Englishtown has been an on and off favorite for me.

Some years I raced pretty well and even trophied.

Other years were downright miserable - bikes breaking or the track just beating up on me.



There were 2 really cool things about this year at Englishtown




First, my 100cc bike finally ran pretty well. No bog and I could circulate the track.




Second, I got to witness one of the most epic races ever in the Pre75 125 Expert class.




My friend Scott MacKenzie really brought his A game that day and put his head down and raced hard. I hope to post pictures of Scott launching off of a table top - you have to see it to believe it!

Southwick is an adventure for me each year.

The first couple of years my bikes broke.

Then crashes ended my day early for a couple of years.

Finally in 2009 it all came together and I rode around on the track all day. I say rode around - instead of raced - for a reason.

Southwick is like riding at the beach - the track is really just a big sand pit that they cut a track into. Sand is tough to ride in when you only get one time a year to actually try it…..

2010 was a little tough for me, as I was riding a brand new bike for the race. It managed to spit me off every moto I raced it in - totally my fault…..

This year I was on a bike that I was really comfortable with - the 1977 RM125 that Gary loaned me for the year. And, for the first time, I felt like I was actually racing in the sand!

I got decent starts, the bike would pop up on top of the sand, and I finally got the hang of how to corner.

Of course, all that effort resulted in me missing my 4th moto of the day - I started to get tunnel vision because I was so tired.

All in all a great day at Southwick.

The pictures where the bike has blue number plates were taken on the regular motocross track. The pictures where the bike has green number plates were taken on the grass track.

The picture above is the start of the team race - there were 10 teams that the computer system chose randomly. What a hoot that was.

Rode the 125 on Saturday, then broke out the 500 on Sunday. My hands went numb during the hour moto, but all was good. I think that Gary and I talked about this race more than any other race ACR put on this year - it was that good.

Yes, it has quite a while since an update has occured here at NYE206.com. Everything about this summer and fall have made time melt away so quickly.

Berwick was the second stop on the ACR schedule for 2011. Berwick is the track that Jeff Ward and Rick Johnson used to practice on before the 1987 des Nations that were held in Unadilla, NY. Berwick has huge elevation changes, natural terrain start, and a few man made jumps thrown in for the pucker factor.

Berwick is also a 2 day event. On Saturday we run our normal race schedule, then on Sunday we have a grass track race. The owners at Berwick are fantastic - they really enjoy the motocross scene!

Racing on Saturday was really fun for me. There was a couple of guys in the pre-78 class that were about my same speed and we all raced together. In that situation it really reminded me that I need to think about my breathing a little more - I caught myself holding my breath quite a few times during my motos.

On Saturday night Berwick runs a supercross type track on another part of their property. It was really a good time to watch modern bikes rocket around on that track. I was also really suprised at how many spectators showed up.

On Sunday Gary showed me a little true grit. The rear brake stay broke on his bike just a few laps into the one hour grass track GP. Gary continued to pound out lap after lap, braving the downhill with only the front brake. Pretty epic.

The next round of the ACR series was Central Village - and I was not there because I was in Hong Kong for work…. Maybe next year!

In my previous post you can read all about the weekend.  Here are the pictures to tell the rest of the story!

We use the same start line as the US National race and the MX of Nations.

This greets all who enter the park.  Not sure who painted this, nor do I know when it was done - but I do know it is cool…..

There were plenty of races where they combined classes to get decent size start gates.

Not a bad start for me in the Pre-78 class!

Another decent sized gate!

First gate ever on a 125.  Even as a kid the smallest bike I ever raced in motocross was a 175……

Hard to compete in a drag race with a YZ400, CR390, and a 1987 CR127 - I am on a 1977 RM125!

No corner speed at all!

Hmmmmmm - it looks like I am at a complete stop!

See you all at Berwick!

What a great season this is going to be!  Above is a picture of the 100 cc bikes that Scott, Gary and I built over the winter.  From left to right - 1980 RM100, 1979 RM100, 1978 RM100.  The 78 is the one that is closest to factory - the 79 and 80 are a mis-mash of the 10 or 12 bikes that sprouted up around us in the shop…..

I was suppose to have another bike ready as well for Budds - but it did not happen.  Getting the 100cc bike done was a down to the wire event!  Everything on the bike fought me, including a mysterious bog that occurs when you suddenly turn the throttle on. 

Let’s be honest.  I weigh 300 lbs fully loaded to race.  A 100 cc bike like this was designed for someone 1/3 my size and weight.  Add to that the carb problems and the bike was very challenging to ride.  I did finish the first moto, but the bike fouled a plug during the second moto.  For the races on Sunday I elected to leave the 100 under the awning….

Gary let me borrow a 77 RM125 so I could race the EVO 200 class.  Now that was fun!  The 125 powered me around just fine (as long as I kept it screaming) and the suspension did just fine for my weight.  On Sunday I used the 125 all day long, racing in the EVO 200 class and the Pre-78 class.

Riding the 100 and 125 really taught me a couple of things quickly. 

1.  I am out of shape - way out of shape.

2.  I have no corner speed.  Riding open class bikes for the last 4 years has made me really lazy in the turns.

I gutted it out both days and was rewarded with a couple of 1st place trophies.  There is about a month to sort out the 100 carb problems.  This month break will also allow me to renew my efforts at the gym.

See you at Berwick!

 What do you do when there is 3 feet of snow on the ground?  INDOOR CART RACES.

Sure, had a blast - and my daughter got by and I could not get back around her (see the pass at 1:08 on the video below). 

Ah well, just like both my classes in ACR last year - First Place Loser

1981 RM250.  First ever try at rebuilding a vintage MX bike.  Learned a lot, but would consider this a fail.  Bike broke at some races that were very, very far from home.  Parted the bike out - frame was used on a RM500 build I did, rest of bike sold on eBay.

1982 RM465.  First ever try at a frame up restore.  Learned even more about all the things that get beat on a vintage MX bike.  Would give this effort a B-.  Sold the bike to a guy in Italy.

1980 RM250.  Another frame up restore.  Would give this effort a solid B+.  Won a championship on this bike in 2009.  Sold the bike to a guy in the UK.

1981 RM125.  Simple freshen up/mix and match bike for my daughter to learn how to ride.  Parts multiplied around me like rabbits in the spring.  Daughter rode it and said “Not for me”.  Totally cool.  Sold the bike and 300 lbs worth of extra parts on eBay. 

1984 RM500.  Mix and match.  Originally set it up to just be a practice bike, but was pressed into service at the beginning of the 2010 ACR Series because the 1982 KX250 was not ready.  Bike was a blast to ride.  Solid B effort on this bike.  This bike is now a part of the G&G Team stable.

1987 KX500.  Frame up restore.  Would give this effort an A, but I don’t really have enough time with the bike to give a rating on how well it would work racing.  Bike sold to a fellow VMXer.

1982 KX250.  Frame up restore.  Solid A effort all around.  Bike looks awesome, races very, very well, and is a bike I will keep for a long, long time.  Maybe in late 2011 some new rims and spokes from Buchanans….

1985 CR250.  Bought from Vintage Iron for the 2010 ACR Series.  Looking back it really was an impulse purchase.  Chased around a million little problems that drove me nuts.  Just as I got the bike sorted and it ran well it became obvious that the suspension was set up for a rider that was 150 lbs lighter than I am.  Traded it for 2 1986 CR125s and a 1980 PE175.  The CR125s will be sold, but the PE175 will be a frame up garage queen - it is identical to the first dirt bike I ever owned!

Still have a 1984 RM250 to finish, plus the bikes I am working on for the 2011 ACR Series.  Of course, I also want to get my hands on a green tank Suzuki TS-90 with the hi-low gearbox……

This build was a little different than any other that I have done.  This one took just under 3 years!

There were several reasons that it took so long.  First, the 1987 KX500 was close to a “one year only” bike and that made several parts very hard to find.  Second, wear items like power valves were always ignored by owners and doomed to being ruined.  Kawasaki no longer had these parts and there were no useable ones to be found, so I had to improvise….  Third, this bike was never earmarked for racing - so race bike builds always consumed my time.

So, on the Sunday of Thanksgiving weekend, the bike finally came together.  Wow, it really turned out epic.  The motor is crisp, the look of the green plastic in the sun is unique, and the bike HAULS the mail.

Of course, the bike is sold already.  All I got a chance to do is a few heat/cool cycles and ride it around behind the shop.  Kenny is going to love this bike.  I hope he does not kill himself with it!

Next installment on the blog I might take a few pictures of the bikes I am building for the 2011 race season!

Blue Diamond was the last race of the year for 2010.  I was pretty much locked into 2nd in the +30 Vintage 80’s class and going into this race I was tied for first in the Vintage 80’s Open class.  The guy I was tied with usually smokes me, so unless he had a big problem, I was going to end up second in that class, too.

The ride down was awesome - both Gary and Scott were able to make it to this race.  I really enjoy the chatter in the truck as we headed south to Delaware. 

Blue Diamond has to be the most dialed in place we went to this year.  Not only did they have hook ups for the camper, but sign up on Saturday morning was flawless.  They had the new swipe card readers, and if your AMA card had the new magnetic stripe, all you had to do was swipe, use the touch screen to select your classes, then wait a few minutes for your name to be called.  It was awesome.

The track itself snakes around what appears to be a working rock/soil/sand pit.  Every part of the track was carefully groomed for race day.  These people know how to put on a race!

All the jumps seemed big to me, but safe at the same time.  I managed to break 4 spokes in the rear wheel of the 1982 KX250.  Dust kicked up around the start area, too.  It was odd, as the rest of the track was fine.

The day was a blast.  Gary continued on his winning ways. 

Scott overcame a first moto ”uh-oh” moment to secure the +40 EVO class championship.  This uh-oh moment happened on one of the larger jumps where 1977 suspension and Scott’s locked right wrist intersected.  Scott jumped so far and high that when he landed the force popped the exhaust out of the head.  He pulled off the side of the track and had to grab the hot exhaust and pull it back into the head….  

I nailed down second for the year in both of my classes.  Awesome stuff!

Stay tuned for the builds we will be doing for next year!