JPL and many smiles!
Posted: Tue Nov 25, 2003 10:05 pm
O.K., where to begin. Nov. 21, Friday night had serious winds and I thought the race course would be difficult in those high winds. But, Saturday morning came and it was an absolutely beautiful Los Angeles morning. I had never been to the JPL hill, which is rather burly, it goes around a bend as it descends, awesome! Even at full bore it will take 20 seconds to get down the hill. It is a closed road and very close to Gorman’s (no wonder Mike is getting so good!). Equipment seemed to be mixed. There was a little of everything present, Turners, Ick, Bahne,Pocket Pistols, Comets, G&S, Gravity and a Vaughnster. Many guys are going to Radikals, offsets were used for most rear trucks either Tracker or Indy offsets. Some Seismics and Randall’s were ridden as well. Noah was on PVD’s along with 1 or 2 more.
The wheel situation is boiling down to Gumballs and the 3dms. Many mixed duros, I rode red Avilas all the way around (I copied Gorman) and a few were on Avalons or Flashbacks. Some guys are shaving their wheels. These guys are usually faster than everybody else.
There were around 30 racers. Richie looked hot, so did Noah. Fluitt was going for it. the Turner guys had an awesome display of downhill weaponry. The new 39" rolled edge is absolutely beautiful. Jon O is so casual that he makes most big hills look easy. There were a couple of falls and close calls, but no one was hurt other than the normal raspberries associated with skating. David Carrasco is skating very well. The upper crust of the Open class, Noah and Chris Barker are really pushing the pros. It all boiled down to a 1 cone difference for Noah, as Richy won. .2 second cone penalty for the G/S can hurt! The Rogers Bros are really getting into it. Lynn Kramer and Isabelle represented the women. Jack Smith looked very smooth and was charging. Kosick was riding his Turner, he is really incredible to watch. The course was a blast and there were no complaints that I heard. Howard (3dm) lent Mike his timer and there were no timing problems other than a few re-runs. It was a great race and a great Birthday for Cliff Coleman.
The wheel situation is boiling down to Gumballs and the 3dms. Many mixed duros, I rode red Avilas all the way around (I copied Gorman) and a few were on Avalons or Flashbacks. Some guys are shaving their wheels. These guys are usually faster than everybody else.
There were around 30 racers. Richie looked hot, so did Noah. Fluitt was going for it. the Turner guys had an awesome display of downhill weaponry. The new 39" rolled edge is absolutely beautiful. Jon O is so casual that he makes most big hills look easy. There were a couple of falls and close calls, but no one was hurt other than the normal raspberries associated with skating. David Carrasco is skating very well. The upper crust of the Open class, Noah and Chris Barker are really pushing the pros. It all boiled down to a 1 cone difference for Noah, as Richy won. .2 second cone penalty for the G/S can hurt! The Rogers Bros are really getting into it. Lynn Kramer and Isabelle represented the women. Jack Smith looked very smooth and was charging. Kosick was riding his Turner, he is really incredible to watch. The course was a blast and there were no complaints that I heard. Howard (3dm) lent Mike his timer and there were no timing problems other than a few re-runs. It was a great race and a great Birthday for Cliff Coleman.