Running Cactus

[the Eel]

TWMC's Running Cactus went off this past Sunday with plenty of Wrecking Crew members in attendance ... 2Stroke4Fun, MXBundy, Thumbs, Scar Tissue, Holeshot, and Tator.

It was a warm day and the course was fast ... lots and lots of rolling motocross-type stuff, with only the occasional rocky stretch or hillclimb thrown in for good measure.

Had a great time riding on the same minute as Scar, Tator and 2Stroke. Tator got a flat barely a few miles in. :ugg: and had to head back to camp. The rest of us soldiered on ... a bit dusty (sorry guys) but we had a great time chasing ribbon and working on timekeeping odds and ends.

Scar has it down and had great strategy for the 3rd loop, which started off at 33 MPH and went up from there. He realized that there was no possible at 33 MPH for over a mile so he took off a minute or so early. Scar - great call ! Because of this he was able to nail his final check. And once we figured out his strategy we took off after him ... thanks man ! I would not have made that check on time without the tip.

Had a great time guys ...

 

[2strok4fun]

I had a great time at my second outing with the TWMC group. I got to meet some more DRNers (Bundy, Tator, and associates), and a few Ive met before as well. It was reasuring having Eel and Scar double check what I input into the my computer. :worship:

It was much hotter than I am used to riding and the trail gave up large amounts of dust, much of which I volunteered to consume. I liked the course and the few checks where I acutally had my wits to timekeep made it all the more fun, especially zeoring one while creeping up a rocky staircase.

Toward the end of loop 2, I started having vision problems, somthing that has come up from time to time when either fatigue or dehydration starts to grip me. The provided break was definatly needed by me at that point and I recieve some first aid from the lovely pit crew at the trailer I was mooching the chair and shade from. :) At the first 100 yards of the third loop it was apparent that I was hurting. Arm pump, somthing that almost never gets me anymore, was locking up both the right and left hands. I pushed on unable to keep up with Eel or the speed. A qick glance down at the watchdog showed me I was allready off the pace by 2 minutes, no need to look anymore and just ride. I dumped a few times, and obsitcles began doubling up and was tagging rocks I thought I missed, :| I decided to just roll out the rest of the couse safely. I dont remember how I did on the last few checks, but I didnt really care, I had a blast despite my pissing and moaning. After another trip to the optomotrist, (I think this time they will be able to find what I think it is and can be corrected with glasses) I am looking forward to the next event, hoping for some rain and cooler weather. :yeehaw:

 

[kelsorat]

Sounds like a good race. I've found that when it's real hot out there, I can just drench myself with water at the break in between loops and this helps with fatigue. Also you got to drink a ton of water.
I once met a ranger who regularly patrols the Mojave. He said that he drinks 5 gallons of water during a summer patrol(8or10hours). Now if he's sitting in a truck unactive most of day drinking that much water, think how much we should drink during a gruelling 3 hour event.
Wait--where was I going with this...

Let's here more about the course..curious since it was in the same general area as the January event.

 

[holeshot]

Those that can - ride enduros
Those that can’t - just ride poker runs


I arrived Saturday morn and came across thumbs and a bikeless Bundy camping in luxury. I checked around and saw that there was indeed a GPS poker run and that thumbs was available as a team member. I had my GPS “ram” mounted this time and I had lined the battery compartment lined with electrical tape to keep the batteries snug (to solve the power off issue).

We got a started a little late, but the first five checks (out of six) were easy to find, so we still had 45 minutes to find the last check, a mere 2.75 miles away (as the crow flies). We could have taken the long way around (using the established trails), but what would be the fun in that? The cross country adventure proved to be a little much for me, so it took nearly ½ hour to go that short distance. Somewhere during that excursion, I hit an invisible rock, throwing the front end up, causing the ram mounted GPS to clip me neatly on the chin. That smarts.

When we got to the sixth check, it was “baggieless”. I was turning rocks over in a desperate attempt to find the elusive baggie, when a few more riders came along and said, “We were told that one of the checks wouldn’t have anything”. Doh – I wonder how I missed out on that little bit of insider information.

A moderate pace brought us back to the pits exactly at 12 (not that they were real fussy about that).

The opening of the envelopes (cards inside) proved that our team was the winner with two pair, which resulted in an award of $80 (divided by two). Now, if some wise guy ever asks, “Did ya ever win any money”, I can answer, “Yup, sure did”. :thumb:

 

[scar tissue]

Great race, I had alot of fun. I showed up late sat with my son, his friend and a nieghbor. I found our last remaining landmark. Thumbsy custom bed F150, as Bundy had a awesome new ride and trailer. (looks good for DW04)

Unloaded and climbed some rocks on a hike with the kids. then went to the meeting. I picked up my trophies from the last 2 races and Eels, Thumbs got his also. Although 10 year old Conners was bigger. :p Cooked some dogs over the fire, thanks for the Chili Julie and Amy. i.e. Bundy and Thumb's pit crew.

The race was fun and fast. it was good being on the same minute as Eel, 2stroke and Tator. The only problem is they are all good riders so we swapped eating lots of dust all day. It was very hard to see the trail if you weren't in the lead.

We scored well in the race until the end of the 2nd. loop when we lost the ribbon for a minute or so when the course turn arrows were knocked over by an earlier rider. The speeds were fast enough that it was hard to catch back up and the dust made it worse.

We hung out the rest of the day, the kids rode and played in the dirt.

Oh yeah, I'm not sure what was up with Bundy but we were all able to pass and roost him at will. I don't think that new Yamaha bike was working out for him :moon: :flame: :p

I'm heading out to the district race this Sunday. Hope to see some of you there.

 

[kelsorat]

District Race, man Tim you are gung ho this year. Don't forget to give us a report when you get back.

 

[2strok4fun]

Im out for next week, out of town. :whiner:

Scar be sure to bring milk for the cheerios next week. :laugh:

Looks like Ill be swithching to wheaties, and maybe some glasses. :eek:

Oh yeah, Kelsorat, the tube from my camelbak was flopping behind me the entire second loop. So yes I didnt get enough fluid in.

 

[scar tissue]

Scar be sure to bring milk for the cheerios next week. :laugh:

Looks like Ill be swithching to wheaties, and maybe some glasses. :eek:

Good tip on the milk. Who's gonna bring the burritos if you're not there. Thanks again. :thumb:

Instead of Wheaties you should try bran. That'll make those 10 minute rest stops more productive. :uh:

 

[thumbs]

Thumbs got his also. Although 10 year old Conners was bigger. :p Cooked some dogs over the fire, thanks for the Chili Julie and Lori. i.e. Bundy and Thumb's pit crew.

His TROPHY is bigger and nothing else. Besides I can woop most 10 year olds.

I had a great time as usual. Had a good ride on the first 2 loops only picking up .0082. However on the 3rd loop I should have used the same strategy as scar and left early. But I didn't and the end result was I picked up 1.0017 at the last check.

I ended up with 2nd place (1.0099). First places went to a kid that only dropped .0066 That's OK because I can woop most kids.

BTW - Bundy's wifes name is Amy not Lori.

 

[scar tissue]

BTW - Bundy's wifes name is Amy not Lori.

Yep, my wife Lori called while I was typing. Call it a brain fart. It's not the first and not going to be the last.

 

[nonickname]

It's impossible to score a 1.0017. To drop a point, you need at least 30 seconds. Did you get a 1.0047 by chance (17 seconds late to the next minute)?

And if the kid that beat you was Brent, I'd keep an eye out for him. He was getting damn fast last year until he wadded it up pretty bad and broke his hip (among other things). He's just getting back up to speed now.

His TROPHY is bigger and nothing else. Besides I can woop most 10 year olds.

I had a great time as usual. Had a good ride on the first 2 loops only picking up .0082. However on the 3rd loop I should have used the same strategy as scar and left early. But I didn't and the end result was I picked up 1.0017 at the last check.

I ended up with 2nd place (1.0099). First places went to a kid that only dropped .0066 That's OK because I can woop most kids.

BTW - Bundy's wifes name is Amy not Lori.

 

[the Eel]

Good ride Thumbs !

 

[thumbs]

Yeah it was Brent. He rips pretty good on that little CR and I think he will do very well this year. :worship: I did have to razzed him a bit about beating me when we were in Tim's rig getting the results.

Ok I'm probably a bit confused so set me straight. As far as my score this is what I know for sure. I hit every check in my minute with the exception of the last check (1st check on the 3rd loop). On the last check I was 1min17sec late. My totals points on the results sheet was 1.0099.

Does that mean at the last check I got a 1.0047 (like you said) and I picked up a total of 52sec on the other checks?

BTW - Who are you? Were you driving the red Chevy parked behind my ford? Andy???

 

[nonickname]

Tie-breaker seconds are counted from 30-seconds into your minute. So if you were 1 minute down, then your tie-breaker seconds have to be somewhere between 30 and 89. If you missed your minute by 17 seconds, then your score would have been 1.0047. So yes, your total for the first two loops must have been 52 seconds. That's pretty good, since 24 MPH was a pretty good clip for that course.

Also, I can pretty much guarantee Brent went into that last loop early. He usually rides with his dad, and Jay loves to ride way HOT. I was a minute behind Tim once, with Jay a minute behind me, and Jay spent most of that race riding in front of me (to try and mooch off of Tim). Couple that with the fact that you could fairly safely ride to 2.0 miles on that course, and I bet Brent's 33 MPH special was only about a mile long.

And yes that was me (Andy Naylor) in the red truck. Didn't know it was your Ford. I didn't really feel like thinking of a good username when I registered for this board, figuring I could always change it later. According to the FAQ, I've got "nonickname" for life.

I had a pretty good ride going until I tossed the bike on that long uphill. Too many fast guys in the club nowadays to get away with any mistakes. Second month in a row where 1 dumb mistake ruined an otherwise pretty good day. Oh well, at least I didn't get hurt this time.

 

[2strok4fun]

Dang, where are the results. I want to see how badly I got my :moon: waxed. :laugh:

 

[nonickname]

Dang, where are the results. I want to see how badly I got my :moon: waxed. :laugh:

The only Chris W. I see in the results dropped 9.0483 pts for 9th out of 14 amateurs. Tim is out of town, so Phil sent the results out for him yesterday. Probably why they haven't been posted on the webpage yet.

Send me your email address (to [email protected]) if you want me to forward you a copy of the results.

 

[2strok4fun]

Yep, that be me, Mr. 9+ points. :ohmy:

Ill email you. Thanx nonick.

 

[plysWfire]

Damn, sounds like I missed a good one. Sure wish I had been there instead of Coalinga for the Boar. At least I wouldn't have been out so much.

Rolled through tech Sunday morning just before the race, and my radiator started leaking. DAMN... Worked like mad trying to patch it before my minute, but no such luck. Didn't even get a chance for a DNF.

deano...