Re: Melvern Race Reports
Posted: Tue Oct 01, 2013 6:43 pm
Up at 5am, do my usual 20 minute load-up routine and roll to pick up Tank at his place on the North end of Wichita 25 fun metro minutes away.
I somehow went thru the wealthy town of Derby, then into Wichita and back out of it, without hitting ONE nazi-government red light .
While on the I-35 canal route with a cup of coffee in one hand, and doing 75 in a 60 zone in the other... a Sedgwick Co. Deputy rolls by on my right side without a glance, now I'm really spooked.
I stopped at the next QT and bought a lottery ticket... luck like this does not come often.
Get Tank loaded up (yes that thing is a Kow, but it starts easily hot or cold) and off we go up the Pike' in the warm comforting embrace of thousands of Chiefs fans that all have that same glazed fuzzy look on their faces .
Pit with our usual herd and wind up with a bunch of Firemen to our North that all ride MO rocks or MX, but have never done the Hare Scramble thing.
Nice bunch, helped out one kid by assisting his brand new Wife make a goofy hybrid consisting of a spare CamelBak outa' my gearbag (that probably has microbes in it the CDC in Atlanta has never seen ) crossed with some Walmart drink backpak they bought so he could at least hydrate during the race, the fact that She happened to be a smokin' drop-dead Hottie...., had absolutely nothing to do with it, Safety first, Boys!
Practice proves that the place will tack up fast wherever the Sun can get in a word in edgewise, but I didn't see a drop of dust anywhere, the joke around the pits is " Somethings wrong with my front tire.... it won't stay on the ground!! .
Line up mid-line and the bikes just keep coming and coming.... big rows all around, even the Juniors had themselves a fat line for a change.
The 700 club is 20 wide and missing a few local players that should have attended... the board drops, my very tired XC-F fires first kick but so did everybody elses , 2 riders in front of me lock bars at the round bale and go down, forcing me to jam up or run em' over.
According to my GoPro, 3 riders zapped me there while I was trying very hard not to tattoo anyones' neck with the imprint of a Michelin M12, and 2 more pop me before the sweet singletrack fires up.
I can't speak for the rest of the world.... but son-of-a-biscuit was it nice to be able to lay her over going into a berm and be able to come back out not covered with dust and blood for a change, and that was just in the pits !
Ran my own lil" show all day long, fought my throttle hand big time for the first 2 laps then both paws settled in, keeping all my laps in the minute window.
Ezell tells me one lap to go, and I'm actually looking forward to it... at the middle of the creek section where you gotta' hop up to the right on the greasy baby bluff.... there is a kid with a KTM flopped out in the creek looking like he just went thru hellweek .
I'm looking at him and the line when I notice the rut has a rear-of-your-bike eating black hole in it. Apparently some nefarious KTM hating beaver burrowed a home there and it now has a sunroof... that I want NO part of.
With 2 miles to go, young Mr. Stewart goes blazing by followed by a Yammie rider firmly intent on his destruction. Dave prevailed.... but admits he needs more rock-time.
We couldn't bitch about the traction, weather, or the sweatshirts that peeled off when the Sun finally warmed us up, but I will say this...
I prefer driving home on KC Chiefs game days when they loose, everyone is sobering up except me.....
We felt like we where in some WIR Rally in Europe the whole damn way, 85mph plus and crazy lane changes with zero brake control.
I will be running the start board for the 100-500 race at Milford, and I'm thinkin' Old School already.....
Whoop!
Tim
#785
I somehow went thru the wealthy town of Derby, then into Wichita and back out of it, without hitting ONE nazi-government red light .
While on the I-35 canal route with a cup of coffee in one hand, and doing 75 in a 60 zone in the other... a Sedgwick Co. Deputy rolls by on my right side without a glance, now I'm really spooked.
I stopped at the next QT and bought a lottery ticket... luck like this does not come often.
Get Tank loaded up (yes that thing is a Kow, but it starts easily hot or cold) and off we go up the Pike' in the warm comforting embrace of thousands of Chiefs fans that all have that same glazed fuzzy look on their faces .
Pit with our usual herd and wind up with a bunch of Firemen to our North that all ride MO rocks or MX, but have never done the Hare Scramble thing.
Nice bunch, helped out one kid by assisting his brand new Wife make a goofy hybrid consisting of a spare CamelBak outa' my gearbag (that probably has microbes in it the CDC in Atlanta has never seen ) crossed with some Walmart drink backpak they bought so he could at least hydrate during the race, the fact that She happened to be a smokin' drop-dead Hottie...., had absolutely nothing to do with it, Safety first, Boys!
Practice proves that the place will tack up fast wherever the Sun can get in a word in edgewise, but I didn't see a drop of dust anywhere, the joke around the pits is " Somethings wrong with my front tire.... it won't stay on the ground!! .
Line up mid-line and the bikes just keep coming and coming.... big rows all around, even the Juniors had themselves a fat line for a change.
The 700 club is 20 wide and missing a few local players that should have attended... the board drops, my very tired XC-F fires first kick but so did everybody elses , 2 riders in front of me lock bars at the round bale and go down, forcing me to jam up or run em' over.
According to my GoPro, 3 riders zapped me there while I was trying very hard not to tattoo anyones' neck with the imprint of a Michelin M12, and 2 more pop me before the sweet singletrack fires up.
I can't speak for the rest of the world.... but son-of-a-biscuit was it nice to be able to lay her over going into a berm and be able to come back out not covered with dust and blood for a change, and that was just in the pits !
Ran my own lil" show all day long, fought my throttle hand big time for the first 2 laps then both paws settled in, keeping all my laps in the minute window.
Ezell tells me one lap to go, and I'm actually looking forward to it... at the middle of the creek section where you gotta' hop up to the right on the greasy baby bluff.... there is a kid with a KTM flopped out in the creek looking like he just went thru hellweek .
I'm looking at him and the line when I notice the rut has a rear-of-your-bike eating black hole in it. Apparently some nefarious KTM hating beaver burrowed a home there and it now has a sunroof... that I want NO part of.
With 2 miles to go, young Mr. Stewart goes blazing by followed by a Yammie rider firmly intent on his destruction. Dave prevailed.... but admits he needs more rock-time.
We couldn't bitch about the traction, weather, or the sweatshirts that peeled off when the Sun finally warmed us up, but I will say this...
I prefer driving home on KC Chiefs game days when they loose, everyone is sobering up except me.....
We felt like we where in some WIR Rally in Europe the whole damn way, 85mph plus and crazy lane changes with zero brake control.
I will be running the start board for the 100-500 race at Milford, and I'm thinkin' Old School already.....
Whoop!
Tim
#785