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Weekend Warrior Team Wildcat!: HYR Glen Helen 24-Hour Race – Dirt Rider Magazine

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Friday, May 15, 2009

Team Wildcat.<br />L to R – Cass Morgan, Eric O’Harra (USMC), Kevin Carpenter, Andy Brown, Andy Taylor, Mike Looper./></a> <p class="wp-caption-text">Team Wildcat.<br />L to R – Cass Morgan, Eric O’Harra (USMC), Kevin Carpenter, Andy Brown, Andy Taylor, Mike Looper.</p> </div> <p>What brings a custom home builder, an advertising agency owner and operations VP, a military officer, sales representative and a services branch manager together to test their abilities and physical limits in a torturous endurance event?Fame? Fortune? Charity? A chance to climb Mount Everest or sail around the world? No, something much more significant; a common geographic tie and most importantly a love for dirt bike racing!Our adventure started with an email invite between two racers soliciting participation in one of the best-known challenges of man and machine: The Honda Yamaha of Redlands (HYR) 24 Hour Race at Glen Helen. Then someone came up with the “great idea” to make it something more, an opportunity to bring friends together who share a common bond to the desert community of Tucson, AZ where they first learned to ride and race motorcycles.Players quickly assembled. With over 100 years of combined racing experience, Carpenter (team Captain), Looper, Brown, Morgan, Taylor and O’Harra (author) formed Team Wildcat!-aptly named after their favorite college team mascot and common alma mater. Carrying the number of Tucson’s favorite son, Sean Elliot, Team Wildcat! was ready to challenge the 30+ intermediate class against all comers. They would settle for nothing less than total domination of the class. Or so they hoped…The first order of business was finding a capable steed to propel them to victory. A hush fell over the crowd. It is one thing to volunteer your body to race for 24 hours, quite another to offer up your bike to endure the strain that a 24-hour race presents. Fortunately, through the gracious charity of <i>Dirt Rider Magazine</i> and many other sponsors, a “factory prepped” 2008 CRF 450X became the mount of Team Wildcat!. With a pile of parts from numerous other sponsors (see below), Looper went to work assembling and prepping the Honda for battle as the team anxiously awaited race day.The HYR 24-hour race at Glen Helen is quite unique. It tests both man and machine to a point of endurance not found anywhere else. Requiring extensive preparation and support, it epitomizes the word TEAM. From the racers to the equally important pit crew who keeps the bike running, everyone must give 100%. You will become fatigued as you navigate a course which deteriorates into a whooped out, rutted rock filled nightmare. You will crash and have to pick up a 250+ lb bike when your body aches and muscles strain from hours in the saddle. Tires, filters and oil must be changed and hasty repairs made. It takes a special extra something to complete the event and everyone must be relied upon to do their part.As race day arrived, the team glowed while admiring their bike. It looked awesome! From the custom Decal Works graphics and backgrounds, Pro-Moto Billet guards, kickstand and foot pegs, Renthal Bars and Grips, Dunlop tires, RG3 triple clamps, and Baja Designs headlight, the bike was definitely race ready. Personalized gear from Shift and Fox and X-Brand goggles was provided giving Team Wildcat! a truly professional look.As race time approached, strategy was discussed. The overarching theme was to keep the bike running and not try to win on the first or any one lap. To start, each racer would ride one lap allowing everyone to get a look at the course before settling into, hopefully, a two lap rhythm. The timekeeping device change was rehearsed and perfected. “Sit in chair, stick leg out, pit crew exchanges ankle bracelet, get on bike, GO!”At the riders meeting the 10.5 mile course was described. The usual trips around the National and REM motocross tracks would start things off with the option to ride through an “endurocross section” or a very monotonous chicane. This would be followed by the ever popular Sheriff’s road course, offering the opportunity to test ones supermoto skills before heading out into the surrounding hills which featured wide open fire roads and single track. Something about a ‘boy scout trail’ that may provide some ‘issues’ was mentioned. But team Wildcat! was a bit too anxious to pay much attention to that detail. It was time to get it on!Carpenter got off to a conservative start, crashing in the 1st turn was a definite no-no. By the time the racers completed the motocross sections and headed up the first hill into the trails, Carpenter had passed everyone in the class and was looking good. All was well to this point and optimism filled the Team Wildcat! pit….The first pros passed through the pits on lap one at the required 5mph. More and more bikes went by but no Carpenter. Concern came over the faces of Team Wildcat!. Did we forget something in bike prep? Catastrophic bike failure? Horrific crash? Finally Carpenter emerged, hand on hip in frustration. As he stopped to hand off the bike to Looper, initial track observations and experiences were passed.”I Took it easy on the start and then went into FULL MOTO mode, passing guys left and right! Was catching guys who started in the row ahead of us! Then that boy scout trail came up! Bikes all over the place! Had to wait in line to get by, but made it through. There is this big silty hill after that. I fell over and was trapped under the bike for like 5 mins. Someone had to pull the bike off me. I was stuck there forever. Watch out for that area!” Carpenter warned. <div><a href=Morgan (left) says "step aside" to a competitor on his way to Talladega turn./></a> <p class="wp-caption-text">Morgan (left) says “step aside” to a competitor on his way to Talladega turn.</p> </div> <p>Question: Did you do the logs? Answer: “Let me say this, go one lap and then decide if you are going over the logs! This track is tough.”Looper returns, lap 2. No issues and ran clean. “It’s tricky in some sections. Just nail it!”Brown returns lap 3. “That silty hill sucks! Crashed and was stuck for a while! Watch out for it.”Cass returns lap 4. Stuck on silty hill, following crash. “We are gonna finish this boys but we have a lot of work to do, a lot of work…”Taylor, Stuck in line on boy scout section and silty hill. “Brutal!”O’Harra heads out filled with advice from 5 different racers. Obviously this Boy Scout section is something to be concerned with. Feeling cocky, he foolishly attempts the endurocross section behind a perceived “squid” who was attempting the same. Over the tractor tires and into the logs where the Yamaha he followed was now upside down and sideways in the middle of the logs. Ramming the front wheel into the 1st log, the bike comes to rest squarely in the center, off the bike, gunning the throttle to get over. Log 2-4 were no better, forced to muscle the bike over the obstacles. With less than 500 yards of a two lap ride down he is already strained from lifting the bike over the logs. Note to self. No more logs!With one rotation through the order under their belts, Team Wildcat! had definitely become a victim of the Boy Scout trail. After less than 3 hours of the race completed they have had 5 of 6 racers crash or spend extensive amounts of time overcoming this obstacle. It will be a long race and the team prepared to knuckle down and press forward. They will not be defeated. Pride is high! Besides the football game is on and their team is doing well.Soon the mechanical specter rears its ugly head. Brown had reported a loose and pushing feel in the front end after his first ride. On his next turn in the rotation he would succumb to a violent crash on the national track. The crack pit crew had noted a fork leak but it wasn’t getting worse. However after Browns crash a closer look was taken at the front end of the Team Wildcat! steed. Significant play was found in the left front fork leg and it was determined that it needed to be replaced. Fortunately a pit crew member had brought his Honda 450 and a complete front end replacement was conducted. Despite time being lost, the bike was much improved and once again race ready.O’Harra “test rode” the new front end and turned his best lap times. While circulating the circuit, he observed his team mates cheering him trackside.. Or were they looking at the bike??? As he pulled into the pits it was realized that he had ridden both laps on a low, soon-to-be-flat, front tire. Two mechanicals in short order, not a good sign, but taken care of in minimal time by the crack pit crew!The remainder of the day is completed without significant incident. The Boy Scout trail continued to plague the team with extensive amounts of time spent figuring out the best lines. Go left? Center? Gun it!!!As the hours marched on, Team Wildcat! readied for the night. In addition to the Baja Designs headlight, they were armed with Cyclops helmet lights to guide their way. These lights worked great! I highly recommend using helmet lights not only to see much better, but also for back up if your main bike light goes. A long night awaited them with unforeseen challenges ahead.Meanwhile, the Santa Ana winds began to make their presence felt. On one hand it would dissipate the dust from the bikes they overcame or were passed by on the trail. On the other hand it would make the night unseasonably cold taking its toll on the resolve of the racers and more importantly the pit crew as they huddled by the fire, ready to pounce on any mechanical fault.Brown was the first to realize the challenges of the darkness. As he progressed through the course things became progressively dimmer, illuminated only by his helmet light. Another mechanical failure? Reporting the problem to the pit crew they immediately trouble shot the issue to the light switch being placed into the OFF position. He must have hit the switch while swapping on the trail! Note to self: Make sure the light is switched ON!Carpenter was next with a full light set. Early into his ride, a light bulb came loose causing a strobe effect in his eyes, providing a very nice disco feel, but not conducive to night racing. This required a quick on-track repair. In later laps the top headlight fell out, and with a feeling of compassion for our sponsors, he backtracked to pick up the light and carry it back to the pits. Further into his adventure and in a typical display of racer camaraderie Carpenter assisted a younger racer on a CRF 150 who’s light was failing by following behind him in the Boy Scout section, helping him through. It cost Team Wildcat! but helped a fellow racer.As the blackness of night faded into light, Taylor headed out. Lessons learned passed down from his comrades resonated in his head.”Stay left up the rocky Boy Scout hill, stay in the center of the silt hill, keep going, no crashes!”The pit crew tired and cold, prepared for another transfer. Team Wildcat! had not had a serious mechanical failure in over 7 hours. But much to their dismay they observed yet another flat front tire. Despite being cold and fatigued, they dove in and repaired the tire in record time. It was 6:15 AM and the pit crew once again rose to the occasion, keeping Team Wildcat! running. <div><a href=Looper staying focused./></a> <p class="wp-caption-text">Looper staying focused.</p> </div> <p>Taylor did some quick math in his head. Was this his last ride? Could he celebrate? Too close to call, too many variables. Taylor chooses to remain in his gear ready to do his part if called upon.Following the repair, O’Harra sets out, happy to see the sun rising over the horizon. Having ridden twice in the darkness with exceptional difficulty seeing at night he was elated to be able to make out the few smooth lines that the morning revealed. But he was also shocked when seeing the track in the light. Wholly braking bumps, ruts and whooped-out straight-a-ways!Recalling observations from the pit crew that the endurocross section was now passable for humans, he once again chooses to challenge the obstacle. By 6:30am his body was worn out as he tackled the tires and logs. It wasn’t pretty, but he got over and completed his last two laps. As the water tower at the top of Yamaha Mountain came into view signaling the approach to the end of over 4-1/2 hours of suffering a smile came across his face, the test was almost over. As he thankfully handed off the bike to Carpenter he sank into the lawn chair and enjoyed a well deserved cold beer. 1st Team Wildcat! finisher of the 10th annual 24 Hours. Time: 8am.Carpenter completes his final lap without incident thanks to the sunlight and finding the clean lines it revealed. Endurocross section completed, he hands off to Looper.Both Looper and Brown completed their laps, very happy to not be riding in the darkness.As Cass headed out on his final lap, Taylor paced anxiously. It was 9:10 am and if Cass came in on time Taylor would have to go out once again to face a course that had seen over 1000 bikes pass by.He really would have been happy to crack open a coldy and not go out again. But he was part of a team! He would pull his weight and do his duty.Sure enough, Cass completed his final lap without incident and handed the bike over to Taylor at 9:40, He would have to face the nightmare again.As Taylor set out, the rest of Team Wildcat! and their world-class pit crew began to celebrate the completion of this monumental test of man and machine. They migrated up to the finish line to meet their anchor man Taylor, armed with the obligatory champagne shower.If you ever get the chance to race the 24 hours, BE the last rider. It is an experience you will never forget as you are greeted by a massive crowd cheering your accomplishment and showering you with malt beverages as you cross the finish line. You actually get to see a checkered flag after 24 hours!Even though Taylor had to endure the course one last time, he was all smiles as he was greeted by the entire Wildcat team. The beer coating complete, Team Wildcat! headed to the pits to bench race a job well done.While they did not win, they felt very satisfied to have finished without injury or catastrophic mechanical failure. For those who have tested themselves in this event, you can truly understand what an accomplishment it is to finish. There are few things more challenging than motivating yourself to suit up and head into the darkness at 3am onto a track you know will completely test your abilities and endurance. The feeling of accomplishment is overwhelming, comparable to the Baja 1000 and other well known endurance tests.Honda Yamaha of Redlands, Lori Yarnell and the entire Glen Helen crew put on an outstanding race that is a MUST on the “to do” list of any racer!Every member of Team Wildcat! went home with a profound feeling of accomplishment for being part of something special. A full team effort from all those involved, from racers to pit crew, they tested themselves and their machine to the fullest extent. Neither they nor their alma mater won on that day, but all went home satisfied.See you in 2009. Team Wildcat! welcomes all challengers!Special thanks to our sponsors without whom this would not have been possible:Dirt Rider and Jimmy Lewis<br />Pro Moto Billet/Fastway <br />Baja Designs<br />Decal Works<br />Renthal<br />Dunlap<br />RG-3<br />Shift<br />Fox<br />XBrand Goggles <br />KBC Helmets <br /> Rockstar <br />Racks Inc. Custom Fab brackets<br />Zak Speed chest protector and water system<br />Race Rigz<br />Taylor Creative<br />Cyclops helmet lightsAnd special thanks to the best pit crew ever who stayed up all night and kept Team Wildcat! running: Leonard Finley, Andy Brown Sr., Steven Brown, Paul Dean, Greg Brydle, Katy Carpenter, Brianna TaylorThey were the true hero’s!!!!Show of your Weekend Warrior stories on <a href="" onclick="javascript:window.open(dirtrider.com. Simply submit your story and a few of your best photos to drmail@sourceinterlink.com with Weekend Warrior in the subject line. Go Ride!
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