Honest question for DC

fader418
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fader418
Edited Date/Time 6/3/2012 7:40pm
Davey, why do you guys water the tracks so much before the first motos? The tracks look so slippery during the first moto. Can't we keep it old school like the 84 Saddleback national? No prep at all once the bikes hit the track!
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jasonward73
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jasonward73 6/1/2012 11:14am
6/1/2012 11:14am
No
Sherwood
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Sherwood 6/1/2012 11:19am
6/1/2012 11:19am Edited Date/Time 6/1/2012 11:19am
We should bring all the old bikes and equipment back as well...
Huckster
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Huckster 6/1/2012 11:27am
6/1/2012 11:27am
One thing I noticed the last two weeks while watching it on TV was the lack of dust. Its amazing how they keep the dust down during the motos. It certainly makes for better TV. I just wish I could do that at my track at my house.
Allracing
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Allracing 6/1/2012 11:30am
6/1/2012 11:30am
Well Davey is in a tough situation, because if he doesn't water enough then it gets dusty and people/riders complain about that, and say that it's unsafe and people can't see the race. If he over waters then he gets complaints from people/riders like you that say it's slippery and unsafe. Getting a track with the exact right moisture is very difficult especially in the summer in the heat. I know Davey is all ears for great suggestions on how to improve the series.

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jndmx
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jndmx 6/1/2012 11:34am
6/1/2012 11:34am
Don't the tracks decide when to water or not water?
DC
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DC 6/1/2012 11:44am
6/1/2012 11:44am
Safety first, whether it's the dust or jump faces or whatever needs attention.

MX Sports works together with the various track crews to find the right time and places to water, and before the first moto is imperative, especially on a dry, windy day like we had in Texas.

I was never at Saddleback for a national, but I am sure it was amazing. But the bikes, the athletes and the expectations have changed considerably since then. Tracks can still be rough -- and I think they are rougher now than ever -- but they need to be well-maintained too. It's a balance we are always working to keep.

DC
MX Sports
wawazat
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wawazat 6/1/2012 11:46am
6/1/2012 11:46am
I say keep em dry the first motos, then flood the crap out em the second. I loves me some mud races. Wink
IWreckALot
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IWreckALot 6/1/2012 11:48am
6/1/2012 11:48am
I'm curious as to what the procedure currently is. Do they cultivate and rotate the dirt on the track the day before? It seems like if you till it deep and water it as your tilling, the base of the dirt will remain moist so when the surface dries out, they could reduce the amount of water they use on race day to keep the dust down. I'm sure it is the way it is for a reason though.
500guy
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500guy 6/1/2012 12:23pm
6/1/2012 12:23pm
Saddle Back and Carlsbad legendary tracks but both total pieces of shit, hard pack , dusty, the races made the places
fader418
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fader418 6/1/2012 12:27pm
6/1/2012 12:27pm
500guy wrote:
Saddle Back and Carlsbad legendary tracks but both total pieces of shit, hard pack , dusty, the races made the places
I raced at both tracks...saddleback was dusty most of the time but that track was bad a$$...IMO
dboivin
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dboivin 6/1/2012 12:45pm
6/1/2012 12:45pm Edited Date/Time 6/1/2012 12:45pm
every vid i've seen of carlsbad or saddleback they were like pavement. you couldn't water them or they turned into mudskating. guess i'm spoiled by midwest dirt, but i don't see how those tracks were "awesome". great racing there doesn't mean the track was awesome.
level
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level 6/1/2012 12:46pm
6/1/2012 12:46pm Edited Date/Time 6/1/2012 12:47pm
Tracks have been watered too much lately in first moto's. They just need to be more careful how much water they put down in a spot. I hate riding/racing local tracks where they water it so much on a nice day and your riding in mud. So irritating but then so is a lot of dust. It's a fine balance but one they should handle on a pro track.
GuyB
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GuyB 6/1/2012 12:47pm
6/1/2012 12:47pm
DC wrote:
Safety first, whether it's the dust or jump faces or whatever needs attention. MX Sports works together with the various track crews to find the right...
Safety first, whether it's the dust or jump faces or whatever needs attention.

MX Sports works together with the various track crews to find the right time and places to water, and before the first moto is imperative, especially on a dry, windy day like we had in Texas.

I was never at Saddleback for a national, but I am sure it was amazing. But the bikes, the athletes and the expectations have changed considerably since then. Tracks can still be rough -- and I think they are rougher now than ever -- but they need to be well-maintained too. It's a balance we are always working to keep.

DC
MX Sports
Both places could be amazing...ly dusty.
FreshTopEnd
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FreshTopEnd 6/1/2012 12:55pm
6/1/2012 12:55pm
Dust sucks way worse than overwatering, for everyone, and it only gets worse as a moto goes on, whereas a track will come around if it has a bit too much water at the beginning of a moto to suppress dust.
Lawrence929 6/1/2012 12:58pm
6/1/2012 12:58pm
FreshTopEnd wrote:
Dust sucks way worse than overwatering, for everyone, and it only gets worse as a moto goes on, whereas a track will come around if it...
Dust sucks way worse than overwatering, for everyone, and it only gets worse as a moto goes on, whereas a track will come around if it has a bit too much water at the beginning of a moto to suppress dust.
YES.
bigmaico
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bigmaico 6/1/2012 2:21pm
6/1/2012 2:21pm
500guy wrote:
Saddle Back and Carlsbad legendary tracks but both total pieces of shit, hard pack , dusty, the races made the places
Yup 90% of the time they were Blue groove.

But If was a Trans-Am or a National/GP they had them in great shape!
FreshTopEnd
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FreshTopEnd 6/1/2012 2:27pm
6/1/2012 2:27pm
500guy wrote:
Saddle Back and Carlsbad legendary tracks but both total pieces of shit, hard pack , dusty, the races made the places
bigmaico wrote:
Yup 90% of the time they were Blue groove.

But If was a Trans-Am or a National/GP they had them in great shape!
Honestly, not so much. But no one did track prep very well back in the day.
OW38B
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OW38B 6/1/2012 3:25pm
6/1/2012 3:25pm
Just wait til they throw some water on for the second motos at the Elsinore National.................Woohoo

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DC
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DC 6/1/2012 3:44pm
6/1/2012 3:44pm
When we did the pro test day at Lake Elsinore on May 11 we threw a bunch of water on it and it worked out pretty well. Amazing what happens when you actually drop a disk down into the dirt, which is something that probably didn't happen much at the old Lake Elsinore...

DC
MX Sports
yosmithy
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yosmithy 6/1/2012 3:54pm
6/1/2012 3:54pm
The AMA should require all bikes to carry a sprinkler system on board. Problem solved.

no charge
Switch
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Switch 6/1/2012 4:00pm
6/1/2012 4:00pm
I've never seen a track preped better than Loretta's last year. Track was almost pime all week long, even with record setting heat indexes.

The difference I saw between LL and a national was that they actually prepped the track throughout the day at LL. I'm not talking about just watering, but they would disk certain sections between moto's to keep it from drying up. My guess is if this were done again at the nationals, the wet first moto's wouldn't be necessary, just rip the dry spotsafter the first moto's and water.

I know alot of people get off on the rougher tougher tracks, but I liked it the way it was.
g0rd057
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g0rd057 6/1/2012 4:22pm
6/1/2012 4:22pm Edited Date/Time 6/1/2012 4:23pm
Back in the day, some of the tracks around here sprinkled used OIL onto the dirt to keep the dust down. Sick
jathey
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jathey 6/1/2012 8:38pm
6/1/2012 8:38pm Edited Date/Time 6/1/2012 8:41pm
FreshTopEnd wrote:
Dust sucks way worse than overwatering, for everyone, and it only gets worse as a moto goes on, whereas a track will come around if it...
Dust sucks way worse than overwatering, for everyone, and it only gets worse as a moto goes on, whereas a track will come around if it has a bit too much water at the beginning of a moto to suppress dust.
Not for the guy who gets the holeshot and remembers to drag his feet in the turns! Smile
project racer 6/1/2012 9:09pm
6/1/2012 9:09pm
g0rd057 wrote:
Back in the day, some of the tracks around here sprinkled used OIL onto the dirt to keep the dust down. Sick
I believe they did that at the old Sunshine Speedway national track from time to time in the early days.
BobbyM
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BobbyM 6/1/2012 9:28pm
6/1/2012 9:28pm
FreshTopEnd wrote:
Dust sucks way worse than overwatering, for everyone, and it only gets worse as a moto goes on, whereas a track will come around if it...
Dust sucks way worse than overwatering, for everyone, and it only gets worse as a moto goes on, whereas a track will come around if it has a bit too much water at the beginning of a moto to suppress dust.
FTE..do you remember the watering schedule at dixon? it was always the same every week...always right before any moto i was racing. basturds....
exsuzukidealer 6/1/2012 9:51pm
6/1/2012 9:51pm
500guy wrote:
Saddle Back and Carlsbad legendary tracks but both total pieces of shit, hard pack , dusty, the races made the places
how often did you race at saddleback and carlsbad to call them pieces of shit 500kook?
jmc2
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jmc2 6/2/2012 7:14am
6/2/2012 7:14am
Carlsbad was watered heavy before morning practice on USGP days. So bad it was muddy enough to make riders struggle to get up the freeway. Throughout the day the sun would bake the track (and fans) with little or no watering between races and turn into concrete. Not much prep done up those hills, but fun to watch a LOP privateer win both motos on that special day.
fader418
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fader418 6/2/2012 7:40am
6/2/2012 7:40am
jmc2 wrote:
Carlsbad was watered heavy before morning practice on USGP days. So bad it was muddy enough to make riders struggle to get up the freeway. Throughout...
Carlsbad was watered heavy before morning practice on USGP days. So bad it was muddy enough to make riders struggle to get up the freeway. Throughout the day the sun would bake the track (and fans) with little or no watering between races and turn into concrete. Not much prep done up those hills, but fun to watch a LOP privateer win both motos on that special day.
Was that the day RL was hauling a$$ for a couple laps until he crashed?
Motoxtombo
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Motoxtombo 6/2/2012 8:08am
6/2/2012 8:08am
g0rd057 wrote:
Back in the day, some of the tracks around here sprinkled used OIL onto the dirt to keep the dust down. Sick
They did that at the Middleboro track here in Massachusetts years ago from what I have been told,when I first started racing there in the late 70's in the days of air cooled engines the biggest problem was if it was a mud race the dirt with the oil still in it from past years would turn to almost concrete in the cylinder fins so you had to scrape out the fins with a screwdriver and go to a carwash on the way home to to really clean the bike good,its a lot nicer these days now that most of us have pressure washers at the races.
jmc2
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jmc2 6/2/2012 9:21am
6/2/2012 9:21am
jmc2 wrote:
Carlsbad was watered heavy before morning practice on USGP days. So bad it was muddy enough to make riders struggle to get up the freeway. Throughout...
Carlsbad was watered heavy before morning practice on USGP days. So bad it was muddy enough to make riders struggle to get up the freeway. Throughout the day the sun would bake the track (and fans) with little or no watering between races and turn into concrete. Not much prep done up those hills, but fun to watch a LOP privateer win both motos on that special day.
fader418 wrote:
Was that the day RL was hauling a$$ for a couple laps until he crashed?
Moates' win in 1980..

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