On the way to Muenster, I figured that the Red River Dirt Riders would lay out a good track and surprise us with their ability to link miles and miles of trail together in new and unique ways. I don’t think anyone was disappointed.
I had read Patman Hall’s pre-race recon and I specifically recall him saying that the layout of the track did not include some of the very long whoop sections. That was true. What he didn’t say was that there were several smaller whoop sections throughout the 8 mile loop that equaled about 2 miles worth of whoops. It was whoop city and they were big and sandy.
Saturdays track was a lot of fun during the 1 hour designated practice. There were the aforementioned whoop sections, LOTS of sand, some slippery muddy stuff, some straight-aways that were deceptively soft, a few rocky areas, some one-line bumpy uphills, and basically a little of everything that makes cross-country so much fun. Alternate lines were beginning to form in some areas and it was raining lightly.
On the way home Saturday, it was pretty much pouring and Taraker called me and said he didn’t think he was coming back out for Sunday’s race. He raced in the mud-pit at Extremeland and didn’t want a repeat. He wasn’t alone considering the low turnout on Sunday. When I got to the gate on Sunday I asked how the track was and a fellow said “It’s not so bad, just stay on the gas”, to which I replied “Aren’t you the guy who said the same thing to me at Extremeland? (Scott “Spodekill” Wilson), and he said “no way, I was telling people to go away at Extremeland.” Mistaken identity, I guess.
It rained all night Saturday and was still raining on Sunday when the Mini’s and Ladies race started at about 9:15. There were only about 4-5 racers on each line, with about 5 lines. There were a number of rescue missions that morning due to stuck and dead bikes, which leads to my first complaint:
Due to the lack of spectators, who usually help stuck riders, RRDR should have recognized and positioned members in areas that racers were likely to get stuck in. Especially for ladies and minis who are often unable to get their bikes unstuck.
During the start of that race, I was talking to Preacher Jim of RFC Ministries and he says “I think it’s gonna clear up.” So, thinking that Preacher Jim might have some heavenly insight, I say “Oh, yeah?” and he says, “Yeah, clear up to our knees.” I thought that was funny. It rained steadily all day long and the creek crossings ended up being knee deep.
Anyway, the pros and experts got started at about 11:00am with the instructions that they would race 45 minutes or three laps, whichever came first. The start was fun to watch because the first two racers to the first turn would absolutely shower everyone within 40 feet with mud. Some guys looked like they had put in 3 laps by the second turn cause they were so muddy. I watched the race from the bank of a creek and across the way I could see a downhill that ended in a sharp left and then big whoops. That area was so bad that any hesitation out of the corner would result in getting stuck. About every fourth person got stuck, three people would go around, and then the fourth would get stuck and so on. The creek crossing in front of me was knee deep and the water was flowing very fast. Pros and experts were hitting it wide open and drifting a few feet downstream before hitting the whooped out sand on the other side. The water had those big waves in it with the little white caps on top. I would have never tried to cross it without seeing a few others do it first.
After the Experts raced, it was determined that some of the wooded areas were really bad so the decision was made to re-route the track. Actually, about 2/3 of the track was cut out taking it from an 8 mile loop to about 3 miles.
So, I got off to a good start in the driving rain, (my KLX has never let me down on a dead engine start, only after I fall and need a valve adjustment) and as I hit third in the second, muddy, uphill corner, my clutch lever got stuck and wouldn’t disengage so I had to pull over and wiggle it around. (Later that night I figured out it was hitting the handguard) This put me in last but I figured I’d catch a few people somewhere. During the first lap I fell once and got stuck once, and with that behind me, I was off and racing. Unfortunately, someone decided to shorten the amateur program to about 20 minutes plus one lap, and as I finished the third lap, and was feeling good and having fun, I got the checkered flag which leads to my second complaint for the weekend: The amateurs got cheated out of a good race. After braving the elements and waiting all day for a race, we should have been able to run more than the equivalent of a motocross moto. I finished in 8th out of 13 and my whole race only took 33 minutes.
Despite the short program and driving rain, it was fun and I’m looking forward to the next race in Jacksboro. It’s the same track that TCCRA ran this year on Father’s day, but in reverse. Can you say big rocky uphill and large grass-track area?
DA
I had read Patman Hall’s pre-race recon and I specifically recall him saying that the layout of the track did not include some of the very long whoop sections. That was true. What he didn’t say was that there were several smaller whoop sections throughout the 8 mile loop that equaled about 2 miles worth of whoops. It was whoop city and they were big and sandy.
Saturdays track was a lot of fun during the 1 hour designated practice. There were the aforementioned whoop sections, LOTS of sand, some slippery muddy stuff, some straight-aways that were deceptively soft, a few rocky areas, some one-line bumpy uphills, and basically a little of everything that makes cross-country so much fun. Alternate lines were beginning to form in some areas and it was raining lightly.
On the way home Saturday, it was pretty much pouring and Taraker called me and said he didn’t think he was coming back out for Sunday’s race. He raced in the mud-pit at Extremeland and didn’t want a repeat. He wasn’t alone considering the low turnout on Sunday. When I got to the gate on Sunday I asked how the track was and a fellow said “It’s not so bad, just stay on the gas”, to which I replied “Aren’t you the guy who said the same thing to me at Extremeland? (Scott “Spodekill” Wilson), and he said “no way, I was telling people to go away at Extremeland.” Mistaken identity, I guess.
It rained all night Saturday and was still raining on Sunday when the Mini’s and Ladies race started at about 9:15. There were only about 4-5 racers on each line, with about 5 lines. There were a number of rescue missions that morning due to stuck and dead bikes, which leads to my first complaint:
Due to the lack of spectators, who usually help stuck riders, RRDR should have recognized and positioned members in areas that racers were likely to get stuck in. Especially for ladies and minis who are often unable to get their bikes unstuck.
During the start of that race, I was talking to Preacher Jim of RFC Ministries and he says “I think it’s gonna clear up.” So, thinking that Preacher Jim might have some heavenly insight, I say “Oh, yeah?” and he says, “Yeah, clear up to our knees.” I thought that was funny. It rained steadily all day long and the creek crossings ended up being knee deep.
Anyway, the pros and experts got started at about 11:00am with the instructions that they would race 45 minutes or three laps, whichever came first. The start was fun to watch because the first two racers to the first turn would absolutely shower everyone within 40 feet with mud. Some guys looked like they had put in 3 laps by the second turn cause they were so muddy. I watched the race from the bank of a creek and across the way I could see a downhill that ended in a sharp left and then big whoops. That area was so bad that any hesitation out of the corner would result in getting stuck. About every fourth person got stuck, three people would go around, and then the fourth would get stuck and so on. The creek crossing in front of me was knee deep and the water was flowing very fast. Pros and experts were hitting it wide open and drifting a few feet downstream before hitting the whooped out sand on the other side. The water had those big waves in it with the little white caps on top. I would have never tried to cross it without seeing a few others do it first.
After the Experts raced, it was determined that some of the wooded areas were really bad so the decision was made to re-route the track. Actually, about 2/3 of the track was cut out taking it from an 8 mile loop to about 3 miles.
So, I got off to a good start in the driving rain, (my KLX has never let me down on a dead engine start, only after I fall and need a valve adjustment) and as I hit third in the second, muddy, uphill corner, my clutch lever got stuck and wouldn’t disengage so I had to pull over and wiggle it around. (Later that night I figured out it was hitting the handguard) This put me in last but I figured I’d catch a few people somewhere. During the first lap I fell once and got stuck once, and with that behind me, I was off and racing. Unfortunately, someone decided to shorten the amateur program to about 20 minutes plus one lap, and as I finished the third lap, and was feeling good and having fun, I got the checkered flag which leads to my second complaint for the weekend: The amateurs got cheated out of a good race. After braving the elements and waiting all day for a race, we should have been able to run more than the equivalent of a motocross moto. I finished in 8th out of 13 and my whole race only took 33 minutes.
Despite the short program and driving rain, it was fun and I’m looking forward to the next race in Jacksboro. It’s the same track that TCCRA ran this year on Father’s day, but in reverse. Can you say big rocky uphill and large grass-track area?
DA
