Dirtweek 2005
First of all this was my first opportunity to ride my KTM since April 8th when I had to get off it and get my neck fixed. The anticipation was extraordinary. The agreed plan was to meet up with V-man (Randy) at his house after he got home from work and pick up fatherandson (Mike) I got to randys house about 2 and got all my stuff and bikes loaded in his Funmover and trailer. He was not there yet so I want in his house and turned on the TV, and at that moment he arrived. As soon as possible we were off to get Mike at the park and ride near Lansing. We get there 9we thought) and he’s not there –a phone call confirmed we went to the wrong spot so we went off to get him. We found mike, loaded up his stuff and began to execute THE PLAN. 3 guys driving 18 hours in 3 hour shifts, Randy was first, then me and then Mike. We executed the plan flawlessly and arrived in Cooperland at 9:30 AM. Giddy with excitement and lack of quality sleep we pulled in and checked in with Okie. We claimed our pit camp and proceeded to set up a very quality camp that would make Napper proud. We missed ya big buddy! After getting camp set up and milling around for a bit it was freakin’ time to ride so we geared up and went to the 500 acres about 4-5 miles down the road. There was about 20 riders and we split into groups. Our group had a nice ride of about 30 miles total and back to DW we went. We realized that none of us had much to eat and we were hungry so Randy made us sammys. MMMMM! We were chillin and I decided I need to get the KLX out on the mini track. I’m riding around the track getting braver and braver and I end up wadding up on the down side of a table and crashing on my shoulder. Damn, hurt on the first day! I was bummed but I got ice on it right away and hoped for the best. Spend the rest of the day pit riding on the KLX, meeting people and then dinner. Salmon and red potatoes. Then off the the camp fire with a few beers. Fighting the sleep we retired about 10 PM
DAY TWO:
I was freaking sore and doubted I could ride, great here I am just getting back in the saddle and hurt and can’t ride. I kept icing it and pumped some Aleve down and we went to the barrel races on the mini bikes to watch. As we watch the barrel races the aleve seemed to be working and I was feeling better so we decided to go to the 500 acres again for a trail ride, this time we took Jenny (Blackhawk) with us on BIGLOU’s TTR. Well she did great and we had a blast and although I was sore and a bit weak in the shoulder I was able to ride and I had a ball. As we were coming back from the 500 coming up the driveway we saw a crowd around the pond by the mini bike track and wondered why they would be there and not watching the bikes but soon it was discovered. Donnie a newbie to DW rode his CRF 450 up the grass bank and launched it right into the pound! He said it was about 8 feet deep where he landed. Man that was just too funny! Scroll this link.
http://dirtrider.net/forums3/showthread.php?t=122852&page=3
It was time for lunch and Randy made us sammys again. Awesome. We sat chilling and I noticed that a can of Monster Energy I had left on the table had a bee in it so I dumped it out and there were like 20 bees in there. Then we decided to ride the poker run on the mini bikes, Napper lent Mike his 110 so we could all ride. We were tearing it up out there and I got the worst set of cards ever!!! I ended up just hanging out and Mike and randy went on the big track for 4 laps. After the Poker run Mike and I were called upon to lay out the next days Hare Scrambles course so we got our arrowing belts and tools and headed out to the woods. We took the minis out there and rode around and found ways to link up as much trail as possible, there were 5 of us all together and in a few hours we were done. Then it was time for dinner –Shrimp ON the Barbie! After dinner we went to the pot luck, I donated some shrimp to the cause. We had some of Vintage Dirts chili and some Jumbolia that was awesome. After dinner it was off the the fire. Lo and behold we get to meet Donnie the guy that launched into the pond. He was one of the funniest people you will ever meet. He was describing the adventure with a flair that he could only make work to that level of humor. God that was funny at the fire that night! Off to bed.
DAY THREE:
Today was the Team Harescramble at 9 AM. Mike and I were a team, a tradition we started the first DW in 2002. So at the start Mike was on the first lap and he got a good start like 4th in the woods and came out in 2nd! I was excited and nervous with my very sore shoulder and no riding in 6 months I didn’t want to blow it for the team. Off I go into the woods trying to be smooth and not too slow – I made it through and no one passed me so we are still in second and I feel happy. Mike takes off and holds the position then on the next lap I got passed. Mike got their guy back and this time I was determined to not get passed back, I heard the guy coming so I did the best I could and I either got away from him or he piled because I didnt’ hear him. I had 5-10 seconds on him for Mike. We held 2nd for 8 laps and on my 4th lap (lap 9 for the team) one of the KTM guys from the factory truck went by me, I could tell by his speed that he was an A rider and there was no way I could try to get him back so I just hoped he didn’t matter. As I went through the scoring Wardy said you guys gotta go! I figured we slipped into 3rd. Mike held our spot and I went into the woods on a mission to not lose a podium spot and had my best lap ever, I felt smooth and fast. No one got by me, not even close. And when I finished we were in 3rd out of 18 teams. Cool. Finally got a podium! After the race I was talking to the KTM guy and he rides Texas Hare Scrambles and gets to ride 3 times a week, so I felt better about letting Mike down. Sorry buddy, I really wanted to get us 2nd.
We had some lunch and Mike and Randy went for a ride at the 500 but I sat it out with the sore shoulder and still wanting to ride the nite poker run. I hung out, rode a little mini, rode the 110 in the COTT race for 1 lap and talked to people. The gang came back from the 500 and they had lunch. Man they must have been on fumes! It was now time for the pit bike races a moment I was waiting for. The competition was looking good, Stan was practinging all day I guess and looked fast. Mike was on Nappers 110 and I was on mine, plus there were about 8 more bikes out there. The flag dropped and I got pinched in the middle with a slow start but managed to get to the second corner in 3rd. I had to battle with a guy for 2 laps before I could get by him and the leader was checking out. I was going as fast as I could after getting free from the 2nd place guy and went over the step up jump and just pinned it on this left hand sweeper with hard pack base and silt on top and I lost the front wheel just flying and I went down hard in a spectacular crash that started as a low side slide the ended up going to a high side and the bike rolling over top of me and I ended up with my right leg under the bike headed the wrong way on the track. I heard a pack of 3 bikes go by and Elk laughing and cheering because he was now in front of me, I took a bit of time to get untangled and got up and going just ahead of Mike. I went on for several laps and cought a couple but ended up like 6th I think. My left arm had a huge road rash on it so I went off to heal the wounds and a bit disappointed that I blew a solid second place finish. I felt fast. Eventually it was dinner time and we feasted on chicken and mashed potatoes. We hung out with people and then it was time to get ready for the Nite Poker Run. We got our Helmet lights rigged up and painfully got geared up. By now we had quite a bit of riding in and were all sore but we agreed that we would all feel better once we did it. Mike and I rode the 110’s and Randy oped for the softer seat of his KTM. Once the poker run got started Mike and entered the woods section together on the 110’s with me leading. WOW! What and experience that was! The lights worked great but the trail junk was harder to miss and the minis were bouncing all over the place-Mike was on my tail the whole first 2 laps so I pulled over and asked him to lead. Now that was better it was way easier to follow than to lead. All the time we are going through the woods people are jumping out from behind trees, mooning us and we just keep those little bikes flying down the trail. One time we saw a couple moons and circled back on them and chased them around, that was funny seeing them running and pulling up their pants with our lazer beams on them. Well we finished all 5 laps and Mike got great cards and once again I got crap. (WE WERE TOLD THE NEXT NGIHT THAT WE WERE FREAKING FLYING THROUGH THE WOODS ON THE MINIS COMPARED TO THE BIG BIKES -I HAVE FAILED TO GROW UP ONCE AGAIN, MIKE TOO!) We got back tired but glad we did it. We showered and off to the fire we went. It was a dull night at the fire and it seemed all the attendees were tired so we went to bed. I couldn't get Donnie to tell any more funny stories.
DAY FOUR, LAST DAY
I woke up sore, and in pain from the shoulder and left arm and felt that it would be safer for me to skip the Bikes with Lights MX and just go for a ride at the 500. We ended up being flaggers for the races and watched some great races. We had lunch and geared up for our last ride of the trip. It ended up just being the 3 of us and we had a great ride but were wasted when we got done. The 500 is really a fun place to ride, different than ORV stuff we have here with very few whoops and more technical riding for the most part and tighter than any ORV trail. FUN STUFF. We got back and started to take a break and have a Gatorade. After drinking most of mine I sat it down and took off my boots and took another dring and OUCH! I got bit by a bee on the inside of my lower lip. A bee flew into my drink and stung me. Mike pulled out the stinger and I iced it down. Damn that hurts and my lip is about 3 times larger right now. We broke camp and went to the Pig out. Had a great meal and then went to the awards. We all got a cool Pro Circuit belt and I think Mike was the only one to win anything at the drawing-but the people around us reaped it in. We got our plaque for the 3rd place in the Hare Scramble and Mike and I also got an award for coming to the rescue and making the trails for the hare scrambles and poker run. We felt funny getting an award that was really earned by 5 people and not just two. They called us the Michigan mafia. Sadly it was time to go, the weather was perfect every day in the low 80’s and sunny. It was an awesome time and I hope more can make if from here next year because it is worth the 18 hr drive!
Thanks Mike and Randy for a very memorable trip and a great way for me to come out of injury and back to riding. Man am I sore!!!
First of all this was my first opportunity to ride my KTM since April 8th when I had to get off it and get my neck fixed. The anticipation was extraordinary. The agreed plan was to meet up with V-man (Randy) at his house after he got home from work and pick up fatherandson (Mike) I got to randys house about 2 and got all my stuff and bikes loaded in his Funmover and trailer. He was not there yet so I want in his house and turned on the TV, and at that moment he arrived. As soon as possible we were off to get Mike at the park and ride near Lansing. We get there 9we thought) and he’s not there –a phone call confirmed we went to the wrong spot so we went off to get him. We found mike, loaded up his stuff and began to execute THE PLAN. 3 guys driving 18 hours in 3 hour shifts, Randy was first, then me and then Mike. We executed the plan flawlessly and arrived in Cooperland at 9:30 AM. Giddy with excitement and lack of quality sleep we pulled in and checked in with Okie. We claimed our pit camp and proceeded to set up a very quality camp that would make Napper proud. We missed ya big buddy! After getting camp set up and milling around for a bit it was freakin’ time to ride so we geared up and went to the 500 acres about 4-5 miles down the road. There was about 20 riders and we split into groups. Our group had a nice ride of about 30 miles total and back to DW we went. We realized that none of us had much to eat and we were hungry so Randy made us sammys. MMMMM! We were chillin and I decided I need to get the KLX out on the mini track. I’m riding around the track getting braver and braver and I end up wadding up on the down side of a table and crashing on my shoulder. Damn, hurt on the first day! I was bummed but I got ice on it right away and hoped for the best. Spend the rest of the day pit riding on the KLX, meeting people and then dinner. Salmon and red potatoes. Then off the the camp fire with a few beers. Fighting the sleep we retired about 10 PM
DAY TWO:
I was freaking sore and doubted I could ride, great here I am just getting back in the saddle and hurt and can’t ride. I kept icing it and pumped some Aleve down and we went to the barrel races on the mini bikes to watch. As we watch the barrel races the aleve seemed to be working and I was feeling better so we decided to go to the 500 acres again for a trail ride, this time we took Jenny (Blackhawk) with us on BIGLOU’s TTR. Well she did great and we had a blast and although I was sore and a bit weak in the shoulder I was able to ride and I had a ball. As we were coming back from the 500 coming up the driveway we saw a crowd around the pond by the mini bike track and wondered why they would be there and not watching the bikes but soon it was discovered. Donnie a newbie to DW rode his CRF 450 up the grass bank and launched it right into the pound! He said it was about 8 feet deep where he landed. Man that was just too funny! Scroll this link.
http://dirtrider.net/forums3/showthread.php?t=122852&page=3
It was time for lunch and Randy made us sammys again. Awesome. We sat chilling and I noticed that a can of Monster Energy I had left on the table had a bee in it so I dumped it out and there were like 20 bees in there. Then we decided to ride the poker run on the mini bikes, Napper lent Mike his 110 so we could all ride. We were tearing it up out there and I got the worst set of cards ever!!! I ended up just hanging out and Mike and randy went on the big track for 4 laps. After the Poker run Mike and I were called upon to lay out the next days Hare Scrambles course so we got our arrowing belts and tools and headed out to the woods. We took the minis out there and rode around and found ways to link up as much trail as possible, there were 5 of us all together and in a few hours we were done. Then it was time for dinner –Shrimp ON the Barbie! After dinner we went to the pot luck, I donated some shrimp to the cause. We had some of Vintage Dirts chili and some Jumbolia that was awesome. After dinner it was off the the fire. Lo and behold we get to meet Donnie the guy that launched into the pond. He was one of the funniest people you will ever meet. He was describing the adventure with a flair that he could only make work to that level of humor. God that was funny at the fire that night! Off to bed.
DAY THREE:
Today was the Team Harescramble at 9 AM. Mike and I were a team, a tradition we started the first DW in 2002. So at the start Mike was on the first lap and he got a good start like 4th in the woods and came out in 2nd! I was excited and nervous with my very sore shoulder and no riding in 6 months I didn’t want to blow it for the team. Off I go into the woods trying to be smooth and not too slow – I made it through and no one passed me so we are still in second and I feel happy. Mike takes off and holds the position then on the next lap I got passed. Mike got their guy back and this time I was determined to not get passed back, I heard the guy coming so I did the best I could and I either got away from him or he piled because I didnt’ hear him. I had 5-10 seconds on him for Mike. We held 2nd for 8 laps and on my 4th lap (lap 9 for the team) one of the KTM guys from the factory truck went by me, I could tell by his speed that he was an A rider and there was no way I could try to get him back so I just hoped he didn’t matter. As I went through the scoring Wardy said you guys gotta go! I figured we slipped into 3rd. Mike held our spot and I went into the woods on a mission to not lose a podium spot and had my best lap ever, I felt smooth and fast. No one got by me, not even close. And when I finished we were in 3rd out of 18 teams. Cool. Finally got a podium! After the race I was talking to the KTM guy and he rides Texas Hare Scrambles and gets to ride 3 times a week, so I felt better about letting Mike down. Sorry buddy, I really wanted to get us 2nd.
We had some lunch and Mike and Randy went for a ride at the 500 but I sat it out with the sore shoulder and still wanting to ride the nite poker run. I hung out, rode a little mini, rode the 110 in the COTT race for 1 lap and talked to people. The gang came back from the 500 and they had lunch. Man they must have been on fumes! It was now time for the pit bike races a moment I was waiting for. The competition was looking good, Stan was practinging all day I guess and looked fast. Mike was on Nappers 110 and I was on mine, plus there were about 8 more bikes out there. The flag dropped and I got pinched in the middle with a slow start but managed to get to the second corner in 3rd. I had to battle with a guy for 2 laps before I could get by him and the leader was checking out. I was going as fast as I could after getting free from the 2nd place guy and went over the step up jump and just pinned it on this left hand sweeper with hard pack base and silt on top and I lost the front wheel just flying and I went down hard in a spectacular crash that started as a low side slide the ended up going to a high side and the bike rolling over top of me and I ended up with my right leg under the bike headed the wrong way on the track. I heard a pack of 3 bikes go by and Elk laughing and cheering because he was now in front of me, I took a bit of time to get untangled and got up and going just ahead of Mike. I went on for several laps and cought a couple but ended up like 6th I think. My left arm had a huge road rash on it so I went off to heal the wounds and a bit disappointed that I blew a solid second place finish. I felt fast. Eventually it was dinner time and we feasted on chicken and mashed potatoes. We hung out with people and then it was time to get ready for the Nite Poker Run. We got our Helmet lights rigged up and painfully got geared up. By now we had quite a bit of riding in and were all sore but we agreed that we would all feel better once we did it. Mike and I rode the 110’s and Randy oped for the softer seat of his KTM. Once the poker run got started Mike and entered the woods section together on the 110’s with me leading. WOW! What and experience that was! The lights worked great but the trail junk was harder to miss and the minis were bouncing all over the place-Mike was on my tail the whole first 2 laps so I pulled over and asked him to lead. Now that was better it was way easier to follow than to lead. All the time we are going through the woods people are jumping out from behind trees, mooning us and we just keep those little bikes flying down the trail. One time we saw a couple moons and circled back on them and chased them around, that was funny seeing them running and pulling up their pants with our lazer beams on them. Well we finished all 5 laps and Mike got great cards and once again I got crap. (WE WERE TOLD THE NEXT NGIHT THAT WE WERE FREAKING FLYING THROUGH THE WOODS ON THE MINIS COMPARED TO THE BIG BIKES -I HAVE FAILED TO GROW UP ONCE AGAIN, MIKE TOO!) We got back tired but glad we did it. We showered and off to the fire we went. It was a dull night at the fire and it seemed all the attendees were tired so we went to bed. I couldn't get Donnie to tell any more funny stories.
DAY FOUR, LAST DAY
I woke up sore, and in pain from the shoulder and left arm and felt that it would be safer for me to skip the Bikes with Lights MX and just go for a ride at the 500. We ended up being flaggers for the races and watched some great races. We had lunch and geared up for our last ride of the trip. It ended up just being the 3 of us and we had a great ride but were wasted when we got done. The 500 is really a fun place to ride, different than ORV stuff we have here with very few whoops and more technical riding for the most part and tighter than any ORV trail. FUN STUFF. We got back and started to take a break and have a Gatorade. After drinking most of mine I sat it down and took off my boots and took another dring and OUCH! I got bit by a bee on the inside of my lower lip. A bee flew into my drink and stung me. Mike pulled out the stinger and I iced it down. Damn that hurts and my lip is about 3 times larger right now. We broke camp and went to the Pig out. Had a great meal and then went to the awards. We all got a cool Pro Circuit belt and I think Mike was the only one to win anything at the drawing-but the people around us reaped it in. We got our plaque for the 3rd place in the Hare Scramble and Mike and I also got an award for coming to the rescue and making the trails for the hare scrambles and poker run. We felt funny getting an award that was really earned by 5 people and not just two. They called us the Michigan mafia. Sadly it was time to go, the weather was perfect every day in the low 80’s and sunny. It was an awesome time and I hope more can make if from here next year because it is worth the 18 hr drive!
Thanks Mike and Randy for a very memorable trip and a great way for me to come out of injury and back to riding. Man am I sore!!!
Attachments
Last edited:
