Forgot to include in the Noble Woods post that jetting was spot-on for the 75 deg. temps. No spooge and really crisp running. Even at low throttle on the road sections. For the higher speeds and smoother terrain, the current suspension was perfect. Still need to have Gilles lighten up the rear compression a little for the more typical N.E. stuff.
Today, I went out to western CT and rode with Dan R. (who I hadn't seen in a dog's age) and Steve. E. Dan's got some private stock out there that he's spent a few years cutting and blazing. As it turned out, the loop he's got there is perfect enduro practice. It's about a 16 mile loop. Some of it is really cool rhythm riding, like Noble Woods last week. Some of it is double-track and rocky like RocktoberFast. And a good amount of it is tight, twisty, and rocky...a lot like Mudslinger. On the few rock gardens, the suspension was pretty bouncy. OK if you're going for it, but if I let up, the bike would dance side-to-side on both ends. Dan knows the place like the back of his hand so, keeping up with him was about a 90% pace for me. When I was out front, I had to push hard to pull away from him. Whenever I'd slow to pick up the trail, he'd get right on my tail. Good fun.
Wish that every ride could end with a dip in the pool, beers and brats on the deck. That was cool.
Hoping to get out there again before the end of the season.
Sunday, August 29, 2010
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Noble Woods National
Sunday's Noble Woods National was a blast. Somewhere just under 500 riders were there along with all the top pros. Russell Bobbitt took the day and the video of him looks pretty insane.
Steve M. and I got up there on Saturday night and signed in, did tech, and had the KTM spaghetti dinner. Ed had already been there with his camper, wife, and dogs. The Noble high school was plenty big enough to house all of the riders, their rigs, etc.
Sunday morning, everything started out smoothly and the three of us were ready for minute 4 until Ed came back from the riders' meeting. He said that there was an issue with the first transfer section and that we had to leave 5 minutes early. We got lined up under the big inflatable arch and immediately noticed something was up. The flip cards were actually 4 minutes late. I reset my computer keytime to the flip and I was OK the rest of the day, but this meant that we'd have to hustle down the road on the transfer in order to check into the first timed section on our minute. The speed average for the transfer was 30mph.
Ed and the other rider on our row took off down the road. I was slowed by the low gearing of the XC and Steve stayed behind me. Steve and I check into the section just a couple seconds after the flip and I saw Ed leaving about 50 feet in front of us. Immediately, it was obvious that dust was going to be the story of the day. This section weaved in and out of dusty fields. In a short woods section I got caught behind a slower rider on a 4T Husky that would not move over when I revved and yelled. Then he stalled and I lost about 30 seconds. I reeled him back in and felt like I could get by if I could get close enough but it was very tough in the dust. We each missed a couple arrows and swapped the lead but Ed ended up getting me in the section by less than a minute. This section ended up getting thrown out because of the problem at the start.
The second section was more of the same with Ed and I pushing each other and Steve close behind. This section had some really cool, steep, short climbs. On one of them you ran up a 100 foot climb onto a ridge that we then ran down the crest of, weaving in and out of the trees in 3rd and 4th gear. Lots of fun. Again, Ed got me by a few. Same story in the 3rd section. Lots of fun. Lots of single track.
After gas, in the fourth section we were all pushing hard. I pulled away from Steve and Ed for a little while and was having a blast on more of the same excellent trail. About half way through the section there was an arrow with the words "Gas It" underneath. So I did. Right there was the biggest hill of the day. It has 6" of baby powder sand with loose rocks underneath. I got caught 3/4 of the way up and a couple guys got caught behind me. Pushed it to the top and rode on. This was the only real tough spot of the day. I ended getting Ed by a good margin in this section so we were both guessing that this put us about tied on the day...3 sections for him with a little lead in each. One section with a bigger lead for me. In fact, the Mototally scores show that at this point I was leading by 21 seconds.
The fifth section was the last for us and was promised to be the most fun on the day. Steve could have quit after section four with the rest of the C riders but he stayed with us for the extra ride. I still don't know why, but about half of a mile in, something went wrong with my left knee. Lots of pain and I had trouble standing, dragging, and even just extending it. Ed ran off and I couldn't keep him in sight. Steve stayed close behind me for just about the whole section.
We got back, had beers and burgers and bench raced for a while. Big smiles all around. We walked over to the scoring tent and found out that Ed had gotten me by 11 seconds. A great day of back-and-fourth racing. All three of us came home with trophies: Ed got 4th B-Sen and 28th B overall, I was right behind him in the overall and 7th B vet. Steve took 4th C-Sen. I was happy with the fact that I beat all but one of the B-vet guys that usually beat me pretty well.
Hope the club can get another national sanction next year.
NOW THAT'S A TROPHY!
Steve M. and I got up there on Saturday night and signed in, did tech, and had the KTM spaghetti dinner. Ed had already been there with his camper, wife, and dogs. The Noble high school was plenty big enough to house all of the riders, their rigs, etc.
Sunday morning, everything started out smoothly and the three of us were ready for minute 4 until Ed came back from the riders' meeting. He said that there was an issue with the first transfer section and that we had to leave 5 minutes early. We got lined up under the big inflatable arch and immediately noticed something was up. The flip cards were actually 4 minutes late. I reset my computer keytime to the flip and I was OK the rest of the day, but this meant that we'd have to hustle down the road on the transfer in order to check into the first timed section on our minute. The speed average for the transfer was 30mph.
Ed and the other rider on our row took off down the road. I was slowed by the low gearing of the XC and Steve stayed behind me. Steve and I check into the section just a couple seconds after the flip and I saw Ed leaving about 50 feet in front of us. Immediately, it was obvious that dust was going to be the story of the day. This section weaved in and out of dusty fields. In a short woods section I got caught behind a slower rider on a 4T Husky that would not move over when I revved and yelled. Then he stalled and I lost about 30 seconds. I reeled him back in and felt like I could get by if I could get close enough but it was very tough in the dust. We each missed a couple arrows and swapped the lead but Ed ended up getting me in the section by less than a minute. This section ended up getting thrown out because of the problem at the start.
The second section was more of the same with Ed and I pushing each other and Steve close behind. This section had some really cool, steep, short climbs. On one of them you ran up a 100 foot climb onto a ridge that we then ran down the crest of, weaving in and out of the trees in 3rd and 4th gear. Lots of fun. Again, Ed got me by a few. Same story in the 3rd section. Lots of fun. Lots of single track.
After gas, in the fourth section we were all pushing hard. I pulled away from Steve and Ed for a little while and was having a blast on more of the same excellent trail. About half way through the section there was an arrow with the words "Gas It" underneath. So I did. Right there was the biggest hill of the day. It has 6" of baby powder sand with loose rocks underneath. I got caught 3/4 of the way up and a couple guys got caught behind me. Pushed it to the top and rode on. This was the only real tough spot of the day. I ended getting Ed by a good margin in this section so we were both guessing that this put us about tied on the day...3 sections for him with a little lead in each. One section with a bigger lead for me. In fact, the Mototally scores show that at this point I was leading by 21 seconds.
The fifth section was the last for us and was promised to be the most fun on the day. Steve could have quit after section four with the rest of the C riders but he stayed with us for the extra ride. I still don't know why, but about half of a mile in, something went wrong with my left knee. Lots of pain and I had trouble standing, dragging, and even just extending it. Ed ran off and I couldn't keep him in sight. Steve stayed close behind me for just about the whole section.
We got back, had beers and burgers and bench raced for a while. Big smiles all around. We walked over to the scoring tent and found out that Ed had gotten me by 11 seconds. A great day of back-and-fourth racing. All three of us came home with trophies: Ed got 4th B-Sen and 28th B overall, I was right behind him in the overall and 7th B vet. Steve took 4th C-Sen. I was happy with the fact that I beat all but one of the B-vet guys that usually beat me pretty well.
Hope the club can get another national sanction next year.
NOW THAT'S A TROPHY!
Monday, August 16, 2010
Speedsville vs. the Autoclutch
Speedsville enduro was this Sunday. My record is now officially 0 for 3 in New York races. That is, I've never had decent weather for a race way the F... out there in New York. Both the Newark and Speedsville enduros could be the most fun on the circuit if the weather would ever cooperate.
Ended up driving all the way out there alone and hooked up with Jim D., Ed, Brett, and John S out there. Lots of the other NETRA typical guys made the drive as well. Went to the start area on Saturday to check in with the thought of picking up the spectator sheet in order to find Gas Available for the next morning. Well, the club didn't have the directions ready yet. So that was an extra 40 miles of driving for nothing. The course had 130 routesheet miles and 88 ground miles with 58 of those after official gas. So, Gas Available was not optional. This left a bunch of us looking for a friendly face to get to the GA. Luckily, Pat Timothy's dad was there and saved all of us NETRA guys from running out of fuel. All I can say is I'm glad that NETRA trailbosses don't set up things like this.
By this point in my life, I should be smart enough to know that you never test new equipment at an enduro. But, against this wisdom, I tried to make this my first-ever ride on an autoclutch. I felt uncomfortable right off the bat. The engagement was at too high of an rpm which put the motor above my favorite range. I couldn't lug it for the torque of the motor the way I really like to ride. Some things were nice, like being able to keep all four fingers and a thumb on the left grip at all times...especially in the creekbeds full of loose shale. It was also fun on some of the uphills where I could just upshift and let the torque motor on up.
Unfortunately, I haven't gotten the autoclutch set up properly yet. I started the day with it functioning properly. But, it slowly lost override at the lever meaning that shifting was very notchy and required a lot of deliberate effort...so much so that I was avoiding shifts that were necessary and I could not disengage engine braking on downhills. Coming into corners it felt like the motor was always pushing me wide and keeping the bike vertical.
Alan at Revloc has been very good with support so far so I'm going to give him another call and try to get these glitches worked out. Even if they do get worked out, I'm not sure if I'm an autoclutch kind of guy. Kind of like the trials tire, seems like a solution to a problem that I don't have.....wheel spin. I can see how it would be very advantageous in the gnarliest rock gardens, though.
The race was very fun....while it lasted. Early on, conditions were perfect. Even though it was lightly raining, the trails were still dry...even a little dusty. The course was typical NY, twisty, lots of elevation changes, barely any rocks. Lots of fun rhythm stuff. As the rain got heavier, more and more slick spots came up. Some of the field crossings were treacherous. Any root that was not perfectly perpendicular to the trail instantly had the front tire jumping out. You just had to go for it and wait for it to catch again on the other side.
Going out of official gas, my computer was a little off. Later, Ed guessed that this was because I didn't correct for the drive across the parking lot. He's probably right. I barely made it to the line for my flip on the start control. I was following Ed when he had a little bobble and he followed me to the next road crossing. I looked down and my computer showed that we were about 40 seconds hot so I slowed down. Ed motored by and kept riding at speed. This section went in, along, and out of a creek bed a bunch of times. After a couple miles there was a check right in the creek bed and I got a zero there. Saw Ed at the next road and asked "Did you burn that check?" He said "What check?" He had ridden right through it without stopping. I told him to ride back and go through it. He did and he made it to the next check in on time. Instead of a burn, he dropped 8...but it kept him in the game and allowed him not to DQ.
The next section was the A/B section and it included two very steep and very slippery ramps over barbed-wire fences into fields. I rode OK, still struggling with the autoclutch. Waited a little too long to see if Ed would come out at the end but he didn't. It cost me one point on the next check in. One more long section and we were at Gas Available. Ed was there in street clothes. He'd busted a radiator. I really thought about quitting there, but tried to push on. Rode the next section as fast as I could which ended up to be very, very, very slowly. By now there was absolutely NO override left in the clutch and the bike was riding me rather than the other way around. I quit there, which was not a timed section anyway. Not sure where I ended up. Would have been more fun with a stock clutch. I'll be back next year....hoping for dry conditions.
Ended up driving all the way out there alone and hooked up with Jim D., Ed, Brett, and John S out there. Lots of the other NETRA typical guys made the drive as well. Went to the start area on Saturday to check in with the thought of picking up the spectator sheet in order to find Gas Available for the next morning. Well, the club didn't have the directions ready yet. So that was an extra 40 miles of driving for nothing. The course had 130 routesheet miles and 88 ground miles with 58 of those after official gas. So, Gas Available was not optional. This left a bunch of us looking for a friendly face to get to the GA. Luckily, Pat Timothy's dad was there and saved all of us NETRA guys from running out of fuel. All I can say is I'm glad that NETRA trailbosses don't set up things like this.
By this point in my life, I should be smart enough to know that you never test new equipment at an enduro. But, against this wisdom, I tried to make this my first-ever ride on an autoclutch. I felt uncomfortable right off the bat. The engagement was at too high of an rpm which put the motor above my favorite range. I couldn't lug it for the torque of the motor the way I really like to ride. Some things were nice, like being able to keep all four fingers and a thumb on the left grip at all times...especially in the creekbeds full of loose shale. It was also fun on some of the uphills where I could just upshift and let the torque motor on up.
Unfortunately, I haven't gotten the autoclutch set up properly yet. I started the day with it functioning properly. But, it slowly lost override at the lever meaning that shifting was very notchy and required a lot of deliberate effort...so much so that I was avoiding shifts that were necessary and I could not disengage engine braking on downhills. Coming into corners it felt like the motor was always pushing me wide and keeping the bike vertical.
Alan at Revloc has been very good with support so far so I'm going to give him another call and try to get these glitches worked out. Even if they do get worked out, I'm not sure if I'm an autoclutch kind of guy. Kind of like the trials tire, seems like a solution to a problem that I don't have.....wheel spin. I can see how it would be very advantageous in the gnarliest rock gardens, though.
The race was very fun....while it lasted. Early on, conditions were perfect. Even though it was lightly raining, the trails were still dry...even a little dusty. The course was typical NY, twisty, lots of elevation changes, barely any rocks. Lots of fun rhythm stuff. As the rain got heavier, more and more slick spots came up. Some of the field crossings were treacherous. Any root that was not perfectly perpendicular to the trail instantly had the front tire jumping out. You just had to go for it and wait for it to catch again on the other side.
Going out of official gas, my computer was a little off. Later, Ed guessed that this was because I didn't correct for the drive across the parking lot. He's probably right. I barely made it to the line for my flip on the start control. I was following Ed when he had a little bobble and he followed me to the next road crossing. I looked down and my computer showed that we were about 40 seconds hot so I slowed down. Ed motored by and kept riding at speed. This section went in, along, and out of a creek bed a bunch of times. After a couple miles there was a check right in the creek bed and I got a zero there. Saw Ed at the next road and asked "Did you burn that check?" He said "What check?" He had ridden right through it without stopping. I told him to ride back and go through it. He did and he made it to the next check in on time. Instead of a burn, he dropped 8...but it kept him in the game and allowed him not to DQ.
The next section was the A/B section and it included two very steep and very slippery ramps over barbed-wire fences into fields. I rode OK, still struggling with the autoclutch. Waited a little too long to see if Ed would come out at the end but he didn't. It cost me one point on the next check in. One more long section and we were at Gas Available. Ed was there in street clothes. He'd busted a radiator. I really thought about quitting there, but tried to push on. Rode the next section as fast as I could which ended up to be very, very, very slowly. By now there was absolutely NO override left in the clutch and the bike was riding me rather than the other way around. I quit there, which was not a timed section anyway. Not sure where I ended up. Would have been more fun with a stock clutch. I'll be back next year....hoping for dry conditions.
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Knobby Knife
Heard about the knobby knife a while back. Seemed like a sound idea. Basically just a high-wattage soldering iron with a sharp blade tip. For $60, it seemed like an investment that would pay for itself pretty quickly. Ordered one and tried it yesterday. In just under an hour I had the front of each lug on the MT-16 rear and the center-side of each side lug on the M59 front. The result was nice, sharp lugs. My only concern was that it would weaken the lugs and lead to chunking.
Had a really fun trail ride with Steve M. at Beartown today. Traction felt good. For me, indistinguishable from new tires. After about 30 high-speed, rocky miles I saw no chunking. The front was still very sharp. The rear was rounded again, but not as much as before the sharpening.
Seems like this will be a good way to "tune up" used tires so that they are competition-worthy.
Monday, August 2, 2010
Mudslinger Enduro
100% different from last year, this year's Mudslinger was dry and dusty. Same terrain as usual, some of the most technical riding on the NETRA circuit. Lots of long, twisting, rocky climbs that test everyone's ability to maintain traction and forward momentum.
Before gas there were only 3 sections. The first turned out to be a 3 mile warm-up that was untimed. Too bad. It was probably my best section of the day. My pace was OK and I had a good rhythm. Two guys that left my line before me each went down once. The following two sections were both very long: probably around 16 miles each. Coming into gas I felt OK, but no longer felt like I had a good rhythm. There were a bunch of grassy sections with hidden rocks beneath. Some cart road sections that challenged your bravery.
After gas, we did some of the same climbs as in the first section of the day. I just could not get back into riding hard. By about mile 50, I was out of it mentally and it just went downhill from there. The Pigeon Roost trail was fun since they sent us down the slick-rock sections instead of up. By this point I was being passed by tons of riders and my motivation was nil.
Going up the Ledges was the usual. It was pretty well lubricated by the time I got there from all the previous riders. I took the usual line that waits on the left until the turn and then heads diagonally to the right. I made it to the last ledge, where I got caught up....I've made that line on my 450 before but the 2-stroke just did not have the tractor to make it....and the pilot didn't have the skill. Bobby S. and Dave D. were there to help me up the last 10 feet.
It was still another 20 miles after the Ledges and I was just hanging onto the bike. My worst ride in a while. I've got to get serious if I have any hope for 3rd place for the season. Riding once per month and sporadic exercise as I've been doing this summer are not going to cut it. Time to take the bull by the horns. Ed and Jim both had really good runs today, beating me by a ton.
The rear suspension was very harsh for today's conditions. Need to get that to Gilles for some softer valving. Jetting was pretty fat most of the day and the silencer had some spooge right after a re-pack on Saturday. So, probably need to lean out the needle at least one clip. Tires were perfect, the M59 front and MT16 seem to be do-all tires for me. Ed said that the trials tire did not do well on the uphills that had silt-covered rocks.
Before gas there were only 3 sections. The first turned out to be a 3 mile warm-up that was untimed. Too bad. It was probably my best section of the day. My pace was OK and I had a good rhythm. Two guys that left my line before me each went down once. The following two sections were both very long: probably around 16 miles each. Coming into gas I felt OK, but no longer felt like I had a good rhythm. There were a bunch of grassy sections with hidden rocks beneath. Some cart road sections that challenged your bravery.
After gas, we did some of the same climbs as in the first section of the day. I just could not get back into riding hard. By about mile 50, I was out of it mentally and it just went downhill from there. The Pigeon Roost trail was fun since they sent us down the slick-rock sections instead of up. By this point I was being passed by tons of riders and my motivation was nil.
Going up the Ledges was the usual. It was pretty well lubricated by the time I got there from all the previous riders. I took the usual line that waits on the left until the turn and then heads diagonally to the right. I made it to the last ledge, where I got caught up....I've made that line on my 450 before but the 2-stroke just did not have the tractor to make it....and the pilot didn't have the skill. Bobby S. and Dave D. were there to help me up the last 10 feet.
It was still another 20 miles after the Ledges and I was just hanging onto the bike. My worst ride in a while. I've got to get serious if I have any hope for 3rd place for the season. Riding once per month and sporadic exercise as I've been doing this summer are not going to cut it. Time to take the bull by the horns. Ed and Jim both had really good runs today, beating me by a ton.
The rear suspension was very harsh for today's conditions. Need to get that to Gilles for some softer valving. Jetting was pretty fat most of the day and the silencer had some spooge right after a re-pack on Saturday. So, probably need to lean out the needle at least one clip. Tires were perfect, the M59 front and MT16 seem to be do-all tires for me. Ed said that the trials tire did not do well on the uphills that had silt-covered rocks.
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