District 16 Opener

April 27, 2014

Everyone was excited to get the District 16 Harescramble season started and chomping at the bit to ride their dirtbikes on dirt not snow.

Mother Nature did not want to cooperate on race day. The skies were filled with black clouds and the temps were cold. The day brought on and off showers that were not needed. The ground at Adams is all sand but there are some low spots that suffered from the rain. Our class was lucky enough that the rain subsided for the start of the race. When the gun went off all the bikes fired in the AA row except mine. I got a horrible start and was almost last into the first corner. I was able to pass a couple of riders right away once we got into the woods and that put me in fifth place. I followed Eric and Dillon for a while longer and made a pass on both of them in a corner and began to real in Ryan and Shane. The three of us started to pull away from the rest of the field just as the skies opened back up and the rain came down. It didn't last that long but it did make the course slippery. Halfway around the first lap I was able to get into the lead. I was comfortable with second place right on my heels because I wasn't getting roosted every corner and had clear vision for the most part. On lap three I was able to start slowly pulling away from second place and I was feeling more comfortable to start charging. That was short lived because when I came through scoring, popped out of the woods, and got on the gas hard it seemed as if my clutch was slipping. Come to find out it was smoked. Some were along the way my banjo bolt on my oil line either got hit by a branch or something and cracked it loose. The vibrations backed it out a little bit and caused most of my oil to be pumped out on the bike and ground. Unfortunately, this ended my day with only two and half laps to go. Luckily the clutch went and my motor was not destroyed because I stopped in time. I was really disappointed and mad since this was only my second mechanical problem causing me not to finish a race since I started racing. Not the way I wanted to start the season, but I am just going to have to take it race by race to get myself out of the point’s deficit that I am in.

I would like to thank all my sponsors for all their help and thank my family for everything that they do to make it possible to be able to ride my dirtbike every weekend. I would also like to thank Steve Roof from Keytime Motorsports for all the help he provided me to get my bike back up and running. 

Remember keep it between the Trees!!!

 

Additional photos from the race taken by Brain Mullane: http://brianmullane.smugmug.com/Motorcycles

A little family fun at the races!

 

 

 

Sand Goblin Enduro

April 13, 2014

The start of our local Enduro series was finally here. We made our trek to Roselawn, IN for the first round. This was a combined district 16/17 race. The whole family got to come to this race so that was exciting. We arrived Saturday afternoon and got signed up and all ready for Sunday’s race. I ended up on row 21. I would have preferred a little later row because of all the leaves but they were filled up. The weather was calling for rain showers on and off Sunday and I was glad they were wrong. 

Sunday rolled around and the skies were sunny with some clouds. The rain held off for the event so that made the day great. The Endurocross section was right next to the start of the race so I walked over and looked at it to see where I wanted to go. It didn't look bad - the only real obstacle was going to be other bikes and people stuck in it. When the race started we rode around a big field then entered a little woods section. After that I entered the endurocross section. When I got to it there were three guys stuck on the logs right at the beginning. I was able to get by all of them but on the last log trying to get over it and around a guy I got stuck myself and tipped over. I was able to get up right away and get going. I got through the rest of it with no problems and back into the woods. I ended up getting a little arm pump in that section after the endurocross section (I think a combination of holding my breath and holding on too tight through that section). The next couple of tests went well except I was missing the flips on the checks and that was costing me valuable points to the other guys in my class. Overall I had a decent ride! The only real set back was that I had too early of a minute. I had a hard time finding the trail in some sections due to all the leaves and had to pass a lot of the guys ahead of me. I think ten minutes back would have been better because of a more established tail to follow.  The club did a great job and the race was a lot of fun. I ended up 4th overall for the event out of 238 entries. 

I am going home to work on some stuff because I am hungry for the win at the next round. Thanks again to all my great sponsors for all their support and to my support crew consisting of my Dad, Mom, wife Keri, and my biggest fan Chase.

Remember Keep it Between the Trees!! 

 

 

 

Rad Dad Enduro!!

April 13, 2014

We made it to round three of the National Enduro series in West Point, TN. The drive was fine except from Indianapolis to West Point it was pouring rain. I figured we were in store for a muddy course. We arrived Friday late morning and got all set up and settled in for the weekend. Saturday morning we went out to find the check in/outs so my parents could get me fuel. Looking at the course by the checks it looked like it was going to be a good race. All the water was soaking in nicely. I got signed up and my bike tech checked so I was ready to go for Sunday’s race. I was really looking forward to this race because I usually had good results here and the trails were more of what I like to ride. 

Sunday started out ok. I got a little bit of arm pump in the end of the test one which slowed my score some. I was able to have my parents rub my arms at the reset and I was good the rest of the day with that. I had a pretty solid day! I made a few small mistakes but nothing too serious. I noticed some of the things I have been working on to improve helped me today. The course had some puddles and mud holes but otherwise the trail was really good. The rain actually was a good thing because we may have had some dust problems throughout the day. The new Expert AA class is stacked- there are a lot of good riders and that pushes me to be better. I ended up finishing 8th in my class and 27th overall. Not a bad finish considering the competition. I am going to keep pushing myself to improve and work harder to get myself to where I want to be. I have a ways to go before I am happy with my results, but I am improving each week. The weather is finally warming up at home so I will be able to start riding during the week.  We are off to Park Hills, MO for the next round in May. I am looking forward to that race already!

Thanks again to all my sponsors and family for everything that they do for me.  You make it possible to do what I love!

Remember keep it between the trees!!!

Texas Here We Come!!

March 23, 2014

We made it back from Texas. That was a long drive home- the 21 hours felt like 40! Our trip ended up a little longer than planned. We left a day earlier and stopped by our friends in Oklahoma to get some ridding in. We arrived around 9am and went to their practice track. We rode there all day on Thursday and some of the day on Friday. From there we went back to their house, cleaned everything up, and headed south to Blackwell, TX for the second round of the National Enduros. My goal for Texas was to come out with a decent finish and be healthy for the rest of the rounds. I'm more of a tighter woods guy and the faster desert like trails that they have down there are not my strong suit.


Sunday was actually really cold for Texas and super windy. That was a good thing because they haven't had measurable rain in over a year. Needless to say it was very dusty. I was on minute 18 and ready to go. The course was very rocky, but not the rocks you typically see- most of them were loose and varied in size. I never really knew what my bike was going to do from corner to corner. I just got used to sliding around all day. With the faster conditions and the loose rocks I struggled to get up to speed. I tried numerous times to push and charge hard but just kept making small mistakes that were hurting me. I was forced to hold back a little and finished the day with no big crashes. The race consisted of two AA and A only sections that were more technical than the other four tests. My speeds were down some because I was riding on some steep terrain (a mistake there could land you at the bottom of a steep raven). I had to be a little careful so I didn't go sliding off the edge. It started to rain at the end of test three and stopped right before I started test four. The rain really didn't affect much as it was a quick shower. At the end of the day I didn't ride to what I thought was up to par for me, but I did get out of Texas healthy and ready to put the hammer down at the next round in Tennessee. I know what I need to work on and I will be ready. I ended up finishing 12th in the Expert AA class and 35th overall. Not bad results considering the type of terrain for me but not what I expect from myself. 

I would like to thank all my sponsors for all their support as I couldn't do this without you. Also, I would like to thank my Dad for traveling and helping out all week to get ready for the race because without him it would be tough.

Remember Keep it Between the Trees!!!

South Carolina Bound!

March 2, 2014

We finally got to leave the frigid North and headed South for warmer weather. Our destination was Travelers Rest, SC. Thanks to Randy we were able to stay at the farm for a whole week and got some much needed time on the bike. The weather was great – mid to upper 60s. A lot better than the sub zero temps that we are used to this time of year. I got a lot of good riding and testing in before we packed up and headed two hours south to the first round of the National Enduro. I was excited to get the season started and that I had an early row this year (the trail wouldn't be all whooped out). This year I'm in the new expert AA class. This class was created for the regional AA riders (if you finished 16 through 25 overall last year or are a top five regional AA rider in your state you have to ride this class). This class is a stepping stone to enter the pro ranks. We got signed up Saturday and went through tech so we were ready to go.

The weather was perfect for Sunday – Race day! The first test was the longest of the day. The cooler temps in the morning caused me to get arm pump about half way through the test and that really hurt my time in that test. I got through the first section and didn't have any more problems with arm pump the rest of the day. The other tests went pretty good. With being off my bike since November and only riding the week before the event I did alright. Most of my competition has been riding year round. I found out what I needed to work on and will improve for the next round. I finished 9th in the expert AA class and 30th overall out of 500 riders.

I would like to thank all my sponsors for their help and my family for all they do for me. Without everyone's help I wouldn't be able to do what I love.  Thanks! 

Remember to keep it between the trees!!!