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So why are so many speculating on the cause (me included)
Rutted turns are great, ruts in straights, jump faces, landings etc. are not. You are asking for big get off's and injuries on tracks like that. The pro's make it look so easy, but the racing is always BORING. I appreciate the talent watching them navigate the ruts, but passing is almost non existent and usually favors one or two riders willing to risk more.
The last time I went to Lincoln Trail MX in Casey IL, it was so deep on the classic track that it was no fun. When I said something on their Facebook page the chest thumping started and it was mostly mini dads that didn’t ride.
Calcium oxide. lol.
That’s lime lol. But yeah they have looked. Lime has been used for years upon years, the night the track flooded though was not something that was expected to happen or else they would have never used it. It never had time to activate fully and when mixed with water it turned bad. Everything else has the same issue. They use to use a different item that will go un-named a long time ago for triple faces and finish line faces, that’s why you hardly ever seen ruts on some tracks in them.
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Let's work on inventing something, I've got the time! 🙂
Pretty simple really, they have stiffer suspension and better balance lol. Pick a rut, get both wheels in it and hit the face a little harder. Your bikes scrape the dirt 5x as much because of the suspension. If anyone is going to ArchviewMx tomorrow after the St. Louis race you will run into the same faces 😂.
They can jam in two more PW50 classes without midday prep
Climate change bro. Electric ktms only
VERMICULITE needs to be considered.
Probably cheaper than Lime and based on available information, there is no clear evidence that dust from vermiculite itself causes any serious health effects.
Vermiculite helps to aerate soil while simultaneously retaining water and nutrients, which it then releases over time.
No, I explained what the problems are.
Vermiculite absorbs and retains water, they are trying to get the moisture out.
Only if they get it from the Libby, MT mine
So more pictures for context. Look at this video: https://youtu.be/dvFqBMLkwkc?si=IjCPGEigE4WdyiZ6
pay attention to how there was almost no ruts expect for the corners, everyone was blitzing and pushing through the rhythms, the racing was so fast paced. The tracks were tight and jumpy.
Crazy much the dirt changed
I remember when some riders would go around the whoops back when they were gnarly. Now we might see them going around the jumps instead!
If they start off using the damp / wet dirt then mixing in the vermiculite will help. They still would need to compact the dirt which (the lack-of) appears to be the big issue.
I understand very well how vermiculite works. It would help in this case.
Edit - let's say they had One cube of damp soil and they mixed in 1/3rd of vermiculite to said cube, they'd end end with a pretty dry cube and more of soil. The moisture therein will be minimal and will slowly release throughout the day...or build days. It will help.
What, no ring of fire to jump through?
I won't be surprised when we see this every weekend.
Could some be they aren’t using the heavier equipment on purpose as it will be easier to tear out a track not packed down so hard. Quicker and cheaper for Feld to tear down.
Pit Row
So...I remember the whole lime issue causing burns etc. when that track was an absolute slopfest and it was my understanding they just used too much lime.
My question is....are they simply not allowed to use any lime at all anymore? I don't know if I missed something, maybe legal issues or attorneys got involved and they said no more blah blah. But why can't they go back to using "some" lime or maybe realize that one incident they were just stupid in using a shit ton of it and need to adjust how much is used for each track depending on dirt conditions. Why can't they just say hey we fucked up that one time and went overboard but now we learned from it and lime is necessary for the overall best track conditions and safety for the riders? wtf am I missing....
Lime in standing water where it doesn’t mix into the dirt causes the burns. Indoor stadiums they have zero concern with using lime but now it is a hot topic. Whatever they are doing via track designs, prep, broadcast, it is all lacking heavily.
Ruts are killing the scrub-heavy style of riding that’s fun to watch. Guys like Barcia, Anderson… yeah, it takes a ton of skill to ride these ruts, and I think we all have appreciation for what it takes to ride conditions like this. But personally, I’d rather see guys pushing themselves and their skills to the limit, not managing the track.
Feld is staying away from it. They have instructed the Dirt Wurx guys to not use it. I’d assume Legal issues that arrived from the last time.
They pack the tracks in, the use loaders and dozers then track and pack during building. what happens is the soil content has a lot of moisture in it because it’s stored outside, it will rut, then add in all the bikes and guys going across the track with limited track maintenance throughout the night, you wind up with rutted tracks. Again. It’s simple. The main problem is not being able to use lime. Look at the races pre limegate and post limegate.
Correct me if I am wrong but ….. isn’t part of racing being the riders ability to adapt to the conditions?
tHe tRaCks NeEd tO Be pERfeCt
Sure, outdoors can be ever changing during a 30 minute moto with madmen tearing it up. Supercross should hold together better. Supercross isn't motocross. Riders of yesteryear adapted to naturally changing conditions outdoors but in today's world its intentionally magnified by the stupid deep and wet prep.
This is a me problem, I suck and I'm trying to practice as best I can, but the 'mega ruts' are kinda ruining riding most motocross local to me (for me personally).
Even with how insanely skilled these pros are, and they are, this can't be beneficial to good racing.
My great friend (my best man when I married) lives in Libby.
Doesn't vermiculite contain asbestos?
Which track? If it's Southwick they have had to bring in so much sand over the years to make up from all the terrain and sand lost from being washed away by rain since many of the trees were cut down years ago. Actually, all NESC tracks bring in a ton of soil like everyone else.
This is an intriguing topic. I think the track prep or lack thereof with wet soil and now not using lime is making this a difficult combination.
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