stuman
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Posts posted by stuman
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Congrats on the 8th place in qualifying. That is one hell of an accomplishment! (Jealous) Are you gonna go with the three pit stop strategy? Or the splash and go, ride the tire 'til the only rubber left is on the side walls strategy as in years past. Hahahaha..... Or was that the tire you qualified with on friday???
Two stops this year, that one stop thing never worked out for me
Get ready to change them tires quick pal -
I thought it was going to be hot in the middle of the Mojave Desert this weekend and I was right. No surprises where the temperature is concerned. Riding around in the middle of 100 deg. Plus heat in a leather suite is not exactly comfortable, but it’s still pretty fun.
This past Friday was the first round of qualifying for the 6th annual Toyota 200 at Willow Springs. For those unfamiliar with this race it is The Biggest Cash Purse in all of road racing, world wide, with $150,000.00 up for grabs. This race typically draws some good talent with Jason Pridmore winning the inaugural event, Josh Hayes a three time winner, and Jeremy Toye narrowly besting Steve Rapp last year. This year it’s going to be interesting to see who shows up for the race as it conflicts with the final round of the AMA Superbike series at Laguna. Rumors abound about Pridmore coming back and who Carry Andrews will have riding his bike this year, but we won’t know who is really in until next month’s final qualifying round the Friday before the race.
In any case I went up to Willow on Friday to try to put in a decent time and secure my place on the T200 grid and things worked out well. Having not raced my ZX10 on the big track since last year’s T200 it took me a while to come up to speed on the sweeping turns of Big Willow. After a few practice sessions I started to feel like I was getting the flow of the big track and I felt pretty good going into the qualifying session. I ended up turning a 1:25.3 which placed me 8th on the grid. I think that should be good enough to put me solidly in the field for the race. I’ll probably get pushed back a few places during next month’s qualifier just before the race, but I think my time should hold up for a decent grid position. Who knows, maybe I can go a little faster next month and move up. My starting position really doesn’t matter all that much, it’s a long race and a lot can happen in 80 laps at Willow.
http://willowspringsraceway.com/clubs/wsmc...0Qualifying.htm
Saturday was another hot one but I ran a few practice sessions anyway just to get some seat time. I was feeling pretty strong for the 20 lap Solo GTO race that kicked off at 5:00.
At the drop of the green flag for the Solo race I got off pretty well and was able to make a few quick passes in the first few turns. I settled into around 5th place right behind Jack Pfeiffer, which was very entertaining. Jack’s the privateer that finished fourth a couple years ago in the Daytona 200 and is known for his wild riding style. It was very enjoyable, to say the least, to watch Jack light the rear tire up and slide sideways off just about every corner. Jack definitely does not have traction control on his ZX10. After a few laps Jack and I moved up through the field until we ended up with three Advanced Kawasaki ZX10s in the top three places, Robbie Dowie, Jack and I 1,2,3. Later in the race Jack had some problems and pulled in so I inherited second place which is where I would finish, but not without some drama.
You see, one of those quick passes I made in the beginning of the race was a guy named Tyler Paulson. I Jack and I gapped Tyler pretty quick in the beginning of the race but Tyler didn’t give up and clawed his way back to my rear wheel so that when I took a peek back on the last lap he was right on me. I ran a blocking line for the last lap and held Tyler behind me until the front straight. Tyler got da kine drive and I punched a nice big hole through the air for him to draft right up next to me at the checkered flag. I held him off but it was so close at the line that neither of us knew who crossed first until the final results were posted with me finishing second ahead of Tyler.
All in all a very fun weekend even with the heat. I’ll be out for the T200 at Willow on 9/16, wish me luck and stop by my pit if you’re coming to the race.
Of course none of this would be possible without the help I got from The California Superbike School, Advanced Kawasaki, KBC Helmets and Track Dayz.
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Willow Springs
Turn 5
Super deep trail braking up until apex... I dont think you can afford not to trail brake this turn especially with the downhill aspect involved.
This seems like a very bad idea to me. You need to get back on the gas early in 5 or risk tucking the front.
At Willow the only turns I intentionaly trail brake at all would be 3 and 5. In both cases I'm back on the gas well before the apex so I'm not trailing it in very deep. In five I'm releasing the brakes as I transition the bike from straight up and down to left, but by the time I reach my desired lean angle I'm off the brakes and back on the gas, so I mean VERY slight trail braking in 5.
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The bottom line is that every fast racer trailbrakes!!! Trailbraking IS the fastest way around the track period, otherwise the fastest racers wouldnt do it. Read some articles on this speciifc subject or talk to very fast racers, they all do it...
and speaking of generalities. No one is questioning whether or not racers trail brake, most do in SOME corners. I think what Wisquared was asking is why does it seem like at some tracks they do it more frequently then others. Most will agree that it is not a technique that is used in every corner, the question was why do it in some corners or some tracks and not as much in others.
Also, Wisquared is not one to toot his own horn but understand he is not some noob asking for advice, Just FYI he is the current WSMC #1 plate holder.
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Hey Brant,
I think it is important NOT to speak in general terms on this subject. I think trail braking is a specific skill that applies certain corners and certain situations. I really hate it when people try to generalize it and say that ALL the top riders do it in MOST corners and stuff like that. You would have to do an awful lot of research to really figure out which riders are trail braking in which corners. Even the stuff you see on TV can be misleading in that just because someone has their fingers on the front brake doesn’t mean there is any pressure on it.
Anyway, I feel that trail braking can be useful in corners where your slowest speed is somewhere past the point where you turn in. Double Apex corners, decreasing radius, things like that. Miller has a lot of these types of corners so maybe that is why it seems like the riders are trail braking everywhere on that track.
Trail braking is a subject you could write reams about I’m sure, but I’m not up for that. I’d be happy to talk with you about the subject though…
Stu
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That is so cool man! It's great to see someone his age getting involved in the sport and doing so well.
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It means you owe and extra 10% beyond what you paid for the school. You can send the check directly to me
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What: WSMC Streets Series Round 2
Where: Streets of Willow
When:Sunday 5/6/07
Friday practice: Tons of wind, didn’t spend much time on my own race bike as it would have been a waste. Aprilia was doing demo rides so I had fun on a RSV and Tuono for a few sessions.
Sat: Nice day but a big oil spill caused a lot of down time.
Sunday: Entered three races (Open Superstock, Open Modified Production, Open Superbike), lead every lap won every race, set the fastest lap time of the weekend at a 1:18.4 about 1/10 of a second faster then last month.
Press release here:
http://www.roadracingworld.com/news/...?article=28953
Good weekend, looking forward to the Toyota 200
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Racing on The Streets
Not the streets you’re thinking of, I mean The Streets of Willow Springs. That’s probably about as close to a street race as I’ll ever get. The Streets of Willow Springs is the other track. Where the big track or classic Willow Springs as it’s now called is fast and flowing, The Streets is tight and technical. Where the big track rewards courage and momentum, The Streets is a little less scary and has a variety of corners. Both are very fun and challenging, but they are like night and day on opposite sides of the same piece of property.
My race weekend at The Streets got off to a pretty rough start. I showed up Friday for practice totally psyched to race on The Streets having never raced on the track before yet having a million laps around it with The Superbike School. I had been preparing for the race for sometime, training on my bicycle and getting the kinks worked out of my ZX10 at track days. I even got a cool new canopy and some pit shirts for my crew thanks to the California Superbike School. Still with all the time I had to prep it’s a good thing I came out for practice on Friday as I had nothing but problems.
I went out for my first practice on Friday and didn’t even make it through turn two. I had a problem with my master cylinder and when my bike just about did a stoppie without having to squeeze the front brake I figured something was up and I better pull into the dirt. I resolved the problem with my brake and went out for my second session only to find my bike was cutting out coming off the corners and generally running like . I found a problem with the motor to be related to a new feature I added to my Power Commander and was able to get the bike running well between sessions. Things went from bad to worse in the third session when I lost the front in turn three and threw the bike down the road. Luckily there was almost no damage to the bike and the two riders I had just passed were able to avoid running me over. I was able to go out and ride again in the next session but a small problem with the face shield on my new helmet ended my forth session early and at this point I was considering packing it up and going home but I persisted. I figured it couldn’t get any worse and I was right.
After my string of mishaps Friday morning things started to go my way and I was able to get a couple good practice sessions in on Friday afternoon and my lap times started to get into a range I felt was acceptable. I got most of the problems out of the way on Friday and was glad all that stuff happened then instead of on race day.
Saturday was a much better day as I had some help from my buddy Tom who cam out to work on my bike and Keith Code showed up to coach me. I can’t tell you how great it was to have someone like Keith come help me out. He helped me figure out some stuff with my bike setup and with my riding which helped a ton. I was able to do a few practice starts at the end of the day and I got one good one out of the three I tried, this would come back to haunt me on race day. I ended the day feeling pretty good about my progress and ready to rock on Sunday.
Sunday morning started off with a bang when Jeff Tigert set a new track record at a 1:17.3something. Jeff’s got a few laps around The Streets as well riding as a tester for Honda, but the guy didn’t even practice on Saturday!
My Open Modified production race was up next and I was looking forward to seeing how fast I could go. I lined up on pole position and was hopping to get a good start and run away, but it was not to be. The green flag flew and I got away pretty clean, but Tim Knudsen came flying up the inside and passed me like I was in reverse! We were both on equally prepped ZX10s but Tim got the launch from hell and just plain smoked me into turn one. I followed Tim for most of the first lap until he left the door open in the left going onto the final turn. I stuffed it up the inside and Tim couldn’t do a thing about it. After I made the pass I put my head down and tried to put a gap on Tim but my buddy Robbie was holding up a pit board that told me +0 at the end of the second lap, Tim was right on my ass. I turned a 1:18.5 later in that race which was to be my fastest lap of the day, but the biggest gap I saw on my pit board was a +1. On the last lap of the race I was able to put a lapper between me a Tim and that was enough to hold Tim up so he couldn’t make a last lap desperate pass and I went on for the win and the lap record for the Open Mod Prod class.
My second race was very short lived as I came together with another rider on the exit of turn two and broke my foot peg off. I was unable to finish the race and ended up with a DNF as a result.
The last race of the day was less eventful. Again Tim smoked me off the line (note to self I need to work on my starts before the next race) and passed me before we even got to turn one. This time I was able to pass Tim on the inside going into turn three and put about a second a lap on him and finished over 7 seconds in the lead. Win number two and a lap record for the Open Super Stock Class!
All in all a pretty good weekend. I plan to race the rest of The Streets series and the Toyota 200 this year. I’m look forward to some great races and I’ll keep you all posted as I go.
I have to say thanks to Keith Code and the California Superbike School for all their help this year! Also my buddy Kevin at Advanced Kawasaki for hooking me up with a great bike and all the cool shiny bits. I switched to Michelin tires this year and Ryan and the guys at Michelin are hooking me up with some awesome rubber. The guys at KBC hooked me up with a couple new lids to protect my noggin and make me look cool (if that’s possible) and I’m loving their new VR3 helmet. Track Daz has been kind enough to let me ride with them and those guys put on the best track day going.
That’s all folks, I’ll be back at it 5/6/07 at The Streets again and I’ll let you know how it goes…
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I haven't raced for so long I forgot to post my latest race report...
The following is from a press release from Advanced kawasaki, one of my sponsors.
WSMC Round 12 (Final) Sunday 12/17/06
In 40-something degree and windy weather conditions, Stu (Stuman) Smith on an Advanced Kawasaki tuned Ninja 650R obliterated the competition. Starting from the back of the grid, Stu placed first and blew away the previous lap record BY OVER 2 SECONDS in the 550 Superbike class, with a 1.27.3 lap time.
“The Ninja 650 was awesome I felt like I could do no wrong, it was so stable” said Stuart. “I can’t believe this bike is so well developed, after all it’s the first year of production for this model and the SVs have been around forever” Stuart continued, “Advanced Kawasaki has done a great job making this bike a winning package”.
In the Formula Twins Lightweight class Stu once again was going for the lap record, and Kevin Jump (also riding an Advanced Kawasaki Ninja 650R) only needed 9th or better to win the class championship. When the green flag dropped the two Advanced Kawasaki riders were 1 and 2 exiting turn one even though Stu had to start from the back of the grid. Stu ripped off another 1.27 lap time again obliterating the existing lap record with Kevin turning a 1.28 as well. Unfortunately, a crash on the 4th lap red-flagged the race, and timing and scoring wiped away the times for the restart. Deteriorating weather conditions and tire wear meant that in the second leg Stu would still get the lap record, but at an "official" 1.28.6. The two Advanced Kawasaki riders once again gapped the field, and finished 1-2. Kevin Jump clinched the Formula Twins Lightweight class championship title.
Advanced Kawasaki Ninja 650R won the first-ever WSMC Formula Twins Lightweight Championship (a class designed for the Kawasaki and the Suzuki SV650 to run head-to-head against one another) and set two lap records, not a bad weekend for the light weight riders.
Advanced Kawasaki would like to credit Carry Andrew at Hypercycle for his hard work developing our motors, Arata exhaust for allowing these motors to scream, and PPS suspension for keeping our Ninjas on rails.
Anyway, I'm not sure calling me a light weight rider is exactly accurate
But I was pretty happy with my results for the weekend. Having only raced one other time this year (Toyota 200) I was able to win both races I entered at this event and set the lap records in both classes as well. I wanted to thank Keith and everyone at the school for helping me make a weekend like this happen, without the techniques I've learned at the school there's no way it would. -
We have leathers to fit just about anyone.
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I'm pretty sure you could sign up to use your own bike and then call us prior to the school if you wanted to use one of ours. I'm sure we would require some sort of notice, you should call our office and check just to be sure.
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The brake bike is only available at the two day camps. You can ride it at any time durring the two days.
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I'm glad you had a good time at the school. Sometimes it takes a little while for this stuff to sink in a bit, and for you to really make it your own.
Pur- The level two skills are all about the way you use your eyes, visual skills. The stuff is a bit more conceptual, but just as important as what you learned in level one.
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Where should I stay?
The school will send yo a list of hotels in the area when you register, The Park Plaza is the nicest around.
Am I picked up, given a ride by the hotel, or do I drive/ride to the track?You will have to supply your own transport too and from the track.
How far away is the track from where I should stay?That woudl depend on where you decide to stay. It's about a 20 minute drive from the Park Plaza.
Can I ride my bike from home to school (more alone the lines of is it advised)?You could but I would not advise it.
At the 2-day I see most to all is provided but beyond those things do I need or should I bring anything else?Not really.
Do most people stay at the same place and if so after the daily class do people meet up go out for a beer and pizza ect. ect.?I think most people do stay at the Park Plaza and some of the students will meet up in th bar at the hotel after the school.
Sorry it took me so long to respond to your questions.
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My son & I are doing 2 days with you folks at MMP
in June. We have a listing of motels & are going
to make some reservations.
Is there any paddock camping allowed? Or should
I contact MMP with this question?
You should probably contact the track directly to find out about on-site camping. You could also post you question on this forum ... http://www.utahsba.com/forum/viewforum.php...31d336e41b120fc
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Thanks Kevin, glad you my article
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I don't know of any group rate, but I bet if you call the office and ask they might be able to work some deal for you.
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I don't knwo the area that well, but you could post your question on the Bay Area Riders Forum and I bet you would get an answer.
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The traffic on that track looks almost as bad as the 405(freeway in LA) on a Monday
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Cool pics
I'd love to ride that track some day, reminds me of out home track at Willow Springs -
The roll center (or roll "axis" if you prefer) is not at the contact patch, and the LONGER the moment arm is the easier/quicker it'll roll in.
The cg height certainly DOES affect the lean angle required to get around a turn... More importantly the COMBINED cg height matters as well.
Draw a free body diagram and you'll understand.
Yeah, I was a little off base with my comment above, I was half right. I did a little research last night and found something pretty interesting.
1) High CofG will help a bike turn quicker as explained in the quote above. A good example of this is the changes made to the '06 ZX10R. Kawasaki wanted to make the bike turn in faster, so the raised up the engine in the frame to raise the CofG. When you turn a bike you basically steer the wheels out from under it and it falls over, the higher the CofG, the longer the lever gravity has, the quicker the bike falls. So I think I had this part right before.
2) The interesting thing I found last night reading through Tony Foale?s book is that a lower CofG requires more lean angle then a higher CofG. My misunderstanding was that I thought when you hang off a bike you were trying to lower the CofG so that the bike could remain more upright. But that is not how it works, when you hang off you move the CofG to the inside of the corner and that is why you don?t have to lean the bike so much, not because the CofG is lower but because it was moved left or right.
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I hear a lot of people talking about lowering your center of gravity when going around corners. Yes, lower center of gravity helps you turn faster, but higher center of gravity gets you around the corner with less lean angle. I see a lot of people confusing getting down and low with leaning off. Many people would be better off with higher bars, so that they can sit up more when going around corners, keep their center of gravity higher, and reduce their lean angle.
Really? Where did this info come from. I was under the impression that a high CofG allows a bike to turn quicker (fall in faster) and a low CogG allows for less lean angle.
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There is no time limit on how long you can go between levels. Some people have gone a few years between level one and two, many do them back to back, it is totally up to you.
If you feel like you have a pretty good understanding of the level one stuff (not that you can necessarily do it perfect all the time, but that you grasp what you are supposed to be doing) then it?s probably time for level two. You can also repeat level one if you like, again it?s up to you. It sounds to me like you are probably ready for level two.
Level two is no ?harder? then level one, it is just different skills. Level two goes more into visual skills, how you use your eyes when you ride. It is different from level one but the stuff you learn is just as important.
Get ready to change them tires quick pal
Trail Braking---not That Fastest Way, But They All Do It
in Cornering and Techniques
Posted
Think about it this way….
When cornering on a motorcycle, your front tire’s grip is divided by cornering force (generated by speed and lean angle) and braking force (if you’re on the brakes).
So if you use a large percentage of your front tire’s traction for cornering force, then there isn’t much left for braking.
If you use a large percentage of your tire’s traction for braking, then there isn’t much left for cornering.
This holds true no matter how much traction your front tire has.
So like was posted earlier, if you have all this available front traction because of the new front tires, wouldn’t you want to put that traction towards cornering force if your goal is to go faster?