Sometimes the Frog and the Owl Don't Win!

37th Fools Gold Enduro

It’s amazing, I wrote an article for a friend of mine who published a dirt bike magazine back in the seventies, the article was on the 3rd annual Fools Gold Enduro and in it I said I hoped to be able to ride the 33rd annual event. They were annual events up until a few years ago, but it’s become a lot more difficult to put these events on as time goes by.

This year’s version of the enduro took three tries to finally get it started. The first attempt was canceled by rain the second by way of a freak snow storm; actually it was more than rain and snow that delayed the event. Last year’s event was canceled period because of huge user fee hikes by the Federal Government. (Encouraged and supported by those groups who prefer we not be allowed to step foot in their forest)  This year’s event was headed down the same path do to the numerous studies and reports put up as road blocks that were not going to get done in time. And even when it’s a go there’s always the day before the event look see for the Red Legged Frog or Spotted Owl who if found to be near the course or possibly in harm’s way could be cause for cancelling the event.

The club (CERA) who have put this event on for all these years found a way at the eleventh hour to get around all this. It was a FREE ride; if you wanted you could donate to the club. (Hopefully everyone who road did so) This did away with a few of the unfinished reports and allowed the event to go on, for this year anyway. I’m sure they will find a way to close that loop hole by next year.

Originally the event was full (350 riders) and the club had actually started a waiting list, but by the time the twice cancelled event was finally run a lot of riders no doubt had other plans for that weekend. With the amount of riders reduced it made for a lot less dust for some. For me though I ate dust all day, I don’t ride enough enduros anymore to invest in a fancy computer to help time keep. (That’s why I like the National Enduro format, no time keeping) So I decided to ride on the same minute with a few of my fellow class competitors. One didn’t show up, another was behind us when he ran into problems on the trail (He flew off the side of the trail, it took him about a half hour to get back up) the guy I followed has been the champion of my class for the past "umpteen" years so I ate his dust and followed him. Actually he (The class champion) launched his bike off the side of the trail not long after the start and we, the three us hauled it back up. Had this been a Cross Country event and since he is one of my competitors I would have taken great joy in his plight and with a smile on my face simply roosted him and rode off, but not this day I needed his time keeping skills.

It’s frustrating when your late for a check and lose a point (For being a minute late) especially when you are within sight of him (The class champion) we go into a check I lose a point and he loses none because he was just far enough ahead of me that by the time I got into the check the minute changed and I was late. We went through only one check where we were not within sight of each other and at the end of the day he beat me by five points.  Five points is a lot in an Enduro but to say I was like five minutes behind him wasn’t true I could see him at every check, except one, if I was five minutes behind him at the end of a Cross country event that would be a lot. The guy who finished third in our class was tied on points with me, but I beat him in the tie breakers. Amazingly ties aren’t all that unusual among competitors in the same class so clubs set up a few of the checks as tie breakers where they not only score you by the minute you come in but by the second. Anyway tie breakers can get very complicated and I ended up beating him by a few seconds, if I was him I’d be pissed, I mean after 83 miles to lose by a few seconds, I’d be pissed.

When you looked at the route sheet you thought this might be a fairly easy six hours and eighteen minute, eighty three mile ride, (If there is such a thing) the club had lots of free time (Rest time) built into the schedule and you thought there might be plenty maybe even to much free time. Well not to worry about all that free time, the trails, speed averages and check placements were such that you magically lost time before one of those free time spots. So when you did get to one of them you had either used up all the free time or perhaps had a little time left so you could take a drink and gather your thoughts for the next section?

The day wasn’t too hot, the dust could have been a lot worse; the course was very good with lots of great single track trails and the company was excellent. One of the best things about any activity like this is doing the thing called bench racing afterward. From the AA rider to the first time racer all of us can relate and share in recalling that branch that almost got you, or that big downhill section with that steep drop off, or whatever.  It was another good day to be alive.

Doug 21J

Photo by: www.husaberg.org