Harescramble question

[*mike68*]

How do you get to ride in the A class at a harescramble. I watched on this past weekend and after watching the differences between A class and B class, I do not wan't to ride in the B class. The B class was total carnage and people were getting run over left and right, mostly becuase if inexperience passing and forcing things to happen when there really isn't room for it. In the A class I saw a lot more patience and better choices being made. That in itself made the entire group faster. I am not knocking B class by any means. I feel I am fast enough to ride A class and I make good decissions while riding. I am not trying to be arrogant, but I truly feel I can hang at least mid pack in A group. I would also feel more comfortable riding with the A group from a safety stand point. Please correct me if I am wrong on any of my view and don't take this the wrong way.

My question is this...

Do I need to race B class and qualify for A class. How do I get to ride with the A group? I am definatley going to do an enduro or two next year. I was just "thinking" of a harescramble if I could start in A class.

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01 426 "sewing machine"

Custom cracked headlight:

Custom bent and twisted header pipe:Custom repaired break lever:custom repaired clutch lever: Custom dented moose skid plate: Custom dented frame: Custom scuffed side number plates: Custom scuffed front and rear fenders: Custom stock jetting: Custom vortip: Custom stickers

[This message has been edited by *mike68* (edited 08-03-2001).]

[tripm]

Mike, riding through that first 'puddle' yesterday after I indicated it's safer to go to the left, was not a 'good decision'!

[*mike68*]

You are too funny. Ask a serious question and I get you! ?

[npuzajr]

Mike,

Good riding judgement!!!! LOL.... Remember I saw the custom dented Moose skidplate. If that was good judgement I'd hate to see bad judgement. Its a tough decision... go left over a rock drop off or stay right and survive.... Anyway, I agree with getting out of B and going to A. I think your fast enough to keep up.

Good luck

Nick

[*mike68*]

OK you two, you are not helping me get the info I am looking for. Now, no other riders were injured due to any decissions I have made. The incident npuzajr is refering to was not a result of my decission. My precice location to the equator in conjunction with the rotation of the earth related to the north pole had a lot to do with it. And Nick, Tell us again, How's the ankle? Did you get rour cracked frame welded yet? By the looks of you and your bike, I am still making better decissions than you. ?

[This message has been edited by *mike68* (edited 08-03-2001).]

[wrpunisher]

Check the rules of your race promoter, sanctioning body or whatever, but around here I don't think there would be any problem just signing up for A class if that's what you wanted to do. Especially if it's just a one time deal - if you're racing a series maybe a "points steward" type person would pay attention, but probably only if you were drawing that attention for some reason. Seems like they're more concerned about A level riders racing in lower classes than the other way around. And if it's a big event, chances are even less that any one would care. I raced a national hare & hound earlier this year, and there were quite a few sanbag...errr, scary fast C riders out there.

Just do it :-)

Chris

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Chris

99WR400F

[Greg_in_Atlanta]

Are you serious, Mike?

Have you ever ridden an enduro or HS? How about MX or GNCC?

I am a SETRA (Southeastern Enduro and Trial Rider Association) rider; I ride mostly enduros and the occassional hare scramble.

In SETRA, If you want to ride in the "A" class, then just sign up! You are "ranked" at the end of the year, but you can always ride in a "faster" class than you are ranked.

Be aware however, you canot typically "drop back" in class during the season.

You are one fast dude if you can run with the "A" guys at you very first race. If you can, the rest of us slow guys in the B and C

classes would appreciate it.

When you sign up, be sure to say in a loud voice that you have never ridden a HS or Enduro before, but feel you will have no problem keeping up with those "A" guys!....it will give the folks running registration something to talk about.

Greg

[*mike68*]

Thanks for the input. That was the information I was looking for. I highly doubt I go into the A class and turn heads, but I would probably do ok. I am doing it more fo the opportunity to ride some different terrain that normally isn't open to riding, so even if I finnish last it's no big deal. I ride quite a bit and am in the condition to do 50 or so miles at a decent pace. I am not agressive on passing and perfer to pick the appropriate spot when I do. I won't pass if it is going to put another rider at risk. If I try one I will let you know how it goes..

Thanks again

[This message has been edited by *mike68* (edited 08-03-2001).]

[tripm]

Mike, there are several left this year. Lets plan to do one.

http://www.netra.org/schedules/harescra.htm

[PMAUST]

Mike, sorry I didn't get back to you sooner. I will share a couple of thoughts and experiences with you.

1) There can be a lot of carnage in Hare Scrambles no matter the class. Log jams can occur and it gets crazy in a hurry.

2) It can get very physical. And, I don't mean just you riding. If you get in the way of a faster rider they will yell at you to get out of the way first. Then shove you out of the way. And, if that don't work, run you over! Sometimes when you are on a single track trail it is damn hard to get out of the way. Use proper ediquette and pull over and let the faster guys pass. Then follow them for as long as you can to get better.

3) Nice guys finish last! Adrenalin is your friend.

4) Find out what district you are in. Check the results. You will see that there is overlap in every class. What I mean is that some C riders will do better than some B riders did and so on.

5) Although you can probably sign up as an A rider, I would suggest that you start lower and run a couple of races first to get your bearings.

6) It all depends on what your intentions and goals are. If you want to turn pro then be aware that you put winning ahead of personal safty. Not only yours but those you are competing against. They may say otherwise but that is the bottom line.

7) I love to race Hare Scrambles. It is one way to measure my progress as a rider. Plus, it is a lot of fun. As someone once said, think of it as going riding with several hundred of your buddies.

8) Not that I need it but, it also forces me to set goals for myself to improve and it s great way to measure that progress.

9) DO IT! ?

[Greg_in_Atlanta]

Hey Mike,

To avoid alot of the "confusion", pushing and shoving of a HS, try an enduro! You will find that you will be riding by yourself sometimes, and rarely with more than one or two other people at any particular time. I think you NETRA guys run those strange timekeeping rules (brand X), but don't worry about that until you have done a few.

I know a guy in CT that rides an enduro occasionally, if you are close, you might hook up with him. Let me know if you want more info.

Greg

[jamie_mckown]

Mike, how close are you to Lexington, Ky?

[freestyle111]

you want to ride with good decision makers you better ride vet class.last thing we need in "A"class is guy trying to make good decisions so he can finish in middle of pack.dont move to A class till you plan finishing in front of pack.

[*mike68*]

I am no where near KY. I live in NH. The extra feedback is helping me make my decission. I am going to do a couple turkey runs and enduros before I get into a harescramble, if at all. I am sure I would do fine in A class, but I am not one to run you over for the sake of position. Not interested in that. I am also one that would not prevent a faster rider from getting by to save a position either.I would definatley yeild. I like the sound of enduros and will start with one of those. I will still go watch harescrambles. They are fun to watch and the beer was cheap. I'll try one sooner or later. Thanks for the help guys.

Freestyle111,

I will race in whichever class I choose, thank you. I don't have to be a #*%!head to race A class. It may help in some cases, but it's not my style.

PMAUST,

Thanks for all the input. One thing I noticed is after the first lap, for the most part, I never saw more than 2 or 3 riders together. Let me know if you ever want to come to NH and ride my stuff.

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01 426 "sewing machine"

Custom cracked headlight:

Custom bent and twisted header pipe:Custom repaired break lever:custom repaired clutch lever: Custom dented moose skid plate: Custom dented frame: Custom scuffed side number plates: Custom scuffed front and rear fenders: Custom stock jetting: Custom vortip: Custom stickers

[This message has been edited by *mike68* (edited 08-06-2001).]

[This message has been edited by Bill (edited 08-09-2001).]

[mikeolichney]

I love HS. I think they are the best race format out there. Our series starts in Oct for 5 races. It sounds like a lot of other places have HS on enduro type terrrain, but in NE Colorado they are 2 1/2 hour MXs. No trees, streams etc.

I did not have to worry about A, B or C class. If you are a first year racer, you ussually race sportsman class. Otherwise, you race by age (not engine size) (unless you race pro, etc). I am 42, so I race senior. There is an ex-pro in my class who laps the rest of us seniors, the last race he was 3rd OA. That just the way they do it here.

Anyway, I wanted to pass on my experience about watching a race and then thinking about how I would do. I went to watch an MX race at the track I practice at. I kept lap times on the senior novice class, from lap times it looked like I would finish in the top three. (I was disappointed to see that the races were only ten minutes long, but thats another thread...)

I had a friend that went with me and he thought the exact same thing about his (vet) class. We knew our lap times. I mean the clock doesn't lie, right?

Well, I practiced some starts and got out there to do my first MX. Practice went great. I was clearly faster than most of the guys in my class. Hell, most of them would roll the rythm section and the step ups! I was fired up to race an MX!

Well, off the line I got demolished. I made it to the first corner in 33rd. How did all these slow guys get so good all of the sudden? I mean, I wasn't Ty Davis or anything, but I had done 20 or so Hare Scrambles, I wasn't a total spode, was I?

Well, maybe I was. You see the HS are dead engine, straddle the front wheel starts. They are 2 1/2 hours long and you don't need to go fast right away. MX is different and I was too stupid to realize it.

Well, I managed to save some dignity by passing 18 riders in the the next ten minutes. But 15th is a far cry from top three. It is kind of hard to do your best lap times with all these people in front of you. My friend had a very similar experience in the vet class. He also got smoked off the line, and threw in a crash and a broken brake lever to top it off.

Anyway, my point is that there is a lot more going on than you might think from watching a race. I would try the B class first if I were you. Best of luck in your first race. And remember, no falls, no stalls is the fastest way through a HS.

[*mike68*]

Mike,

Thanks for the input. Still thinking about it. I am looking to find a late season enduro (october) somewhere in mass, nh, vt, conn.

Mike

[freestyle111]

mike68 sorry if i offended you in anyway.i dont doubt your fast rider.i just think a you should get some experience competing in the harescramble race format before you try and race in top class.i only suggested you race vet class because you said you didnt want to have to race with all idiots in "B"class[that's understandable].there are plenty of fast riders in vet class that will be challenge for you and most guys racing in vet class wont be making stupid decisions that endanger other riders

[StuZ]

*mike68* please let us know if you come across any races in the Northeast this coming fall. Thanx!

[*mike68*]

I may have taken it the wrong way as well. I have decided to look into some enduros first. I talked with a guy that reced the event I watched and he said that most harescrambles aren't as bad as the one I watched. I am going to take the advice, start getting the feel for racing in an enduro event and then probably race in the vet class. At 33 can i race in the vet A class?

[Bill]

Yes you can run the Vet class, with the kids ? When you get to my age....Senior class.

Bill

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