Plus another very simple track. Detroit 2.0. Hopefully this doesnt mean more carnage, the east coast cant catch a break so far after having the massive pile up at the first race and now having the exact same first turn layout the next race. Hoping they all get through it this race so we can have the championship fight that should have been. Also theres 12 whoops here, I thought the max was 9 now?
Heres detroit for a comparison:
Disclaimer: besides the 2 tracks above I think the tracks have been pretty good this year. I like that they have added some different obstacles and are also making new layouts by using the start straight for flat corners now. The tracks immediately after this race look pretty badass imo and have much longer and more gradual first turns with room to escape if need be.
The 9 whoop max was implemented after the tracks were already designed. Dangerous first turn? Supercross is a dangerous sport.
This whole whoops thing is so ridiculous that I can’t just let it go. The dirt works guy on Pulp said so far we have all of our championship contenders healthy unlike the end of last year so it must be working. The logic of that is so incredibly flawed. How many championship guys got taken out of the series last year because of a whoops section? 0? I think that’s the number
Tomac - round 16 - didn't even crash - torn Achilles
Webb - round 15 - turn - concussion
Justin Barcia - round 15 - Dragon’s back - broken collarbone
Jason Anderson - round 15 - cross rutted in rhythm section - broken vertebrae
Aaron Plessinger - round 14 - rhythm section - injured hip
Dylan Ferrandis - round 4 - double/turn jumped into Kenny - concussion
Oh and this year with the new “safer” whoops, Jmart still crashed and got a concussion in them.
lol - that will be a 35second track.
More of a 250 problem, less of a track problem.
2025 track maps
The Shop
DeCal Works Huge Plastic Inventory of UFO and Polisport kits.
Luxon 4-Post Bar Mounts
$189.95 - $239.95
It's only dangerous if it turns left... or right.
And yes, it looks like the crew took out their standardized, cookie-cutter Hot Wheels SX track kit and modified the Detroit track by shifting 2 lanes inward and sweeping around them to make the outer 3rd lane.
And while the track looks much like Detroit's kissing-cousin, let's hope they don't include an encore of the "Balls Out Racing Team" from Detroit.
All starts are dangerous starts. Our sport is dangerous
Why don’t we all just go sim racing and keep everyone safe
^^ Seriously.. Why not just bubble wrap the whole thing if they're just going to keep taking the difficulty out of the sport every time someone makes a mistake. Racing is and should continue to have a level of danger. Otherwise anyone can do it. Make whoops blitz only and minimum of 12. Bring back dragon's backs, if they don't want to crash don't jump it. Don't want to crash in the whoops? Roll them. Move over for real men to take the track. I think the biggest problem is not enough track time. Bring the tracks back to their former glory and give these guys Friday practice for (3) 30 min sessions each class. A lot less crashes if they have acclimated time of the track.
No chance in hell they need more track time. They need less. The big crashes usually happen when the track has gone to shit.
To go even further there is no good reason the top ten in points should even have to qualify into the main. 1 heat per class. Top 12 get in and join the top 10. No LCQ. This would keep the track in way better condition.
That track won't look like that anyways when it's all done...they never follow the diagram...
The tracks this year appear to be made on a tighter budget maybe? Less dirt, smaller whoops....
Mud, right-hand first turns, whoops, sand sections, dragonbacks etc... I thought these are the obstacles that make SX exciting, challenging, and fun to watch. It's not supposed to be so easy that us couch potatoes could do it effortlessly. I'm more concerned about the inconsistency regarding the dirt. Let's find some good dirt and stick with it from venue to venue
They should move Dallas next door to the baseball stadium. They could use the same parking lots.
legit question, how often does a start crash happen on a 90 degree? I feel yall are overreacting big time as majority of the time it turns out just fine.
Wait a minute....are you saying they should use the same dirt at every venue?
Not possible. The trucking cost would be astronomical.
Bro have you ever heard of track maintenance? They'll fix the track Friday after practice. Whoops wouldn't be built yet, it'll just be a built up 3ft tall straight away that they pack down all day. Then after practice, they fix the track and build the whoops like they did for years until they got rid of Friday practices.
More track time = suspension gets dialed in better, so more comfort and predictability for riders all the way around the track, safer mentality, better timing for the rhythm lanes, more time to understand and read the dirt changes over a length of time.
Less track time = suspension not fully set up most times, less comfortable on the bike and the rhythm lanes, more susceptible to crashes, don't get a feel for the breaking down track dirt until the Main.
Maybe not just one but two or three various types but definitely not crappy dirt
Pit Row
They use the dirt that's available within reasonable distance from the stadium. It's part of what makes each track unique and adds a new challenge from venue to venue.
I'm sure in that process they find the best dirt they think they can taking a multitude of variables into consideration.
Quick google search says it takes 5,500 yards of dirt to build an average supercross track, I'm not a truck driver or dirt moving specialist but some quick math tells me it'd take 180+ belly dumps to haul that much dirt from spot to spot.
So you want them to hire over 180 trucks to haul this dirt around to keep it consistent from round to round?
This is not even taking into consideration that "good dirt" is a personal preference, some riders like it hard pack, some like more ruts etc. etc.
To that end, Phil was complaining on pulp that the track maintenance was prioritizing the wrong sections and there needs to be more time on track prep with short tracks. He even went as far as saying KTM junior race should be eliminated in favor of track prep. You could say less prep/ more gnarly separates the skill, or more prep allows more line choice and better racing. It’s something you judge afterwards.
i'd imagine ILoveMoto's idea being more like, buy an insane amount of dirt in Atlanta or St Louis, take that dirt to Anaheim, other truck loads to San Fran, other truck loads to Detroit, etc. and then store them there. Not bring them in every year.
Gotcha. My math still stands though, it would take 180+ belly dumps to get that dirt anywhere....to take dirt from Atlanta to San Francisco would be an INSANE cost.
It's already well known that the dirt is the biggest expense for Feld to put on these races when they are sourcing it locally, now we want them to buy dirt and pay to truck it across the country?
If cookie cutter tracks with identical racing surface is the goal why not just build the entire thing outta wood ramps covered in rubber so they have perfect shaped jumps and perfect traction at all times?
hey, I didnt say it was a good idea haha
Taking budget out of it, I still see it as a Pro and a Con.
At the old Texas Stadium, the dirt was always hard packed shit, I would have liked to have seen better dirt as a fan. But I also agree that the different dirt is part of what makes supercross so cool.
180 loads wouldn't get half that amount there.
So the math is even worse? LOL
I just did some googling of how much a belly dump holds and mathed that into 5,500....I ain't a trucker.
Yes I'd like some dirt that ruts up, some that is hard packed, and some that is loamy. But I think it was San Diego that is was garbage. Not a big deal just throwing out there fellas
How much it could possibly hold and how much you can carry on the streets can vary. On our sites, truck and trailer haul about 14 yards.
5500 / 14 = 393 loads
I miss the bowl corners that had a hard base but had a loose topsoil. Then you could slide the rear tire up to the top of the berm, hammer the throttle, and rear steer around the corner. Reed used to do it a lot on the YZ250.
Why aren’t a bunch riders asking for more track time then? Usually they agree they get more then they need.
Even if they did have one source of dirt the different climates would still make it act differently. Plus they don’t cover the dirt at there storage facilities so whatever weather is happening is affecting the dirt.
Post a reply to: Arlington: Another dangerous first turn?