Codrive or rallymoto for sandblast?

I have a DRZ400s that would be great to run rallymoto on. I already have the padded jacket and boots etc... needed to run the bike. I'm a little intimidated by all the sand at sandblast and would prefer to run Rally West Virginia, but I'm sure it'd be a good time at any rally.

But, after a minor knee injury and some more serious thought about my age... the bike is for sale so I can pay off some things and start a more serious buildup of the rally car. With the available time and moola I have, building the rally car means not driving for another year or two, but I can codrive in the meantime.

So, sell the bike and codrive sandblast (and be that much closer to the rally car), or rallymoto then sell it in the spring? Or forget the car, fess up to my limited time and money, and just rallymoto in between codriving gigs and use the car as a rallycross and course opening vehicle without a rollcage..

The car is a 73 beetle with an EFI turbo setup (street trim ~200 hp, rally trim maybe 160). It's been occasionally rallycrossing for years. I've been crewing and volunteering at rallies for the last 4 years or so, including radio guy in 000 and 00 at sandblast.

Perry

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Perry

FE570s course bike
KTM 950 ADV
74 Beetle turbo-efi etc..
72 Beetle stage rally project WRX powered
Attended about 15 rallies, usually a volunteer in a course car.

Hey Perry,

Well, after seeing RallyMoto since it's inception and all of it's SB runnings, I can tell you the all the deep sand will really whoop your rear end. There always seem to be some of the older riders who get too fatigued (and some who push themsleves beyond fatigue to a serious degree) and drop out later in the event. Heck, it is fatiguing to even drive a car at SB as you have to saw on the wheel so hard and so constantly to keep the car going in some semblance of a straight line. A moto is just that much worse with that 3rd dimension of motion for gravity to work on you and the bike!

I can't do much more for your decision except to say don't give in to common sense in matters of racing. If we all did that, there would be no racing! Good luck! Hope to see you there one way or another.

Mark B.

It is a tricky question...

My guide is "rally as much as possible right now". Elaborate plans for the future are always in the future. So, if you can moto it _right now_, then do it. You've got time for a couple trips down to, say, Laurinburg area to ride around on sandy roads. Practice helps, but it's not that tough: stand up and let the rear waggle.

Anders

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Grassroots rally. It's what I think about.

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Anders Green
My guide is "rally as much as possible right now"

Make that into a pamphlet and it could be the next thing to save rally.
Possibly the best advice ever.

I make jokes at Mark that by the time he is ready to rally he won't be able to due to cataracts.

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Grant Hughes

If you have a driver lined up, i'd say codrive. I wouldnt plan on codriving until you do though.

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Anders Green
It is a tricky question...

My guide is "rally as much as possible right now". Elaborate plans for the future are always in the future. So, if you can moto it _right now_, then do it. You've got time for a couple trips down to, say, Laurinburg area to ride around on sandy roads. Practice helps, but it's not that tough: stand up and let the rear waggle.

Anders

Gee, who has been saying for 30 years now "A good plan today is better than a perfect plan tomorrow"?

Lemme think Hmmmmmmmmmmmm?

Stand up ---weight off the front except when there's a reason--- If there is any way to move the fork tubes down in the clamps do it. Weigh back except in corners, use throttle, lots of it---it is more stable (and do it right and the tire actually will chew thru the bumps somewhat---they aren't as big if you chew thru 'em)

Above all use the whole width of the road: look where its smoothest (It's going to be the very edge of the road, even the last 4"---) use it

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John Vanlandingham
Sleezattle, WA, USA

Vive le Prole-le-ralliat

www.rallyrace.net/jvab
CALL +1 206 431-9696
Remember! Pacific Standard Time
is 3 hours behind Eastern Standard Time.

or just volunteer, i'm sure they need workers

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I would rather drive a slow car fast as a fast car slow!
first rule of cars: get what makes you happy, your the one paying for it!

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NoCoast
I make jokes at Mark that by the time he is ready to rally he won't be able to due to cataracts.

No the arthritic knees will beat the cataracts; and I'll be to weak to lift the automatic trannie into place to take care of the knees. And let me correct you....." ready for his life's 3rd rally campaign....." Kids.... sheesh....

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starion887

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NoCoast
I make jokes at Mark that by the time he is ready to rally he won't be able to due to cataracts.

No the arthritic knees will beat the cataracts; and I'll be to weak to lift the automatic trannie into place to take care of the knees. And let me correct you....." ready for his life's 3rd rally campaign....." Kids.... sheesh....

Not you Mark, a different Mark, Mark Malsom. I'll be the one with arthritic knees and ankles. Years of skateboarding. Though now trying to correct them with supplements and diet, pretty successfully too I might add.

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Grant Hughes

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starion887
And let me correct you....." ready for his life's 3rd rally campaign....." Kids.... sheesh....

In a German GM I hope!

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rally gods would turn in their graves if they ever knew Lada's were now part of EU rallying!!!

I hope so too, Ozgur.

Hey, Grant, if you don't mind sending me an email with your recipe for the knees, I am all ears. Got past the heart thing and now something else is slowing me down.....Old guys...... Sheesh....

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NoCoast

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starion887

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NoCoast
I make jokes at Mark that by the time he is ready to rally he won't be able to due to cataracts.

No the arthritic knees will beat the cataracts; and I'll be to weak to lift the automatic trannie into place to take care of the knees. And let me correct you....." ready for his life's 3rd rally campaign....." Kids.... sheesh....

Not you Mark, a different Mark, Mark Malsom. I'll be the one with arthritic knees and ankles. Years of skateboarding. Though now trying to correct them with supplements and diet, pretty successfully too I might add.

Ding-Ding-Ding! Gluc-Con/MSM/H-A is a Winner! Helped me recover from a back injury, PLUS made the Ol' joints feel better than they had in YEARS!

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Parfois, on fait pas semblant!

I am:
I know:
I am from:

Nobody.
Nothing.
Nowhere.

Responding to a bunch of posts above...

Glucosamine Chondroitin works wonders for my neck, which was injured long ago and now makes a decent weather forecaster... My dad suggested it after his knees got to the point where he was using a scooter at times, and the supplements got him walking again. Now he keeps telling me to use CoQ10, and says it works better for him.

I had cataract surgery 10 years ago in one eye... so I guess a good goal is to rally before the other one goes.. lol. At this pace it's debatable if I'll make it.

Anders- sounds like you're right there with me on the deciding factors. I think RWV would be easier to run on the bike, but that's a half a year away already.. Some of the consideration is that if I race SBR, then I can still sell the bike in the spring and work on the rally car over the summer. OR, I might really enjoy the bike and decide to run RWV and BRS on the cheap with it.

I agree that a lot of the bike guys look like hell at the after party. I have noticed that they tend to hit the buffet and disappear quickly after, presumably to a hot shower and a quiet room. Or maybe there's a super secret biker gathering somewhere.. I tend not to worry about that, I never seem to remember how miserable I was. But I do recall being at the end of the day at SBR and thinking what a long day it must be on a bike. Especially on some of the rainy/chilly weekends a few years ago.

I do not have a codrive gig at the moment. So maybe it's all moot. If I don't race I'll volunteer.

Perry

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Perry

FE570s course bike
KTM 950 ADV
74 Beetle turbo-efi etc..
72 Beetle stage rally project WRX powered
Attended about 15 rallies, usually a volunteer in a course car.

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Perry
But I do recall being at the end of the day at SBR and thinking what a long day it must be on a bike. Especially on some of the rainy/chilly weekends a few years ago.
Perry

Remeber though that it IS in the end a day spent on sandy roads with the actual SS miles amounting to around an hour and change--but spread out over a full day.

The "work" comes from "self imposed problems"----guys very probably in "average" shape (bearing in mind 50% of Americans are overweight) choosing bikes like guys choose turbochargers ( bigger is always better).

Somehow, some of us managed to do 120-140 miles IN the woods, on skinny trails with rocks and bumps and roots averaging around 24mph--so 8-10 hours and do this into our mid 40s no problem..

Of course we weren't on bikes weighing ---for no good reason-----450 lbs.

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John Vanlandingham
Sleezattle, WA, USA

Vive le Prole-le-ralliat

www.rallyrace.net/jvab
CALL +1 206 431-9696
Remember! Pacific Standard Time
is 3 hours behind Eastern Standard Time.

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john vanlandingham

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Perry
But I do recall being at the end of the day at SBR and thinking what a long day it must be on a bike. Especially on some of the rainy/chilly weekends a few years ago.
Perry

Remeber though that it IS in the end a day spent on sandy roads with the actual SS miles amounting to around an hour and change--but spread out over a full day.

The "work" comes from "self imposed problems"----guys very probably in "average" shape (bearing in mind 50% of Americans are overweight) choosing bikes like guys choose turbochargers ( bigger is always better).

Somehow, some of us managed to do 120-140 miles IN the woods, on skinny trails with rocks and bumps and roots averaging around 24mph--so 8-10 hours and do this into our mid 40s no problem..

Of course we weren't on bikes weighing ---for no good reason-----450 lbs.

Sandblast is not like other rallies John, the behaviour of the vehicle (if driven at speed) is diabolical and like Mark Bowers said, you have to constantly be sawing at the wheel to keep it from catapulting into the trees.