FTR Hare Scramble
Race #2 September 11th 2009
Bartow Florida
A nice short journey...
Race 2 of the FTR Hare scramble series was located just south of Orlando Florida.
We set off Saturday afternoon and arrived at around 3pm after the short 3hr trip.
I took the 4-wheeler out after the Saturday races were finished and checked out the course.
It was hard pack clay with a lot of elevation changes and very bumpy.
Sunday, Practice...
Sunday morning the race was put back half an hour so the fog could clear, by around 9am it was clear and the temperature was rising fast.
I finished my 10 mile practice lap after having some difficulty getting used to such a bumpy track.
During a fast section I lost control after hitting a ditch and my bike swapped ends violently but luckily I managed to hold on.
Mike Bell photo
The Race...
I was feeling really good about this race, I had been training hard and felt very fit and confidant that I could be in the top 3.
I lined my bike up with the other Master A and Super senior A riders, there were about 35 rider on my row.
As my race started I got a good start around 7th or 8th into the first turn, as all the rider funneled through it was a fast pace.
I stuck in behind the leaders and we all juggled for position as we went through the lower section which was very bumpy.
As I came out to a fast left hand turn leading onto a straight I pinned the throttle and past a couple of riders.
Next thing I know one of the leaders went down in front of me and I ran over him unable to avois a collision.
I went over the handlebars and landed on my head and my side, then my bike landed on my back.
As I lay on the ground screaming and winded I could see the other rider laying in the track motionless.
This was a bad wreck and I was in agony, the other rider broke some bones and was taken away.
he medics attended to me and once I could breath I said no to a trip to the ER and rode back to my camper.
The race , take two...
After I had sat in my camper for about 10 minutes I decided I was going to go back out and try to get some points.
I set off way back about a minute after the last line had left, about 16-20 minutes after my on class.
I rode around and through every rider I could and managed to get 3 laps in to put me in 9th place and salvaged 37 points.
It was worth the pain of riding the race even though my thumb felt like it was broken and my back and ribs were killing me.
I got back to the camper and passed out on the bed, I took some painkillers and lay down for an hour to let them work.
After an hour we threw everything in the back of the van and trailer and drove home as fast as I could so I could lay down again.
we got home around 6pm and I took a bunch more painkillers and passed out on the couch.
The good news..
My thumb is not broken and neither are my ribs, they hurt like hell but I can live with that, I tore a ligament and sprained my wrist that`s all.
Nothing broken, loser...
Results.
