MOTOCROSS ACTION’S MID-WEEK REPORT (10/10/12)
By John Basher
PHOTO OF THE WEEK: PART 1
We love testing different motocross bikes. Every motorcycle offers something uniquely different. Having said that, getting to test Justin Barcia’s Geico Honda CRF250 was like waking up Christmas morning and getting the gift that you always dreamed about. Photo rider Daryl Ecklund was like a kid in the candy store last Thursday when he was able to take Bam Bam’s bike for a spin. And, as you can see, he felt quite comfortable on it. For motion footage of Ecklund, as well as details of Barcia’s bike, see below.
JUSTIN BARCIA BIKE TEST VIDEO
MINI-VIEW: ELI TOMAC
MXA: Going back to Lake Elsinore, you put it all on the line in that first moto. What was going through your head?
Eli: It took me a little bit to get up to Justin Barcia and Blake Baggett. Once I got up to Barcia we started scrapping, and that took a few laps. I ended up getting by him, but by that time Blake had a bit of a gap. I had to push really hard to get up to him, and once I got on to Baggett I realized that I went a little too hard for how hot it was out. All the scrapping with Barcia spent a bit of my energy, and then I had to go hard to catch Baggett. At that point I was spent. Blake snuck away at the end. I definitely laid it all out on the line, but I just got too hot. Then, in the second moto it wasn’t very awesome when I crashed on the first lap.
Lake Elsinore works as a National, but I don’t think that it should be so late in the summer when it really heats up in SoCal. It should be the first National on the schedule. What are your thoughts on the race?
Considering that it was the first time there, I thought it was decent. The track wasn’t super awesome, but it wasn’t as bad as it could have been. From what I heard that the track crew could work with, as far as not being able to bring in sand, I thought the track was okay. I’d rate them at a six out of a possible ten on a scale. There were a few lines, but it wasn’t amazing.
What did you do after the National series was over?
I went back home to Colorado and took a few weeks off. I did a bit of archery Elk hunting. We do that every year, and it was good to get back to the Colorado roots. Then we drove back to California so that I can get ready for the Monster Energy Cup on the 450, and also Bercy.
Have you had a lot of time on the 450?
I’ve been riding my 450 once or twice a week, even during the outdoors. I’ve had plenty of time on the bike. I’m pretty comfortable on the bigger bike.
What bike will you be racing at the Monster Energy Cup and in Bercy?
I’m going to ride the 2013 factory Honda bike at both events. I’ll be under the Geico tent but racing the factory bike.
People might not be all that familiar with the Bercy Supercross. Talk about that event.
It’s a whole different kind of deal. It’s more of a show. Instead of racing a heat and a main event, they have a bunch of different races. I’ll do a heat race, but then there will be the super pole lap, where one guy goes at a time and tries to get the fastest lap. After that there are elimination races before getting to the main event. It’s just a neat program that’s quite a bit different from Supercross.
Your name came up as a possibility for representing Team USA at the Motocross des Nations. How do you think that you would have done in the deep sand at Lommel?
I really like sand. It showed at Southwick this year. I was definitely one of the fastest guys there. Having said that, it’s easier said than done to claim that I would have done well. It’s not like I would have beat Jeffrey Herlings, but I do think that I could have done pretty well there.
Thanks for your time, Eli. Good luck with testing and see you at the Monster Energy Cup.
Thanks, John.
ON MXA‘S AGENDA THIS WEEK
Them there are a lot of bikes!
Just because we have received all of the 2013 model bikes (save for the Yamaha YZ125 and YZ250 two-strokes) doesn’t mean that it’s time to kick back and sip Mai-Tais on the beach in Hawaii. Nope. The MXA wrecking crew is busy doing what we do best?wrecking things. Monday we were on the phone and firing out emails to all of the manufacturers making sure that everything was dialed for our 2013 450 Four-Stroke Shootout, which was held at Glen Helen.
Tuesday we put all of the 450s through the wringer (including the KTM 350SXF, which we grouped in with the 450s, since it’s an open-class bike). We had Dennis Stapleton, Daryl Ecklund, Tye Hames, Kyle Lewis, Lee Witt and Emil Foldager piloted the bikes for video and photo purposes, and also to provide input on each bike. Then we had a bunch of the MXA wrecking crew give their input. It was a long day.
Today we’re feverishly typing away and getting stories complete for the January 2013 issue (kind of hard to believe that it’s the January issue, isn’t it?). Tomorrow we’ll probably head out to Glen Helen for bike and product testing?we’re in the middle of a Yoshimura CRF450 exhaust review?as well as a few other new items coming down the pipeline. Friday we might head out to Racetown to get in a few last-minute motos before racing at REM on Saturday. It’s looking like a good week already.
VIDEO: WATCH RV, JW & AC SHRED FLORIDA SAND
DENNIS STAPLETON’S EUROPEAN ADVENTURES IN EUROLAND
I’d say that the mothers of these English fans at the MXDN would be ashamed, but no one can tell who they are. Good play, guys.
Team Iceland bikes.
National pride. That’s Jeffrey “Enter Sandman” Herlings leading the pack on his KTM 350SXF.
There’s a reason as to why these guys aren’t smiling.
There wasn’t a shortage of fans.
How gnarly was Lommel? Here’s your answer.
Check out the cool graphics on the Japanese team’s bikes.
That’s Justin Barcia’s broken front wheel.
The Intermot show in Germany, where the weird and wild collide. Here’s your proof.
The future?
Another electric-powered Kuberg bike.
Suzuki had a big display in Germany.
As did Arai helmets.
Would you drive one of these?
Very cool.
Triumph booth.
Dakar Rally bike.
GoPro is huge in Europe, as well.
Sherco bikes with WP suspension.
WHO’S IN FOR MONSTER ENERGY CUP?
The more accurate question is, who ISN’T in for the Monster Energy Cup in Las Vegas on October 20? Almost all of the heavy hitters are confirmed to race the one-off event, which is unique in structure and potentially lucrative for the riders. The only huge name not on the list is James Stewart. Bubba might line up, but in what is becoming commonplace, expect an answer from Stewart’s Twitter account.
So who is slated to race the Cup? Take a look at this list of riders:
Ryan Villopoto, Ryan Dungey, Chad Reed, Kevin Windham, Wil Hahn, Marvin Musquin, Tyla Rattray, Blake Baggett, Ken Roczen, Eli Tomac, Brett Metcalfe, Cole Seely, Justin Barcia, Dean Wilson, Vince Friese, Martin Davalos, Nico Izzi, Broc Tickle, Travis Baker, Kyle Chisholm, Mike Alessi, Justin Brayton, Josh Grant, Andrew Short and Jake Weimer. Do I actually believe that all of those riders will be racing in Vegas? Nope. Many of these riders confirmed months ago, long before contract talks and injuries came into view. Regardless, I think it’s going to be an awesome night of racing.
Don’t have tickets? Visit www.monsterenergycup.com to get dialed in. Hard Rock hotel is the official host hotel of the race, with free shuttle service to Sam Boyd Stadium. And in case you haven’t seen the track layout, check out the video below:
SPONSOR ME: BEL-RAY ACCEPTING RESUMES FOR 2013
Bel-Ray’s sponsorship program is now accepting applications for 2013 support. Resumes will be accepted for review until October 31, 2012. Current support riders are asked to apply again for 2013 support. If you feel like you’re a good fit for Team Bel-Ray please apply by emailing your resume to [email protected] or mailing your resume to us at:
Bel-Ray Company
Attn: 2013 Racer Support
PO Box 526
Farmingdale NJ 07727
Please be sure to include the following information:
Name-
Address-
Phone/Fax #-
E-mail Address ? Very important, all contracts will be emailed.
Birth date-
Current sponsors-
List of your bike(s) / ATV(s) ? (Model & year)-
Racing plans for 2013-
Why Bel-Ray should support your racing-
Your favorite Bel-Ray product and why-
Name of your local Bel-Ray dealer-
Riders accepted to the program will be notified via email prior to 12/1/12. Check www.belray.com or www.belrayracing.com for the latest racing updates, and follow us on Facebook and Twitter for the most up-to-date happenings from Bel-Ray.
KTM “BEHIND THE MACHINE” TEASER
PHOTO OF THE WEEK: PART 2
Daryl Ecklund is well known in the Palmdale area for his ability to whip and scrub on a motorcycle. He has won whip contests and isn’t scared to get a little nasty off anything resembling a jump. Here, he gets wild on the 2013 Suzuki RM-Z450 for our 450 Shootout. You’ll see action footage of Ecklund’s feat in our video, coming out soon.
EVENT RESULTS THAT YOU MIGHT NOT KNOW ABOUT
Even though the Nationals are over and the Germans are still celebrating their Motocross des Nations victory, there’s still racing happening around the globe. Here’s what happened this past weekend.
GNCC – Round 11 of the Cam-Am Grand National Cross Country Series took place in St. Clairsville, Ohio. Young KTM ace Kailub Russell took the win on the challenging course, which was blasted with inclement weather and cold temperatures. He beat his teammate, Charlie Mullins, by one second at the finish line. Mind you, this is after several hours of grueling racing. Defending champion Paul Whibley finished third and has a four-point lead over Russell for the title with two rounds to go.
EnduroCross – Taddy “I make everyone else look silly on a dirt bike” Blazusiak destroyed the competition at the Denver round of the Geico EnduroCross series. Taddy led the whole main event and beat Taylor Robert and Mike Brown. There are still three rounds remaining in the series. Blazusiak leads Taylor Robert by 31 points.
Trials des Nations – The annual FIM Trial des Nations (notice that it’s “des” as opposed to the stupid “of”) took place in Moutier, Switzerland on September 30th. The U.S. men’s team finished sixth overall, while the U.S. women came away with a fifth place showing. Spain won both the men’s and women’s divisions. As stated in the press release, “‘The U.S. team did America proud in Switzerland,” said AMA Off-Road Manager Chuck Weir. “Trials is enormously popular in Europe, but it is growing quickly in the United States. Our participation in events such as the Trial des Nations plays a key role in that growth by showcasing our riders’ talents among the best trials riders in the world. We congratulation Spain on an impressive showing, and we’re already looking forward to next year’s competition.”‘
Red Bull X-Fighters – The final round of the X-Fighters series took place Down Under, with the title going down to the wire between Thomas Pages and Levi Sherwood. The two faced off in a head-to-head competition for the win, as well as the championship. Pages had a deep bag of tricks, but he fell twice in his run. Sherwood, the pride of New Zealand, took the ?W’ in Sydney, Australia and walked away with the crown.
REKLUSE ANNOUNCES NEW BREAKTHROUGH FOR HYDRAULIC ACTUATED CORE EXP & EXP AUTO-CLUTCHES
Rekluse has released their new adjustable slave cylinder for hydraulic clutch actuated motorcycles. Designed to replace the OEM slave cylinder, this innovative technology allows installation and adjustment to be quick, accurate, and easier than ever before. This nontraditional slave cylinder design eliminates the need to shut the bike off and remove the clutch cover any time an adjustment is made. Sean Brown, R&D manager, states “We are very excited to deliver external adjustment capabilities to our customers using EXP and Core EXP products. Giving the rider the ability to easily make clutch gap adjustments without having to remove the clutch cover is a huge step forward for auto-clutch technology.”
Product Features:
External Clutch Adjustment, making for quick, accurate, and easy setup
Bump starting capabilities
Replaces previous methods of adjusting hydraulic actuated Core EXP and EXP Auto-Clutch products
May be retro-fitted to Core EXP and EXP Auto-Clutch products purchased before October 15th, 2012.
Applies the following models:
Husaberg FE/FS/FX 390/450/570 (09-12)
Husaberg TE 250/300 2-stroke (11-12)
KTM 125/144/150/200 SX/XC/XC-W (98-13)
KTM 250/300 SX/XC/XC-W (03-13)
KTM 250 SXF/XCF/XCF-W (06-13)
KTM 350 SXF/XCF/XCF-W/EXC/Freeride (11-13)
KTM 450/505 XCF (08-09)
KTM 450/505 SXF (07-11)
KTM 450/530 EXC; 400/450/530 XC-W/XCR-W (08-11)
KTM 450SXF non-factory edition (2012)
PHOTO OF THE WEEK: PART 3
You can’t always stick the landing, as Emil Foldager demonstrates for our 2013 450 Shootout.
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