sandogn
12-02-2006, 10:21 PM
Today I did something that will have to be considered one of the most difficult things I have done in my life. I raced in the 2'nd annual Coyote Classic AMA/AMRA enduro race just north of Phoenix Arizona. I consider myself a very proficient dirt biker, but my experience and expertise is riding more MX type of terrain (IE Berms, Big Jumps, Whoops, Fast turns, and Hard Braking). The course I rode today was totally different, it entirely consisted of SUPER rocky treacherous single track, wickedly nasty uphill and downhill descents, and tight twisty washes filled with super soft sand.
The way the race was run was sort of like a rally race, with riders only being timed in certain sections. Riders go at their own pace in transfer sections, and the are let go and timed in 15 second intervals in the test sections. My race consisted of 2 20 mile laps with 3 long test sections in each lap.
The first lap I got off to a great start, but the terrain in the initial transfer section unlike anything I have ridden before. It was rocky as hell and my bike really wasn't set up for that type of riding. Anyway, I got to the first test section waited 15 seconds to go and did very well. I passed a few bikes (they pull over to let you go by because its single track) which meant I was gaining lots of time over other riders, and was only passed by two riders which was very inspiring and quickened my pace. I finished the section in a very good 9 minutes.
Next section (test 2) was a little more my style and I dominated several bikes through small sandy washes and less rocky single track. I finished this section in just under 10 minutes which was great.
The third section is where I really F'ed up. Somehow or another after I had left the third test section I took a wrong trail and ended up doing a few horrible sections of the pro course. It was the most dangerous part of the loop ( called pro section five) and was some of the craziest terrain I have ever seen. At some points I felt I was riding up walls and just had to gun it and hope for the best. It was honestly as close as you can get to trials riding on a dirt bike. Anyway I took a pretty good spill on one of the hills and ended up wasting almost 15 minutes because I was off my track.
By the end of this section I was so physically beat that I considered going home after the first lap. My arm pump was so bad I could hardly pull in the clutch and I was breathing super hard. I truly wanted to stop and just take a break but I kept on riding to the finish line
I finally made it to the line after 1 hour and 25 minutes. I had 30 minutes until the start of the second lap so I went to my truck and took a break. It was there I realized my arms were so cramped I could not open my hands more than half way. While sitting there I called my dirt bike buddy Jeff and told him I might be throwing in the towel. All he had to do is tell me is that I would wonder for weeks what could have happened if I kept going. He also told me if I kept up my pace I might get top three.
Somehow I sucked up the pain and decided I would finish the race no matter what. This time my luck had changed from the start. The starts were like no other I have done before. They were dead engine starts, so I had to kick start my bike and get the hole shot so I didn't eat all the dust in the fast sand wash transfer section until the test section. With my bike in first, I got the engine top dead center, waited for the go signal, kicked, and released the clutch almost simultaneously taking the hole shot. It was awesome!!
Anyway I was much smoother on the second lap and all of my arm fatigue seemed to go away. I also took my time in the transfer sections rather than riding at a quick pace. I finished the three test sections in 9, 9, and 16 minutes respectively. Overall I was also much faster my second lap completing it in 1 hour and twelve minutes. Not too bad for my first race and first time in the strange terrain. However it won't be stange for long, I intend to ride in that area at least once a week until the next race.
Because the event was scored manually I will not know until Monday if I earned my trophy. All I know is that this was more physically demanding than anything I have ever done before. It was pure racing for just over two hours through some of the worst trails you could imagine. For anybody that road races the sport is something you have to try. For me it seems at least twice as challenging as riding sport bikes.
I will let you know the results. In the meantime I just had to tell everybody to head to the dirt every once and a while, it's a blast!!!
12545
The way the race was run was sort of like a rally race, with riders only being timed in certain sections. Riders go at their own pace in transfer sections, and the are let go and timed in 15 second intervals in the test sections. My race consisted of 2 20 mile laps with 3 long test sections in each lap.
The first lap I got off to a great start, but the terrain in the initial transfer section unlike anything I have ridden before. It was rocky as hell and my bike really wasn't set up for that type of riding. Anyway, I got to the first test section waited 15 seconds to go and did very well. I passed a few bikes (they pull over to let you go by because its single track) which meant I was gaining lots of time over other riders, and was only passed by two riders which was very inspiring and quickened my pace. I finished the section in a very good 9 minutes.
Next section (test 2) was a little more my style and I dominated several bikes through small sandy washes and less rocky single track. I finished this section in just under 10 minutes which was great.
The third section is where I really F'ed up. Somehow or another after I had left the third test section I took a wrong trail and ended up doing a few horrible sections of the pro course. It was the most dangerous part of the loop ( called pro section five) and was some of the craziest terrain I have ever seen. At some points I felt I was riding up walls and just had to gun it and hope for the best. It was honestly as close as you can get to trials riding on a dirt bike. Anyway I took a pretty good spill on one of the hills and ended up wasting almost 15 minutes because I was off my track.
By the end of this section I was so physically beat that I considered going home after the first lap. My arm pump was so bad I could hardly pull in the clutch and I was breathing super hard. I truly wanted to stop and just take a break but I kept on riding to the finish line
I finally made it to the line after 1 hour and 25 minutes. I had 30 minutes until the start of the second lap so I went to my truck and took a break. It was there I realized my arms were so cramped I could not open my hands more than half way. While sitting there I called my dirt bike buddy Jeff and told him I might be throwing in the towel. All he had to do is tell me is that I would wonder for weeks what could have happened if I kept going. He also told me if I kept up my pace I might get top three.
Somehow I sucked up the pain and decided I would finish the race no matter what. This time my luck had changed from the start. The starts were like no other I have done before. They were dead engine starts, so I had to kick start my bike and get the hole shot so I didn't eat all the dust in the fast sand wash transfer section until the test section. With my bike in first, I got the engine top dead center, waited for the go signal, kicked, and released the clutch almost simultaneously taking the hole shot. It was awesome!!
Anyway I was much smoother on the second lap and all of my arm fatigue seemed to go away. I also took my time in the transfer sections rather than riding at a quick pace. I finished the three test sections in 9, 9, and 16 minutes respectively. Overall I was also much faster my second lap completing it in 1 hour and twelve minutes. Not too bad for my first race and first time in the strange terrain. However it won't be stange for long, I intend to ride in that area at least once a week until the next race.
Because the event was scored manually I will not know until Monday if I earned my trophy. All I know is that this was more physically demanding than anything I have ever done before. It was pure racing for just over two hours through some of the worst trails you could imagine. For anybody that road races the sport is something you have to try. For me it seems at least twice as challenging as riding sport bikes.
I will let you know the results. In the meantime I just had to tell everybody to head to the dirt every once and a while, it's a blast!!!
12545