The weather in the area had been pretty harsh in the way of snow throughout most of December resulting in roughly 2+ feet of snow in the hills of Washougal…

Holeshot extraordinaire Mike Gingles; post holeshot, pre get-off!

The week prior to the race was the first time it had reached temperatures above freezing for several weeks.  With these higher temps came rain and rather quick snow melt.  It was promising to be a bit messy at best.

When we arrived at the track the morning bike races were in full swing. There was snow covering the ground, except in high traffic areas, and was rapidly melting as it was raining like hell.  Now this is the only race each year that I plan on racing in the mud, and had prepped my quad accordingly so I was up for it.  It amazed me to see all the people that were frantically trying to prep their machines for these conditions, as if the conditions were a surprise or something.  We found a decent place to park in about a foot of white slushy peanut butter, and I began gearing myself up while Michelle (my girlfriend/team manager/The Boss) went and got me registered for the race.

12:30 was to be the starting time and I made it to the line at around the 12:28 mark.  Michelle headed for the pit area where she would be on goggle and glove duty.  Unfortunately, the earlier races had some impassable conditions out on the course, so we had the opportunity to sit (or stand) and wait in the rain for the upwards of an hour and a half while the track crew performed a quick reroute.  Don’t get me wrong, these people were working their tails off trying to get the problem resolved. However, when you have 100 + riders standing around in mid 30 degree temps in the rain, I think you can expect a little bit of impatience.  Michelle and everyone else that was there to pit for people were the real troopers though.  At least those of us that were there to ride were going to be able to go out on the track and enjoy ourselves, right?

Some of us on the line waiting to be re-routed.

I’m not sure what time we got started but it was on, and off we went….sort of.  Like I stated before I had my quad prepped for the conditions,  however for the past year this gem has been the practice/slash parts bike as well.  So I had to keep in mind that I had robbed one of the relays from the electrical system for one of the race bikes during the prior race season.  Of course this is the relay that makes it possible to start the machine while it is in gear.  I thought. “No problem I have Rekluse clutch and it works flawlessly with the fuel injected Kawi 450 that I’m riding.  So all I have to do is start the bike in neutral, click it in gear and were golden, right?”  All this means nothing unless I mention that it was a dead engine start.  So with this in mind we waited patiently for the starting flagger to do his little psych-out and try to get someone to false start so that person could be turned around backwards for the actual start dance.

There are two ways to go about the start in a race like this.  One, go for the holeshot and try to have the clearest view possible.  Two, take it easy then pick through all of the carnage that ensues in the first couple of corners.  I always go for the first option initially then quickly regroup and go for the latter if the first doesn’t pan out like I had hoped… Well this time it ended up being the latter right from the get go.  While waiting for the flag to drop I had der thumb on the start button, der foot elevated above the shift lever for a quick shift in to first once it fired…  Long story not as long, the engine turned over, fired quickly, quickly went cachug and died when I tapped it into gear. Perhaps my timing was off? Nah, it had to be something else that went awry.  So there I was, rocking the machine back and forth to get it back in to neutral as everyone else from my row, as well as the two rows behind me, took off to the first corner.

Once I got the machine fired up I crept up to the first corner which looked like a free-for-all yard sale.  There were quads all over the place, several of them with their riders trying to get untangled from one another.  I picked my way through the traffic and made my way down the hill after the first corner.  Shortly after the third corner, what I saw can only be described as a sea of ridiculousness.  The track at this point appeared to be about 60′ wide with at least fifteen dirtbike ruts that were at a minimum of 18″ deep to the upwards of 3’ for the deepest ones.  People were stuck all over the place. It was entertaining watching them bury their quads to the axles then proceed to wing the throttle and throw a thirty foot rooster tail, completely plastering anyone in their wake.  Most of them didn’t even realize it and just proceeded to use the throttle in vain as if their machine would eventually catch some traction and pull them out.

At this point I was following a guy on a 4×4 quad and he seemed to be picking some decent lines, tractoring through the muck rather well.  I was pleasantly surprised at how well my Kawi was making it through these conditions as well. My Maxxis tires were hooking up and the machine didn’t even consider getting stuck for the entire event.  I know that sounds like B.S, but it really was the case. I made my way through this disaster area, picked off my pilot car, and started making my way through the field of riders that had managed to get through the “Sea of Ridiculousness”. Fortunately for the masses, we did not have to go through that portion of the course again, as it was omitted and rerouted.

Next was the field area, then a small wooded section, then the MX track. Repeat. The field was in pretty bad shape from the earlier races and was fairly difficult to navigate. There were minimal course markers left and all a person could do was try to stay within what appeared to be the course.  There were several lakes within the field we had to negotiate, as well as a few deep muddy sections but nothing as bad as the start.  The wooded section was quick and effortless, then the course turned down a hill toward what must have been the major reroute of the day.

Some riders after the race.

Anyone that has been to Washougal knows of all the culverts/tunnels that are all over the course they build jumps over the top of.  Well the reroute took us through one them. It happened to be the one that is probably at the lowest elevation of any place on the MX track.  So it came at no surprise that there was big lake before you got to it and a foot and a half of water that was in the tunnel was a given. That, coupled with a rather harsh transition at the exit end of the tunnel, made for an exercise in futility for most and would ultimately be the most dreaded portion of the track for everyone there.  For the people that couldn’t maneuver through it well, it was dreaded…..well, because they couldn’t maneuver through it well.  And for those of us who could, it was dreaded because it created a huge bottleneck and a line that would take up to 5 minutes to get through. It was a single file ordeal.  Racers were actually talking and bench racing about the event that they were still competing in while waiting in this line.

Sleepy Time for the Champ! Kenny Sanford of S&S Motorsports wore himself out while schooling us in the mud!

At the entry of the tunnel one of the course workers was advising people on how to negotiate the tunnel in order to make it up and out on the other side.  This advice consisted of “If you get a run at it from here you should be able to pop right over the transition at the other end”.  His heart was in the right place, however, this method would have a rider rushing into a foot and a half of water, pushing this water for about fifty feet, and going up a fairly abrupt 3+ foot elevation change at the end.  What would happen is the 1.5 foot of water would be a 3+ foot wave by the time they got to the end, and the water they were pushing would literally wash them back down the transition when the tide turned.  You would think that enough water would get washed up over the transition after awhile, thus making the water in the tunnel a little more shallow, but there was a drain bubbling over at the entrance end that would assure the proper water level for the duration of the race.  Some people had to take up to 3 tries per lap negotiating this section.  There were some folks at the exit trying to help drag the quads up and over, but the footing wasn’t particularly good, so it made for a difficult chore.

Next, the course meandered through the infield of the MX track, then through a gate and on to the course just before the National finish line by the tower.  The MX track was pretty messy, but for the most part was in every bit as good of shape as the rest of the track.  The only really bad portion was a lake on the inside of the last corner they used before exiting the track.  If a rider stayed to the outside of the corner they could tractor through it.  The inside of the corner was roughly waist deep depending on one’s stature.  I had the opportunity to see one guy motoring through it with his pipe underwater, burbling like a motor boat…Good times! From there it was up a small transition to where the scoring guys where punching tags for lap counting, and then back out into the field section.

The whole course, when not bottle-necked, was probably about a 5 to 6 min lap on average.  For the guys that took it too seriously, it generally would get the best of them. The conditions could be quite frustrating.  It’s no wonder so many of the competitors at these type of events only race once a year, as a person wouldn’t want to put themselves through that sort of thing more than once.  I went into this race with a pretty lax approach and ended up having a ball.  I diced it up with a couple of good friends during the race and somehow kept my quad running the whole time which was a feat in itself. There was plenty of attrition at this event.  In the end, I know I passed a whole lot of people and had a lot of fun doing it.

My scoring tag got ripped in half when the scoring official at the end of the race had taken it off of my bike.  Not on purpose, you see, I had them grab the tag in the past to make a hole punch during the race and the whole tag would come off in their hand.  When I saw that they gave everyone a bread tie to attach the tag to the bike this year,  I decided to reinforce it with a little bit of 100 mph tape and use a couple of zip ties to assure it made it to the end of the race.  It made it through the duration, however not through the detaching process.  So I’m not too sure of how I ended up in this one, but I ended with a muddy smile on my face.  It was a good time and a good reminder to not take this racing thing too seriously. However, one can rest assured that when the regular season starts its all business, and business as usual….But hopefully we can all have some fun along the way!

I’d like to thank everyone involved in the event.  Jones Creek Trail Riders put on a great show, especially considering the conditions they had been dealt.  I’d like to thank “The Boss” , for being a trooper and sticking it out in the cold and getting drenched to the bone just so I could use a couple of fresh sets of Scott roll offs along the way.  And I’d like to thank all of the racers for showing up. After all, there wouldn’t be much to write about if it weren’t for you.  Lastly, I’d like to thank my sponsors for giving me the opportunity to go play in the mud. See you at the next one!