“SATURDAY AT THE GLEN” MOTOCROSS: THEY SAID NO RAIN ON SATURDAY & THERE WASN’T ANY

John Allen and his trusty Cat D5K saved the day. John had worked on the track Friday and felt that it would be fine for “Saturday at the Glen” on Saturday, but it rained overnight on Friday. John got up early and worked on the track in the dark. It was a mess and John made it not just rideable, but it was very good after practice. Photo by Debbi Tamietti

PHOTOS BY DEBBI TAMIETTI, JODY WEISEL & DAN ALAMANGOS

The rain just keeps rolling in off the ocean. It is great for the tracks if it rains on Wednesday or Thursday, but terrible for a hilly track like Glen Helen which is located in the mouth of a valley with a river running through it. So, everyone was surprised  when Glen Helen’s Lori Wilson announced that she was going to hold the regular “Saturday at the Glen” race even though the weathermen men had predicted rain on Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.  Luckily, Saturday’s rain wasn’t scheduled to get to Glen Helen until 4:00 p.m. in the afternoon and Friday’s rain had turned out to be miniscule. It was good news, and even though the road into Glen Helen was closed, all the regulars knew the back way into the track. It was a go!

Dominic Desimone (190) won the 450 Pro class. Photo by Debbi Tamietti

And it would have been a slam dunk, but after Glen Helen’s John Allen had finished prepping the Arroyo track on Friday, he  went home—ready to come back on Saturday morning. Surprise! It started to rain on Friday night and John’s perfect prepped track turned into a sloppy mud bog. When the riders started pulling into the track, you couldn’t even walk on what was previously dry land between the track’s lanes without losing your shoes in the muck. Lori announced that she would delay practice for an hour, while John Allen went back out to fix the muddy mess. In most cases and places, this would have been a lost cause, but Glen Helen’s decomposed granite dirt can dry in a couple hours—especially if the sun is shining. In a show of determination the riders stayed.

Dominic’s dad, Phil (596) won the Over-50 Expert class. Photo by Debbi Tamietti.

True to their word, John Allen reworked the whole track and as a finale, he pushed the pond that had formed around the starting gate away and the track was open for practice. Yes, it was muddy and slippery, but there were no wet spots, the riders gear was still clean (unless they got roosted) and every lap that the riders made, the better the track got. It was back to being a Go!

With practice delayed while John Allen worked on the Arroyo track, the MXA guys triple teamed their 2024 GasGas MC450F. It  had been crashed two weeks earlier and since they had the parts and the time, they replaced the broken subframe, plastic, bars and seat while waiting for the track work to be done. Photo by Debbi Tamietti

Lori could have canceled the race at any time on Saturday morning and everyone would have understood, but she knows how important racing is to Glen Helen’s clientele and she wanted to find a way to hold  the race. Many thanks to Lori and the hard working John Allen for making it happen.

The Pee-Wee and 65cc riders weren’t bothered by the mud—they just wanted to play in it . Photo by Debbi Tamietti

These are some of the photos that Debbi  Tamietti, Jody Weisel and Dan Alamangos shot at “Saturday at the Glen.” At one point Debbi asked her racing husband Val Tamietti, “If I get stuck in the mud out back while I’m shooting photos, will you stop and help me get out of the mud?” To which Val replied, “The only way I’m pulling over if I’m leading is if you are stuck face down in the mud!” Enjoy the hard-earned photos.

MXA’s Josh Fout came down from Big Bear with a couple inches of snow on the roof of his truck. Photo by Debbi Tamietti

The 65cc class had a little trouble with the first 75 feet of the start, but it was a big improvement over the foot of water that was on it early in the morning. Photo by Debbi Tamietti

Gary Jones (far left) thought that the race was canceled because of the rain, but when he came out to Glen Helen to go trail riding with his ISDE winning son Justin Jones, he realized that he had missed the race. Here, he is rooting on Bob Rutten and Randel Fout (14). Photo by Debbi Tamietti

Hollywood stuntmen Mark Donaldson (33) commutes back and forth from Georgia when he’s needed on a movie, but this trip was all about motorcycles. We didn’t know that the Arroyo track had a Mangrove forest. Photo: Jody Weisel

Former O’Neal, AXO, Sinisalo and Mechanixwear executive John Caper (44) didn’t mind the muddy morning because his Honda CRF450 is a couple years old and he’s thinking of buying a new bike pretty soon. Photo: Jody Weisel

Val Tamietti (31) won the Over-65 Expert class and finished second in the Over-60 Experts on one of his three Yamaha YZ250 two-strokes. Photo: Jody Weisel

Randy Skinner (88) skipped the first moto of the Over-65 Intermediate class because he didn’t want to get roosted with mud, but came out for the second moto when the track was drier. Note the mud to his left. Photo by Jody Weisel.

Dave Eropkin (811) looks for a clear line through the forest. Actually, it’s just one tree. Photo: Jody Weisel

Current Over-65 World Vet Champion Randel Fout (56) raced the first moto on a 2024 Kawasaki KX450 and the second moto on a 2024-1/2 KTM Factory Edition. Photo: Jody Weisel

Former Baja Ace Bob Rutten (83) works at Ame’ grips in Las Vegas, lives in New Harmony, Utah, and races at Glen Helen twice a month. Photo: Dan Alamangos

How close can they get? Mark Donaldson (33) flew from Georgia to Vegas for the Mecums Motorcycle Auction and then came to Glen Helen to race. Here, Mark chases Scalvini importer Pete Vetrano (37), while the Dentist to the Stars, Marc Crosby leads their tight little cluster around a bend. Photo by Debbi Tamietti

The Arroyo track doesn’t have a hill as massive as the National track’s Mt. Saint Helen, but it has a lot of ups and down. Here, Dave Eropkin (811) leads Randel Fout (56), Val Tamietti (31), Jim Hanson (83) and Marc Crosby (86). Photo by Debbi Tamietti

Australian racer Dan Alamangos (88) is finally healthy enough to race after a third go-around with Covid. Photo by Debbi Tamietti

Over-40 Expert winner Shawn Bushnell (804) leads Over-30 Expert winner Josh Fout (64). Photo by Debbi Tamietti

Alison Bushnell (13) won the Women’s class. Photo by Debbi Tamietti

Bode Bushnell (699) won the 85cc class, while his brother Jett Bushnell was second in the 125 Novice class. Photo: Debbi Tamietti

Joe Wilson (46) is finally back in action. He missed a couple months with an injury. Photo: Jody Weisel

Jim Naegle (41) won the Over-60 Novice class. Photo: Jody Weisel

Erik Haiman (19) moves some mud out of the way with the rear wheel of his Husky in the 450 Novice class. Photo: Debbi Tamietti

Wyatt Jenkins (130) is a study in concentration as he powers his Yamaha PW50 to the win in the PW50/ XR50 class. Photo: Debbi Tamietti

Myles Owensby (109) gives the camera the once over as he roosts his KTM 50SX over a small rise. Photo: Debbi Tamietti

Colt Jordan’s gear and helmet are color coordinated to his bike’s number plates. Colt went 5-4 for 4th in the 50cc First Timer’s class. Photo: Debbi Tamietti

Dean Zhang (771) came all the way from China to learn all he needs to know about motocross racing from Dennis Stapleton. Dean doesn’t speak any English, and even though Dennis has raced in China, his best Chinese revolves around ordering food. They communicate with a Samsung phone’s translation app. Photo: Debbi Tamietti

Dean Zhang wants to learn about American motocross, but Stapo should start by explaining to him that the checkered flag means the race is over. Photo: Debbi Tamietti

If you are looking for a racing organization that offers long motos, low cost and very consistent race schedule—this is it. “Saturday at the Glen” motocross hosts a 25-race season—which will race again on February 23, March 16 and March 23. Pre-entry is only $30 ($25 for minis). Post entry on the day of the race is $40 ($30 for minis). The gate fee is only $10 (per person). You can sign up on the internet for the next “Saturday at the Glen” motocross as late as the Friday before the race and save money (or just show up in person on race day).

2024 SATURDAY AT THE GLEN MOTOCROSS SCHEDULE
(This tentative race schedule is subject to change)
Jan. 13…Winter Series #1 (Arroyo track)
Jan. 20…Winter Series #2 (National track)
Feb. 3…Winter Series #3 (Arroyo track)
Feb. 24…Winter Series #4 (Arroyo track)
Mar.16…Winter Series #5 (National track)
Mar. 23…Spring Series #1 (Arroyo track)
Apr. 13…Spring Series #2 (Arroyo track)
Apr. 20…Spring Series #3 (Arroyo track)
May 4…Spring Series #4 (National track)
May 18…Spring Series #5 (National track)
June 1…Summer Series #1 (Arroyo track)
June 15…Summer Series #2 (National track)
July 6…Summer Series #3 (Arroyo track)
July 20…Summer Series #4 (Arroyo track)
Aug. 3….Summer Series #5 (National track)
Aug. 24…Fall Series #1 (Arroyo track)
Aug. 31…Fall Series #2 (Arroyo track)
Sept. 14…Fall Series #3 (Arroyo track)
Oct. 5…Fall Series #4 (Arroyo track)
Oct. 19…Fall Series #5 (Arroyo track)
Oct. 26…Winter Series #1 (National track)
Nov. 16..Winter Series #2 (Arroyo track)
Nov. 23..Winter Series #3 (Arroyo track)
Dec. 7…Winter Series #4 (Arroyo track)
Dec. 21…Winter Series #5 (National track)

For more info go to www.glenhelen.com.