Our camp. I'm prepping my Oakley goggles in the shade of the van.
The second race of the AMA District 16 hare scramble series is in the bag. Joe and I drove an hour west of Madison this past Sunday to compete in a super fun event held on a private farm in the rolling hills of south-central Wisconsin. Friday rains and farmed soil made for hero dirt conditions and the sunny 70 degree weather topped it off.
It's true. We think we are bad to the bone. And Moose gear is the shizzle.
After my rookie-like scramble at last week’s series opener I was determined to pull it back together and race like I know I can. My wife (who’s a former world-class athlete) and I spoke over dinner one night last week about my mental state during the opening race. I was trying too hard and therefore forcing things to happen rather than watching for and lining up opportunities. It’s complicated but the gist is that I needed to let the race come to me in the opening laps.
This diddy had a rider trapped every time I came through. Half the trees on the far side of it had been knocked down by race end.
I’ve had a tough time with my clutch lately so I opted to start the bike in neutral rather than kick a dozen times while the rest of the AA line blasted off to turn one. This meant that my bike would surely start but I would need to slam it into gear once it lit. That cost me time but it was well worth it.
The 12 AA riders on the line were most the who’s who of the fast guys within 5 hours drive of here. I was a little nervous as the race approached because from what I had seen of the lap on my sighting walk, this was my kind of course. And knowing I’m fit and riding well made me sweat more.
At this point I'm pretty sure I can beat that quad to the first turn. There's Joe on the 40+ line in the background.
I got a slow start, which I expected, then avoided a two rider, mid air collision over the first jump, sped up to the back of the AA group and waded my way through some scary fast dust. The mx track we started on had sweeping turns with multiple ruts from entry to exit. They were fun but you had to be committed to keep up with other riders. The jumps were more than enough for the off-road racers in the group and the A class mx guys were making me feel wimpy. The story reversed as soon as we got into the woods. I started making my way through the group.
Here's one of the slower rocky downhills we saw. Pretty challenging late in the race but still loads of fun.
The 8+ minute lap had a few open field sections where I wished I had a taller gear or a bigger engine. And the woods sections might have been easier on a trials bike. Two tricky hills eliminated sloppy or timid riders from the rest of us on those opening laps. On one early lap I had to weave between stopped riders to get to the top of the hill. At the very top I finally lost my balance and leaned against another rider. He had to push me back up right and in the process my right boot got caught on something and it opened up all four buckles. I got my act in gear and continued on only to have to stop a few turns later to do up the top two buckles. I couldn’t feel the rear brake with how loose the boot was and I couldn’t afford to do up all four so I only did the top two. The loose boot bugged me for the rest of the race. But at least I didn’t get stuck on that hill because looking back at the lap times, it appears it stopped a lot of riders that would have normally been in the mix for the win.
We entered this section after a fast grassy field crossing. The grass had awesome grip so you could really get on the brakes just before hit the single track. I like how settled the bike looks in this shot.
My race was 15 laps total. I made my way up to 4th somewhere in the middle of the race. I didn’t know who was in front of me so there was a time when I thought 4th was as good as I could do; the riders I saw on the line were reputably fast. When I came around and saw I was in 2nd on lap 12, I was reborn. I had been catching glimpses of Matt Herrington for a few laps and only when I saw the marquee say that I was in second did it dawn on me that Matt was leading and he was definitely within my reach.
I put my head down and chased. The lappers were cooperative and I was lucky. I caught Matt several times in the closing laps but would bobble or take a line that was just slower than Matt’s and have to remount a chase. I’m pretty stoked that some of my fastest laps were late in the race but they were not fast enough to over take Matt. Congrats to Matt on the win!
This is BIG air for a woods guy like me. I might not had hit this as fast as I did if I had seen this photo before the race.
I crossed the finish line in 2nd just eight seconds behind Matt. I only stalled one time all race and only hit the ground once. I’m calling that a successful turn of events compared to last weekend’s freshman outing.
In between rides and races I’ve been tinkering with the suspension linkage on my RM-Z250. I’ve learned that keeping it clean and fresh makes a perceivable difference in how well the bike works in gnarly terrain. The acceleration and braking grip is so much better and the trail chop is far less fatiguing when the rear of the bike is quiet. And thanks to Factory Connection for the killer valving!
Hero dirt.
A big thanks to Matt Pickersgill for taking all these photos!
The next race is said to have a very long lap that’s filled with rocky single track. I’d better get on my Gas Gas trials bike between now and then to hone some of my throttle and clutch skills! Hope to see you there!
I was really comfy in this section of woods. It was a lot like Homann's farm where I've been practicing. Tight and rutted.
