ISDE-GRANADA, SPAIN-DAY FIVE!

DAY FIVE!
Hello from Spain. I just finished Day Five and I?m doing well. Riding today for me was like holding on to a jackhammer for seven straight hours. I?m still in one piece. The penalty they gave me yesterday for starting late took some minutes off my time. The AMA rep went to bat for me but the jury decided I started Day Four two minutes late. That didn?t happen, but considering the amount of people that have been disqualified for strange things, I feel fortunate to still be in it. I rode for about seven hours today and covered around 130 miles. The course was super rough because we have ridden it twice.

Ten-Minute Fix
I had ten minutes to replace a chain guide and a wheel spacer. Last night, when I changed my front tire, I forgot a wheel spacer so my bike wouldn?t roll. I got them both installed with about a second to spare and made my way to the starting line.

The Hill
The dreaded hill I told you about the first two days got me again. This time, I lost six minutes. I was in the wrong place at the wrong time and the lines I tried the first two days weren?t working. After the hill, I stayed on time. I?m barely hanging on to a Silver medal. If tomorrow goes well, I think I can pull it off. Otherwise, I will get a bronze.

Trophy Team Update
The Trophy Team is still midpack. The course has been difficult for riders like Destry Abbot and Russ Pearson because they are from Arizona and Nevada, respectively. The aren’t used to all the rain and the slippery conditions.

Great Event
Out of the seven Six Day?s I?ve ridden, this one by far has the best trail riding and the most beautiful scenery. Not that I get the chance to stop and take it all in! The town we are in is famous for a fortress that was the Moors last stronghold in Europe before the Spaniards drove them out.

Strange Strategy
Terry Cunningham is here and we got to talking this afternoon about the ?82 Six Days in Czechoslovakia. He was a member of the American Trophy Team that year and he said the American?s almost won, but there was a lot of trickery going on. Evidently, the Czech rider?s wanted to make sure the Swedes didn?t win so they put a rider on the course in front of a Swedish rider and the guy fell down on purpose and made the Swedish rider crash. Then he had a Czech photographer waiting behind a tree. He asked the Swede if he could help him pick his bike up and the photographer shot the photo. The Swedish rider was disqualified for being on-course assistance. The Americans had photos of the Czech riders changing number plates off a broken bike, but the jury wouldn?t believe them. Crazy.

Tomorrow will be a 45-minute trial ride out of town and then we line up at a motocross track for one long moto. Then, they impound the bikes one more time for protests and then we all get together and crate the bikes to send them back to the US.

I will keep you posted on the final day of the Six Days tomorrow. That?s it for now. I need some rest.

Ron Lawson