A2, San Francisco , and A3
By: Scott Cram

"The human race is divided into two classes--those who go ahead and do something, and those who sit still and inquire, 'Why wasn't it done the other way?'" - Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.

I was really looking forward to improving on the race in Phoenix where I felt like I rode pretty well considering I had arm pump. Instead I really struggled at A2. The track had two tricky technical sections that I just didn't get down. It's hard for me say that I was disappointed with how I rode since I am definitely riding a lot better then last year, but at the same time I really believe in myself. I feel like I am capable of riding so much better then what I have been at the races and more importantly then what my lap times are showing.

The first practice at A2 I just went out and tried to breathe, relax, and learn the track in hopes of riding well in the second practice. Second practice came around and I rode better, but I still didn't get the two sections down I needed to. I tried doing one of the rhythm sections by jumping a table to a single landing, but ended up giving it too much throttle and over shot the landing ending in a crash. I picked my bike up after going over a small berm and just shook my head. My mechanic for the race, Rick McKee, came over and asked if I was okay. I wasn't hurt or anything but just mad at myself for making the mistake. I made it a point of looking at the jumbo tron to see what my lap time was before heading back to the pits. That is the last time I wanted to see my name in last place with the slowest time! I went back to the pits pretty mad at myself for not riding better then I did.

"There is a time to let things happen and a time to make things happen. " •  Hugh Prather

I am ready to make things happen, but these last two weeks seem like I just have to play the waiting game and let the things happen that need to happen. In other words I have a lot I need to work on and get better at before I am going to qualify for night events. I went to San Francisco with high hopes of making the night event as I had raced the night event last year in the mud and the track layout looked really good this year on the track map. It ended up raining a little bit, so they canceled the first practice, leaving just one practice to get the track down and qualify. The track ended up being muddy for the first 4 practices leaving a lot of ruts in the track. When I say a lot of ruts I mean at least ten on the faces of every jump. I've never ridden a local track like that let a lone a supercross track. So, basically I would have had better luck trying to read a book in Chinese then to ride the rutted track in San Fran. I did, however, learn the trick to qualifying in the new timed practice qualifying from an older Lites class rider who has raced in Europe the last 18 years. Bader Mannah let me in on the secret to qualifying as he was pitted with my friend Chad Robbins and I.

My hat is really off to the other riders who got everything down. You could definitely tell who the riders are that race the nationals as well as supercross. I ended up doing a few laps and there was no way I was going getting the track down with all the ruts. So, I ended up sitting in the stands like the last three years watching the night event. It was a pretty epic race though with Reed and Stewart both crashing while leading and Carmichael taking the win at his final appearance at San Fran.

"The great thing to remember is that, though our feelings come and go, His love for us does not." •  C. S. Lewis

After the tough three weeks at A2, San Francisco , and A3 I am looking forward to the next two races, Houston and San Diego . I think A2, San Fran, and A3 really showed me that I need to get focused, put my head down and charge to get into the night events. I really feel like I am riding good, but I just need to figure out how to put it all together and get it done on the weekend at the races."

" All is not lost if something flops. "

That was on a road sign I saw while driving back from San Francisco , it pretty much explains how I feel right now.

"Every person born in this world represents something new, something that never existed before, something original and unique." •  Martin Buber

A3 turned out to be more of the same. I raced my practice bike because my suspension didn't get to me in time to put it together. The guy that was helping me do my suspension took one of my sets to Seattle with him because he didn't have time to get it done and drop it by my house before he left. I took a set into Pro Circuit to get done as well, I felt like my suspension was better last year when they did it. At first I was really happy with my new settings, but after A3 I realized that it worked good at the practice track where everything was smaller, but when I got to the races on the weekends it didn't perform like I needed it to.

A3 I really struggled with the suspension setup, I tried messing with the clickers to stiffen it up, but it was so soft I was bottoming out going through the whoops, which is the obstacle I have been having problems with all year so far, so that could be the problem. I'm mad at myself for switching, if it isn't broken don't try to fix it. But in motocross setup is becoming more and more important, especially in supercross. So, another lesson learned is to stay with a company that wins championships every year, hence Pro Circuit! The main reason I wanted to switch was because I thought that I was going to be able to go testing and get something better then I had last year. That didn't happen at all. My friend from Chile was in town and said my stuff looked like outdoor suspension setup more then supercross. I am hoping to get my Pro Circuit setup back in time to ride on it at least one day and to race Houston with it.

The really important thing in life is not the avoidance of mistakes, but the obedience of faith. By obedience, the man is led step by step to correct his errors, whereas nothing will ever happen to him if he doesn't get going." •  Paul Tournier 

It's really getting hard to stay motivated and to want to keep training and riding after the way this race season has started. I know I have a lot more in me then what is showing, but unless I see some better results I think San Diego might be my last supercross race and maybe my last race all together. I know this year is harder then ever, but more importantly I just don't have people around to help me do small things. I have a different mechanic every week and it just is a lot of work. I found out after my first practice at A3 that my shock sag was off an inch! It's the same suspension I have been practicing on, so I figured it would have been fine, but I am just going to do these last two rounds and see what happens.

Scott Cram
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