I know many here have heard of it. I remember learning of it reading DirtWheels & 3-Wheelin magazines in the mid-80's as a teenager. I dreamed of racing it one day, but never to be as it last ran in 1993. So, anyone ever experience any part of it (raced, spectated)? If so, would love to here any stories. Great article w/pics I found over on ADVRider's site. Look at the joy the spectators had!! And the crowds!! Freakin' awesome!! Enjoy!! https://www.readmeta.com/blog/2018/...9QhZwSThCHdcu8IWfQ3cCzDk0jL63NYC2XJlINVEP4uKk
I remember it! Man that brings back memories reading about it in those same mags! It looked like the funnest thing on Earth I dreamed about doing it too! Thanks for posting!
it was legendary no doubt ! It's gone the way of profits though. People need to have a good time today, at least a good portion of em do, to get them to come BACK and spend money AGAIN. National Enduro Promotions Group (NEPG) is a good example. It's the national enduro series (bikes only, no quads like GNCC), is run by Alan Rand. He took over a few years back and nearly all the course is passable by even "C" level riders (better than beginners, no where near pro). Of the 6 sections, 1 section is A, AA and Pro only.. as it's a bit tougher, sometimes WAY tougher than the other 5 sections. But, this is how you get people to come back. Fastest wins, some still wont' finish, especially if it rains a bunch, but without people coming back, there's not enough money to keep the series going...
I remember it well.....never attended it but eagerly awaited as a youngin' for footage to air on MotoWorld each year the event came around. What was that infamous part, the Highway 93 river crossing?
That's the rear brake rotor. less unsprung weight and worked fine until it got hot... or the chain stretched beyond the very limited adjustment range...
I had the VHS set of these races and wore them out. After the Blackwater they claimed the Wisp GNCC took over for it and then when it died the Snowshoe round took or at least that was the buzz around the GNCC crowd. The Wisp was a nasty Mfer also, never raced the Snowshoe variation.
ahh, mud fleas... I never raced Blackwater but I always read about it and watched the videos. Later while racing my first GNCC I figured out that people still hang out at the hill climbs and mud holes to see the carnage. Always knew something was coming up when you saw a crowd in the woods.
FYI http://www.arcadiabarkbusters.com/24-hr-1.html https://dirtbikemagazine.com/amp/perry-mountain-24-hour-challenge/
This was the advice I got going in but apparently the spectators figured it out. They would sneak in overnight , dig out areas of the creek crossings leaving small mounds to stand on.... I found this out the hard way when I decided the fastest way around the bottleneck was straight through the spectators and wound up sunk up to the gas cap in muddy water... .. They were great helping me drag the bike out, pulling the plug and flipping it over to pump the water out... anter they finished laughing of course.