Final Blog Post!

Blogging is a place where you can go and find many things from different topics. Blogging can help you find anything you need to know about. Blogging affects many peoples life’s and can change how you think. I believe that blogs are best used as communicative tool from my experience in using the blogosphere.

Blogging can affect you by reading a blog similar to yours and you not agreeing on it. Or if someone puts a comment on your blog, and doesn’t agree with you. The thing about the blogosphere is that you can put your opinion about anything you want to. You can write a blog that has your own opinion, or comment on someone’s with your own opinion.

There is nothing like blogosphere; anyone can get on the internet and read what you wrote and even post comments.

As a student on blogosphere you have to pick a topic and write blog posts. Blogger is good for assignments for students. It gets students to think and type essays about their topic. And it gives the chance for students to connect to other peoples blogs and comment on them.

You can get fast up to date news all around the world with blogger. You can go to Google and type in something and you might go to a blog.

Blogs are used for: high lights of games, skateboarding, motorcycle updates, you can even find things that can piss you off. If you know of something look it up on blogger and I bet someone has articles about it. People can read blogs to get good facts and opinions on anything they can think of.
These blogs can affect your life in many ways. You can find something out that you never knew. Like in my case I never knew that they banned motorcycles from kids 12 and under.

You can find things out on blogger that you are doing illegal and didn’t even know about. That’s why blogger should be a main thing that people should read to find out facts.

Blogger is a quick tool to use when asking a question on the internet. When you ask a question on the internet more than likely it will take you to a blog that will give you your answer that is a fact.

With blogger the more content you have the higher ranking you will be when someone types it in on Google.

Blogger is not like any other website you get on. Like Facebook or Twitter you have to log in and become a member. With blogger you don’t have to. It’s a lot easier you can go to blogger and look at posts that you want to look at and get answers, or you can even comment back to the author of the blog post.

CPSC Act: No Riding 12 and Under

The Government today is trying to ban motorcycles from kids 12 and under; I think it is the stupidest law that the government could pass. It is hurting the economy by not selling bikes and parts to the kids. Small businesses are hurting the worst at this time. Congress and many other people thought it was a good idea for this bill. I thought so as well for toys, but not for motorcycles. Motobaby explains how this law is hurting the economy and what he wrote throughout “Help us Keep Riding,” I will have to agree with him.

In “Help us Keep Riding,” Motobaby talks about how the government is screwing it up for everyone. Motobaby is in the support on helping kids to ride again. On February 10, 2009 the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 was put into effect. This means that they stopped selling bikes and parts to kids under the age of 12. He writes how it’s not just about motorcycles; it’s about anything that has lead in it. Also he wrote how this law increased the CPSC (Consumer Product Safety Commission) funding from 80 million dollars to 136 million dollars because of the government act. The author shows that in this blog how the motorcycle people acted fast and are trying to change the law so kids can ride and he supported them.

Many kids have been killed from toys that have been recalled (Safety Blog, 2007). Motobaby states that if they have been recalled it means that there is no reselling the toy or bike. In Motobaby’s post he states that if you do the fines are doubled. “Congress wasn’t the only ones who thought this bill was a good idea, Francesca T. Grifo of the union of concerned scientists said, “A stronger inspector General and a website for CPSC employees to anonymously report their concerns, along with whistleblower protections for those who report about unsafe products, will contribute to more transparency and accountability at this agency” (Middleclass.org).”

In this blog he tells about how this bill hurt many small businesses because they didn’t have enough money to test anything that they made, so it made them go out of business. The author has got some resources from famous motorcycle racers. For motorcycle people in this blog they don’t like the ban. The Author states: Travis Pastrana, a pro motocross racer says, “I think this ban is one of the most ridiculous things I ever heard… riding is definitely a family sport.”

I agree with the ban on all toys and clothes, but I will not agree with the CSPC on banning motorcycles. I will go with Travis Pastrana and say that it is the stupidest thing I have ever heard. I grew up on motorcycles and I would want my kid to ride. What could be wrong with the bikes that they have to ban them? Do they honestly think that a kid is going to eat their bike? I mean it has lead in it and all, but come on, a kid is not going to eat a bike.

It may be okay to prohibit children under six years old for riding these motorcycles, but I don’t agree with extending the age to twelve. I think that CSPC can change this law and make it better for the kids who want to ride bikes. For toys yeah kids do chew on them, so they should worry about the toys, not motorcycles.

He states that the small business the small business is hurting and I will agree with him. He does have a point because around me banning motorcycles has hurt the economy. I know the dealerships around me because I have sponsorships. They are hurting! I have gone there and no little bikes are out on the displayed area. As parents if they want their kids to ride like them; they want to start them out early, but with this law they can’t start riding till they are 12 years old.

A kid that lives beside me is 10 years old and loves to ride his motorcycle. We were riding and we noticed that his fork seals were leaking. We took it to the shop to have them order new fork seals and they said they can’t order them because of the law and if they did they would get fined. Now he can’t ride anymore because of this stupid law. This law will not let the 10 year old boy buy a part because he is not old enough, so now he can’t ride.

The CSPC needs to reconsider and let kids ride bikes. I do agree about the toys and all, but the bikes need to be let go. They are trying to make everyone safe in the world, but I think it is being a little over board. I think the last paragraph of the blog stands out the most because it is what I’m trying to say. It is hurting the U.S. people and the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act needs to change so the economy doesn’t get any worse than it has already gotten; especially for small business as the author states throughout the last part of his blog.

Racing Gone Bad!

My freshman year of high school was a year to remember. During the summer, my brother and I had some friends out to ride our motorcycles and practice for the race on the next weekend. We had a big track behind our house and everyone came to ride.

We were almost done riding when my brother found a jump that was straight up, so we started to see who could get the highest air. On my brother’s last try he jumped the highest and his foot slipped off of his foot peg and he landed right on it. He acted like nothing happened and went up to the house. Later that day we went swimming and I saw his ankle; it was all black and blue. He could hardly walk on it and finally that night my mom forced him to go to the hospital where they took x-rays. His ankle was fractured in two places. They put two screws in his left ankle and told him he would be on crutches for nine weeks. That meant that he was out for the rest of the season for the District 11/AMA series that we were in.

I had one more race until my family and I were going on vacation. Unfortunately my brother wasn’t going to be able to go to Myrtle Beach because of his ankle. The race was at Reno Raceway; therefore, it is one of the worst tracks. It is nothing but clay dirt, so if it rains it is a slimy, muddy race, and if it is dry it is the dustiest track to race on. It is down towards the Ohio River and West Virginia, which is like an hour and half drive from my house.

On the night before the race, my dad and I are usually working on my bike until midnight, but we got done early since we didn’t have to work on my brother’s bike. The next day we traveled to Reno Raceway. My class starts at nine o’clock, so my family and I usually have to wake up early in the morning and leave. When we pulled in at the gates it was getting hot out and the mini-bike race was starting.

As soon as we picked a spot and parked I unload our trailer and went to sign up for my class. There was a long line to register. When I got up to the line I had to fill out a slip to say if I got hurt I wasn’t allowed to sue the racetrack. Then filled out a slip for what class I in and signed my signature on it. I paid the people that owned the track twenty- five dollars to race.

After I got through signing up my friends and I went to walk the track. We look for hot lines (faster lines when you need to pass someone) and what the track was going to be like to ride on. About twenty minutes before the race I had a banana, and a Gatorade, so I wouldn’t get dehydrated during the race and get cramps.

I was getting ready for the race, putting on all of my gear that protects me, when my dad started up my bike to warm it up and topped it off with fuel. When I was done getting dressed I went out and my brother was sitting in a chair. I grabbed his crutches and walked around on them, telling him, “If you didn’t jump your bike you wouldn’t be on crutches. You could be still racing, but know I’m going to beat you in points, big bro”.

It was time to race, so I gave back his crutches and hopped on my bike. I will admit that I was being really cocky to him, so I told him when I was sitting on my bike, “Look at the bright side you won’t have to wear yourself out today; you can sit back and relax and watch the race”. I took off and went up to the starting line like any other race. We sat on our bikes warming them up and getting ready to start. I was getting nervous like any other race. I was thinking how well I could do and if I could climb up in the point standings since my brother was hurt, which I was in fifth at the time and my brother was ranked second in the point standings.

We were ready to start and it is a dead engine start, so when the flagger holds the green flag up for ten seconds until he drops from his head down to his hip, at which point you start your bike and the race is on. Well when he raised the flag, everything is going through your mind, like if you are going to crash or how well your going to finish, so when he dropped the flag my foot slipped and my bike didn’t start. Now I was dead last out of like twenty some riders. Still, I knew I had plenty of time to get back up front because the race was an hour long.

I was fighting my way back up and was wearing myself out pushing myself to the limit. I stopped for gas and I didn’t know what place I was in until my dad said “you are in the top ten with less than a half hour to go in the race”. It boosted me, and all I can think of in my head was, “I am in better shape than most of the riders, I can do this.” I trained every day, from riding bikes to lifting weights and running, so I could have enough energy at the end of the race to finish strong. I pushed even harder and found my way up to third by the time they raised the white flag, which indicates the final lap. I got around to second and I could see first place. I pushed as hard as I could because I had not won a race that year and I was hungry for a win.

Halfway through the last lap I was on his rear tire when I hit something and I felt my foot go numb. I looked down and saw a rip clear through my boot with blood all over my boot, so I pulled over to the side of the track knowing that the race was over. I pulled my boot off and I looked. It was just dangling there when I pulled off my sock and a piece of muscle or skin barely holding my toe on. My foot was pouring out gooey stuff and blood was going everywhere. I freaked out and started screaming “Help! Help! Help!!!” But I was clear out in the woods. I was out there for at least twenty minutes until the guy that checks the track for injured people came around and found me. All I could think before they came is that I was going to have to get back on my bike and ride out of here. Thankfully, they took me out on a four-wheeler up to the ambulance where I was put on a stretcher. The bandaged me up and lifted me up into the ambulance.

It was the first time I have ever been in an ambulance. They rushed me to Marietta Memorial Hospital. It seemed like three or four people at once were asking me a lot of questions. One person was Chinese and I couldn’t understand him, so I just nodded. I waited two or three hours until they took me back and put me to sleep. I was about to go irate for those two to three hours because I’m not a big fan of hospitals, and if it’s not serious I will not go to the hospital or doctor.

I woke up still having all ten of my toes and had to stay in the hospital the rest of the day so they could keep check on me. I ended up staying overnight and was let out around noon the next day and went home. I had to go to an orthopedic surgeon in Zanesville for checkups every few days. My mom and dad went to Myrtle Beach for vacation and my brother and I stayed at my grandparents’ house. And my brother got revenge on me; I wasn’t allowed leaving the coach or bed. He could crutch around, but I had to keep my foot elevated most of the day. The worst part of the whole thing was that it was still summer and we have a boat. I wasn’t allowed to go on the boat, but my brother could go and I took a lot more from him than what I anticipated.

When I went to the orthopedic surgeon the second time they said they were going to remove my toe. I went to surgery the next day and they put me to sleep. I woke up and it was still there. They told me that they thought it could still make it, which meant my toe would stay on unless it turns the rest of the way black, but they weren’t sure.

The next few weeks they told me that they were going to take it off and they did the same thing over again. Putting me asleep and I would wake up and my toe was still there, so on the third time I told them to take it off because I was tired of going back to the hospital to be put asleep. They finally took my toe off on my right foot, second to the smallest one. I went back for checkups and was on crutches for around three months.

My brother and I were done for the summer and I was done for half the winter. Our racing season was over and I ended up missing part of basketball season. I went back to school still on crutches; watching my basketball team play was hard. I wanted to be out there, but I kind of got recognized for losing a toe. Through the school everyone started to call me “9 Toe Tuck,” a nickname I have had since my freshman year.

Training

To be competitive in racing you have to be in shape. Winter is a good time to work out for me. It is the off season for racing and I don’t usually ride in the snow.

Couple of friends and I work out together to make it more fun, plus when you are lifting you need a spotter. Throughout the week we would lift Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.

Lifting we did:
•Squats
•Overhead press
•Bench press

We also done agilities and jumped up on boxes to work more on are legs.
On Tuesdays and Thursdays we would run or ride bicycles. If we ran we would usually run about 3 or four miles. If we rode bikes we would ride about 15 miles.

When it was getting closer to summer we would start riding every day. I have a track about 5 miles long through the woods behind my house. Everyone would come out and we would have hour long races and push each other so we could get better. We would find the biggest hill and practice hill climbing for awhile.

When the racing season comes up we are in shape and ready. During the weekends we would race and the weeks we would still train. Not as much so we wouldn’t be sore for the race, but just enough to wear you can feel that you are getting a good workout.

Eating is a big part of training. You have to eat healthy and make shore you get enough to drink so you don’t get dehydrated during the race. I try to drink about a gallon of water every day to keep hydrated.

In the morning before the race I eat a banana so I don’t cramp up and try to drink a gallon of water. I also eat other things like protein bars and other healthy snacks before a race.

Maintenance

Working on your bike to ride or race. You have to check your bike over and make sure that it is ready. It is important that your bike is ready because you don’t want to go to a race and spend lots of money and not finish because you forgot to tighten your swing arm bolt that you took off and put back on, but forgot to tighten it.
It takes me about six hours to work on my bike before a race.

First off I wash it to wear everything looks clean so I can go through and see if I have to replace anything.

Cleaning the Air filter: The air filter is an important part to your bike if you want it to run perfect. Every time after you ride you should clean your air filter. The air filter keeps dirt from getting into the motor. If it gets really dirty the bike can’t get enough air and it will suffocate the bike.

Checking the brakes: you want to make shore that you have enough pads to race or ride on. If they look thin you should change them. When the pad is out it will start to squeak and it will be metal to metal. It will ruin your brake roder and they are like eighty bucks.

Oil: I try to change my oil every time I race. It is important to check it or change it before you ride. I use Castrol 10w-30. There are all different types of oil brands to use. I get a discount on Castrol since my grandpa works for them.

Tires: checking the tire pressure and the tread of your tire. If it’s going to be a muddy race and your tire is almost bald you should change it. Checking the pressure is a good thing before you ride or race. If you have too much air you won’t get any traction; to little air and you could get a flat tire. I usually keep my tire pressure around 10 to 13 pounds.

When I’m almost done the last thing I do I go through everything to make shore it is tight and that my bike will hold up. This sport can get expensive when you have to put new parts on before every ride or race, but if you are really into it you will make shore that your bike will make it to the finish.

Gear

Gear is an important part to racing. It protects you from getting hurt. There are all kinds of big brand names for gear.

For me all I wear is Troy Lee Design. My pants, jersey, and chest protector is Troy Lee Design. My pants and jersey are camo orange. My chest protector is all orange. The chest protector has saved me many of times. I have smacked my shoulder off trees and the ground so many times; I’m lucky I haven’t broken my collar bone, but my chest protector protects my shoulder. All the gear I have is orange to match my bike since I ride a KTM.

My knee pads or a Thor brand. When I flex my knee the bend with it. They are very a comfortable fit and have protected my knee and part of my leg.

My helmet, which is has one sweet looking design on it is made by Troy Lee Design. I have had all kinds of helmets and this is the only that has fit me just right. It’s very light, so I hardly fell it on my head. The design on it is flames. It is black with some silver and orange flames.

I wear Scott goggles. I have roll offs and tear offs. I have worn Smith goggles and many other brands named goggles. They all push down on my nose and then I can’t breathe. The Scott is a comfortable fit and doesn’t push down on my nose.

•Roll offs: when you get mud on them you reach up and pull on a string and it has a film that clears the lens so you can see.

•Tear offs: when you get mud on them you reach up and pull a piece of clear plastic that clears your lens so you can see.

I wear Alpinestars boots. There are many brands and sizes for people. I wear tech 10,which has ankle braces built into them. They have protected my feet, but have failed since I lost one of my toes. Know I am sponsored by them and can get boots from them.

Tire Selection

Tire’s is an important part on a bike. You have to check track conditions to know what tire to have. If it is wet or rainy you want to have a mud tire to get better traction. If it is dry you want to have soft or intermediate tire.

For most pro racer they have a new tire on front and back for every race. I don’t know if a new tire would help out every race unless it is muddy. The pro riders have sponsors from tire companies, so they can get a new tire for every race and practicing.

Tire sponsors for bikes in GNCC:
•KTM- Michelin
•Yamaha-Dunlop
•Kawasaki-Michelin
•Honda-Bridgestone
•Suzuki-Dunlop

Most stock bikes that come from factory come with either Bridgestone tire or Dunlop.
I try to have a new tire for every race, but it gets too expensive. For a front tire on average it cost 60 dollars and for the back it’s an average of 70-80 dollars. For me I ride KTM and I am staying with Michelin, but with no sponsor so it is hard to buy a new tire every week.

When it comes to tire pressure everyone has their own way. I usually leave around 10 pounds of air in my tire to get good traction.

I can remember one race how it rained for two or three days and I had put a new front and back Michelin tires on and it help out so much. I would come to a hill and everyone would be stuck on it and I would go right up it because I had so much traction. With new tires and the tire pressure so low I had tons of traction and could anywhere.

All riders have their own tire selection and tire pressure, but it is how you ride and how it feels to you.

I have raced in the sand before and they do make sand tires for dirt bikes. They look like paddles and work really good and they get awesome traction.

They make all sorts of tires that you can choose from and it depends on the track and weather. It also depends on the rider and what tire he thinks will help him out.