AMA Pro Hillclimb - 2012

It’s raining … the weather report said we should receive an inch of rain by late morning then it will clear out.  The hill climb was moved to mid week and is now part of Bike Week as a "ride to" event.  This was the last week of school for Kevin so I decided to go myself. 

I arrived around 11:15AM.  The rain stopped … humidity was high … the clouds moved in and out  … it warmed up ... and I got a sun burn on my neck.  It turned out to be a nice day.  There was some mud around mainly in the parking lots but the hill was in good shape.  No dust which was good.

Many bikers showed up.  Good crowd … nothing wild … still kid friendly … although I didn’t see many kids around being mid week near the end of the school year.  There were some excellent motorcycles parked in the lots.  Next year I will take some pictures of them.

The Verticross has 2 riders in each heat.  The first one to the top advances.  The final had 3 riders.  If you end up behind another rider the rocks and dirt being kicked up at you must hurt.

They had the Pro Sport Class (under 450cc), Xtreme Class, and the Unlimited Class.

Because of the paddle tires or chains on the rear tires previous bikes leave big ruts at the starting line.   The teams roll their bike to the line and pick a takeoff spot.  Many Xtreme and Unlimited bikes are started in the pit staging area before being rolled to the line.  I like the rooster tails at take off.  

During the nitro racing there was a very loud bang in the pit staging area.  One of the motorcycles exploded.  Bike parts went flying but no one was hurt.  Running nitro methane means the crews and riders need to be careful. 

The riders come to the first small jump right off the line.  This keeps their initial speed down so they can set up for the bottom section of the hill.

Huge acceleration to the next jump causing “Big Air”.  These bikes have long suspension.  With speed and big air I saw hard landings with shocks compressed and skid plates dragging on the ground.  It’s pretty easy to say that bottoming out may cause your feet to get knocked off the foot pegs and loss of control.  After that landing more speed for the charge to the finish line and final jump to the last part of the hill and over the top. 

Last year the finish line was after the final jump in the middle of the last part of the hill going over the top.  Going for the win, riders were charging over the top experiencing a very hard landing.  They moved the finish line to the top of the last jump before the final part of the hill.  That was a smart move to be safe but there were still several crack ups throughout the day.  

I headed for home after the last race but many stayed to listen to the 3 bands playing. 

Kevin and I have gone to some fun events through the years.  He will tell you his favorite is the hill climb so he really missed going this year and I missed having him with me.

Go to: "Search This Blog" at the top of my page and type in AMA Hillclimb to see past posts.

VERMONSTER 4X4 - Bradford Mud Races - May 2012

Kevin, Kate, and I headed to Bradford, VT for the Vermonster Mud Races.  Monster trucks, head to head mud racing, the trench, the tuff truck competition, and rock crawling. 

Before the events started we looked at the show trucks competition.  

The monster trucks are big, loud, and have huge engines.  They roared around and jumped over several cars and a school bus. 

One of the Monster Trucks rolled over but no one was hurt. 

The trench was not as deep as last year.  This gave more trucks the opportunity to complete the run.  The fastest time wins in each class if you make it to the finish line.   The distance is also measured in case no one in the class makes it to the finish line.  There were several bumps in the trench.  I was thinking they must put logs in several spots to keep the mud in that section of the course. 

 

Many trucks bogged down and would dig deep holes.  That would make it more difficult for the trucks that follow.  Several drive shafts broke and it is clear 2 wheel drive vehicles don’t do well in the mud.  One truck made a loud bang near the finish line sending parts flying through the air. 

I can tell you there were 3 vehicles that were so fast and powerful they hit those bumps and went airborne coming out of the trench. 

The driver of this Ford Mustang was going very fast, lost control, climbed up the side of the trench, and tipped on its side when it hit and moved a concrete barrier.  The front right suspension was damaged.   Neither the photographer running away nor the driver was hurt.

Some of the drag races were very fast and close.  I was taking pictures of a rock crawler when this driver lost control.  His truck flipped and the front end was torn off.  They said there are safety switches to cut the electric and fuel so the driver was not hurt. 

Rock crawling was fun to watch.  Several close calls with trucks almost rolling.  One guy thought speed was the way to get through the course.  He has a license plate on his truck so probably drove it to the event.  Needless to say he damaged a front quarter panel, rear quarter and broken tail light, then damaged the drive train.  He had to be dragged off the course and pulled to the parking lot.  It didn’t look like speed was the way to go after all. 

The Tuff Truck competition was fun.  The course they set up had several jumps, big bumps and a large.  I liked trying to take pictures of air born vehicles.  As the red truck passed by us it hit the bumps hard.  The loud pop we heard was the steering wheel and passenger airbags being deployed.  Wearing a helmet helped the driver so he just kept driving the course.  Two trucks had front tires come off their rims and a couple just stopped running in the middle of their run.

 
The weather was nice and we had a great time.

Search Blog Archive: September 2012, May 2011 & September 2011 - for more Vermonster 4X4

Beaver Brook - A Trek to the Pond ...

I have been doing a fair amount of hiking in the local area this spring.  Through some exploring I have found some nice loops that are several miles long.  

I found a couple remote ponds.  One I have been to 7 times and have only seen a couple other people pass by walking their dogs.  The end of March I saw many geese and quite a few ducks. 

I am no expert when it comes to waterfowl.  The Canadian Geese definitely sounded off when they saw me and would slowly swim away.  The ducks were pretty skittish and would fly away.  I guess the trick is a stealth approach … and a zoom lens.  I saw Mallards, Wood Ducks, and I was told a Hooded Merganzer.  The ducks seemed to stay close to the grass and I wasn’t able to get very close.

Stealth worked with the geese and I was able to get closer.  I spotted these 2 turtles on a log.  They were checked out by this goose but stood their ground.

Several weeks later the geese disappeared and no ducks spotted.   

I spotted this Great Blue Heron with it's wings extended.  Question: Is this heron sunning itself ... praying ... drying off ... covering up its kill … What? 


After a few minutes it brought its wings back in.  As I moved closer it spotted me and flew off.  I repositioned myself under a big pine tree.  10 minutes later I was surprised to see 2 Blue Heron flying together circling.  It was a bad position on my part being under a tree with my camera on a tripod.  I was only able to get one picture of them flying in the same frame before they disappeared.  I also saw these two geese mating.

I spotted this Heron and moved closer.  I watched it fishing in the shallow water.   As I watched it a duck came out of a duck box nearby and sounded off as it flew away.  I didn’t know ducks could fly so fast.  

I did not get a picture of the beaver swimming before disappearing under the water.

Walking through the woods I have seen a beaver, hawk, deer, porcupine, turkey, and an owl.  I would like to see and get a picture of a bear (they are now searching for food), fisher, fox, and a bobcat.  

My treks to more ponds continue …