Indiana
Hill & Gully Riders/Grand Kankakee Trail Riders
Roselawn
Ah, Naked City, land of middle-aged, fat and saggy naked people. Each year the Hill & Gully Riders and the Grand
Kankakee Trail Riders host a couple of fun enduros near Roselawn. The courses usually run through woods owned by
nudist camps - hence the Naked City nickname. If it's warm and sunny, naked people come out and spectate alongside
the trail. Don't get your hopes up, however - it's never what you want it to be.
Roselawn is a nice diversion from the black dirt that makes up most Indiana and Illinois enduros and hare scrambles. The
whole area is covered with sand, like the kind you find near beaches. The clubs use many of the same trails every year,
so there are plenty of deep whoop sections that go on for miles. But the best part of the races (no, not the naked people)
is that there's hardly any mud. Now, in the old days there used to be a huge swamp around the Naked City air strip, but
that was drained several years ago. Expect to see some of the tightest woods in the Midwest. The sand is very loose
and the whoops are very large. The courses are usually about 60 ground miles and the resets are long enough that
there's often plenty of time to rest (or get caught back up). I've done these enduros more times than I can remember and
they remain my personal favorites. Guys like Jeff Snedcor will still remind me (often) of the time I forgot to pull the rag out
of the airbox before this race.....
Culver
This part of northern Indiana has a Roselawn-type feel, with light, sandy soil. The woods are tight, there's some mud
here and there and hardly a rock to be found. The hare scrambles course, hosted by the Plymouth Backhawks club, is
on a farm and most of the races there are part of the District 15 series. I did an enduro here in 1998, standard Cornbelt
style with several woods sections separated by back roads. The property is wells suited for wet conditions and is large
enough for 8-9 mile loops.
Kingman
The woods here remind me of my dad's farm where I used to practice - very tight and muddy after a rain. The race site
was about an hour from where I grew up, which is probably the terrain was so very similar. A creek ran through the
property and was crossed many times. One part of it became very nasty when I raced here in May 2000. Each time I
approached that section, it was like a dirt bike version of Apocalypse Now, with bike after bike oozing steam and guys
struggling to push their way up the creek bank.
Riders Motorcycle Club
New Paris
I did my first enduro here in 1995, and it was a little sloppy. The enduro is an annual event in November, so it is usually
cool and moist. The trails are full of many, many fallen trees, so it helps to have mastered the art of log hopping before
doing this race. The woods are as tight as you would expect for northern Indiana. The promoters do a good job with this
race, and it's sometimes on the AMA's National Enduro Series schedule. The club is, however, very strict about requiring
working lights on bikes and license plates. Without them, it's tough to pass the bike inspection.
Ligonier
I tried out this race in 2005 and really enjoyed the course. It's a smaller version of White City, Illinois with woods that flow
well and relatively tight trails. Although the property has no rocks to speak of, rains will make this course challenging.
Some areas have a bit of sand, which is typical for Northern Indiana.
Grand National Cross Country series
Crawfordsville
Site of the Ironman GNCC, this property is the most wide open woods I've seen in Indiana. Due to the number of bikes
and quads that beat up the course during the weekend of racing, it can be a rough 3 hours. At this race in 2005 I climbed
one of the longest, steepest hills I've ever attempted. Some of the creek beds have rocks, but the woods are mostly free
of anything except dirt and mud. It's a fun course but very choppy and fast.
Muddobers Motorcycle Club
Upland
Besides the flowing singletrack and loamy soil, the most impressive part of the Upland Enduro was how close the
community allows dirt bikes to ride around the town, and how much help they get from local law enforcement in protecting
the safety of the riders. As for the trails, the soil is typical of the Corn Belt: good for growing stuff and nice to ride on a
motorcycle when it's dry. Those were exactly the conditions, requiring no bike washing after the race. The woods can be
tight, the terrain is filled with short climbs and gullies, and the trail is usually routed across several large creeks. Rocks
are moderate and can be found mainly at the water crossings.
Roselawn
Ah, Naked City, land of middle-aged, fat and saggy naked people. Each year the Hill & Gully Riders and the Grand
Kankakee Trail Riders host a couple of fun enduros near Roselawn. The courses usually run through woods owned by
nudist camps - hence the Naked City nickname. If it's warm and sunny, naked people come out and spectate alongside
the trail. Don't get your hopes up, however - it's never what you want it to be.
Roselawn is a nice diversion from the black dirt that makes up most Indiana and Illinois enduros and hare scrambles. The
whole area is covered with sand, like the kind you find near beaches. The clubs use many of the same trails every year,
so there are plenty of deep whoop sections that go on for miles. But the best part of the races (no, not the naked people)
is that there's hardly any mud. Now, in the old days there used to be a huge swamp around the Naked City air strip, but
that was drained several years ago. Expect to see some of the tightest woods in the Midwest. The sand is very loose
and the whoops are very large. The courses are usually about 60 ground miles and the resets are long enough that
there's often plenty of time to rest (or get caught back up). I've done these enduros more times than I can remember and
they remain my personal favorites. Guys like Jeff Snedcor will still remind me (often) of the time I forgot to pull the rag out
of the airbox before this race.....
Culver
This part of northern Indiana has a Roselawn-type feel, with light, sandy soil. The woods are tight, there's some mud
here and there and hardly a rock to be found. The hare scrambles course, hosted by the Plymouth Backhawks club, is
on a farm and most of the races there are part of the District 15 series. I did an enduro here in 1998, standard Cornbelt
style with several woods sections separated by back roads. The property is wells suited for wet conditions and is large
enough for 8-9 mile loops.
Kingman
The woods here remind me of my dad's farm where I used to practice - very tight and muddy after a rain. The race site
was about an hour from where I grew up, which is probably the terrain was so very similar. A creek ran through the
property and was crossed many times. One part of it became very nasty when I raced here in May 2000. Each time I
approached that section, it was like a dirt bike version of Apocalypse Now, with bike after bike oozing steam and guys
struggling to push their way up the creek bank.
Riders Motorcycle Club
New Paris
I did my first enduro here in 1995, and it was a little sloppy. The enduro is an annual event in November, so it is usually
cool and moist. The trails are full of many, many fallen trees, so it helps to have mastered the art of log hopping before
doing this race. The woods are as tight as you would expect for northern Indiana. The promoters do a good job with this
race, and it's sometimes on the AMA's National Enduro Series schedule. The club is, however, very strict about requiring
working lights on bikes and license plates. Without them, it's tough to pass the bike inspection.
Ligonier
I tried out this race in 2005 and really enjoyed the course. It's a smaller version of White City, Illinois with woods that flow
well and relatively tight trails. Although the property has no rocks to speak of, rains will make this course challenging.
Some areas have a bit of sand, which is typical for Northern Indiana.
Grand National Cross Country series
Crawfordsville
Site of the Ironman GNCC, this property is the most wide open woods I've seen in Indiana. Due to the number of bikes
and quads that beat up the course during the weekend of racing, it can be a rough 3 hours. At this race in 2005 I climbed
one of the longest, steepest hills I've ever attempted. Some of the creek beds have rocks, but the woods are mostly free
of anything except dirt and mud. It's a fun course but very choppy and fast.
Muddobers Motorcycle Club
Upland
Besides the flowing singletrack and loamy soil, the most impressive part of the Upland Enduro was how close the
community allows dirt bikes to ride around the town, and how much help they get from local law enforcement in protecting
the safety of the riders. As for the trails, the soil is typical of the Corn Belt: good for growing stuff and nice to ride on a
motorcycle when it's dry. Those were exactly the conditions, requiring no bike washing after the race. The woods can be
tight, the terrain is filled with short climbs and gullies, and the trail is usually routed across several large creeks. Rocks
are moderate and can be found mainly at the water crossings.
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