MOUNT SNOW, Vt.– Tucker Hibbert burst onto the scene last year, blowing away the snocross field for Winter X gold. Since that magical moment the teen-age whiz kid has collected win after win, never once stopping to admire his success. He's a 16-year-old with the mind of a veteran, nerves of steel and a passion for opening the throttle full-bore. Hibbert knows how to win. Period.

Hibbert took a few moments for a Q & A with EXPN.com. Here's what the phenom had to say about his career thus far:

How has winning Winter X last year changed your life?
"It didn't change a whole lot, it just gave me a lot of confidence for the second half of the year in my semi-pro racing. And it just gave me a lot of confidence coming into this year, in my ability and how I could do this year. And I didn't change a whole lot, I just kept on racing and doing the same thing we did all year."

Does all the attention help or hurt you?
"Sometimes it can get to be a bit too much with the media and stuff. Usually it's not too bad you know, you just kind of have to deal with it and keep going and not think about it too much because the more you think about it the more everything gets messed up and you lose your concentration."

Tucker's got what it takes to get X Games gold.

What's the ratio of interview requests to dates in the past year?
"(Laughs) No comment!"

Do you have your driver's license yet?
"I got my driver's license last August."

And the driving test?
"I was backing up and ... went to pull out and forgot to put it back in drive. I was still in reverse, so I hit the gas and we all went flying backward a little bit further instead of going forward. But other than that it was alright."

Any speeding tickets yet?
"No speeding tickets, no nothing. No violations."

Parking tickets?
"No, nothing."

Is Blair Morgan a mentor for you?
"I've learned so much from Blair, watching him, racing with him, and you know just being around him. He's a great rider and he's taught me a lot over the years."

What makes Tucker Hibbert tougher than the rest?
"I don't know, I guess I don't really do a lot different from anyone else. We just go out and do the best we can, ride 100 percent until the end. You know we do a lot of work mechanically on the sleds. We keep ahead of everything as far as, you know, working on the machine and making sure we don't have any breakdowns. I think our main strength is staying ahead of the game ... just go out and ride the best I can and whatever happens, happens."

What's the key to your recent success?
"This year we've been getting really, really good starts. So I'd have to say that our starts are a big part of our strength, and I can go as long as I can. I don't ever get tired, so that's a big strength for me too."

Tell us about your motocross career?
"I do that in the summer. I've been racing motocross for about eight years. I'm into that big time. Last year we went to our first national and qualified, so I was pretty happy about that. We're gonna keep pushing it in the future here, and try and get as far as I can in that sport too."

Will you find the same success in motocross that you found in snocross?
"I don't know. I work really hard at that, and that's a goal I want to meet. I think if I keep trying and working on it like I have, then I think I'll succeed pretty good there. That's one of my biggest goals right now, so we're gonna work hard."

What's your most embarrassing moment?
"I was racing semi-pro a couple years ago. I was leading the race, came by at the half-way flag, which is the white/green cross. All I saw was the white, I didn't see the green, so I thought it was a white flag. So I came by around the next lap and kind of showed off for the crowd a little bit, pulled off the track thinking that was the checkered but I never really looked. And then I looked back and it was still green for three more laps. Two guys got by me and then I caught up and ended up getting second. That's kind of embarrassing (laughs)."

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