Alan Westerfield's Saddleback Race Report (2006)

Race Report: Kentucky Off Road Hare Scrambles Series (KORHS) - Round 7
Rider: Alan Westerfield - Bike 3rd Place
Bike: 05 Yamaha YZ250F #7

You know you raced hard the day before when you wake up and growl in pain from something as simple as a morning fart. You then realize you forgot to turn in your work uniforms the week before so you have to wear Friday's outfit that still wreaks of mineral spirits, tranny fluid, and sweat. You stumble into the kitchen to find the refrigerator empty because you neglected your weekly trip to the grocery in favor of prepping your bike. You have three days of scruff on your face and no time for shaving because you're running late anyway. Mac (my dog) is hopping on his back legs and making sure you know he has to go. The "Monday Morning Racing Blues" have a way of making you wish you hadn't moved out so quickly. Mothers and Wives are often overlooked but they certainly can be helpful to keep a man afloat.

Luckily, Saddleback had received plenty of rainfall eliminating the "dust factor". I really had no expectations coming into this one because I hadn't been on my bike in over two weeks. The mud from my last race didn't get washed off until Friday night. My "two week vacation" from the bike was a result of exhaustion. My real life and my dirt bike racer fantasy life finally caught up with me and knocked me into the dirt. I had been treating my racing adventures as a job but forgot one important ingredient that goes along with a job- your supposed to get paid! I realized that racing was supposed to be fun and I was tired of being tired. I vowed to no longer worry about who is doing what and trying to get all these crummy little sponsorship deals and whether or not I was on the latest and greatest equipment. I was there for FUN….

I found myself in the rear 50% off the start. I immediately tried to pass a few riders when I saw local favorite Billy Cooper bonsai past three of us at once. If Billy had a nametag on for this race it would say, "Hello, my name is Billy. I will be serving a complimentary lunch today of Dirt clod sandwiches- courtesy of the Shercomatic 2006." All that on one little name tag. Billy was on a mission. It was like the world was going to be destroyed and he had to pass everyone to save it. He was flying and made his way to the front. His pace was one I could not match. Unfortunately, Billy's great ride ended with some sort of problem on the second lap and he pulled out. This put me in third place, but still a good distance behind Paul and Marty. I became a little more comfortable with the course and tried to cut into Marty's lead. I wasn't worried with the #1 because Whibley don't wobble. I felt my pace was good, safe, and possibly fast enough to make up the time I lost getting friendly with Saddleback. Other than a few accidents with lappers, laps 2 through 5 were uneventful and smooth. I elected not to fill with gas this time and chance it. I put a hard charge on during the final lap and ran out of gas at one of the checks. Switching to reserve and pushing my bike down the hill to get her started I was off again. I knew reserve wouldn't last forever so I toned it down a bit to conserve fuel and complete the race. I put in a consistent, hard ride but it was ultimately not enough to catch the second place rider- Marty Michaels. Congratulations to those guys, they earned it.

If you have never seen the movie "World's Fastest Indian" I would highly recommend it. It's a true story about a fellow named Burt Monroe from New Zealand (like Paul) who has a dream of world speed records on a 1920 something Indian motorcycle. In hopes of keeping the movie a mystery, I will only share one part of it. You can't buy pistons for a 1920 Indian so Burt melts down old trophies and makes his own high performance pistons. I have noticed that Paul makes sure he always gets his first place trophy- the ones made out of metal. I have a suspicion there could be a high performance CRF450 piston melting station hidden somewhere in the Summer's compound. Could it be the secret to Paul's success? I have researched the AMA's handbook trying to find a rule infraction about making pistons from trophies but haven't found one yet. I asked Paul if this was going on and he replied with a sly smile as if to say, "you may never know." In the meantime, I will not be melting my plaques into pistons, but rather carving tiny wooden ducks. My plans are to begin making a movie about my life in the near future. It will be entitled "World's Fastest Idiot". As they say in the hip-hop world- Shout out to my hommies, ATEK Racing and Jon Buckner @ Midstate Motorsports.- the ones who truly stand behind me.

Alan Westerfield