(5/2/2012) Here is another cool new edition of Vintage Dirt from Charlie Oxford #20E (a.k.a. C.O.). Thanks C.O.!

One way to Texas is 17 hrs. when pulling the Bad Company Vintage Motocross Racing team headquarters loaded to the max with bikes, fuel ,gear and beer. No way to make it any faster, with fuel being consumed at such a large rate, we chose to cruise. We stayed at or below the posted limit the entire trip. I was not giving any Louisiana cop meal money.

The word was out that Diamond Don’s, the largest vintage motocross venue in North America was getting bigger every year and the sooner one arrived the better the chances of having a place to create a pit.We loaded in the afternoon and left as soon as we could, then drove deep into the night and sort of ran out of steam in a rest area just inside Louisiana. A short nap was in order, five hours total and we were on the road again.

It was early afternoon when we arrived. A beautiful Texas Thursday afternoon and it was time to set up camp and relax. The Diamond Don facility located in the Cypress Bayou RV park is a huge space. The park has a wooded entrance and wooded front section and then the back open grass field. The track is mostly in the woods but loops out and through this field and back. The RV parking and pit areas are all the way around this field. After making the loop once around to scope it out, we lucked into the best spot along side the starting line dash to the first turn.

You can get to know someone while riding in the cab of the truck for 17 hours. Scotty the “Super Rat” Sappington joined the race team for this endeavor. Scotty brings to the table, down home country boy style, humor and common sense, not mention the toughness to enter four races on race day. He also can talk. I heard He could play the guitar and the accordion, but, maybe at Cinco de mayo.

Scotty and I unloaded, set up the rig in record time and began to soak this place in. The pits were packed with motor homes, trailers and tents.Did I mention stopping and talking to Mart Tripes on the way around the loop the first time?

We spent that afternoon getting settled in, Scotty, setting up his area in the garage, also kind of arrainging the headquarters for camping and race day. We had made a decision to support the track by eating some at the on site grill aka the “Burger Palace” instead of cooking dinner each night. We may do something different next time. I rode my little LT3 100 around the loop a few times, checking out the tremendous race teams, their bikes and accommodations. Several folks followed me home to look. One guy brought his wife, see honey you need one of these to ride. The LT was photographed quite often.

Gary Bailey was working on the track and stopped by our pit a few minutes to check out the Super Rat    ( not Scotty , but his bike), he was telling Scotty about his restoration of a Steen’s Hodaka, which was over at the heroes and legends display. It was cool. Scotty seemed kinda tongue tied talking to Gary, I am not real sure why.

About quitin time, we toasted our successful trip up to this point and gave praise to the Lord. We toasted getting the bikes unloaded. We toasted getting the best spot in the entire place. We toasted being AMERICAN and being free. We toasted Hodaka, we toasted Yamaha, you get the picture. We sorta ran out of steam again sometime that night, slept like a log till about 5:30 a.m. when the first drops fell.

I spent the first ten minutes of consciousness Friday morning, running around outside in my underwear gathering things I did not want to necessarily get soaking wet. It rained hard, off and on for about twenty minutes at a time, all day. Scotty broke out his crabbers and me my coal shoveling rubbers, the ponchos, umbrellas and carried on.

We watched the weather with our new friend from Arkansas, a pop up tent vendor camped across the road from us. Ed was quite a character, he sells rings and engraves your name on them. Ed had a smart phone with weather reports. Each time it cleared for a moment he would say “there is one more front coming this way”.No one ventured far away from the pits that day, the bikes remained tucked in close under the awning. The cross country races and the trials event happened in spite of the conditions. Bill Goldsby was in the post vintage race. The motocross track reminded me of 2007 when there was twelve inches of mud and water on Saturday. We prayed for sunshine but it never came.

It did stop raining about five PMish, just in time for the crawfish and BBQ dinner. Don converts his huge shop into the “cafeteria” for everyone. The evening meal at Diamond Don’s is taken care of for the racers each night. We decided to make a toast to day one and a half being over, we toasted the rain stopping, we toasted the crawfish and BBQ, we worked on motorcycles prepping them for a mud race.

Texas must still be real dry because Saturday morning most of that water was soaked in. The crew used the dozer to scrape away about six inches of mud from the start to the first turn. Practice was a slick challenge, but after four rounds, by moto one the track was great. The racing for the day was fast. Over two hundred and fifty vintage entries. Each gate was full, fifteen to twenty five riders. We got to see several ex-pro’s race, Trampas Parker, Guy Cooper and Trey Jorski to name a couple. We also got to see our friend Bob Lee from North Carolina Z13 racing. Bob is so cool and so fast and a thrill to watch ride.

The Marty Tripes Revenge race 100cc first moto was scheduled for the mid day break and the last moto. I can now say I was on the starting line with Jim Gibson, even though after the start I never saw Him again. The LT starting running bad and would not haul my big self around so I pulled back to the pits after two laps. The Super Rat? That is another story of racing hard, not concerned about anything and finishing second in His class. See the attached photo of Scotty “Super Rat” with Marty at the trophy presentation.

We decided to raise a toast to Scotty Super Rat Sappington winning second place and Marty Tripes announcing my name. Following those festivities we went to the team Lablanc party. Chris Lablanc and his band play some mean old time rock and roll. EZ Jim and company joined the Lablancs and brought over this big tub and started mixing margaritas, it was funny to watch. We continued with the toasting of all our good fortunes while we rocked into the night. The Super Rat raced six motos of vintage motocross today unscathed, then proceeds to trip in a hole, fall, tear his pants and skin both knees. We toasted his return to standing upright and decided to turn in for the night.

We slept late Sunday a.m., result of too much toasting. We slowly began the packing back up of all this stuff. Scotty packed for two weeks, eight motos and an engine rebuild. By early afternoon we were well on our way to Florida. We should have stayed another day, Sunday evening’s closing festivities, “wine down“ party I hear is a blast.

Another seventeen hour drive and much was discussed. Over 1500 people attended the event, somewhere near 350 entries both Vintage day and Post Vintage day. It was an awesome event like no other. We have to plan ahead a little better next year and take only what is needed. I need to look at the headquarters and figure out how to haul more bikes. Leave Florida Tuesday after work, drive home Monday and Tuesday the next week. Jefferson Texas is a cool little antique town and deserves to be seen. It would be nice to get a little better fuel mileage but that won’t happen, maybe a larger fuel tank so not to stop so often. If you are like me, stuck in the seventies and love vintage motocross then this event should be on your 2013 calendar, provided we make it to 2013.

C.O. # 20E

Here is a cool new edition of Vintage Dirt from one of our members, Charlie Oxford #20E (a.k.a. C.O.). Thanks C.O.!

Hard Rock Ocala was more like frozen rock, Sunday, as round nine of the Florida Vintage Motocross Series came back to town. One of the badest dudes around on a Honda 250 said it best, only the hard core nutcases were out this morning. It did turn into a beautiful brisk day, had to be 40 degrees by practice. Out of the wind and in the sun, I got a little sun tan!!

Just as normal and from a distance of course, watching the events of the day unfold, I think they came off with out a hitch. We always have a full time paramedic who hangs out at the races with us and now we have a preacher!! I hear we are going to start having a little sermon before practice, just like at the AHRMA National races. I’ll try to attend if everything is on schedule.

Sign up is always a good time to hang out and see some folks, generally it is quick and efficient but, I gotta try that sign up and pay “on line” feature . Then all ya gotta do at the track is sign the release form (I think).

Woody sort-a said some good byes at the riders meeting and some of us got lumps in the throat. Relocating where 10 degrees, six months out of the year will be a heat wave, made me swell up just thinkin’ about it too. One thing for sure Woody has instilled the Love of Vintage Motocross in Savannah. She and Kevin have been right there the last seven seasons, (that I know of) learning how to coordinate a race. The members of Florida Vintage are lucky and I know He won’t stay away.

We just completed round Nine at Hard Rock this past Sunday, Ed Sherry showed up with a Lightening fast Red ’74 Elsinore? I did not go over to His pit and look at it, all I saw on the track was a red blur go by Ed and Mason were going too fast and put an end to my day…. next time. You have to check out the race results to see if your favorite racer “got wood’ this week when the web master gets around to downloading an excel file over the top of another.

Four more races in 2012, Sunshine is next March 3rd, I love that track, nice and smooth, easy on the old bones (knock on Woody). Gotta turn it around quickly though and get ready for the AHRMA National March 10th, at Gator back, what a track, similar to Hard Rock. I’m gonna go and ride so I can get on the track. Every one of us should support the National series if you can. I hope we have a huge attendance at Sunshine, see ya’ll at the races.

C.O. # 20E