I just started this page May 25, so check back if the subject matter interests you. I've done over 100 events between enduro, hare scrambles, and motocross. I may be able to save you some painful or expensive lessons. I've been riding since I was 15 and started racing when I was 33. I've missed High Point "C" by one place, missed High Point "B" by one place (twice,) and finished fourth place B250 in '98 and 2nd place B-Open in '99 in spite of having five firsts in a row. I am your consumate "first loser" but I think I can help some newer racers get prepared. In '99 I did 15 of 19 events on the ECEA circuit and learned a great deal about how to keep a bike (and body) going every Sunday for weeks at a time. I got my "A" card at the end of '99 and haven't raced a whole lot since.
Safety First
Before you are prepared to tackle 80 to 120 miles off-road in a monsoon, you should be in some sort of shape or already be a competent rider. I took my friend Tony (aka Mr. Fitness, ex-marine, karate instructor, New York Marathon finisher) to the Ridge Run for his first event. He got off the bike, collapsed and announced, "That is the hardest thing I've ever done." By the same token I have friends who have been riding since they were tikes and have a cigarette and a beer at the resets. Folks who know how to ride go incredibly fast and use very little energy. Anyone who can ride well can finish an enduro, the question is where they will place. To place well in the "B" class you are going to need some combination of physical fitness, mental toughness, riding skill, mechanical smarts, time keeping ablility, and a desire to win.
You will crash, you will get hurt, and occasionally, you will get injured. That is racing and there is no one I know who has made it even to the "B" class that hasn't taken more than a few soil samples, removed large chunks of bark from a tree, or ruined a perfectly good pair of underwear. Here's a short list of minimizing crashes and injuries:
1) Buy the best protective gear you can afford. It's way cheaper than a trip to the hospital.
My helmet has saved my life. My boots saved me from breaking my ankle. 'Nuff said.
2) Keep your bike in top notch shape, especially the suspension and tires.
There's no reason to crash because your tires are crappy or your suspension threw you over the bars. Maintain your bike like it's going to the moon or find a new hobby.
3) Keep your body in good shape, stretch, learn how to fall, and learn how to relax when crashing.
I've caught my toe on a hidden log and had my leg turned 180 degrees backwards. I credit my stretch with saving my knee.
4) You are crashing, now what? RELAX! Drunks walk away from crashes into bridge abutments because they are relaxed and it just happens. If you tense up or panic you a) have no chance of making a correction that may save you b) have no chance of controlling your trajectory as you and your bike part company, and c) have a better chance of getting injured from the impact because ligaments, tendons, and bone are already taught and have less "give."
Preparing your body
You are going to have to pick your bike up off the ground, unwedge it from between two trees, drag it out of a mud hole two feet deep, or push it long distances. As you become a more skilled rider these occurences become less frequent but never-the-less you should be prepared. The bike weighs anywhere from 220 to 320 lbs depending on what kind of anchor your steed is. Fifty miles out into the woods with 20 lbs of mud on it and your arms are Jello, you need to use more brain than brawn to wrestle the beached whale back onto the trail.
When I was racing seriously I was training in the martial arts three time a week and lift weights once or twice. I don't think it much matters what you do, just have some type of plan. The nice thing about the martial arts is it trains your mind as well as your body, it improves your stretch, you learn how to fall, and you learn how to deal with the heat. Folks who spend 8 hours a day in an air conditioned office are at a disadvantage to those who work out of doors or in a factory setting. I was serious enough that I used to drive around with my air conditioner off and the windows rolled up. My wife hated me because we had a perfectly good air conditioner in the house and I wouldn't let her turn it on.
Fuel. Your body is as much a machine as your bike and it requires the right fuel to make it go. There's tons of info on the net so I won't bore you with a scientific explanation of why I did what I did, I'll just tell you what I did that worked for me. I learned this the hard way, sometimes laying on the ground for an hour after an enduro in the fetal position wretching and slipping in and out of some hypo-glycemic coma.
For three days before a race I drink a gallon of water a day, and eat meals that include plenty of complex carbs like whole wheat bread, pastas, and cereals along with some protein. Don't get too crazy with the fiber, it will counteract everything you are trying to accomplish if you get my drift. During the night before the race I'll graze on complex carbs and fruit, making sure I have at least one banana. The morning of the race I'll eat a yogurt with as much Cheerios (whole grain oats) as I can choke down, a "Sweet Success" (some simple carbs), and wash it down with a banana (potassium) and about 20 oz. of water. Fill your drink system with 60/40 water/Gatorade. Trust me, don't use straight Gatorade. On a hot day I'll go through 1.5 to 2 gallons of liquid and too much Gatorade will make you sick.
During the race, drink a little bit, constantly. If you wait till you are thirsty, it's too late and you are more prone to arm pump and/or leg cramps. That will slow you down and the terrain is a lot harder to deal with at low speeds which tires you out further. At the resets drink a little here and there, have a Power Bar if you can. At the Gas Stops, I'll eat a banana and another "Sweet Success," maybe some salt free pretzels but that's about it. I've seen guys eat four course meals, I don't know how they do it.
After the race, and for about two days, I can't walk past the refrigerator without sticking my face in it.
Preparing your bike
As I said, prepare your bike like it's going to the moon. Check *everything* every time. DNFing because you screwed up in the garage sucks large. Do not plan on doing anything to the bike the morning of the race except checking tire pressure, bleeding the forks, and turning on your computer. Though, you should check the spark plug cap to make sure one of your nit-wit friends didn't pull it off in the middle of the night just to make you insane. ; ) I don't know about you, but the morning of a race was always a nail biter no matter how many times I'd done it. I couldn't even go to the line unless I'd taken three pre-race-panic dumps.
1) Tire selection. The ECEA circuit is full of rocks, mud, logs, rocks with mud on them, logs with mud on them, roots with mud on them. I ran soft terrain tires everywhere. My choice on my 300 was a 130 Michelin S12 on the rear and a Dunlop 755 on the front. The Michelin sucks on hardpack but hooks up on greasy rocks like nothing I've tried. The 755 front's carcass will go away before the knobs and the handling will go away. If you run them too long, you'll be able to pull the tire off without irons. The tire will still look OK. Go figure.
2) Suspension. I'm primarily a rock rider, I like heavy springs with almost no compression damping (high or low speed) and just enough rebound to keep the bike under control. Too much compression and the heavy springs will beat you up, too much rebound and the suspension will pack or "hang" and not be prepared for the the next rock. Too little rebound and you are going for a ride over the bars. Running heavy springs means the rebound circuit is working hard and the shock will get pretty hot. Frequent servicing is a must. Marzocchi forks are notorious for contaminating the oil and pumping up with air. Change the fluid often and if possible, have the sliders hard anodized, and put a "quick bleed" on them. I have the C-Cycle kit in my forks with hard anodizing. The cartridges are basically speed sensitive '96 KYB's with recirculating oil so the oil stays nice and clean. I highly recommend the C-Cycle or MSR kits for 'zokes. My '99 'zokes were too unpredictable no matter who valved them. Set your race sag! Improperly setting the shock spring preload will F everything up including steering. I tend to run a bit less sag so the bike steers better but that is preference. Set it per your bike's manual. Also very important: the forks need to be set in the triple clamps so they don't bind. I would do this by tightening everything up except the front axle clamp (the side opposite the nut) and compressing the bike lightly on the garage floor, then tightening the clamp. I would sometimes pull off the handlebars, pop the fork caps and pull the wheel up in the travel to verify there was no binding. See "Practice makes Perfect" for more on suspension.
Important note about suspension: Stiction will negate the benefits of suspension valved by Jesus Christ himself. Be sure your forks and linkage are properly maintained and smooth.
3) Mechanicals: Loc-tite corporation sends me a Christmas card. Loc-tite blue everything except the axle bolts. Make sure your throttle cable and carb slide are clean, a stuck throttle in the woods means a short trip into a solid object. Keep your spokes tight and rims true. If you are a brake dragger like me, bleed your brakes *every* race. Run Moose tubes, at 12 psi front and 11 psi rear. This is about the minimum I can get away with and avoid pinch flats. Any higher and it starts affecting suspension performance. Change your gearbox oil *every* race, it's cheap insurance. My Honda's would waste the oil in 80 miles. If you have a clutch cable, keep it in tip top shape, you are going to be pulling that clutch in 1000's of times over the day, that's a lot of reps. Clean your air filter every race. I use WD40 on my O-ring chain, just keep the chain clean, don't spray it directly with the Power Washer, scrub the dirt off of it with Fantastik or Spray-Nine, then immediately WD40 the hell out of it. The WD40 displaces the water and provides a little lube on the O-rings. Sticky chain lubes are for moto guys and don't really do much for O-ring chains. Run the coolant 60% water, 40% Ethylene Glycol, water is a better coolant than glycol. Make sure your cap is clean, tight, and the right pressure. If it's more than three years old, replace it and throw the old one in your butt bag.
4) General: Don't weigh your bike down with tons of gear. Don't put on a fender pack and load it with every tool known to man. Firstly, because it's heavy and primarily because if you have to hit the eject button, you don't want the fender pack to get in the way when you are trying to get away from the bike in a crash. Here's a list of stuff to build a woods weapon:
a) Hand guards with spoilers -- IMHO Enduro Engineering is the way to go.
b) Bash Plate -- The E-Line Carbon Fiber is light, but you'll need a new one every season, the aluminum ones will last two or three, Loc-tite the hell out of the mounting bolts.
c) Pipe Guard -- stick with aluminum, the E-Line guards are great but they are too great, the pipe wll bend at the point it goes into the motor, making it more difficult to fix.
d) Flywheel weight, 12 to 16 oz. Trust me, get one.
e) Battery powered lights -- I used a little 9V battery and bulbs that snapped into an AGC style fuse holder just to get through tech.
f) Large capacity fuel tank. Not completely necessary, but I was always racing without a pit crew so couldn't always depend on having enough fuel to complete a loop.
e) Steering Damper -- I've used both Scott's and WER, either works well. Get one though, it will
save you a ton of energy and may even prevent a crash if you clip a tree a bit hard.
f) Computer / Roll Chart holder.
g) Suspension Revalve --Think plush, you are going to be riding all day, when you are nice and fresh that edgy moto suspension is really cool. At mile 80, when your ass is firmly planted in the seat, your elbows are down, and your tongue is wrapped in the back wheel, you'll wish you had it valved more plush.
h) Spark Arrestor -- many events won't let you ride without one. I personally don't believe they do
diddly squat but you have to have one. They do help the bottom end.
i) Radiator Guards -- I personally don't like anything in front of my radiators except the stock fins, but I did like (and need) some additional side support for those time you wind up on the ground. The Works Connection supports were nice and didn't impede air flow. You'll be plonking around sometimes in first gear, you'll need all the cooling you can get.
j) Motor mods -- a waste of money. Make sure the bike is jetted correctly or even a hair fat. You may want to experiment with different reed set ups. I like a bike with a real soft hit so it doesn't get away from you when you are negotiating a greasy rock garden while your arms are Jello. Personally, I ran a pipe all season that had a grapefruit sized dent in the pipe and was pinched at the frame rail. No, I wasn't being cheap, I had a brand new FMF Fatty and a perfectly good stock pipe in the garage. Think "tractor." Imagine you are blazing through the woods and have to hit a hill climb that's littered with rocks, grease, and "C" riders. You will need some bottom end to keep the bike hooked up and pulling.
In today's social climate, I wouldn't even consider racing a bike that wasn't Titled, Registered, and Insured. Before you go spending the $1,000 for the above, make sure you can get a title.
More on suspension, yes, it's that important
OK -- so now we are physically fit, have a plushly suspended, D9 Caterpillar between our legs, we are ready to win. Bzzzt. Our brandy new suspension needs to be dialed in and we need to have a feel for how the motor works. First thing I always did with new suspension was beat it in a little on some high speed straight line stuff. If you have new seals and bushings you aren't going to be able to get a real feel for what you bought for at least 30 miles, probably more like 60. It will actually improve with age as the seals and bushings wear in. Find some whoops and fast trails and have some fun for a while.
After the suspension is worn in a bit, here's how I would get a feel for how the suspension works and make adjustments. You need to find a rock garden, that you can traverse in third gear with the motor in the middle of the RPM range, just sort of a neutral throttle position that keeps the bike driving forward, but won't load the suspension excessively. Find one with some really nasty 8 to 12" rocks all in a pile. You don't want to be hard on the gas because that effects how the suspension works. I generally start with the compression front and rear almost full soft, then ride back and forth through the rock garden to set the rebound. Start with the rebound softer than the tuner recommends and keep adding rebound until the bike crosses the best. Too little rebound and the bike will be bouncing all over because the shock/fork aren't under control. Too much rebound and the bike will start to pack or hang in the stroke, get harsh, and bounce all over.
Once it's more or less set up, find a high speed sweeper that's mostly dirt but has some rocks sticking up out of the ground. Cruise through with some speed and see if the forks stay connected to the ground. That is, you don't want to hit the first rock and have the bike step out 12", hit the next, step out another 8, etc. You'll run out of trail real fast. Tinker with the compression and rebound on the forks and click or two either way until the bike tracks the best.
The reason I keep stressing the rocks is if the suspension works under these conditions, it will handle just about anything else (except coming up short on a double) with no problem. You will be able to paste right into a rock or log and remain in control. If you ride primarily sand and whoops, the is not the way to go about setting up your suspension. If you are primarly a mixed terrain rider, rocks and wooded trails, this method will give you good results and you can fake your way through the occasional whooped out section and make up the time in the nasty stuff.
The most important thing you will get out of tuning your suspension is predictability. No suspension is ever perfect, but if you know how it's going to react, even if it's a bit whacky, you can compensate for it. If you are familiar with how your suspension reacts to certain obstacles or groups of obstacles, you have confidence, and you can't have speed without confidence.
Practice makes perfect
Nothing will replace lots of saddle time. Go out and rip around with your buds, have fun. Try stupid stuff like impossible hill climbs, getting over logs that are way too large, and jumping off of and over everything. The more experience you have with the bizarre the better prepared you will be when the sickos who lay out these races throw what seems like the impossible at you.
