Moto Tip | Sand Setup & Rollers
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Welcome to the new Answer Racing Moto Tips feature! Answer Racing has been producing the highest-quality motocross and off-road gear since 1976, and this month launched its new line of 2020 apparel. With riders like Alex Martin, Ryan Villopoto, Nick Wey, and Mike Sleeter flying the Answer flag, there is a wealth of knowledge and know-how when it comes to riding a dirt bike efficiently and effectively in the Answer camp. Each week, Answer will bring you some riding tips to help you become better at the sport you love! Have a specific skill you’d like to improve? Comment below and we will cover it in a future post!
If you’re one of the many that are facing a long and wet winter, then you know that the best chance of riding a track will be one with sandy soil. It takes a special skill and setup to get through the soft, constantly changing sand, so we got some advice from Nick Wey on what you should do to the bike to improve handling (we’ll leave technical things like bike prep up to you for now) and the best way to blast across the never-ending rollers that will develop. Take it away, NYK…
“It takes a special technique to get through the sand smoothly and efficiently. A lot of people have a hard time in the sand, they get tired and wash the front-end or high side, so it’s important to keep your weight neutral if not a little further back, plus being smooth on the throttle and the brakes.”
“There are a few things you can do to your bike to ride a little smoother. Sometimes at a professional race they will take a tooth off of the rear sprocket, which will add to the over-rev and smooth out the power which will help you get traction down, because in the sand you tend to spin the rear wheel a little more. Getting the wheelbase as long as possible will help, because the front-end gets a little nervous under braking in the sand because the ground is not as stable. To help the longer wheelbase, drop the forks down in the clamps to make the front-end taller, which essentially gets less weight over the front-end and puts more over the rear.”
“Sand roller sections seem to be getting more popular with motocross tracks. For these sections, it’s not the best to double through. You want to keep your momentum going forward and that means keeping the back wheel on the ground as much as you can. The way to do that is to be in a high enough gear so that the engine keeps pulling. Once you get enough speed, the way to go through the whoops safely is to hold on with your feet and legs as tight as you can while keeping the body position neutral. It’s natural for me to ride on the balls of my feet, it’s an aggressive riding position. Going through rollers it’s important to hold on with your feet and legs and I think the best way to do that is to be on the balls of your feet. It keeps you from dragging your feet in ruts or pulling your weight off of the bike, which would get you into a position that’s out of control.”
