GS Trophy Challange Bike Prep

Second highest score on Day 1 technical riding and highest on-pavement..... I was doing really well until I missed a course marking for the hill on the second day and blew the nav challenge (shoulda used my GPS odometer!)

Great time, and good to meet some new friends.




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Heck, between you and Maury on his R100GS I think all of us GSA riders were thinking about buying an R80 or R100 for the next event. You guys did great and showed all of us a thing or two. Of course I realize it wasn't the bike but the rider that made all the difference. Both you guys have a lot of saddle time.

Highlight of the weekend was meeting everyone. I had a great time riding, but really enjoyed everyone I met and talked to.

DH

2012 BMW GS Trophy Challenge Voting is open!!!

http://www.facebook.com/BMWMotorradUSA

Vote for you rider -- Andrew Lacy if you please Lets send some guys to South America

Noooo.... Vote for Mike Drew, he really needs the vacation
Congrats to all who entered and placed. all the riders were top shelf.

Good luck Mike!!!

Mike,

Great job on your finish!!! I sure hope we get to ride together in South America, I have heard your a sight to see that GS.

Yeah the parts dept. loves me.
Thanks Jeff, can't wait to get to California to ride with you
guys again

Just got to throw this out there. I was not one of the top three in the west coast. Jason Houle was. He should be on the voting site. But for reasons nobody knows about BMW stripped him of his placement and put me there instead. Jason is a great rider, person and GS advocate.

Action Jackson

Crazy camera man told us to strike a pose, can you imagine what happens when you tell a bunch of tired and dirty GS riders to strike a pose. :huh

Something appears to be wrong with the BMW voting page. I voted last night then my wife logged into FB to vote as well. When she tried, it must have realized that it was coming from the same IP as it wouldn't let her vote and the screen read "Thank you for voting"

Jason is a super cool guy and a heck of a rider. I enjoyed having him and as my instructor, along with Del (another kick ass rider), at RawHyde. But that's the problem, even if he has a full time job elsewhere (I think he mentioned being a lineman for AZ power) he works/volunteers as a instructor at RawHyde, a BMW contracted company. Too bad for him, he would have done well. I'm sure he's not happy about being asked to step aside.

BMW GS Trophy Challenge Rules: <?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-comfficeffice" /><o></o>
29. Employees of the BMW Group, employees of companies contracted to the BMW Group and employees of the host companies managing the qualifier events are not eligible to compete. <o></o>

Hill of wonders from day 2 and 3. A lot of guys are going to have good memories of that thing, and of course as with all hill pictures this doesn't do it justice.

How about Hammer riding that hill and every other obstacle on street tires! Pretty funny considering the amount we all debate about the best off road Tire... Especially since he had only been riding for 3 months!

Half,

I only rode this Saturday (not good enuf to make the cut so take what I say with a grain of salt) but I was disappointed when I saw this hill. The way they talked about it in the pre-meeting I thought we were going up Everest. With a run it was a non-event and an easy 250 points. Starting from a dead stop at the bottom added some difficulty but almost all you guys motored up NP.

Hope you are on your way South! Good luck

DH

DH,

I agree the hill wasn't all it was made out to be, however hill climbs are a special beast. With most other obstacles you can make decisions on the fly, and if you fail you can always just stop and put your feet down. On a hill you have to make all the decisions on the ground before you head up, you have to anticipate what the bike is going to do, which line is best, which line is the back up, and where to bail if you have no other choice. It is a great way to test a riders confidence and ability to foresee unknowns. I found that the number one skill they tested was "heads up riding" by that I mean riding 10-30 yards ahead of the bike, which is something most novices have a hard time with.

A great pic of Dan Farson eating it up on the F800. I tell you what, competition aside, he is one heck of a rider. The best thing about his riding is that you can tell its all old school on the seat tech trials stuff, none of that hot rod showboat stuff all us young bucks try.

More pictures to come so stay tuned, and tell your friends where to find the pics, I am also posting most of these on the BMW Motorrad US page right next to where you vote.

"A great pic of Dan Farson eating it up on the F800. I tell you what, competition aside, he is one heck of a rider. The best thing about his riding is that you can tell its all old school on the seat tech trials stuff, none of that hot rod showboat stuff all us young bucks try."

Dan was amazing. Like a train on rails. Up down over-around putt putt putt right up a cliff.

Here's you -->

#1 lesson from my early days: when in doubt, gas it!
#2 lesson: don't look at what you want to miss, look at where you want to go
#3lesson: the further you look ahead the faster and smoother you will ride
#4 lesson: don't fall down

Amazing how simple this stuff is and how easy it is to get out of the habit!

DH

Words of wisdom

+1

Hey Sean, you got back to VT OK? Everything dry on the outside and inside of that GSA?

DH