(ED-Yamaha has thrown its hat
into the professional hillclimbing race circuit this season for the first time
in a lot of years and we've asked one of its Pro hillclimb racers, Cable
Willford, to share his racing experiences this season. Willford competed last
season on a Yamaha Nytro but as an independent. This year he has full race
support from Yamaha. Here is his eighth blog, which will be followed by post
race blog after the Schweitzer Mtn. Hillclimb
near Sandpoint, ID. We think it will be interesting to
follow Willford as he helps to try to put Yamaha on the map-hillclimbing wise
that is.)
By Cable Willford
Beaver Mtn.
was a fun race and a great weekend. As usual, the hill was filled with
jumps, whoops and big bermed corners. The well-balanced flight characteristics
of our Yamaha Nytros kept us competitive on the high flying course and we
qualified fairly well in the 600-700cc classes.
Snow conditions were sketchy at
best, but cold temps and a few inches of fresh helped the hill survive on
Friday. Saturday's sunny skies and warmer weather made for sloppy conditions
similar to a 7-11 Slurpee. The bizarre weather patterns that seem to define
this winter were evident as we had both ends of the spectrum in full swing at Beaver Mtn.
RMSHA racing got a glimpse into
the future with the introduction of the "Mountain Cross" classes.
This bar to bar action was highly entertaining to watch and even better as a
competitor. Both Mod and Stock classes were run with an elimination style
format and 2-4 sleds would duke it out from bottom to top.
Schweitzer Mtn. will host
our next event with the year-end points championships as the Powder Mtn. race
near Ogden, UT, had to be cancelled due to snow conditions. The 16-hour drive from
Colorado to Sandpoint, ID,
will be a tough pill to swallow, but the wide variety of racing at Sledfest
weekend promises to make the journey a worthwhile experience.