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NEVADA COUNTY WOODS RIDERS A family oriented group of dirt motorcycle riders dedicated to the enjoyment and conservation of Nevada County's woods. |
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DUALSPORTING 101
Introduction
This rant is intended as instruction for those who have never DualSported before or those who might be curious. By way of introduction I have ridden several dualsports, have been the EMT for the Northern California Six Days DualSport and am the guy putting on this one for you. I will attempt (in my limited way) to cover equipment, technique, and 'Monkey Butt'.
DualSports
Unlike most other organized dirt bike activities, DualSporting, contrary to popular belief is NOT a speed event. However, you will typically see some old men blasting down dirt roads as fast as they can go. This is not dualsporting. You are there to enjoy the trails and the scenery. Take advantage of it. Back off a little and look at what you are passing. Pretend this is just an enjoyable ride with your friends.
There are few or no flags, arrows or ribbon on a dualsport course. You will be given a route chart ( a long strip of paper about 2" wide) with instructions guiding you through your day. DualSports are self-guided tours. So, unlike other events you may have been to in the past, you can stop anywhere you want and look around, have a drink, or (heaven forbid) take a picture. You won't be penalized. In fact it is encouraged.
On a dualsport you are encouraged to ride with at least one buddy. If something happens that buddy can help. And probably more often when you make a navigational error that buddy can help get you back on course (misery loves company). On the other hand I have learned that several 'buddies' can seriously detract from your experience, unless you like eating dust all day. So, pick one or two buddies, not six or eight.
Equipment
You need a street licensed off road bike. You will be riding on paved highway some of the time and at least in my state the CHP is cranky about unlicensed vehicles on 'their' roads. There are many good bikes on the market. The most popular are in the 350 - 400cc four-stroke class. An electric start type in many cases is envied.
You need a reset able odometer (meaning it can at least be reset to 0). The minimum being the trip odo on the speedometer that comes on many DS bikes. An improvement on this type of mechanical odo is one of those small ones that come on many enduro bikes. They can be wound backwards and forwards at will. This allows you when you make the inevitable mistake to roll your mileage back on track when you get back to the turn you missed (no math!). The next improvement is the electronic odometer. The newer Suzuki 400s come with one of these cool gadgets. They can be rolled back and forth and look cool. Next, you can get something like an ICO odometer. They cost a little (under $160) but are very good and very accurate. Lastly, I have been working with a new product from a company called Trail Tech. They produce an excellent unit designed for motorcycle use in the under $90 range.
The next thing you need is a roll chart holder. This is a box that holds your 2" wide strip of paper and allows you to 'roll' it forward and back to see what the next direction will be. There are many on the market but not all bike shops carry them in stock. All you need is one capable of holding a typical 'enduro jart chart' (excuse any misspelling). Some are fancier than others. One of the best holds a larger amount of paper and comes with a rubber band that turns both knobs in sync at the same time. They typically load from the side. Another one which I currently use has a blue plastic tub with the top clear platic cover removable. You load the chart onto the shafts from the top. One I found to avoid was the same blue plastic tub style but the clear plastic top has a magnifier built into it. It had the advantage of making the chart easier to read but you can only read one small area at a time. I find it better to squint a little (us old farts and our prespiopia) and be able to see at least two turns at a time.
This is all you must have, but there are a few things that are very useful too.
Mirrors are a problem in DS. They get busted off all the time. So, a folding mirror is handy. I found the small plastic ones to work but they were limited in what you could see and subject to vibration. The 'Ken Sean' folding enduro mirror or one like it seem to work the best. The mirror screws into the stock mounting screw of the old stock mirror or you can buy a mounting perch for it. It has a spring loaded ball built onto the bottom end of the mirror shaft that allows the mirror to fold down almost flat on top of the bars. You may ask why do you need that. Well if you have ever gone down a tight trail and smacked your solid mirror on a tree or bailed on a rocky trail, you know exactly why. In tight non-highway sections you fold the mirror out of the way and it won't get busted. If for some reason it does get wrecked it's cheaper than a factory mirror by far.
Turn signal lights are another potential broken item. These, in order to be DOT approved must stick way out to the side of the bike, just asking for it. I fixed the problem on my bike but if you say I told you to do this I will disavow any knowledge of our conversation. I used those little orange tear drop lightes you see plastered all over the roof of the cab of trucks. They bolt right on each side of the rear fender and work just fine. BUT, they don't technically meet DOT requirements so you are on your own. If your bike is used as a commute vehicle to work all the time then I don't recommend it. But, if the bike is just used on DSs and you don't get tickets (which gives them an excuse) very often...
Bark Busters are a great addition to any dirt bike. They save countless broken levers and protect your hands. I like the metal ones sold by Mair Plastics but it is just a personal preference. As a side note if you get the Mair ones get the cut down version of the plastic hand protectors that bolt onto the bars. Some people, though I have never actually seen it happen, claim it is possible to get your hands caught in the large versions when going over the bars in a crash. Again, I have no actual experience with this phenomenon though.
A good set of tools is a great idea on a DS too. You should have a way to patch a tube, the tools to get too it on your bike, and a decent small tool kit for on the trail repairs. DS rides tend to cover large areas. I have gone 280mi one way in one day. Be prepared!
The Roll Chart
A DS is a self guided tour. The Roll Chart is your guide. It consists of a long 2" wide strip of paper with instructions as to at what mileage to make what turn. Each instruction will have a mileage and directions. See example below:
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3.45 LEFT AT 'Y' ONTO DR. 25 14 |
At mile 3.45 you are to take the left fork of a 'Y' intersection in the trail. Going onto Forest Service dirt road 25 - 14 (which should be marked on a sign close to the intersection). Pretty simple, and for the most part it is. But, you must pay close attention. Always, always, always know what the next turn is and where on your odometer you are. Every single time I have gotten lost it is because I was not paying attention to this simple sentence. What about your odometer. Well each bike tends to gain or loose mileage differently. Get used to it. You will notice as you go down a section that as the mileage goes up, particularly at about the 8 - 10 mile area, your mileage will no longer match the chart perfectly. This is normal. In fact every good DS layout will include resets (hence the need for a reset able odometer) every 10 to at the most 15 miles. This gets everyone back on again. The sign of a good DS layout is that it was made with the same bike on all stages. This way you have a chance to learn how your mileage behaves as the day goes on and there are no suprises. It's not how accurate the mileage is but how repeatable it is that counts in the long run.
You may have noticed in the example above that the .45 was given. Most stock odometers only have one digit past the period. If you watch how the numbers roll by however, you will see that you can figure out when it is between .4 and .5 pretty easily. This is why it is commonly given with two digits like this. A full tenth of a mile is a long way in the woods.
Many roll charts will also include a graphic picture of each intersection of importance. This is a great aid to staying on course. A picture truly is worth a thousand words on a DS.
Some intersections are just plain though to make out and a good DS will flag these with tape which will be shown to you at the riders meeting. Always attend the meeting. Unless you like to get lost.
Some times you will also get a 'map'. This is typically a zerox copy of a section of a Forest Service map. This can be an aid when you get tired and want to just come in. You can find yourself on the map ad choose a more direct 'faster' route to the finish. Many times though you will be in an area where there is no faster route. And so the organizer may opt not to give out maps. Also, remember in some cases these maps are 'government ink' and not to current so 'buyer be ware'.
Techniques
First off a DS is not a race, but it is always a good practice to get in before midnight. I have found that, where ever it is easy going on fire roads, it is a good idea to maintain about 30mph. This keeps you going at a good steady pace. Obviously, you vary this 'pace' according to the roads but 30-35 usually gets me in before the sweeps. I on average I get to the lunch stop at about 1:30 - 2:00 and am in with the last 10% at the finish.
When I first started DSing I had a terrible time with corners on fire roads. I came from a trail - enduro background and had very little actual dirt road time. I felt unstable at any sort of speed and slowed to a crawl for each turn. I eventually found out that I was afraid of the sliding the bike does when power is applied in a turn. It felt like the bike was going out from under me. I cured this problem by getting up on top of the bike in the turns. Hang one cheek over the edge of the seat on the top side of the bike in the turn and let the bike lean under you. This way when the bike starts to slide out toward the outside of the turn it feels like you can stay ahead of it. Much better!
At each turn on the roll chart and just as soon as it is safe, roll the chart forward. Read the information for the next turn and get ready for it. This is important. Don't wait any longer that you need to for safety.
If you make a mistake and go past a turn the roll chart will start not to make any sense (much worse than it did before and way too bad for odo creep). Ok you are off course. Try to figure out what was the last turn where you were sure of your self. Go back to that point. If you have one of those odometers that you can roll back, great. Do so and continue on. If not you are going to get to do some math until the next reset. Say you missed the turn at 3.45. You get back and now your odo reads 4.0. Your odo will now read .55 high on all the rest of the turns until the next reset. I would add .5mi to each number I read on the roll chart from now until the next reset and expect each turn to be a little long. It doesn't seem hard until you are tired and have to do it for about 20 turns. It requires some concentration and a lot of talking to yourself to do it well.
Did I mention to keep rolling the chart forward after each turn so you are ready for the next turn.
Medical
Your biggest enemy in DualSporting is 'monkey butt'. That's the 'my butt is so raw I can't sit down' symptom you get at about seventy miles. By 250 miles even padded pizza parlor seats won't help. This is caused by the softness of your seat and sweat that accumulates when hot butt and hot seat stay in contact and rub & bounce against each other. The principle is delaying monkey butt is to reduce the sweat. Buy a pair of bicycling style shorts with the chamois liner. This will soak up a lot of moisture. Next, and say this three times slowly, 'Baby powder is my friend'. In the morning before the ride fill the inside of your shorts with baby powder. Put it on the inside of your knee guards too if they are in direct contact with your skin. This will add 50 - 60 miles to the inevitable - a very big deal! DO NOT USE CORN STARCH no matter what your spouse says. Corn starch turns to concrete when compressed in a damp atmosphere, big mistake.
Since the idea is to eliminate as much dampness as possible you should stand up where ever you can too. This will ventilate your butt and dry it out. I use vented pants too. They are much cooler and as most dualsports are in the summer...
I have bad hands. I have very long fingers for my palms. As a consequence I must by large gloves or my fingers poke out the ends. My palms are only medium though. This means that my gloves tend to roll up in my palms causing blisters on anything but a one day ride. I use athletic tape on my palms where the fingers meet the palm. I run strips between the fingers on the top and bottom of the palm area and then wrap a one inch wide strip around the entire palm area of the hand covering the knuckle area on the bottom side of the palm and continuing just behind the knuckle area on top. This seems to work for me.
John Roberts wrote that he has found success with some liner gloves made by Moose - Thanks John