Thursday, May 15, 2008

Don't Make My Mistake With Your Back Injury

I broke my lower back (T11, T12, L1) about 10 years ago in an auto accident. Thanks to a mis-diagnosis by the rent-a-doc at the local two-bit trauma center and my own stubborness and stupidity, I did not get proper medical treatment for more than six (6) months and was left with a permanently damaged lower spine that put me completely out of action for over three years. Given the incorrect healing and residual problems, I never did do the level of rehab and strengthening that such an injury requires and over the years the resulting muscle weakness has started causing other problems. Now that I'm nearing 50 I know it's "now or never" if I want to get things back in some semblance of working order.

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Sunday, May 11, 2008

One Moto for the Nationals?

Jason Weigandt (the "Weege" - the guy who makes the SPEED commentators sound like total amateurs by comparison) just posted a disturbing rumor - that the nationals will go to a one-moto format for 2009. Man, if true that sucks and completes the emasculation of arguably the toughest sport on the planet. Weege says he got the rumor from the crew at DMXS Radio. Despite the fact that those guys take a perverse pride in sounding like total dufuses, they do know the business of Pro MX.

No doubt such a change would be seen as "TV-friendly" and more understandable to a "mainstream" (i.e. moto-ignorant) audience. After all, it is a lot to ask an American audience to understand a sport that has two starts and two finishes in a day. The two-moto format has survived for more than 50 years because it works - even if we have shortened them a bit over here on the west side of the Atlantic. But it may not work if the goal is to try and make outdoor MX a TV competitor to NASCAR or American football or any of the other sports that saturate our TV screens every weekend.

Personally I hope this never happens. Getting mainstreamed is not the panacea that many seem to think it is. But that's just my opinion. What if the one-moto format was an hour+2? Would that work? I don't know. Weege points out some of the obvious pros and cons of such an arrangement. I don't think such an arrangement could be moved to the amateur ranks, though. The fitness level of most amateurs is just not high enough to handle that, and people are almost certain to balk at paying a high gate and entry fee for one, single, short race a day as an amateur participant.

On the upside, having just one longer race per day would eliminate a lot of time spent having to gate 37 motos at an amateur event. But I don't know. It just seems unnatural to me. We'll have to see if the rumors persist throughout the 2008 season.

Texas MX in the '70s

Here's another cool site found via Texan Paul Burnett - Rider's Digest. This vintage Texas MX weekly was produced from the mid 1970s through the early 1980s (I think) and followed the MX scene in Texas, Arkansas, and Louisiana. I don't remember ever seeing it, which is odd because '77-'83 were my most active racing years. My '74 Ford Econoline with the straight six and three-speed shuffled me and bikes all over the state to race at Swan MX, Rio Bravo, Burleson, Wolf Creek, Mosier Valley, and Lake Whitney, among others. But it's neat to look back at the race reports from the local tracks I ran as a kid. The site is a bit hard to navigate. It would be nice if the owner could add a "Home" link to each page instead of having to back through all the pages to get to the index. But that's a nit. It's a fun site.

Unbelievable! 30 Years of Hi-Point Boots.

Here's a neat site pointed out by Mike Kincaid - Classic MX Boots. Site owner Jerry Palmer is clearly a boot fanatic. There are six full pages of MX boots, including Hi-Point, Fullbore, and others. Not to mention the thousands of other boots he has stored in his display room. I have no idea what inspires a man to collect such things, but Jerry has an amazing collection. Check it out.

Thursday, May 8, 2008

Staying Healthy as an Aging MX Racer

Just got back from my first full physical in a number of years. By full, I mean I had a complete blood workup, a bone scan, body fat measurement, and VO2 max stress test. The good news is I've stayed pretty healthy despite my pathetic exercise regimen. I have good base fitness for a guy who hasn't exercised in five years, and most of my cardio risk factors are quite low. The bad news is that some unfortunate genetic tendencies are catching up with me.

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Tuesday, April 29, 2008

Dan Kleen, President of NOHVCC on PitPass Radio

Tonight's PitPass Radio featured Dan Kleen, president of NOHVCC - the National Off-Highway Vehicle Conservation Council. Dan did a good job of explaining some of the organization's functions. Specifically, he was on to discuss a legislative victory in Iowa that got the State to return ATV fees that the legislature had confiscated for the past six years. It's a good segment. It's a small victory but an important one that shows we can be successful if we just organize ourselves and take the time to be heard. He's the first guest starting at about the 15-minute mark.

Thursday, April 24, 2008

Washington State Gov Vetoes New Trail Ban

According to this press release from the AMA Washington State governor Christine Gregoire vetoed a portion of the state's annual budget that included a last-minute rider to ban all new ORV trail construction until 2009.

The AMA today praised Washington State Gov. Christine Gregoire's line-item veto of a measure that would have banned all construction of new trails or facilities for off-road motorized recreation for at least a year.

The measure, which had been inserted in the state budget in a last-minute maneuver, without the opportunity for public debate, would have prohibited the state’s Department of Natural Resources from building or expanding trails or facilities for off-road recreational vehicles until July, 2009. It was one of seven sections of the proposed capital budget that Gov. Gregoire vetoed.

The AMA attributes the veto to activist participation, and credits the 500 members who used the AMA's Rapid Response Center with having an impact on the outcome.

Maybe so. But 500 people - just 500 people - using this simple, easy tool from the AMA is pathetic. There are thousands (maybe tens of thousands) of off-road motorcyclists in Washington State. And only 500 used the system. This is wrong on so many levels. It speaks to the incredibly poor job the AMA has done in serving the off road community. It speaks to the weak nature of the AMA's media reach. And it speaks to a certain amount of apathy on the part of off road riders in Washington.

No doubt many riders used some other method for contacting their state representatives, or the bill would not have been defeated. Then again, maybe it was the snowmobilers and 4x4 guys who did all the work. I don't know. But in any case you would think the AMA should muster more than a measly 500. Maybe it's just me, but we have to do better than this if we're ever going to have a prayer of beating the eco-Nazis at their own game.