Try Something New Occasionally!

FLAT TRACK?

If someone would have told me I would go race a Flat Track on this “Thumb Rehab Tour” I would have bet against it. But as luck would have it my buddy “Montana John Roberts” just happens to have a stable of Flat Track race bikes that he uses when the urge strikes him. He has Vintage, MX Conversions, 2 Stroke Bultaco’s,  Rotax’s, and big bore conversions that started life as TT 500 motors.

Montana John pulled two bikes out of his lineup, a converted CRF 450 Honda and a Vintage Yamaha 500 stuffed into a Flat Track frame. Both had the prerequisite 19” wheels and NO FRONT BRAKE! What in the hell was he thinking putting a motocross/Baja guy on a motorcycle with no front brake. The first time I ever rode either bike was at the race track during my first scheduled practice. So what do you think happened when a guy with 45 years of motorcycle riding experience tried to slow that sucker down going into the first turn? You guessed it.  I reached for the front brake without even thinking. Talk about a conditioned response. My right hand automatically goes for the front brake when I want to slow a motorcycle down, ANY motorcycle. So there I was heading into the first turn and discovering my normal thought process to ride a bike was suddenly useless. Then it gets one better. The guy in front of me heading into the turn falls down on a slick spot and occupies the line I am heading for. All I can do is straighten up and try not to run him over. Mission accomplished, I straighten up and head for the outside of the track and avoid him without hitting anyone or anything else. So for my first 4 laps on a strange bike I am trying to figure out how to ride it by constantly turning LEFT interrupted by a short straight before the next LEFT. All the while having to remember I can’t slow down using a front brake. Talk about a total squid, I must have looked like a Fat Drunken Mexican on a motorcycle those first 4 laps. I doubt it got much prettier during the next 4 practice sessions.

Let me define practice sessions for you. 4 laps each at approximately 18 seconds per lap! So if you do the math each practice session lasted about 1 minute and 12 seconds! Since I rode two classes and got 2 practices on each bike when I lined up to race I had ALMOST 5 Minutes of experience. What more could a guy ask for?

So I raced two classes, a Heat on each bike (6 laps) to determine gate position and then a Main event (10 laps) per bike for a total of 32 laps of racing. That comes to roughly 9 ½ minutes of full on racing for both classes!

Now the really funny part is how freakin’ much can happen in such a short amount of time. In one of the Main events on about the second or third lap I got my clock cleaned by some guy that apparently thought if he used my front wheel to slow himself down he could make the turn. I never saw it coming and was on the ground before I knew he was coming. The race was red flagged and the other riders returned to the starting line while I gathered myself and my bike up to see if we were both ok. The ambulance guys were great and ran out to check on me asking me hard questions like what day it was while shining a light in my eyes. I passed the exam so I asked if I could line back up and they said ok. Now it got interesting. I pull up to line up on the front row on the outside assuming I would be last pick on the gate, (chalk line really). Then the starter tells me I am supposed to start on the back row because of the crash. Huh? When someone cleans you out from behind I guess you still go to the back. I said ok and backed my bike up to the second chalk mark. Now I was on a mission, not mad but just irritated enough that I was going to be a bit more aggressive and not be pushed around by the regulars. I read the starter perfectly and got a great jump off the second row to hit the first turn alongside the front row guys and got around them to lead coming out of the first turn! So now it was on! There was no way I was going to let one of them inside me and I wasn’t going to give an inch or leave anyone any room,  especially my new best friend, the one that knocked me down the first time. He was on a 2 stroke Bultaco and he ran a compression release. I listened to that compression release for the remaining 8 laps as he tried to get inside me. Nothing doing, I was closing the door and leaving him only one option. Go the long way around on the outside if you think you can. Then my bike started sputtering about half way through the race and I was afraid it wouldn’t beat him to the next turn each time we hit the straightaway. Each time I just reached the turn in time to grab the very inside line and occupy the best real estate on the track for the remainder of the race. I crossed the finish with a grin under my helmet and my first thought was, “How do you like them apples!” as I took the checkered flag.

I was happy enough that when I got second place in the other main event I didn’t really care, Life was good. Well except for the fact that the crash ground some skin off my left arm and was now bleeding down the sleeve of my jersey. I just thought Oh well it wasn’t the first time and I am fairly certain it won’t be the last.  Especially if I ever decide to try Flat Tracking again.

Try to keep it on two wheels…….and sliding!

#33

“Whatever you are, be the Best at it.”