Enduro Training – Beginner Techniques

Here are the beginner techniques for Enduro Training. More details listed below.

Extending front to back 10 laps 5 times each lap
Stop and go – extend front to back 10 laps 5 times each lap
Standing Figure eights 3 sets of ten Go super slow and tight – steer with feet
Sitting Figure eights – leg out 3 sets of ten Go faster and tighter
Slow ride 10 long laps Go as slow as possible
Balance on rail tie 10 long laps Try slow and fast
Sitting loft front wheel 3 sets of 10 (or more!)
Standing loft front wheel 3 sets of 10 (or more!)
Pivot Turn 3 sets of 10 each leg
Donut 3 sets of 10 each leg
Grinding on log 20 times each side  Swap sides with wheels
Compression hop launch

Extending front to back

  • Shane Watts Vol1 02:28
  • WHY? Help to learn to be comfortable standing
  • Ride standing, steady across a field move body front to back
  • Extend body as far back as possible (straight arms)
  • Extend body as far forward over the bars as possible

Stop and Go – Extends

  • Shane Watts Vol1 03:15
  • WHY? Use body weight to counteract forces of motorcycle; help to develop throttle and clutch control
  • Ride standing on bike
  • When accelerating move body as far forward
  • When stopping move body as far back as possible
  • Pull in clutch when stopping

Standing Figure Eights (Trials Style)

  • WHY? develops standing control for tight trails
  • Ride standing on bike
  • Progress to tighter and slower
  • Steer with your feet
  • Use clutch to control speed

Sitting Figure Eights (MX Style)

  • WHY? Useful to develop fast cornering
  • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tbpAxr3oRi8
  • Cones about 15m apart
  • Ride sitting on bike
  • Slide up to gas tank
  • Extend inside foot over front wheel
  • Start slow and come in wide to the cone (entrace should be the same to the exit)
  • Progressing to fast, use back brake to slide into corner

Slow Ride

  • WHY? Useful for developing balance for technical trails and deep ruts
  • Ride standing on bike
  • Go as slow as possible, even stopping, without putting foot on the ground
  • Look far ahead
  • Key is to balance
  • Turn bars and or move knees for balance

Balance on Rail Tie

  • WHY? Useful for developing precise wheel placement
  • Shane Watts Vol1 10:15
  • Ride down a railroad ties or boards
  • Keep straight line
  • Look far ahead
  • Try both slow and fast
  • Try both standing and sitting

Sitting Loft Front Wheel

Standing Loft Front Wheel

Pivot Turn

  • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MQApmXwoEUY&feature=relmfu
  • WHY? useful for turning around in very tight places.
  • One foot on peg, other leg well out on ground
  • Stand over the bike
  • compress the front shocks
  • slip the clutch
  • move weight back
  • lift and turn
  • try alternating  legs
  • to start just raise the front wheel without turning

Grinding on a Log

  • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KPbXWBMKjnM&feature=plcp
  • WHY? very useful for developing the balance and skill to keep your front out of deep ruts, but your back tire in.
  • Front wheel on one side of log, rear on opposite
  • Progess to standing
  • Move  weight back and forth
  • Try with just front wheel on a rail tie

Donuts

Compression Hop Launch

  • WHY? Use a kicker to launch the bike over a bigger obstacle
  • Dirtwise Video
  • Be comfortable with stand up wheelie first
  • Start with just the kicker and launching the bike
  • Stand up
  • When coming to the kicker, preload suspension
  • When over the kicker, Pull up as if a stand up wheelie

 

Links

offroadschool.fr  figure eights, logs, rock steps   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1P0kfyqepok&feature=related

Written on October 17th, 2012 , dirt bike, Enduro Training
VIHSS Crown Royale Hare Scramble Oct 14 2012 – Whiskey Creek BC

Here are a number of pictures from the VIHSS Crown Royale Hare Scramble Oct 14 2012 – Whiskey Creek BC

Written on October 15th, 2012 , dirt bike
Don’s Adventure Ride #19 – Tugwell-Alligator Loop, Sooke, BC

Here is a fun B loop with a couple of B+ sections. Plus a little bit of road to make this a fun day trip dual sport adventure.

Distance:
About 60km long

Level:
Lots of easy “C” logging roads and lots of “B” roads with rubble, rocks, little logs. A couple of B+ sections, but they are short. Worse comes to worse you could walk your bike through them.

Time of Year:
This area should be free from snow from May to November

Access:
Go out past Sooke to Anderson Road. Turn up the road, keep your eyes peeled to the bushes on the left for an ATV track bypassing the gate. This route changes all the time so you’ll have to keep you eyes peeled.

GPS File:
Adventure Ride – Tugwell Alligator.gpx

Map:
(click on image to enlarge)

 

Here’s Cam deftly maneuvering his 640 down the rock steps and rubble from Tugwell Lake.

Written on October 11th, 2012 , Adventure Ride, dirt bike, Sooke, Uncategorized
Don’s Adventure Ride #17 – Donner Lake – Gold River, BC

Donner Lake is a beautiful mountain lake on the rarely visited west side of Strathcona Park. It is accessed from the Ucona mainline logging road out of Gold River. There is a very rough old road that leads out to the lake. But its worth the effort.

There is even a canoe and paddle at the lake if you want to truy some fishing.

Distance:
One way, there is about 7km of logging road, then about 11km of very rough old road out to the lake. About 5km of this road is in Strathcona park so you should be doing it on foot or bicycle.

Level:
The rough road is very rough and definitely has some “B” sections.

Time of Year:
This area should be free from snow from May to November

Access:
In Gold River, head down Muchalat Drive, then turn onto Ucona Dr – towards the Rod and Gun club. This is the start of Ucona Mainline.

GPS File:
Adventure Ride – Donner Lake.gpx

Map:
(click on image to enlarge)

Doner Lake (click on image to enlarge)

A nice place to sit and enjoy the view.

Bridge across a Ucona feeder creek

One of the many creek washouts along the way

View of the mountains from the trail to Donner Lake

Written on July 19th, 2012 , Adventure Ride, dirt bike, Hike
Wellburn/Greybeards Enduro 2012 – Cowichan Lake

Here is the info on the Wellburn/Greybeards Enduro course for 2012.

A “riders” video of the event.

Access:
Drive through the town of Cowichan Lake. Past the arena on the west side of town. The first left hand LOGGING road is the entrance. It will probably be locked. If so, I am not sure if you can slide you bike under the gate or ride around the gate. You *might* be able to get access to the area by going under/around the gate Johel Cresent.

GPS File:
Wellburn Greybeards Enduro.gpx

Map:

Written on June 24th, 2012 , Cowichan, dirt bike, Uncategorized
Don’s Adventure Ride #3 – Hidden Alligator Lake – Sooke, BC

Here is a nice day tour up to a back country lake below Alligator creek. Since the lake has no name, I am calling it “Hidden Alligator Lake”. It’s all new/old logging road, with a few “B” sections, riding through a couple of creeks, and up a bumpy road – no single track or anything “A”. If you have a plated bike you can make a nice loop out of it along West Coast road. If you dont have plates, an out and back is fun too. Up Boyds Pit past the recent logging turns into an old road, with a little overgrowth and a couple of easy creek crossings (the southern one looks daunting, but look closely, its not). It then connects to the top of Forebay Road – East Main, which is an easy logging road. The road up to the lake is a little rocky in places and a little overgrown, but has nothing too challenging.

If your a little bored, take the “B” route at boyds, it still a road, but a little older and rockier with a more challenging creek crossing.

If you made a loop out of it, it might total 50-70km. Pretty little lake up top.

Access:
Head out past Sooke. Once you pass the Muir Creek crossing, head up the hill and get on to the flats, that’s blueberry flats. Look closely on the North side of the road and you will see an ATV track going into the woods. That’s the start up to Boyd’s Pit. If you have gone past the straight stretch, you have missed the entrance.

GPS File:
HiddenAlligatorLake.gpx

Map:

Written on June 8th, 2012 , Adventure Ride, dirt bike, Sooke
EFI Fuel Filter for KTM or Husaberg Motorcycle

KTM and Husaberg EFI based motorcycles really need very clean fuel or else the injector will get clogged and the big will perform like crap. The stock filters are OK, but not good enough. You need something that will filter down to 10-12 microns.

In the case of the KTM 350 exc-f you want a filter that has 5/16″ barbs.

Golan

Golan makes a nice filter that filters down to 10 micron. Very nicely machined. Although its expensive at $50-60.

Can Am

Can Am makes a filter for their ATVs – part number 709-000-100. Or Walbro part 125-199. Its in a metal can – $15-20

Napa 3095 (Wix 33095)

Napa has one that is similar (or the same as) the Can-Am filter. Part number #3095. 11 microns. $4. WIX web site cross references the can-am Walbro filter for this filter. So all is well. It turns out this is not an EFI filter, but the specs say it should be fine up to 75PSI.

Napa 3011 (Wix 33011)

Napa also has another filter #3011 which is see through. 12 microns $4. Will it put up with 60PSI pressure?

Installation of Can-Am/Napa/Wix filter on KTM

Courtesy of Calltrex on KTMTalk

Written on May 14th, 2012 , dirt bike, Uncategorized
Boyd’s Pit / Blueberry Flats – Sooke Dirt Biking

Boyd’s Pit at Blueberry Flats is just past Sooke and is great for dirt biking. It is used for Hare scrambles and other races. Lots of great technical single track. The lower portion is pretty flat, the upper portion it gets harder and hillier.

To get there, drive on the 14 out past Sooke. After you pass down and up through Muir Creek, you’ll come to a flat stretch of road through a clearcut. That is blueberry flats. Part way down the road, keep your eye posted to the north, as there will be an ATV track into the area.

Here are a couple of maps of the area, and a GPS file. The tracks on the GPS files contain names which will give an idea of how tough the single track is. Some places it is GREAT (fast, tight, not much rock/root). Other places it is HARD (rocky, rooty, big mud holes and the like). Enjoy!

Maps

GPS Tracks

Boyds Pit GPX file

Misc

Great Video of the ‘Wall of Mud’

Written on April 12th, 2012 , dirt bike, Sooke, Trials
Skutz Falls/Bear Creek Caves – Lake Cowichan

There is a karst cave a couple of km above Skutz Falls along an old logging road.

Access:
There are two ways you can get there:

  1. From Skutz Falls. With a dirt bike/ATV/Rock Crawler you can ride up the old road and get right to the trail head, then a short 5 min hike. If you are in a car or truck, then you have to hike up about 2km (elev of 350m) – its a couple hour hike.
  2. A longer way in, but an easier hike is to take the Holt Main logging road at Glenora, which turns onto Stoltz main. You can drive a truck within 1km of the trail head. Once parked you can walk about 1km down a gentle old logging road.

When trying to find the trailhead look for the two cutdown trees right on the side of the road. There will be a bit of flagging marking the trail. The trail is not very worn in, so look carefully. Its about a 5-10min hike up the bank. You will start to hear a creek and then see a ravine. A steep little trail goes into the ravine, then into the cave.

If its snowy or wet you might want to take a rope to use as a hand line, as the last part of the trail is steep and there are no handholds.

Difficulty: The main loggin roads are easy. If you ride up from Skutz falls its moderately steep and washed out. A bunch of rubble but rideable.

Map:

GPS File:
BearCreekSkutzFallsCaves.gpx

Written on November 20th, 2011 , Cowichan, dirt bike, DR350, Hike, KTM 450 EXCR
Don’s Adventure Ride #2 – Shawnigan to Skutz Falls – the back way

My new friend “A” took me along a backroads route from Shawnigan to Skutz falls. Its a nice loop around Waterloo Mtn. Good for a dirt bike or ATV – full size 4×4 might have a bit of a problem on the last section through to Skutz falls.

Access: Ride to the north end of Shawnigan out the Old Port Renfrew Road.

Ride Time:About 4-5 hrs round trip.

Difficulty: The main loggin roads are easy. From the top of S Main (?) to Skutz falls is an old double track that turns to washed out rock and rubble as it goes down into Cowichan river valley.

Map:

GPS File:
Shawnigan-Skutz Falls.gpx

Pete’s Pond

Long Lake Dock

Written on November 14th, 2011 , Adventure Ride, Cowichan, dirt bike, KTM 450 EXCR, Shawnigan
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