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Ok here it goes, didn't start out as planned. The shot gun start was more like a turtle start for me . jumped on the bike and it started no problem ( I think Noelle held and didn't let it go maybe but every one was gone and I mean gone seemed like 30 seconds, oh well dead last . So I looked at the jump but thats all I did . I decided to take the middle line through the creek. Picked off 3 or 4 riders and like Zack, held on the gas a little longer after the turn and picked off 2 more. The track was great well atleast for me. Came through the first lap in 3rd (thanks to all who cheered me on it gave me the will to go on). 2 lap came through in 2nd. and on the 3rd lap was in 1st. I don't know what happened but I felt great never even got tired . Must be the candy diet that I'm on Overall I rode good with no crashes. Had a Awesome time got 1st in C Vet Adv and beat Alec B haha. See you next time.

Thanks to Noelle, Perry, Letko cycles, Dan Johnson and set up crew and the City of Drexel, Mo for making it all happen Hats off to you. Thanks Jim Brawner

My 4th of July started out great with taking my new 300 on a practice lap and having no issues. I was super excited about the track and the different sections added into the Drexel race.

Unfortunately, this race report takes a horrible turn... I had a great start. Jeremy's 300 got me out in 3rd into the first corner. I let up my spot into the next few corners but eventually got back up into 4th. Everything was going great through the moto section and the next few straightaways. Here's where it got bad... We all know the mud pit. The big mud pit that was hard to miss... unless you went around the pit. I don't know why, but I happened to be the only one who got stuck in the pit. I was trying to pull and dig out my bike but nothing was working. I watched as my entire class looked over and went around the pit, leaving me. I get it. I totally do. But that really sucked... Then the mini-Chuck Martin came around and got stuck right behind me. I moved my efforts from pulling myself out, to pulling him out. I felt horrible for him because I could tell he was so upset and frustrated. I'm sure he was expecting to have a great race since his family set up the race. Finally (THANKFULLY), Wyatt Holder's dad came up with a quad. He saw us struggling to keep ourselves from drowning in the mud and pulled us out with quad. By the time I made it around after my first lap, I was back in at least 20th place with mud caked on me. Fury and adrenaline kicked in and I raced through the endurocross section and soared over the jump (there are some VERY cool pictures on Stuart Phelps' website (http://swphelps1.wix.com/photography#!d ... race/c15oc). I made it around for 2 more laps, struggling to hold on with my muddy gloves. Thanks to someone (I have no idea who) who helped me up the short, root hill after the easy/hard section!

I didn't care how I ended up after the race. I was extremely disappointed in the circumstances but I put on my happy face and cheered on my friends and family.

This ends my sad race report. Be looking for me racing top 5 the next few races! This won't be happening again!

Lauren that's impressive that after getting yourself and another out of mud like that it's a wonder that you had anything left! Great job! I too have learned thru racing how to turn that fury into motivation. (I prefer to call it motor vation)
Good job and well done!
Way cool

Drexel was a good race for me this time.

10. Launch control to Major Tom are you ready for the start...Sorry, I degressed to the 1970's... Ready for launch and the KTM 300 is rockin!!!

9. Shot gun goes off and the start is a blur... KTM starts on first kick, but still get a mid pack start. Not to bad for the big guy!

8. First mud hole and attempt to go around the pile up going up the hill and slip into the trees. Can't get the bike up, to many riders attempting to climb out and running into eachother.

7. Fellow Vet40 rider 1087 Kevin falls over on the other side of the the hill and we look at each other and then at all the bikes at the bottom of the hill and shrug our shoulders. Gas is leaking out and I turn off my petcock to keep the bike from getting to flooded.

6. Figured out it is a lost cause for finishing well today, so we assist the 900's and the 1100's up the hill, then it was our turn. With the assistance of the sweeps, we get our bikes to the bottom of the hill. One of the sweeps tries to start my bike for me while I was helping someone else get up the hill. I come down the hill and he states he is tired from trying to get my bike to start. I try to start it and also get tired from kicking. (Don't remember what your name was, but Thanks so much for the Help). Someone says is your fuel on? A light bulb goes off in my helmet and I'm thinking that I'm not very smart at this moment and then turn on the fuel. 3 kicks later my trusty 300 lights off and states that it is ready to rock again. Sure picked a bad day to quit drinking!!!

5. Take off from the first mud hole and am rocking at this time. Trying to keep up with 1087. Then the second mud hole traffic jam happens.

4. About the time that we start getting some movement through the second mud hole, the 500's and 600's start coming through on their second lap. Don't want to hold up the fast guys so I just let them through before I go through. Bad day to stop drinking coffee!!!

3. Rest of the lap is pretty uneventful and just trying to stay out of the way of everyone that is in a battle.

2. Laps 2 and 3 were really good and made it through the mud holes without problems this time. Only problem is when I come through scoring I am still 25th. Depression is setting in at this point. This is the most laps I have made during a race and still almost last!!!

1. I stoke up the coals on the Old KTM to catch someone. The 4th lap and about a 1/2 mile from the finish, I crash on a down hill rocky section and hear a pop on my left chest and my right hand hurts. The Sweeps come by and help me up (my head was still rolling and I don't know if I said thanks to the guys that stopped or not, but Thank You so much) and the pro's start coming by on their practice lap. We get the bike started and I cruise to the finish.

Blast off!!! Come through scoring and my lap does not register... But, even though it does not register my last lap and I got hurt on the last lap. I have to say I had a good time with making the most laps that I have ever made, and finishing the 2 hours.

Special thanks to My friends that keep me going and getting better, to the City of Drexel for an awesome race, to the Sweeps that were always there to assist me when I was down and to my fellow racers that are out there having a great time racing cleanly and assisting each other when there is a problem.

Major Tom signing off!!

Mr Riggins - now THAT"S how you post! OK, what do we have here? We have a numbered sequence of events, easy to follow time line, lots of facts with a pinch of what you were feeling at key moments, I felt like I was there with you ...AND... you wove in a likeable song like Major Tom that everyone knows as a back story to give depth....HHMMmmmmmmmmmmm... I'm thinking in 3 months time I'll be looking for another job because your on your way!

I'm sorry that we didn't BS very much after you got back to camp just after your race. I gave everything I had out on the track. After laying it down and pounding it out after getting stuck in the mud application dept (MAD!), I was still a whisper short from catching Joray so I just had nothing left for you when you came in. I went in and took a shower.

It still stings that I couldn't even see ol Joray's rear tire all day - After 2 and 1/4 hours of racing I came up 1 minute 20 seconds short. The hard truth is that if you look at my fist lap time you will notice that it is exactly 1 minute 20 seconds more of my norm or second lap time and consistent lap times for the day which is when I sat still in the Mud Application Dept. So had I been more aggressive in the muddy creek and invented that escape route which we all enjoyed for the rest of the day, one minute and twenty seconds SOONER, then at least I could have at least SEEN HIM! The shower didn't help that at all......

ALTHOUGH I did get a rather generous sack of jack squat from Danno after the race.... more than usual.....HHHMmmmmmmmm...Where does he get all that jack-squat anyway? My theory is that he saves it up every time someone gives him crap about something, puts it in those cloth bags and then hands it out at the end of the races....Man that stuff is very, very, stinky. Is it true that I really have to keep it in the trailer till the next race? It's getting pretty funky in there, seriously, even the CDC (Center for Disease Control) is afraid to go in there. Dang.

The fact is I'm going to have some straight-up, down right EPIC (Excessive Powerful Internal Conditioning) to take Mr Jorays crown this year. I'm sitting at the #1 spot now but only because he has one less race in than I do. After the tenth race the points will equalize out and Johns good finishes will start to show up. Man it's going to be a tight run this year in the 1000's.

Anyway Thanks John, I'm so glad you posted. It's cool for others to get a feel for what goes on in the woods! Now let's see if your post can push this thread over the 1400 mark!

Very nice John.

Whoop!
(I still get to do this because Tim's not back up and online yet so I figure I guess I'm the one to keep the "Whoop" warmed up - ya know?