Riding motocross and enduro has always been an adrenaline rush for me for many years. It does however come with its own risk. A fast race engine with high torque on a lightweight frame means only one thing - they are fast but with that comes the danger.
Taking precautions and always wearing protective equipment is a must but remembering your own limit and ability while still trying to improve is just as important.
Another concern is that no matter how familiar you are with a track or route, they can change from day to day, especially out in the woods. Ruts can appear quickly after just a few riders tear through, trees often fall and block tracks after tropical storms and on single tracks there is also the possibility of another rider coming the other way for a head-on.
I have always ridden the Honda CRF250R but am currently riding the 2018 model. It weighs just over 100kg and is light enough to pick up when I crash or accidently drop the bike! It happens!
Luckily, I live in an area that has plenty of areas to ride. A mix of several dedicated motocross tracks, single track in wooded hills, soil-quarries and rural farm land to choose from.
It also makes it convenient that I can ride from home, turn left out of the gate and basically be right there. Long gone are the days of living in a large city and having to load the bike in the truck and drive 2 hours just to get to somewhere worth riding.
At certain times of the year, basically between November and May/June, it just doesn't rain. Tracks turn dry and dusty but so do small streams and rivers. A small local river called Yai Muk River in Chonburi, Thailand becomes a popular cut through for many riders in the area during these months as the river dries up and leaves a bed of soft sand.
As fun as riding in sand is, it is totally different to hard terrain. The rear tyre slides out a lot more and the front wheel can slip out easily.
Naturally when you feel a car or bike start to slip and slide you want to brake. On ice, you are told to try and steer out of it and not brake or accelerate. With sand, you are able to maintain or regain control by going faster and twisting the throttle! In reality, this doesn't cause much of a wheelie or for the bike to zoom off but allows the rear wheel to dig down deeper through the soft top sand and find grip as the wheel spins spitting out the loose stuff.
Well as you can see in my video, things don't always go to plan!
I hope you enjoyed this post and please follow for more like it in the future.
All content is original: the photos, the video, the writing and the adventure!