Franklin Race Report:

TSCEC (Texas State Championship Enduro Circuit)
Gator Bait Enduro Round 6 – Saturday, April 21, 2012
Gator Bait Enduro Round 7 – Sunday, April 22, 2012

TSTC (Texas State Trials Championship)
Texana Ranch Round 5 – Saturday, April 28, 2012
Texana Ranch Round 6 – Sunday, April 29, 2012

Two Day Enduro

It has been a busy couple of weeks with work, workouts, race preparation, travel and two, two-day events! The first was a trip down south toward Houston for a two-day enduro. This is the first of two such events this season – the other is at Boondockers after the summer break.

We got on the road at about 5:30a Saturday morning and arrived at the race site around noon. Key time was 2:28p with a little trail ride out to the first check in and test of the day. It was different starting in the middle of the afternoon, but I prepared well and was ready for the course ahead. The terrain is deep sand, roots, and some tight tree sections – a fun course. They had received a bit of rain the week prior so it wasn’t quite so dusty and there was even some moisture still in some of the woods sections. I was third overall in that test.

The second test of the day was about the same length as the first – a little over nine miles. I didn’t run into any issues other than a couple missed turns due to downed markings – the section was fun and fast and the GasGas 2012 300XC was working GREAT in the sand. I came out second overall in that test.
The last two tests of the day were shorter tests and again I had no real issues and the bike was performing awesome – I finished second overall in both tests and ended up third overall on the day, just 15 seconds out of second place.

My beautiful wife gave a good fight on her trusty 105, but the whoops and deep sand had her crisscrossing to keep from tucking her front end. She won the first test of the day and was off to a sound start until she stuck herself good in a mud rut and lost time on the others, finishing third on the day. We joked that with all that crisscrossing, she probably added 10 miles or so to the course everyone else was racing.
We got a good night’s sleep in the race van and woke Sunday morning to regular keytime of 8:28a for day two of the same course – this time it would be six tests for the long course and five for the woman.
My fitness feels great and I was ready for day two – no problem. I took the win in the first and third test of the day, second in the other four… missing the overall for the day by 35 seconds after hours of racing. Jennifer was third in the first four tests and second in the last – for another third place finish on day two.
I have a solid lead for the Championship headed in to the summer break with four more races to go starting back with the two-day at Boondockers in October. Jenn is in third at the break.

Two-Day Trials
The following weekend we headed out west towards the Abilene/San Angelo area where the spectacular 5000 acre Texana Ranch was the site of the final Rounds 5 and 6 of the state series. Jennifer and I left after work Friday night, arriving around 11pm. We set up camp, visited for a bit, and then got some sleep in the race van.

Jenn was first up and basically needed to win both days to take the championship. I was able to ride with her to the sections and coach her along the way. She had an 8 point first loop with no 5s and only 2 points her

second loop so she was doing great. She crashed on the loop the third time around and took a 5 in two sections after that – it cost her the win. She ended up third on the day.

I’m in my first full year at the top class and the jump from Expert to Masters has been a huge one. The sections are so challenging that some take all my guts to even attempt them. I try to make it out without any 5s, but the round was difficult and I was not able to accomplish that. I ended up forth for the day – the top guy in the class had 17 to my 92.

After the long day of riding, we all hit the pool to cool off and had a great meal together. The Ross Creek Trail riders really did a great job on the event – GOOD TIMES!

Sunday started again with Jennifer at 9am and I rode with again to coach her. Because of our busy schedule, these events are the only “practice” she gets so it helps her for me to remind her of positioning and help her with line choice. She put in an awesome first loop – only three points on the eight sections. The second loop went even better – she brought out her inner NINJA and gave only one point up that time around. The third loop she gave up 5 points, but never took and 3 or a 5 in any one section all day. She ended up in first and even beat all, but one of the men riding the same lines. She ended up 2nd overall for the championship.

I had another tough day Sunday, but made it through all of the sections without any hard crashes, without breaking any levers or plastic or bones and without taking a 5 all day! I ended up in 5th place on the day – the top guy (same guy as the day before) had 1 to my 37. I have work to do, but like the challenge of this level of riding.

Next up is the Lone-Star Two-Day Central Regional Trials event at the Red River Motorcycle Trails in Bulcher, Texas this weekend.

Thank you for all of your support – we wouldn’t be able to do it without you!
Haydn and Jennifer Franklin

Sponsors: GasGas, SMS Racing, MSR, Tucker Rocky, Silkolene, UFOPlast, Enduro Engineering, Red River Dirt Riders, Powersport Grafx and Scott USA.

Gas Gas Offroad. US is excited to announce that we will be giving away a brand new 2012 Gas Gas XC250 at the final round of the National Enduro series in Maplesville, Alabama. No gimmicks here! Someone will win this motorcycle!

Just go to www.mygasgasoffroad.com and register to win!

ECEA Enduro Series- Sandey Lane Enduro: Greenbank, NJ
Result: 4th Overall

After this weekend the 2012 ECEA enduro series is off and running and im excited to be a part of it. There is some great competition and I think that its going to make for a very interesting 19 race series. As for the first round it was a blast and is one of the best races that I have seen on South Jersey in a while. Tons of new trail and perfect conditions made it a great day to be on a bike.

Overall I am extremely happy with my fourth place finish considering how unfamiliar the terrain is to what I normally ride. My day seemed to be very consistent with the only thing slowing me down being a smashed foot in the second test. I was railing a sand brem with my foot on the peg and caught a stump with my foot. It didn’t seem to be a factor throughout the rest of the day and I was able to keep charging. Im confident that as the Jersey rounds continue and I get a little more seat time I will be able to close the gap and give the sand experts a run for their money.

The mild winter has been very good because I have my Gas Gas 300 dialed and I am in the best shape ive been in years. The next round is next weekend back in the Jersey sand and I feel confident that I can improve my result.

I would like to thank: Gas Gas Offroad, Fly Racing, Vee Rubber, Pro-Action, Dirt Tricks, Leo Vince, G2 Ergonomics, Rekluse, Ripped Vinyl Graphics, Motul, WER

Race Report – Haydn Franklin and Jennifer Franklin Texas State Championship Enduro Circuit (TSCEC) Round 4 Caprock Canyon Enduro – Quitaque, Texas March 11, 2012

I had been working in my shop at home all week on customer’s bikes and worked Friday night and Saturday morning getting our bikes tip-top for the race. The new GasGas 2012 300XC race model and I had not had a lot of dating time before we were about to get real familiar with one-another so I put all the finishing touches on her, we loaded up the race van and headed out west.

It rained the entire five hour drive and we landed in Quitaque at about 4:30p or so, checked in, got our cards, and picked a primo spot to camp with electricity to run a heater in the van all night – NICE! Jenn had busted out a plethora of badass homemade food she cooked the night before and in no time we were feasting on salmon, sautéed broccoli and sweet potatoes.

Jenn shares a birthday with her friend Amber’s fiancée, Troy. Amber had rented a community center and invited us all to get out of the weather and enjoy Saturday night together telling stories and doing the birthday thing. With daylight savings we had to spring forward so we hit the cozy van and got some great sleep in before the race.

It was predicted to rain all day Sunday, but someone or something must of took pity on us and cut us some slack allowing for the sun to bust through and make a beautiful riding day of it for us. This small town event has a grand prix race on Saturday and the enduro on Sunday. The enduro starts in town on the three mile grand prix track then heads up the road to the canyon for the day.

After transferring to the canyon we hit Test 2, which was six miles of pretty much flat, sweeping trail through the cedars and mesquites. The traction after the rain was primo and the Gasser was super solid throughout. At the reset I did a little suspension adjusting to dial it in a little bit. Jenn was having a blast riding with Roger McKnight on our row – the two of them were very evenly matched and were only seconds off of each other through the first two tests.

Test 3 was the A/B and C course split. The A/B riders did only two miles more trail before the gas than the C course riders 10 mile test – it was a bit harder, but certainly not what it could have been given the terrain they have to work with in the Canyon. If I don’t have to get off and push at some point during a race, I don’t feel as if the A split was tough enough to test the skill of the riders, but that’s just me.

Jenn she said she slowed too much on a blind turn in the deep sand wash and she had a tough time getting her little bike back up to speed. Roger was way down the creek bed by then and she couldn’t get back on his wheel – lesson learned.

The great Wayno McMahan and his sidekick Landry were waiting for us at the gas with the van, the bike stand and chairs set out like a PRO! SWEET! We grabbed a Cliff Bar, some water and did a little more adjusting and shedding of under-layers of clothing then made the transfer out to the Test 4. Thank you, Wayne!

With only nine and a half more miles of trail to go I pushed hard to rail as fast as I could. World Enduro rider, Ian Blythe was riding the row behind me on 29A and caught me in the last couple miles or so. I stayed on his wheel to the end of the test – FUN! Jenn had a stick lodge between her brake and case that stopped her dead in her tracks in the test. She was able to get it out, but it cost her time.
I ended up first in Texas points, but third to the two Colorado riders.

Next up, I’ll put in a solid week of work on customer’s bikes at my home shop and then Jenn and I will switch over to our trials bikes and head up to Muenster for Rounds 3 & 4 of the North Texas Trials Association event next weekend.

Results today:
AA
1. Ian Blythe (KTM); 2. Cody Schafer (Kaw?); 3. Haydn Franklin (GasGas)

Women
1. Sherri Stephens (Hus) 2. Jennifer Franklin (KTM) 3. Amber Terry (KTM)

Thank you all for your support and have a great week! Haydn Franklin #28
Jennifer Franklin
Sponsors: GasGas, SMS Racing, MSR, Tucker Rocky, Silkolene, UFOPlast, Enduro Engineering, Red River Dirt Riders, Powersport Grafx and Scott USA.

The Gas Gas Factory Offroad team signed Isle of Man native, Danny Mccanney to a 3 year deal this past Monday to contest the World Enduro Championship in the EJ (junior) class! In an e-mail, Danny told us that he’s really excited to be a part of the factory effort and looks forward to this exciting opportunity.

Congrats to Danny from all of us here at Gas Gas Offroad US!

Big brother Tucker gets to know his new sister

Huge congrats to Gas Gas rider Stephen Edmondson and his wife Ashley on welcoming McKenna, the newest addition to the team!

Left to Right- Dennis and Mary Wegner celebrate as Aaron Wegner receives congratulations from Steve Beane (PlusOnePerformance Gas Gas/afterhourscycle.com) for earning his double (HS/Enduro) D-14 championships at last weekends awards banquet.

GNCC regular Ashley Crouch presents Haydn his 7th TSCEC championship trophy

Race Report – Haydn Franklin Texas State Championship Enduro Circuit (TSCEC)
2011 Year End Banquet – Saturday, January 14, 2012
Cycleland Enduro – Nacogdoches, Texas January 15, 2012

The 2012 TSCEC season kicked off a little earlier than usual this year and was a combination weekend of the 2011 banquet Saturday night and the Cycleland Enduro Sunday morning in Nacogdoches, Texas.

After putting on some fresh tread and grips and giving the GasGas 300XC race model a thorough once-over, we loaded up the race van and headed out on the 3.5 hour road trip. We got to the track about 4:30p signed in, got our scorecards on, dropped the bikes and headed over to the hotel to check in and change for the banquet.
The banquet moved right along and we were full of good food, had our cool swag and were back to the hotel by 9pm to get some good sleep for the race the next morning.

I received my 7th Overall A Championship MSR jacket, trophy, MSR fanny pack, helmet and Allusion Graphics did a great job on the ID plates for the Pro riders.

SMS Racing was well represented by the entire Storrie family to see Brian Storrie inducted in to the Hall of Fame and his son, Christopher, get his 250A championship along with a promotion to the Pro class – congrats to them both. Christopher’s girlfriend, Ashley Crouch (2nd place women’s GNCC racer) was the trophy girl for the event.

My beautiful wife, Jennifer, picked up her championship jacket Saturday, also.

Sunday morning was a brisk 37 degrees as we took off at the starting line. We had a 4.5 mile transfer section to get warmed up before the first test. Test 1 was 9.5 miles of almost perfect east Texas piney woods trails. I can’t remember when the conditions have ever been this good at Nacogdoches. I finished out with a solid ride – no real issues.

There was a short transfer, a little wait, and then Test 2 was a long one – a 14.5 mile trip through the sand whoops and roots that kept me in check. I knocked out another decent ride that took me into the gas stop.

Test 3 was in Dinosaur Valley, which we haven’t raced through in forever. It was a 4 mile section with lots of up and downs, sort of fast and flowing through the tall pine trees – great fun. I finished up 5th place in the test,
which seemed to be the norm for the day in a stacked Pro class, 18 racers strong.

Test 4 was another short, 6 mile test. The section was a little tighter and had a lot of new trail cut in it. The dirt was near perfect. The Ingram’s were on row 27 in front of me, which gave me a good “carrot” to run after all day. I caught two of the three every test, but never could fish down Zach!

There was a cool little 3 mile transfer to kind of get crap sorted out – trees out of the handguards, limbs out of the chain, shake the arm-pump out, yada, yada, yada – then we went into Test 5, which was another long 14.5 miler.
This test had a super tight 3 mile, long course only, section in the middle of it that was tough to get through late in the race and felt like about 10 miles when its first and second gear the entire way. We then merged back in to finish out the test to go into Gas 2, short finish.

The final Test 6 for long course riders was 13.5 miles of a repeat of the first test section of the day with a little bit more added to it. It was more roots, sand, whoops, trees, but this time around all the ruts in the corners were straightened out the way they should be, which made it fun to ride. The first time through the course had been reversed from years past and the corners were not squared away so it was more difficult to keep your speed up through them than it was the second time through.

I ended up with a 5th place finish, 3rd place TSCEC points to go into the next round out west in Fluvanna, Texas near Lubbock. With the next three rounds being every other weekend and long drives out west, Jennifer and I have decided to do some trials riding in-between instead of racing TORO.
THANK YOU ALL for your support! Haydn Franklin
#28

Sponsors: GasGas, SMS Racing, MSR, Tucker Rocky, Silkolene, Enduro Engineering, Scott USA and Allusion Graphics.

The Off-Road Cup 2nd Annual 9-Hr 3-Man Team Race
September 20th, 2011

Lafayette, LA – Acadiana Racing LLC officially announced the second running of The Off-Road Cup, in which the main purpose is to determine the best race series in America. The 9-hour 3-man team event will take place Saturday February 25th, 2012 at Golden Pine Raceway in Prentiss, MS.

The sandy, hilly terrain at Golden Pine Raceway will provide for a great event. This venue has hosted many high-profile events such as a Regional Qualifier for Loretta Lynn’s Amateur National in 2010 with many big names present. “Golden Pine Raceway is recognized as one of the premier tracks in the country and we are very excited to have the opportunity to work Acadiana Racing to expand into off road racing”, said Randy Rector, owner of Golden Pine Raceway. “I can’t think of a better way to expand into off road racing than to bring the 9 hour Off Road Cup to Golden Pine Raceway.”

The first race series to get their name on the large perpetual Off-Road Cup trophy first was Midwest Off Road Events (M.O.R.E.) in March of 2011 at Desoto Motorsport Park in North Louisiana. Steve Leivan, Dale Rector, and Caleb Wohletz from Missouri – all on KTM motorcycles, took the victory after 9 hours of intense racing. Second place went to the Louisiana Cross-Country (LACC) Series followed by the Hillbilly Gran Prix series in third.

The inaugural event in 2011 was a success and the total purse amount has been increased to $2,500 for 2012. Classes are offered for all skill levels; a family class offered, ironmen class, and so on. All 9 hours of the event take place during daylight hours (no lights required) and riders will be allowed to each ride their own motorcycles.
Regional and National level race series owners and officers are encouraged to coordinate teams to best represent their series and area of the country. For more information on this event, sponsorship opportunities, submitting future venue options, and eventually pre-entry instructions go to www.TheOffroadCup.com, email info@AcadianaRacing.com, or call (337) 322-3170.