The day I’d been anticipating with a healthy mixture of fear and dread finally arrived. One thing I know about myself is I am very goal oriented. If I have something to strive for, I put maximum effort into whatever it takes to reach that goal. My current goal is to learn to ride off road well enough to get me through the four thousand plus miles of rugged outback terrain in the Australian Property Centre rally in late July.

Somewhere along the way, I got it in my head that if entered a desert race, I’d be forced to learn how to go fast, how to make quick decisions on the dirt bike, if my months of cardio and physical training were enough to give me the endurance and stamina to finish a somewhat grueling off road race, and if I was any good at racing at all.

I raced my first US Desert Racing race on Sunday February 5th. Here is the little video I made to tell the story of my conquest:

I finished. Not well, but at least I finished. As I sat in line with the other Senior One Beginners waiting for the green flag to drop, every instinct told me to get the hell out of there. When the flag dropped, I fully expected to be left behind in a cloud of dust, which I pretty much was. But then I realized that I was actually keeping up with some of my fellow Seniors! The guy next to me sucked at racing just as much as I did. As soon as I realized this, I instantly started having fun.

The best thing about a race is there will never be traffic coming at you from the other direction,, the only traffic I had to contend with was the really good racers lapping me about three laps in. I moved out of their way, and enjoyed pushing my personal limts; sliding harder than I ever had through the turns, and even jumping my bike a bit. I managed four laps in an hour and sixteen minutes. My first lap took twenty one minutes. The number one racer finished his first lap in just thirteen. I have no idea how the hell he managed that.

I probably will never have any idea what it is like to be that fast.

As the video shows, I am pretty much a shit racer. Cyril Despres and the rest have nothing to fear from this mid-life crisis suffering Frenchy fool. Neither do the rest of the USDR racers. But it was fun, and I have already signed up for Round Two on March 11th.

My goal for Round Two? I am shooting for a top eighty finish.

Author: frenchy