PREZ SAYS

The Good, the Bad, and the Unprepared

First the Good,

Although the season officially started over the Labor Day weekend with the LBJ Enduro, the H/S season finally got started at the CFTR event over the Sept. 18, 19 weekend. Another record crowd and a very challenging course brought a lot of smiles and some blisters as the course really made you work. The excitement and anticipation of hearing those famous words from the one and only Uncle Bill was music to our ears. The new Mototally sign up and scoring system was introduced with great success as the lines were minimal and the process was smooth. Getting the first one out of the way with almost 1100 riders will guarantee the rest of the season will be even better. FTR is very appreciative of all the extra time and effort during the summer from Tim, Lisa, Brandon and many others to adjust and work on the transition and incorporating the changes into our series.

As the morning practice concluded, it was obvious that this was going to be sort of a survival test as the temp was rising and things started to get sticky, as the humidity set in. As my Idaho invited guest and I talked about some sections and how this was a real H/S, the time got away from us and before you know it the lines were full as we rolled up to the start. You would have thought we were at a National with spectators lining the snow fence and bikes were lined up from one side to the other side of the starting grid. Good stuff right here! Now the Bad

The club provided two, as in 2 dumpsters and some of you leave bags of trash under the trees where you camped, Really people! We did some homework and with the help of one of several drones taking pics of the camping area, we kind of know who you are. So we are going to watch you and see if that was just an accident or if it happens again you and your group will be gone, memberships pulled. It is unacceptable for any of us to leave trash, bagged or not on the property and not properly disposed of. It’s a slap in the face to our clubs to have to go around our campsites and pick up trash left by you and your friends. Just remember, this is not your property, we are guests on someone else’s property and the clubs are responsible, it makes us ALL look bad. Also, paying your gate fee Does Not and let me repeat, Does Not give you the right to do what you want, be jerks or ABUSE our relationship with the landowner. FTR will not accept this, put up with this, or deal with it any longer. You will be told to leave.

Camping out for the weekend with your family and friends is a major highlight for the weekend, I get it as I like to park next to my buddies also. Here’s what’s starting to happen, the clubs are running out of room for our rigs and parking is a major concern with most events. The old saying is true that if you can’t park them you can’t have an event. This past weekend at the CFTR event, they were out of parking, even using the old starting area and they added overflow parking. As we all know, that property has a lot of room to park, so what happened you ask? Going back to the videos, you can see many groups circling the wagons like we all used to do, me included. The key word here is used to, back when we only had 500-600 riders per weekend, we could block off areas and park in a square. Now we are at 800-1100 per weekend at any given event. We just can’t circle the wagons anymore. With a lot of rigs running up to 60-70 ft long and letting four of them take up an acre or two, we are running out of room.

Please consider parking parallel, side to side, awning to awning or someway where we don’t take up extra space. If any of you have ever been to the Mini-O’s, there’s a reason they park you the way they do, they will run out of room. I know this seems petty, more restrictions, more rules, can’t do this, can’t do that, I paid my money, ect. Just remember, you could be one of the late families coming in on Friday night and you can’t find a place to park or have to park way away in the rough because of all these blocked off areas that have a football field in the middle of them.

The Unprepared

I rode HS 1 and the amount of riders that stopped alongside the course was kind of scary. Their answer was either I’m resting, tired or just getting some water. I also know from looking at the scores that a lot of riders only went 1 or 2 laps and I wonder if not being conditioned for the brutal weather was a factor. One other thing I did notice and experience was the fact that when that horn went off it was full on moto, I mean like nobody was letting off, full send for a lap and then the fire went out. I got caught up in that mayhem at first but made myself settle in and find a good pace as I knew we had a 3 lap deal and maybe a 4 lapper. My hero days are gone and I’ve won my share of jackets so it’s all about the ride now with my buddies. Even though I have been doing time at croom during the summer, race pace is way different and the energy you burn will surprise you. Peppering your body in advance will give you a better chance of surviving, finishing and having a good ride even though you are completely worn out. Then comes the recovery part, which is just as important as anything. Everyone has a different idea and a program they follow, but most importantly figure out what works for you. A supplement, recovery drink or something needs to be in your body after the race. Don’t get in trouble and allow your body to crash, like stop sweating, feeling clammy or cold sweats. Be aware.

Thanks for listening,

Randy Faul

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