Arthur Blick Jr: the champion reveals his secrets

Arthur Blick’s Liteside

Any three things we don’t know about you?

I can play the piano and guitar. The Blick who races on the bike is a completely different person from the kind, patient, calm, down to earth person. I accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as my personal savior as a young boy in 1987 while I was still in primary school.

What is your idea of perfect happiness?

It is making positive decisions that will build good friends who can create a positive impact. People with all the material stuff are not the happiest in life. I wanted to race motorcycles and rally cars which I have done; so I count my blessings one by one.

What is your greatest fear?

When I am out there rallying, I fear losing control and killing somebody. God has blessed me that such a thing has not happened to me. If not for that, I am a fearless person.

What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?

I am a very kind person which makes some people take advantage of me.

What is the trait you most deplore in others?

As a grounded person, I don’t like showoffs, selfish people and those who take advantage of others.

Which living person do you most admire?

Arthur Blick Sr. has been grounded in a wheel chair from 1983 when he injured his spinal cord during a rally in Bugembe-Jinja. He is a big inspiration because he has achieved a lot even in such a state.

What is your greatest extravagance?

Sports; it’s something that my wife complains about. The decision to rally again was a tough one because it is very expensive. Much of our savings go into sports which may not be right but I still do it.

What is the greatest thing you have ever done?

I have won so many championships in motorcycle racing so it’s no longer a big deal for me to win any other. However, the motor rallying championship that I won in 2015 took the current breed of riders by surprise having come out of retirement and beat the current champions. I feel very proud to have won the 2015 national rally championship

What is your current state of mind?

I am happy in every state.

What do you consider the most overrated virtue?

It is weird coming from me but we tend to give too much attention to soccer. They are given too much as compared to the results. Imagine the Uganda Motocross team won the Africa continental championship but we went without even government recognition which makes me biased. Motocross is one of the few sports where children as young as four compete legally which makes the future defined.

What does being powerful mean to you?

Someone is influential, has connections and can make things happen.

On what occasion do you lie?

I can’t put a finger to any but I am not perfect like anybody else.

What do you most dislike about your appearance?

I have a torn ligament in my right knee that affects my performance in motor sports.

Which living person do you most despise?

I don’t despise anybody but I have a couple of negative thoughts about liars and drunkards.

What is the quality you most like in a man?

Looking after his family and if he doesn’t have one, he should still be a good person.

What is the quality you most like in a woman?

Being responsible and not taken up by cheap talk.

Which words or phrases do you most overuse?

I use ‘yeah’ a lot.

What or who is the greatest love of your life?

My family all the way from my parents to my wife and children.

When and where were you happiest?

They are more than one; when I married my wife in 2003 and the birth of all our boys. Winning my first national motocross championship in 1999 and national rally championship in 2005 were all happy moments.

Which talent would you most like to have?

I am a good swimmer and wanted to compete at a higher level but time can’t allow especially with more responsibilities of being a father and husband.

If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

Unfortunately when I started racing motorcycles back in 1996, we didn’t have the exposure in Uganda like it is now. For instance bikes for young ones which pushed me to jump on the big one young as I was. I would have loved to start with a bike that suits my age.

What do you consider your greatest achievement?

My motorsports career has taken a lot of my time but the championships I have won are worth it and cannot be taken away from me. Also my contribution to the development of motorcycle racing to the level that it is today in Uganda is fulfilling.

If you were to die and come back as a person or a thing, what would it be?

Myself with everything up and about me.

Where would you most like to live?

My plan is to spend retirement in a house on the lake.

What is your most treasured possession?

I treasure everything I own from simple things like nail cutter.

What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery?

The level of suffering in our hospitals is so immeasurable. Hospitals put money ahead of saving lives. There are so many Ugandans who live below the poverty line and cannot afford medication.

What is your favorite occupation?

I like to compete and when I take long without competing, I get stressed.

What do you most value in your friends?

Being grounded and down-to-earth.

Who are your favorite writers?

I am too impatient to read books.

Who is your hero of fiction?

As a young boy, I used to admire Bruce Lee and Bruce Willis.

Which historical figure do you most identify with?

I don’t share any character with him but I admired Muammar Gaddafi a lot. It’s so sad how he was killed yet he had big plans for Africa and the investments he made were all cut short.

What are your favorite names?

Our names are from the people we admire in our lives.

What is your greatest regret?

I have a few regrets but they are minor.

How would you like to die?

I would love to die when I have established for my family and the less pain, the better.

What is your motto?

Push the limits.

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editor@independent.co.ug