Endurance vs skills

How's your endurance now? Has your results gotten better ,if your endurance has?

If you have no bike skills it doesn't matter if your a professional triathlete you'll still suck on a dirt bike lol

I agree with that. I have a buddy that showed up to our race this weekend. He hasn't raced for a year and a half. Smokes two packs a day and drinks about 8 nights a week. One of the funniest (and funnest) guys you'll ever meet, but certainly doesn't 'train.' He has, however, raced his whole life and hes in his 40's now. At one point in time he was really fast.

I, on the other hand, am 38, work my ass off in the gym, ride/train/practice regularly, and devote way more time to this than I probably should, but I've only been racing for a couple summers now. Short story long, I beat him both motos but in the second moto he was reeling me in towards the end and wasn't far behind me. I was flat pissed that I put as much time and effort into it as I do and was only able to beat him by a little. I don't think you can substitute for form and experience ON the bike and he was my proof last weekend!

Training isn't going to make you faster, riding and racing your dirt bike more will and watch pros ride and race and try to develop and tune your technique and then concentrate on corners before anything else.

Look at it this way, you must work on your weaknesses. Your fitness was a weakness and you have devoted alot of time to that which is good. That newfound firness will allow you to tackle your on bike weaknesses in a more efficient manner for quicker results in the future.

There's no denying that being fit helps you, but it may be on a sliding scale. Here's my particular combination:

I have been riding and practicing since the early 1980s. I was a fast, albeit kind of old 125cc Intermediate in SoCal in the late '90s. I never turned pro, but some of my slightly-faster friends did. I feel like with the right mindset, a whole lot more money, and much more emphasis on training, I could have made the jump and been successful as a local, non-national pro.

Here's why I feel that way: Early in a moto, when I was fresh, I could rail. Really, really fast dudes often took a while to get around. But later in the race, I had to turn it down a long way because it was simply too dangerous to ride at the pace I knew I had the skills for - I simply didn't have the strength to do it. In that way, training is huge.

If you don't have the speed, however, your training will only allow so much. Get confident enounh in your skills and you may need a higher level of fitness.

Stand up more.

I could go so much faster if I was in good physical condition. I can't ride even a single lap with all out effort. I don't have the strength to hang on anymore.

You can be fast for a lap or two, but if your not in shape your gunna get smoked the rest of the race! Look at Stew. Dude has the skills, just can't keep the pace for two motos.

My biggest problem (embarassment) when i turned pro was how i could hang on for 2 -3 laps then watch everyone ride away from me. I had pretty good speed and had demolished the intermediate class for months, I started "Training" and riding during the week more, I had a moment after several months where i realized during a practice day I was whipping the bike around and really attacking the corners after about 15 mins in. (something i would only do when trying to overtake someone).this made me realize I was fast and in shape and gave me the confidence to race hard and attack! Point being...1st be in shape!, 2. work on corner speed and reducing gaps, 3. attack the track!

I'm in the same boat as you are, but it is important to know what being "in shape" means.

What happens after 4 laps? Do you get winded? Are your arms too tired? Legs too tired?

I used to be completely "done" after 4 laps and started dedicating a huge amount of time to training, but this season I've realized I've done too much of one thing and not enough of the other.

I rarely get winded ever in a moto. I can go 20+ minutes and still have my breathing under control, don't feel exhausted. I don't worry about my cardiovascular fitness. The biggest problem is my lower back/Glutes/adductor muscles. After about 4-5 laps I can't stand up enough anymore because my back feels week, which in turn makes me use my arms more to dampen the shocks...

Find out where the real problem lies and tackle your weaknesses. It could be a technique problem as well, but not necessarily. That's pretty easy to tell, because if it's a technique problem you will be struggling (a little) through a certain section on your hot laps as well.

Basically, of you can do a certain section cleanly 3 times but not 8 times, it's not a technique problem, but a strength/endurance/stability problem.

Don't ignore your bike. Fitness and technique are main aspects to overall speed but you also need a bike well suited to you in order to go fast.
Get the suspension done, or re-done if you still have complaints in certain areas. Make sure your sag is set correctly. Experiment with bar bends and heights as well as lever position and all the other tweaks available to get the bike to your liking and to make you as comfortable as possible.

But from what you've described it sounds as though some 1-1 training would go a long way. Ask around and search the web so find good trainers in your area.