Merwin Race Report 2014

[yellow jacket]

Dearest Shredder,

If you need a fix, I suggest that you go to you tube and type in merwin 2014 fmhsc. There you will find JP;s first two laps. I will caution you, you may crash a few times, trying to keep up with him. I Obwan kanobe have taught young skywalker well. I will need to protect him from the evil shredder (dark side).

If you want to know why the screaming yellow jacket goes so fast in open territory, please go find a 2006 Motocross Action or Dirt Bike and read what they had to say about that little 250. You may be shocked. That bike was totally stock motor wise, until I crushed the stock pipe at Drexel. I have added an FMF gnarley and had to go up on the main jet and clip. I cannot believe the difference. I just do not know if it is faster in yellow or orange.

Tom 1035
1999 ARHMA 125 national champion

[shredder]

Dearest Shredder,

If you need a fix, I suggest that you go to you tube and type in merwin 2014 fmhsc. There you will find JP;s first two laps. I will caution you, you may crash a few times, trying to keep up with him. I Obwan kanobe have taught young skywalker well. I will need to protect him from the evil shredder (dark side).

LOL! Trust me I am picking up my bike at Donnell's tomorrow with adjusted radiator guards, adjusted bark busters (saved my ass AGAIN), miscellaneous plastic EVERYWHERE, a tweak here, oil change, tweak there, little magic fish powder and when I pay the bill I'm not as apt to attempt my "parking in the trees" stunt again. I'm coming back well rested, hungry and fueled up for 2 mores rounds with you hounds. Feel the power of the dark side!

Ok now I'm hitting you tube and maybe I can get the shakes to stop!

[ktm1991]

Sorry to break up the train of 1000 race reports! Merwin was awesome perfect temps, better dirt than usual and some new trail! Practice was good rode hard felt great so backed it down and just looked for lines. The gate dropped and I got a good jump but braked early to go around the pond and nearly the whole class went by! Got back on it and made a couple quick moves to get up to 3rd behind Jeremy gave him a holler like he said to and he let me by! (He still wasn't feeling good after that Thurman crash) I put my head down and tried to close the gap on Aaron! About half way through the first lap I caught him and for the next 3 laps we battled hard! On the fourth lap I was finally able to capitalize on a bad line choice and got by he stayed on me for another lap before I was able to get away and go on to get my first A class win and get 3rd overall! It was a blast racing Aaron so much bragging rights are on the line when it is with your friends makes it a lot more fun at the end of the day!

[swedishfishmx]

Race Report:

My race started out sweet! I got the gate that I wanted and made sure it was packed pretty well. I got all the grass out of the way, and as soon as RJ pointed down the line, I put my Husqvarna in second gear and held it open. I got the holeshot even after getting a little too aggressive with the clutch/throttle during the first few feet after the gate, as soon as that happened I just concentrated on my shifts and made it through the first couple of corners with the lead. I bobbled a little bit on the first big off camber, but held on.

start.jpeg

I led unchallenged but pressured for the first hour before Daron closed the small gap that I had built up. He closed in and was looking to make a pass, but I knew all the good lines and held him off. At the beginning of the 4th lap I had to pit to get gas. I was bummed, I let Daron and Scott go by trying to fill the 1.9 gallon tank on my new Donnell's Motorcycles Husqvarna TC250. I got some last minute help from KTM Karl, who helped hold my gas can while I tried to relax and catch my breath.

I lost a lot of time in that fuel stop (last week I lost one minute), but it didn't really bother me that much because, 1. Daron was faster than me, 2. I was going to have to fuel at some point.

I passed Scott back when he fueled on that lap as well, but he was able to jump in right behind me and pressure me into riding tight. I once again found all the hot lines I had spied during the practice lap(s). I rode with him behind me for the first few miles, before letting him and Drake go by in their own battle. I tried to regroup, but I was still riding tight and couldn't get the "flow" I had in the beginning of the race. It was a lonely 4th until I caught Drake on the last lap; who said he was cramping up when I talked to him after the race. I passed him when he slowed up, and tried to catch Scott, but the damage was done. I went from leading for the first hour or so to a 3rd place. It's respectable, but not exactly how I wanted to finish off getting a great start. I came away healthy and learned more about the bike.

image_1.jpeg

Thanks to everyone involved for making this race happen, it was really cool to be able to have enough mileage to not even use the Southern half of the property. I loved the "end on the mx track" finish we had. This was the best Merwin race we've had.

Thanks also to Donnell's Motorcycles, Husqvarna, 100%, Fox, Shift Bel-Ray, and Perry for the $20 Holeshot Award.

[Laurentheracer]

Okay, I'll throw in my non-1000 racer report and stick to the Sportsman class report. I went on my practice lap with my husband (JS244) and brother-in-law (BS343) and learned all of the great lines that I somehow forgot on the first few laps. I lined up with my big class (as always) to the left of the guy working the gates. When the gates dropped, my bike shot off with a nice little wheelie (I love that 300 power). I came around the first corner behind Seth and another guy. Into the woods in 3rd. Seth, 2nd place, and I all missed the turn back into the field and we all maniacally searched for the trail. I luckily got back on by swiping away the weeds still in 3rd place (don't worry, none of us cut off that first section of fields). I stayed consistent the first lap. On my second lap, I was coming up the first, tight rock section when I saw 801 picking up his bike at the top of the hill. I knew this was a chance for me to make a move, so, I tried to ride around the right side. Unfortunately, I hit a rock that sent me off of my bike and hit my knee (with a child-sized knee guard) on a rock. From there on out, my knee was tight and stiff, making standing up and moving around on the bike difficult. I made a few more mistakes and ended up finishing 5th in my class. I was definitely disappointed by not finishing top 3 like I had for the past few weeks but I was glad the points were helping me stay in 1st place for overall points.

It was great watching Aaron JoRay and Ryan Grun battle during the second race. I was also impressed that my husband stayed consistent and finished 3rd place even when he was recovering from a big crash at Thurman.

I missed my brother (JS20) and dad (MS311) while they were at the Indiana NEPG. Can't wait to have them at Melvern!

This Sunday is the MORE race at Eugene. I hope I see some of you there! I've been doing pretty well in the MORE series. They have a women's class which is a great fit for me. I've finished top 3 at every race I have gone to. I thought I was going to win at the last MORE race but the Slawson sisters showed up and raced in the women's class and I finished 3rd.

If I don't see you at MORE, see you at Melvern or Carbonsmell... I mean Carbondale!

[Gibber]

HEY OLE' BUDDY SHREDDER!!!

I talked to PK at Letko and seems they have a stock pile of "INSTANT WHOOP ASS" in stock for Team Letko. Perry said he might sell you a quart but he has to charge you double 'cause you ride a Husky!!!

Boy oh boy, is it gettin' deep now!

[shredder]

Ok ... that's it! This trash talking is taking up way to much of this thread. Due to the high degree of this BS, I'm strarting a new thread. Poor Lauren can hardly get a word in edge wise!

[swedishfishmx]

www.shreddersblog.com, www.smalktalk1000.com, www.oldguysracing.com www.1000talk.com Should I continue?

[shredder]

[yellow jacket]

I am picking up my bike at Donnell's tomorrow????????

Am I reading this correctly? What the heck in a Donnells? It sounds like a boutique shop at the mini mall. There are a few unwritten commandments in the 1000 class and the first one is: 1.) Thou shall prep your own bike, 2.) If you cannot start it by yourself, you cannot ride it, 3.) Thou shall show up to the start line on time or be struck down by a tree. These are the basic ones i know, but I am sure that the rest of the 1000 men know a few more. In case you do not know what working on your own bike looks like, we have provided a sample picture for you to study.
The Kansas KTM / Suzuki connection