Stimilon reviews and pics

[Paul_E_D]

New thread, That was an incredible day. THe weather cleared Friday night and things were perfect until the last race of the day.

I'm too wiped to write a full review yet, but I also had a fantastic time. Racing MX is fun for sure, but the Loudon crew that showed made it really an epic day. Thanks for all the help and laughs. Lets do it again next year!

[typeone]

wow, goodTimes in deed! great to meet a bunch of new NESR peoples, i had a freekin' blast!

holy tired.. . i stopped in Micky D's for a leak on the way home and had fuzzy eyeballs, no more focus! hahaa. so fun, looking forward to the next dirty meet up. review and pics tomorrow.

[breakdirt916]

I just rode the xr80 around the backyard

show us the pics!

[JustInMass]

What an unbelievable event.
BIG Props to Davo for putting on such a good time.
I really didn't know what to expect from a "casual mx race weekend" and was concerned that it'd be a little bit "disorganized/hack" weekend, but nothing even close.
From the incredible number and attentiveness of the cornerworkers to the timing of the line up and starts, this was incredible. The day just flowed soooo well, everyone was very respectful of the race track and the racing itself. It was GREAT.

Dog dead tired this morning - arms are so exhausted.
The track was unreal. The whoops and braking bumps were just sick and swallow all of your energy very fast if you're not used to them. Ride that track 3 weekends in a row, and you're in SUPERMAN mx shape.

Special thanks to the DNF guys for keeping it full of laughs with a tool in hand as needed, and as always; to Paul/Lisa for a place to sleep, and for Squirrel for the biggest laugh I can remember in a long time paddling in the sand. FANTASTIC meeting the other NESR's and seeing y'all.

I will absolutely be going back next year, BUT am VERY, VERY interested in scouting for race classes 30C and something else for the remainder of this year, if someone else joins me. 30C was a very "respectable class/group" to be racing in, and Novice in general I think would be a very good competitive group at someplace like CH where I know the track. I don't know the organizations, but CH has
July 19 NEMX www.nemx.org (day before school :-(
July 26 NESC www.NESCmotocross.com
Oct 18 NESC www.NESCmotocross.com


Can't wait for 7/20 school - you guys gotta jump in!

[JustInMass]

Just to note: NESC and NEMX both cancelled their races this weekend.
Stimilon didn't

[Paul_E_D]

OK Here We go. Lining up on the starting line for our first race. Open class 2-strokes: Keepin it Real


Smoke 'em if you got 'em (165=BFMR6, 728=Paul_E_D, 416=JustInMass)



The T1 melee. I ran over a bike in this one...


I was nervous about the start, but it turns out its really easy to launch a dirtbike, and the T1 thing is at such low speeds that its not intimidating at all compared to roadracing. I wasn't nervous in the least for the starts after this.

[Paul_E_D]

So, I finished about 14th or so in my first race which was mid-pack. There were likely a few experts , a few amatuers and a bunch of novices all mixed in there. 36 starters.

The track is just HUGE. It's fast and incredibly flowing despite a surface that offers very little traction and makes even straight line riding require full mental and physical focus. The bike just wants to spin and go sideways at all times!



The hills are incredibly steep. Pictures don't do it justice. The 125 struggled mightily to carry any speed up these monsters


The jumps aren't the sharp kind that throw you high in the air, but the landing are super steep, rutted, and soft demanding some respect for sure.


I finished 8th in the Novice 30C class. I had a blast. I was stunned to find out that the whole schedule would repeat itself starting at 2pm. That meant I had 2 more motos. My starts got better and better til I nearly holeshotted Old 30c in the second moto. I came into T2 in 2nd, ran most of the race in 5-7th, and accidentally pulled off track a lap early! The flagger must have been dicking around with the flags, because I swore I got the white flag. Oh well, I think I had 7th all wrapped up in that one. Good thing it was just for fun!

[JustInMass]

where'd ya get the pics?

[McBiggity]

I had a great time seeing all you guys again and meeting some new people. I really, really, really wish I could have been on track with you guys. Looked like so much fun.

I'm sure Tim will have his pics all uploaded within the next few days, I knew he took alot!

[union]

Looks like so much fun. Wish I could have made it. I want to go dirtbike riding so bad now.

[typeone]

my coins... as stated, total props to Davo and crew, everything was run very professionally for a 'hack' weekend. perfect mix of party and race, i would definitely attend again! super stoked to have ridden a national level track, watching Dowd and the other experts out there for the 450 main was sick. Dowd is such a natural on this track, real smooth. those who haven't attended a national there yet, you gotta now that youve been. man, you think those 450 rockstar and expert classes were fast? wooo, mind blowing to see the 'big boys' rockin it.

camping Friday night was a trip, minis everywhere, KSE blaring at 10PM, fireworks going off until around 230, little sleep to be had. i was awake every 2hrs through the night, hahaa. def made Sat tough but the experience was worth it. the weather held incredibly and temps dropped to a nice 60 degrees or so, great tent weather. super humid both days, i drank GALLONS of water. (actually cramped up in my first race from too much water)

for the guys that took off to more comfy accommodations, Sat morning wake up call came at 6AM with Metal blaring out of the loud speakers, total crack up. rider meeting at 745 so plenty of time to grab coffee and egg sandwich, real decent prices on food.

we did a track walk Fri night which wasn't only good to get perspective of the course, but for me to get a little exercise in. pics just DO NOT do this place justice, the gravity drops are INSANE. the best way for me to describe it is a huge, dirt roller coaster. most all corners are super banked and tall with massive drop offs or uphills. the soft soil really works the bike, brand new tires with the right tread pattern is definitely a must. practice conditions were optimal, so fun to jam around the banked corners but as the day worn on, the track gets really whooped out in the corners and the braking bumps get DEEP. pics through the day, and even spectating from the side lines, dont show how gnarly (deep sandy/slippery/tricky) the track is when on it. demands all your strength and attention at every moment. i really liked how there were lots of options for lines though, earlier in the day you didnt have to worry about crossing lines but later in the day you had to make decisions quick. one line that was good on lap two could be blown or too deep on lap three. really good challenge. momentum is soooo key or youre spinning trying to get traction up hills.

i raced Old 30C and Never Ever, think I placed around 16th (?) in Old 30C for moto 1, took 8th in moto 1 of Never Ever then bagged moto 2 for 30C and took 10th for my last moto of Never Ever. pretty happy with that, didnt want to push much harder, my hands/arms just couldn't take it. both classes were sold out at 40 riders each but i have no clue how many showed. looking forward to seeing the results on line.

Never Ever was a better skill mix for me and more fun, had a blast dicing it up with a few guys in the first moto then the second moto Craig (#666) and I were battling it out. crazy fun! i couldn't see shit that whole moto, got roosted real good right off the bat then again and had basically no vision, wish i remembered tearoffs, just too much to think about before hand even though Justin reminded us. i almost ate it after the checkered cause i couldnt see that deep line after the barrel jump, too funny.

my goal was just to stay up and I pretty much did that, only bit it once but the conditions are so soft its like falling in a pillow (at my speed anyway, hahaa). If you let off the gas anywhere the front gets super heavy and dives. I planted the front in the corner after the tree and just flopped over. No other wrecks but plenty of mistakes.

had a friend Mike come up who used to race MX back in the day, we were laughing about spectating there ~20yrs prior. holy shit i'm getting old! he borrowed my camera for some shots, i'll post a few in a bit.. .

[Paul_E_D]

where'd ya get the pics?

Lisa took these with a point and shoot. I can't wait to see some DSLR shots.

[typeone]

some pics. sorry guys, Mike could only keep Pauls bike in memory since it was easy orange and big numbers...

me


Old 30C start gate


Old 30C gate drop, rbrais #30 getting a good launch, sorry we didnt meet up, where'd you pit?


Paul_E_D, great shot!


Paul_E_D hover time


Paul_E_D


me


Never Ever gate drop with me and BMFR6 (Mark #165) to the right


Had fun with this kid, back 'n forth passing

[typeone]

this last moto was a blast. Craig #666 (not sure if you're on here?) and i had a good battle at the end, in the rain, with zero vision. i think he hit neutral... and i took advantage

preparation begins


the hunt is on!


telling myself to 'STAY UPRIGHT!' the ruts around this section were nuts


makin' the move on the inside, Craig is just to my left


makin' it stick!


so much fun.. .

[Paul_E_D]

Nice shots!!! Thanks Mike.

[lrrs313]

Looks like you guys couldn't have timed it better. Looks like a cool, cloudy day and it really doesn't look (I know, pictures don't do it justice) like the track got too rough by Southwick standards. Wish I could've been there.

[Paul_E_D]

The track was near perfect, but the low areas were holding a lot of moisture. Sticky and heavy are understatement. The 125 was at an extra disadvantage because of this. If I lost momentum it took forever to get going again.

I don't think it got particularly knarly, but I've never been there before, so I have nothing to compare it too.

[lrrs313]

I don't think it got particularly knarly,

That tells me all I need to know. Southwick usually gets DEEP. 4 foot deep whoops around the whole track.

And yeah, I can see the 125 struggling around there. Some big hills and wet sand saps power and momentum even worse than dry sand.

[typeone]

for the amount of rain we've been getting, it really was near perfect. curious how the soil is after a dry spell.

every time guys would come in from a moto talking about how evil it was getting i would start to get really nervous but there were tons of line options all day. the more speed you could carry, the better it was. my mistakes came when i just went too damn slow. it was so much better chasing someone cause i would look much further forward, not worrying about the deep ruts. the bike will plow through pretty easily compared to hard-pack ruts.

[typeone]

That tells me all I need to know. Southwick usually gets DEEP. 4 foot deep whoops around the whole track.

i could def see that happening, and i would not last for shit! hahaa. even though the track was being used all day, some classes were really small. the nice banked corners were getting whooped out but still totally manageable. you just had to stand more.

i cant wait to ride it again. so different.

[BMFR6]

yeah, imo the track could have gotten much worse. i imagine it's out of control at a club event. even with that said, it is a very taxing track to ride but so much fun. still don't have the energy for a race report, lol. physically my body feels like it's drunk, the muscles just won't do what I want them to. just got back from the pressure washer, lets just say pressure washers are god's gift to dirt bikes. now i know why all the racers had one. probably not good for things like the chain, but i can't imagine it couldn't be worse than all that sand all day.

[Pittenger5]

God I need a dirtbike

[typeone]

I don't think it got particularly knarly, but I've never been there before, so I have nothing to compare it too.

i cant stop playing laps in my head

my three big trouble spots yesterday were 1. the first corner, didnt want to be 'that guy' causing a pile up and pussed out every start 2. the corner and exit after the tree, just could not get comfy with those exit ruts! and 3. the high left-hand corner and exit after the middle table, 3rd corner back from the checked flag

those areas really fucked with my head every lap.

[Kurlon]

God I need a dirtbike

http://www.nestreetriders.com/forum/...-firesale.html

I've got to beat my friend up to get it back, but I've got a 14" front wheel, a set of ice tires, and a set of knobbies...

[BMFR6]

God I need a dirtbike

honestly, anyone that skipped out on this event missed an incredible day. really made me wish i never went the roadracing route and just went with the dirtbike, it was that much fun.