MotoCross Live it, Breath it, RIDE it!

The time has come to resume normal life.. Whatever that is....

2009-02-09T21:38:00.001-08:00

Let this be known......
True to my Aries nature, I am a Ram. A gypsy in my own kingdom where conformity has no relevance.

With that said, the time has finally arrived..... The bone has healed. The transition to a normal life is picking up speed now. I return to work with no restrictions Feb 2nd. I'm also taking full advantage of Golds Gym and getting my body back in shape...... It's about damn time......

The last 6 or so months have been amazing. In every sense. A true test of my patience, spirit, and will, as well as a sleepless nightmare full of humility, anger, frustration and doubt.

I cant believe that just 2 months back, I was still having trouble getting my clothes on. I could barely pull pants or shorts over my left leg. Worse yet, was my attempts at putting on socks and finally shoes. Tough to do when you cant bend your leg. I could go on, but you guys have heard my rants about this enough already. One of the things I was told early on, was the possibility that I may lose the mobility of my left leg. That I would not be able to ever ride my bicycle or run again not to mention the fact that even walking would become a challenge. But here most recently noted, that's not the case. Thanks to a lot of hard, painfull work, a will to succeed and a strong support group behind me. Seems I'll be plagued by arthritis in the knee, and at some point it could ware out. But, I have resumed to riding a bike and regained 75 percent mobility in my leg. As for the knee wearing out, Time will tell... That is not going to stop me, nor will it slow me down. Why should it? As said "life is only what you make it" My couch will not become my death bed!

With so much idle time, I have been able to take a hard look at my inner spirit, force myself to move forward, and find new direction along the way. This period of time has been one of the toughest points of my life no doubt. However, from it, I gained a greater knowledge of who I am and what I want of my life.

Sorry to some of you, but, I will not be giving up motorcycle riding. The intense urge to race is gone(At least for now), but the desire to ride is as strong as ever. I love it too much. Blame my dad if you will. He's the one who started the fire in me as a very young boy. Ah, just kidding! Cant blame Dad. Although it was short lived, as pops gave up dirtbikes to pursue another racing adventure.. The hope that someday I'd get my own motocross bike lived on. It was always a dream as I grew up to get a dirt bike and go ride from sun up to sun down. The key to keeping that flame lit....I didnt live far from a local Honda dealership as a kid. Seems every chance I got, I would sneak down there to look at the new dirt bikes. Shhh. Dont tell mom and dad. HAHA! I think I was about 8 years old when I got to ride a motorcycle for the first time. It was a friends bike that was loaned to my dad for my pleasure. Yes, it scared the hell out of me. But was it as blast. Twisting that throttle was heaven. Too bad the days were already numbered! Then later in my teens I got another shot with a good friend of mine, Trevor. That was the spark that set off the real passion. Of course it was also short lived. But, when I got out of the Navy at the age of 23 the desire was as strong as ever and well here we are today!

Those of you that really know me, especially from my competitive track and cross country days, know how deep I get when it comes to being passionate. Talk about mental. I get this tunnel vision with a one track mind and I think everyone is the enemy! Then, I go all in and I just train till my mind explodes. Well thats the same basic thing that happened with me again. I broke my leg the first time and well... Wait a minute. Actually before the broken leg, there was a broken wrist, then the dislocated finger, then the broken collar bone, and then the broken legs... Ok so anyway, I got it in my head that I'm tougher than that and I was not going to let an injury stop me no matter how severe. I jumped into last season like a raging bull on a brand new bike that I didnt have set up for my ride style yet(Still Dont). Virtually no seat time. I didnt really know what the bike was capable of or how it needed to be ridden. And well I took off like a mad dog untill I got bit again! Hmm?

Worse part of this whole deal, my family paid the price too. I would stop at nothing, even ignoring Karma. In nearly every one of these bone shattering incidents, There were deep signs of energy trying to steer me away from the event of the day to come, but I ignored them. In my raging pursuit I seemingly forgot about my Family in an effort to fulfill my passion. Thats was the mistake of all mistakes and both my family and I paid dearly for it. I became so obsessed and intense with racing that I was putting everything aside to pursue my childhood dream. Chasing after a piece plastic otherwise known as a "Trophy" and the fame of being on that so called podium. Yes, it's been a rough couple of years, but I think I have finally learned the life lesson that I had tried to ignore far too long....I think it's all finally come full cirlce.

There is no denying that feeling of riding on the edge. I love it, I just cant explain that feeling well enough. It goes something like this. In high school, I once got into a debate with a smart assed Senior Varsity football player over the Wuss factor of being a distance runner???? Time to expand somebody's mind... This conversation came up cause I had just got my Varsity Lettermans Jacket and was wearing it to school for the first time(as a Junior). The conversation went something like this. I asked the guy what it felt like when he made the perfect play. That great tackle. Think about it. I mean everything just comes together so well it surreal. There is a rush of excitement in the mind like no other. A rage of intensity that just overwhelms you. The internal flame becomes a blow torch of energy. Well thats what I got out of running, it's what i get out of having a familly, my home, learning to play my guitars, and yes Riding and Racing my Motorcycles............ It's the positive mental energy that feeds my life and pushes me to excel. To exceed expectation. It's my freedom. What makes me who I am.

2009... Here I come......

2009-01-25T10:29:00.000-08:00

Finally,

It appears I'll going back to work on February 2. Still Cant believe it. It's been an amazing ride.

Well after 2 opinions, I have come to accept the terms... It's healed! The bone is healed anyway.. I still have a ways to go. Some swelling in the knee, but over time that will go down. There is a lot of scar tissue in the knee joint that needs to be worked out and a whole lot of atrophy to overcome. So that means I need to really hit the Gym hard now. Both Doctors I saw said pretty much the same thing. Get on a bike and pedal your ass off. Really, they both told me that was the best way to work out all that scar tissue and rebuild my leg muscles. Both Doctors stated much of the same with their final evaluations of my knee. Basically the bone is solid and as strong as it will ever be. Well Hell, let me just relay this Email I got:

To:

Scott W

From:

WILLIAM DO

Received:

1/21/09 9:11 AM

I will place a VOT in the computer for return to work on Monday Feb 2. You may stop by the office to pick it up at your leiseure. Just tell the staff to print most recent VOT.

Keep up the good work at the gym. As far as the PT advice, There is some potential truth in it but as a general statement I would disregard it. You may get arthritis in that knee. When - no one knows. You may be limited in activities by pain. Keep using and trying the knee out - and we'll see how it goes. You tibia is strong and can tolerate most normal activities. Dont do any skydiving but start with light stuff like bike and tennis and progress as tolerated. Any force which rebreaks your leg now would probably break a normal tibia.

I know its been a tough haul through this but you picked up the pace and are doing great now. Keep up the hard work and forget about any messages from anyone that include the word "Never".

Take care,

DR J

So there you have it!

I'm working out at the Gym 3-4 days a week now. The gym thing all started in the least expected way. I had a loss of motivation over the past month. I was having a pretty down day with some anxiety about getting my job back with this economy, the State was getting on me about my current status, blah blah, blah. I really needed some motivation. Later that night, along comes Cousin Frank. Franks a fairly exciting and happy person. Always looking for a laugh etc. Just what the doctor ordered! Before long were all laughing and then bang! Frank through a curve ball out of nowhere. Before I know it, were debating with my wife over the need for me join the gym he's at. Well a Big Thanks goes to my Cousin Frank who persuade my wife let me join Gold's. Could not have come at a better time..... It's been a couple of weeks and I'm sore as hell right now but, I feel great! The leg is getting better everyday, and I'm ready to get my life back in gear!

As far as work is concerned, well It looks good. Spoke to the boss a few times in the last couple of weeks and it appears they have a spot for me.. Music to my ears!

Wont be long before I can throw a leg over my bikes again. But it will take some time. I still have a few things to get worked out.

One thing is for sure,

I wont be giving up motocross,

I have a plan........

Stay Tuned for Details!

2009!!! Another injury update!

2009-01-17T20:52:00.000-08:00

Check it out! My last X-Ray taken in October a few weeks after they removed a screw from my leg that was protruding through the knee joint.

Well, still on the road to recovery. Finally walking without crutches or a cain. I was released from the care of the hospitals physical therapy department in mid December. I pretty much have nearly everything at home to continue therapy on my own so they let me run with it... Er I mean walk......

What an uphill climb it's been. I'm still struggling to climb stairs or step down leading with my left leg. Still some swelling and mild pain. A lot of atrophy to still overcome. But I'm making progress. The knee joint is moving much better. For awhile there was a lot of popping, grinding and resistance in the knee joint. Welcome Arthritis! Ive been off the pain meds since the first week of December. That was one hell of a struggle in it itself. That percocet is nasty stuff. Easy to get hooked on no doubt. I did get a little stale during the holidays, but I've come out on the other side ready to get the new party started.

My last physical therapy visit was bitter sweet. Were able to get my leg to 120 degrees movement, freely without manipulation. 120 degrees will allow me to resume normal activity.

However, I'm being told that running is off limits as well as anything involving high impact like tennis, basketball etc. Guess it will screw my knee up pretty good. It was strongly expressed that I continue to ride my bike as much as possible and start going on lengthy walks. I was also allowed to stow the crutches and use a cane. Nice! Well not really! The degree of movement in the knee has been progressing nicely. I know I have got more than 120 degrees of movement now. I have an old bmx bike that I could not ride just a month ago because I was unable to get my leg to bend enough. But right now I can ride it, barely, but my leg is bending more now. Thanks in part to that cool new stationary bike I got. The leg is getting stronger and requiring less effort every day. So thats good... Finally, No More Cain!!!!

Currently, I getting worked over by a chiropractor. Seems I have severe back problems as a result of all the trauma the body has suffered in the last couple of years. Gee, thats a surprise! My hips are severely misaligned mostly due to one leg being jacked up. Although the leg is bending well, I cant get it completely straight. The Scar tissue is preventing that effort. I'm told over time that will work itself out. My middle and upper back have several disc that are twisted out pretty good. As a result it is causing some displeasing nerve tension that has left me with numbness in the arms and fingers as well as many severe headaches that last for hours. The good news is my Chiropractor has done a hell of a job in in the last 6 weeks of getting me straightened out. Not to mention several prescribed massages. Finally, the headaches are gone.

Boy have I beat the living hell out of myself.

I'm not yet back to work yet, maybe some time in the next month. I'm actually out till March 9th. But that is contingent on when I feel like I'm ready to return. Could and hopefully will be sooner. We will just have to wait and see.

Injury Update! The Second Surgery and Beyond!

2008-10-05T10:00:00.000-07:00

How about my new training partner?

Not exactly my first choice, but its a start in the right direction!

I'd much rather be riding this outside!

However, If I were to fall while trying to get my foot out of the clip less pedal, there is a good chance I'll break something again. After 5 months, I'm still amazed that I'm using a walker and crutches to get around. When will this end........

The Second Surgery.......

The days are just blowing by. Right now I have about 115 degree of total movement through "Doc's" forced manipulation. Under my own strength, I can bend my leg about 95 degrees. 115 degree is the equivalent of sitting in a chair and letting my leg hang down with my feet flat on the floor. Not exactly what I was expecting this far into the game. Note: this much degree in movement was not all my doing. I had to have another surgery 3 weeks ago. They knocked me out and stuck a probe in my leg to look at the knee. As explained by my doctor's,..... X rays do not give a clear description of what is going on. Apparently, neither would a ct scan?. Guess the medal in my leg would distort it??? So anyhow one screw was removed, as they felt it was interfering with the knee joint. Then from the Doc's description, they put my leg over his shoulder and with the bottom side of my knee resting on his shoulder, he then grabbed ahold of my ankle and pulled my leg/foot down to his waist. The nurse said the noise the knee joint made was indescribable???? Boy I'm glad I was out cold for that procedure. HAHAHA!

Congrats Mr Scott, you got 115 degrees of movement, now go home and immediately continue to bend your leg to maintain what we just got. Oh yeah, you also have an appointment to See George tomorrow for your physical therapy. GREAT!

So, as of right now, Im going to physical therapy 4 days a week. Nice.....George my physical therapist is just kicking my ass. The first 20 to 30 minutes of the visit is gnarly. I'm taking four Percocet 10/325 pain pills about 30 min before visit. Thats is so much pain med., that Im nearly incoherent and almost in a painless state. I can barely control my mind and body functions. But the pain during George's forceful manipulation. Oh man, I cant even begin to tell you how bad it hurts even loaded up as much as I am. According to the "Doc" it is necessary if I want to regain at least 50 to 70 percent use of my leg by the time its over. George does not mess around. I dread the visits. It's the same thing every visit. I lay on the table, George puts my leg over his shoulder and yeap, you guessed it. FORCED Manipulation! I tell you the pain. Damn, I'm in tears and yes screaming. At one point I went back to my "Doc" and said enough. I cant take it any more. What else can we do? "Doc" told me strait up. If you want to get movement in the leg again you gotta suck it up. Otherwise your gonna be stuck with a stiff leg and walking with a cain for the rest of your life...... And that is how I got to taking 4 pain pills at a time. "Doc" said that was as many as he would consider safe. He was also quick to point out that almost all patients that have gone through this sort of deal give up and assume a permanent disability...... It's your choice he said... As was also stated by George....

Excuse my language, but FUCK that! That would be the easy way out and an unnecessary debt to society! My mom did not raise a Quitter, and my family does not deserve that either. Besides that I could not live with myself in that condition.

In the weeks that have come and passed, I transitioned from the "pain table" to the hospital Gym where I have been walking on a treadmill backward, riding a stationary bike, doing leg presses, and stretching in an effort to begin to teach my left leg how to walk again and rebuild from atrophy. Such Fun. Hell, I liked the stationary bike so much, I decided to buy one to ride at home. It took quite awhile, but that purchase was well worth the expense. I started out riding with the seat as High as possible. I could barely pedal one revolution without crying in pain. But, after the first week things have started to come together, and the leg is bending a little more with less pain. I just keep dropping the seat height and pedaling like a mad man. So far, It's worth stating, I'm happy, I chose to stick it out thus far....

Injury Sustained!

2008-08-28T08:53:00.000-07:00

This is what I get to wear for the next 4 months.

The road to recovery has been long and unfortunately the end is not in sight yet!

If you read my fathers day race post you can get the whole story as to how I did this. Lets turn the Calendar back 11 weeks to Fathers Day, June 15, 2008. Moto #2. I swapped out on a step up jump at Estreet MX in Marysville. I crashed hard enough to break my left tibia again. Not Good! Sow now I'm in an ambulance and headed to Rideout Hospital in Marysville. They gave me a nice dose of Morphine to temporarily rid me of the pain. Once settled in at the hospital, it was time for x-rays. That was a nightmare. I actually had to get x-rays twice because the x-ray tech screwed up the first time. Damn, that was painful. OK. so now thats squared away. The dreaded doctors visit. More bad news. Turns out I broke the end of my tibia in 4 places just under my knee cap. The doc explains that on one side I broke a chunk of the bone completely off, and the other end I fractured it in 3 places. So surgery is a definite. Now here's where it get interesting! Last October 2007 I suffered a compound fracture to my tibia and broke my fibula in 2 places. Well that required a titanium rod and 2 screws that ran the full length of my Tibia from ankle to knee. The doc tells me in order to fix this break they will need to put a new plate and several screws in to put everything back together. However that's not so easy because they first need to remove the rod and screws to fit a plate over the new broken section of bone. The next step is deciding weather to do the surgery there or see my own doctor. Well considering I live almost 2 hours away, I didn't want my wife doing all that driving back and forth. So I decided to drive home that night and start the process with my doctor. One last shot of morphine and off my wife and I go..

The next morning we go to my doctor. He sets up an appointment with a Kaiser ortho surgeon. Unfortunately I had to wait till Thursday for that. Talk about a painful 4 days!!! Gotta love that Kaiser urgent care???? So here I am sitting in the examination room for nearly an hour, my leg is killing me, and still no doc. WTF. So I go ask the nurse if this guy has forgotten about me?? Minutes later the doc comes in. Tells me he is sorry, but he had to go get a second surgeon to review my file and x-rays. He again explains what had been previously told to me last Sunday by the first doc regarding what procedure going to be done. He tells me there will be another surgeon assisting with my surgery because of the complex amount of work that needed to be done. OK great, so the surgery is set for Saturday. I'll be staying a few days after for observation, then released Monday evening. I cant wait, my leg is killing me. I just want to get this over with. But before I could go, they took me into the casting room where they had to re-set my leg and put it in a brace. Now that was painfully fun!

Saturday up by 5am. Surgery is at 8am. By noon I'm coming out of my trance. Holy Sh_t... My leg is killing me. I was begging for pain killers, and I got them. That was some gnarly stuff. I don't remember much of my hospital stay. I know I was uncomfortable, in a lot of pain and a pain in the ass. I scared my wife a few times and certainly pissed off the nurses! The painkillers they gave, had me hallucinating. At one point I told my wife to go check in at the gate and find out what time my moto was, another I told her to tell my son Gino to go tell our dog to quit barking. The best one was about Midnight the first night. I awoke to a voice telling me GET UP, THE RED LIGHT IS OFF,....GET UP, THE RED LIGHT IS OFF????...I dont know?? so I get up and start taking all my clothes of and begin to remove my IV when the nurses rush in and have to put me back to bed... By Monday the nursing staff was more than ready to get me out of there. My biggest complaint of the weekend was that fact that they would not change bandages and dressings wrapped around my leg. By Sunday night the dressing had started to irritate my leg severely. The bandages were very tight, and it was like sandpaper against raw skin...... I kept begging them, to change the dressing out but they refused saying the doc said no??? BS as I later found out! I sure was glad to get out of there Monday night.

The first week at home was brutal. A lot of pain no matter what position my leg was in. Say hello to Percocet, and Norco. Standing up was even worse. Forget about sleep. That was a rarity for weeks. Time was mostly spent in my recliner nodding off here and there. The doctor eventually prescribed me sleeping pills after 2 weeks of sleepless nights. They did help me sleep in longer intervals but no more than a few hours at a time. Too much pain in my leg. Problem was I could not find a comfortable position to lay in.... I know sissy la la. But after about 6 weeks I was able to settle in to more sleep and a better comfort level. Things have gotten better, but not nearly as fast as expected.

Back to the first week. By Wednesday after being released I could no longer bear the irritation that the bandages and dressing had caused so I removed them and was shocked at what I found. My leg was blistered up pretty good. The gauze pads were loaded with dry blood and were rock hard, which was why my leg was so irritated and blistered. I still don't understand why the hell those nurses would not re-wrap my leg. Oh well. I finally had some relief. I was also amazed too see the 49 total staples I had scattered all over my leg. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that I also had to have my wife give me blood thinner shots in the stomach for 2 weeks. Damn, I hate needles. I guess that was one way for her to get back at me for all the crap I had been putting her through!

After 2 weeks at home and unable to bend my leg at the knee I had my first doctor appointment. Not much change there. Just got my staples removed and was told pretty much the same thing. keep it elevated, don't try to walk on it or apply any pressure. Oh and here's is a prescription for some sleeping pills. The next appointment was 4 weeks away....

So now the tv is getting old, xbox 360 is about burned out. But hey, I should be able to start walking here pretty soon? Right! Still pretty painful, just getting up to go to the boys room or shower was a painful workout. I kept telling the nay sayers not to worry, I'll be walking without these crutches very soon.

6 weeks have come and gone. I cant bend my leg at the knee yet. Still too much pain??? What the hell is the problem? Visit number 2 with the doctor was not what I had hoped or expected. I was told it would be another 4 weeks at least before I could put any weight on my knee and I was not allowed to do any therapy yet because my bones have not healed enough. If I tried to do anything I could risk bending or breaking the screws or worse breaking the bone again! I was not happy with that. So the Doctor pulls up my x-rays and shows me this area of bone fragments and says I shattered this entire area of bone. He points out 3 or 4 longs screws that were put in place to anchor all the fragments of bone. Above that there is a bunch of cartilage that was crushed. On the other side he shows me the plate with 4 screws in it that are holding the piece of bone that had broke away. He then asked if I now understand how serious and bad the damage is. I was floored. I had no idea it was so bad. I thought it was a couple of fractures and a piece of bone that broke off. Well the damage is done. Just got to get this thing healed up and move on..

The next 4 weeks was pretty much the same as prescribed earlier...Sit on my rear and wait. Bones are strong enough for therapy, and I cant put any pressure on my leg yet. Now I'm frustrated. Pissed! Ive had just about enough of these crutches and I still cant bend my leg at the knee! I'm bored out of my mind. Just doing my best to maintain composure.

Finally, the third appointment has arrived. Bound to get some good news now? Nope, not completely. Instead I got more bad news. Fortunately the bones are healing pretty well. But there is a problem with the fact that I cant bend my leg at the knee. Even worse the x-rays don't tell the doctor the whole story. They would like to do a CT scan, but the metal in my leg will interfere. So the Doctor decides to set me up with a special brace that will assist in getting my leg to start bending. Second he sets me up with some physical therapy. Then he tells me I STILL am unable to walk with out crutches or apply any weight for at least another 4 weeks. You have got to be kidding. He tells me that I lost some range of motion in last month. I asked if there was something I did wrong or?? Nope we had to be cautious he said. We don't want to risk re-breaking anything! Plus there is a lot of scar tissue that needs to be broken up. OK.... So now I'm told I'll be getting this fancy brace and I need to get busy with flexation therapy....

Wait it gets better. A few hours later I get a call from the Doctor. Now he is telling me how concerned he and another surgeon are about my leg not bending at the knee. They are going to bring me back in, in 2 weeks to put me to sleep, cut me open and force my leg to bend. This is really starting to piss me off! He's now worried that if we dont start doing something very soon, I could lose mobility of my leg at the knee?????!!!!!!. So now Ive got to get cut open again to try and break up all the scar tissue in my leg.

Well now yesterday I was fitted with this brace. I will get it next week. This thing is designed to force my leg to bend in 5 degree increments. Right now I have about 40 degrees at the knee. I'm told this process will last another 4 months, and with the help of this brace I should be able to get 150 Degrees of movement. It takes so long because I have to re program the muscle and tendon memory at the knee to start bending again. Due to the atrophy I'll also need to strengthen and rebuild my leg muscles. 150 degrees of movement is nearly heel to butt!

To be continued................................

No, this is not the end of my Motocross Career!

Read my mission statement!

Fathers Day Race 6/15/08 E Street in Marysville.

2008-06-30T09:49:00.000-07:00

Oh boy,

What can I say? It started off great, or did it?

My wife and kids were supposed to come and cheer me on, but that fell through the cracks. It was going to be hot. 95 plus, and my wife was not amused about spending a full day those conditions. Plus she was going to have to get up at 4 am with me and get the kids ready so we could be on the road by 5am. I had to be there before 7:30am for signups... Its a 2 hour drive from Modesto to Marysville. Also my youngest boy Tony is a pure wild child. He requires a lot of attention. So to be there potentially from sun up till sun down was not very appealing to mom... Cant argue with that judgement call.. I then tried to get my oldest son Gino to go, but that was a no can do. Once he found out mom was gonna take Tony swimming, Gino was sitting this one out too. He also asked me to stay home because he wanted to give me something for fathers day. Uh Oh! Karma Police are knocking at my door. Moral dilemma......... So I call my buddy Dan. Dans out too. Its a long drive a lot of gas and he raced elsewhere friday night and made out big. So he's sitting this one out. Decisions, Decisions????

Sunday Morning I wake up to the alarm. It's 4am. Damn, I'm tired. I'm thinking screw it, I'm staying home and sleeping in.... But, I cant do it, I wanna race. So I get up and go log on to the club web site and check the boards. It looks like there will not be a big turn out. I'm in Second in points in my class so this would be a good chance to distant myself from third place in the points standings. Still there is a side of me that's not too enthusiastic about going. I'd rather just climb back in bed. But, I cant.... I'm up now, I'm going racing.

With the truck now loaded, I'm off.... Its pretty quite on the roads to Merysville. Not to mention being alone has giving me more time to think. Not good! Now I'm second guessing my decision to go racing vs. staying home and spending fathers with wife and kids..................?

I arrive about 7:15am. Got a good parking spot, and off to sign ups I go. Sign ups were interesting. This was a Sierra Old Timers MX event that the Over The Hill Gang was invited to. So it was their show. Sign ups were a little questionable. There was minimal info on the OTHG side of the house. So I had to do quite a bit of leg work to determine my moto times and line up etc. I soon found the Gang motos were combined based on class only, age groups need not apply. Thus all ages of novice riders were combined to complete full gates. Not to mention the womans class was added as well. There were a lot of moto's to be run it was panning out to be a long day.

Moto 1

Long day it was... First moto was around 11 am. I got a decent start and rode a good race. There was a lot of riders on the track so you had to be on alert. The moto was long so you had to pace yourself. Been awhile, but if I'm not mistaken it was something like 15 minutes plus 1 lap.

For those that dont know, E Street is a sand track. It's rough as hell. The layout was long and demanding. Just the way I like it! The track prep was killer as usual, and great layout. I felt really good as the race went on. The longer the better! My confidence was high, and I was very comfortable in the corners. My bike was hooking up good, and when it was all said and done I managed to finish 1st in my age group. Of course there were only 3 of us in the 30 Novice. Either way I did well.

There were some problems with scoring however that really gave the score keepers trouble. I had to file a protest because they had me as a DNF for the first moto?? Turns out my race number got confused with another rider. Problem solved. But I was thinking that this day was just getting to be too long. To compound things it turned out that there was not even going to be trophy's for us at the days end. I had it in my mind to hang it up and go home for the day!!! Then I got to thinking that what I had paid to make the day and well I might as well finish it. This would turn out to be a bad Idea...

Moto 2

It was after 4 pm. Were on the Gate. 30 Second board is up. It's hot out and as a result of the long day it was decided to cut the moto laps back to get us out of there. Cool. The 30 second board goes down and the gate drops... I got a killer start. I was in 5 th place going into the first turn. I feel great, my confidence is high. The bike is working great. I'm going for it...

As the race goes on the the track is deteriorating quickly. It's choppy, and rough. The jump faces are tore up and you had to pick good lines when hitting them. With a couple of laps to go, I had made a couple of passes and was rolling 3rd overall when Lightening struck!!!!

I came through a turn right before the finish line jump that had 2 distinct lines through it. One outside and one inside. Well there were some lapped riders taking the inside line which I had been using because the finish line jump had better lines on the inside. So I took the outside line to get around them. As I was coming out of the turn I could see a the lip of the jump was really tore up, so I thought I would slow down a little and try to keep the back end from kicking out on me. Bad Idea!!!! As I hit the lip of the jump, the back end kicked out pretty bad and because this style jump was a step up it had a higher landing. Well I was not going fast enough to clear the landing and the back tire hit the second lip and threw the rear tire of my bike even further out. Well I took my left foot off the the peg and extended it down to brace my fall. Another bad Idea!!! I should have pinned the throttle to try and straighten out my bike and left my foot on the peg.

At this point, I remember hitting the ground with my leg first then my bike right after it. I fell off the bike and hit the ground hard. I got up and immediately fell to the ground again. My leg was in bad shape. By this time a couple people had come out to help drag me and my bike off the track... I was pissed. I begged them to start my bike and put me on it. They refused for good reason! Damn, I knew it was bad, but didn't want to admit to it. I certainly did not want to call my wife and explain to her that I had fallen and got hurt again, or work for that matter. I was beside myself, my pride was broken.... Not to mention MY LEG. As I would soon find out.

So now I'm begging my help to get me back to my truck, help me load up so I can get the hell out of there. Not happening! Instead the paramedics got to me. Damn this is not good. So they load me onto a board and haul me back to the ambulance. I'm not liking this. Once inside the ambulance the medics begin to cut my pants off. When my left knee is exposed, I can see its out of alignment. Not good. I know it's bad, but I don't want to admit it. So beg the guys to let me go. They just wont budge. I told them in one last plea to just take me to my truck and I will drive home. An hour and 30 minutes away. OK they say. But before that we want you raise your leg and bend it. If I can do that, I can go. So I raised my leg and from the knee down it just collapsed and fell out of alignment. Shit that hurt. My buddy Steve was standing out side the door and saw that and his eyes got big and he just turned away..... I was screwed at that point. I knew then it was bad and the medics sealed my fate. Next thing I know, I'm being strapped down head and all. They didnt want my head moving for fear of existing trauma or injury. I fought that but lost that battle as well... So now I gotta call my wife. Not good. Enough said. Fortunately my buddy Steve got my bike and gear loaded up and locked my truck. I was off to the Hospital. Bummer!!!

Hours later at the Hospital loaded up on Morphine and feeling no pain other than my broken pride, I find out Ive broken my left Tibia in multiple places just under the knee and was no doubt going to have another surgery in less than 8 months time..... Not good.

By the End of it all my poor wife had to come rescue me from the hospital and arrange to get our kids to her parents and recruit her father to assist in picking up my truck, transporting me home, and getting all my gear unloaded in some 300 plus miles of driving. The debt I owe to my wife, off the Charts. Not to mention my Father in law, Buddy's Steve, and Dan for their help and support during the night, and my cousin Frank for coming over at 12 midnight on a Sunday help my wife unload everything.

Happy Fathers Day!!!!

Hangtown AMA Motocross National June 1, 2008

2008-06-01T21:28:00.001-07:00

Thank you Jeff Alessi!!!!

Made my day and my sons. Jeff had just rolled into his tent after taking a practice and had actually crashed. People were asking him all kinds of stupid questions, like "Did it hurt", or "Can I have your goggles" etc. He was being really cool about the whole thing and was talking too some. Well when he got close to us, I asked if I could get a pic of him with my son. Too my amazement he said sure and told me to bring him back. Well, I had no Idea he meant to come under his tent and put Gino on his bike for a shot. It's tough to describe the feeling. This guy is a professional motocross racer trying to make a living doing what he loves... He's busy. Trying to get ready and focused for the day of racing ahead and yet was willing to go that far to make a fan (my Boy) happy! My whole childhood life, I dreamed about riding and racing motocross, but because my parents had no interest all I got were a few magazines and whatever the Wide World of Sports reruns were on T.V. I would have given anything to go to a pro motocross race, let alone, meet a pro moto crosser, and get to sit on his machine for a picture with him...

I had to act out my motocross dreams on a BMX bike in the dirt field across the street from my house. Hell, I didnt get my first dirt bike till I was 28 and fresh out of the Navy looking to pursue that off road motorcycle dream. So yeah, the Joy of giving my son a once in a life time opportunity like that for me is Priceless..!

Gino's last words before falling asleep on the way home from todays race..

"Today was a great day!" Enough Said!!!

Reno National......5/24-5/25..What an Epic weekend!

2008-05-13T18:30:00.000-07:00

My Results:

Wish I had a picture of this epic track we raced on. Instead all I got was a shot of our bikes in the room. WHAT! Whats wrong with putting our bikes in the room. They were clean and dont leak any fluid. Besides I was not about to leave my war horse tied down in the back of my truck and risk it catching cold or even worse, getting stolen.

Can you say Sand? Every thing I thought knew about riding/racing in sand went right out the door. Who the hell was I fooling, I know nothing, zero, zilch, about riding in the sand.. They call it the Reno National but the track actually resides 30 miles outside of Reno in the desert next to the Town of Fernly. I arrived Friday night about 7pm. Just enough time to walk the track and view the lay out before the sun went down. I/we were blown away. This track was huge! It was the longest track I had ever seen. There were 4th or 5th gear pinned straightways if you had the sack and the need. All the jumps were perfectly formed, well almost! There were these huge Daytona style berms(corners) high banked and super wide. This track had it all. I't just looked perfect. I't took us something like 30 minutes to walk the entire track. Not sure about the lap times, but the rumors had it over 3 minutes a lap.

The drive to and from Reno was interesting aside from the fact that I had been up since 3:30 am and had already worked a 10 hour day. My wife and kids stayed home on this one so I shared a room with a riding buddy, Dan. Dan lives in the bay area and we drove up in separate vehicles and shared other expenses once we got up there. Mild traffic, snow, rain..... Yes it was snowing in Truckee at 7000 feet and above all weekend. I left my house at 3:30 pm on Friday. The only traffic I saw was in Downtown Sacramento. Fortunately the traffic got going again about halfway through Roseville. Even then it was not all that bad. The rain started outside of Auburn and as I climbed 80 it turned to snow and again back to rain as I made my way to Reno and into Fernly. The rain along with cold temps as low as 45 deg. during the day stuck with us pretty much the whole weekend. We did get to see some sun by the closing set of moto's Sunday afternoon.

I had a very good weekend in terms of racing. Gained more experience and learned a few things. I raced 2 moto's each day for a total of 4. I placed 6th overall for both days! Nice! My moto finishes went something like this......

DAY (1) Moto One.. 6th, Moto Two.. 5th.. DAY (2) Moto Three.. 9th, and Moto Four.. 8th.

Day One:

The track was Long, Sandy (Remember,.. Desert) Fast(pending how much sack you had)HAHAHA!, and very wet. The rain was coming down for most of the day. I could not see very well from my muddy goggles. Yeah, I know, I forgot to buy tear offs. lessen learned. People were crashing everywhere, falling down stalling their bikes etc... With all the rain, it was slick as snot and very loose if you got into the deep sand. The idea is to stand up on the foot pegs keeps the throttle open and lean back a bit to keep your weight off the front end. At least that was my plan. Easier said than done. HAHAHA! I had the standing up part down, but hanging it out with the throttle wide open... um.........No! I learned to balance myself pretty quick cause if I leaned too far back the back the bike didn't want to go anywhere, and if I was too far forward, well I will tell about that when we get to moto #3.. He He! So anyway, i played it safe and rode smart. Well smart enough to stay upright.... for both moto's. I didn't crash or fall down. I held my lines, well at least what I could see.. Really though, I was all over the place. That sand is nasty. The inside of my knees were bruised by the end of it all because I was squeezing the bike as tight as I could with them to keep it and me from getting too out of control. It was insane but I survived. I almost did a nasty indo over a triple jump. I was feeling too confident, hit this section fast and before I knew it, I wasn't going fast enough came up short, with the throttle pinned, waiting to take my dirt nap. Whoa, I just made it... I hit the 3rd hump of the triple with the front wheel, and to my surprise the suspension took it and I survived. After that I decided to settle in and ride my own race. Fortunately that moto and the second the reasoning paid off. There were still a couple of table top jumps that could put a hurting too ya.. If I hit them at just the right angle I was going for a full on scrub. And I don't mean a bubba scrub. I'm talking about the rear end coming out from under me and well the doctors pulling up there sleeves to prep for more surgery on me. I dont know what the hell was up with those damn table top jumps, but man they would bite ya if you got out of line. There were two in a row that were just wicked. They looked easy, but somehow jumping them was a different ball game....? As for the starts....Well..... I got a good gate pick and blew by going wide to the outside. I wussed out. Plain and Simple. I stayed out of the action and missed the boat. Too bad, because by the first turn I was with everyone and just too far outside to get a get into the mix. so I ended up falling to the back and now having to work my way up. But it's too late to do much cause the leaders will have checked out. I'm strong and in good shape. By the last few laps I'm starting to catch people, but.......

The 2nd moto I was late getting to, so I had to take what was left. Screwed myself there. Oh, I forgot to mention that the starting pad behind the gate was on concrete and wet at that! A rubber motocross tire and concrete, well you get the picture. Yet another lesson learned!

At the end of day one, I was feeling good. I had 2 decent finishes(mid pack), and I didn't crash! Sweet!

Well, after we finished our moto's, Dan and I got stuck in a pretty good down poor so we had to wait under our easy up for the rain to stop so we could load up and head back to the hotel. We later went and got a bite to eat at a Casino diner. Fernley is a small town with very little in terms of eateries....Unless we wanted to drive 30 min back to Reno, (NOT) to eat an over priced steak! Forget it! We were looking for a good steak house and there were none to be found. After our meal we took the bikes to a car wash and gave them a steam bath to get ready for the next day! With clean bikes chains lubed and new air filters we were ready for day #2

Day Two:

Damn, it's still raining! Good news is that they changed the track layout. How sweet is that. They also decided to cut the laps from 7 to 4 because of the wet conditions. I was excited to get out for practice even with the constant rain. They run the practice based on rider level and separate classes as such, beginner, novice, intermediate, expert etc. This way you don't get run over by an expert or slow one down. I also got my buddy Dan in trouble. HeHe! I looked out on the track from afar and I noticed they had started practice. I't looked as though they were letting everyone out. I told Dan what I thought I saw and got out there. I was wrong...When I got to the track. I noted it was only the masters/expert practice. So I sat tight and waited till my practice was up. Well, I see Dan come out and jump on the track. A lap later he's getting flagged off the track and being threatened that they will dock him a couple of laps for this. Ouch. Sorry bro. Fortunately they let him off the hook. This track layout was quite a bit shorter and with more jumps. It was much more technical. It had a double section that you had to double jump, double jump and double jump again. Or you could roll them, but that was not easy and you could get squirley and lose your balance pretty easy. The best option was to stay on the throttle and jump through the entire section. Of course I did not jump them, at least not in practice. The turns(corners) were a lot more narrow this time. Which made it tough, cause if you slowed down too much the front end would sink, and you would risk falling over and or stalling the bike. It was a tight track and tough to pass on. Getting a good start was and as always is the Key!

Moto One:

This time, I't was time to Man Up. I chose a gate on the inside that would put me right in the mix if I got a good start. It's a bit risky cause you can get in tight with everyone and who knows what will happen!? Well I came out of the first turn in 3rd. I was pumped. I held that position for the first lap. Then there was this long strait section going into the double, double, double section. I was feeling good so I manned up and jumped the first two. then rolled the third one and that's where I made my first mistake. I got past by a guy who jumped the 3rd double. It slowed me down not jumping that double not to mention I got out of shape and nearly crashed.????? The next lap I only jumped one of the double and the same thing again, I lost ground and got out of shape. Then I went into this one corner took a different line than I had been, and it proved fatal to my moto. It was too tight, I was too far off on the throttle and the bike stalled and I fell over. I got up quick and tried to get the bike running, but by the time I did I was in last place. Damn it Jim!!! Ah hell if I could have maintained I would have, could have, should have................... I gotta start jumping that double to double to double section.

Moto 2:

The sun is out. It warmed up. The track conditions went from super wet to dry. Just like that. I guess thats how it is in the desert! This time I was on time for my second moto. Cool. Again, I chose an inside gate. Having good luck, I figured that was the best bet. So the gate drops and were off. Into the first turn I go about 4th place and the guy right in front of me nearly stops!!! Uhgggggg! I tried to avoid him and ended up stalling the bike. Damn it Jim...... So now I'm in last place. Well, I tried and finally did catch the guy in front of me. Just so happens it was the same dude who stopped in front of me at the start. Oh yeah and with 2 laps to go I finally hit the double to double to double. Yeap, I jumped all three of them bad boys... Wasn't nearly as hard as I made it out to be.

Well I know what I need to do now. WORK ON STARTS! and START JUMPING EVERYTHING!

Race Report #3 OTHG San Jose FairGrounds 5/10/08

2008-05-12T10:33:00.000-07:00

Survival!!!!!

This was one tough track! Extremely unforgiving! Jump after Jump after Jump after Jump. Did I mention there were a lot of jumps! No Joke! All about riding smart, smooth, and being committed! Very technical. Not a track to show up to without practicing it beforehand!

Basically I hated the track after the first and only practice session before the Moto's began. Then by the last Moto(RACE), I was digging it! Go Figure?!?!?!

The track prep was good and the layout was a lot of fun. Well it was fun Once I got the hang of it! Even then though it was not easy and there were a section or two I was unable to get through smoothly. Now I was able to jump almost everything. Not that I cleared the jumps but I was doing them with the exception of this rhythm section consisting of 7 single jumps evenly space. Best way through was to jump 2 at a time and single jump the last. Unless you had the skills and guts to triple jump the first 3 then double out the last, but........ Anyway, without having practiced them prior to this event. I was unable to get it done so I had to single jump them and that was just slowing me down. Oh, I tried to do them, but it was a disaster. I almost killed myself. I over jumped the first set, cased the second set, bike got out of shape, the back end went side ways and by the 3rd set and I was on crazy train about to derail.... Those that witnessed, thought for sure, I was a dead man getting ready for another trip to the Hospital!!!!! Well Some how, I rode out of it (off the track by the way) and stalled the bike. Fortunately I was still upright on two wheels. HAHA!

Ok so Here's the Scoop...

I got there late, about 30 minutes before practice was to start. I had to unload, get the bike ready , myself dressed and sign up! Then go get my one and only practice in before the racing started.... I went out for the practice and just hated it.... I crashed in a corner, and got hurt trying to roll through a double jump rather than jump it. It was the second lap and I had not figured out the jump layout. The jump faces were steep as hell and without knowing what all the jumps were, I didn't try to jump anything till I got it figured out. Well when I tried to roll through this double I was going too fast and It through me up in the air. When I landed, I was in between the double. I flat landed, my whole body came crashing into the bike. Well my ankles took all the abuse. I felt it most in my left leg with the rod and screws. It felt like it was swelling and even like I had bent the rod in my leg. Not good..... So practice bit the dust!!! I was not happy!

Moto 1. 30+Novice class 5 Laps

I got 3rd gate pic so out I went chose an outside gate to play it safe. I'm still learning how to get good starts. So the gate drops and were off into the first turn. I went wide then cut to the inside. I was in the back of the pack and stayed there. I was 7th out of 8 riders. Well as the laps went on, I began to get confident and started jumping everything. Then I came to that rhythm section. You know the one I'm talking about. The derailed crazy train. Well my confidence was up from just jumping everything and as I came into that section I thought I would give it a try. Bad idea as described earlier. So now my bike is stalled and I'm in last.. With a couple laps to go, I start pushing the pace. The rider in front of me in the far off distance is starting to come back to me. The fitness workouts are starting to pay off.. With a half lap to go I'm in striking distance. I raced into this corner and...........Stalled the bike. Damn!!!!!!! Last place again?????

Moto #2

Of course I get last gate pic this time so outside I go. Oh and now its dark so we are racing under the lights! Cool.. well except for the fact that I'm wearing amber lense goggles. It was a bit hard to see in some spots on the track. Some of the lighting is not the best!! The gate drops and were off. Once again I'm in 7th of 8 racers. This time I rode much better. I didnt stall and held my position. Some areas were to dark to judge where the lines were going so I just went for it. I had the 6th place rider in my sights, but I just could not get close enough to make a pass. Oh well. That second moto I rode much better. I knew the track well enough now keep some rhythm going and minimize my mistakes.

Its been a bumpy road. This weekend was frustrating. I know I can do better. I'm in great shape from riding my bicycle and weight training. My skills on the MX bike have fallen a bit. Reality, after taking several months off during a career change then getting hurt right after getting back on the bike from that layoff, and suffering another 6 month layoff. The skill level is not where I would like it. I'm expecting too much from myself and am trying too hard. AS pointed out by my Motocross Mentor and Riding buddy Dan L. I think it is best I slow down and let the skills evolve and come to me. After all, In the last year, I've raced 7 times in my motocross career. If you want to call it a career!! As Dan likes to say, "BREATH!"

Race # 2 "The Oatfield" 4/27/08

2008-05-12T09:45:00.000-07:00

One of Nothern Califiornia's best Tracks.... Hidden
away just out side of Turlock

It was Gnarly.... 88 degrees today. Can you say
HOTTTTT! From Super sized jumps to swapping braking
bumps and killer soil. This track had it all in a
very tall order. Glad I made it out there. This is
by far the toughest and most technical track I have
ever ridden!!

My wife and kids came out today as well as my cousin
frank and his family. It was nice for a change to
have the Family out there! Some added motivation for
sure.

Moto 1...
I almost killed myself on the start. I was in the
wrong gear. The bike booged, then started to break
loose. I zigzagged all over the Place Then it hooked
up and I was going like a freight train into the
inside of the first corner. Realized I had to slow
down before I took out half the field, slammed on the
breaks the bike went side ways and I high sided and
crashed hard.... Thankfully I didnt break my
collarbone this time... HAHAHA! So now I'm in last
and the rest of the field is gone so I just rode my
own race and learned the track.

Moto 2
Well I had a better start. I didnt crash or stall the
bike. I was happy with this Moto. Out of 14, I was
12th into the first turn. Which I held the entire
race. I almost beat the guy in front of me at the
checkered flag. Although i got tired by the end, I
recovered pretty quick afterward. It's 4 hours later
and I still feel pretty good. The bicycle workouts
are starting to pay off. I stood up a lot on this
track and there were even a few corners where standing
up through them gave me better lines to hit some of
the brutal jumps out there.
However, Getting a good start is key. I'm capable of
running mid pack or better. With the exception of the
leaders the rest are pretty close. I just need to get
better starts then I can be in the pack and dice it
up.....

What I took form this race is I need to practice
starts. Good Idea?! My confidence is coming around
now. I'm starting to trust the bike again. Still a
little spooked jumping it. Afterall, thats how I
broke my leg last October. Of course, as you view the
photo's, courtesy of the Wife, you might think I'm
full of BS!!

Enjoy!

Scott

OTHG Argyll Race # 1 "The return"

2008-05-12T09:34:00.000-07:00

OTHG Race!

Finally! My first race since the last broken bone!!
Not to mention the 1st race on the new bigger and
faster bike! It was hot almost 90 deg out too.
I've been off the bike for 7 months so.... It's time
to get back in shape and what better way than to get
right back into racing!!!!

10th place overall out of 14. I placed 13 in the
first moto. I got a bad start then stalled the bike
twice in the first moto. Hey its a new bike!!!
HAHAHA! Then on the second moto I pulled an 8th place
finish. Much better start this time I was in 5th
place through the first turn and held it for 4 laps
untill my body gave up.. I could barely pull the
clutch in so I had to ease up. I get em next time!!!

My next race will be the Sierra nationals at the
Oatfield. Enjoy the pic

Scott