days aboard his Kawasaki KDX200. This was Zoll's second MK200 win, but he's carded many top three finishes in his home event. Runner-up, with a score of 3, was ISDE chase rider Alan Randt of Michigan on a KTM 360. Third place went to XR400 mounted Joe Edsman, an O'ahu resident, also with a score of 3. Tie breakers were important this year, as the Rock Island Riders strove for a more "rider friendly" event, and eliminated some of the uglier sections of the past. This was the easiest Mauna Kea in years, but believe us, easy is a relative term!
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The MK200 is an extremely challenging event that covers a vast assortment of terrain. Riders cover 200 miles in two days of steamy, jungle trails riddled with log crossings and water holes, to lava trails that were beaten down with sledgehammers. Yes, that's right. The organizing club beat six miles of jagged lava flow into a rideable trail with sledgehammers. Pretty wild, eh? We'll talk more about these guys and Hawaiian dirt bikers in general bit later.
Past the lava fields, at the 6,000 foot elevation or "Saddle" between Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa, is some incredibly fast two-track with deep silt beds running through rolling meadows. And then there is Mauna Kea: "the Mountain." This year, the "A" riders made two trips around the Mountain, and the "B" riders did one, around the infamous "upper trail," a winding road with a base of golf-ball and baseball sized lava rock that constantly moves under the rider's wheels. Momentum and stamina is the key here. Picture this: you started at sea-level, but now you're at 10,000 feet, you're tired as hell, and you can't stop even though the bizarre base of lava rock makes you feel like your riding a bike with loose spokes and flat tires on both ends. Oh, and there are switch back turns. Remember, you can't stop: to stop means to go back and try again.
Once the mountain is a memory, it's back across the lava and into the jungle again for the finish. Speaking of jungle: the RIR always saves the worst sections for just before lunch. They found one that was so much fun, they used it both days! Just before the lunch break was a nasty trail of mud and log crossings, followed by a deep, rutted uphill section over bare pahoehoe (smooth) lava boulders, which they called "waterfall." Even the most accomplished riders were flailing about in this section. Only a handful cleaned it.
With the intent to make the event better, the Rock Island Riders went to the riders last year seeking suggestions on how to improve the MK200. As a result, changes were made to increase the "fun factor" of the event. Tough, ISDE-like rules and restrictions were dropped, a second trip around the mountain was added for the A riders, and many of the brutal stages were smoothed out a bit. For the first time, a "C" class was added to attract casual and new riders to the event. Don't get me wrong here... the MK200 is not easy for any A or B class rider. It's just more "fun." The outcome was a higher percentage of finishers in all classes, with only a few complaints about some sections that were timed too slow, and long reset waits for the C class, all of which are simply tuning issues for next year for the Rock Island Riders.
Of all the changes, the addition of a C class is the Key! Geared for the average dirt bike rider (like you and me, folks!) the C course shares many of the two-track trails ridden by the A & B riders, but avoids the nasties in the jungle and the lava flow, and it also stops short of the upper trail on the mountain. The C's did experience beautiful jungle jeep trails, the fast stuff through the alpine meadows, and a neat climb to the impound before the upper trail to the mountain. This ride offers a mellow challenge, and a schedule that permits sightseeing. If you don't want to get beat up in the Kulani forest, ride the C class and you'll be blown away by the beauty and diversity of the Big Island and it's trails.
With the addition of the C Class, the opportunity is now open to everyone that calls themselves a "dirt bike rider." Friends, if you can make the event you will never, ever, forget this moment in your life. Riding this event in any capacity is a "must do" for any enthusiast. Getting your bike there is not all that expensive, and the diversity of Hawaii as a vacation spot opens the door for a family vacation. Check back with Off-Road.com for details on how to ship your bike to Hawaii.
DIRT BIKE FUNDAMENTALISM
What about those guys with the sledge hammers? Well, let me share with you an opportunity to experience "dirt bike fundamentalism," Rock Island Rider-style. Wait... let's not be specific here... make that: "an experience in dirt biking, Hawaiian-style."
First, forget the day-glo riding gear, the latest hop-up parts that barely differentiate one MX'er from the other, and a long list of excuses to "not go" riding. On the contrary, these folks are true enthusiasts: they ride every weekend, on whatever they can afford. I can safely bet that the average age of their bikes is 8+ years old. The most common modifications are not the latest decals, whiz-bang pipe, go-fast part, this or that. Not here...
Look for stuff that will help the rider and the bike simply survive, like heavy duty skid plates, bark busters, pipe cages, and the common aluminum sheathes to hold the machetes that are used to clear trails. On the flip side, I think the baggy (sidewalk commando) riding gear craze may have been copied from the Hawaiians. You see, a lot of folks on the rock can't afford any type of nylon riding pants, but they almost always have a set of baggy jungle fatigues hanging in the closet that can also be used during wild boar hunts.
Did I say "machetes?" From January to race day in May, the Rock Island Riders ride, clear, mark, and simply create new trails every weekend. They do this with sledge hammers in the lava fields, and with big machetes in the rain forest, hacking out the jungle foot by foot. In addition, a variety of existing trails with descriptive names like "hypothermia," "practice trail," "the ponds," and "spooge hole" are thrown in for diversity, routing, and challenge.
Sounds like stuff for only the hardiest types, right? Nope. Almost every aspect of the event, and dirt biking in general, involves the family. You see, off-roading, and dirt bikes are still considered cool, good, healthy, and neat things to do by the people of Hawaii. So are families, family values, community, and friends. My... there IS hope for the human race.
Self-hating, eco-warriors- stay clear!
It gets better: almost all of the dirt bike clubs in the state are very close-knit. They support each other, even to the point of shuffling beginner bikes around between families to start kids off on the right track when the family may not have enough money to buy a minicycle outright. No wonder it is almost impossible to buy a used Y-zinger 50 or other kid's bike in the state. They all do severe duty until they simply refuse to function.
And better... Overall, in the Hawaiian dirt bike community, your credibility is based on the following, in order: how often your ride, how many friends you ride with, what club you are active with and, how well you ride. Neat order of things, eh?
So, what we have here is:
1) ride as often as you can,
2) ride what you can, and
3) help others get involved.
Such are the fundamentals of dirt biking.
See you next year at the 200.
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