Training Wheels Enduro opinions...

[ScottYZ250]

Well,
I'd have to say, after 50 miles, I got pretty comfortable with my new ride. I heard many people say that they didn't like the fact that the second loop was a repeat of the first loop, but I actually enjoyed that. It let me know just how much better I was riding the second half. If I had been comfortable with my bike from mile 1, I'd of scored much better (I think). Thanks to C.E.R.A. for putting on yet another wonderful event. Those guys really do a good job of covering all bases. Things went much smoother than at the Wild Piglet a few months back. Not that that wasn't a fun ride too, just a bit unorganized.
So what did everyone think of the ride? Other than dusty, I felt it was a fun little loop. Not too technical, but being a "family style enduro", you wouldn't want it to be. It did have a couple little challenges though... Any opinions?

 

[Jonala]

I think the course must as challenging for begineers as a real enduro is for me. Having a start number of 42, I thought I would see a lot of bottle necks. That wasn't case. The kids were having problems with the tough rocky climb and the climb after the creek crossing. The parents were there to quickly help out.

I had a blast being able to actually time myself. The CERA put on a great event. Considering that people were asking to change minutes so they could ride with their buddies, the CERA went out of their way to accomodate people.
Thanks CERA. :)

 

[GETMETOCA]

First off ScottYZ250, it was great to finally meet you in person! I had a lot of fun and this was my first Enduro. I was worried I'd come across something so difficult and technical I would be doing a lot of crashing. I didn't crash at all, but my endurance is not what it should be and I only completed one loop.

I rather liked the idea of knowing what the second loop was going to be like (just like the first!). The skill level was just about right for me, the loose rocky uphill/downhills with some twists thrown in and the rubber tread hill proved challenging. My strategy for not crashing was to just go at a pace I was comfortable with (evidenced by my time at the end of checkpoint #3!) and to just stay focused on the trail ahead.

I, too, thought the CERA group did an AWESOME job of organizing the whole event! I have a poor sense of direction to begin with and I found the trails clearly marked. Plus, all the CERA folks were so NICE! I remember meeting one of the check point officials (Tom) before the race, so when I finally got to his checkpoint the three people working with him were going "Here's Natalie!! We've been waiting for you!!" Made me feel great even though I was so slow!!

Overall, I had a GREAT first enduro experience!

 

[LocoCD]

A fun ride indeed!

We went there with 4 other families, this was the first event for all of them. 2 of the dad/kids combos stopped after one loop - their comment was that this was more difficult than they thought. The other 2 dad/son combos finished in the 40-50 point range, were tired, but had a great time.

My son and I really enjoyed ourselves. Minute #1 and no dust for most of the ride! We lost a few minutes on the special test... no way to go through those trees at 24 MPH (at leat not for us beginners). Ended up with 12 points for the race. The timekeeping part was fun and a very good learning experience.

Yes CERA did an outstanding job.

 

[velosapiens]

i rode it with a friend (her first enduro, she's been riding about 3 months), and she had a blast. i thought the loop was pretty well thought out for a family enduro. a few pretty challenging bits (for inexperienced riders), but mostly pretty do-able. i think for a new rider, it would be nice to know what to expect on the 2nd loop, so running the same loop twice is fine.

i was a little surprised at the number of fairly fast riders that were taking it pretty seriously. i mean, come on, it's for kids and beginners.

gina took 95 points, i took 94 (we coasted into one check just on either side of the minute). next one she won't be quite so quick to pull over for faster riders (she would pretty much pull over and stop as soon as someone was behind her, even if the person was still a ways back).

i counseled her to let people be a little more patient. no harm in making someone follow you for 20-30 seconds until there's a convenient place to pass. then it would be more likely that 2-3 people would pass at once, rather than pulling over several times for 1 rider each time. sure, some people might get impatient about having to follow a slow rider for a few seconds, but if that's a problem, they should enter a real enduro instead of a family enduro.
-sparkymarky

 

[LocoCD]

I warned folks about the few goombas that would try to bolster their credentials. We were on row one, and were on our minute at the end of the race. When we got to the scoring table there were several riders turning in their card - each one rode as fast as they could and burned all the checks, just to see how fast they could do it... oh, well.

If you toss that issue aside I was so impressed with the number of dads riding with their sons/daughters at the kids pace. Then there were the dads that stopped and helped other kids on the track too, great examples for all of us. That's why these events are held.

 

[dirttrails]

My buddy and I went up there to do a weekend of camping and riding. Once we got there though we found out there was a family enduro that was going to be taking place. We both tried to enter but ran into snags getting AMA and Dist. 36 cards, so we weren't able to run offically.

We did check with some CERA people and the rangers and found out that it'd be okay to run the course as long as we were courtious and aware of the race and trail markings. So with that we cut over to trail 2 before anyone was on it and started riding. The trails were definately well laid out and from watching people pass me when I was pulled over several groups of friends and family were going along at a good clip. It was great to see groups of friends and family riding together.

Like others though I did see and hear about some riders that were taking the course out of context with it being a family and newbie oriented enduro.

Over all from a non participant point of view everything looked very organized and the course very doable but challenging. It was cool seeing DRN stickers in the area. And I learned to always bring cash or check everywhere, to get an odometer, work on the physical endurance, and find out when the next enduro is happening so I can enter next time.

 

[velosapiens]

were you the guys with the ttr225 and the unspecified 2-stroke that were camped next to us? (me with klx300, her with ttr125l). if so, we're the ones that shared your fire. if not... ummm.... never mind.
-mark

 

[fremontguy]

Good learning experience for me with the rollchart, odo, watch combination. I was only concerned about being early when race began but that was never a problem ;) Was a good 50 mile ride, the only snag was a 2ft. loop of cable that grabbed my fork tube on hillclimb. Well organized and arrowed event and a fun weekend was had. Those little guys on Kx65's really fly.

 

[Karna&Justin]

The course was a great trail ride with just a few challenges to add to the overall fun! I am proud to say that I was able to finish without Justin (my husband/mechanic/coach/cheerleader/etc.) by my side. Looking back, I am a little disappointed in my score as the trails weren't as challenging as most of the trails that Jusin and I ride in a normal trail ride, but I think I might have been a little timid knowing that if I got stuck (which I have the tendency to do) that it was only me out there to get unstuck.

The first loop was great, no mishaps and I was running decently on time. About 1/3 into the 2nd loop I was getting a little tired and started making some sloppy mistakes. I ended up dropping the bike 3 times and got stuck on 2 occasions. I also got stuck behind some slower riders which I couldn't pass in the section that we were in. Nonetheless, I perservered! The last ten miles were a blast. I got my 2nd (or was it my 3rd?) wind and just rode for what it was worth.

Overall, I earned my finisher pin and am proud of just surviving, having fun and not getting hurt. I rode smart under the circumstances. Now I know that working on my endurance is top priority for the Fall season.

Thank you CERA for such a fun event! I will see you again in the fall for the next TW!

Nice to meet you Scott! I tried to send you a PM but your PM was full...let me know when you clean house and I will try again!

Nice seeing everyone again! Until next time!

Karna

 

[LocoCD]

Karna - outstanding and congratulations! Hope to see Justin back on the bike soon and the little one in a couple of years.

Scotty - did you ever get all the dirt off? You were looking pretty dusty but had a big smile at the end of the day.

Dirttrails - check the district 36 site for details on upcoming events. It would be great to have you there. Send me an IM if you want to chat.

Fremont Guy - you weren't the only one, that chunk of wire was catching a lot of people! That whole hillside ended up being pretty tore up by the end of the event.

 

[ScottYZ250]

Dang Loco, I was pretty dirty, wasn't I?! I cleaned up though (at home when my wife slapped me for driving almost 3 hours looking like "a prisoner on a jailbreak" as she put it. And Natalie even photographed the evidence... :scream:

 

[dirttrails]

velosapiens - That was me on the 225 and my buddy on the 2 stroke.

 

[ktmchick]

I agree with all the comments. What a well organised, fun ride. :)

The terrrain was a blast. Not too hard, so I was able to concentrate on my timekeeping which was my main priority.

Thank you CERA for putting this awesome event on and for all the encouragement that you dished out at each of the checkpoints. Oh and also for trying to clean me up when I pulled into one of the checkpoints absolutely drenched after straight lining a big puddle. (What was I thinking :eek: )

Great to see some of the DRN'ers I got to meet at the Wild Piglet. See ya's at the next event!

Belinda

 

[GETMETOCA]

Results from the Enduro in case you missed them! (Thanks to Treefinder)

http://www.cera.org/tw2001/tw2001_UNOfficialResults.htm

 

[treefinder]

Thanks everyone for coming out and riding the TW, I'm glad you had fun. Please keep the feedback coming, either here or via email at [email protected]. Good or bad, we want to hear it all so we can make the next one even better.

It's funny how a Family Enduro is viewed by different entrants. For some it is a chance to ride a more mellow event and just have fun. For some, it is the only chance they'll ever have at doing well at an enduro so they take it a little more, uh... seriously. As long as people are courteous and safe, that is fine. When people get The Red Mist and forget that a lot of riders are out there for the first time the fun factor goes down for both. Either way, we got a lot of people out to ride their first enduro, which was exactly what we wanted.

I still cannot believe it was dusty. I rode the course one week before and...
-The pine needles were wet and crazy slick
-There was snow on Trail 2, and most of Trail 2 was 4 inches of mud
-There were puddles every 10 feet on Trail 7
-There was a MONSTER puddle on the Road Section of Trail 3

So I guess the lesson is that Foresthill dries out fast.

As for the cable, we're going to work with the USFS to take care of that. One guy lost his brake pedal to it. :scream:

On October 13 CERA will present the 2002 Training Wheels, with an all-new course (yes, that was technically LAST YEAR'S event). Hope to see you all there, and start praying for a little rain in the first week of October!

 

[ScottYZ250]

Sorry guys/gals, but I have to say this...

"I hope it gets postponed due to rain or something. I wanna go, but I have to go to my in-laws in Indiana that week".

Sorry, I had to hex the next event, so maybe I can go again too. :ugg: