Around here I have noticed the classes in racing are a little messed up. I ride a 300 EX and I would like to compete against only similar machines. Here is the way it should be in the Hare Scramble series ( JUST AN OPINION )
A.. 0 to 350 4 stroke and 0 to 200 two stroke
this would cover the 250x 300ex warrior blaster
and some Polaris
B.. 351 and over 4 stoke and 201 and over 2 stroke
this would be 250r lt250r 400ex Banshee DS650
Raptor
C.. Utility. Anything without a manual clutch and/or 4x4

With the new big cc machine coming out this would be a more level playing field. Also safer, you will not have machines that can make some jumps and things landing on macines that cant. Can you imagine if motocross let the 250 riders compete with the 125 riders? You would never hear the end of it!

 

HareScramble and Cross Country races have only two classes. Sport and utility. Utility is defined as: any machine that comes equiped from the factory with racks.(Polaris Sport and Scrambler fall into the sport class)

Why only two classes?
Unlike an MX race. A HS/CC race is long. Multiple MX races can be run over the period of time that it takes too run one HS/CC race.
The start in an HS/CC race is not as important as it is in a MX race. The holeshot is only a very small portion of the long battle ahead in the race. During a shorter MX race. The start maybe everything.
Different quads for different situations. A 300EX maybe faster in the very tight woods, where other machines bang wheels on trees and stumps. A banshee maybe better at that long hillclimb that leads back too the track. Different quads shine at different points of the race.
And finally.....In a HS/CC race, it's the rider that makes the differance in the end. The guy that rides the smoothest, quickest, and has the best luck, wins in the end.

The new big-bore quads will have the power too compete at HS/CC racing. That is a given. But will they have the handling, reliability, and rider turn-out to make them winners. Time will tell. I will be there too see.......

 

That is not exactly true. Different cross country/hare scramble series have different classes. GNCC for example, has several different classes which differentiate between rider abilities, stock and modified machines, sport and utility, and even engine sizes in some of the two stroke classes.

It may just be that your particular series doesn't have enough participants to justify breaking down the classes any further.

Regards,

Dennis

 

In our District(District 23, MN), there are plenty of racers. 60-80 quads, depending on the location. The problem is that the dirtbikes race on the same day.(quads in the morning, and bikes in the afternoon) And bikes out-number quads 5-1. So there are multiple classes for the bikes, with over 100 bikes in each class.
District 23 racing is very popular around here. MX, HS/CC, Enduro, Flat-track, Hill-climb, and Road racing are all part of the same district. There are races and competition every weekend. Many racers take part in more than one type of racing. In the future, I hope that they start too separate out the quad classes in the HS/CC like they do for MX racing. Only time will tell.
For now, HS/CC races only have one "sport" class. The OPEN class.

 

Yeah, it is usually a slow process for the race promoters to accept quads and to try and give them the emphasis that the bikes receive. In our series (Mid South - msws.org), they have really done a very good job at supporting ATV's and expanding our classes. As it stands, we now have eight ATV classes - Pro, 2-Stroke, 4-Stroke, Vet, 2-Stroke Trail (basically a C class), 4-stroke Trail, and Beginner.

One of the best moves they made this last season was to break up what was previously one big class (Trail Rider) into 2 and 4 stroke trail and adding the beginner class. I think that the beginner class is especially important in that it gives people new to the sport an opportunity to try a race without having to line up with a bunch of experienced riders on tricked out machines - and the numbers have really proven it out. Our average Quad attendance this year rose dramatically - especially in those lower classes.

You should try dropping your promoters an e-mail and encourage them to expand the classes. If they start to hear more interest from ATV riders maybe they'll start to make changes.

Regards,

Dennis

 

That is an excellent idea. I will try too get in touch with the race promoters, and see what they think of the idea.

I can only think of one problem. Who decides what class a particular rider should race in? Pro, A class, C class, beginner?

District 23 (armca.org)

 

Well, as far as who gets to race in a particular class it is usually left up to the rider. I guess technically, someone at their first race could sign up for the Pro class, but that has never really been an issue.

The biggest problem of course is in trying to limit the sandbaggers from racing in the lower classes. The way our series polices the beginner class is by saying that anyone who has ever trophied at any hare scramble or cross country event is not qualified to run as a beginner. Can this be absolutely enforced? Of course not, but generally speaking it works out just fine.

Regards,

Dennis

 

SandBagger's.........Anything for a trophy!!!