Norra 2013

[roadracer]

I would run the 19L tank and then bring another 1/2-1 gal via MSR bottles in a tail bag. We used the motojavi from giant loop and it worked great.

You might also end up getting a splash of fuel from some folks at the start of a stage once their rider is through and though would be helpful too. Gilky's crew gave me a splash on the start of the last day and it saved me from having to stop and use my spare gas.

I would plan on doing most of your eating in the morning and carrying 2-3l of water and energy bars for a mid-day break during a transfer. Not going to be time to stop for ceviche for lunch!

No night riding unless something goes really wrong. At that point you aren't racing anymore since you maxed out the times and I would just take it easy wit the stock light and leave the helmet light at home.

Originally Posted by RenoMoto

Inmates:

I'm signed up and looking forward to my first Mexican 1000. Tim Morton is moving my gear along each day but I'm otherwise coming down alone with no crew or pit support (it seems Mag 7 isn't a great option).

Couple of questions so I can prepare:

It looks like the longest special last year was 175 miles. Does it make sense to run a 19 liter tank (instead of my current 13 liter on my 500xcw) and not have to worry about any sort of fueling during a stage? (I'm thinking YES)

Are Pemex stations along the transit sections a reliable source of fuel? Or do I need to weasel a fuel can along with another teams support crew.

Do I need to carry food and water for the entire day? or stash a care package with another team or race organizer?

Is there any riding at night? Should I bring along my helmet light?

Any other stupid questions I should be asking?

[oregoncoast]

Originally Posted by oregoncoast

Having the emergency only service from Mag 7 might be an option. I too am very disappointed in what happened last year with them...especially since they never really apologized or offered a discount for returning members as a show of good faith.....because when you sign up, you become a member. Not a great way to treat a member.

Looks like I have just found an explanation from Mag 7 on racedezert.....hmmm....now if only they offered a discount

Originally Posted by in2baja

Hi Hog. You are correct. And, I have to remind everyone out there that what Hog wild is referring to was discussed, dissected and aired-out VERY publically afterward, including this venue.

For lack of a better choice of word's, things were "solved & resolved" afterward.

ONE of the "missing pits" was actually late arriving on-site due to an 18 wheeler side-swipe which launched the Pit Crew into a dark field alongside the highway. Multiple blown tires, damaged vehicle and trailer and, literally...stuck in the dirt way off the road. They were traveling in caravan so there was plenty of help on-site, but, the nearest location for enough spare tires was hours away. I (President) was advised by phone shortly after the accident, and, I advised NORRA by phone right away. AT THAT MOMENT, there was plenty of time left on the "clock" for repair and travel.

Ultimately, the team in question, after far-away tire searching, Police involvement, then repairs and all that pain, was about 2 hours-ish late arriving on site the next day (18-ish hours elapsed time).

Once road-side repairs were completed, since they were, at that point "pushing" the clock, they discussed options and time-lines, then, made the decision and night-traveled and the lead vehicle nailed a cow / bull many hours into the night. Compared to the 18 wheeler, this one was a "minor" delay.

Eventually, the were inbound on the final leg and they were actually getting passed by out-bound racers as they were in-bound to the pit location.

After they had been "passed" by a couple racers, they correctly decided to pull off-course and drop anchor on-the-spot rather than continue, head on, into the racer's. I agree. Off-site, but, close and SAFE!

The other "missing pit" was exactly, on-the-spot perfectly placed where we were asked to be. HOWEVER, A last-minute route-change was made up-stream and we did not get the information. Actually, no one even thought to give it to us.

The funny / horrible punchline is that for that particular pit, the night-before that "leg" of the race, our crew was on-site well before dark just chilling out. Mike Pearlman himself was out on-course and came rolling in to our pit to say hi. He sat around the campfire with the MAG-7 crew and ate, shared, chatted etc. Eventually, he headed off to complete his rounds. Life was good!

The next day, race day, my guys could hear racers somewhere off in the distance, but, they couldn't even see dust clouds and there was no way to find out "wtf" or change locations (chase the dust).

Oddly, about 2/3 of the MAG-7 supported racers pulled in, fueled, repaired etc and rolled away happy. No one said a thing. My guys, while concerned, figured that some racers were picking other lines...and, that the usual high Baja attrition was taking it's toll.

So, for 2013.... On travel / accident / breakdown potential... We will continue to caravan, daylight drive and as we ALWAYS do, leave more time on the "clock" than even worst-case could use. (BTW, the "accident people" were scheduled to be on-site a full day before the race).

Our Communications with NORRA, especially late changes and course evolution is one of our top priorities.

A challenge we have been unable to address / solve so far, is that for Southern Pits, (Baja Sur) they MUST leave Mexicali by noon on Fri in order to safely arrive on-site. A LOT can happen! Leaving Fri noon means... press on with no space for tourist-ing. It would be preferable to depart Mexicali Thurs, but, we cannot due to racer arrivals, spares, fuel etc.

Multi-vehicle caravan's, hauling trailers with many, many drums of fuel, tires etc means that the "fast" route through San Felipe, Gonzaga and Coco's is simply not doable, not smart. (a few years ago, I had multi-flats and 2 broken leaf springs on the road to Coco's). ALL Sur crews have to go to Ensenada then slog all the way down Mex. 1. The road does not "open up" and become manageable until after San Quintin. From Ensenada to San Quintin is only about 150 miles, but, it can take an entire day...

One of the things that is going to be done differently this year is that on Thurs and Fri. pre-race, we will verify what routing the racers get and will be able to double-check, verify with NORRA that we are on-track.

I hope this explanation helps answer your questions.

Bill Thompson
MAG-7 Pit Captain & President

[drc42]

Interesting, had not heard the full story on Mag 7.

but... Last minute route change? It was obviously changed early enough to get the road books printed.

Oh well... stuff like that is what makes rally an adventure.

[Baja Dad]

Mag 7 has nothing but excuses!!!
There were no Last-minute course changes all the road books were printed
out the week before.
And they were still set up in the wrong place on numerous occasions

As for the accident and 18 wheeler and flat tires that's something
You need to plan ahead for.
What mag seven needs to do is offer a 50% discount
to all returning participants That paid for it never received mag seven pits last year
This is one step Mag7 could do to gain back Some respect

[Wannabeeuro]

Originally Posted by JeffS77

two quick questions

1) Has anybody raced in the ATC/three wheelr class in the past ? or is this a new class ?...the 1000 is way out of the question for me but I really want to see what they end up doing in the Sept.event and maybe I can make that one in '14

A well set up Honda 350X seems like it would be a pretty good rig for its reliablility...but a Tri-Z or Tecate would rip

2) How many MC guys trailer the transits ? rough percentage ?

Looking at past year entries, the 3wheeler class has always been unentered. I keep looking at 3 wheelers just too just to pass the winter but I can't image doing all the transfers on a trike.

[HogWild]

Originally Posted by drc42

Interesting, had not heard the full story on Mag 7.

Ya, that's the first I heard of it as well. Yet he said it was discussed and aired out "VERY publically". Where, and by who? I know you guys complained about it here, which is why I brought the issue up over there. Either I'm missing something, or he's not giving the correct story. And he wrote "For lack of a better choice of word's, things were "solved & resolved" afterward.". So, were any of you guys who didn't get your gas part of that "resolved and solved" thing?

Originally Posted by drc42

but... Last minute route change? It was obviously changed early enough to get the road books printed.

Yes, I was the one who made the day-4 course change. Then Ken pre-ran it (the whole course), then I made the final roadbooks and GPS file, then NORRA printed the roadbooks, then finally the race came. I even told Mag-7 some of their pits were off the course, well ahead of the race. There is no excuse for them putting the Todos Santos pit in the wrong place!

The current discussion on RDC:
http://www.race-dezert.com/forum/sho...71#post1498371

Something some of you might be interested in is the course cutting that likely goes on. The fact that 2/3rds of the Mag-7 customers supposedly arrived at that misplaced Todos Santos pit suggests lots of people had great intuition, went looking for it, and found it. Or they were cutting the course, taking the shortcut through town, which went right past the pit. So, how do you feel about people cutting the course, and NORRA doing nothing to stop it? All it takes is one secret checkpoint to fix that!

[drc42]

Originally Posted by HogWild

Something some of you might be interested in is the course cutting that likely goes on. The fact that 2/3rds of the Mag-7 customers supposedly arrived at that misplaced Todos Santos pit suggests lots of people had great intuition, went looking for it, and found it. Or they were cutting the course, taking the shortcut through town, which went right past the pit. So, how do you feel about people cutting the course, and NORRA doing nothing to stop it? All it takes is one secret checkpoint to fix that!

Good thing this race is so much fun otherwise this would be a serious issue. I am guessing the guys who cut the course had less fun. From what I recall of that area of the course there was a bit where you had to look off to the side of the road for some NORRA stickers stuck to some bushes, there was a very faint path through the bushes then down a steep hill. Very fun little bit of the course. I bet the guys who cut didn't get to do this bit.

But yeah, a hidden checkpoint or two would be good. Or, the GPS recorders they have talked about for the past couple of years.

[HogWild]

Originally Posted by drc42

From what I recall of that area of the course there was a bit where you had to look off to the side of the road for some NORRA stickers stuck to some bushes, there was a very faint path through the bushes then down a steep hill. Very fun little bit of the course. I bet the guys who cut didn't get to do this bit.

Wow, you have a great memory (and great attitude)! Here's that spot:

[Maineroot]

We initially overshot that first right. and had to backtrack (not fun during a special with others coming AT YOU at race pace)...

There was a major bottleneck there with some trucks and buggys stacked up. I ended up bushwhacking and taking the line which ended up with a 5' flat drop onto the road. I had to wheelie at the last second when the slope turned into a ledge. Had a flat landing and then took off. That was a fun little section!

Originally Posted by HogWild

Wow, you have a great memory (and great attitude)! Here's that spot:

[WIsixfitty]

Originally Posted by Baja Dad

Everybody keeps bring up the 2k entry fee ------- why?????? 4-days of racing
this is way cheeper then most Score races....................

The only reason I brought it up was my own justification as I'm a working class dog with two kids in college and a wife. Blah blah blah. It was not my intention to bag on this uber cool event.

I was reminded that it was 4 days long compared to other single day events.

I am more than sold on the race. I just now need to save my pennies and work more (if possible) and plan for spring of 2014.

[roadracer]

I was really screwed up in this section. I missing the first right turn through the bushes and I think thats when most people passed me. After correcting I then missed the second right and ended up in that tear drop shaped brown area which had a decent size cliff around the edge. I ended up backing up and taking the smaller trail in the middle which was tolerable but no way a car would gracefully fit down it.

As for cutting the course, I actually can't get too worked up about it. I highly doubt 2/3 of the motorcycle crowd was cutting the course on purpose and if any did, any success they had is hollow.

Originally Posted by Maineroot

We initially overshot that first right. and had to backtrack (not fun during a special with others coming AT YOU at race pace)...

There was a major bottleneck there with some trucks and buggys stacked up. I ended up bushwhacking and taking the line which ended up with a 5' flat drop onto the road. I had to wheelie at the last second when the slope turned into a ledge. Had a flat landing and then took off. That was a fun little section!

[johnson357]

What are you 450cc guys running for gearing. I picked up a left over 09 KTM 450 EXC brand new with stock gearing. I know it is tall for woods type off road didn't know how it would work for this.

[drc42]

Originally Posted by johnson357

What are you 450cc guys running for gearing. I picked up a left over 09 KTM 450 EXC brand new with stock gearing. I know it is tall for woods type off road didn't know how it would work for this.

I made the mistake of having way too low of gearing on my DRZ last year. Drove me crazy on the transits and faster sections of the stages.

Basically.... take the bike out on the highway and ride it at 60+MPH for 10 or 20 minutes. If you constantly find yourself subconsciously letting off the gas to lower the revs you need taller gears.

When in doubt gear it taller. There is nothing technical on this course (at least last year) where you would want low gears.

[Idahombre]

I'm riding a CRF450X. I'll be using 15/48 gearing. We usually use 14/47 when racing the SCORE stuff. But I think 15/48 will be best suited to this ride.

[roadracer]

My 350exc came stock with 14/45 gearing and thats what we used in Mexico. I saw north of 100mph on the asphalt and ~97mph in the dirt. If I had it, I probably would have tried even taller gearing, though I don't know if it would have pulled it.

For comparison, I run 13/50 on the trails with the same bike.