track riding questions

[Kx Steve H]

the Amago track (http://www.proride.com/amago.htm) is close to me and looks fun but i think i would be a nuisance to other riders that can actually ride :)

1. is there a certain skill level that should be attained before mixing it up with other riders on the track?

2. is there a track etiquette that applies to most tracks?, maybe even all?

3. is there tracks in the san diego area that is better suited for the novice rider?

4. what time of year is tracks generally less crowed? with prime time desert season, is the tracks less crowed now?

5. is the track even a good place for the novice to practice?

 

[Ol'89r]

Originally posted by Kx Steve H


2. is there a track etiquette that applies to most tracks?, maybe even all?

Steve.

The main thing to remember is to hold your line. Don't worry about who is behind you. If you are worrying about who you are holding up, you will find yourself going slower and weaving all over the track trying to stay out of their way. This can be dangerous.

Just pay attention to what is in front of you and the other riders will figure out a way to pass you. If you are holding someone up, it is because you are going faster than they are. Let them figure it out.

Not sure about tracks in your area, but try to find one that has a vet track. Or, come up to Elsinore. It is about 30 miles south of my place. They have a vet track that is a lot of fun. Low jumps and tabletops. On a tabletop you can come up short without augering into a jump face. Much safer than a pro track.

The middle of the week is about the best time to go to the tracks if you can get out of work.

Have fun. :thumb:

Ol'89r

 

[Tree]

I have to agree with Ol'89er the Elsinore track is a blast. The vet track is a good track to learn the ropes on. I've been to the El Cajon track also and when it starts getting busy they devide the groups up into two different skill levels A and B, but that track is a little to jumpy for my liking.

Let me know if you want to plan a trip to one of the tracks in the near future and I'll try to make it. :thumb:

 

[Boodac]

Good advise "Hold Your Line" thats the key word here Steve. Remeber that these guys are jumping while you might be rolling the jumps and their counting on you to keep your line while they land. Im with these guys, Elsinore has a great Vet track for learning. Other than the short double in the back, the track is mainly tabletops which are great for working on your jumping skills.

 

[dingoe]

Steve, Amago is a fun track and the jumps are good for a newbe to MX. Kids track is fun for the little ones too. Not many jumps and mostly just roller types at that. After Christmas, I'll start my 5 year old up there on his new KTM. The main track has very few people even on the weekends. They were closed on Fridays last year, don't know about this time of year though. Overall the track is old style and some new stuff too; Table-tops, whoops, down and up hills, sand, hard pack, etc. Track prep is fair sometimes and not so at other times, but it's motocross. Elsinore (main track) can be heavy for a first timer, but Amago will build confidence and then go to Cahualla (sp?) Creek MX on 371 in Lake Riverside / Anza area. It's got to be the best track around, or at least it's had the best dirt in the past. It's a fast track, but very GP like. If you go to Amago take it slow at firts get to know the dirt, square edge bumps, jumps, etc. and keep it safe. They have no flaggers on the track and like I said the jumps are easy and you can over jump them from time to time. Learn to deal with the over jumps, etc. Above all have fun and fill us in our your ride. Last time I was up there was this past summer/fall and the cost was only $10.00 at the time.

Ed

 

[bclapham]

go to amago its nice and quiet- they dont prep it much so saturday morning is best.

i havent been to elsinore in over a year and i am not sad about that- week days are OK but every metal mulisha wannabe goes there on the weekend and you have to buy that stupid insurance card too.

 

[holeshot]

Went to the Fairplex on Saturday (not to ride, just to check the place out). The track had a bit of a "three-ring-circus" look to it. The place had four tracks - slow pee wee, fast pee wee, vet and main. The slow pee wee track didn't have much to keep junior interested - just a small circle with a hump in it. The other pee-wee track was a bit better, but not much. The vet track had mostly kids on foo-foo bikes, like TTR 125's, with a few people on big bikes trying to feel like a Pro when smoking XR100's. The main track had one jump with a fairly steep face, but the landing wasn't too drastic.

The vet track looks about my speed right now. :confused:


BTW, the weather at the Fairplex was great on Sat., unlike most of SoCal.

 

[dingoe]

Holeshot, Is the fairplex the Starwest track? I've been told that track is a good place to start kids off. I use to take my son, when he was 4 to Ocotillo Wells. He'd ride 5 feet or so, wipeout in the sand and call it quits. He's now 5 going on 6 and we've got a new KTM for him. I'm looking for a good track to start him on. Amago is fun for my older boy, but the jumps (mounds) on the Peewee track will look big and scary for the 5 year old right now.

ed

 

[holeshot]

The Fairplex is a new mx track in Pomona, undergoing a "trail" period.

Here's the link.

http://www.fairplexmx.com/

Starwest and Elsinore have a better pee wee track, IMO.

I went through the same "fear of sand" thing with my daughter when she was 7 (12 now), until the day the she found someone her own age to ride with. She learned very quickly then. We went to Mirage on Sunday and completed a 17 mile loop - I was the only one getting stuck on a hill. :silly: I actually lost her out in the dez for about 20 minutes (she simply vanished), so I thought aliens had abducted her. That was enough excitment for one day. :scream:

 

[Boodac]

Holeshot, I had the almost exact same story on Saturday when I went out there riding with the wife and kids. After riding with the wife for a while I took the kids on the East trail. Thats the first time for me on that trail. At first the trail was boring but after a few miles the trail was a blast. The daughter was on my tail the whole loop until about the last 2 miles where they veered off the trail and they and I got seperated. After heading up a hill to look I decided to go to the truck and see if they were there. Man I almost paniced until my wife told me they had been there and gone. Fun ride and I think the kids, some friends and I are headed out there for the day on Friday after Thanksgiving.

 

[holeshot]

That incident also happened on the East Trail (first time for us), right near the end. That's creepy. :eek:

 

[dingoe]

The thought of loosing rides (our own / your kids at that) is downright scary. This past summer D37 lost riders in desert races and they passed due to the eliminates. Truly a awful thing for their families and all who live to ride dirt. Stories like this really beg for GPS units or communication devises of some sort. I guess it's good that my 12 year old will not ride out of eyeshot of the truck.

Thanks for the track info

ed

 

[Walt Hollis]

The Gorman MX track (I-5 MX) just re-opened under new management and IMO is the best track around for vets. They brought in tons of sand and mixed it in so there is no more hard "blue lines". There are numerous flag people and the stagger the practice by bike size and by brand when it gets very busy. There are no huge doubles, there are huge jumps but they are all table tops so coming up short isn't painful.

The hold your line part is key. I didn't when I was starting out and ended up with 150 stitches in my back from a footpeg of a younger, higher jumping rider then me.

- Walt

 

[Tony Williams]

Originally posted by dingoe
The thought of loosing rides (our own / your kids at that) is downright scary... Stories like this really beg for GPS units or communication devises of some sort.

Garmin http://www.garmin.com/products/rino120/ has a handheld walkie talkie with GPS. You can electronically send your position and use voice communication.

I lost my son several years ago in the Glamis sand dunes. Took about an hour to find him. He was smart enough to stay in one place and wait for me. I now have the 5 mile range Motorola handheld transceivers.

 

[Mike_socal]

Don't you have to have an FCC license for the 5 mile range walkie talkie? Something to do with the band they operate on.

 

[Mx Dude]

Got to agree with Walt.........the new I-5 MX track in Gorman is very rider friendly, although it sounds like it's a bit of a drive for Steve. I went last Sunday and the track is exactly like Walt describes.....no killer jumps, and the addition of some sand has made the dirt much better than it was.

Might have to go again this Sunday. How about you Walt.....going riding this weekend ? Can't go on Saturday, but I'm trying to get the kitchen pass for Sunday. Let me know.

Cliff