who has crossed deep water knows full well how much resistance a foot or two of H2O presents . And there were those hidden rocks . Yep , at any given moment during the crossing , a rider ’ s machine might rear up as it encountered a big goonie , hidden by the muddy water , dumping the rider and / or overturning his mount . And finally , with virtually no momentum built up , riders attacked the far bank . Rough , uneven , nothing but slick , totally saturated clay , and filled with spectators , the chances of a rider successfully cresting the bank were roughly fifty-fifty .
Those who did succeed were met with great cheers . Even greater cheers however , were afforded those riders who crashed and / or looped out on the attempt . And that ’ s when the Mud Fleas sprang into action . “ Mud Fleas ”? Ah , yes . Such was the enthusiasm of spectators who jumped in to assist floundering riders , and such that their resulting efforts totally covered these individuals with mud and muddy water , they attained their own
The Route 93 river crossing . This is what it was all about . Thousands of spectators , rows deep , clouds of two-stroke smoke , and riders trying to make their way through . Check the plume of water behind rider hidden behind the crowd . nickname – The Blackwater 100 Mud Fleas . And indeed , many , many a Blackwater competitor owes their very salvation to these beer-fueled , unselfish , stalwart individuals . After taking in this bizarre action for some time , we drove on back to town , wondering for all the world what had we gotten ourselves into . I did not stick around town to see the finish of the ATV event . They all trickled in eventually , I presume .
A nice dinner and some rest had us about as ready to go as we could be , come Sunday morning . In town , the air was quiet and peaceful , as Blackwater rules required that no machine be started before noon – to preserve the peace , what with virtually every inch of every street in town was packed with cars , trucks , and trailers , as everyone needed to pit somewhere along the course . We found ourselves a good spot , about two blocks short of the start / finish area , and set about making final preparations . I was aboard a KTM 250 E / XC , which over the course of many Ohio Hare Scrambles had proven itself to be capable and reliable . I was running the big tank , so fuel range would be no problem , and typical wet , muddy Ohio events had taught me long ago what waterproofing measures were called for to provide the best protection possible against deep creek and river crossings .
VOL . 6 ISSUE 2 - FEBRUARY 2021 // PAGE 123