Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1970's

URA Who's Got the Ribbon? Jack~ Preview Enduro M ,; o Z Ul ~ W Z W ...J U > U by Ron Schneiders RED MOUNTAIN, CAL., Oct. 29, 1972 - Approximately 360 riders ranging in age from 10 to 60, of both sexes, and having incredible differences in skill level appeared at Red Mountain to ride the U.R.A.'s benefit enduro. Also on hand were the IRRC, the International Radio Racing Crew. This bunch is one of two in the Los Angeles area which attends races and enduros, not to have fun themselves, but to make sure that when you stop having fun, the consequences won't be too severe. They find you when you get lost, and patch you up a bit when you crash, at least enough to survive until you get to a hospital. Ask any racing motorcyclist who his favorite people are, and you're sure to find the rescue groups occupying one of the top three spots, along with wives, mothers, and Santa Claus. Rescue is an expensive business, especially if it's to be done righ t. Many vehicles lof different types are needed, along with first aid supplies and communications gear. Just the gas to get half a dozen vehicles out to events 40 or 50 times a year mounts up. Much of the expense is borne by the rescue groups themselves, which is to say the individuals who comprise the group. But those guys are' just like the rest of us: they don't have unlimited funds and often, much as they might like to, they simply can't afford bits and pieces of gear that they need. So, today, the U.R.A. threw a benefit run, with all proceeds above expenses going to the IRRC. The IRRC should net about $600.00 from the event which' was reason enough for riding it. As for the event itself, there were a few problems. It was advertised as a "family-type" enduro, and several in teresting provisions were made for the inexperienced riders who were expected. There were two loops of 32 and 25 miles, but gals and kids were only expected to complete the first loop. Midway around the first loop there was a stop at the Wagon Wheel ca.f.e for a 2.2 minute rest. And, just to make sure that the average rider had a sporting chance at the overall win, Class A riders were not allowed to compete for that prize! Class A riders could only win trophies in their own class. To keep the pits safe for families, a mild warning was printed on the instructions: NO PIT RACING, SURVIVORS WILL BE EXECUTED!!!! ! The course was a good one: interesting, fairly fast and with good variety. Some of the better' riders, like Gary Caulkins and Ossie Oswal t, really had a ball. Along with some good, smooth trail, a minimum of road, and some pretty neat sandwash riding, there were some very tacky sections demanding almost trials-like riding skill, especially when the sections were closer to vertical than horizontal. But if you're thinking that, from that description, you might not have enjoyed taking your wife along her smooth-tired step-through Honda, you're right. Some of the gals, kids and first-time riders had a pretty rough go of it. While it's pretty hard for a rider like myself to make a judgement as to what is (or is not) appropriate for kids, women, and first-time riders, my impression from talking to some of them is that they were expecting something quite a bit easier from an event advertised as Hfamily style." Some indication of the severity of the run can be gained from the fact that the lowest score recorded (according to organizers) was -5, only 2 points' better than the best score for the very difficult 100-mile Tonto, reported elsewhere in this paper. When the A riders can't do any better than than, it's fairly rough. To add to the difficulty, some of the riders, including myself, were Utreated" to a preview of next week's National Championship Jackass enduro. The Jackass course is very close to the URA course and is marked in red ribbon, while the URA course 'was marked in Dayglow pink. No one is quite sure how it happened, but the majority of the URA riders wound up on the Jackass course near the end of the first loop. And the Jackass course is certainly not meant for "family" riders! All kinds of rumors floated around concerning just how it happened. Some said people at a road crossing were misdirecting the riders. Some said it was sabotage, while others said it was just a case of one person getting off the trail and eve.rybody else following. Whatever the real cause, it could have been preven ted hy better marking. The club used no lime and no wrong-way arrows. Many of their normal arrows were blown down by the high wind of the night before. The marking however could only be accounted marginal in a "clean" area and was definitely inadequate under the circumstances .. (Ed. note. See Papi' Wealey on this.) Due to confusiop over the marking, the club announced that it will possibly throw out the second loop and the last check of the rJrst loop. That decision will be made after the score cards are studied to determine what percen tage of riders were able to "find" themselves in time to start the second loop. Depending upon their deci~ion, there will be between 30 and 60 percen t finishers. Again, in a "family style" enduro, it would seem than an average rider should have better than a 50-50 chance of finishing. The checks at the URA even t were run with quite a bit of sophistication. They use the rider-number system of scoring whereby a rider who arrives at the correct time receives his number as a score, rathen than his time of arrival. This system is mu~h less confusing to the riders and much easier to score than the conventional system. Normally, it would permit the winners to be announced on the spot, bu t the marking confusion and the possibility of some checks being thrown out prevented this. However, it's a big step, and in the right direction as well. Perhaps we will be albe to list the winners of the next URA enduro with the article if they continue to perfect their scoring. Some very nice, expensive-looking finishing pins were awarded to everyone who turned in a score card at the conclusion of the event. Every new organization experience difficulty with their first few events and the URA is experiencing theirs. If the organization is working diligen tLy to improve, it is to the advan tage of all to bear with them. If the organization is also making a positive contribution to the sport, as the URA is by turning over their profits to the IRRC, it seems that even more than normal tolerance is in order. Accordingly, I expect to ride other URA events, if only to show my appreciation for the help they're giving the organizations who migh t one day save my bod. I hope some of the riders who rode the Jackass this weekend, while expecting to ride a family enduro will look at it this way as well. Results in a couple weeks. It's not really clear that these rock hounds are even on the U RA course. "You put your left foot in, you put your left foot out. You shake it just a little and you swing it ali about." And don't hit that Matador parked right in the middle of the trail. There are some rather rocky parts, it seems.

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