Race Write-up from Eagles Canyon Raceway
May 26, 2013 | 11:19 AM
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From: Texas
Race Write-up from Eagles Canyon Raceway
Yesterday, I drove to Eagles Canyon Raceway to compete in another ATV cross-country race. This race was Round 4 of the 2013 TORN series, and I'm going out on a limb by predicting it will most likely be my favorite track of the year because the course was such a blast! Below is my race write-up.
WHERE:
This XC race was held at a property just north of Decatur, Texas that usually hosts autocross events on a 2.5 mile (asphalt) road course. The natural terrain located at this property consists of rolling green pastures intermixed with creeks, ponds and mesquite trees. Like the last TORN race that I attended, this track was a 4.5 hour drive from my house. These 9 hour round trips (travel up and back in the same day) are tiring, but well worth it for the chance to bang bars with my fellow TORN racers.
TRACK CONDITIONS:
The track received some rainfall the night before and it was cloudy when I arrived at the track around 10:15 am. The amount of rain that hit the track was more than sufficient to knock down any dust and also make the hard packed soil tacky by the time I rode on the track for a few practice laps at 10:30 am. The clouds hung around much of the day with the sun peaking out occasionally. By the time of my afternoon race, it warmed up to about 80 degrees with a nice breeze blowing from time to time.
The ATV track was a little more than 4 miles in length according to my quad's odometer, and it was mostly made up of sharp left and right turns winding through the hilly, green pasture areas. The turns were marked with either tires or mesquite trees (with lots of THORNS). The track took racers through a handful of wet creek crossings which made the hard packed soil very muddy and slippery for several feet afterwards. The track was plenty wide throughout the pasture areas, but you didn't want to venture beyond the mowed down track as the thick green grass hid lots of rocks (some were quite large). This track was not very technical, but what made it unique and interesting was the fact that it took the racers on parts of the asphalt road course from time to time. Unfortunately, there were no long straight-aways on either the asphalt sections or the green pastures where you could get up to fast speeds (50+ mph).
OVER 40 B CLASS:
When we lined up at the starting line, I counted a total of 7 quads in the Over 40 B class. As I recall, quads included a couple of Honda 450's, a Kaw. 450, a Honda 400ex, a Polaris Outlaw, a Cannondale 440, and my Kaw. KFX700.
PRACTICE:
I arrived at the track with just enough time to do three practice laps. The first thing I noticed was how tacky the hard packed soil was in the pasture areas, which caused my quad to go up on 2 wheels with each sharp turn. By the time I did my second and third laps, my tires felt better (slid around turns easier...probably because my tires started to warm up/increase tire pressure). My favorite part was running on the sections of asphalt road course. Not surprising, the road course surface was very slippery when you first entered it (thanks to recent rain and the the mud being dragged onto the road course from the ATV track). But the surface was dry/sticky very soon after the first 20 feet or so and offered plenty of traction for the rest of the road course section (which were usually just a short right-hand or left-hand turn or a perpendicular crossing over the course).
THE START:
When my class assembled on the starting line, I was the last to arrive and took a spot on the far left side of the line. We were facing a short (slightly uphill) run to the first turn (a hard right turn around a tire).
As we are sitting on the starting line watching other classes ahead of us take-off, it started to rain...hard! As everyone would soon discover, the rain dramatically changed the course conditions as compared to the morning practice laps.
Finally, the green flag when up and off we went. Unfortunately, I had a LOUSY start and ended up 6th out of 7 racers in my class after the first few turns. After we made the first right turn, the course immediately made another right hand turn and then a sharp left turn towards a small bunch of mesquite trees. Just before the mesquite trees was a sharp drop-off and then several sharp turns in and around the trees. One of the racers ahead of me and to my left hit the sharp drop off a bit too fast and ended up going straight into the trees (between them) rather than around them as the course was laid out. This was obviously not an attempt to cut the course, but rather it was the result of the rain-slicked course which suddenly made it extremely difficult to turn/stay on course. I didn't realize it at the time, but this was a sign of things to come!
LAP 1:
As I followed most of my class around the first set of mesquite trees, all chaos broke-out (and continued throughout the rest of race). By chaos, I mean quads were spinning out of control on every turn! It seemed as though everyone was doing a 180 turn or blowing off course due to the rain and slippery conditions. I quickly passed a few racers in my class who spun out on sharp turns. Then I came up behind the (Mike) Cannondale 440 and saw him do a complete 360 degree spin (unintentional of course) on a sharp right hand turn. I thought he was going to recover and stay on course when suddenly his left 2 tires caught the edge of the grassy track and it tossed him off his quad. Luckily, he wasn't going at a high rate of speed, so I'm sure he was not seriously injured. At this point, I believe I had made it up to 3rd position (not bad considering I was in 6th place after the first few turns).
About half-way into lap 1, I could hear the (Mitchell) Kaw. 450 on my tail. I did my best to stay ahead of him, but it was difficult to go fast with such a slippery course. And to matters worse, it was getting difficult to see though my goggles, which quickly became muddy from eating everyone's roost in front of me. At this point, I thought it wise to remain calm and continue to run at a clean/controlled pace. Despite my best efforts to maintain position, the (Mitchell) Kaw. 450 was able to pass me on a short straight-way in the grassy pasture.
Near the end of the first lap, I was able to pass a few more racers in my class that spun out or lost control on the slippery turns. However, these passing opportunities didn't result in a better position because as I slowed down to avoid the spun-out racer, another racer from behind me would also pass me. So I ended up in the same position! Grrrr. Believe it or not, this happened twice...very frustrating!
When I finally completed the first lap, I believe I was in 4th place.
LAPS 2 & 3:
During the 2nd and 3rd laps, the rain held off and the track started to dry out/get tacky in some places. As the track dried/provided more traction, the racers were able to speed up.
At one point in the middle of the course, the track takes the riders down through a muddy creek crossing and then through a sharp left turn immediately next to a pond...if you hit it too fast, you could easily slide down into the pond. Soon after that obstacle, I passed the (Matt) Honda 450 ridden by Matt (one of the faster riders in my class). It appeared to me that Matt may have spun-out on a turn and/or stalled his quad. As I passed him, he was having trouble restarting his quad. I was excited to pass Matt because that put me back into 3rd place behind the (Mitchell) Kaw. 450 that had passed me earlier and the (Joe) Polaris Outlaw.
Not long after I passed Matt, he caught up to me and stayed close behind me...no doubt he was looking for a chance to pass me. I knew he was there, so I tried my best to ride smart and not make any mistakes.
At one point, I caught up with the (Mitchell) Kaw. 450, and I rode close to his rear bumper for about a half lap waiting for a safe opportunity to pass. He rode hard and didn't give me any room to pass in the pasture areas. I kept pressure on him with the hope that he might slip up or make a mistake. The (Matt) Honda 450 was close behind me at this point, so I was feeling the pressure too. As we hit one of the asphalt sections (which was still wet/slippery in places), the (Mitchell) Kaw. 450 spun out/went wide left. Matt and I both seized the opportunity to pass him...and Matt pulled ahead me...just before we exited that section of asphalt, Matt slowed down and I was able to pass him. He told me later that his goggles were completely covered on one side and he couldn't see...so he slowed down to avoid a possible collision with me. What luck! That put me in 2nd place with Matt still very close behind me.
LAP 4:
As lap 4 began, I soon caught up to the (Joe) Polaris and Matt was still on my heals. At this point, the track had dried up a lot/gotten tacky and we could go much faster around the wide turns (I recall power sliding around a long wide turns at 35 mph...right on the heals of Joe and Matt was nipping at my heals! That was exciting, and I kept putting pressure on Joe with the hope that he would slip up or give me enough room to pass him.
About half-way into lap 4, the sky opened up and it rained hard. By hard, I mean it rained sideways! The rain was so hard, it stung when it hit my face. The hard rain made it difficult to see and the track instantly became a slippery mess again.
A moment before the rain hit, the three of us were battling bumper to bumper at a fast pace...kinda like flat track racing! But as soon as the hard rain hit, we were slowed down to a crawl...slipping & sliding from corner to corner. Traction seemed impossible! Every time I managed to find an opening and pull up alongside Joe, he would suddenly find traction on his side of the track and regain the lead. This occurred a few times during the last few hundred yards of the course, including one of the last few turns immediately before crossing the finish line. It was battle to the very end! Alas, I was not able take the lead before the checkered flag, and I finished the race just 2 seconds behind Joe. What a race!
RACE RESULTS:
According to the results posted at the TORN trailer, I finished in 2nd place out of 7 in my class. Joe took the win and Matt finished close behind me. The rain changed up the race so dramatically from what it was during morning practice. What was once a fast-paced, flat-track type course quickly turned into a slower-paced, slippery mess. Even though I thoroughly enjoyed this battle in the slippery mud, I think this race would have been even more fun had the course stayed dry. I love wide and fast tracks like this one and hope we return to this property in future years. As always, I have to say a big THANKS to TORN for putting on another fun and well-organized event!
I hope you enjoyed my write-up.
WHERE:
This XC race was held at a property just north of Decatur, Texas that usually hosts autocross events on a 2.5 mile (asphalt) road course. The natural terrain located at this property consists of rolling green pastures intermixed with creeks, ponds and mesquite trees. Like the last TORN race that I attended, this track was a 4.5 hour drive from my house. These 9 hour round trips (travel up and back in the same day) are tiring, but well worth it for the chance to bang bars with my fellow TORN racers.
TRACK CONDITIONS:
The track received some rainfall the night before and it was cloudy when I arrived at the track around 10:15 am. The amount of rain that hit the track was more than sufficient to knock down any dust and also make the hard packed soil tacky by the time I rode on the track for a few practice laps at 10:30 am. The clouds hung around much of the day with the sun peaking out occasionally. By the time of my afternoon race, it warmed up to about 80 degrees with a nice breeze blowing from time to time.
The ATV track was a little more than 4 miles in length according to my quad's odometer, and it was mostly made up of sharp left and right turns winding through the hilly, green pasture areas. The turns were marked with either tires or mesquite trees (with lots of THORNS). The track took racers through a handful of wet creek crossings which made the hard packed soil very muddy and slippery for several feet afterwards. The track was plenty wide throughout the pasture areas, but you didn't want to venture beyond the mowed down track as the thick green grass hid lots of rocks (some were quite large). This track was not very technical, but what made it unique and interesting was the fact that it took the racers on parts of the asphalt road course from time to time. Unfortunately, there were no long straight-aways on either the asphalt sections or the green pastures where you could get up to fast speeds (50+ mph).
OVER 40 B CLASS:
When we lined up at the starting line, I counted a total of 7 quads in the Over 40 B class. As I recall, quads included a couple of Honda 450's, a Kaw. 450, a Honda 400ex, a Polaris Outlaw, a Cannondale 440, and my Kaw. KFX700.
PRACTICE:
I arrived at the track with just enough time to do three practice laps. The first thing I noticed was how tacky the hard packed soil was in the pasture areas, which caused my quad to go up on 2 wheels with each sharp turn. By the time I did my second and third laps, my tires felt better (slid around turns easier...probably because my tires started to warm up/increase tire pressure). My favorite part was running on the sections of asphalt road course. Not surprising, the road course surface was very slippery when you first entered it (thanks to recent rain and the the mud being dragged onto the road course from the ATV track). But the surface was dry/sticky very soon after the first 20 feet or so and offered plenty of traction for the rest of the road course section (which were usually just a short right-hand or left-hand turn or a perpendicular crossing over the course).
THE START:
When my class assembled on the starting line, I was the last to arrive and took a spot on the far left side of the line. We were facing a short (slightly uphill) run to the first turn (a hard right turn around a tire).
As we are sitting on the starting line watching other classes ahead of us take-off, it started to rain...hard! As everyone would soon discover, the rain dramatically changed the course conditions as compared to the morning practice laps.
Finally, the green flag when up and off we went. Unfortunately, I had a LOUSY start and ended up 6th out of 7 racers in my class after the first few turns. After we made the first right turn, the course immediately made another right hand turn and then a sharp left turn towards a small bunch of mesquite trees. Just before the mesquite trees was a sharp drop-off and then several sharp turns in and around the trees. One of the racers ahead of me and to my left hit the sharp drop off a bit too fast and ended up going straight into the trees (between them) rather than around them as the course was laid out. This was obviously not an attempt to cut the course, but rather it was the result of the rain-slicked course which suddenly made it extremely difficult to turn/stay on course. I didn't realize it at the time, but this was a sign of things to come!
LAP 1:
As I followed most of my class around the first set of mesquite trees, all chaos broke-out (and continued throughout the rest of race). By chaos, I mean quads were spinning out of control on every turn! It seemed as though everyone was doing a 180 turn or blowing off course due to the rain and slippery conditions. I quickly passed a few racers in my class who spun out on sharp turns. Then I came up behind the (Mike) Cannondale 440 and saw him do a complete 360 degree spin (unintentional of course) on a sharp right hand turn. I thought he was going to recover and stay on course when suddenly his left 2 tires caught the edge of the grassy track and it tossed him off his quad. Luckily, he wasn't going at a high rate of speed, so I'm sure he was not seriously injured. At this point, I believe I had made it up to 3rd position (not bad considering I was in 6th place after the first few turns).
About half-way into lap 1, I could hear the (Mitchell) Kaw. 450 on my tail. I did my best to stay ahead of him, but it was difficult to go fast with such a slippery course. And to matters worse, it was getting difficult to see though my goggles, which quickly became muddy from eating everyone's roost in front of me. At this point, I thought it wise to remain calm and continue to run at a clean/controlled pace. Despite my best efforts to maintain position, the (Mitchell) Kaw. 450 was able to pass me on a short straight-way in the grassy pasture.
Near the end of the first lap, I was able to pass a few more racers in my class that spun out or lost control on the slippery turns. However, these passing opportunities didn't result in a better position because as I slowed down to avoid the spun-out racer, another racer from behind me would also pass me. So I ended up in the same position! Grrrr. Believe it or not, this happened twice...very frustrating!
When I finally completed the first lap, I believe I was in 4th place.
LAPS 2 & 3:
During the 2nd and 3rd laps, the rain held off and the track started to dry out/get tacky in some places. As the track dried/provided more traction, the racers were able to speed up.
At one point in the middle of the course, the track takes the riders down through a muddy creek crossing and then through a sharp left turn immediately next to a pond...if you hit it too fast, you could easily slide down into the pond. Soon after that obstacle, I passed the (Matt) Honda 450 ridden by Matt (one of the faster riders in my class). It appeared to me that Matt may have spun-out on a turn and/or stalled his quad. As I passed him, he was having trouble restarting his quad. I was excited to pass Matt because that put me back into 3rd place behind the (Mitchell) Kaw. 450 that had passed me earlier and the (Joe) Polaris Outlaw.
Not long after I passed Matt, he caught up to me and stayed close behind me...no doubt he was looking for a chance to pass me. I knew he was there, so I tried my best to ride smart and not make any mistakes.
At one point, I caught up with the (Mitchell) Kaw. 450, and I rode close to his rear bumper for about a half lap waiting for a safe opportunity to pass. He rode hard and didn't give me any room to pass in the pasture areas. I kept pressure on him with the hope that he might slip up or make a mistake. The (Matt) Honda 450 was close behind me at this point, so I was feeling the pressure too. As we hit one of the asphalt sections (which was still wet/slippery in places), the (Mitchell) Kaw. 450 spun out/went wide left. Matt and I both seized the opportunity to pass him...and Matt pulled ahead me...just before we exited that section of asphalt, Matt slowed down and I was able to pass him. He told me later that his goggles were completely covered on one side and he couldn't see...so he slowed down to avoid a possible collision with me. What luck! That put me in 2nd place with Matt still very close behind me.
LAP 4:
As lap 4 began, I soon caught up to the (Joe) Polaris and Matt was still on my heals. At this point, the track had dried up a lot/gotten tacky and we could go much faster around the wide turns (I recall power sliding around a long wide turns at 35 mph...right on the heals of Joe and Matt was nipping at my heals! That was exciting, and I kept putting pressure on Joe with the hope that he would slip up or give me enough room to pass him.
About half-way into lap 4, the sky opened up and it rained hard. By hard, I mean it rained sideways! The rain was so hard, it stung when it hit my face. The hard rain made it difficult to see and the track instantly became a slippery mess again.
A moment before the rain hit, the three of us were battling bumper to bumper at a fast pace...kinda like flat track racing! But as soon as the hard rain hit, we were slowed down to a crawl...slipping & sliding from corner to corner. Traction seemed impossible! Every time I managed to find an opening and pull up alongside Joe, he would suddenly find traction on his side of the track and regain the lead. This occurred a few times during the last few hundred yards of the course, including one of the last few turns immediately before crossing the finish line. It was battle to the very end! Alas, I was not able take the lead before the checkered flag, and I finished the race just 2 seconds behind Joe. What a race!
RACE RESULTS:
According to the results posted at the TORN trailer, I finished in 2nd place out of 7 in my class. Joe took the win and Matt finished close behind me. The rain changed up the race so dramatically from what it was during morning practice. What was once a fast-paced, flat-track type course quickly turned into a slower-paced, slippery mess. Even though I thoroughly enjoyed this battle in the slippery mud, I think this race would have been even more fun had the course stayed dry. I love wide and fast tracks like this one and hope we return to this property in future years. As always, I have to say a big THANKS to TORN for putting on another fun and well-organized event!
I hope you enjoyed my write-up.
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