well, its that time of year again and after a couple of days of rest i am ready to tell the story.
day one(fri)
trucks started arriving around 7pm. plates said most of the trucks were from oklahoma. bikes and gear were unloaded and before the night was over i had gas gas, kawasaki, honda, and yamaha represented in my garage. (no yellow bikes though) final bike count was 14!. we did manage to leave enough room for BSWIFT and non DRN darrin. they have issues with cats. JUSTQL(+2boys), DWRECK, BIG LOU(all the way down from KC), arrived and unloaded without incident. it was early to bed for me as i remembered last years marathon. several of the above attended Thumps preSX party and had a killer time.
day2(sat)
get up get showered and head to texas stadium for the sx. weather is perfect and i believe our group was second one there to the parking lot tailgate. slowmo/no'mo were the first to claim our spot. wasnt much longer before the DRN folk started rolling in. tony eeds, patman, taraker, twin spar(and son who will be representing the US in an upcoming olympics im sure), evenslower, txbigguy(with the grill and goodies), stan flemmings, xrguy(now on a mean looking kx250), and other drn folks that i can see the face but not the nick. i guess there was 40 or so including wives and friends. it wasnt long before the grill was going and the smacktalking commenced. me and my kid headed off to the pits to hook up with some of my local crew. we roamed the pits and my boy, like every other 12 yr old, was grabbing every free sticker and getting any rider who could write autograph on his jersey. we roam between the lot, practice, and the pits all afternoon. i saw RC go down hard in the last practice. over the bars in the whoops....ouch. he had let reed by to check his lines out and was trying to run him down. a preview to the upcoming entertainment.
THE RACES
heats were good. #259 is just a boy among other boys but he sure is fast. first 250 main saw reed run away. second main had RC biffing on a berm where he went from first to sixth. he ran everybody down anyway. quote of the night after that heat by RC "i dont know what the hell happened over there, but it sure was embarrasing. that wont get it in the main." how right he was.
125 main bubba was the man and was faster than 9/10s of the 250s racing. it was cool to see him win after last yrs debacle. he got the #1 plate too.
THE SX RACE OF THE SEASON
i dont think anybody knows who got 3rd on back. every eye was on the two out front. first it was RC, then it was 22. then it was RC then 22 and that was just the first lap!! this race is what everybody has been waiting for. both got starts and were up front racing each other. as hard as they tried, neither would give up. it was bar to bar for long time. they both rode very clean which was surprising. they both could of taken the other out at any time...but didnt. both were riding at their limit. one would bobble and the other would take advantage......then the other would bobble. seemed like RC had an advantage in the rhythm section before the whoops but reed was faster in the whoops. it was a great race. lap 16 had reed in the lead when rc got out of shape in the whoops but didnt go down. they were both getting sloppy and i noticed rc failed to clear the finish line double clean. it seemed at that point he rode close enough to catch reed if he made a mistake but wasnt going to throw away second trying to catch him. rc finished a couple of bike lengths back. the crowd was into it big time. after last years inspiring ride by mcgrath going from 20th on lap 1 to 3rd, this race topped it. be sure to set your vcr and put in a good tape cause you are going to watch this one over and over.
day 3(sunday)
riding is what it is all about isnt it? DRN was represented heavily at nocona mx where there were some chills and spills but ill let Thump tell his story. another group invaded oklahoma due to muenster being closed over the weekend. we arrived at lake murray to find stan, xrguy, teeds, old maiconut, lorin, and others already ripping up the trails. while its no muenster, lake murray filled in nicely. i was surprised that it wasnt busy. a friend of mine brought up his smoker and we threw bird and cow on it to see what would happen. seems like the DRN crew was on the atkins diet as all we did was eat meat all weekend. we had some younger riders with us and i had a good time riding sweep on their escapades. my favorite memory was following the kids down a whooped out sand road. the tallest on an rm80, followed by an xr100 and my kid on an xr 70. they were hauling. they looked like rabbits bouncing down the trail one right after the other. standing on the pegs, back ends swapping but never letting off the gas. true sand riders. i got to lead several loops with the big boys and i can tell you leading is not all what it is cracked up to be. trying to keep everybody together isnt easy. especially if JUSTQL is breathing down your pipe. i kept up the pace and when we came to an intersection it was just him and me :yeehaw: sorry about the lack of pace management. next time we will put justql in the back and make him pass everybody ;). i hope everybody had fun. nobody got hurt but we did have a part failure on a certain gas gas. no...it wasnt a sparkplug. later in the day some of the nocona crew came over to eat and try murrays offerings. arron and his dad were there. as were eric and his dad. big lou, swift, and dwreck also unloaded to try the trails after the morning of mx. we had a newbie and the sand was not to his likeing but he did have a great attitude and kept at it. i thought i heard him yell something about us trying to kill him. all day long the boys had been begging to go swimming so i relented and followed em on their bikes down to a point. i told them it would be cold but like any kid, they said it wasnt even though their lips were blue. it was late in the day but like anytime we go to murray we are the last to leave. some headed north and some had to do something called "work" on monday. some of us said no to this thing called "work" and made plans for monday.
day 4(monday)
DRN has made plans to ride the famed muenster and its just us and some cows. evenslower, JMD, enduro nut, big lou, swift, stan flemmings, xrguy, lorin, old maiconut and me make up the crew. it is another spectacular morning. reminds me of a summer morning at altitude in colorado. little breezy but cool and sunshine. the trails await. this is the backyard of stan, xrguy, JMD and enduro nut so we let them do the trail guiding. fast guys JMD, enduro nut, lorin and xrguy take off on a loop of 40 miles with a 40 mile an hour average. stan, who is a fast guy, agrees to slow down and lead the rest of us. this is a treat for me because i only go to muenster 3 or 4 times a year and stan knows it like the back of his hand. i get to see lots of trail that i never knew existed. i got some time in the back of the line and we never looked spodely ;) . everybody stayed upright for the most part and we were respectable. on this lap by the trucks we lost bswift, big lou and darrin. it was time for their weekend to come to a close and they headed north. now it was me, evenslower, oldmaiconut with stan still leading. we ride another loop where stan takes us down a gnarly rockstrewn downhill. then he says lets go up it. stan's eldertour group declines and we watch him go up while we debate about how we could do it but didnt want to. :laugh: its one of those kind of things like if i really have to ill do it but not because i want to. stan just wanted to check out his new tires ( see the thread "tale of two tires") after dissappearing into the trees on the uphill we hear him revving and clutching his way to the top. we swing by the river for some scenery and then on to the trucks. there we lose lorin and oldmaiconut as OKC calls their name. its getting to the point where ive been riding for two solid days without crashing my brains out and the "just one more loop syndrome" is messing with me. JMD, enduronut, and xrguy are talking about another loop but me and stan are saying nah. evenslower has the "syndrome" well under control because he is loading his bike so he wont be tempted to ride. we sit around and stan says wanna make a loop? i says just you and me? not these other people who will get me hurt by trying to keep up? so off stan and i go. stan is fast and i do my best to keep up. im kicking myself because i havent bled my forks all day. those cr moto forks with big springs ARE NOT the ticket for woods riding. im bouncing around but am having a good time. stan does a good job leading and i keep him in sight. the "syndrome" happens. i cut short around a tree and a limb at neck level peels me off the bike. i roll down a hill and when i pick up the bike the bars are off 15 degrees. i remount and off we go. back at the truck stan says his mileage from the kdx odometer says 138. my body/butt odometer says the same but in reality i rode probably half that over the weekend. that last loop with stan was really good and the crash wasnt that bad. we say our see ya soons and load up. the four day mission has been a success. thanks to all that came down and participated. wife again gives you guys a big :thumb: . she has made plans to do the "farm" in may. RACING, BBQ, and lots of RIDING makes for a most excellent weekend.
day one(fri)
trucks started arriving around 7pm. plates said most of the trucks were from oklahoma. bikes and gear were unloaded and before the night was over i had gas gas, kawasaki, honda, and yamaha represented in my garage. (no yellow bikes though) final bike count was 14!. we did manage to leave enough room for BSWIFT and non DRN darrin. they have issues with cats. JUSTQL(+2boys), DWRECK, BIG LOU(all the way down from KC), arrived and unloaded without incident. it was early to bed for me as i remembered last years marathon. several of the above attended Thumps preSX party and had a killer time.
day2(sat)
get up get showered and head to texas stadium for the sx. weather is perfect and i believe our group was second one there to the parking lot tailgate. slowmo/no'mo were the first to claim our spot. wasnt much longer before the DRN folk started rolling in. tony eeds, patman, taraker, twin spar(and son who will be representing the US in an upcoming olympics im sure), evenslower, txbigguy(with the grill and goodies), stan flemmings, xrguy(now on a mean looking kx250), and other drn folks that i can see the face but not the nick. i guess there was 40 or so including wives and friends. it wasnt long before the grill was going and the smacktalking commenced. me and my kid headed off to the pits to hook up with some of my local crew. we roamed the pits and my boy, like every other 12 yr old, was grabbing every free sticker and getting any rider who could write autograph on his jersey. we roam between the lot, practice, and the pits all afternoon. i saw RC go down hard in the last practice. over the bars in the whoops....ouch. he had let reed by to check his lines out and was trying to run him down. a preview to the upcoming entertainment.
THE RACES
heats were good. #259 is just a boy among other boys but he sure is fast. first 250 main saw reed run away. second main had RC biffing on a berm where he went from first to sixth. he ran everybody down anyway. quote of the night after that heat by RC "i dont know what the hell happened over there, but it sure was embarrasing. that wont get it in the main." how right he was.
125 main bubba was the man and was faster than 9/10s of the 250s racing. it was cool to see him win after last yrs debacle. he got the #1 plate too.
THE SX RACE OF THE SEASON
i dont think anybody knows who got 3rd on back. every eye was on the two out front. first it was RC, then it was 22. then it was RC then 22 and that was just the first lap!! this race is what everybody has been waiting for. both got starts and were up front racing each other. as hard as they tried, neither would give up. it was bar to bar for long time. they both rode very clean which was surprising. they both could of taken the other out at any time...but didnt. both were riding at their limit. one would bobble and the other would take advantage......then the other would bobble. seemed like RC had an advantage in the rhythm section before the whoops but reed was faster in the whoops. it was a great race. lap 16 had reed in the lead when rc got out of shape in the whoops but didnt go down. they were both getting sloppy and i noticed rc failed to clear the finish line double clean. it seemed at that point he rode close enough to catch reed if he made a mistake but wasnt going to throw away second trying to catch him. rc finished a couple of bike lengths back. the crowd was into it big time. after last years inspiring ride by mcgrath going from 20th on lap 1 to 3rd, this race topped it. be sure to set your vcr and put in a good tape cause you are going to watch this one over and over.
day 3(sunday)
riding is what it is all about isnt it? DRN was represented heavily at nocona mx where there were some chills and spills but ill let Thump tell his story. another group invaded oklahoma due to muenster being closed over the weekend. we arrived at lake murray to find stan, xrguy, teeds, old maiconut, lorin, and others already ripping up the trails. while its no muenster, lake murray filled in nicely. i was surprised that it wasnt busy. a friend of mine brought up his smoker and we threw bird and cow on it to see what would happen. seems like the DRN crew was on the atkins diet as all we did was eat meat all weekend. we had some younger riders with us and i had a good time riding sweep on their escapades. my favorite memory was following the kids down a whooped out sand road. the tallest on an rm80, followed by an xr100 and my kid on an xr 70. they were hauling. they looked like rabbits bouncing down the trail one right after the other. standing on the pegs, back ends swapping but never letting off the gas. true sand riders. i got to lead several loops with the big boys and i can tell you leading is not all what it is cracked up to be. trying to keep everybody together isnt easy. especially if JUSTQL is breathing down your pipe. i kept up the pace and when we came to an intersection it was just him and me :yeehaw: sorry about the lack of pace management. next time we will put justql in the back and make him pass everybody ;). i hope everybody had fun. nobody got hurt but we did have a part failure on a certain gas gas. no...it wasnt a sparkplug. later in the day some of the nocona crew came over to eat and try murrays offerings. arron and his dad were there. as were eric and his dad. big lou, swift, and dwreck also unloaded to try the trails after the morning of mx. we had a newbie and the sand was not to his likeing but he did have a great attitude and kept at it. i thought i heard him yell something about us trying to kill him. all day long the boys had been begging to go swimming so i relented and followed em on their bikes down to a point. i told them it would be cold but like any kid, they said it wasnt even though their lips were blue. it was late in the day but like anytime we go to murray we are the last to leave. some headed north and some had to do something called "work" on monday. some of us said no to this thing called "work" and made plans for monday.
day 4(monday)
DRN has made plans to ride the famed muenster and its just us and some cows. evenslower, JMD, enduro nut, big lou, swift, stan flemmings, xrguy, lorin, old maiconut and me make up the crew. it is another spectacular morning. reminds me of a summer morning at altitude in colorado. little breezy but cool and sunshine. the trails await. this is the backyard of stan, xrguy, JMD and enduro nut so we let them do the trail guiding. fast guys JMD, enduro nut, lorin and xrguy take off on a loop of 40 miles with a 40 mile an hour average. stan, who is a fast guy, agrees to slow down and lead the rest of us. this is a treat for me because i only go to muenster 3 or 4 times a year and stan knows it like the back of his hand. i get to see lots of trail that i never knew existed. i got some time in the back of the line and we never looked spodely ;) . everybody stayed upright for the most part and we were respectable. on this lap by the trucks we lost bswift, big lou and darrin. it was time for their weekend to come to a close and they headed north. now it was me, evenslower, oldmaiconut with stan still leading. we ride another loop where stan takes us down a gnarly rockstrewn downhill. then he says lets go up it. stan's eldertour group declines and we watch him go up while we debate about how we could do it but didnt want to. :laugh: its one of those kind of things like if i really have to ill do it but not because i want to. stan just wanted to check out his new tires ( see the thread "tale of two tires") after dissappearing into the trees on the uphill we hear him revving and clutching his way to the top. we swing by the river for some scenery and then on to the trucks. there we lose lorin and oldmaiconut as OKC calls their name. its getting to the point where ive been riding for two solid days without crashing my brains out and the "just one more loop syndrome" is messing with me. JMD, enduronut, and xrguy are talking about another loop but me and stan are saying nah. evenslower has the "syndrome" well under control because he is loading his bike so he wont be tempted to ride. we sit around and stan says wanna make a loop? i says just you and me? not these other people who will get me hurt by trying to keep up? so off stan and i go. stan is fast and i do my best to keep up. im kicking myself because i havent bled my forks all day. those cr moto forks with big springs ARE NOT the ticket for woods riding. im bouncing around but am having a good time. stan does a good job leading and i keep him in sight. the "syndrome" happens. i cut short around a tree and a limb at neck level peels me off the bike. i roll down a hill and when i pick up the bike the bars are off 15 degrees. i remount and off we go. back at the truck stan says his mileage from the kdx odometer says 138. my body/butt odometer says the same but in reality i rode probably half that over the weekend. that last loop with stan was really good and the crash wasnt that bad. we say our see ya soons and load up. the four day mission has been a success. thanks to all that came down and participated. wife again gives you guys a big :thumb: . she has made plans to do the "farm" in may. RACING, BBQ, and lots of RIDING makes for a most excellent weekend.
