Motard Race – DantesDame

Super Motard Race at Infinion Speedway
November 15, 2008

Dan and I made plan to spend most of our Saturday watching our first-ever super motard race. What’s that, you ask? It’s a type of motorcycle race that takes place on both pavement and dirt and involves speed, jumps and tight turns. The bikes are small and light and use extremely slick tires. It would be an interesting experience.

Our drive north was uneventful. It was just over an hour to get there and because of the early hour, the traffic was light through the city. Here’s a sample of what it’s like to drive along 1 through San Francisco:

Driving through Golden Gate Park

Tunnel under The Presidio

It’s like a video game

Crossing the Golden Gate Bridge

The parking lot wasn’t crowded at all; apparently there aren’t a lot of fans that come to these races. It makes me wonder how the sport survives on such a grand scale. By the looks of the trailers and campers on-site, this is not a cheap sport to “dally” in.

Looking back at the parking lot and car racing track

Race floozy

Cute but barking dog

Instant gratification

KTM race booth

Parts bike?

Old tires!

New tires!

Crash scene (the rider was ok)

Race official taking a break

Dan and I wandered around for a little bit, watching the qualifying laps and practice runs. We didn’t have a program and didn’t know exactly what was going on out there, other than a lot of bikes going by quickly. It was fun to watch and to analyze their riding skills.

Eventually our friend Steve and his friend Patrick showed up, whom we had planned to meet there. We found seats, watched the bikes some more and Steve, who “dallies” in racing super motards (but to a very small extent), told us about the riders and the races. The track being used today is a go kart track, with some changes made to accommodate the dirt portions of the course. It was possible to walk around the perimeter of the entire track, so I was able to get pictures from various angles. The entire complex is quite large, with the go kart track we were at, a full-scale auto-racing track down the hill, and more infrastructure on the other side of the hill from where we were. And amazing views of the valley and some vineyards. It was a beautiful day.

To each his own