least...

I’ve grown a lot in the past couple months, so it could be soon. It could be after Loretta’s. Could be a year from now. You never know. And I’m just going to do my best on whatever bike I’m on and keep having fun. 

Well, why not just go on the Ricky Carmichael plan when he was in your shoes and just start hitting Dairy Queen and stuff all the time? It could probably help...

I don’t know about that. I don’t know if I’m going to go to Dairy Queen. Although, I would love to; that place is awesome. 

You’ve got a pretty big Twitter following (@adamcianciarulo), so how did you get into the social-media thing, and what do you think about it?

Well, really I think somebody set it up for me. It was a while back. It was when nobody really used Twitter. I got it and then I tweeted for like... I had, like, 30 followers and I tweeted probably 12 times and I didn’t really see the value in it. And then I stopped using it for a couple months and I came back and I had, like, a hundred followers. I’m like, “Okay, I got people to talk to now.” And I don’t know; it’s cool to me even to talk to people. Like, people will tweet me and say, “You did really good this race.” And it’s cool to be able to talk to people that watch me and stuff. Obviously, if you’re going to follow me you have a general idea of what I do. So, it’s cool to be able to talk to people and it’s cool to rag on some pros. Ragging on [Steve] Matthes is always good. And you know about the bet we had [to see who could get the most followers] and I’m currently, like, a thousand followers ahead of him. It’s pretty pathetic. 

It’s going to be terrible for you, by the way, as a pro because people spell “Villopoto” wrong and that’s so much easier than “Cianciarulo”...

I know. I used to actually get it wrong. I was V-I-L-L-I. I just learned that. 

His is so much easier than yours. It’s going to be a tough deal. You’re probably going to have helmet painters getting it wrong...

Well, the good news about them getting it wrong is it’s not going to fit on the helmet. 

On a closing note, you went out there and won today. What does a win at Mammoth mean to you?

The Monster Energy Mammoth Motocross was a really cool experience for me. Its a racing vacation.  The Bear trophy is the coolest trophy I have ever won. Oh yeah and it was my first time in the snow as well.. Awesome!"