JDay GP Round 2 - Crow Hill

I whipped up a short blog this week…there is just not enough time in the day. I started my new job at LEGO as a model builder, so between work, training, and finishing up school I just don’t have enough time…I have to sleep some time…

Yesterday was the 2nd round of the JDay GP series, hosted at the Crow Hill MX compound in MA. That place scares me. It is primarily a moto track with some woods, and the moto track is fast…as in fast!!! There hasn’t been an event there yet where someone I know didn’t get hurt badly, and I just could not get that type of thinking out of my head. The start is wicked fast, no real turn to slow things down, and always good for major pile ups. I think I just talked myself in a little bit of a funk that day and I’m really just glad I got out of there without any major injuries…I got lucky, I crashed plenty, but was able to “escape”.

My results were soso…

Pro 125 was tough…In the first moto I ended up 12th…we made a suspension change that totally back fired (mainly because of a math error – converting inches to millimeters - by my otherwise “superb” mechanic), it felt like I was on a pogo stick in moto 1. Fortunately Bill from CCycle suspension was there to straighten things out between moto 1 and moto 2 and I could at least break the top 10 in moto 2 (I ended up 9th). Overall my result was not satisfying…11th.

A250 was ok as far as my result goes, but I left a lot on the table. I totally blew my start in moto 1, it took me 3 kicks to get the bike started and I had to come from dead last. I was able to work all the way up to 2nd place, that was probably my best moto of the day and I felt relatively comfortable.

My 2nd A250 moto didn’t go that well. While I did get the start, I could not find a real rhythm. I was in 2nd for a long time, but then started to make stupid mistakes.

When I stalled my bike in the extreme section, I lost 2nd place, and one lap later I got together with Anthony Federico in a good crash and lost 3rdplace too. I hurt my wrist pretty badly in the process, but think it will be ok, I can already put pressure on it again and should be good to go for next weekend. With a 2nd and a 4th I ended up in 3rd overall in A250, really not a bad result, but I know I could have done better.

As a wise man said - “Live to race another day”.

I am excited for the next few Jday GP rounds as we finally get to leave the MX tracks and go into the woods in a few weeks.

This weekend I will hit the new Sprint Enduro for the first time on Saturday, we'll see how that goes, and then if I am still in one piece we will head up to New York for the 1st NETRA Hare Scramble at the Tuxedo Ridge ski resort...a busy weekend ahead - BRING IT!!!!

Thank you to my awesome sponsors for their support. I am so pumped to have you all behind me.
Fly Racing, Kenda Tires, Magical Gogo, EKS Brand goggles, Carbon Zero (more on that to follow soon), SRT Offroad, Panic Rev Ministries, Renthal, offroadpaparazzi, www.fmfracing.com, mom & dad and my sister, my grandparents…

Thanks for reading. Keep the rubber side down!!!!

Hunter "747" Neuwirth

2015 JDay Season Opener - SOUTHWICK!!!!!!!

PC - Art Pepin, www.offroadpaparazzi.com

 I haven’t written a blog in a while, it’s just been crazy busy as I’ve been trying to get ready for the season. I spent some time in the south, racing a few GNCC’s, the Alligator enduro, and just tried to beat the winter blah to get some bike time in. I was so pumped that it was finally race season here in NE and what better way to kick it off than with the opening round of the JDAY GP series, held at Southwick…yeah…THE WICK. While I’m really not a moto guy, I love that place. We rolled in at 7.30 in the morning and as expected, the place was packed. Perfect weather, warm temps…winter is finally out of here.

I went into this weekend with mixed emotions…my preseason races didn’t go well, I had some DNF’s due to bike problems and my suspension was all “confused” on both bikes. Dad and I tried to sort things out last week, but didn’t have a lot of time to test, so I wasn’t super confident. Not how you want to start your season really. I decided to race the 125 pro class (the magical clapper in action) and the A250 class to get things rolling J. Physically I’m there, I’ve put in the time as I am getting ready for the Erzberg Rodeo in June, so running 4 motos wasn’t going to be an issue.

PC: Art Pepin, www.offroadpaparazzi.com 

125 pro moto 1: My first 125 moto went pretty well. I got a decent start and went into the woods in about 6^th or 7^th place. With every turn, with every obstacle I got more confident and comfortable on the bike, and, I was actually able to compete with these guys and engage in a few awesome battles. I did have one big crash on the motocross track that set me back a little, but managed to fight back up to 6^th place when all was said and done. I was really happy with that…it’s a great result for me. Now if the 250 handled as well as the magical clapper…

PC: Art Pepin, www.offroadpaparazzi.com

A250 moto 1: I got another decent start…this is new…I’m not used to running upfront at the beginning of a race, but I LIKE IT! I was curious how the class would stack up, all the guys put in work in the offseason, now it was time to figure out where we all stand. I ended up battling with Anthony Federico for 2^nd place for a while, we were hauling through the trees. I ended up getting the best of Anthony, as he had what I would call the crash of the day, after slapping a tree with his rear wheel he wadded up real good. Fortunately he was able to walk away from it, but man, that was gnarly – glad you are ok bud! I finished the moto in 2^nd behind my “homie” Mikey Maksymiw. He was too fast for me on his home track, I could not catch him in this moto, but I was happy with 2^nd and more so, I was pumped with the bike. We really made some major progress on it. A few more adjustments before moto 2 and it should be good.

125 pro moto2: Again…I got a decent start!!! I went into the woods in 5^th !! Yeah baby, I was feeling it! As we were heading into a sweeping left hander I felt a little pressure on the outside…who the heck is leaning on me like this and not letting off? None other than the legend, the Junk Yard Dog – John Dowd!! I wasn’t going to give it up that easy…I stayed in it and held him off for a couple more turns, and actually made up a few spots in the process! (No worries, Dowdy got me shortly thereafter and went on to smoke us all). The moto went decent, I did make one little mistake, and when you have 30 fire breathing 125 pros behind you, one mistake usually means you are losing some major positions…and I did. I slipped from 5^th to 9^th , but was able to settle in there and not lose any more spots. With a 6/9 result for the motos I ended up 8^th overall in the 125 pro class…and any time I can get a top 10 finish with these guys I am satisfied. The 11 year old Magical Clapper Yamaha YZ125 came through again (slightly scarred) and provided me with a SUPERFASTGOODTIME as always!!!

PC: Art Pepin, www.offroadpaparazzi.com
You can see Anthony right on my rear fender

A250 moto 2: I lined up in the same spot as I did in moto 1 as that seemed to work pretty well. Yeah!  I got another decent start and went into the woods in 3^rd with Anthony Federico right on my tail. We made a quick move and jumped up a spot, running 2^nd and 3^rd behind Mikey. Anthony and I had another sick battle going. He passed me for 2^nd and we were trying to chase down 1^st. This was huge fun! I love racing with a guy I can trust. No dirty moves, no reckless riding, just good clean racing. At one point we went into a left hand turn into the woods in 4^th gear tapped side by side. I would not do this with anyone else but Anthony. Neither of us let off, neither of us was worried. It was awesome! I did finally get the better of him and moved back up to 2^nd. Time to charge, I wanted to win this. I hit the extreme section and saw that Mikey, who was running in first, crashed on some logs J. I passed him and knew it was time for me to grind this out. I saw the chance of taking this one. My last 2 laps were actually my fastest laps of the day…and with a win in moto 2 I ended up winning the A250 overall. I’m pumped, this track really isn’t my style, I didn’t expect to do that well here and figured I would be dominated by the moto guys. I’m happy I was able to hang and engage in some super fun battles…winning A250 is just a nice bonus! 

PC Art Pepin, www.offroadpaparazzi.com
Levitation Station

Now it’s back to work…big picture for me this year is Erzberg, I want to represent. 

Thank you to all that have contributed to my gofundme page to raise funds for my overseas trip to Erzberg – could not do it without you. www.gofundme.com/747toErzberg

Thank you to my awesome sponsors – I really appreciate your support – please visit them, buy from them, like them! 

Fly Racing, Kenda Tires, Magical Gogo, EKS Brand goggles, Carbon Zero (more on that to follow soon), SRT Offroad, Panic Rev Ministries, Renthal, offroadpaparazzi,  mom & dad and my sister, my grandparents…

Thank you Poacher for your advice – love lining up next to you. 

Thanks for reading – Rubber side down folks!!!

 Hunter “747” Neuwirth

Offseason Activities

I'm in Florida now, getting ready for the season, but here is what I've been up to in the off season while rehabbing my ankle and watching the snow fly:

Enfield, CT - Somers resident and Magical Gogo team rider Hunter Neuwirth spent time with 15 preschool kids at the Lego Creative Child Care Center in Enfield, CT to do his part and introduce them to motorcycle off-road riding and racing.
"I was lucky enough to be exposed to this awesome sport through my parents when I was that age, and I knew then that this is what I wanted to do. I thought it would be cool to share my passion with kids that may otherwise not get the opportunity to learn about it" - said Neuwirth. The kids were able to try on his gear, check out some photos and videos, hide in his huge gear bag, and just hang out with Hunter. He showed off his ability on his unicycle and talked a lot about physical fitness and healthy living. "The opportunities to ride and race here in New England are unbelievable. There are several different race series to choose from that offer kid and youth classes, like the JDay series, NETRA series, NECC series and more" said Neuwirth when asked where he rode and raced. "New England is a great training ground to become an elite off-road racer." This year Neuwirth will get to live his dream and travel overseas to compete at the Red Bull Erzberg Rodeo in Austria, one of the toughest extreme enduro races in the world. During the race season Neuwirth maintains a blog page where you can follow his racing adventures: www.neuwirth747racing.blogspot.com 

Thanks to the Lego Creative Child Care Center for having me, this was so much fun!!!
As always, a huge shout out goes out to my awesome sponsors:
Kenda Tires, Fly Racing, Magical Gogo, Eks Brand goggles, SRT, FMF, Panic Rev Ministries,
Offroad Paparazzi for the cool pictures during the season, and everyone that has helped me raise funds for my Erzberg trip through my gofundmepage and through off line donations.

JDay Season Finale at Southwick, MA

JDay Season Finale at Southwick! …a little long…for good reason

Mom with some last minute advice

As it turned out John Day was able to secure the legendary Southwick motocross track for the JDay season finale (www.jdayoffroad.com)…That made my choice simple…I had to be there. How many times can you ride or race at the “Wick”? No way were we going to miss that. Dad and I prepped the bikes Friday night…tires, oil, filters, and some miscellaneous repairs and we were good to go. We rolled through the entrance at 8 in the morning and wow….the place was already packed! We had to park a long ways away from the start, something that would pose quite the challenge for dad. Since he was not racing, I had the chance to sign up for 3 classes…6 motos, 3 hours of racing. I wanted to close out the season with a bang. That meant that I had 2 motos back to back, which meant dad had to have 2 bikes ready pretty much at the same time.

It was cold, and rain and possibly snow was in the forecast, but that didn’t matter…the mood at the track was awesome. Everyone was just super excited to be able to come to Southwick and race. I heard a rumor of over 1000 riders…I believe it.

Superfun log section

Moto 1 Juniors: I won’t bore you with a long write up…bottom line…I got a decent start on the YZ250 and worked my way to the f

ront, put in a short sprint to build a gap and then just cruised home in 1st and tried to conserve energy. Track conditions were prime…the sand was actually pretty tacky and provided decent grip…and…I really do like sand.

Moto 1 Pro 125: Things got a little hectic…I jumped off the 250 and switched bikes with dad who had the YZ 125 ready for me at the start. What a difference…totally different feel, different steering, different everything. I decided to ride it around in the start area to get a little better feel for it, but I really only had about 2 minutes to play with it, then it was go time again. My start wasn’t horrible, but I got shuffled to the back pretty quickly in turns 1, 2 and 3. When I came through scoring I was back in 20^th…not cool. I pushed hard and made a lot of things happen in the woods and in the extreme section. I was able to close the gap and work my way back into this thing….a top 10 was my goal in this 30+ rider stacked class. The motocross guys were really putting it to me on the MX track (I need to work on that), I was able to return the favor in the woods. When all was said and done I accomplished what I set out to do, I finished 10^th. Not bad. Now back to the truck where dad was working on getting the 250 ready for my next moto.

Moto1 A 250: The YZ250 seems to agree with me on most starts today, I did ok and got into turn 1 somewhere mid pack. I knew the track quite well (heck, I’ve already been on it for over an hour), and I was able to make passes pretty quickly. I knew the hot lines in the woods and pushed pretty hard, trying to catch the leaders. Unfortunately the gap was a little too big and I had to settle for 3^rd, but I was ok with that. After all, I am in it for the long haul today.

I had a little bit of time (about an hour) to regroup, eat something, get re-hydrated and re-focused for the afternoon.

Moto 2 Juniors: Again the YZ 250 and I got a decent start. I settled in at about 3^rd or 4^th or so and decided to cruise for a bit, as I planned to sprint once the field spread out a little bit more and it was easier to get around the lapped riders. That’s when my crash for the day happened (someone have that on video?). This was not my fault at all, there was nothing I could do. I hit one of the jumps on the MX track and as I was flying over it there was a bike laying there from a lapped rider. The flagger on top of the jump must have missed that and never pulled out the yellow flag, so I pretty much landed on this guy’s bike and went sailing over my handlebars. I thought my day was done, and then some. Thank god for sand…it cushioned my fall. How I got away with just bumps and bruises and nothing more than a broken brake lever I will never know…my guardian angel was looking out for me.

Photo: Art Pepin, www.offroadpaparazzi.com

Needless to say I wasn’t happy…with the flagger or the situation, but I felt blessed to walk away from this and even more blessed to not have hurt the other guy. I brought the bike back to the starting area where dad had the 125 ready for me for the next moto. We talked for a while and after checking things over on my body, I decided to tough it out and get back out there for the next moto. Dad gave me clear instructions to come right up to the truck after this moto so he could take parts off the 125 to get the 250 race ready again.

Moto 2 Pro 125: With mom and my sister as my crew I got re-fired up. My start rocked, I went into turn one and 2 in 5^th or 6^th place. I did feel my back tightening up from the crash and was just altogether a little shaken up, so I fell back a little bit, but that didn’t last long, I was there to race, not trail ride. I pulled myself together and fought back into the top 10 battling with Poacher (Paul Goyette) for a bit. He is just so darn smooth on the MX track (I watched and learned), and he ultimately got me, I settled for 11^th giving me a 10^th overall. Back to the truck….dad was ready with tools in hand. We needed to swap over the rear  brake to the 250 so I could ride my 6^th moto of the day.

Photo: Art Pepin, www.offroadpaparazzi.com

Moto 2 A 250: This time I think I was just a little too sidetracked by what hurt and what didn’t…I blew the start and ended up at the very back of the pack. Man…I knew that this would take some serious pushing to get back into this race. So that’s what I did. I was still feeling pretty good, my muscles – while tight from the crash – were still willing to fire and I certainly wanted to race this one all out and see if I could get back to the front. With no reason to hold anything back I took some calculated risks, kept thinking positive and just let it all hang out. When I came through scoring half way through the moto I looked up to see if I made progress…7^th…nice….and I still had some time left. I kept jumping the logs in the extreme section which allowed me to make short work of a few riders and it got me closer and closer to the front. Heading into the last lap I was in 4^th…not enough…I wanted at least 3^rd. Dad had made it to the scoring area and let me know I was closing the gap fast. I made the pass for 3^rd and was able to see 2^nd, but there was just not enough time left, so I finished 3^rd for a 3^rd overall. I was pumped…that one wasn’t easy.

Once I got back to the truck things started to hurt…the less I moved the stiffer I got…3 hours of racing is tough….3 hours of JDay GP racing is gnarly, but I am pumped I got to do it. Thanks to all involved…dad…thanks for keeping me rolling. Mom, thanks for the motivation and the help at the start. Haley – best pit crew ever. My grandma and pops came over from Michigan to watch this race too…hope you had fun and thanks for all your help!!!

Photo: Art Pepin, www.offroadpaparazzi.com

Thank you again to my sponsors…

Fly Racing – love the gear…used a lot of it today!

Kenda Tires – It rocks when you can show up to a race with new rubber.

Magical Gogo – The lubricant that lubrican #superfastgoodtime

Eks Brand goggles – I needed all the sets today

Panic Rev Ministries – my guardian angel was with me big time today

STS Motorsports – check out my bikes…Steve makes it happen every time

Renthal – Thanks for the chains & sprockets…especially in these sandy conditions

FMF Racing – power to the 5^th

www.offroadpaparazzi.com thanks for the awesome pictures

Again thanks to my grandparents, here and in Austria!

Since you are still reading, here is another little news flash as a reward J I will be racing at the Erzberg Rodeo www.erzbergrodeo.at in Austria next June. This will be my first attempt at “Hard Enduro Racing”…and I think I picked the hardest one there is. More details to follow….

Thank you for reading, and more importantly, thank you for taking the next 20 seconds of your lives to share my blog with your friends!!!

This really means a lot.

Bring on 2015!! I’ll be ready.

Hunter “747” Neuwirth

Reviewing the start video

Netra Gravel Run Hare Scramble, East Putnam, CT

The final round of the NETRA Hare Scramble series was held in Putnam, CT.  Once again we loaded up the magical clapper to go see if we could get another 2 hours out of the little 125 that could. 60 degrees and blue skies ensured another spectacular race day.  Since we have never been to this venue, I walked part of the course and all I saw was loamy dark dirt and sand pits and most surprisingly - NO ROCKS! This was going to be a #superfastgoodtime…and super flowy course too!

Dad, the bike just died!!!

 OK, race time!  I got up to the starting line and was warming up my bike and about 2 minutes before I was supposed to take off all I heard underneath me was bluh bluh bluh! The bike died.  My dad knew it was a fouled plug instantly.  So he sprinted back to our trailer to try and find a plug, no luck…he was running through the pit area asking everyone for help, sure enough John Day senior had a plug handy and gave it to us. Dad with the help of several “assistants” got it installed 30 seconds before the flag dropped. That was intense. Thank you to all the help from everyone around me – you saved the day!  

Boom! I was off! I got a decent start and forced myself to be patient and learn the course.  I had a few A-Open guys in front of me that were slowing me down a little bit, but I was able to pass them about half way through the first lap.

Photo: Art Pepin
www.offroadpaparazzi.com

I was riding solid and I felt good. I made a little mistake on an off camber section with a few roots and fell on the downside of the hill. I picked up my bike thinking it was going to be heavy like my 4-strokes, but the 125 is like a mountain bike, I nearly flipped over to the other side - yeah…I am THAT strong...not :)

I really started to struggle with arm pump, to the point where I was riding out of control. I couldn’t feel my throttle or brake or clutch lever, and was really just in survival mode, trying to shake this thing. It took me a while but eventually I found my grove again and was able to hammer out some solid laps.   Since we ran the YZ125 and we have a small moto cross tank on it, we decided that I would have to come in for fuel every other lap...boy was I glad we did that. One, I got to stretch my arms, and two, I used up 3 quarters of a tank in just 2 laps.

The 1^st pit stop went smooth (Thanks Mr. Federrico and my sister Haley for helping dad), no more than 45 seconds. I went back out on the track and felt really pretty good.  Lap 3 went very smooth, I didn’t make many mistakes.  The sand pits were already starting to form some good size whoops – woohoo, this is like Michigan (In case you didn’t know, there is sand and dirt there and that’s what I learned to ride on!!!!  I love sand. The 125 did struggle a little bit in the really deep stuff, but that’s to be expected.  On lap 4 I was really flying, the bike felt awesome in the woods, I was catching guys, and maybe I got a little too confident – BAHM!!!! I decided to go head to head with a big oak tree.  Yeah that’s right, I thought the trees moved for you but I guess this one really wanted to stand his ground.  I slammed into that thing hard, my left hand guard snapped, my number plate ripped off and my go pro got pushed forward just from G-forces.  My bell was definitely rung.  But I got back on the bike, started it up and just kept going. Scroll to the bottom, there is a little "crash video".  I knocked the wind out of myself, but I knew I could easily push through something like this. I tried to find my groove again and shake out the cobwebs.  

Photo: Art Pepin - www.offroadpaparazzi.com

I went into the 2^nd pit stop for gas. Dad just kind of laughed when he saw me rolling in, as I was missing a few plastic parts off the bike…(dad) ”what’s up?”… (me) “My face hurts”... (dad) “I don’t see any blood, you’re ok”. He gassed me, and Dave Dussault jumped in to help and push my clutch lever back up for me and I was back out there again.  I got a solid rhythm going and the 125 just wouldn’t quit, so I knew I could continue to push too. I focused on staying steady and smooth, trying to minimize my mistakes. I had one little slide out on a root but other than that things went well for the rest of the race.  I came in for my last pit stop – yes, we had to pit 3 times – dad and Dave took care of business, Haley had my drinks ready for me and as a last piece of wisdom while I was getting ready to head back out dad said “hey, your race starts now”. I knew what he meant…this is where I get stronger and others start to make more mistakes. I found my rhythm pretty quickly and stepped it up turn after turn, hill after hill…When I saw the white flag it was like a gun went off in my head, I just let it ride and I sprinted until I crossed the finish – it was on like Donkey Kong (never played it but dad says it’s only the best video game ever). 

After about 2 hours and 40 minutes I got the checkered flag and as usual, my last lap was one of my strongest laps. I ended up taking the win in the A200 class and finished 15^th overall. I am super pumped about that…the Magical Clapper YZ 125 proved it again, 125’s can definitely be competitive. This was the last NETRA Hare Scramble of the season, a great event hosted by the Hoot Owls – Thank You!!! Before we close up shop for the winter we will probably hit a few more JDay GP’s this year (One of them will be at my most favorite track ever – Southwick!!!!!) – can’t wait.

I know I’ve cranked out quite a few blogs lately, and if you are still reading, thank you for following me through the season, I really do appreciate your support. Please take a few seconds to share my blog, as silly as it seems, it really helps. My sponsors like the exposure and, it really does motivate me…and it is part of my school assignments – I call it the fun homework.

Thank you to my awesome sponsors for a great season!!!

www.flyracing.com; www.kendausa.com; www.magicalgogo.com; www.eksbrand.com; www.panicrev.org; www.fmfracing.com; www.renthal.com; www.offroadpaparazzi.com;

A huge shout out to my mom and dad, my sister Haley, my grandparents here in the US and over in Austria, all my racing friends – this was a super fun season!!!!

Keep the rubber side down people!!!!

Hunter “747” Neuwirth

Rob "Moto Fro" Brown never misses a chance to have fun!

Red Fern JDay GP, Chester, NH

Photo: Art Pepin, www.offroadpaprazzi.com

After an awesome race weekend at Crow Hill I was excited to head up to the Red Fern JDay in Chester, NH .  We got the Magical Clapper ready to race, added a few stickers, new wheel bearings, and a rear tire.  When we showed up I had just enough time to gear up and head to the line.  I couldn’t wait to race. I gained some confidence after crow hill and realized that I belong in the pro 125 class.

Photo: Tammy Neuwirth

Moto 1:  I got a pretty good start and was inside the top 5 going into the woods.  Cody Williams got by me down one of the long cart roads that red fern is famous for, he is a fast guy and I new he would pull me further up the field.  I figured I could latch on to him for a few laps but he went down early in the extreme section and I made it through the nasty rocks and roots with ease.  About half way through the 2^nd lap I caught up to Josh Cenammo, but he found some extra speed and got away from me in the last half of the moto. I really had nothing for him, so I decided to settle in and try to bring this one home without any major incidents. I did realize that I need to pick up some corner speed to make the next step and be able hang with the top pros. I was having a blast out there.  The Magical Clapper ran flawlessly and I felt great. I did get a little bit of arm pump, but that’s really nothing new anymore and I have learned to deal with it. I didn’t make any major mistakes in this moto and finished in 5^th place – my best 125 pro moto yet!

Trying to teach Josh Toth how to
ride a unicycle between motos

Moto 2:  I didn't get a good start at all… 2^nd to last going into the first turn. While I did get the jump, the bike would not pull right away as I apparently didn’t clear it out enough when warming it up. I cut down under everyone in turn 1, hogging the inside and ended up towards the front anyway, as all the other guys were pushing to the outside hard. I was running in 5^th when we hit the woods, but started to get shuffled to the back after a little mistake in a corner.  One thing I learned is that in a pro class if you make one little bobble 6 guys pass you.   I got pushed back to 8^th, I just tried to relax and stay smooth because I knew I could catch them again.   I struggled a little bit trying to find my “flow” in this moto. It could have been the 10 year old suspension and the square edged, rocky trail J.  I tried to ride the edges of the trail as much as possible to hit some smooth lines and focus on my corner speed.  This worked as I was able to find my groove and I started to reel in Justin Salo. With about 3 laps to go things didn’t feel quite right… I don’t know why (brain fart), but I stopped to see if I had a flat rear tire. I regret that. I didn’t have a flat, it was just the way the dirt was in a few sections, real lose and soft. So now I put myself quite a ways to the back of the pack. I went to work after realizing that my tire was just fine and I let my head get in my way….I rode the wheels off the YZ and got back up to 8^th place and continued to gain on Justin – he was running in 7^th - every lap. At the finish I was right on his rear wheel, but there just wasn't enough time to pass him. I ended up 8^th in that moto.

Photo: Art Pepin
www.offroadpaprazzi.com

Once again the magical clapper came through. With a 5^th and a 8^th place I finished in 6^th overall for the day.  I’m happy with that!  I rode hard and smart; the pro 125 class is the best class I have ever raced. Being able to line up with those guys gets me psyched up to reach the open pro class someday. 

Now it’s time to show the Magical Clapper some love again and get it ready for the next race.

Thanks all for reading…it really means a lot…PLEASE…take another minute and share my blog. The exposure really helps and my sponsors really appreciate it.

Thank you to Fly Racing, Kenda Tires, Magical Gogo, Eks Brand goggles, Panic Rev Ministries, FMF Racing, and most recently added – Renthal. Thank you mom and dad, my grand parents, my sister Haley (best pit crew ever). Check out Art Pepin's photos at www.offroadpaprazzi.com

Keep the Rubber Side Down people!!!!

Hunter “747” Neuwirth

Photo: Tammy Neuwirth

Crow Hill Enduro Cross & JDay Loud Fuel GP, Baldwinville, MA

My 1^st weekend on the “Magical Clapper” - MC

Since we have decided that I will be going back to 2 strokes, I bought myself a little Yamaha YZ 125 last week and figured that I best break it in at the Dirty Crow Enduro Cross at Crow Hill MX in Baldwinville, MA. If it made it through that, I planned on racing it on Sunday at the JDay GP at the same facility.

My Awesome Pit Crew!!
Photo: Art Pepin, www.offroadpaparazzi.com

Now, there is a little bit more to this YZ…it is a 2004 that has been sitting in my good friend and neighbor Nate Smith’s garage. He had no use for it anymore (He now rips on KTMs), so he sold it to me for a great price. The engine cases are JB welded, the suspension is really noisy and works only sort of, the exhaust hanger was missing, and the rear tire was what I call “roached”. Perfect. Nate showed me how to change oil (not as simple as you’d think since the drain bolt is JB welded in so it won’t leak), I put in a new air filter, and that’s it. I wanted to name the bike and after a little bit of back and forth my friend and sponsor Roger Cameron from Magical GoGo came up with the name “Magical Clapper” for the bike. Perfect and ready for a #superfastgoodtime.

The enduro cross course was awesome…nasty, yes, but still rideable and super fun. Paul Goyette – Poacher – and John Day did an awesome job to make this event an absolute blast. If you didn’t ride this event, you missed out.

Photo: Art Pepin, www.offroadpaparazzi.com

Moto 1: My start was bad…dead last, and since each moto was only 10 minutes long I knew I had to go all out to get towards the front. My MC handled surprisingly well over the big obstacles and jumps, I was pretty happy with that. The motor had enough power to get me out of trouble spots and the bike felt really light so I could throw it around quite well. I made some good passes, worked my way towards the front and caught up to the leader. I tried to pass him a few times but just could not quite get him, even with a last ditch effort at the final turn, so I settled for 2^nd in moto 1. On a side note…my mechanic decided to give me an extra challenge by loosening the clutch lever too much so it kept spinning on my handle bars…big fun trying to find your clutch lever while going through a rock pile…Thanks dad J

Photo: Art Pepin, www.offroadpaparazzi.com

Moto 2: ….uhm…see moto 1, except this time I decided to add a crash to the race to keep everyone entertained. With two second place finishes I ended up taking the win in the A200 class…not bad for my 1^st outing on the “Magical Clapper” – consistency paid off.

Since the MC was still in one piece and ran really well, we decided to up the challenge and enter the 125 pro class at the JDay GP race on Sunday (we did change oil on the bike). Before I went to race the bike on Sunday, Mr. Federico helped me dial in the suspension a little bit – we hadn’t even set the sag on the bike yet, and he knew a few clicker settings that worked for his son so we matched my settings to his. I rolled up to the start and was just a little bit intimidated – I have only ridden the 125 pro class 1 time so far and it didn’t go that well. These guys are super-fast, and aggressive.

Photo: Art Pepin, www.offroadpaparazzi.com

Moto 1: My start was pathetic. Dead last…again. I went to work and started to make up a few positions…actually, I was picking people off better than I expected. After the 1^st lap I was somewhere around mid-pack and got engaged in a battle with a guy on a Honda CR 125. We went back and forth about 5 times….he would get me on the MX track and I would get him back in the woods and the extreme section – and this really was an extreme section. I think the obstacles were bigger than at the enduro cross the day before.  Ultimately I was able to shake “CR Guy” and caught up to Paul Goyette (Poacher). We were running 6^th and 7^th. I tried to pass him, a few times but he is crazy fast on the MX track. I watched and tried to learn as much as I could. Once we got back into the woods it was my time (I am a woods guy after all). I passed Paul and was able to put enough of a gap on him to be able to stay in front of him to the finish, but man, that took everything I had. I finished the moto in 6^th place and was pumped. I have never been able to crack the top 10 in the pro class and certainly did not expect to run that well. My “Magical Clapper” came through. 

Moto 2: I actually got a mid-pack start, but could not hold my position and went into the woods at the back of the pack (I wonder if the fact that my rear tire only had a few knobs left had anything to do with that ;)). I wasn’t worried, I knew I could get a few people, and really, my weekend was already “uber” awesome…anything else would just be a bonus.

Photo: Art Pepin, www.offroadpaparazzi.com

I rode as hard as I could, pushed the little 125 to its limit and it did not let me down. I got past Poacher somewhere in the woods – he might have gotten stuck – and found myself up in 5^th place. Whoa!!!! I had 2 laps to go. Come on MC, lets finish this!!! I pushed even harder, and at one point I had Beau Viens in my sights (in 4^th), but he turned on his after burners and actually pulled away from me a little bit. I finished the 2^nd moto in 5^th place. I was so pumped!!! I was able to not only hang with the 125 pros, I was actually competitive – on a bike that should not ever have been competitive. My weekend rocked! I won at my 1^st ever enduro cross on Saturday, and got a 6^th place overall in the 125 pros. 

Thanks for the awesome battle Poacher!

The “Magical Clapper” will get some much needed love this week. Hopefully we can round up a tire from Kenda, change a few bearings, slap a little more JB weld in some places, change from the “sharpie” race numbers to real numbers and pretty it up a little bit.

Photo: Art Pepin, www.offroadpaparazzi.com

So….since you are still here…

Thank you for reading! Please do me a favor and spend another 5 seconds to share my blog. My sponsors really like the exposure!!!!

Speaking of sponsors…Thank you to Fly Racing, Kenda Tires, Magical Gogo, EKS Brand Goggles, FMF Racing, Panic Rev Ministries, of course my mom, dad, my sister and my grandparents…and….Brian Dussault – the fact that you did homework at the track motivated me.

Keep it on 2 wheels!

Hunter "747" Neuwirth