FAST TIMES - featuring Team-APE rider, Megan Oblonsky

A First Place Finish to End the Season!

Round six of the U.S. Desert Racing Series took place November 9 out at the Dirt Diggers riding area. While the weather was a little bit chilly and the wind was blowing like crazy it still turned out to be an awesome event!

Saturday morning started out pretty easy going, had a big breakfast of French toast and bacon (yum!) finished some last minute fixes on my bike and got ready for the practice lap. The practice lap was pretty uneventful. The starting line of the course was pretty rough, so for the practice lap I took my time trying to find the smoothest and fastest line as the start was completely "whooped out." Further along in the practice lap we reached a pretty gnarly downhill that was twisty and full of big jutting boulders. It had a pretty clear trail down it, but it definitely had me a little nervous. Other than that the course seemed fast, with a lot of whoops (typical of desert courses!) and a couple of technical sections- which I always love!

The rest of Saturday was pretty uneventful. We watched the kids race, which is usually the highlight of U.S.D.R. weekends. It is just so amazing to watch these little five and six year olds riding their bikes the way they do!! I love it. After the kids race the family took a little ride around the desert and then we headed back to camp for the night.

Early Sunday morning the weather took a turn. I was awoken by our trailer rocking with the wind, I swear a couple times I thought the trailer was going to blow over! But we managed to keep it upright and made it through the night! Unfortunately, the wind had not died down by the time we had woken up.

We I woke up Sunday morning I once again had butterflies in my stomach. Not only was I nervous about racing but the wind also made we nervous. Wind and dirt bike riding generally do not go very well together! Once I figured out what to wear due to the weather conditions I hoped on my bike and warmed up and then headed to the starting line.

At the starting line I talked with fellow competitors and tried to calm my nerves. I am always so nervous at the starting line. My first race I managed to stall at the starting line and every since then I am afraid to do it again!! So once the green flag drops the nerves generally disappear!

My start was great! My brother told me to stay to the left as it was a little bit smoother and connected to the course better. I followed his advice and I believe that that made my race. Once I was past the starting line I never saw the other women in my class again. My bike ran fantastic and everything just seemed to go in my favor. My first two laps were uneventful. Even the rocky downhill was not an issue. It was awesome!

Then in the last 2 miles of my last lap another rider crashed into me taking me down. All I really remember is his yellow riding outfit and dirt everywhere, Once I stopped rolling in the dirt I quickly jumped out and grabbed my bike- I had a lead and was not about to lose it because some other rider crashed into me. As I was riding after crashing I started to notice that my wrist was pretty tender, that my handlebars were definitely bent and that my clutch lever was broken. Of course I had so much adrenaline pumping through me that those were minor issues!!

I crossed the finish line with the win and started to really assess the damage. I had a good size bump on my left wrist and the rest of my body just hurt. My bike did not seem to bad either, besides the clutch lever and a little bend in the handlebars, and a few scratches in the plastics.

As the day wore on my wrist became more and more swollen and pretty bruised, but I still had good mobility. So I went to the hospital just to get a x-ray to be sure. Turned out there was no break just a pretty bad bruise and sprain, which was great news!!

All in all the weekend was awesome. I came away with a first place finish, and had a blast out in the desert! The only downside to the weekend was that it is the end of the U.S.D.R. racing season. So for now it will be just pleasure riding out in the desert with friends, which I love!

The 2008 U.S.D.R season was awesome! I managed to finish in the top three every race and came away with three first places! It has be such a great experience to go out and race in my favorite riding environment. Racing has not only let me be competitive in one of my favorite hobbies but has given me the chance to meet so many great people and for that I am grateful. Thanks to APE for helping support my racing season!!

See you next January for the next season of U.S.D.R!!


Another First Place Finish!

On September 24-25 was Round 5 of the U.S. Desert Racing Series.   The event was held at the Stephen's Mine area in the Mojave Desert near Ridgecrest.  The weekend was awesome- great weather and great racing!!

Saturday morning was the practice run, so my brother and I dressed in all our gear and headed out on the course.  The course on the practice run is usually different by the time the actual race comes, especially since my class is one of the last to start the race.  The course seemed pretty wide open with a lot of small whoops that had the potential to become bigger with repeated riding (which they did).  There was one hill climb that everyone was backed up on due to some people getting stuck in the sand but the hill wasn't that bad, just a little sandy and soft.  Once the practice lap was over we headed back to camp to get some lunch.

Later on Saturday some friends met us in the desert to ride.  So headed out to the desert and decided we were in the mood to hill climb, making it our goal to find the craziest hills and attempt to climb them.  I was only successful once or twice in the hill climb endeavors (it doesn't help that I have the smallest bike out there either) but the other guys tackled quite a few hills.
 


Later in the ride I was riding on the trail and looked down to see a desert tortoise!  He was probably a good six inches across and just plodding along the trail.  Of course we all had to stop and check him out because it's not very often that you get the opportunity to see the tortoise out in the desert.  After the tortoise sighting we started to head back to camp to eat and then relax for the night.

Sunday morning I woke up with huge butterflies in my stomach.  I ate a little breakfast and then geared up and took my bike out for a spin and still I couldn't get the nerves to subside.  I rode a little bit more and then headed to the starting line to pick my starting position.  As I sat at the starting line my nerves slowly disappeared and I felt ready to ride. There was only one other woman in my race, and both of us have been battling all series.

When the green flag waved signaling us to go I took off into a cloud of dust.  For awhile I could see absolutely nothing but I wanted to be ahead of the crowd so I barreled into bushes and dirt mounds but managed to keep the bike and I together.  When the dust finally settled my competitor was in front of me.   An instant smile came to my face as this was just what I wanted to happen.  I stayed behind her for a couple miles until we came to an open section and I gave the bike a little more throttle and passed her.  From there my nerves were completely gone and I felt absolutely great!  The rest of the three laps were pretty uneventful; all though the course became rougher with each lap.  I never laid the bike down and everything just went so smoothly, it was a great ride.

When I got the checkered flag I was relieved.  I knew I had gotten first and was ecstatic!! After relaying the whole race to my family and friends, exhaustion started to set in.  It's amazing how   adrenaline can keep you going but once it gone you feel completely wiped out!!  !

The entire race and weekend went great! I managed to get a victory and it felt great plus I was able to go out and have a good time just riding with friends.  Having such a good round 5 definitely makes me excited for round 6 and hopefully another first place finish!!