Round 4: The devil went down to Georgia

     Welcome back to another edition of Racing The Clock! June's round of the National Enduro Series takes us down south to Greensboro, Georgia; home of the Cherokee Enduro. This round was fairly good to me last year. Last year I felt like this was the tipping point where my results started to get better; I was hungry to go back. If you haven't been around, I missed the 3rd round in Louisiana due to a tip over that banged up my leg pretty good. That injury kept me off the bike for over a month and unfortunately with the biblical amounts of rain we haven't gotten a ton of good riding days in since. Locally I've got to race once in over 6 weeks so I was a little nervous heading to Georgia with my lack of race time, but I trusted my baseline fitness and put my best foot forward. I also would love to announce a new sponsor to our growing list of support, The Tricon Group LLC. has stepped up and is supporting us through the rest of the national enduros. The company services, builds, and maintains large chain supermarkets like ShopRite and we're proud to have their support!

     This trip started a little earlier then some, especially considering it's one of the closer rounds at about 12 or 13 hours. The plan was to stop at a piece of property in South Carolina that my parents were interested in buying so Noah and I loaded up the new Ford Transit van (my first time using it since we did the inside) Thursday during the day and set off Thursday night! I started off driving and got us about 5 hours in before my dad took the wheel. Now the new van has us in pretty close quarters, there isn't a ton of sleeping room yet and the fact that the passenger seat doesn't have an armrest makes it kinda annoying to sleep in. I ended up laying on the back bench and made Noah sleep in the chair since he's mini sized, but somehow in a daze I ended up on the floor at some point or another. I woke up a few times on the trip down, still dazed, bouncing around the van looking to get my sea legs but we ended up stopping to sleep while we waited out traffic around Charlotte. From here we made Noah drive, shocking I know. Stopping at breakfast, we all loaded up on sugar while we were waiting to call the realtor about the property. Bob Evans has some great chocolate chip whole wheat pancakes if anyone is curious, especially if you take a little of the whipped cream off of the blueberry covered french toast creation that both Noah and my dad ordered. Just as we finished breakfast my mom called, apparently the property went under contract that morning. How crazy is it that this is like the 4th time that this has happened to them when they've been looking at places? Anyway, with that off the to-do list we trucked straight over to our hotel in Madison, Georgia to finally get out of the van.

He drives??

Always fun to cross borders

   
     We get to Madison, which is about 30 mins past the enduro on Friday around 3:30 and check into the hotel, fairly typical but boy is it hot! Between the cool weather and rain up north, the upper 80s feels like a humid furnace but it's great to finally see the sun. Eventually we head into town to the same restaurant we ate at last year in downtown Madison. It's a really cool, classic southern town center with lamps and weeping willows and the food is good. Everyone's in a good mood but tired from driving so I have 2 beers during dinner to loosen up, well call me a lightweight, I was sufficiently tipsy. Since I was half in the bag off 2 Michelob Ultras I convinced us (it wasn't that hard) to stop at Dairy Queen and take a page out of Stu Baylor's playbook and get an ice cream cone on the way back to the hotel. On a side note this might actually work (foreshadowing). We all headed to bed looking forward to signing up and getting ready the next day.

Thanks to Noah for screenshotting this gem

     We got up late Saturday and headed to the track around 10:30. Halfway there I hopped out of the van and unloaded my road bicycle, I find that keeping a routine as well as getting a nice sweat in before the race really wakes me up from spending so much time traveling and gets my blood flowing. I cycle the 13 miles to the pits. I don't go out to set any records but halfway through I started to tone it down to keep from blowing myself up, it was HOT, like hot hot, I was sweating like a pig and I've made that mistake before. I rolled up to the pits and they goofed around, trying to charge me $10 to park my "rig", it's funny to listen to these old guys with heavy southern accents make fun of me in my spandex so I roll in and find the crew. Fast forward through all the nonsense of getting changed and I'm walking around pouring sweat still. We're all drenched, everyone's drenched, its 100+ degrees real-feel. We sign up and head out to scope tests, figure out the roads, and find where we'll be pitting between sections. Georgia is notorious for having miles and miles of pavement between tests but I know it's a great way to cool off. We get back to the hotel and my other cousin Tommy arrives with his wife Katie and we head back to the same place for dinner, it's basically the only non-fast food option around so we take advantage of it. We get back and prep goggles, there's a chance of rain in the late afternoon but its not supposed to be til 4 or 5 but I prep my Scott's accordingly and set up a film system. I also notice I've got a double farmer's tan; one line from my cycling jersey, the second from the tank top I changed into. I feel like a goon especially since I specifically tried to stay out of the sun. Bedtimeeeee.

my double tan lines, idiot

   












 
     
     It's race day! The forecast hasn't changed and it's still about One million degrees except today is much more humid, the grass is soaked from dew; it was going to be a slippery morning. We roll into the race and find a tree to park next to and Tommy pulls in next to us. We unload the sprinter and run the bikes through the field to try and check jetting and I snap a few pictures of my bike with all new plastics and graphics. I'm riding the TC250 instead of my TX version, Georgia isn't exactly technical and it's pretty fast so I chose the TC because of how light and snappy it is. We all gear up, vented gear is a must and we're all wearing camelbaks. I've actually never worn a drink system at a NEPG race because I see my dad between each test but it's so hot and we won't see my dad between test 2 and 3. I'm on 30A because after missing round 3 I slipped back in points and Noah and Tom are on minute 24.

Section 1:
     There's no transfer to section 1, right out of the gate you're thrown into a piece. Last year I struggled in sections 1 and 2 but my day got better and better as it went on. Well it seems that 2017 was going to mirror 2016. I had some arm pump, the trail was slippery, the roots and little bridges everywhere were wet and I had a local AA rider on my minute that wasn't going to let me settle in. Piece 1 is a mix of some tight trail and some open stuff, usually I thrive in tighter trail but for some reason this piece has thrown me for a loop both times I've raced it. My bike was too stiff and the back was riding high and I just could find a flow. 6 miles later we were out of the test and I could try to work out some arm pump. I wasn't happy with how I rode but we made some suspension changes, pretty much the same thing I changed last year and ventured out to test 2. Later on I found that test 1 was my slowest of the day, I was 28th fastest in the test.

Dropping into one of GA's many ravines (Darrin Chapman Photo)

Section 2:
     Test 2 is the tightest and most technical of the day, like 2016 I struggled in it. I don't know what it is about these first two pieces, whether it's the big roots in the tight trees or the fact I'm still getting used to the dirt but I felt off again in test 2. Luckily this test was pretty short too, at just 6 miles, because no matter how hard I tried I couldn't get away from the other kid on my minute. Derek Gravitt was his name and he could really ride the tight stuff. It'd be tight and he'd be right on my butt then it'd open up for a few corners and I couldn't hear him and then literally like 3 corners into a tight section he'd be right back on me! Hats off the Derek for a good ride getting 3rd in A250, luckily I wouldn't hear him behind me much after this test. Test 2 is filled with gnarly off cambers and lots of little hills and Georgia has a ton of G-outs that creep up on you so you really have to keep your head up. I ended me with 26th overall fastest, a few spots better then the first test but I knew the tide was about to turn. I was looking forward to the rest of the day as this is when I really started riding well last year.

(Darrin Chapman Photo)

Section 3:
     This test was mentally difficult for me, there was no visiting the truck between 2 and 3. I couldn't get cold water or sit down, no fresh goggles, no fresh gloves, no real suspension adjustments we just baked in the woods for 15-20 minutes waiting to take off. I stashed some rags in my drink system so I was drying goggles and wiping sweat away talking to people and the general consensus was everyone was hot, so that made me a little happier. Test 3 was fun! There was still a little tight stuff at the beginning but the test was 12 miles long and it opened up into some really fast, slick 2 track style cart roads. It was funny because the difference between how wet it was in the woods to how dry it was where the sun hit was a huge difference. I really started to find the flow in this test, yet Thad Duvall blew my doors off about 4 miles in but luckily I was able to stick with him this time for a bit which really helped me up my aggression and show me just how far I could push the dirt. That's a big factor here I think, the clay can bite you especially when its mixed with heavy roots but running that pace and seeing it really shows you just how fast you can go. Next by was Stu Baylor, both these guys passed me in every test which is defeating but they were heads above everyone on the day so I don't feel too bad now! 21st fastest in this section!

Noah finding some traction! (Darrin Chapman Photo)

Section 4:
     In test 4 the race changed its tune for me, I felt phenomenal other than my hands were starting to go away. Between being off the bike for so long and the heat and sweat my hands were soft and with the roots and rough trail I was having a hard time holding on. Test 4 was a winding maze of fast open trail through big green bushes and then a bunch of really cool flowy trail next to a river that ran through a bunch of the property. I ended up passing my cousin Tommy and didn't even realize it until I got to the truck after the test. The test was 12.5 miles long I think but it flew by as we ripped 5th gear down old dirt roads and a few clearings. I think the most memorable thing about the test was that clouds rolled in and the woods turned pitch black, we were riding 5th wide open down these roads and clearings and then would plunge into super dense woods and the transition was a lot to handle! There were a bunch of instances where my eyes hadn't adjusted and all I could see was shadowy outlines of trees and just aimed for between them and couldn't see the trail at all. Test 4 was good scoring 18th fastest.

Test 4! (Ken King Photo)

     After test 4 we had like 13+ miles of road to get to the start of test 5 where we sat at our nearly 40 min break between pieces. Like I mentioned it clouded up heavy while we were riding and riding roads to the penultimate test we were cruising into the storm, cue Jaws sound track. So much for 4pm, it was only 1:30?! These weather guys really need to get better at their jobs. As I sat at the truck and ate my super secret lunch, and drank my super secret drink, rain drops started bouncing off my noggin. The temperature was plummeting and even though I'm not a big mud guy my mood was good and I was excited for pieces 5 and 6. Tommy and Noah headed off as I did some finally goggle prep. This piece was 12 miles again and I layered on 8 laminated tear offs on my Scott goggles in hopes it wouldn't start pouring.
   

Section 5:
     We took off of test 5 in a light drizzle but on the already damp trail it was definitely going away quick. I remembered test 5 from last year because its pretty unique; you start out taking some nice flowy trail to some more of the cart roads they've been running and then you cross a big plank bridge and ride a few miles of a hillside that's been half cleared. The section is super treacherous, filled with stumps and roots and downed trees you can't get off the trail or its gonna end badly. With that being said the rain wasn't making it easy to stay on the trail or carry a lot of speed, I rode pretty conservatively because of the slick dirt and the fact last year here I crashed like 6 times. Both Thad and Stu went by but I wasn't even focused on them, I pulled over quickly and kept my own race going, After 4 miles of the clear cut you cross back through the river and ride dirt roads and fields most of the way back. You finish off with 2 miles of fun flowy trail and the end of test 5 is literally 100 yards from the start. Apparently riding within myself and using a mix of caution and precision payed off because I was able to nab 17th fastest time in the piece even riding like I did.

Sliding on one of the bridges in Test 5 (Ken King photo)

     After a good test 5 we had to ride 6+ miles of road to the start of test 6, by this point it was raining pretty hard but it couldn't dampen my mood. The rain had cooled me off and the day was getting better. The whole ride to the test I was signing "The Devil Went Down to Georgia" under the helmet and carrying on. I was confident, I was enjoying the trail, and even the dirt seemed good even though I'm pretty sure everyone else thought otherwise.
     We had a pretty good break before test 6 so I was under an umbrella goofing around with everyone. Noah wasn't really in a good mood, his day started really good but was going a little off pace. This is one reason I don't like checking my times throughout the day, I'm always going to go as fast as I can and that's it, I feel like if you're doing good or bad it can affect your mood. Tommy rolled in a few minutes after me with a pretty bad burn on his hand, apparently Duvall made a mistake trying to pass Tom and the two went down and he landed on Thad's exhaust. Bummer.

Tommy's burn after getting together with Duvall

Section 6:
     My Scott goggles Film System came out in test 6! I waited until the last minute to put my goggles on and head to the start. As we took off I was pretty confident in myself and used it to my advantage but my hands cramped up almost immediately. I took my hand off the bars and tried to stretch my fingers but it was locking up for some reason which is never a good feeling. I managed to get it good enough to pull the clutch it and managed it throughout the test. Piece 6 has a few rocks and a big rock slab we ride over which is cool. It has and some roots and it's not crazy fast but full of switchbacks and a I actually got stuck on a rooty uphill for a few seconds. The rain was coming down now but I was hooking up. This piece reminds me alot of Delaware enduro, most of the trail is about 4 feet wide with one rut and you can just rip if you keep your body square and try to ride smooth. Test 6 was a bit of a blur, maybe because my goggles were wet! Test 6 ended and I was super pleased, unfortunately my transponder didn't read for whatever reason so I had to go to the truck to find out my time and position.

Scott Goggles stayed on all day (Ken King Photo)

     After a 12 mile road ride back to the pits we all got undressed in the rain. Our wet gear and wet bikes got loaded up and we cleaned up as quick as possible. Tommy took the homemade bandage off his arm, yuck, that burn was bad. Noah was checking his phone and my results still hadn't been entered so we had to go to the Semi. Noah ended up 4th in A200, he was super happy because he had his best overall ride at 49th overall and 20th A rider and was the closest he'd been to the leader all season. Tom had a rough day with the heat and rain and burn but he's still kickin and will be back for more at the next one. After going to the truck we found out I was 15th overall fastest in the last test. This score put me in 5th AA/Expect class and 18th Overall. The top 20 overall get overall points and this was my first time getting overall series points so I was over the moon, paired with my first Top 5 its a big step in the right direction!

     Georgia treated us well again this year and we're super excited that the next round is our "home" race, the Rattlesnake in Pennsylvania. Of course none of this would be possible without the help of our sponsors; Town & Country Cycle Center, The Tricon Group, FinalMoto Mx Training, Answer Racing, Scott Goggles, Bel-Ray Lubricants, Motive Dezign, and 139 Designs. Also a huge shoutout to my Dad and Tommy's wife Katie for all the help and standing in the rain all day and all they do for us as well as our friends and family. I personally have to thank Sunstar Sprockets, Braking Brakes, and EVS sports for their help while Noah has to thank Sidi Boots and Pro Taper!

Thanks for stopping by the blog and look out for the next one, in the mean time keep the throttle back and the rubber side down!

Round 3! Louisiana: a series of unfortunate events

       Welcome back to the blog! I'm currently writing this thing from 35,000 feet above the United States on my way to Las Vegas for the Husqvarna dealer show, Supercross finale, and maybe a little gambling and debauchery along the way; guess we'll find out. Maybe me and Jeff Emig can throw it back to 1998 and find a crocodile suit and tear up the strip, we're leaving Ralph home though. 

      Unfortunately this post is going to be vague about the racing, I personally didn't get to make it to Louisiana for one of my favorite events of the year. The day before we were supposed to depart on our conquest I was giving a riding lesson when I had a small tip over with big consequences. I ended up falling over on a rock and 2 hours later my damn thigh was twice the size of the other. Somehow, my dumbass managed to fall directly on my legs self-destruct button, like the 3 meter vent shaft in the Deathstar. I spent the rest of  the day and overnight in the hospital, getting transferred to a better hospital after ct scans revealed a 10 inch hematoma in the leg. As I writhed in pain laying on the most uncomfortable hospital bed ever they were contemplating doing surgery to relieve pressure from my leg!? As I slept in the hospital thursday morning my dad and Noah departed on the 24 hour drive to the race in our new Ford transit van that I worked so hard to get prepared for this trip. I returned home thursday afternoon and spent the rest of the day with an ice pack strapped to my leg. 

     The next day I got a text from a friend that there was some Rumors flying that the Race might be postponed due to a severe Storm System that was moving across the south. This Race is held in a State park and it has been cancelled in the past due to rain. I relayed the info to the guys as they made the journey over the mighty Mississippi River and down to the bayous of Louisiana. I, on the other hand, was hobbling around work Friday having to tell people what happened and explaining how a 2 mph crash could turn my leg into a stuffed sausage ready to pop. 

   
     Louisiana is one of my favorite races because it reminds me a lot of home. The trail is a lot like South Jersey, it can be tight and twisty but without sand. There are mall ravines, ledges, drop offs, and concrete structures littered through the old army base, turned state park. This year would be different than anytime I'd been there though, it has always been dry and a little dusty for me however they were calling for inches upon inches of rain before the race. I had my fingers crossed that the race would in fact be canceled, saving me valuable points and the frustration of not being able to attend. No such luck. Saturday the forecasted rain didn't hit until it was too late and how much rain could fall just overnight?  

      

     The answer is a lot, from friends of mine I heard it rained 5 inches at the race overnight. People outside at 4 am holding canopies up as they filled with water, rivers running down the paved roads through the park, pretty much just a hell of a lot of rain. At the riders meeting they announced a shortened day, what would have been a 7 section event ended up being 4 pieces. The first section was cut to less then 2 miles and the race in total ended up being just 18 miles long, a far cry from the scheduled 60+ mile event. My oldest cousin Tommy flew down, saving him the 24 hour drive one way and he and Noah were lucky enough to land on row 19, although they weren't out of the woods by any means. The earlier you were the better, I feel bad for the guys back on rows 40+ riding a slot car track of ruts and deep water holes. The boys had great rides despite the conditions, Noah ended up 2nd in A200 after burying himself in the one test. He and Tommy had to work together to unstick his little Husqvarna 125 from a mudhole where they lost roughly 3 minutes. Tommy had his best ride of the year so far even losing that time helping Noah get unstuck, he finished 9th in the A Vet class. Like I mentioned, the racing was short and I wasn't there, so there's little to report on. The trail was one big rut, mud like day old bacon grease, and water holes littering the terrain and filling the many ravines and drop offs. I'm disappointed to have missed it but kinda glad I missed the 48 hour drive to ride just 18 miles. 

     While home I got to attend the NJ supercross though, something I didn't get to go to last year! I hobbled my way through the parking lot, up the stairs, and to my seat with my giant leg and I'm glad I did. I'm sure most of you saw the race or might have even been there so you know what I'm talking about. What a suspense filled day! No matter if you're on team Dungey or Tomac it's pretty cool to see the season come down to the last round. How bout the 250 class?! With the mistake made by the points leader we have a virtual 3 way tie this Saturday for the 250 East championship, winner take all raced combined with the 250 west riders!  I'm going with Ryan Dungey and Zach Osborne, guess I'll go lay money down on it. Normally the bet is black or red but this time in Vegas it looks like it'll be green or orange, who you got? 

See you guys in a few weeks for round 4 of the NEPG in Georgia!

 

Round 2! The Alligator, Bike week, Florida.

The 67th running of the legendary Alligator Enduro is stop #2 on the 2017 NEPG enduro tour and fell on March 19th. Just minutes from the hustle and bustle of Daytona Beach's Bike Week this enduro turned out over 420 entries with 30 Pro riders and 18 AA/Expert. This is the first time I've ridden in Florida since 2007 and my first time racing this event, Tommy has ridden the enduro in the past but a different location, and this was both Noah and Wyatt's first time riding in the sands of the sunshine state. We were all excited to get out of the snow-filled hell hole called New Jersey and bask in the glorious sunshine of Florida as soon as possible.

If you like snow, we don't like you

     Pre-Race

     In the two days prior of when we were supposed to leave, mother nature decided to drop over 2 feet of snow in our little nook of NJ and Pennsylvania which made this whole process much harder. This is just our luck, with all the races last year we saw rain or snow as we loaded up and drove to the events almost every time so why should 2017 be any different? After shoveling, plowing, deicing, and nearly collapsing of exhaustion after 2 days of clearing 24"+ inches of the white devil we managed to leave on time wednesday evening. On the way down we swung by everyone's favorite gas station/sandwich shop, Wawa, where we met Tom and grabbed his bike and gear. Him and Wyatt would be flying down Saturday so not to miss work or school, lucky bastards. From there, myself, Noah, and my Dad embarked on our 18 hour trek to warmer weather. Or so we thought. We managed to plug along all night long which is something we don't normally do on the way to the race but it was too cold to stop and sleep so around 9am we ended up in Georgia at a familiar stop, Waffle House! From there I drove down into the sunshine state, sun shining as advertised but unfortunately only 45 degrees. As we ran deeper into Florida and came across Jacksonville we stopped at one of my favorite restaurants/pub/eatery in the world, Kickbacks Gastropub. I highly recommend this place if you love weird, delicious food in a crazily designed and decorated building and want to choose from over 200+ beers. One part my dad liked was that the walls are covered in pennies and block all cell phone service; while one part my dad didn't enjoy was when I accidently backed the box van into a telephone support wire as I tried to parallel park the 16' box van on the side of a tiny side street! Whoops. As we finally rolled into our final destination I think it's safe to say we were ready to be done driving, and luckily we were greeted by one of my mom's horse friends on her 12 acre farm in Deland, Florida. This is where we were setting up shop for the next 3 days. With Bike Week going on just 20 miles away hotels were at capacity, not to mention ridiculous pricing, and we were lucky enough to have Linda and her husband Rick open up their home to 5 dirtbike racer in need. The first night was filled with good food, a few drinks, a chair I broke, and a dire situation between my dad and a big, bad salamander that was taking a nap on his bed. Florida and their critters don't mix well with skittish fathers.

Our home away from home

 

Florida man, snakes n gators.

Kickback Gastropub

     The next day was filled with chores as we fixed the garage door, the chair that I managed to break, as well as some other small tasks. The very least we could do for people nice enough to take us in. Afterwards I set out on a nice road bicycle ride and Noah for a run, there's nothing like a little exercise to wake up the body after a long drive and get your blood flowing again. The weather was beautiful and in the 60s, but boy were those roads flat. I pedaled and pedaled to my hearts content with my first outside road ride of the year. Luckily, I had a nice little stopping point overlooking a big lake to give these legs a needed reset half way though the ride. From there we ended up take a drive to Daytona Beach, Noah's first time experiencing Bike Week and driving down the beach. There also might have been a glance over at some college girls on spring break soaking up the sun along the way, I can neither confirm nor deny. Later that night we had probably some of worst chinese food of my life, I don't remember the name of the place, I just suggest staying far away from any chinese food if you're ever in the Deland, Florida area. Tommy and Wyatt flew in that night as well, Wyatt enjoyed his first time in the skies, and Tom enjoyed his bright yellow rental car, everyone was happy! Saturday morning we finally arrived at the enduro, and had a nice time catching up with Mike Lafferty at the KTM support van and our old friends Roy and RJ Cook; unfortunately RJ's weekend ended early with a tough crash, feel better homie. After getting checked in and not being able to use my brand new chrome Bell helmet because the transponder wouldn't work (what a bummer) we headed back to Daytona Beach and walked Main St so Wyatt and Noah could get the real-deal Daytona experience. We just missed the wet T-shirt contest, although probably filled with some old gross biker ladies but we did see some cool bikes and it was nice to see Daytona as packed as ever. Back at the house we enjoyed the golden hour sunset as we settled in for the night in anticipation for the looming race ahead.

Wyatt, Noah, and Tom's bikes pre-race

     Race day

     The morning of the enduro is always a whirl wind, desperately trying to shove food down your throat when you're nervous is my least favorite part of the job, and constantly running to the bathroom is probably a close second. Luckily for my dad all the pieces ended back at the starting area so he didn't have to chase us around to the different checks even though we were much closer together than the last race, with Noah, Wyatt, and Tom on minute 16 and myself of minute 30.

     I rolled out of the pits with a good luck from pops and up to the starting line when Mike Lafferty came pedaling up, we talked about a little strategy but mostly just how I was nervous as hell being on the bubble. For those of you who don't know how the process works, in the AA class the top 10 in points get assigned starting rows, because I was 10th at Sumter I started on the 10th and final preassigned AA minute, 30. I was mostly nervous about having an off day and getting bumped out of a seeded spot because then they just throw you whereever for the next event and being close to my cousins is important for pitting and being able to see my dad at the end of every section.
     ANYWAY, 9:30 rolled around and we took off, it was 4.5 miles of trail to get to the beginning of the first test and I realized from signs we'd be riding the same pieces of road and trail to get to most of the pieces throughout the day, that's annoying.

     Test #1- Lets go racing!

     Test 1 was a 7.5 mile piece, the first section at any enduro is always a learning curve as it's usually nothing like home and it takes a little to get acclimated to the dirt, and how the club set up the trails. LET ME TELL YOU, it sucked. The dirt was fine, dry but fine. The palmettos roots weren't nearly as bad as what I'd experienced in 2007 at the Florida GNCC, but boy did finding the course prove to be difficult! I must have got turned around and lost 6 times, yelling and cursing under my helmet as I pivoted my bike around after blowing yet another turn. From what I was told, everyone was having a tough time but that didn't make it any better. Piece one was my worst of the day, unfortunately a habit I need to break.

     Test #2- Let's try not get lost!

     After getting back to the van and talking with my dad we made some shock adjustments. The course was FAST and between that and the roots we decided to soften the back of the bike and slow the rebound down in attempt to keep the wheel on the ground and the front wheel a little lighter. This piece started with a sharp right around a big palm tree claimed alot of peoples jerseys. FYI, stay far away from palm trees, I grazed that thing and it felt like someone took a box cutter to my arm. Through the next half mile I couldn't stop thinking about how bad my arm hurt and all I could hear was the obnoxious sound of another 2 stroke behind me, kudos to Heath Lee who was on my minute and 3rd in the 30+ A class, he was ripping in the beginning of each test. A 5th gear straightaway along a lake was a buttpuckering experience as we came wide open into a small ridge and tree line with a bunch of photogs out to capture some high speeds, and I'm sure some scary moments. Test 2 ended with another disappointing overall time of 47th.

From section #2
Darrin Chapman Photo

     Test #3- Let's try not to get lost, as much!

     This test was thrown out at the end of the day, too many people got lost in here and actually ended up riding a bunch of the course twice. With the lack of actual hardwood trees, arrows were sparse but I've never seen a test thrown out before. I had someone pop into the trail from some crazy direction and a few miles later I found myself tipped over in a ravine as I tried to spin around after getting lost. While down I noticed where the rider who almost T-boned me had come from, apparently that's where a lot of people made mistakes. A better test time with a 36th, but it was thrown out so it was a wash anyway. Bummer.

   Test #4- Ok, we're going to get lost lets be prepared at least! 

   I don't recall much of test 4 other than it was the shortest test of the day at just over 15 mins. Stu Baylor blew by me about 4 miles in like he had in each test before this, it's a little disheartening but the ol' boy has been killing it lately and he was only starting on the minute behind me. I do remember  that the test felt really long because the speeds came down with less roads and open fields. 5.5 miles can really feel like a lot when you go from 30 to 15mph. Another 36th Overall fastest time in that piece, not what I'm happy with but that seems to be the trend of the day.

   Test #5- Let's just do our best out here, dang.

    This test was definitely my favorite of the day because it had the best mix of trail. Even though the first 2 miles of the test was used in test #1 it later turned into some really fun pine tree trails. Nice and flowy with a little bit of tight stuff mixed in, I felt a little off in the beginning but when Stu finally caught me I was able to hang onto his fender for a bit and pick up on a little speed. Unfortunately Kailub Russell caught me towards the end when I took yet another off track excursion after getting turned around for the millionth time of the day, boy does race gas smell good. This was my best test of the day, with 31st fastest, disappointing to say the least when last year I had a couple top 15 tests and I haven't replicated that in either of the first 2 rounds.

During Test 6
Darrin Chapman Image

    Test #6- Ok this is it, andddd its tight.

     YO, test 6 sucked. I was at a low point in motivation, I was hungry, my hands hurt, and for some reason I struggled to get fired up before the piece, like someone kicked my dog. This piece was gnarly tight, multiple times I had to stop my momentum and flick the clutch to get my bike between two trees 2 feet apart and then around a corner. The changes we made to the bike earlier in the day were counter productive in the tight woods and I struggled with front wheel bite and found myself pushing the front wheel and not sitting far enough forward. Right after Baylor caught me I stuck with him for awhile but after getting caught behind a lapper and getting stuck on a downed palm tree. I lost a solid 15-20 seconds trying to get unstuck as I had to hop off the bike and lift the back out of the hole I dug, my day was just over and I was begging for the section to end. I came out of the A test a lowly 34th overall, disappointing because the conditions should have favored me.

     Results

     So we ended the day 8th in AA and 35th Overall, while I was pretty disappointed in my overall that 8th place actually ties my best class finish from last season. Coupled with the 30 Pros and 18 AA I guess it wasn't a terrible day as 1st AA could only muster a 20th overall; I just wish I didn't feel like a pile of dog crap on a hot summers day. I never got the ball rolling but am SO looking forward to one of my favorite races coming up next, the Cajun Classic in Forest Hill, Louisiana; home of the Mud dogs and Bobby Boucher. But in all seriousness the first two rounds are out of the way and for a few rounds we head to some pretty great trail that is more like a typical enduro.

     The Cousins

     All three of the cousins had a better day than they did at the first round. Noah posted a 2nd place in the A200 class and 36th overall A rider. Tom didn't have any bike problems and hung onto a 17th in the 30+ A class. Wyatt landed himself on the box, with a 3rd in the B200 class and 16th overall B rider. I know from talking to them between the test they had just as much of a hassle finding the trails as I did, maybe worse since they were 14 rows ahead of me, which puts about 80 guys in between us. Each one of the managed to clip their arms on that damn palm tree at the beginning of test 2 and we all agrees palm trees should be left for the beach and far away from the trail in the future.

On the way home we also brought Wyatt to his first Hooters, although he seemed more interested in his phone then the scenery, those bacon wrapped wings sure are good. 😆

As always we wouldn't be anywhere without the people that help us, Town and Country Cycle Center, Answer Racing, Scott Goggles, 139 Designs, and Motive Dezigns. And on my end I'd like to give big thanks the Bel-Ray oils, EVS Sports,  Sunstar, and braking for getting me going, and keeping me stopping. Noah has Mobius knee braces to thank as well as Ryno Power and Twin Air,

I hope you enjoyed our breakdown of the 67th Alligator enduro, I know it might not of been as witty as the last but we'll keep it coming. I hope you stop by for our next post, in the meantime keep it rubber side down!

We really pack it in there

Wyatt's happy he didn't have to drive down

Always repping

Introduction - Who we are and what we do.

Left to right- Sean, Noah, & Wyatt

     Lets start with a fact about me, I've never read a blog, EVER. My name is Sean Koeller and I race dirtbikes; thats about as basic as it gets. I'm 26 years old and have been living this life since I can remember, sitting in the backseat of a van playing gameboy as my parents drove across the United States so my dad could chase his passion and race dirtbikes. Fast forward a few decades and you've landed in 2017, our second year racing our sports most prestigious enduro series, the NEPG. While most of you who stumbled across my blog are probably familiar with dirtbikes, offroad racing, and maybe enduros basically all they are is a long dirtbike race (approx. 60 miles) through various terrain. We race in the woods; through streams, fields, mountains, sand, whatever you can think of while we are timed through different length sections and the lowest time wins. Got it? Good.

     The next thing I should probably tell you is that I do these races with my family, 3 cousins specifically. My dad, Eric, is our driver, mechanic, cook, DJ, and bank. He still races locally in the 55+ Expert class after racing his whole life and accomplishing a great deal, including racing our sports "olympics", the ISDE, once in 1994 in Tulsa, Oklahoma and a second time in 1996 in Finland. He also started our family business with his brother; Town & Country Cycle Center, a motorcycle dealership thats been going strong for 30+ years. Are you starting to see a pattern here? We eat, sleep, and breath this sport everyday whether we like it or not. I, myself, race the AA/Expert class which is in layman's terms the Pro 2 class. The best of the best race the "Pro" class, the guys who do this as a job, and we are the best of the rest. This is my second year racing offroad again after racing motocross for a few years until a back injury caused me to change disciplines. Tommy, the oldest of the 3 brothers, is 34 and an engineer for a lock and latch company in Pennsylvania. Tom is here for the experience and we love having him on board for the trip. He races the 30+ Expert class and while he might not be in contention for wins he definitely wins the moral award, keeping us all lighthearted. Noah is the next, 19 years old and racing the 200 Expert class, this is his first year in the A class after racing the national enduros in the 200 Amateur class last year and scoring 3rd for the year. Lastly is Wyatt, just 18 years old he is racing as many of the nationals as his mom will let and has great potential while racing the 200 Amateur class after spending last year racking up wins and great rides in the 200 Novice class. 

     Those are the basics about us and what were doing here. Along the way you will hopefully get to know us better and get to read along with all our experiences. This blog will primarily be about us racing the nationals but we might pop in with a local race or a general post about nothing, or whatever it is people actually put in blogs. If I'm doing this wrong let me know!

Round 1! Sumter, South Carolina

    So I decided to do this blogging thing for a few reasons. One, I've never seen a racer blog and believe that our sport is one of the most fun and unique sports on the planet and not enough people get to see it, especially through our eyes. Two, because I've never read a blog by a dirtbike racer I think it's a great way to publicize myself so if you are one of our sponsors reading this, hey. If there is anyone who wants to be part of our journey feel free to contact me at Seankoeller521@gmail.com. Lastly, I know most of you probably don't care about this. Like I said I've never ever read a blog because frankly I'm busy doing this whole racing thing and I don't care, but with my family being all together, enjoying something we love, and making memories along the way it's something worth documenting.I hope you stop by from time to time and see what we're up to. Without further ado, Round 1.

Wyatt @ Battery Park

      (Pre-Race)

      I'm writing this post in hindsight; Sumter, South Carolina is the first round of the series and took place February 5th. With that being said I might be a little foggy on some details; lets face it, I can't remember what I ate for breakfast. The week before the 1st race is probably my favorite week of the whole year. We clean our bikes like new and replace plastics and graphics, new gear gets unpackaged from our great gear sponsors, Answer racing, Scott goggles, and Bell Helmets. The bikes get new sunstar chains and sprockets and wrapped in Dunlop tires, everything is brand new and fresh before we literally drag it through the dirt for the next year. Not only do we get freshened up but myself, Wyatt, and Noah plan to head down a few days early to one of our favorite riding spots, Battery Park Offroad, in Nesmith, South Carolina for a few days of practice, photos, and breaking in our bikes.
     The trip down was pretty uneventful apparently because I literally don't remember anything about it but we arrive at Battery Park bright and early Thursday to a beautiful day, and that's when it all goes wrong. The sun is shining, its 70 degrees and we're lacing up our fresh gear and boots to take some poster-style shots when I go to start my bike, NOPE. I check everything, Spark, air, gas, it has it all but won't start; now I'm pissed. The sun is baking the back of my neck, sweat pouring down my face, but I decide to hop in for pictures and tackle getting this started after. Fast forward 45 mins and the photos are done and I'm stripping in the parking lot because we just left 22 degree New Jersey and it's like the Sahara out here. Finally after taking the tank off my bike, flooding the engine, replacing 2 spark plugs, and spending 20 mins on the phone with my dad I finally find a rag stuffed way down the airboot; I actually contemplate finding something tall to jump off when Noah comes sputtering up to me. After riding for 20 mins a crank seal on his freshly rebuilt Husqvarna 150 failed and he's done until my dad can bring the parts to fix it. Wyatt and I spend the rest of the day enjoying miles of great single track while dialing in our bikes and much to our surprise have the whole place to ourselves.
     Friday morning we wake up in our van to the sound of rain pinging off the roof, its roughly 9:30 am, raining, and 45 degrees; talk about a 180. The rain subsides as the morning rolls on and a half dozen trucks roll in; more enduro riders coming to practice before the race. We meet some cool guys, hey TJ and Kyle, and ride for a few hours before loading up our stuff and waving farewell to Ashley and the crew that run Battery Park. Our next top is Sumter where the rest of our family will be meeting us the next day.

The whole family together, the best part

     Saturday morning my Dad, Uncle Kerry, and Aunt Joyce arrive with a box of supplies and we head to the race site to sign in, fix Noah's bike, and get ready for the race the next day. Luckily we've got a big boxvan to stay out of the wind because a cold front came through and its bitter out, the wind is ripping, and its in the upper 30s. We're also lucky Noah's ride was a relatively easy fix and he's perfectly good to race. A few hours late as usual Tommy and his wife Katie show up; we all sign up and head back to the hotel before a family dinner and a good nights sleep in anticipation for the coming event.

My Dad and I Before the start

    (Race Day)

   6;30am, Alarm blaring and after a restless nights sleep I'm awake. I nibble on a light hotel breakfast as I pound water getting ready for the day. Kerry and the boys come down as we're on our way out the door, I start on row 29 as I'm preseeded into the race because of last years results while the rest of the family is on row 94, so they start at 10:34am while I start at 9:29am.

9:29am, I'm off! Its FREAKING cold, so even though the first mile or two isn't actually part of the race I ride it quickly so I can stop before the first section and warm my hands and body up. The first piece is absolutely destroyed, I realize that it is identical to last years race and let me tell you, it was outrageously rough. Before I know it I have the worst arm pump of my life and promptly pinball off a root and find myself off the trail in a bush. One of my friends, who ended up winning my class for the day, Thorn Devlin, passes me from a minute behind and boy is that disheartening. I struggle though the next few miles before last years Pro champ Russ Bobbitt comes by me from 2 minutes back, at this point I'm just making up new curse words and yelling to myself but can't even pull in my clutch because my arms are so pumped and end up crashing once more before the section is over. The piece is over and I'm sitting at the van with my arms above my head trying to figure out what just happened as my dad attempts to break up the lactic acid trying to burst though my forearms.

     Approx. 10am. I ride towards piece #2 still trying to shake the arm pump, I never get arm pump so I'm completely flabbergasted at whats happened as I try to regroup. The clock ticks off my minute and I take off again. A little while into the piece I notice how beat this piece is too, again its just regurgitated trail from last years event and is completely hammered. The arm pump is creeping back in but I'm doing my best to work it out when coming off a dirt road into trail a vine rips me off the bike and sends my Husqvarna flying into a downed tree. When I pick it up I realized I've smashed yet another brand new pipe; dad's gonna be pissed. I struggle out the rest of the section where Thorn, Bobbitt, and Stu Baylor all pass me as I nurse my beat up bike to the end of the test. When I get to the end we replace the pipe with the spare we brought (I smash a lot of pipes) and I believe my day is basically over after 2 disastrous tests so the pressure is off and we're going out to just lay it down best I can.
 
     Who knows what time it is. Test 3 goes a little better, I managed to ride a little smoother and shake my debilitating arm pump even though we're still riding the same trail as we did last year; are you starting to see a pattern? The same guys blow my doors off but it's the longest piece of the day and I start finding my groove and manage a 38th overall fastest time where my first 2 sections were 60-something and 50-something.

Hopping out on a road during test #2
Darrin Chapman Photo

   Test 4 because time doesn't work with this. I finally start to get my shit together! I still have crashed in every piece at least once but I finally found a groove and although I'm still getting caught by the fast guys on the 2 minutes behind me it's way later in the piece and I can stick with them for longer. Thorn only comes into the test 1 second in front of me. I don't really remember the piece specifically, but judging by my test time this was my best of the day with a 29th overall fastest time.

  Test 5, I guess we'll stick with this format. I remember this a little because I was about a mile before the end of the section and no one had passed me yet! I was finally riding more like myself until I washed the front wheel on a root. As I was picking my bike up I hear a four stroke singing off in the distance, here comes Bobbitt. Russ ended up catching me a few corners later and as I let him by I now hear a two stroke coming. "I don't thinkkkkkk so bud" I grab a handful of throttle and zig zag through the trees. I can see Thorn pass me at one point but the trail goes in every which direction and I manage to drop back in front of him and come into the finish of the piece 2 seconds in front of him, a small victory if I ever had one but I take that confidence with me to the 6th and final section of the day.

     THE FINAL COUNTDOWN, Test 6.  The test isn't the clearest in my mind except for the fact its the A loop, only the A classes (expert), the AA, and Pro classes run this piece. One thing I do remember is that there were a lot of pine needles down and it was super easy to get lost and turned around. I managed to keep it on the trail for the most part minus 1 or 2 points where I thought I ended up in Narnia because I had no idea which way I was supposed to go. A personal best for me on the day, neither Bobbitt or Thorn passed me in this piece. After such a rough start to my day I was grasping at straws to try and take some positives from the day and this was the cherry on top of the pile of garbage that was my day.

Towards the end of Test 6
Kenneth King Photo

    (Results)

     The day actually ended up not being that bad, I was 10th place in the AA class which secured me row 30 for the next event in Florida, as the top 10 in points get assigned row numbers for the coming races. Florida will be my first race with a seeded row earned from racing and not from previous years points. I also ended up 38th overall and while its not my best overall the first round here is filled to the brim with talent; there were 36 Pro riders and 30 AA. Not one Expert beat me which on a day I didn't feel anywhere near my best was a positive. Last year I suffered a mechanical DNF here so I will absolutely take a top 10 to start the season but I'll always have my eye on the top step of the podium.

Noah Ripping though the South Carolina whoops

The Boys!

I can't attest for the rest of the guys days piece by piece other then I'm sure it was even rougher back on row 94! Tommy suffered a blown rear shock in the very first piece and had to replace his with a spare that was not even for his bike, but he finished which is what matters and ended up 37th in A30+. Both Noah and Wyatt finished 5th in their respective classes A200 and B200 in their first races in the higher classes than they raced last year.

Wyatt at speed

We couldn't do any of this without our family, all of them and their support is what makes this all possible. Also our shop Town & Country Cycle Center is responsible for getting us to the races and we hope you check us out for anything you need. We'd all like to thank Dan Duda at Tucker Rocky for the support from Answer racing and everything else he does for us, Dave Ginolfi at Scott Goggles for keeping us in the best product on the market, as well as Kenny Lake at Motive Dezigns, and Chris at 139 designs. I'd like to thank my personal sponsors Bel-Ray Lubricants, Sunstar chains and sprockets, Braking Brakes, and EVS Sports. Noah has to thank his own sponsors; Sidi Boots, Mobius, Twin Air, and Ryno Power.

Tom, Noah, and Wyatt before the start