It has been two weeks since we last updated the blog but we have pretty much been relaxing in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. We have spent this time staying at the homes of Josh and Jessica Tew and Kyle and Michelle Fullwood.
We spent a lot of our time with the Tews relaxing, doing schoolwork, and eating ice cream at our new favorite ice cream store, Coldstones!
The weekend after we arrived it was Alex Tew’s 8th birthday party. It was heaps of fun. We went to the movies to see Kung-Fu Panda. It was really good. Alex even got the grand birthday introduction and got to start the movie!!! That night we also went out for dinner to East of Chicago for pizza and that was cool.
The night before we left the Tews we went out again for dinner and went to Coldstones for the last time.
The next day it was a sad good bye to the Tews and time for us to leave for Kyle and Michelle’s place.
We had a fun time hanging out with the Fullwood’s. One of the nights we went out to Miyabi’s Japanese restaurant for dinner and as usual that was really cool!
One night I (Sarah) went fishing and that was cool. I caught three fish and I used one of those plastic fish as bait not the food bait. It was sooooooooooo fun!!!
During our time in Myrtle Beach Chris and Josiah got to spend some time with the Hancock’s. River Hancock is Josiah’s age and they race in the same motocross classes. River’s dad, Ronnie, invited them to his place where they have a choice motocross track and swimming pool. Josiah was sad to leave their place.
We left the Fullwood’s for Greensboro, North Carolina. Mum and Dad had a surprise for us kids and took us to Wet n Wild (http://www.emeraldpointe.com/).
From Sarah.
We then headed up to Birch Creek MX, Virginia, to another regional for Josiah to try and qualify for the 7-11 yrs 65 modified class. On a stock bike it became too hard for Josiah to qualify, particularly as the modified bikes were able to get to the first corner faster.
We headed off on Sunday afternoon and stayed the night in a truck stop for the first time. It wasn't too noisy with earplugs on but Chris didn't get much sleep as trucks came and went all night! We then continued on Monday morning and arrived at Nashville Tennessee.
Monday, June 23, 2008
Saturday, May 31, 2008
Ohio, Pennsylvania and Niagara Falls
We arrived at a motocross track in Uhrichsville, Ohio (south east Ohio, Crown Canyon MX) which was an area qualifier to go to the mid east regional qualifier sometime in June. We got there Thursday afternoon and stayed until Monday. There was a practice on Friday and racing on Saturday and Sunday. It rained all day on Friday and in the evenings on the weekend. Josiah got a first, second and third in three classes (65cc 7-9 stock, 65cc 7-11 modified and 65cc 7-11 support class). On the Saturday night we went out to dinner at Applebee’s with Larry and Liz Jenkins (and their son Ben) and then went to the movies to see Prince Caspian. We were homesick from watching the movie because it was made in NZ. It was nice to get away from the track that evening and have a good time with the Jenkins. We all fit into their big rig on our way to dinner and the movies (see blog photo of the three Raptors at “Raptorville”).
On Sunday night we decided to stay the night at the track and then go to Holmes county on Monday. Holmes county is the hub of the Amish and Mennonite communities. The Amish are conservative compared to Mennonites. We got to Berlin and looked around some of the stores before going to the Amish and Mennonite Information Center for an understanding of the background of these “religions”. From there we went to Yoder’s where we saw how a typical Amish family live out their daily lives. There were houses, barns and horse and cart rides. The house of the stricter Amish reminded me a little of my grandparents home in Wairoa, NZ. It only had the bare essentials. The toilet was outside. There was no electricity (although other Amish sects have generators to generate electricity). The Amish are very communal. They can build a large barn in a day. We got to see the Amish making bread and other goodies which we purchased. It tasted great.
On Monday afternoon we travelled back to Pennsylvania (near the town of Washington) to stay with Chris and Maria. Chris and Maria (and their three children Ryan, Erin and Evan) are friends of Larry and Liz who we caught up with at Crown Canyon MX and also at Rolling Hills. We had received an invitation to stay at their place which was great. We got to do washing, have great showers and meals provided. Chris and Maria have a fantastic block of land out in the country with a motocross track. They also have a friend who is an orthopedic doctor who helps out with their kids when there have broken bones. Maria called and made an appointment for Joel to have his arm looked at and the doctor recommended that the sling be removed from Joel’s arm. Joel was very excited. We were very appreciative of Chris and Maria’s hospitality and connections. It was sad to leave!
On Thursday we travelled to Pleasure Valley Raceway in Pennsylvania(http://www.cernicsracing.com/pvr.htm) for the first regional qualifier to get to Loretta Lynn’s where the American national motocross championships are held each year in Tennessee. The regional qualifier was for the north east of the USA and you have to first of all qualify at an area to get to a region (we had qualified for this regional two weeks beforehand in Virginia at Actiontown MX). To give you an idea of the standard of motocross racing at a regional, an area qualifier would be a similar standard to a New Zealand national. The top eight riders from each class at an area qualifier are eligible to race at a regional. If you finish in say the top six or seven at a regional you then qualify for Loretta Lynn’s. So at a regional you are racing against some top riders from the region and some of them are top at the national level. There are some very fast kids on bikes.
It had rained for 12 straight days before we got to Pleasure Valley Raceway (PVR). We got there early enough to get a good dry spot. Others who turned up later on had to be dragged into a spot by a bulldozer (they were subsequently waiting to be pulled out three days later). Friday’s practice was muddy but the sunshine began to dry out the track. Lots of water blasting the bike. Chris had hoped it would stay muddy for the weekend as it suited Josiah but as the day dried out the track suited everyone and there was a freight train of fast kids zooming around the track.
The track was cut up on Saturday morning and it looked really good. As the day wore on ruts began to develop and it even became dusty so it was a completely different track in the afternoon. The progression of the track on Sunday was similar to Saturday. Over his three races in the 7-9 year old 65cc stock class, Josiah got two hole shots and ended up third overall. This is a fantastic result. Josiah didn’t qualify for the 7-11 65cc modified class but we used it as good practice to make it to Loretta Lynn’s for the 7-9 65cc stock class. If you want to see a video of the racing at PVR, go to http://www.motoxposure.com/tv/ and click on the right hand side (Pleasure Valley day one and day two LL NE youth qualifier). Josiah is about a third of the way through day one (and very briefly at the end of day two). Look for # 413 in the 65cc 7-9 stock class getting the holeshot.
On Sunday afternoon after the races we packed up at PVR and headed to Cleveland Ohio. We decided to go and spend a few days with Cara and Tiana from our church at CBC in New Zealand. We were looking forward to seeing them. That night we arrived in Cleveland and parked the night in Walmart.
We caught up with Cara and Tiana on Monday morning and parked the RV at their church. We stayed at their mum’s place the next two nights and really appreciated their hospitality. On Tuesday we went with Cara and Tiana to the Cedarpoint amusement park which is rated as the world’s best rollercoaster park (http://www.cedarpoint.com/). We spent the whole day and night at the park. It was awesome. One rollercoaster is called the Dragstar. It propels you to 120mph in four second before climbing up vertically about 400 feet and then back down again. Other awesome rides were the Millenium Force, Magnum, Raptor and Maverick (go to http://www.cedarpoint.com/public/park/rides/coasters/index.cfm for details on the rollercoasters). We all had a real fun time.
On Wednesday we travelled north east from Cleveland to Madison and caught up with a friend of Janine’s called Leslie. Janine met Leslie over 15 years ago when she toured around Europe. We also met Leslie’s husband, Tim. They kindly put us up for two nights. On Thursday we travelled north east again on Interstate 90 for 200 miles to Niagara Falls. We got there late afternoon and went on the boat the ventures up to the bottom of the waterfalls. We then went over to the Canadian side of the Niagara Falls and stayed there until night time when the lights shine onto the falls. We then crossed the border back into the USA and drove back to Tim and Leslie’s place.
On Friday morning we left Tim and Leslie’s place to head back to Myrtle Beach SC. We drove nearly 12 hours on Friday before finally pulling over at Statesville in Ohio and parking up for the night in Walmart. We then hit the road early the next day. After 750 miles and close to 100 gallons of diesel (plus lots of cans of coke) we safely arrived at Myrtle Beach just after lunch on Saturday. We arrived in early 90s F temperature (just over 30 degrees celsius) having come from around 50 F (around 10 degrees celsius) four days earlier at the Cedarpoint amusement park. It felt good to be back in Myrtle Beach. Alot has happened in the last month since we left this place.
On Sunday night we decided to stay the night at the track and then go to Holmes county on Monday. Holmes county is the hub of the Amish and Mennonite communities. The Amish are conservative compared to Mennonites. We got to Berlin and looked around some of the stores before going to the Amish and Mennonite Information Center for an understanding of the background of these “religions”. From there we went to Yoder’s where we saw how a typical Amish family live out their daily lives. There were houses, barns and horse and cart rides. The house of the stricter Amish reminded me a little of my grandparents home in Wairoa, NZ. It only had the bare essentials. The toilet was outside. There was no electricity (although other Amish sects have generators to generate electricity). The Amish are very communal. They can build a large barn in a day. We got to see the Amish making bread and other goodies which we purchased. It tasted great.
On Monday afternoon we travelled back to Pennsylvania (near the town of Washington) to stay with Chris and Maria. Chris and Maria (and their three children Ryan, Erin and Evan) are friends of Larry and Liz who we caught up with at Crown Canyon MX and also at Rolling Hills. We had received an invitation to stay at their place which was great. We got to do washing, have great showers and meals provided. Chris and Maria have a fantastic block of land out in the country with a motocross track. They also have a friend who is an orthopedic doctor who helps out with their kids when there have broken bones. Maria called and made an appointment for Joel to have his arm looked at and the doctor recommended that the sling be removed from Joel’s arm. Joel was very excited. We were very appreciative of Chris and Maria’s hospitality and connections. It was sad to leave!
On Thursday we travelled to Pleasure Valley Raceway in Pennsylvania(http://www.cernicsracing.com/pvr.htm) for the first regional qualifier to get to Loretta Lynn’s where the American national motocross championships are held each year in Tennessee. The regional qualifier was for the north east of the USA and you have to first of all qualify at an area to get to a region (we had qualified for this regional two weeks beforehand in Virginia at Actiontown MX). To give you an idea of the standard of motocross racing at a regional, an area qualifier would be a similar standard to a New Zealand national. The top eight riders from each class at an area qualifier are eligible to race at a regional. If you finish in say the top six or seven at a regional you then qualify for Loretta Lynn’s. So at a regional you are racing against some top riders from the region and some of them are top at the national level. There are some very fast kids on bikes.
It had rained for 12 straight days before we got to Pleasure Valley Raceway (PVR). We got there early enough to get a good dry spot. Others who turned up later on had to be dragged into a spot by a bulldozer (they were subsequently waiting to be pulled out three days later). Friday’s practice was muddy but the sunshine began to dry out the track. Lots of water blasting the bike. Chris had hoped it would stay muddy for the weekend as it suited Josiah but as the day dried out the track suited everyone and there was a freight train of fast kids zooming around the track.
The track was cut up on Saturday morning and it looked really good. As the day wore on ruts began to develop and it even became dusty so it was a completely different track in the afternoon. The progression of the track on Sunday was similar to Saturday. Over his three races in the 7-9 year old 65cc stock class, Josiah got two hole shots and ended up third overall. This is a fantastic result. Josiah didn’t qualify for the 7-11 65cc modified class but we used it as good practice to make it to Loretta Lynn’s for the 7-9 65cc stock class. If you want to see a video of the racing at PVR, go to http://www.motoxposure.com/tv/ and click on the right hand side (Pleasure Valley day one and day two LL NE youth qualifier). Josiah is about a third of the way through day one (and very briefly at the end of day two). Look for # 413 in the 65cc 7-9 stock class getting the holeshot.
On Sunday afternoon after the races we packed up at PVR and headed to Cleveland Ohio. We decided to go and spend a few days with Cara and Tiana from our church at CBC in New Zealand. We were looking forward to seeing them. That night we arrived in Cleveland and parked the night in Walmart.
We caught up with Cara and Tiana on Monday morning and parked the RV at their church. We stayed at their mum’s place the next two nights and really appreciated their hospitality. On Tuesday we went with Cara and Tiana to the Cedarpoint amusement park which is rated as the world’s best rollercoaster park (http://www.cedarpoint.com/). We spent the whole day and night at the park. It was awesome. One rollercoaster is called the Dragstar. It propels you to 120mph in four second before climbing up vertically about 400 feet and then back down again. Other awesome rides were the Millenium Force, Magnum, Raptor and Maverick (go to http://www.cedarpoint.com/public/park/rides/coasters/index.cfm for details on the rollercoasters). We all had a real fun time.
On Wednesday we travelled north east from Cleveland to Madison and caught up with a friend of Janine’s called Leslie. Janine met Leslie over 15 years ago when she toured around Europe. We also met Leslie’s husband, Tim. They kindly put us up for two nights. On Thursday we travelled north east again on Interstate 90 for 200 miles to Niagara Falls. We got there late afternoon and went on the boat the ventures up to the bottom of the waterfalls. We then went over to the Canadian side of the Niagara Falls and stayed there until night time when the lights shine onto the falls. We then crossed the border back into the USA and drove back to Tim and Leslie’s place.
On Friday morning we left Tim and Leslie’s place to head back to Myrtle Beach SC. We drove nearly 12 hours on Friday before finally pulling over at Statesville in Ohio and parking up for the night in Walmart. We then hit the road early the next day. After 750 miles and close to 100 gallons of diesel (plus lots of cans of coke) we safely arrived at Myrtle Beach just after lunch on Saturday. We arrived in early 90s F temperature (just over 30 degrees celsius) having come from around 50 F (around 10 degrees celsius) four days earlier at the Cedarpoint amusement park. It felt good to be back in Myrtle Beach. Alot has happened in the last month since we left this place.
Thursday, May 15, 2008
North Carolina to Pennsylvania
We travelled from South Carolina to Reidsville in North Carolina to attend a motocross race. We were one of the first to arrive at the track and get parked up under some trees. Within a short period of time two other fifth wheelers (that were Raptor models like ours) parked either side of us. Our truck was small compared to the rigs towing the other Raptors (refer photo). However, we were in “Raptorville”. We got lots of questions from people about our Raptor and truck for towing.
North Carolina is still considered part of the South. Chris thought it would be less South and more of the North but you could tell within a short period of time we were still in the South, eg. the spitting, the accent. Also, they played two types of music from 7am to 10pm on the loud speakers (which were inconveniently placed right outside our Raptor in the trees) which were country and western. Also, Jessica, Alex, Caroline and Jessica’s parents (Bob and Angela) came to the track to watch. It was good to see the Tews again and meet Jess’ parents.
We left the track at Reidsville late on Sunday afternoon and travelled to Pocahontas State Park in Virginia (http://www.dcr.virginia.gov/state_parks/poc.shtml). It is located 20 miles south west of Richmond, the state capital. It is a nice clean park with good facilities and has a lake and walking/biking trails which we all did on Monday afternoon.
There is a lot of history in Virginia, eg. the early colonies, revolutionary war and civil war. So on Tuesday we went into Richmond and visited the state capital and then onto Petersburg to visit the Pamplin Historical Park (http://www.pamplinpark.org). This is a 422 acre park that relives the life and times of soldiers during America's "War Between the States." There is a National Museum of the Civil War Soldier, Tudor Hall and a recreated Military Encampment. It was fantastic.
On Wednesday we went to (Colonial) Williamsburg which has a living history museum (http://www.history.org/). Colonial Williamsburg was the 18th-century capital of Britain’s largest, and wealthiest settlement in the New World. The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation has attempted to interpret the origins of American life through re-enactment of the daily life of colonials in a 301-acre area populated with restored, reconstructed, and historically furnished buildings. Fully costumed Colonial Williamsburg Foundation re-enactors, not allowed to break character, tell the stories of men and women of the 18th-century city, from all races and backgrounds. It really was like being there 300 years ago. When you first arrive, you freak out at the sight of men wearing the tight pants they used to wear at that time.
On Thursday afternoon we packed up and drove an hour to Dillwyn VA for another race on the weekend. Josiah got first in both motos to take the overall win in the 7-9 stock class but mishaps in the 7-11 open class meant he didn’t qualify. We were glad to leave the motocross track as it had rained a lot and Chris overused the water blaster to clean the bike so we ran out of water on Saturday afternoon.
We travelled north from Dillwyn VA on Sunday afternoon. We had planned to be in Pennsylvania that night but it didn’t work out that way. First, the weather was torrential rain so it made the driving slow. Second, the GPS unit took us along a track in the boondocks that ran parallel to the interstate. The roads were small, winding and hilly. By the time we got onto the interstate to Harrisburg PA we had crossed the state line into West Virginia and decided to stay the night in a parking lot at Walmart. The store was right beside the interstate. Some of us didn’t get much sleep due to the continuous thread of large rigs traveling by during the night. Sarah also hurt herself falling out of the fifth wheeler.
In the morning we went into the Walmart to get supplies (it was also warmer in the store than in the RV - the temperature was around 8 degrees celsius). We then left to stay in a RV park in Gettysburg (near Harrisburg PA). It was timely (well overdue) to get cleaned up at the RV park.
Gettysburg is such an interesting place to visit. It was a major battle in the five year American civil war between the Confederacy (South) and the Union (North). It took place in the Union's territory as General Lee pushed up from the south after some victories over the Union. The battle took place on 1st to 3rd July 1863. The South was under the command of Robert Lee (General Lee) and the North was under the command of Major General Meade (Army of the Potomac). There is an auto tour in Gettysburg so you can drive along the roads, stop off at a location and learn what happened there. There were around 50,000 casualties from both sides during those three days. When you look out over the rolling fields you can almost picture men being ploughed down from both sides. This is particularly so when you look out from Seminary Ridge over the low lying fields as General Pickett from the South advanced 12,000 Confederates (referred to as Pickett's Charge) to try to take a strategic point on the battleground. The North had the superior position (eg. high ground, walls for protection) led by Chamberlain (this is referred to as the High Water Mark, ie. a defining moment in the Gettysburg battle).
We also stopped off at the National Park Service’s Museum and Visitor Centre (http://www.nps.gov/gett/ & www.gettysburgfoundation.org) which provides history and artifacts from the battle. You really need to experience a place like this and see it for yourself. Writing about it in a blog does not do it justice at all.
The following day we went into Harrisburg to the State Capitol and the State Museum of Pennsylvania. The building was most impressive. It was inspired by Michelangelo’s design for St Peter’s in Rome. When you walk in the main entrance it is just over 80 metres to the top of the rotunda (52 million pound dome). In the Senate and House of Representatives chambers the chandeliers weigh between two and four tons each. The Senate chamber is Italian designed and the House chamber is French inspired. The stained glass windows in these two chambers weigh over 200 pounds each. There is a mountain of gold (23 carat) in this place as well.
The State Museum (http://www.statemuseumpa.org/) covers the history of Pennsylvania along with archaeology, paleontology, industry, science, animals and the planetarium. The kids really enjoyed the museum.
On Thursday we travelled from Harrisburg PA to Uhrichsville in Ohio. This was a big trip. We travelled along the I 76 turnpike. The bridges along this interstate were low at the sides so we had to move over to the left hand side so that we felt comfortable we were not going to hit the top of the fifth wheeler. The trip through Pittsburg was a bit more demanding. We passed a sign saying the tunnel ahead was 13 and a half feet high (which we understood to be the height of our fifth wheeler). We took a detour before the tunnel but the streets through the town were extremely narrow. We turned around and measured the height of the fifth wheeler at 13 feet and 3 inches so we decided to give it a go through the tunnel. We didn’t drive fast through the tunnel as any undulations could mean we would hit the top of the fifth wheeler. The tunnel felt like it was the longest tunnel we had been in. We got through fine but with less than 10 cms of space. We are now in Ohio.
North Carolina is still considered part of the South. Chris thought it would be less South and more of the North but you could tell within a short period of time we were still in the South, eg. the spitting, the accent. Also, they played two types of music from 7am to 10pm on the loud speakers (which were inconveniently placed right outside our Raptor in the trees) which were country and western. Also, Jessica, Alex, Caroline and Jessica’s parents (Bob and Angela) came to the track to watch. It was good to see the Tews again and meet Jess’ parents.
We left the track at Reidsville late on Sunday afternoon and travelled to Pocahontas State Park in Virginia (http://www.dcr.virginia.gov/state_parks/poc.shtml). It is located 20 miles south west of Richmond, the state capital. It is a nice clean park with good facilities and has a lake and walking/biking trails which we all did on Monday afternoon.
There is a lot of history in Virginia, eg. the early colonies, revolutionary war and civil war. So on Tuesday we went into Richmond and visited the state capital and then onto Petersburg to visit the Pamplin Historical Park (http://www.pamplinpark.org). This is a 422 acre park that relives the life and times of soldiers during America's "War Between the States." There is a National Museum of the Civil War Soldier, Tudor Hall and a recreated Military Encampment. It was fantastic.
On Wednesday we went to (Colonial) Williamsburg which has a living history museum (http://www.history.org/). Colonial Williamsburg was the 18th-century capital of Britain’s largest, and wealthiest settlement in the New World. The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation has attempted to interpret the origins of American life through re-enactment of the daily life of colonials in a 301-acre area populated with restored, reconstructed, and historically furnished buildings. Fully costumed Colonial Williamsburg Foundation re-enactors, not allowed to break character, tell the stories of men and women of the 18th-century city, from all races and backgrounds. It really was like being there 300 years ago. When you first arrive, you freak out at the sight of men wearing the tight pants they used to wear at that time.
On Thursday afternoon we packed up and drove an hour to Dillwyn VA for another race on the weekend. Josiah got first in both motos to take the overall win in the 7-9 stock class but mishaps in the 7-11 open class meant he didn’t qualify. We were glad to leave the motocross track as it had rained a lot and Chris overused the water blaster to clean the bike so we ran out of water on Saturday afternoon.
We travelled north from Dillwyn VA on Sunday afternoon. We had planned to be in Pennsylvania that night but it didn’t work out that way. First, the weather was torrential rain so it made the driving slow. Second, the GPS unit took us along a track in the boondocks that ran parallel to the interstate. The roads were small, winding and hilly. By the time we got onto the interstate to Harrisburg PA we had crossed the state line into West Virginia and decided to stay the night in a parking lot at Walmart. The store was right beside the interstate. Some of us didn’t get much sleep due to the continuous thread of large rigs traveling by during the night. Sarah also hurt herself falling out of the fifth wheeler.
In the morning we went into the Walmart to get supplies (it was also warmer in the store than in the RV - the temperature was around 8 degrees celsius). We then left to stay in a RV park in Gettysburg (near Harrisburg PA). It was timely (well overdue) to get cleaned up at the RV park.
Gettysburg is such an interesting place to visit. It was a major battle in the five year American civil war between the Confederacy (South) and the Union (North). It took place in the Union's territory as General Lee pushed up from the south after some victories over the Union. The battle took place on 1st to 3rd July 1863. The South was under the command of Robert Lee (General Lee) and the North was under the command of Major General Meade (Army of the Potomac). There is an auto tour in Gettysburg so you can drive along the roads, stop off at a location and learn what happened there. There were around 50,000 casualties from both sides during those three days. When you look out over the rolling fields you can almost picture men being ploughed down from both sides. This is particularly so when you look out from Seminary Ridge over the low lying fields as General Pickett from the South advanced 12,000 Confederates (referred to as Pickett's Charge) to try to take a strategic point on the battleground. The North had the superior position (eg. high ground, walls for protection) led by Chamberlain (this is referred to as the High Water Mark, ie. a defining moment in the Gettysburg battle).
We also stopped off at the National Park Service’s Museum and Visitor Centre (http://www.nps.gov/gett/ & www.gettysburgfoundation.org) which provides history and artifacts from the battle. You really need to experience a place like this and see it for yourself. Writing about it in a blog does not do it justice at all.
The following day we went into Harrisburg to the State Capitol and the State Museum of Pennsylvania. The building was most impressive. It was inspired by Michelangelo’s design for St Peter’s in Rome. When you walk in the main entrance it is just over 80 metres to the top of the rotunda (52 million pound dome). In the Senate and House of Representatives chambers the chandeliers weigh between two and four tons each. The Senate chamber is Italian designed and the House chamber is French inspired. The stained glass windows in these two chambers weigh over 200 pounds each. There is a mountain of gold (23 carat) in this place as well.
The State Museum (http://www.statemuseumpa.org/) covers the history of Pennsylvania along with archaeology, paleontology, industry, science, animals and the planetarium. The kids really enjoyed the museum.
On Thursday we travelled from Harrisburg PA to Uhrichsville in Ohio. This was a big trip. We travelled along the I 76 turnpike. The bridges along this interstate were low at the sides so we had to move over to the left hand side so that we felt comfortable we were not going to hit the top of the fifth wheeler. The trip through Pittsburg was a bit more demanding. We passed a sign saying the tunnel ahead was 13 and a half feet high (which we understood to be the height of our fifth wheeler). We took a detour before the tunnel but the streets through the town were extremely narrow. We turned around and measured the height of the fifth wheeler at 13 feet and 3 inches so we decided to give it a go through the tunnel. We didn’t drive fast through the tunnel as any undulations could mean we would hit the top of the fifth wheeler. The tunnel felt like it was the longest tunnel we had been in. We got through fine but with less than 10 cms of space. We are now in Ohio.
Monday, May 5, 2008
Myrtle Beach, South Carolina (and getting there)
From Prentiss Mississippi our plans were to head back to Myrtle Beach in SC before commencing another journey in two and half weeks time to the north east of the USA.
After leaving Prentiss in Mississippi we travelled west on Sunday afternoon to Meridian, Mississippi. We stayed the night in a RV park, had long showers and cleaned the truck and fifth wheeler. The next day we continued our trip on the I-20 back to Myrtle Beach, SC. We passed through Birmingham, Alabama again and nearly ran out of diesel waiting too long for nice place to stop. After passing through Atlanta Georgia we got to Aiken near the Georgia & SC border. We decided to stay the night rather than drive another four hours to Myrtle Beach.
The next morning we packed up to drive to Myrtle Beach. When we pulled away with the fifth wheeler the truck had no power. It was blowing a lot of smoke. We called the RV helpline again and they arranged for a tow truck driver to tow the F250 to the local Ford dealership. After doing their initial review they said the EGR valve needed replacing (again as it had been done in Plano Texas) and that it would take a day or so to fix. Later that afternoon we got a call to say the EGR cooler needed replacing as well.
The next day (Wednesday) we got a call in the afternoon to say the F250 also needed a new turbo. So, on Thursday afternoon the F250 was ready. The truck was much quieter and smoother in its power delivery. So, after picking up the truck we hooked up the fifth wheeler and drove to Myrtle Beach. We were so keen to leave Aiken as our food and drink supplies had completely run out, along with our patience! We weren’t stopping for anything to get to Myrtle Beach. Thanks to the team at Satcher Ford for fixing the truck.
We arrived at Kyle and Michelle’s place Thursday evening. They kindly allowed us to park the fifth wheeler there as we were going to stay with Jessica and Joshua Tew (we stayed with them when we first arrived in the USA). We had not seen Kyle since September last year and missed him when we arrived two months ago. It was great to finally see Kyle and meet Michelle. Kyle has been a tremendous help to us and “hooking us up” with different things. We were keen to see Jess and Josh as well. Both are doctors and Josh is a specialist radiologist so they were a good match to help us out with Joel’s broken arm. All of the Natzkes were real glad to be back in Myrtle Beach.
The two weeks we spent in Myrtle Beach were fantastic. We had the opportunity to relax and have some fun. Some of the things we have done have included going to the main beach and a private pool club, going out to Mayabi’s Japanese restaurant (the chefs cook in front of you and do all sorts of entertaining tricks), trying Krispy Kreme donuts (they make delicious donuts), shopping, motocross riding at some local tracks, mini putt and going to Riley‘s Aquarium. One paragraph does not really do justice to the excellent time we have had with Josh and Jess and also with Kyle and Michelle. But, it is late at night and we need to write something of what we have been up to over the last few weeks before it is forgotten.
Our journey is now to travel up the north east of the USA.
After leaving Prentiss in Mississippi we travelled west on Sunday afternoon to Meridian, Mississippi. We stayed the night in a RV park, had long showers and cleaned the truck and fifth wheeler. The next day we continued our trip on the I-20 back to Myrtle Beach, SC. We passed through Birmingham, Alabama again and nearly ran out of diesel waiting too long for nice place to stop. After passing through Atlanta Georgia we got to Aiken near the Georgia & SC border. We decided to stay the night rather than drive another four hours to Myrtle Beach.
The next morning we packed up to drive to Myrtle Beach. When we pulled away with the fifth wheeler the truck had no power. It was blowing a lot of smoke. We called the RV helpline again and they arranged for a tow truck driver to tow the F250 to the local Ford dealership. After doing their initial review they said the EGR valve needed replacing (again as it had been done in Plano Texas) and that it would take a day or so to fix. Later that afternoon we got a call to say the EGR cooler needed replacing as well.
The next day (Wednesday) we got a call in the afternoon to say the F250 also needed a new turbo. So, on Thursday afternoon the F250 was ready. The truck was much quieter and smoother in its power delivery. So, after picking up the truck we hooked up the fifth wheeler and drove to Myrtle Beach. We were so keen to leave Aiken as our food and drink supplies had completely run out, along with our patience! We weren’t stopping for anything to get to Myrtle Beach. Thanks to the team at Satcher Ford for fixing the truck.
We arrived at Kyle and Michelle’s place Thursday evening. They kindly allowed us to park the fifth wheeler there as we were going to stay with Jessica and Joshua Tew (we stayed with them when we first arrived in the USA). We had not seen Kyle since September last year and missed him when we arrived two months ago. It was great to finally see Kyle and meet Michelle. Kyle has been a tremendous help to us and “hooking us up” with different things. We were keen to see Jess and Josh as well. Both are doctors and Josh is a specialist radiologist so they were a good match to help us out with Joel’s broken arm. All of the Natzkes were real glad to be back in Myrtle Beach.
The two weeks we spent in Myrtle Beach were fantastic. We had the opportunity to relax and have some fun. Some of the things we have done have included going to the main beach and a private pool club, going out to Mayabi’s Japanese restaurant (the chefs cook in front of you and do all sorts of entertaining tricks), trying Krispy Kreme donuts (they make delicious donuts), shopping, motocross riding at some local tracks, mini putt and going to Riley‘s Aquarium. One paragraph does not really do justice to the excellent time we have had with Josh and Jess and also with Kyle and Michelle. But, it is late at night and we need to write something of what we have been up to over the last few weeks before it is forgotten.
Our journey is now to travel up the north east of the USA.
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Arkansas and Mississippi
We arrived at Mike and Pam’s place mid Sunday afternoon. They are near Amily, south west of Little Rock, Arkansas. Mike and Pam were at the horse races when we arrived so our kids played with their grandkids Hannah and Jacob or Bob as Mike calls him. We also caught up with Tara’s husband Cameron (Tara is Pam’s daughter). Josiah had his first ride on Mike’s track. He thought it was pretty cool as it has an arenacross section.
Their place is out in the sticks as we would say in New Zealand. But it is beautiful. The house with a verander, the tall trees, the clean fresh air, the pond and the flowers in the green grass. We could get use to living there. Joel got to fish in the small lake and caught two fish (check out the photo below...objects in the picture appear much smaller in real life).
Monday was school in the morning then riding for the afternoon. Joel rode Jacob’s bikes, first the peewee, then the cobra. They were a bit small but Joel was just excited about being on a bike.
On Tuesday we went to Little Rock to Tom’s Kawasaki shop and bought Joel a Kawasaki KX65. It is a bit big for him and he is learning to use the gears. Mike and Pam then talked us into going to a race in Mississippi with them which was a great idea considering it was on our way through the South and for Josiah to ride. That night we had dinner with Mike and Pam and their family. One of the things Joel and Chris tried was some hot sauce. Chris bought some hot sauce in Louisiana and has a small amount on some meat dishes. The hot sauce Mike pulled out has a warning on it…do not give to small children. This sauce is powerful with a capital P. When Chris tasted it and it brushed the top of his lip it burnt like mad. Joel said it was pretty weak (what the?).
On Wednesday we left for Prentiss, Mississippi, with Mike and Pam to race at Golden Pine Raceway (http://goldenpineraceway.com/). This is a fine track. It is a big track and fast. There are big jumps, rollers, elevations and fast sections. We got to the track around midnight having travelled convoy with Mike and Pam, and also one of their riders, Brock.
On the way we stopped off at Vicksburg at the casino for a meal. The casino is on the Mississippi river on a boat and you walk through the casino to the buffett. It is unlawful to have casinos in Mississippi so they build them on the river (which is between Mississippi and Louisiana) although it is permanently fixed to the shoreline. After dinner we had a look at the battle monuments of the civil war beside the casino and watched the barges travel up the river. There had been a lot of rain in the last few days and the current down the river was massive. Often the barges looked like they weren’t going forward at all. After dinner at the casino we then travelled to Jackson. We gassed up and filled up with water and purchased food for the days ahead.
On Thursday Mike and Pam worked to get the race and track ready. The kids did schoolwork. On Friday Chris helped out with practice and Janine helped out with sign on for the riders. Sarah helped out with selling t-shirts over the weekend (she sold quite a few, especially to young boy riders about her age). We also got to meet another racer who rides for Mike, a guy called Chris Tracy. Chris Tracy has a pro licence and looked great on his Pro Circuit Kawasaki KX250F. Chris got to ride it around the paddock and was amazed at the power of the engine.
On Saturday and Sunday Josiah raced. He raced well on Sunday and got third in the 7-11 modified class which means he can race this class at a regional qualifier in order to get to the USA MX nationals (called Loretta Lynns) . This was a great result considering he was racing against modified bikes and some older kids.
There was some bad news on Saturday for Joel. Chris took Joel out to a paddock to ride his new bike. At the end of the riding, Chris was going to double Joel back to the RV. Chris took off too fast and Joel fell off the back of the bike. Joel’s arm got caught in the back wheel and broke just below the shoulder. We raced Joel to the local medical centre. The x-ray showed the break and the doctor sent Joel on his way to the University Medical Center in Jackson in an ambulance (about an hour away). It was a long night. We were initially advised they may need to operate on Joel and put a plate on the broken bone. In the end it was recommended that his arm be placed in a sling and strapped to his body as the break was too high to his shoulder to cast. The sling would allow the bone to realign and then fuse together. He will need to be taken back to the hospital in a week or so to see if the bone is healing well.
That night, Mike and Pam took Sarah, Josiah and Chris to the local buffet for dinner. One of the things on the menu was fried frog legs (most things are fried in the South). They said it tasted like chicken. Sarah and Chris disagree and won’t be trying it again.
We had planned to go to Disneyworld in Orlando after Mississippi but Joel’s situation now meant we had to head back to Myrtle Beach in South Carolina. We will get some rest.
Like the week before when we left the Bellingans in Plano, it was sad to say goodbye to Mike and Pam, and the rest of the crew. A big thanks to them for helping out when Joel was hurt. Also, it was Sarah’s birthday on Sunday. She gave up her “birthday rights” and allowed Josiah to race on the weekend. Mike, Pam and Tara bought her a really nice Thor sweat shirt.
Their place is out in the sticks as we would say in New Zealand. But it is beautiful. The house with a verander, the tall trees, the clean fresh air, the pond and the flowers in the green grass. We could get use to living there. Joel got to fish in the small lake and caught two fish (check out the photo below...objects in the picture appear much smaller in real life).
Monday was school in the morning then riding for the afternoon. Joel rode Jacob’s bikes, first the peewee, then the cobra. They were a bit small but Joel was just excited about being on a bike.
On Tuesday we went to Little Rock to Tom’s Kawasaki shop and bought Joel a Kawasaki KX65. It is a bit big for him and he is learning to use the gears. Mike and Pam then talked us into going to a race in Mississippi with them which was a great idea considering it was on our way through the South and for Josiah to ride. That night we had dinner with Mike and Pam and their family. One of the things Joel and Chris tried was some hot sauce. Chris bought some hot sauce in Louisiana and has a small amount on some meat dishes. The hot sauce Mike pulled out has a warning on it…do not give to small children. This sauce is powerful with a capital P. When Chris tasted it and it brushed the top of his lip it burnt like mad. Joel said it was pretty weak (what the?).
On Wednesday we left for Prentiss, Mississippi, with Mike and Pam to race at Golden Pine Raceway (http://goldenpineraceway.com/). This is a fine track. It is a big track and fast. There are big jumps, rollers, elevations and fast sections. We got to the track around midnight having travelled convoy with Mike and Pam, and also one of their riders, Brock.
On the way we stopped off at Vicksburg at the casino for a meal. The casino is on the Mississippi river on a boat and you walk through the casino to the buffett. It is unlawful to have casinos in Mississippi so they build them on the river (which is between Mississippi and Louisiana) although it is permanently fixed to the shoreline. After dinner we had a look at the battle monuments of the civil war beside the casino and watched the barges travel up the river. There had been a lot of rain in the last few days and the current down the river was massive. Often the barges looked like they weren’t going forward at all. After dinner at the casino we then travelled to Jackson. We gassed up and filled up with water and purchased food for the days ahead.
On Thursday Mike and Pam worked to get the race and track ready. The kids did schoolwork. On Friday Chris helped out with practice and Janine helped out with sign on for the riders. Sarah helped out with selling t-shirts over the weekend (she sold quite a few, especially to young boy riders about her age). We also got to meet another racer who rides for Mike, a guy called Chris Tracy. Chris Tracy has a pro licence and looked great on his Pro Circuit Kawasaki KX250F. Chris got to ride it around the paddock and was amazed at the power of the engine.
On Saturday and Sunday Josiah raced. He raced well on Sunday and got third in the 7-11 modified class which means he can race this class at a regional qualifier in order to get to the USA MX nationals (called Loretta Lynns) . This was a great result considering he was racing against modified bikes and some older kids.
There was some bad news on Saturday for Joel. Chris took Joel out to a paddock to ride his new bike. At the end of the riding, Chris was going to double Joel back to the RV. Chris took off too fast and Joel fell off the back of the bike. Joel’s arm got caught in the back wheel and broke just below the shoulder. We raced Joel to the local medical centre. The x-ray showed the break and the doctor sent Joel on his way to the University Medical Center in Jackson in an ambulance (about an hour away). It was a long night. We were initially advised they may need to operate on Joel and put a plate on the broken bone. In the end it was recommended that his arm be placed in a sling and strapped to his body as the break was too high to his shoulder to cast. The sling would allow the bone to realign and then fuse together. He will need to be taken back to the hospital in a week or so to see if the bone is healing well.
That night, Mike and Pam took Sarah, Josiah and Chris to the local buffet for dinner. One of the things on the menu was fried frog legs (most things are fried in the South). They said it tasted like chicken. Sarah and Chris disagree and won’t be trying it again.
We had planned to go to Disneyworld in Orlando after Mississippi but Joel’s situation now meant we had to head back to Myrtle Beach in South Carolina. We will get some rest.
Like the week before when we left the Bellingans in Plano, it was sad to say goodbye to Mike and Pam, and the rest of the crew. A big thanks to them for helping out when Joel was hurt. Also, it was Sarah’s birthday on Sunday. She gave up her “birthday rights” and allowed Josiah to race on the weekend. Mike, Pam and Tara bought her a really nice Thor sweat shirt.
Saturday, April 12, 2008
Dallas (Plano & Fort Worth)
It has been some time since an update so here we go. We finished at Oak Hill on a Saturday afternoon, packed up and headed to Plano in Dallas. We arrived at Phillip and Pauline Bellingan’s place just before tea or should I say dinner so as not to confuse anyone.
Phillip and Pauline are friends of Steve and Beth Crow who are from Dallas and have moved to New Zealand to co pastor at our church in Hamilton (City Bible Church). That night we met their children Dylan 21yrs and Megan 18yrs. Megan kindly gave up her room for Chris and Janine and the kids slept in the family room. As we ended up staying two weeks the sleeping arrangement did change a little.
On Sunday we went to church at Chase Oaks with Phillip and Pauline. What a difference from our small church. It was Easter Sunday so it was a great service and we met lots of Steve and Beth’s friends. We went home after church and Pauline cooked us lamb for late lunch. It was almost as good as having it at home!!!
Our first week with the Bellingan’s was quiet. Chris was unwell for about one and a half weeks. Stomach pains, feeling tired and not feeling good at all. The kids did lots of school work. We went ice skating at a rink in a shopping mall and went to some $1 movie theatres.
On the weekend Pauline took Janine to a women’s conference, Spaghetti for the soul. The speakers were Kathy Torvelle and Ellie Lof. They were great. Funny too, Janine hadn’t laughed so hard in so long.
On the Thursday night we went out for tea with Phillip and Pauline. We went to a place called BJ’s. Chris ordered a rack of pork rib as that is one of the dishes he was told he must try. Think of the big fish story, the one that got away. The ribs were so big they hung off both side of the plate. The potato that went with it was the size of a football and stuffed with bacon cheese and butter. That went down well on a sick stomach...not. He took half the ribs home and barely touched the football!! It was a nice meal but the Americans like to do it big.
During our time we had meals with Bernie and John, Frank and Sue and their family and morning tea with Jim and Lisa. So we had a real good time getting to know folks in Dallas. We spent a bit of time with Steve, Dylan’s friend. He is a very keen rugby player so Chris and him had a great time talking.
Once Chris was feeling better we went to the stock yards in Fort Worth. We watched the bulls being herded down the street. Josiah and Joel ride the mechanical bull, Josiah was off it so fast it made me wonder how he rides a bike so well, and Joel lasted a lot longer screaming ,”Stop let me off” the whole time.
All the kids sat on Big Jake (see pics) and we did some shopping. Sarah got herself some black cowgirl boots. And when we were looking Janine saw Bill Paxton, the actor in the movie Twister.
We continued our day at the Cowgirl museum, where the kids dressed up and rode a bucking horse in the Rodeo, we will try get the video coverage on the blog. Friday just gone we went to the first Rodeo for the season. The best part was watching Joel ride in the mutton competition! Riding bare back ram. What a laugh. He managed a second with score of 77, the winner 79. It was heaps of fun watching the competiton and the fiesty animals bucking their riders off. Sarah got a hat to go with her boots so with jeans on she fits right in.
On the Saturday we were off to the Supercross with complementary tickets form Pam and Dirt Bike Mike. We even got pit passes. Thank you guys!! We got there early so had a day of it then real enjoyed the fireworks through out the night. The boys enjoyed the Super-x best but I think Sarah and I really liked the Rodeo. We had a great time at both.
Sunday we got up and hit the road. Thought it was about time to move the RV from the front of Phillip and Pauline’s as one visit from the local authority was enough. It was sad saying our good bye as we had such a great time with the Bellingans. Thank you guys again for taking us in and making your home a home for us.
The next part of our trip is at Mike and Pam's and then down through the south of the USA.
Phillip and Pauline are friends of Steve and Beth Crow who are from Dallas and have moved to New Zealand to co pastor at our church in Hamilton (City Bible Church). That night we met their children Dylan 21yrs and Megan 18yrs. Megan kindly gave up her room for Chris and Janine and the kids slept in the family room. As we ended up staying two weeks the sleeping arrangement did change a little.
On Sunday we went to church at Chase Oaks with Phillip and Pauline. What a difference from our small church. It was Easter Sunday so it was a great service and we met lots of Steve and Beth’s friends. We went home after church and Pauline cooked us lamb for late lunch. It was almost as good as having it at home!!!
Our first week with the Bellingan’s was quiet. Chris was unwell for about one and a half weeks. Stomach pains, feeling tired and not feeling good at all. The kids did lots of school work. We went ice skating at a rink in a shopping mall and went to some $1 movie theatres.
On the weekend Pauline took Janine to a women’s conference, Spaghetti for the soul. The speakers were Kathy Torvelle and Ellie Lof. They were great. Funny too, Janine hadn’t laughed so hard in so long.
On the Thursday night we went out for tea with Phillip and Pauline. We went to a place called BJ’s. Chris ordered a rack of pork rib as that is one of the dishes he was told he must try. Think of the big fish story, the one that got away. The ribs were so big they hung off both side of the plate. The potato that went with it was the size of a football and stuffed with bacon cheese and butter. That went down well on a sick stomach...not. He took half the ribs home and barely touched the football!! It was a nice meal but the Americans like to do it big.
During our time we had meals with Bernie and John, Frank and Sue and their family and morning tea with Jim and Lisa. So we had a real good time getting to know folks in Dallas. We spent a bit of time with Steve, Dylan’s friend. He is a very keen rugby player so Chris and him had a great time talking.
Once Chris was feeling better we went to the stock yards in Fort Worth. We watched the bulls being herded down the street. Josiah and Joel ride the mechanical bull, Josiah was off it so fast it made me wonder how he rides a bike so well, and Joel lasted a lot longer screaming ,”Stop let me off” the whole time.
All the kids sat on Big Jake (see pics) and we did some shopping. Sarah got herself some black cowgirl boots. And when we were looking Janine saw Bill Paxton, the actor in the movie Twister.
We continued our day at the Cowgirl museum, where the kids dressed up and rode a bucking horse in the Rodeo, we will try get the video coverage on the blog. Friday just gone we went to the first Rodeo for the season. The best part was watching Joel ride in the mutton competition! Riding bare back ram. What a laugh. He managed a second with score of 77, the winner 79. It was heaps of fun watching the competiton and the fiesty animals bucking their riders off. Sarah got a hat to go with her boots so with jeans on she fits right in.
On the Saturday we were off to the Supercross with complementary tickets form Pam and Dirt Bike Mike. We even got pit passes. Thank you guys!! We got there early so had a day of it then real enjoyed the fireworks through out the night. The boys enjoyed the Super-x best but I think Sarah and I really liked the Rodeo. We had a great time at both.
Sunday we got up and hit the road. Thought it was about time to move the RV from the front of Phillip and Pauline’s as one visit from the local authority was enough. It was sad saying our good bye as we had such a great time with the Bellingans. Thank you guys again for taking us in and making your home a home for us.
The next part of our trip is at Mike and Pam's and then down through the south of the USA.
Thursday, March 27, 2008
OakHill, Texas
We arrived Monday afternoon at a motocross park called OakHill, just outside of Decatur, Texas. Like the race at Lake Whitney the week before, this race is also one of the big six amateur motocross races in the USA. The website for this motocross park is http://www.oakhillmx.com/.
The weather was fine and sunny when we arrived at OakHill. We got parked up although the ground was not level. So for the first couple of nights we were ending up down the end of the bed (or the side of the bed). Chris finally reset the level of the RV a few days later with some blocks of wood from a neighbour from Washington state.
The track at OakHill is, in my opinion, far better and safer than Lake Whitney. We heard there are 2,300 competitors. The whoops have sand in them I think. The track is quite loamy. There are some huge jumps. Some ruts. Josiah has rated it a 10 out of 10 (but not as good as his home track in NZ!) and I tend to agree with him. The officials do a great job of maintaining the track (including at night!). If you want to see what the track was like on Thursday, go to this link: http://www.racerxfilms.com/20080321_oakhillthurs/20080321_oakhillthurs.html.
Practice was to be on Tuesday. However, it was cancelled due to the amount of rain on Monday night and all day Tuesday. The kids did a full day of schoolwork.
Practice was deferred until Wednesday morning. The sun was out so things would begin to dry but the track was still muddy in the morning for Josiah’s practice. Josiah went out anyway and there were problems with his bike. He couldn't even finish one lap (like the last race at Lake Whitney).
We got back to the trailer, cleaned the bike, stripped the carb completely and cleaned it, but no dirt was found (Chris thought this was the problem with the bike). It just so happened that after cleaning the bike Pat (a mechanic who we had met the day before) was walking by the RV so Chris asked for a second opinion. Chris told him what had happened. He said "let me start it up to listen". He went to kick it over and said straight away there was no compression. So, he took the bike back to his rig, took out the piston (he had a brand new one to put in) and said the ring had no tension for compression. He then looked at the barrel and chrome was coming away from inside the barrel (meaning reduced compression). So, we went up to KTM and got a new piston set and barrel. Pat also got some new jets (pilot and main). Once we did the warm up, Josiah said it ran better than his old bike in NZ!
We really appreciated Pat’s help. We later found out he builds modified bikes for a high performance mini motocross bike in the USA that dominates everything, and is also a mechanic for some kids that have loads of USA amateur titles. In short, he knew his stuff. We also had Pat, Drew (his mechanic is Pat) and Drew's mum over for dinner (tea) on Thursday night which was great to get to know them outside of motocross.
Wednesday was a demanding day - Chris was busy like a one armed taxi driver trying to sort out Josiah's bike (although Pat did the work and Chris ran around).
Josiah got to race in a division (65cc stock class 7-9 years) just after lunch. He got a poor start (didn't even get out well), was about 15th around the first corner, but clawed up to 7th. He could have done better but for his start and yellow flags. Anyway, first time on the track, he did pretty well. He is safe and the bike goes! On Thursday Josiah raced in a division for 65cc modified 7-9 years. Not a great start but he got 6th (was running 4th at one stage).
First thing Saturday morning Josiah had his first final race for the 65cc 7-9 stock class. At OakHill there is only one moto (winner takes all), an not two like Lake Whitney, to decide the winner. He didn’t get out fast out of his gate but was say seventh around the first corner and that is the way it stayed until the end. That was a great result considering the top talent at this event and Josiah didn‘t appear to be that far behind. In the afternoon Josiah raced in the 65cc 7-9 modified class (on his stock bike). He was second around the first corner but faded to 17th. That was the end of motocross racing.
So, after two weeks of motocross here are a few observations. First, 50s and 65s are much faster in the USA than in NZ. The kids race on the same track as the juniors and seniors. Second, the tracks are more technical in the USA than NZ. There are ruts (leading to corners, around corners, out of corners and up to jumps), whoops and bigger jumps. Third, there is a lot of qualifying to get to the main event (you have to go through two sets of qualifying to get to the USA nationals at Loretta Lynns). Fourth, the top riders train. We were told by some parents that the top three riders in the USA for the 65cc 7-9 year classes (stock and modified) were at OakHill, although you don’t necessarily believe everything you hear (we think we are going to find out there are a lot of fast kids in the USA, no matter where you are). These same parents (their son is in the same class as Josiah) said their kid does four hour motocross sessions four times a week, plus cardio/fitness work with a personal trainer in between. We would be lucky to get Josiah and Joel to raise a finger to do any of this. They struggle to do their schoolwork and cleaning up. Fifth, they have modified classes for all bikes in the USA. There is some serious money spent on these bikes. For example, a modified 65 may be new triple clamps, hubs, spokes, motor, pipe & suspension. My guess is that it would be easy to spend $5,000 to $10,000 on this stuff (excluding the purchase of the bike). Finally, the motocross people in the USA have been extremely generous and helpful. Special thanks here go to Mike and Pam from Arkansas, Kenny and Tracey from Iowa and Pat, Liz and Drew from Oregon. We wouldn't have been able to have a bike, let only get the thing going, without the help and technical expertise of these people.
After the race we left OakHill and headed to Plano, Dallas (about an hour away) to stay with Phillip and Pauline Bellingan. Steve and Beth Crowe, from our church in New Zealand, used to go to this church and referred us to Phillip and Pauline for a place to stay after OakHill.
The weather was fine and sunny when we arrived at OakHill. We got parked up although the ground was not level. So for the first couple of nights we were ending up down the end of the bed (or the side of the bed). Chris finally reset the level of the RV a few days later with some blocks of wood from a neighbour from Washington state.
The track at OakHill is, in my opinion, far better and safer than Lake Whitney. We heard there are 2,300 competitors. The whoops have sand in them I think. The track is quite loamy. There are some huge jumps. Some ruts. Josiah has rated it a 10 out of 10 (but not as good as his home track in NZ!) and I tend to agree with him. The officials do a great job of maintaining the track (including at night!). If you want to see what the track was like on Thursday, go to this link: http://www.racerxfilms.com/20080321_oakhillthurs/20080321_oakhillthurs.html.
Practice was to be on Tuesday. However, it was cancelled due to the amount of rain on Monday night and all day Tuesday. The kids did a full day of schoolwork.
Practice was deferred until Wednesday morning. The sun was out so things would begin to dry but the track was still muddy in the morning for Josiah’s practice. Josiah went out anyway and there were problems with his bike. He couldn't even finish one lap (like the last race at Lake Whitney).
We got back to the trailer, cleaned the bike, stripped the carb completely and cleaned it, but no dirt was found (Chris thought this was the problem with the bike). It just so happened that after cleaning the bike Pat (a mechanic who we had met the day before) was walking by the RV so Chris asked for a second opinion. Chris told him what had happened. He said "let me start it up to listen". He went to kick it over and said straight away there was no compression. So, he took the bike back to his rig, took out the piston (he had a brand new one to put in) and said the ring had no tension for compression. He then looked at the barrel and chrome was coming away from inside the barrel (meaning reduced compression). So, we went up to KTM and got a new piston set and barrel. Pat also got some new jets (pilot and main). Once we did the warm up, Josiah said it ran better than his old bike in NZ!
We really appreciated Pat’s help. We later found out he builds modified bikes for a high performance mini motocross bike in the USA that dominates everything, and is also a mechanic for some kids that have loads of USA amateur titles. In short, he knew his stuff. We also had Pat, Drew (his mechanic is Pat) and Drew's mum over for dinner (tea) on Thursday night which was great to get to know them outside of motocross.
Wednesday was a demanding day - Chris was busy like a one armed taxi driver trying to sort out Josiah's bike (although Pat did the work and Chris ran around).
Josiah got to race in a division (65cc stock class 7-9 years) just after lunch. He got a poor start (didn't even get out well), was about 15th around the first corner, but clawed up to 7th. He could have done better but for his start and yellow flags. Anyway, first time on the track, he did pretty well. He is safe and the bike goes! On Thursday Josiah raced in a division for 65cc modified 7-9 years. Not a great start but he got 6th (was running 4th at one stage).
First thing Saturday morning Josiah had his first final race for the 65cc 7-9 stock class. At OakHill there is only one moto (winner takes all), an not two like Lake Whitney, to decide the winner. He didn’t get out fast out of his gate but was say seventh around the first corner and that is the way it stayed until the end. That was a great result considering the top talent at this event and Josiah didn‘t appear to be that far behind. In the afternoon Josiah raced in the 65cc 7-9 modified class (on his stock bike). He was second around the first corner but faded to 17th. That was the end of motocross racing.
So, after two weeks of motocross here are a few observations. First, 50s and 65s are much faster in the USA than in NZ. The kids race on the same track as the juniors and seniors. Second, the tracks are more technical in the USA than NZ. There are ruts (leading to corners, around corners, out of corners and up to jumps), whoops and bigger jumps. Third, there is a lot of qualifying to get to the main event (you have to go through two sets of qualifying to get to the USA nationals at Loretta Lynns). Fourth, the top riders train. We were told by some parents that the top three riders in the USA for the 65cc 7-9 year classes (stock and modified) were at OakHill, although you don’t necessarily believe everything you hear (we think we are going to find out there are a lot of fast kids in the USA, no matter where you are). These same parents (their son is in the same class as Josiah) said their kid does four hour motocross sessions four times a week, plus cardio/fitness work with a personal trainer in between. We would be lucky to get Josiah and Joel to raise a finger to do any of this. They struggle to do their schoolwork and cleaning up. Fifth, they have modified classes for all bikes in the USA. There is some serious money spent on these bikes. For example, a modified 65 may be new triple clamps, hubs, spokes, motor, pipe & suspension. My guess is that it would be easy to spend $5,000 to $10,000 on this stuff (excluding the purchase of the bike). Finally, the motocross people in the USA have been extremely generous and helpful. Special thanks here go to Mike and Pam from Arkansas, Kenny and Tracey from Iowa and Pat, Liz and Drew from Oregon. We wouldn't have been able to have a bike, let only get the thing going, without the help and technical expertise of these people.
After the race we left OakHill and headed to Plano, Dallas (about an hour away) to stay with Phillip and Pauline Bellingan. Steve and Beth Crowe, from our church in New Zealand, used to go to this church and referred us to Phillip and Pauline for a place to stay after OakHill.
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