Posts
5580
Joined
10/1/2013
Location
Davis, CA
US
Edited Date/Time
4/28/2016 7:19am
Finally got around to making my recap video from our race about a week and a half ago and wanted to share.
This event was a little bitter sweet for me. Originally it was supposed to be a televised NAHA event, with all the big names from around the country, and it would have been the first TV event I've ever ran. Unfortunately, everyone showed up on the scheduled dates only to be met by massive amounts of rain.
Needless to say, the event was called off, and it was decided that the WCHA (our local hillclimb series) segment of the event would be ran the following weekend, with the NAHA round being canceled. That is where my video begins, it's a recap of all of my runs from the event, including a 6th in 450 pro and a 2nd in pro extended verticross, which I was super excited about. Hope you guys enjoy something a little different, as well as a few pictures from the event.
I love this picture, shows how brutal the roost can be if you get behind in a verticross race.
I really like this one as well, feet on the pegs going around the off-camber turn in the hill.
And yes, I like doing no footers, especially when I win a verticross race
This event was a little bitter sweet for me. Originally it was supposed to be a televised NAHA event, with all the big names from around the country, and it would have been the first TV event I've ever ran. Unfortunately, everyone showed up on the scheduled dates only to be met by massive amounts of rain.
Needless to say, the event was called off, and it was decided that the WCHA (our local hillclimb series) segment of the event would be ran the following weekend, with the NAHA round being canceled. That is where my video begins, it's a recap of all of my runs from the event, including a 6th in 450 pro and a 2nd in pro extended verticross, which I was super excited about. Hope you guys enjoy something a little different, as well as a few pictures from the event. I love this picture, shows how brutal the roost can be if you get behind in a verticross race.
I really like this one as well, feet on the pegs going around the off-camber turn in the hill.
And yes, I like doing no footers, especially when I win a verticross race
How often do you go thru a clutch?
I've always been fascinated by the hill climb bikes that had nitro burning 1000 motors in a dirt bike frame. That is seriously some next level shit.
A bunch of people have been haggling me about building an open bike but I just don't know if it's in the cards. It's hard to justify building a 5K bike just to race it a few times every year, plus the speeds those things are capable of are downright terrifying.
The Shop
Really cool stuff thanks for posting it.
1. The first races are part of what's called Verticross, where two guys race each other to the top of this hill. The timed run at the very beginning of the video was for qualifying, which determines who has gate pick throughout the event. For example, if the 5th fastest qualifier raced the 3rd fastest qualifier, then the 3rd fastest qualifier would have gate pick. They basically start with a certain amount of riders, then work their way down to the final two through single elimination.
2. The rest of the runs are just standard hillclimbs, broken down into multiple class. I race the 250-450cc pro and 451-700cc pro classes, and get two runs in each to try for the fastest time up the hill. Keep in mind the events in the video are actually in reverse-chronological order, so the 450 class was ran after the 700 class, hence the more blown out hill.
Qualifying, Verticross, and the regular hillclimb classes are all run on different courses. Hope that clears things up a little, it's kind of confusing if you aren't familiar with the event format.
Over the years my buddies and I have built every kind of open class monster you can think of. Sportster motors, 800cc sled motors, inline 4 sport bike motors, KZ/H2 triple's, Two YZ490's grafted together, watercraft triples, boosted/fuelie/nitro CR500's, ... You name it, we've built and ran them. Hell, when I started you could still run any type of metal traction device you could dream up. you could go bonkers.
Building unlimited bikes was most of the fun of it for us. although no one rver wanted to be the test pilot for some of our creations, we did build a couple of successful bikes. I've been over the top of the Nightmare 6 of the 40 or so attempts during competition, which isnt too bad for some amatuers running the pro class. Some guys have never made it over the hook in their entire career.
Verticross sounds cool. Never anything like that in Billings. Would love to give that a go.
Billings sounds like such a cool place, I heard they have a Supercross track, Moto track, Endurocross track, plus tons of trails back in the hills, sounds like moto heaven. I've been wanting to get some practice in on an endurocross track and a supercross track, there aren't any around me that I know of and any SX track you need a pro license for though. It's a long treck up there for us CA guys, but I'd love to make it happen one summer!
It's crazy what some guys are able to put into their open bikes, one of those things on nitro and a bolted paddle will scare the hell out of anyone! Seems like the current trend around here is running smaller motors with full exhaust, which allows them to rev smoother and make the bike handle better. Most of the hills have turns on the west coast so power isn't always king around here, especially if the bike is too heavy to handle. It's crazy how smooth the full exhaust bikes are, almost sound electric they are so quiet going up the hill!
If you have any pics of the bikes you guys have built I'd love to see them, and I'm sure others would to.
Carnegie has some seriously steep hills used to ride at that park as a kid or maybe I was just a wide eyed youth thinking it was steep screaming my 125 Elsinore up them and not making it up most of the time. fun times
...and I hear ya on the smaller motor stuff. Over the last decade we've been more focused on using a modern chassis and setting it up right. Big bore CR500/KX500 in a late KTM chassis is popular and works well. I know in a lot of the Eastern hillclimbs, that are more about raw speed than technical climbing, that they still use big motor/big power custom chassis rigs, but in the Montana/Utah/Idaho hillclimb scene, the exotic, all handmade unlimited monsters are less and less common every year. The climbing is just too technical and having more control over the bike is more desirable. The hot set-up for a long while now has just been a basically stock Husaberg 650 with a nitrous set-up, which is good for about 80 hp. The KTM 690 motor is a good one too, and fuel injected. That motor can make a 100hp on the sauce. Still a far cry from some of the 200hp machines Ive ridden in the past.
If you make the pilgrimage to Billings you wont be disappointed. Its a huge party. And you'll witness the most extreme dirtbike event I know of. Words cannot describe how gnarly the "Nightmare" really is until your standing at the bottom of it. I didn't even fully appreciate it after riding up it. It wasnt until I volunteered as a "cliff hanger" one year that I really saw how brutally vertical it is.
Cool video!
My first thought was that it looked easy. I know better though.
Personally, I think the highest praise you can give to a rider (of any discipline) is to tell them that they make it look easy or they dont even look like they are going fast!
You make it look easy and it doesnt look like you are going that fast!
Katoomey, I really hope I can make it up there soon, I've heard such good things about it I have to check it out. Our friends that went said something about "the wall", so I'm assuming that's the same steep area you're talking about.
Post a reply to: My Nitro National Hillclimb Recap Video + Pictures