Passes & Canyons Blog

OK, this photo is a bit dated--Jon no longer rides sponsored by ABATE. But you get the picture.

I went to my ABATE meeting yesterday (yes, of course I rode one of the bikes) and among other things got an update on the odds I’m facing winning this KLR650 that I’ve spoken of before.

A recap: This is a new bike ABATE is raffling off, $10 per ticket, with a maximum of 2,500 tickets to be sold. The drawing is on June 15. I’ve bought three tickets. As of Sunday there were still only 641 ticket sold. That means I now have 1 chance in about 204 of winning. Try those odds on PowerBall.

So I’ve been figuring all along that of course I’ll win, but now that I’ve bought this V-Strom I figure it’s cinched. You know, what’s the best way to find something you’ve misplaced? Buy a new one. The old one immediately shows up. I wanted a dual-sport bike. I bought one. Now I’m sure to win another, right? Only about 20 days till I graciously accept that key. Geez, then where am I going to park a fourth bike?

I’m glad to see that number at 641. That means they’ve pretty much gotten the bike paid for. I’d like to see the group–us, my group–actually make money but at the very least it’s good not to lose money.

ABATE and MRA

I learned something else at the meeting that was pleasing. ABATE and the Motorcycle Roadracing Association (MRA), the local group that puts on racing at several tracks around the Front Range, have a very cooperative relationship. And the newest thing to come out of this relationship is that any ABATE member who shows up at the races can get in free by showing their ABATE membership card. Nice!

I’m not a huge race fan but I do generally get out to the races once or twice a season. Now I don’t have to pay the gate fee. It’s just $10, but until I took this regular job with the National Park Service I was scraping by for several years and that $10 was not of no consequence. Of course, now that I don’t have to pay it I’m in a place where I could easily pay it. But maybe there are others out there who are still scraping by and for them this could be a good thing.

Either way, it shows the good, mutually supportive relationship between the two organizations. And let me tell you, this is not the way it is in other states. In most other states the sportbike crowd despises ABATE. This good relationship is unique to Colorado. I’m pleased that I had a hand in making that happen, but I’m not going to rehash that story here. Maybe another time soon if you’re interested.

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Across the country on the kindness of strangers and the strangeness of friends (and a DR650).

Have you ever whined that you’d really like to see how fast your bike can go but you don’t want to risk the ticket? Stop your whining, here’s your chance.

Erico Motorsports just announced that they are sponsoring two track days at High Plains Raceway, out east near Byers. The dates are June 4 and August 6.

The charge to just go out on the track is $250. For an extra Benjamin Erico offers “a ton of coaching from Team Erico to include classroom time. Yeah, we’re not pros but I’ll bet we can get you going much faster, staying much safer, and having a blast riding your bike how it was intended.”

Of course, you’ve got to have all the gear, and you need to drain your coolant and replace it with water. They’ll be serving breakfast at 7:30 a.m. and the track will be ready to at 8:30.

If you’re interested, you’ll need to contact John at john@ericomotorsports.com. He’s also there to answer any questions you might have and provide complete information.

I did a track day once and I have to tell you, it was humbling. There were the folks who knew they belonged in the beginner group and then some of us who couldn’t conceive that we should be in that lowly position. I went out with the mid-level group and promptly found myself the slowest guy on the track, by a long shot. But I had fun and maybe I learned enough to get at least a bit better. It definitely made me a lot more respectful of the skill those guys have who go really, really fast.

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I thought it would be a simple thing to put up a list of motorcycle racing events going on in Colorado this summer but boy was I wrong. First off, scratch that stuff about “this summer.” The first racing I found actually takes place in March, on March 11, just 20 days from now. And then there’s so much more it’s a bit mind-boggling.

That first event is put on by the Sport Riders Association of Colorado (SRAC), and it is an AMA-sanctioned motocross event. It will be in Berthoud, at the Valley Dirt Riders Motocross Park.

The SRAC has three different series running this summer, the Spring Cup Series, the Summer Classic Series, and the Supercross Series. That’s a total of 19 race weekends altogether, scattered around between Canon City, Grand Junction, Lakewood, Berthoud, Greeley, Colorado Springs, and more.

Then we have the Rocky Mountain Trials Association (RMTA). The RMTA lists 10 events running from March 25 through October 14. Maybe you have to be in the know, as I was not very successful at figuring out where these events will be held, other than names such as Coral Bluffs, Pine Nook, Stock Ranch, Pilot Peak, Sledgehammer Gulch, and more.

Of course the one organization I’m most familiar with is the Motorcycle Roadracing Association (MRA). That picture up above is from one of their races, at High Plains Raceway. Round 1 for the MRA will be May 5-6 at High Plains. Six more rounds through September 15-16 will rotate between Fountain, Pueblo, and High Plains.

The Rocky Mountain Motocross Association (RMXA) has 21 events on their agenda, beginning March 11 in Dacono and finishing on October 7 in Sterling.

Then, just to confuse me more, several of the tracks list events that don’t seem to be on any of these organizations’ schedules so maybe they’re just events the tracks themselves are putting on. So you get the picture. If you enjoy racing you’ve got plenty to choose from, and you won’t have to go far, no matter where you live in Colorado. Hey, get your motor runnin’!

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I headed out to High Plains Raceway Saturday for the opening day of the Motorcycle Roadracing Association’s (MRA) 2011 season, and to do my first piece following racer Jon Kuo through the season. The weather was perfect and everyone was definitely jazzed for the season to start. The story and photos are available on Examiner.com.

I became acquainted with Jon because he is sponsored by ABATE of Colorado, of which I am a member. This year now, ABATE is sponsoring three racers, as well as the corner crews. To say that this is unusual is an understatement. In many states there is outright hostility between the sportbike crowd and the ABATE organizations. Terry Howard, Colorado’s State Coordinator, was there Saturday and she told me they caused quite a stir at last year’s Meeting of the Minds, the Motorcycle Rider’s Foundation conference, when they showed up with representatives from the MRA and the Colorado Sportbike Club as members of their delegation. Everyone was in awe and eager to hear how this came about. I’ll be doing a follow-up article that really digs into the story.

I was pleased to have the opportunity to meet Ricky Orlando, a local fellow who is an AMA racing champion and who now runs a riding school up by Frederick. If you’re into the racing scene I’m sure you are familiar with Ricky. I had spoken with him for the first time just a couple weeks ago when I was working on a story for RumBum.com about how kids can come up through the ranks of American Motorcyclist Association-sanctioned racing and become world champions. Ricky was very helpful and gave me some good quotes for the story, so it was an unexpected pleasure to actually meet him. Of course, he was there to race.

And lest we forget, there was the racing Saturday. When I had spoken with Jon a couple weeks ago he was sounding extremely optimistic about placing very well, maybe even winning a championship. Speaking with him before the race he had toned things down a bit, which I suspect was a result of getting out on the track in practice sessions and seeing other guys out-running him. At that point he said he just hoped to stay up with the fast guys and learn from them.

Jon placed 7th in his first race, the only one I was there for, and he was very disappointed. And this is where I start learning about racing. Jon told me his problem was that he doesn’t have the corner speed the top guys have, and it’s something he needs to learn. Riding on a 250cc Ninja, he said the bikes don’t have enough power to go really fast, plus they’re light, so you can–and need to–carry a lot of speed deep into the corner. The best riders hardly even brake in the corners, he said. And because you can’t make up much time in the straights, races are won and lost in the corners.

As I say, my education begins. It’s going to be an interesting season. It will be very interesting especially to see how well Jon does learning to corner faster. Stay tuned.

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Motorcycle racing is 90 percent mental and the other half is physical.

This seems to be pretty typical of what I do. I’ve arranged with Jon Kuo, a motorcycle racer, to follow him through the season that begins this weekend. The idea is to see and present the day-to-day human side of what racing involves. And at this moment I don’t have a clue how I’ll go about doing that.

But that’s how I work. Make the decision to do it and just jump in. Learn to swim in the process.

I first met Jon two seasons ago when I learned that ABATE of Colorado had signed on as one of his sponsors. This struck me as surprising because I was aware that there was some animosity, at least in some places, between sportbike riders and ABATE organizations. In fact I did a whole series of articles about that animosity.

Fortunately, that animosity is not the norm here in Colorado. Here, ABATE and the Motorcycle Roadracing Association work together on issues that are of concern to all motorcyclists. United we stand, divided we fall, you know?

So I know I’ll be learning a lot about racing this summer about. Should be interesting. I’ll make sure to pass a lot of it along to you. Stay tuned.

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I’ve only been to one motocross event, and I’ve certainly never ridden motocross, though it looks like a hoot and a half, but maybe I’ll at least get to another one in 2011.

I got an email today from the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) announcing their Pro/Am motocross racing schedule for next year and one of the events will be here in Colorado. They’ve got 53 events on their calendar and number 20 will be in Brush on May 30. I’ve put it on my calendar.

Not knowing all that much about Pro/Am racing, I’ll pass along to you what the AMA says about it. First off, these are the events where amateur racers “earn the credentials to line up at an AMA Supercross or AMA Pro Racing Motocross event.”

Additionally, “The AMA Racing Pro/Am program is critical to the natural progression of a rider through the amateur ranks of AMA amateur motocross all the way up to getting their AMA Supercross license,” says AMA Director of Supercross Kevin Crowther.

To be considered for a professional motocross license, competitors must have earned at least 75 advancement points (at the time of application) in AMA Racing Pro/Am motocross events in a continuous 12-month period. Points are based on overall finishes in either the 250 Pro/Am and Open Pro/Am classes. Points from each class are not combined.

Whatever it’s about for the guys on the track, for the spectators–I’m thinking–it has got to be fun. I’m going to plan to go and presuming I do you can bet I’ll be right back here telling about it.

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They don’t expect you to finish. That’s why it’s the Dakar.