Ft william DH v. Moto
Does a shark swim better than a cheetah runs?
The 250SX smoker dynos at 49hp, which is not very far off of the 4t's 50ish hp. To WBC the 210lb 250 2T with a significant lower cog (no valve train above the piston) makes a the 2T a better descender than 20-30 lb heavier 450's. Compression braking is kind of a moot point with most guys running rekluse auto clutch's off road now days.
I wouldn't say most of the really competitive guys are running the Rekluse. They're too good with the clutch and it's too much of an asset to their riding to sacrifice for the Rekluse.
I, however, am not and love my Rekluse to death. Maybe with that new EXP unit they're producing more of the top guys will be running them. I think EnduroCross is about the only thing where you see them more prominently.
If you really want engine braking with a 2T you can always cheat and add some flywheel weight. Personally I think 2T's have more than enough engine braking for serious descending. The 4T's want to bring you to a halt and they don't want to coast through corners as easy as 2T's do - easier to flow through stuff on the smoker I think.
I wasn't quite sure if the top off road guys were running them, just assumed a good percentage were, guess not. I've only been riding for a couple of yrs but I've heard than engine braking with a 2t can foul plugs pretty quickly, so I just pull in the clutch and pretend like I am on my dh bike when descending. Oh and on my flywheeled 2t, engine braking is negligible, compared to the 4t I had which would lock up the rear wheel.
Anyway back to the topic. Not ever seeing the track except for in vids I got to go with Knight. However of any of the PNW DH tracks that I have ridden I am pretty sure that a DH bike would be faster than a Moto. Fort W seems to be the most moto friendly track of all the current WC tracks ( again judging by the vid's) and one short section of going 50-60 vs 30-40 will make a huge difference.
Some decent Knight footage in this clip - mostly uphills but some down.
World Enduro Championship - Wales, 2008 on Vimeo
World Enduro Championship - Wales, 2008 on Vimeo
(In the first video page 1 lol not gee) The guy in the moto slowed down on a couple of open areas when he and hte bike were together where he couled have easily pulled away but wasnt .... He was rippin in other scenes so he definently could have..
That being said that due ripped the first few seconds hopping around and down, NICE riding... Who was that on the MTB.....
That being said that due ripped the first few seconds hopping around and down, NICE riding... Who was that on the MTB.....
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Don't take my word for it but there are unconfirmed murmerings that Gee was 7 seconds faster on the first run, then 5 secs up on the 2nd as Knight gets to grips with it and learns the track more. Gee knows the track pretty well... More running today though apparently.
How much practice were they allowing Knight? I hope it's more than just a couple of runs, since Gee has been racing on it since the early 2000's.
From Atherton Racing 3 hours ago:
And from Gee himself:
Apparently the big showdown is sometime this week, so Knight should be getting plenty of practice in...
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fags!
Dont offer a KX500 version! Maybe they should ride a 125 for awhile give that clutch control back.
AHHAAH
Lets hope so. Gee has to have somewhere upwards of 100 runs on that track. Plus weeks worth of watching other peoples lines on there.
You're forgetting the track changed, not a huge amount but it's defo not the same track as last year.
Seb - it was about 3 years ago and I dont remember if I saw it on TV or MTB cut/Freecaster. They came down the same trail. It was more of a friendly thing but still a race. Sounds like this is way more official. Being on the FB WC track is only upping the anti.
The latest from Dirt:
Looks like Knighter's on the 2 smoke.
http://dirt.mpora.com/news/gee-atherton-david-knight-2.html
Looks like Knighter's on the 2 smoke.
http://dirt.mpora.com/news/gee-atherton-david-knight-2.html
From SDH:
"I noticed that Gee had his conti magic on his bike to help him win.
...
From what I hear putting my ear to the ground and listening to the bongo drums, well done to Gee. He must have smoked the machine down the technical sections of the track. Split times from different parts of the track would be cool to see.
I guess, cornering speed of the Dh bike won it in the end, ace being able to go so fast in a straight line, but them pesky corners."
No idea if his sources are accurate, if he even has any source and isn't just making it up! Look forward to seeing the times and hopefully some great footage of it.
"I noticed that Gee had his conti magic on his bike to help him win.
...
From what I hear putting my ear to the ground and listening to the bongo drums, well done to Gee. He must have smoked the machine down the technical sections of the track. Split times from different parts of the track would be cool to see.
I guess, cornering speed of the Dh bike won it in the end, ace being able to go so fast in a straight line, but them pesky corners."
No idea if his sources are accurate, if he even has any source and isn't just making it up! Look forward to seeing the times and hopefully some great footage of it.
From what ive heard Gee was 7 seconds faster during practice.
One guy on SDH guessed that Gee won it from what was said, but I wouldn't go by that. Redbull has sworn them to secrecy. I think it's safe to say that it was close though.
Yuroshek get your wallet ready....
damnit.
seriously, whats the big ****ing deal about keeping this such a secret?
Ok then i guess mag is out and its official. Note the bet was taken before this race went down. So no insider trading was done by me.
orly?
How would Lady Gaga even have a chance against Vader?
^^
Have you ever heard her simplistic, neo-Cher croonings? At volume 11, they could stop a charging (deaf) bull elephant in his tracks. She can definitely pwn Vader with her auditory assaults, and she looks even more intimidating in black leather than Annikan.
Have you ever heard her simplistic, neo-Cher croonings? At volume 11, they could stop a charging (deaf) bull elephant in his tracks. She can definitely pwn Vader with her auditory assaults, and she looks even more intimidating in black leather than Annikan.
That said, girls got an amazing voice and a **** load of talent...
Too bad she doesnt use it much except for some rare ocasions like this TV performance.
the tags....
Ah the truth! Redbull are a very special company.
WTF are the official results!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!