17-year-old Benalla ripper Dylan Long held the MXD points lead for half the 2012 Monster Energy MX Nationals and is still within striking distance of Kayne Lamont as the series heads into the hard-pack rounds.

We put Dylan on the spot with five questions for MotoOnline’s Fast Thoughts section and here’s what he had to say.

The level of competition in MXD…
The level seems to be really high and there’s a lot of depth to the field as well. It’s making for some good racing and I’m seeing it as good practice for when I step up to the MX2 class at the end of this year. This is my first full season after I tore the ligaments from my ankle at last year’s opening round at Broadford, but I think the level of racing is just as high, if not higher, that it was in 2011.

Battling two-strokes…
The two-stroke argument has been going back and forth, but I honestly don’t mind that much. I see it as great training. The two-strokes seem to get great starts and in the shorter motos it means we have to try and catch and pass them, but in the longer motos it looks like the riders get more tired and we can come from behind and beat them. The 2012 KTM 250SX is a really good bike and I’ve had a ride on one and was impressed, but I’m more than happy to stick to the four-strokes.

Going into the hard-pack rounds…
I’m more of a technical rider and I like to have good throttle control, so I’m more of a hard-pack guy. I grew up racing hard-pack tracks and I’m really looking forward to the next few rounds. I’m not too bad in the sand, but I definitely prefer the harder tracks.

Having a life outside MX…
I spend a fair bit of my spare time with a good mate of mine and we go to the movies and go 10-pin bowling and hang out. I don’t drink at all, unlike most of the other guys my age in Benalla, so I try and steer clear of that sort of scene. A lot of my mates ride as well, so even if I’m not training I still do a lot of playriding and mucking around with whips and stuff.

My training program…
I do a lot of running, I love it and it’s the best thing to keep me fit. I also do a lot of skipping and going to the gym. I’m working with Tim Cole, who trains the JDR KTM team and the KTM off-road team, so he’s a good bloke to have in my corner. As far as riding goes, we own five acres with a supercross track on it, then we’ve built two MX tracks about 8km down the road on a couple of mates’ places. It’s a perfect set-up really.