http://www.robbygordon.com/news/ this gives you some details to whom MAY have been in a rush behind you..
Must have been Juan Carlos Lopez. Gordon would have found you after the race and told you how ignorant you must be for not just getting out of his way. Can you tell how I feel about Robby?
Remember, there were 8 orange speed energy/rpm vehicles entered in this years 1k, across multiple categories: TT, C1, C5-1600, C6, C8, C4, C2 and Sportsman Buggy. Not that it would surprise me if it was RG that gave you a love tap, just sayin it may have been the 6 or 8 trucks. In any case, glad you made it to LaPaz safely and under the time limit, congratulations to you and your crew for a job well done
Just looking thru some pics from the race and one of my friends snapped a few of truck #839 in El Arco just before you came thru Matt.
Does NORRA have any system in place to penalize these truck whack-jobs that are endangering Bikes? It's going to cost a huge amount if an injured bike racer files an expensive Civil Suit against NORRA and the individual driver/team. It doesn't matter how MANY waivers participants sign if the organization can be shown to be negligent in protecting participants. You're not the only rider who was given a "friendly" nudge by trucks in the Baja this year. :eek1
Warning- Im sure that Ill get some of the timeline wrong. After about 12 hrs on the bike it all just mixes together. I was surprised that waiting in line at the start I was really relaxed. I kept telling myself to stick to the plan and dont do anything stupid but after leaving the line I couldnt help it and rode a wheelie for a little ways. We dropped into the wash and it was awesome to finally hit dirt and be on the way. The first 40 miles went by pretty quick and I was really glad I preran the start. There were tons of people trying to get you to go the wrong way and signs switched around. The first time I would see some of my chase crew (well Crosscountrys chase crew that he sent my way when he decided to puss out ) was going to be around mile 150. When I got to the pit it was awesome to see the guys and they immediately asked what I needed and if the bike needed anything. The bike was in good shape and all I needed was some food. So after some grub and some bullshitting I was off. The san felipe section had been the driving force getting me out of bed and into the gym. I was really worried that after all the whoops I would be whooped with not enough to make it the final 800+ miles. I decided to look for alternate lines in the cactus as much as possible to avoid some whoops and it worked pretty well. A few miles on the main track then off into the cactus for a few. I was keeping a nice steady pace and was having a blast. Once I hit old poticitos rd I slowed because the last thing I needed was to wreck in the rocks. It didnt seem like long, I hit the pavement and started laughing at how good I felt. I was so worried about being spent and I felt like I had just gone for one of our sunday rides... I guess the gym does work.:huh Next thing I knew I was at Cocos corner. This would be my first crash and hopefully it was entertaining. I went through the pits and made the turn toward the check and caught a rock with the rear wheel. A swap or two ended in a low side. The guys at the check made sure I was ok and off I went. When I was picking up my bike I realized what RM I was at and it looked like the sun was getting low so after the check I decided to pick up the pace and make sure I got to my chase crew with the sun still up. When I came into the pit I pulled my front brakes and there was nothing there. My chasers flagged me down and immediately went to work putting my lights on, changing the air filter and working on my front brake. Kanook already filled everyone in on the front brake issue but it wasnt as bad as he says. It was a long pit but who would look for front brake pads missing? We all thought it was air in the line and low fluid. They got the bike going filled me full of food and off I went. From the start to rm348 I had a hell of a good time. :)
By the way... Rudy absolutely a top notch guy, former bike racer, super experienced, and I'd say would be super gentle in the truck around bikers. The other driver Mark is a good guy but I do not know his moto background if any. And being buddies with many car/truck racers, hearing stories, and having ridden in a TT I gotta say it's not all on the drivers shoulders to keep the bikers safe. What some bikers do in front of race cars is absolutly crazy insane. Bikers will try to keep the truck behind them, they'll jackrabbit the truck, they'll do stupid shit like wear headphones for music or ear plugs when racing and don't have a clue, and they'll pull back onto the course after getting passed when it's still dusty without getting a real good look at what's coming from miles OR YARDS back. Not trying to start a debate, that debate was a few years ago post Baja 500...
I couldn't agree with you more about "What some bikers do in front of race cars is absolutly crazy insane" but I think the issue he had was with one truck in particular and I will tell you Matt is one hell of a rider and knows what these trucks are capable of, so I doubt very highly he was trying to out run or play jackrabbit with the truck. Very poor judgment on someones part driving the truck is all I think was trying to be conveyed. But thanks for the tutorial on what moto guys are capable of Not trying to start a argument, just sayin is all.
I take some responsibility for what happened and shit happens during a race. It sucked and I'm glad I'm ok. Like I said on another thread he did try and go around me and slide back into the track. I should have been out of his way. So yes it was rider error but in the end he is in a truck, passing a rider, he made a mistake and hit me. Luckily it didn't end my race and just screwed with my head for awhile.
Btw Tim..... I don't know this guy and I'm sure he's a solid guy, no ones even sure who was driving at the time, but if and person runs into a biker (a human being) with a 4000lb truck accidentally or prosperously, whether it the riders fault or not and doesn't stop to see if the rider is okay or needs help and leaves him out in the desert to fend for himself, this is -uck up imho. I raced for a lot of years and had my share of mishaps in which with I had to own and I don't see any ownership here
Sorry... wasnt trying to instigate anything. Just thought that any issues should at least be taken up with the right parties. Congrats again Matt. And thanks for the race report, cant wait to hear the rest.
