Hi Fans,

After the last round I headed into the final loaded with motivation.

RACE SEVEN (Bauschheim 7. GCC)

Hmm …Bauschheim – another of those names that no-one has ever really heard of. Somewhere far, far away… and to be quite more exact, the typical 500km limit.
After a little calculation and a rather sobering conclusion: the 7th place in the final standings was a pretty sure thing. So I decided I would take part in a motocross race the day before on Saturday and I managed to take home 3rd place.
But then, the next day… I opened my eyes and then I felt it… “Mega pain”- dragged myself to the bathroom feeling like a 70 year-old.
Anyway, got to Bauschheim and first did the track walk… what can I say…
After a pretty flowing track on Saturday, I now had to navigate my 450 around this tight, hard and dusty track – I didn’t think this was going to go down well.! From the start I took it easy and let the guys ride out ahead and happily fought my way around for the first hour.
Somehow I just couldn’t find my rhythm and really tried to loosen up and concentrate a little harder. Eventually I managed to make at least make it look somewhat worth watching.
In the end it remained 7th overall in the championship and pretty OK for the 2011 season.

Triptis XCC
Things went way better at the XCC final in Tripitis:

Just fitted! And so I thought – just around the corner from me – whip over, play around in the sand for 2 hours and then off to my cousins wedding at the Baltic Sea.
Somehow work never seemed to end on Friday. 16h30 and I still had friends birthday party at 19h00.
Problem No. 1: the bike is still stark naked in the garage – no brakes, plastics or even wheels. What do I do? No help in sight!.. and the phone rings…
Problem No. 2: the carpenter has finished the roof of my house and my thirsty friends have somehow gotten wind of this… topping out celebration? today? No ways! That doesn’t work at all. We do that tomorrow  . After my flight home, I threw the bike together and primed it with silicone spray and that was done. The clock was already at 19h20 and the taxi was waiting. Shower, other clothes and away we go! After the third beer and a little something to munch on, I slammed hard on the brakes. Had a look at my watch and saw “XCC Day”. Well… it still looked like I could get a little so-called “sleep”. 4 hours exactly and then it was time to go racing.
“Well rested”  and off to Tripitis to have a look at the track. First impression: nice smooth enduro round and my enthusiasm was rising.
The start, same guys as usual (damn I thought) and then it was full speed ahead, and try not to get left behind. By the second round I was already heated up pretty well considering the rather fresh weather, and my arms were beginning to feel like Popeyes .
The third round saw me hook up with a tree, which led to visit in the pits. One round of forced time-out and a little tweaking of the suspension was the order of the day.
Then I did another two slightly slower laps and after that I began to open her up a bit more and more. Until I was finally in the swing of things, I manged to collide with a some abandoned tree stump and I was tuck. Without help I would have never been able to continue. (A HUGE thank you to the guys who gave me a hand).
Funnily enough, after that I just had mega fun. I even managed make it all the way up to 4th position. I was totally pumped but, I was once again faced with another problem. The prize giving didn’t fit in with my schedule. That meant I would not be making it to the wedding (and sorry guys) and the topping out celebration.
But a fourth place at the XCC in the XC Pro class takes precedence… right? 

The days round-up: Two super cool trophys and a big party..

PS: enjoy the winter and see you soon AS

Hello everybody,
here’s another little race report from the last two rounds in Goldbach und Schefflenz.

RACE FOUR (Goldbach 4th GCC)
First about Goldbach: and who says I don’t have anything to complain about… wrong 
Somehow it just wasn’t dusty enough for my liking… there i was at the start, as always relaxed and ready to strike for the lead… after the third corner I found myself around 1,5m above my bike and when I looked down it somehow resembled an old Husaberg with front weights. After a seemingly refreshing meadow session I headed straight into the apple plantation where my engine eventually died after a little jump. Half of the Expert class just wizzed by.

The first pit stop stop: First i was served coffee and cake  .. Ofcourse a clean pair of goggles and a little dirt removal. After that everything seemed to go pretty well. Since I was quite a way back I just had to hope I would make up a couple places and secure some kind of points due to other riders retiring from the race.

And after an hour the the chequered flag was raised anyway.

RACE FIVE (Schefflenz 5. GCC)
On the otherhand Schefflenz went way better:

I got a really good start, but had to let the guys up front go. There was just way too much dust to keep going at the pace. My track walk beforehand was also a little rushed… and I’m not such a throttle jockey anymore  . After a half hour iI found my rhythm and started to have alot of fun – without any problems for a change.
Since I was riding with a small tank, we tried to stretch the first pit stop a little in order to make sure we had enough gas to make it to the end of the race.
The result was a decisive 5th place. I also let off the gas during the last round to make I didn’t have to push the bike into the finish.
My gas only lasted me into the pits… thats what I call timing…
And so I packed up the truck and left Schefflenz with a big grin, 100€ cheque and 6th place in the overall standings.
Proud performance for a hobby rider? 

Til next time… and keep well…

Hi everybody,
Here’s my first report from the first GCC round in Walldorf.
After traveling for four hours on the highway I finally made it to the race.
The first sight through the windscreen of my truck from quite a couple of kilometers away, was already enough to dampen my spirits. It looked like the Sahara had sent a desert storm over to the races for the weekend.
Anyway, arrived and went straight on over to do a track walk. Pretty rushed as always, but that seemed to relax me a little. Just like in previous years, hardly any no holes, just loads and loads of powdered dust. more

Hi all,

I’m also a late starter to the Offroad scene. I lived a boring life as a computer gamer and television addict. Come to think of it, it was pretty stupid but definitely a lot more relaxed then nowadays. In 2002, as a 23 year old motocross newby aboard a KTM 520 EXC, I turned my life upside down.

In the 90’s I used to watch JMB and Jeff Stanton riding Supercross on Eurosport – today that’s no longer possible since motocross and supercross don’t get any coverage on TV anymore. I thought it was a simple and easy game to move a motorcycle around, at least that’s what those guys on TV made it look like. But after 3 mins on a motocross track, 1 meter flight over ramps and loads of adrenalin, my forearms almost exploded after the first round. Only one thing helps: Training, training and more training. At the end of the day, I had 20 years to catch up on Read more