Archive for Motorcycle

With two last place finish USDR races under my belt, and only 124 days until the APC Rally kicks off in Australia, one thing is obvious – while my overall fitness level is coming along nicely, I still need work on my dirt riding.

Lots of work.

My good friend and former band mate Josh valiantly offered to let me ride one of his race bikes and give me some pointers at The Central Cycle Club, his local motocross track in Connecticut.

Josh – Lower Right / Me – Upper Left / Both of Us – More Hair Back Then

Josh had his work cut out for him that day.

Professor Josh Says, “Class Is In Session!”

Josh started out with the basics, watching me ride his insanely light and fast two stroke, working on my body and hand positioning. Professor Josh has a very interesting teaching method, no doubt derived from knuckle cracking nuns.This method of teaching, while probably frowned upon by modern educational establishments is nonetheless a very simple and effective way to learn.

As I would ride by, Josh would correct my form by whacking me with a stick.

WHACK! “Get your ass up on that seat more!”

WHACK! “Keep those elbows up!”

WHACK!

“What was that for?”

“To keep you on your toes!”

I practiced cornering for hours, sliding my ass up on the seat more and more until it felt like I was sitting on the steering stem, keeping my elbows so high it must have looked like I was a puppet on strings. As the day progressed, I got faster, and by the end of the drills I was able to turn that motorcycle faster and with more confidence than ever before.

Anything to stop the whipping!

Class continued. I followed Josh through a series of turns, picking up the pace each time. The speed did come, and while I eventually couldn’t keep up with him, I did get the bike cornering faster and better than ever before.

We progressed to small jumps, something I’m still not very good at. I did manage to not stuff the bike into a tree or wad it up in a heap of smouldering metal, so there was some progress on that front as well.

Towards the end of the day Josh and his son Ezra took the bikes out on the big track for some good ol’ fashion family fun time.

Ezra Taking It To The Track

The Family That Flies Together Stays Together

Frequent Flier

All too soon, the day ended, and I went home full of new techniques to work on.

As a post script, I ran another half marathon this week, finishing in 1:50:26 averaging 8:25/ mile.

All the Crossfit and running and other fitness routines are definitely paying off, I’m not too worried about being fit enough to finish the APC Rally. The riding is getting there too.

 

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Mar
19

US Desert Racing Series – Round Two

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 US Desert Racing Round Two Video

Just like that, Round Two of the US Desert Racing Series has arrived. After my stunning performance in Round One (13th out of 15 in the  Senior One Beginner class) I’m ready to race again, and maybe even move up a position or two.

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Mar
01

US Desert Racing Series – Round One

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It’s 8:58 AM on Sunday, February 4th. It’s a bit chilly, but a clear, crisp day. My heart is pounding harder than a Starbucks black eye double espresso ever makes it. In two minutes, my race career as “502S” will officially begin.

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Feb
20

APC Rally – Meet Dan

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Rather than going on and on about more boring running or my awesome ‘racing’ exploits, I thought I’d take a minute to introduce the reason I’ve entered the Australian Property Centre rally, my friend Dan.

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Feb
19

APC Rally – Blather and Blabbing

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Good? Meh…

Fun? Hell yeah!

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