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GarySemics
1/23/2017 9:11am
1/23/2017 9:11am
Man, that was such a hard crash that I felt it sitting in my chair! I'm surprised he only had injuries to his arm. I thought there were going to be broken ribs and a collarbone and shoulder issues. I know as a former motocross racer, right after a crash your brain begins to analyze what caused the crash. Here's my analogy. The take off jump had a soft bottom that created a sharper, shorter take-off point. Instead of the take-off point being at the top of the jump it was half-way up the jump. Ken didn't adjust his techniques for this fact. All of a sudden he was in a crash situation with no way out.
I hate to see that happen to any racer, especially when they are at the top of their game. Hope Ken makes a speedy recovery!
I hate to see that happen to any racer, especially when they are at the top of their game. Hope Ken makes a speedy recovery!
Sometimes You Go Down........
The Shop
...if you watch from the side angle, he lands front tire down into the bottom of the transition (he misses the downslope of the landing) by the time the rear tire touches down, he's just entering the rut and has to compress the bike... This combined force presses the shock completely through the stroke as he tries to drive through the steep jump face... At this point, the shock is trying to release the stored energy through rebound action and reacts as he's popping off the jump face. The other thing is the way Roczen pushes through this rhythm. Even some of the top guys weren't comfortable in this section and would stand in a more stiff stance and just pop this triple, Ken was pushing the bike forward and through this face to stay low. The combination of the bike's reaction and him standing forward and pushing through the face causes a bit more severe reaction. In my opinion, comparing this to a similar situation I've had, when you blow the shock through the stroke like this and push through on the jump face, you don't notice the energy release as early because you're pushing the bike forward and that initial front dive feels like you caused it with your stance. By the time you realize the bike is also popping in that same way, you've actually assisted the energy transition instead of fighting it, and you're just too late to do anything about it. In thise case, there was enough energy transfer as he tries to pop off the bike, it throws his feet up and loses control in mid air.
Anybody that rides has been in a situation where your body or bike has this weird "inner momentum" that you just can't correct. It's like an invisible force trying to disconnect you from your bike. By the time you realize what is going on it's too late.
It makes me ponder if this is why American riders suspension is usually stiffer than what GP guys would use. Are riders that race SX setting there suspension up for worse case scenarios like this? So you can over jump something and still be able to do the next jump.
If anything he was more central when he approaches the lapper and he fades across to the left slightly, so I did wonder whether he was lined up perfectly straight upon landing/takeoff and whether that may played a part. You cant really tell from the video as it cuts away to a different angle.
Look at Musquin last week, an average rider would probably have been lying flat on their back but Musquin was able to save it somehow.
..K-Roc's next lap = End Game. People that blame the bike are full of sh*t. Just a very, very unfortunate situation.
Such a Bummer. As Shorty posted, Ken's best days are coming... Bright, Bright future for this kid.
Pit Row
I believe with Kenny, it was a combination of a couple things. Kenny typically runs a softer set up with a little more rebound in the back. By not "hitting his mark", landing a little front wheel heavy, this caused the rear to load up and produce the same result as his crash at MEC.
Also, if you notice, he ejected really early. The bike was still somewhat horizontal. Not sure if the injury would be more, the same, or less extensive but ejecting from the bike definitely contributed to his point of impact which ended his season.
Finally, we've been hearing from top riders about how they're not stoked on the tracks/ construction. Granted, Dirt Wurx has been doing a good job of saving the track from inclement weather, but the execution of their construction and design has caused some very "notchy" features. Jeremy complained about it. Grant complained about it...and not about this track mind you. I can't help but think that not having a smoother transition in between features instead of these "kinked" transitions would alleviate these types of incidents or at least reduce them. Dirt Wurx needs to step up their game. I bet you a dime to a dollar you'll see the same notchy/ kinked transitions in the rhythm lanes as the past three rounds.
NOT UNLIKE a certain James stewart. Many of his crashes were over the front end of the bike because he rode so far forward.
also i read somewhere Kroc likes to run only a little amount of rebound in the shock so in this situation it would've kicked late
Post a reply to: What caused Roczen's crash?