Racing that Bites
Staying upright with only two wheels on a zero-friction surface is a recipe for disaster, so motorcyclists generally avoid ice at all costs. But what if you drill about a thousand screws into your tires to give them some bite? Welcome to the world of motorcycle ice racing.
Largely a club sport, there is some money to be won on the circuit. Mostly, though, racers fortunate enough to have a local ice track gather to compete against friends and family, and have a heck of a lot of fun.
John Castagna and his son Brendan, 6, were among those competing this weekend on a frozen lake at Rainbow Falls Park in Colorado. Castagna has ridden motorcycles all his life and competed previously in motocross. He was introduced to ice racing when he moved to Colorado in 1994 but had drifted away from it.
"I always thought when I was racing before that it was a great thing to do with your family," he said. Now that he has his own family he is back.
Castagna rides a Kawasaki KX250 with studded tires that he shares with the friend who introduced him to ice racing. Brendan rides his Yamaha PW50 in the bare-tire outrigger class. Bikes in that class have no screws in their tires but they have small wheels on both sides to act as outriggers.
"That way they have no fear of falling and they can just give it the gas," said Castagna.
With Brendan spinning donuts nearby, Castagna explained the modifications he makes to the bikes they ride on the dirt in the summer in order to race on the ice. First there are the screws or studs, and then the ice fenders. These are regular fenders but they are mounted in a position "so you don't run these ice screws through your competitor." They're also oversized for the tires in order to accommodate the added bulk of the screws. One extra bit of equipment required at places such as Rainbow Falls Park is a catch can to prevent engine fluids from dripping onto the ice and polluting the water come the spring thaw.
Front brakes also get removed. To slow down for a turn, Castagna explains, "You back off on the throttle, drift the rear wheel out, and then power out of the curve." Despite the ice, the screws give such good traction that racers lean the bikes almost onto their side, with their inside foot sliding just like in dirt track racing.
Out on the ice the racers blaze around the track and scream through the curves, showering spectators with a cloud of ice crystals gouged from the lake's surface and flung into the air by the screws in their tires. Occasionally one will lose it and go sliding across the ice into the snow berm that rings the track. Then he or she will lift the bike back up, hop on, fire it up, and tear off after the pack again.
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About The Author
In addition to writing for Rum Bum, Ken Bingenheimer writes for The Examiner, as well as other publications. A lifelong writer, and a longtime biker, he figures that writing about motorcycles is the perfect job.
