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Here’s a few tips I haven’t seen others mention yet. Drink water, lots of it. And do it all week before your race. Buy a USWE hydro pack if you want a good quality product. Try out all the different series around you and see which one you enjoy the most. You’ll be surprised how different each one is. Don’t be afraid to try the other forms of off-road racing if they are available in your area. Sprint enduros, time keeping enduros, restart enduros, grand prix, etc. They all help build skill along the way. If pre-registration is an option...

I wouldn't pick a yz or yz-x I have a yz 300x, it's a great bike, l love riding it because it's a different experience, that and mechanically it's as simple as it gets. I also have a two KTM 300's a 19' xc and a 20' xcw First thing, you want estart...period The 300 is about as good as it gets as far as pretty much ready to race and has most everything you need to compete and have a good time doing it, also they are very versital. A 4 stroke can also be a good choice depending...

More gyroscopic effect from higher rotating mass in the engine, and a good deal more power for a 450. Also even if the weight difference is only 10lbs. It wears on you in a 2 hour race

I prefer bark busters myself. Just for the simple fact that I know I'm going to hit the ground multiple times during a 2 hour race. I like knowing that when I pick my bike up, my perches, levers, and master cylinder are still going to be in one piece. Unless I get totally ragdolled, my hands don't leave the bars. Muddy grips, controls, and gloves are no bueno. Tried the flag guards...not my cup of tea. To each their own

I think part of that issue with bark busters is when we run them we get sloppy. Doesn't matter so much if we bash a tree. If we have flags we tend to do a better job with object avoidance

+100 on not running bark busters. I got a set last year and had the issues mentioned above. Went back to the flags. Then I got my used 300 that had bark busters so I left them on. First ride crashed a couple times due to them. Still thought they were the thing to run. Ran them this year and really cost me in one race as they ripped the bars out of my hands and had me vering the other direction back into some trees. When I got home I immediately ripped those things off and went back to...

I feel like if you tag a tree hard enough to rip the bar outta your other hand with wrap arounds, running a flag style you would smash your hand. If you run the plastic sliders and have the bars cut down it doesn't seem to be an issue. I tag trees all the time without loosing control.

I cut my bars down to 29 and have flags that stick out past the end of the bar like 1/4-1/2” and call them my kitty whiskers. They nip and tag a lot of trees but rarely ever do I really smack one. Bark busters are downright dangerous tagging trees. And I actually know a guy who broke his wrist. Not just an old wives tale Ironically I’d be more likely to run them riding rocks for lever/mc protection.

We plan on doing all the Great Plains races next season. Send me a pm if you want, your more than welcome to hang out with our crew.

It sounds like you are not too far from my neck of the woods. There's quite a few series and one off races to race in the 4 States area. Some are more competitive than others but the hare Scramble scene is pretty good all around. Great Plains XC is still pretty new and I haven't raced with them yet but have heard really good things. Oklahoma's "OCCRA" championship has been around longer but always seems to be the odd series out in a lot of ways. A lot of people I know down south were pretty happy to see...

I'd recommend staying away from a 450 at least getting started. It's a lot of bike to wrestle around for 2 hours. They're pretty heavy and the power will beat you up until you get used to it. As for bike prep, I always run bib mousse inserts. No flat tires ever. I recommend an oversize tank (the quick fill is nice to have but not essential right away), and brush guards, not bark busters (if you even barely graze a tree at speed with bark busters you'll be on the ground. With brush guards you won't. And you still...

Hydration pack for sure but also eat a good breakfast (and dinner the night before). The first one I raced I kinda did on a whim and I was so depleted I started cramping up and felt like shit all day after. Had a heart rate monitor on and it said I burned 2,700 calories in 2+ hours so duh, shoulda known but that's a lot to keep up with. Of course you have to balance fueling your body with not fucking up your stomach, but maybe one of the dedicated harescrambles guys on here could give some advice there...