Ready to Race ? Not quite !

The week inbetween Christmas and New Year saw the fitting of the new white plastics and graphics kit. The machined alloy Core side stand also went on. I also took the opportunity to grease all the suspension bolts and apply AC50 to all the fastners. Liberal amounts of gaffer tape were stuck onto the susceptable parts of the bike that are prone to wear from boots like the clutch and stator casings. I'm going to need to buy a set of frame guards to protect the frame as the gaffer tape lasted about an hour !

Not Project 153

For those of you who read Trail Bike Magazine (TBM) on a regular basis, you will have seen that they are currently in the process of taking a 2005 YZ125 and making into a "153cc Enduro Weapon" (their words not mine !).

I liked the idea of this but not the expense of rebores etc etc and the unknown reliability of such a thing. Therefore wishing to step out of the world of Orange into something slightly different I have opted to part with my hard earned and a 2008 Alloy framed YZ125 now sits where the orange one used to.

The plan is to Enduro-ise the YZ over christmas and see what happens. I just like the idea of something slightly different and it also gives others an insight of what it takes to convert a bog-standard 'crosser into an enduro bike.

Various photos of how the bike looks out of the crate. A new set of white plastics are being adorned with wild and wonderful graphics ready to replace the standard ones. A CORE side stand also awaits fitment. Once the bike is run in a set of wheels from a WR enduro bike will be fitted to save the original wheels and also to make tyres easier to find for the 18" rear as a motocross bike comes with a 19" as standard. I will then look to fit a Pro-Racing lighting kit to make the bike road legal but this will wait till the new year.

Que pasa ?

A good question ? You may well ask but after saying sianara to the trusty Austrian steed, my tastes turned spain. Not to paella, but tp the form of a 2002 GasGas 250 trials bike. So whats up? Well I have been known for my sweeping statements (normally causing much offence) but i think i've learnt my lesson not to trust spotty youths and their own self-confessed mechanical genius.

Buying second hand is - well a lottery to be honest and should always be treated with care. Some of the more fortunate motorcyclists with the larger wallet, always buy brand new as they know that theres no dodgy history with the orange money pit they've just slung in the back of their van. This is the best way to make sure you don't find any hidden nasties or bolts missing out of your front brake disc. For those on a tigher budget, or simply just tight, buying second hand is the only way. Personally I think it adds to the ownership experience and the best way to learn about your own limits and the machine that you decide to straddle.

So far I have found that the apparently fine, "no thats a feature mate" GasGas has been treated with the "that spanner nearly fits, it'll do" approach which is fine if you're simply going to pass on your mistakes to an overly keen monkey suchas myself. Luckily I now have many a favour that I now owe lots of other people in getting the bike to something like not slung together with a bunch of cable ties ! If I ever see him round a poker table I'm going to check-raise and come back over the top with an All-in and take him to the cleaners !

I have entered one "novice" trial so far and came a respectable third. All I can say is that if that was classed as novice, I'd hate to see what the higher classes are like cause I struggled like hell ! If you've never ridden a trials bike, I'd highly recommend it as it gives you confidence to try and ride up and over things you would never think it possible to get a bike over. Then you realise you CAN'T get a bike over, and decide to go around instead, saves you looking like a fool next time !

Kieron Sykes.

How time flies !

The good intentions of keeping this blog upto date are really hard ! The last time I did an update was just before the Powys, we're now half way through September and near the end of the enduro season !

The Powys event, which is a taster I think for the Welsh being one big lap of approx 100miles, was the last dry event before the wettest summer I've known. The rain came on the way back from the Powys and seemed to continue until only a few weeks ago. The Powys was the best result for me coming 8th in the sportsman class. The 2 specials and the last check decided the event. Everyone in the classes were given 4 minutes to complete the last check which seemed like it was going to be a simple road section back, but it wasn't! It was the reverse of the first check with a few nasties thrown in for good measure. This took me 7 minutes to complete coming in 3 minutes late. The likes of Tom Sagar managed somehow to get through in the 4 minute allocation.

Next was the Welsh 2 day which we decided to go up into the Clubman class this year to try and mix it up a little. This was one of the wettest event's I've done. Day 1 caused many a casulaty and apparently over 200 of the 500 entry didn't start Day 2. It was all down to one monster check 3/4 of the way round. I think the clubman had 64 minutes to get through and I lost 24 minutes in this check alone.

It seemed to be endless deep slimey ruts which got harder and harder. All I could think of was that we had to ride back through this the other way round on Day 2! This event in the dry is relativley easy and I've heard it described as being a fast trail ride which isn't so far off being right. In the wet its a proper enduro according to the old timers ! I was glad to finish the second day but there was more than one occasion where i could of given up but kept on slogging.

There have been a few trail rides inbetween the Welsh and now, with a trip to the Lakes and getting to ride Gatesgarth pass thanks to Anton and Mark's organisation being the most memorable. This can only be done with a permit once a month but is well worth the effort.

The end of season (for me anyway) was the 2 day event at Rhayader a couple of weeks ago. This was probably the most physically challenging event I've done as the checks were tight on time and very technical. The most memorable part of the event was riding the motocross course at Cwmythig hill which is where the famous Rhayader Evening Motocross series takes place.

There are two huge jumps, one coming down the main hill, and the other is a big table top near the end of the track. The Championship lads were all hitting the jump down the hill on full chat and taking 75ft of air on the tabletop. Watching Paul Edmondson and the top guys round the motocross course was nothing short of spectacular. Where I was taking the whoops one at a time, Eddy was tripling them. I guess thats why he's 4 times world enduro champ and I'm just an enduro chump !

So what now ? Well I've decided to sell the 125 and concentrate on doing a few trials hopefully over the winter to improve my riding and gain some confidence on the tricker obstacles.

Maybe inbetween decorating over Winter I'll be able to keep this blog upto date more often!

Kieron Sykes.

Powys awaits

It seems a while ago now that Graythwaite event took its toll on many a rider. I could come up with a list of excuses but it was a total lack of confidence in both being able to still hold onto the bike due to sheer amount of rain and the bike setup. Next time the forks WILL goto Sir Julian to be done !

Anyway the van now seems to be fully up and running (famous last words!) and the bike is back together again thanks to JT's excellent magnesium welding skills. I missed the 2nd round of the NEEC at Langdale due to other commitments and the thought of getting up at 5am to get there was just too much !

This years Powys event is now looming and its been nearly 6 weeks since I've coaxed the 125 over anything resembling dirt ! With 2 weeks until the Powys its time to get motivated and get some bike time in. Its been a while since I was down at Trax in Preston so I may get down there this weekend and play in the sand for a morning see what that does. Be good to get some bike setup done as I'm not happy with the front end and thats where all the feel comes from apparently.

Right I'm off to the big smoke to hopefully pick up some honours for the company and see how much they can charge for a bottle of wine down there !!

Snowrun 2007 Pics

Didn't get round to writing up a report on this years Snowrun due to work commitments and it very much the same as last year i.e. tough, enjoyable and what is quite frankly a top event ! A couple of pictures below from Keith Bowen of www.mx247.com that I have finally decided to buy.

Events , Events and More events

2007 is already becoming busy, with 2 events completed so far the regs keep on coming through for the rest of the year. Entries have been accepted for the Powys which I'm looking forward to and the 1st of March sees the first alternative competetion of who can get their regs in for the Welsh 2 day the fastest ! Hopefully JT wont wake me up again at 6:30 in the morning letting me know they were on the website , if you could leave it till 7 this year that would be great !!

The first round of the North of England Championship starts at the end of April with the Graythwaite Enduro setting the standard of difficulty for the rest of the year. The plan was to try and enter each round but with Stang Enduro being on the 24th of June its going to be difficult with the Welsh being on the 21st and 22nd of June. 1 day for the bike and body to recover maybe to much to ask and I may never hear the last of it from the girlfriend !

Although the snowrun was competed at Sportsman class earlier this year, the decision has been made to leap upto Clubman and try and attain the level of fitness required to get round that extra lap. This has been spurred on by being somehow being persuaded to enter the 4th round of the British Enduro Championship at Rhayader. Even some of the top riders who shall remain nameless said it was hard last year, eek ! I guess i will have to try and stick to the fitness regime although American Chopper is on telly at the moment.........

Kieron Sykes.