The opening round is near.  I can practically feel that fine, dry, Florida sand working its way down the back of my pants into a very precarious “hiding” place.  Here are some things to remember before you make your way to the Sunshine state.  Remember to be at the starting line on time so that you can hear Buren Hamricks colorful descriptions of the track.  “Roun tha fur mol mark, thurs gon be a rock, then a root…..and so on and so forth.”

No matter how much it is talked about, dreamed about or wished………..it will not be typical GNCC.  Be ready for sand whoooooooooops, 5th gear, and dust.

This is the first race of the year, do you remember how to ride?   Better yet do you remember how to ride sand? Have you ever even ridden sand? According to northerners, it’s like snow but different.

Bike setup will make a huge difference.  If you are unsure of what to do, then turn your clickers all the way stiff. Make sure to know where they belong so that you can set the magic again when you leave Flo-rida.

You will burn through a lot of gas too, wide open + sand = empty tank

Tape your hands even if you are a tough guy.  Scott Summers likes Elasta-kon tape from CVS.  It is waterproof, flexible, and sticks well to itself.

The real crazy thing about the Florida GNCC is that the Georgia General (LEE) round is only 5 days later.  So not only will it be most everyones first big race of the year, they are adapting to new bikes, new terrain, new pit crew, etc.  But if you get hurt or break the bike, then it will fiddlestix up round 2 for you also.

Bring as much extra stuff as you can, but here is what I recommend.

• Helmet
• Goggles
• Gloves
• Air Filter
• Brake Pads
• Grips
• Tubes
• Credit Card (someone else’s if possible)

Thats a short list and you could use a lot more, but Im on a budget and am not afraid to rock the ghetto bike with duct tape holding the plastic together.  If you break parts and need something, usually you can find it at a local dealership in between the 2 races.

The General will be hard pack with some soft clay bogs, flat, tree roots, and pretty fast.  I am going to use the same tires for both races because Im poor.  The ideal would be to change from a sand to a intermediate mx tire, but the economy is tight and you do what you’ve got to do.

Go fast, it will help you place higher

Scout the MX track before the race so that you have an idea of whats going on there.  If you do not feel comfortable then don’t jump.  You can make up a little bit of time by jumping, but you can lose A LOT if you crash.  Its difficult to judge an unseen jump on the first lap of a race.
*Paul Whibley jumped onto my friend last year!

If you watch the Dukes of Hazard episodes the night before the race, then you will do 2% better.

If you sign up as Boss Hogg, then your points won’t be given to you………….but I will give you a High Five.

Also make sure to tell people about www.offroadjunkies.com.  For every 1 person you tell, we put a gold star on your imaginary chart in our office.  We are keeping track…….   The person with the most gold stars may or may not recieve a prize at the end of the season.  (How could there be a prize that could top our magical off road words of wisdom? )

Good luck to everyone!  Please feel free to add us on facebook, and into your hearts.