Ola Chicos

 Awright, progressing well towards the new off-road racing seasons thought few hick ups along the way.  So, let's start by what has happened over the last 2 months.    

When I got back to Dubai, all the parts to turn the Kove into racing machine had arrived from China and I took the bike immy to Robby at MX performance to mount the steering damper, the Michelin desert tyre, the bibe mousse, the titanium exhaust, the race spec ECU and, equally important, the Navigation tower.  

According to Robbie the wiring was a nightmare as all instructions were in Chinese 😂😂

Anyway, after a week of work, the bike was ready for a proper test ride.   But had no means of transportation as it is not advisable to ride with off road tyre and mousse on the road (unless you are ready to change them every few hundreds Km).   Considering, my son wanted to buy a car, I made a deal with him that if he purchased a pickup, then I would chip in with the option of using at my own leisure on demand.   Deal was made and I am now the co-owner of a F150 Raptor with long bed.  

Ideal to transport my Kove or my CRF from race to race.

Meanwhile, few riders were coming back from their summer break and GOT organized a social evening to welcome everyone's back and to kick off the adventure bike season.  

So, following that diner Jorge and a crew consisting of Luigi, and Alejo organized a ride in the Ras Al Khaimah desert which turned out to be a great morning out. 

The following weekend, I headed out into the Al Qadr desert with Bruce to test the Kove

First impressions after the upgrade to race specification were great.  The bike had much more power and wasn't struggling to get up the dunes.   It will take lot more hours of training to get the right momentum, but they bike behaved well.  

Although the suspension worked well, I felt they were a bit loose, so I attended a workshop organized by Jorge from Imotobiker to set the suspension right.  

When I took the Kove back out in the desert with few friends, it raised the interest of few other riders. 

The ride went fine until I got stuck in soft sand.  Nothing unusual really, just need to lay the bike down, get her out of the hole and start up again.   Except that this time, the Kove would not start.  After 20 minutes and almost draining the battery, I push the kill switch button and heard the fuel pump ignite, so was able to ride back to camp.   My first thought was the bike must have a sensor and to reactivate the start button, I needed to turn on/off the kill switch, weird but possible.   In reality, I was proud of myself to have made that discovery.    

Far from it, few days later, I tried to start the bike for another ride, but the battery was dead.   I thought to myself that I had not switched the key off and only used the kill switch which was responsible for the problem.   No issue, I jumped started it with cable and headed off to the desert to continue training.   Luckily, I had enough gas because when I got to the petrol station, the bike would not turn off.   Neither with the key nor with the kill switch button.   Headed back to camp and loaded the bike on the pickup and took it to Robbie.   

After many diagnoses, and changing the battery, it appeared that the ignition relay which controls the ignition but also the fuel pump was defaulting.  

As the bike was still under warranty, I loaded up again and took it to the dealership for changing.   To make long story short, and after 2 days of testing, it looks like the Race Spec ECU is heating up too much and is responsible for the damage.   I have contacte Kove Racing in France and they have the race spec ECU in stock so hopefully the part won't be damaged, and I'll be able to get back on the Kove shortly.  In the meantime. it's CRF time. 

On the Admin side, things are not going as planned 😡😡  The plan for this year is to do Abu Dhabi baja challenge (1 day race, approx 2-3hr), Emirates Adventure rally, Dubai Enduro Cross, all requiring a National License which I presently hold but also Qatar & Dubai Intl baja which are FIM sanctioned race and requiring an International License.   

For riders over 50, the delivery of the international license requires that I must undergo an electrocardiogram, a tolerance test (called Bruce test), an eye test, a tetanus shot, a first aid certification, and an Anti-doping certification.   Only when all of these are completed, am I allowed to apply.   

And happy to say, I passed all of them with success only to be told by Emirates Motorcycle Sport Organisation that my application was rejected due to my lack of recent racing experience.   A bit strange when a license is required to race and to obtain a license you need to do races.   It's the snake biting is tail....

Anyway, after lots of discussion with the committee, they have allowed me to take an assessment test consisting of 120km desert ride with Mohammad Balooshi (UAE Dakar finisher) and only after that they will make a decision......You guys will have to wait till next update to find out... 

Meanwhile, I registered to do the Emirates Adventure rally consisting of 3 stages, one in the rocks and waddies, one half rocks half sand, and the last one only sand.  Last week, we had a Q&A session at Cafe Rider to go over the details of the races.   

It got us so motivated that Maddi, Jorge and I went on training the next day on our big bikes.  

Otherwise, I got myself an airbag that cost me a fortune, ordered decal for the Kove and riding kit for the season.

And to finish this last update, I started working on the marketing side to build my profile and possibly attract viewers, followers, and partners.   

The mission will be around 3 main themes:  Sustainability, Safety and Resilience.  I will explain why later.  I contacted a community manager, and we will meet shortly.  More to talk about in the next update.   

 Summer has started and temperature are reaching level like never before.   Time to head towards Europe for more moderate climate and enjoy a bit of free time off work.  But before heading out, there was TT isle of Man beginning June.  Furiosa racing organized a fascinating session with Dave, who has raced the Tourist Trophy many times to give us an insight on the craziest onroad race on the planet.  

Whilst I am always tempted to do things out of the ordinary, and believe I can do anything in life, this race is beyond my wildest dream and my basic riding ability.  But although I won't race it, I definitely need to plan a trip up there and enjoy the atmosphere which seems out of this world. 

Then it was time to park the bikes at home so they would not suffer from the heat outside.   So could not find a better place than putting them in the living room.   

And time to fly home to scroll around the med with the miss on the Vespa.    

I also spent time tidy up my workshop at home and use the time available to do bit of work on the Dyna by adding a road racing headlight cover to give it more style.  A biker's work is never done.... I noticed there was a short on the starter mechanism which I was not able to fix and that kept bothering me while I was there.  I will need to sort this out next time around if I want to continue Harley cruising in South of France.  And finally, I really need to think about painting the bike.   Oh well, for some other time.   

Use the opportunity to be in France to buy some apparel for next year racing season as they are lot cheaper there than here.  I got myself a k4 Pod Knee Brace and LS2 X-force carbon helmet. 

 Then after this short break, back in Dubai to face the heat and get some hours on this Kove which I plan to race this season.  Talking about racing, there are new rules apply in the international racing world.   Even veteran and mediocre rider like me need to wear an offroad airbag if they intend to race.  So GOT organized a session at Oldtimers to go over the feature of the latest Alpine Star Offroad airbag jacket.  Jeee, this thing cost a fortune, but I must admit, it looks to be quite efficient.  I am presently hesitating between Alpine Star and Helite as a brand.  The advantage is that Alpine Star has a dealer here and can do the maintenance and have supply rapidly available.   Those jacket needs to be maintained after 4 deflations.  And for me, falling down on a bike is a regular occurrence...   

So now that I was back in Dubai it was time to think about next season's racing.   So training, licensing, communicating and motorcycle & riding kit readiness.   To start, I contacted Emso for the international racing license requirement and cost.  As a pre-requisite I need to do an electrocardiogram, a tolerance fitness test, and an eye test to see if I am fit for riding.  All of this under the supervision of a doctor.  Secondly, I need to register towards WADA and take the anti-doping certificate.  And finally, pay a decent amount of money for the license itself.  So, I registered and passed with honor the anti-doping test which, with the online course, lasted a good 3 hrs.   

I signed up for the electrocardiogram fitness test and that will take place in August.  I am still awaiting to see an optician for my eyes and then send all the documentation and money back to Emso and wait for my license.  I have also made up a physical training program consisting of cardio (run and bicycle), muscle strengthening and mobility exercises.  And on the top of that I schedule 3 riding session per week.  One focused on technic on desert track, one long distance desert riding, and one on trails riding (whenever possible).  Meanwhile, I received all the spares to upgrade the standard Kove to rally racing version.  That included, ERTF navigation kit, the navigation towers, the pro ECU, the titanium exhaust, and various bits and pieces needed for proper set up.  But before the upgrade time for running in of the Kove.  My intention is to break the engine for 2000km and then do all the pro racing upgrade later.   So, with few guys from Get Out there we hit the Al qadr desert tracks. 

For the communication, bike graphic and riding kit parts, I have to admit that I am struggling a bit.  I am presently working with Seb fm motozone to come up with the graphics, with another seb at Kenny racing for the riding kit and I reached out to a freelance community manager to work on my social media which will be needed to reach out sponsors at later stage.  And finally, I have redesigned my Uxpat logo to fit the offroad racing image needed.  So far, this is where I got.  

Now let's move on to stuff I shamelessly stole over the internet to finish today update. 

Ola Amigos

 

Well riding season in Dubai is reaching the end.   Last weekend at 11h30 it was already 47 deg Celsius with high humidity making standing outside unbearable.

So, to finalize 2024 winter riding season before it restarts in Oct, GOT organized a swap meet at Café Rider which was well attended.   And for the sum of 100aed, I ended up buying some soft side luggage which normally goes for 10 or 15 time that price.   A bargain….

The day after George, Ewan, Andrew, and myself set ourselves to hit the wadis with our adventure bikes thought George and Andrew selected to ride their EXC.  

The Tenere handled very well.  

The pace in the group was great and we covered lot of terrain during short amount of time.   With only one exception, which cost us dearly in the heat when Andrew gone in reconnaissance drove over some barbwire which took 30 min to remove.  

With the heat reaching its peak, we opted for our favourite Paratha place and cool down over there before heading home. 

Meanwhile the CRF was at the shop for overhaul of the engine (top end and gear box), change of seat cover, bearings change, rear chain guard and protection.  

I picked it up on Sunday to run in the engine and it feels like brand new.  I have removed the 11L tank and put the original back in because I had contemplating selling it to free up some cash for next year rally season, but she is just too valuable.     

In preparation for next year riding season where I intend to race in the Dubai Intl Baja, Abu Dhabi Baja series, and ideally the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge, I have been torn in mounting my CRF into a rally bike or simply buy the Kove 450 which had great review and could be a good beginner’s bike.  

After numerous sleepless nights, and prior to heading to Europe for work, I decided to sell my Ducati Panigale and take the cash to buy the Kove 450 Rally. 

If I want to do track days next year, then I will simply rent a bike.   In addition, I want to try other track bikes and experience different sensation on different bikes.   So, I took the cash from the Ducati and headed over to Velocity Bike to buy the Kove 450 Rally.   I store the Kove at home and headed over to Europe for work.   I managed to spend a weekend at home and say hello to my Harleys and Vespa.   

I charged them overnight but none of them started in the morning.   I wanted to take a quick spin into town but couldn’t.   Let’s hope for better outcome when I go back to France end of June.  

With the bike in the shop, one weekend on Track, I had not been in the desert for almost one month (apart from running in the CRF).   So, I came back to Dubai and was looking for desert action despite the heat.  

On Saturday, I joined the community ride with Seb. 

It was first time out since the engine rebuilt.   She handled beautifully and I really enjoyed my morning.  

 Then on Sunday, it was time to try the Kove off-road.   First feeling is mixed if I compare with the CRF though one is a MX bike and the other a Rally bike.   The bike wobble on straight line in the sand, it lacks power at low rev, suspension feel soft, and the stock tyre are not made for dunes.   Despite this, the bike feels easy to handle.  So, if I install a steering damper to stop the wobbling, adjust the suspension, install a competition ECU/exhaust to gain more power, and put proper desert tyre, I should be in very good position. 

As the riding season in the Middle East slows down and I will also be taking a break in Europe for few weeks, I will use this time to physically prepare for next season.  I realise that unless my body is fit, I won’t be able to progress but most importantly to enjoy.   My plan for next 3 months to build the physical foundation to be fit for next season by doing 1hr of cardio, ½hr strengthening, 1/2hr of mobility exercise per day throughout the summer. 

As usual, few pics stolen from the net.