Hi Folks,
I'm new to this forum, actually introduced myself in the "New" - section (hope that thread is released before this one;-)).
Now, I have a question, which became almost some kind of "desire for knowledge".
Here some background:
I started with motocross with an age of ~13-14, These bikes were pretty light and handy, as 2-strokes are designed like that. Later I also started some streetriding on a Enduro (Honda XR600R), but kept on motocross riding aswell. My first touch with streetbikes came in the mid-20's, when I purchased my first one, a Honda CBR 600F4, a Fireblade followed. Until that moment, only streetriding, no track. After the blade, my first Ducati followed, a 748 and with that bike a love or passion for those italian twins, which held on for the following 12 years. So I started racetrack-riding with them, now, since about 6 years, "racetrack only" (no streetriding anymore).
So beside some supermoto-riding, I was only with that twins at the track, which was kind of "secure" when I started, as those bikes where pretty much stable and the low reving, "continious powering" engine was easy to ride for a novice.
Anyway: When I got faster, I felt that the lack of handling against japanese bikes did harm to my development in gaining riding skills, as my riding-style is more like: "getting late, but fast into the curves, staying short at full lean, upright and power". That's why I come pretty good along with supermoto (I'm faster by far against my colleagues, which are again outriding me at the track!!).
So, let's try to come to the point: Is it possible, that one can develope a certain riding-style (in my case, started with that light mx-bikes) which is going to follow him for the rest of his life and will NOT suit certain bikes, as their design expect a different one??
Has anyone here made a similar experience??
For me, when I got faster, I kind of felt unfamiliar or uncomfortable on the Duc's, as I simply couldn't turn them into a curve very fast, which didn't gave me a good feel at the limit, so limitation in "pushing" was programmed. I always thought that I'm simply lacking talent for racetrack-riding, but wondered why I came along so much better with Sumpermoto.
Now, it could have rested at that state, if an experience of a certain wouldn't have changed my mind:
Last year, I sold my old Ducati 998S to get a newer 1198S, when I stuck without a bike for about 2 month. My mate borrowed me his 2nd bike, an 2004 Aprilia RSV2. Still a twin but sure a lot different layout and surely different handling.
A day which started with a comment like "what an ugly piece of ######, I'm not going to come as near as 5 secs onto my laptime", turned into one that changed my mind and point of view of the whole sport and my situation at all. A bike that was surely 15Hp down on power against my known and proven 998S, with stock suspension against a well tuned Duc, turned out to put me 0,46 secs near to my personal record at that track!!! And HOW it did: I could ride lines, like I wanted....intuitive....the bike "fell" into curves, instead me muscle it and the feeling for the front (something I never had with ducs, even after tweaking the forks highly!!) was there. No problem with less power, as the riding style put the bike earlier and evener to the straight, that you could pull the trigger earlier and harder!!
In the end I was less tired, relaxed and absolutely released and happy. An experience which was ABSOLUTELY emotionally, as I never liked Apes before but what I felt just blew me!!
Now I had a saison with my never Ducati (1198S), which is surely a good bike but also did'nt gave me that feel and simply that FUN that I had with the RSV!!
I'm about to sell it and buy an Ape, because of this experience.
Am I fooling myself and did not work enough to gain the skills to ride duc, and are Ape's just easier to ride?? Or is it possible that man simply has a riding style that fits to one bike and not the other??
Your thoughts on that are highly aprreciated, thanks in advance!!
