This week I will break down the single most important part of the race. Everyone wants to know and asks the question “how do I get a holeshot”? Here it is in detail, enjoy….

Starts are mental and you must be able to visualize the holeshot and how your going to do it before it will happen. It will take you being one with the machine and relaxed. Once you can feel confident and comfortable in what I am about to explain your on the way to consistent holeshots. The student I will be using this week is Austin Forkner and if you know who he is then you will understand why I chose him to demonstrate. Gate pick is very important and must choose a gate you feel confident in and will take you in a straight line to the first turn but at the same time allows you to make a clean transition through the first turn. From there you will need to know how to prep the gate you chose. Depending on the
texture of the dirt is how you will do so. Finer conditions like sand and lome must be packed tighter then clay conditions in which you will not pack as tight under the real wheel due to it being tackier. The conditions Austin is starting in is clay base and had to be packed tight up to the real wheel and once we got to the rear wheel I left about half a inch of soft dirt. Reason being is because initially the bike has a greater chance of bogging down when the clutch is released due to being extremely tacky. The loose compound under the rear wheel will allow for the bike to break loose a little then hook up once past the loose dirt and will eliminate the bog. The next thing is fine tuning your body position so you can balance out the bike and compress the suspension for the conditions of the start. You will notice in tackier conditions Austin has his butt a little past the groove of the seat and hips unlocked so he can weight the bike down and transfer weight where needed to maximize on his traction. His chin/head is over the bars to keep the front in down, feet turned in and in front of the pegs to balance and grab shift when needed. The next few steps I am about to explain are very important because you must know your motorcycle and how it is going to react. Austin has his bike’s RPM’s up to three quarters throttle and once he starts to release the clutch he accelerates to full throttle. As he leaves the gate he picks his chest up and slides back to maximize on his traction while lifting his feet to grab a shift and put back on the pegs. Now watch and enjoy…