Sunday, November 2, 2008

What permanent indoor facilities mean for MX

The Boston Globe Online today is reporting that a new, indoor MX facility has been approved in Bellingham, southwest of Boston. R. J. Cobb Land Clearing Inc. of Bellingham has received approval to construct a 68,400 sq. ft. enclosed facility near I-495.

To date, Supercross has remained the domain of professional racers because there are very few places for grass roots amateurs to ride true SX, or Arenacross, tracks. But there is a growing trend to build enclosed, indoor facilities — especially in the northern parts of the US where the outdoor riding season is only a few months each year.

This trend has important implications for outdoor motocross. New riders almost universally come to the sport today through riding and racing on outdoor tracks and trails. This serves to keep them connected, at some level, to the history and meaning of the sport. But as land use and noise concerns grow, it's inevitable that indoor facilities will grow in popularity.

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Friday, October 31, 2008

Old school pitbike races - SL70 and XR75

Recently my old school friend Ronnie Welch sent me a bunch of pictures from TVRC's annual "King of the Ant Hill" race in Texas. If you were under the misguided belief that pitbike races were some new phenomenon, well, let me assure you that the only thing truly new in dirt biking is the backflip.

There were plenty of cool XR75s, including some single-shock models using aftermarket swingarms. But Ronnie was representin' for all the Po' Boys who had to ride 'em like they came from the factory. His beater SL70 was sporting nothing more than a Green Weenie filter and a DG-style megaphone.

Wish I had been there. I have two SL70 project bikes sitting around the house here somewhere if I can ever get back to them...

Wednesday, October 29, 2008

MediaZone closes Moto Channel

Last week I got email notification that MediaZone is closing their Moto Channel. This is a big disappointment to me, as I just signed up for a 1-year subscription when I watched the MXdN on live video.

MediaZone will refund my subscription fee on a pro-rated basis, but the money isn't really the problem. I'm disappointed that what seemed to be a really good service for catching all the GPs has gone by the wayside.

I don't know anything about what motivated the closure, and the email gave no reason. But if you read my post on The right broadcast model for motocross you know I think full length video on the web is the right way forward for MX.

I suspect MediaZone lost their agreement with YouthStream, or the licensing fees went way up, or maybe there just weren't enough subscribers to pay the fees. I don't know. But I do know it's a loss.

Over on Eternal Two Stroke Derrick Harris is talking about the same topic in his post Which "M" is in?. Derrick points to this cool video highlight site for Australian Supercross.

Personally, I'm not happy with highlights. I want full race coverage. If not live, at least same day. And I'm willing to pay for it. Hopefully, MX Sports will be able to negotiate something along those lines in the near future. For now, we'll have to get by on the oddly structured SPEED TV coverage.

Friday, October 17, 2008

New Ham: KJ4HFJ

I got my call sign assignment from the FCC yesterday — KJ4HFJ. That seems a little unwieldy to me, but maybe I'll get used to it. Kilo-Juliette-4-Hotel-Foxtrot-Juliette. For $12 I can get a vanity call sign (a bit like vanity license plates.) I might do that and get something I can remember like K4TWF — Kilo-4-Tango-Whiskey-Foxtrot.

Monday, October 13, 2008

Blast it all

One of the tools I've always wanted is a blaster for cleaning metal. A blast cabinet would be nice, for doing small parts in an enclosed area. But I wanted a bigger unit that would also let me work on frames and bigger pieces.

A couple of years ago I bought a 60-gallon, two-cylinder, 12 CFM compressor that was on close-out (about $350, I think) at Lowes. I had an electrician come in and wire a 220 outlet into my garage and hook it up. But I never used it. Not even once. I never even turned it on except to be sure it ran. I didn't have any piping or anything. So, like most of my projects, it sat for a year and a half while I went on to other things.

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