Ask Ping

Mike,

Red Bull Straight Rhythm was, by all accounts, a hit. There were some hiccups with the length of the event, media access, and things like that, but from a racing standpoint it was fun to watch. The cool thing about Red Bull is they think very outside of the box. This event could be even better if it were held in a random location that you would never think to see something like this, like a city street or a boardwalk at the beach. Now that other riders have seen the format and how it works, they will want to show up next time. I don't know if it met expectations from Red Bull's perspective, but I think it could be an event we see regularly. As for Travis Pastrana and that beast of a 500 he was riding, I still haven't stopped shaking my head. That guy is so out of his mind that he should be on a heavy therapeutic dose of lithium. I know he's broken a lot of bones, but when you consider the risks he takes, he has literally cheated death thousands of times. I hope he never stops riding because it's always a show when he's around.

PING

 

Ping,

What’s the deal with all of the manufactures going to air forks? I understand the concept behind them being saving weight and making it possible to adjust the settings without having to change springs, but from they sure don’t seem so simple to dial in especially when you have top pros switching back to spring forks. If the factory riders have the best mechanics in the world paired with abundant testing time and they’re still switching back to the spring forks, how is the average racer expected to dial a bike in with these things? It just seems like unless you have way too much money and time, your destined to ride with air forks that you can’t find a setting you’re comfortable with.

Also, use your power to get the manufactures to switch the rebound settings from hard and soft to fast and slow-it will make life much simpler.

Thanks and keep my Friday procrastination rolling weekly with your article.

Matt-119

Minnesota transfer aka the new Martin..really not really

Matt,

If I had a dollar for every question I've receive about air forks, I would fly to Japan, buy Showa and KYB, and shut down production of the air fork. They are cheaper to produce, lighter than a spring fork, and can be made to work well with the right setting. Just like their spring counterparts, some manufacturers came up with a good stock setting on the air fork and others…not so much. For the most part, our test riders have had very good things to say about Kawasaki's fork on their 450, but most have not liked the front end on the Honda 450. They both use the same fork with a slightly different design, but, like any fork, setup is critical. There is going to be a learning curve for everyone on the air fork, but it does work well once you find that setting. The important part will be learning which chambers influence which part of the system and making the proper adjustments. Dialing these forks in is not rocket science, but if you are a total window-licker you might become frustrated with the dynamics of all the chambers. If that happens, just take a deep breath, put your safety helmet back on, and try sounding out the words on the owners manual. You'll get it eventually, you crayon-eating snowflake. I believe in you.

PING

 

Ping,   

All this RV talk has me thinking… Sometimes you hear riders later in their career complaining about how things have gotten old and stale and are no fun anymore. Why don't more riders follow the likes of Mike Brown and try something completely different? Something like racing Grand Prix's, Endurocross , Romaniacs, the 6 days enduro, hill climb competitions?  Now I'm not being ignorant, I know they are good at what they do and don't want to look like fools when they have been top dog there whole career.  Looking forward to your answer.         
Thanks,    

Kai
Oregon coast