Training update: Rather than put a lot of training miles on my 500EXC between now and November, I decided that a practice bike could be a good idea. I could ride it as much as I wanted and not worry so much about breaking something on it when I inevitably fall down. I also wouldn't need to worry about whether I need to completely rebuild the engine just prior to the race.
A good friend of mine had a 2007 Yamaha YZ450F sitting unridden in his garage. He had bought the bike about two years ago for his teenage son to ride/race but after only a few rides the kid moved on to other things, so the bike has been sitting and gathering dust. The price was right, we worked out a deal and now the bike lives in my garage.
The motor is in good shape but there are some issues with the front suspension (much too stiff) and the front brake (much too weak). I am making steady progress on fixing both issues.
In the meantime, the "rain every weekend" pattern seems to have stopped. and I was able to ride both weekend days. On Saturday I put in two motos - one 40 minute and one 25 minute - at Cycle Ranch. On Sunday, JT and I and a couple of other riders rode for a few hours at Hidden Falls, which was my first time to really ride single track.
I noted that my conditioning is getting better but I still have a ways to go. In particular, my hands/wrists fatigue first and most. I seem to have pretty good stamina and my legs have not been a limiting factor (constantly going back and forth between sitting and standing for a 40 minute moto is not exhausting). My hands/grip, however, are definitely the constraining factor. After the first 40 minute moto I pulled off the track because of (lack of) hand strength, not overall fatigue. I meant to ride a second 40 minute moto but stopped after just 25 minutes due to failing grip strength. During our ride on Sunday, I started the day feeling the effects of the day before - I definitely had not recovered - and ended the ride earlier than intended due to weakness in my grip. The good news is that I anticipate as I ride more and my conditioning gets better that hand/grip strength will become a non-issue.
We are headed to Baja in early April to pre-run the 2015 Baja 1000 course. I'm thinking this trip will tell us if we are out of our minds delirious and have bitten off more than we can chew or it will confirm that the 2018 Baja 1000 is within our capabilities.
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