A trip to VA Beach to celebrate my brother's bachelor weekend before being hitched gave me the opportunity for a ride along Route 5 and across the Jamestown Ferry instead of the normal slog through the Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel. I even had time for a short detour along the Colonial National Historical Parkway before boarding the ferry.
On the way back, I tried out a couple detours along Route 5. One in particular ended at a closed gate on private land, but served as an opportunity for a moment to stretch my legs off the bike.
The most recent harescramble events have somewhat been "test rides" to troubleshoot my YZ250F, which has been experiencing an intermittent issue that only seems to rear its head after about an hour and half of riding. Sure enough, it reared its ugly head at round two of the 2025 VCHSS series.
What really stinks, though, is that it happened during the last lap of what was shaping up to be a second-place finish.
Off the line I was last of fifteen riders, which is par for the course considering that I'm usually the only rider using a kickstart. As usual, I paced myself in order to avoid tangling with anyone making erratic passes and slowly made my way through my pack of riders, only having to fully stop twice for logjams in the tighter sections of woods. By the end of the second lap I saw a "2" while passing through the scoring gates and decided to keep the same pace that landed me there.
Although the YZ had shown some of the sputtering at higher RPM's that are a telltale sign, it hadn't shutoff and I decided to keep it happy with gentle throttle application. Without warning, though, it conked-out about three miles into the final lap.
I knew right away there was hardly any chance it would refire and that proved to be the case. I pushed the bike to a more suitable spot for extrication and watched my class ride by.
Back at the pits, everyone had a different opinion of which component might be the culprit, so I ordered a bevy of parts to swap out once home. Hopefully the problem will be solved with this next set of parts and perhaps the next race will be ridden to completion.
It's been a long time in the making, but I've finally reached the point in this project to paint the exterior of the bus! Come along to see the transformation.
Great conditions this year in Canaan Valley, West Virginia! The snow came down overnight on Thursday, so my wife Rebecca and I completed our drive early on Friday morning to ensure some time in the soft stuff at Timberline Resort. On Saturday, temperatures increased and the snow transitioned to rain. We decided to take that day off to relax, then returned on Sunday to explore Canaan Valley State Park Resort. Temperatures dipped again and the snow returned, ensuring plenty of powder!
My first experience racing the Sprint Cross Country Series (SXCS) was a bit of happenchance, as a friend mentioned he'd be racing round one a few days earlier. Since I needed to test the new coil and injector I'd swapped onto the YZ, I figured it was perfect timing and signed up immediately.
The temps were low, but the turnout was impressive, with probably around twenty riders in each class, creating an absolute circus as we all headed into the woods to find a faster line around the mass of riders.
I had some issues with stalling a few times, but luckily the bike fired up quickly each time. This did create a yo-yo effect, though, as I had to re-pass a handful of riders again and again.
Eventually, a bobble over a set of roots sent my chest into the handlebar, breaking the GoPro MAX from its mount. A few moments after that mishap, I encountered an increasingly greasy spot on the track which was sending riders sideways. It did the same to me and after picking up the YZ from the ground, it decided it was done playing nice and refused to restart. While I waited for a tow-out, I decided to warn riders of the hazard (after several followed suit and crashed in the exact same spot). Since it was not obvious that the slight right turn was slippery, most had no idea why I was signalling them to slow - resulting in about half of them going down there also.
Overall, the race was great! Some small gripes about marking the course were all I could complain about (taped too low, so one wide rider could wipe it away). I'll most certainly be throwing a few more parts at the YZ (new cutoff switch, maybe?) and registering for the next event.
A fitting end to a great summer, the Don Wise Memorial Race at Oak Ridge Estate was another fast-paced race with plenty to enjoy. This course has got to be one of the quickest, with the 10-mile laps elapsing in record-breaking time. With higher speeds come more risk, but I was fortunate to get through the race without any off-the-bike moments other than slight mishaps getting through traffic.
I did have one issue, though, when my YZ lost high-end power near the end of the final lap. It did get me out of the woods, though, so not all was lost.
I'll try throwing some parts at it (starting with a fuel injector) and hopefully have it back to good running order in no time.
