chopperbill

I was running Pirelli DOT, Mediums. I bought a set of Dunlops DOT Race,(soft/front & soft-medium/rear) from the Superbike school. I did a track day,(at Thunderhill) last Saturday on the Pirelli's then switched to the Dunlops on Sunday. The tire guy at the track was a Pirelli dealer so he told me my bike would be set up completly wrong for the Dunlop tires and said that hey would over work my suspension. so I took two turns out of the ride height on the rear and increased the rebound damping on both front and rear. The Dunlops felt way better to me. Better holding power coming out of the turns, and the suspension seemed to work better. I'm going to Infenion this Saturday and Sunday, I'll report back what I think on Monday. By the way as soon as I'm finished with this post I'm signing up for level 3 & 4 for Infineon in March!

You're comparing apples to oranges. The forces on the tire are much greater at higher speeds. Too many variables out there too. No 2 turns are exactly the same to say that the same lean angle can work on every turn at any speed. The faster turn will require you to hang off the bike more to keep your CG lower so there's another variable thrown into the mix. Just my opinion. Hopefully others will chime in. That's the kind of info i'm looking for,(more hanging off is reguired). To put it another way, What is needed to achieve the lean angles the pros get at high speeds.

Assuming tires are warm, and lean angle is the same, what effect does entrance speed have on the tires sliding out. In other words, lets say I can go into a slow 2nd gear turn at full lean with the throttle off, can I go into a 4th gear turn at the same lean angle with the throttle off and not worry about the tires slidding out?

Hi Bill, Didn't add the photo myself, but I'll find out. Regarding the quotes: normally just hit the "reply" button, and it will include the quote. To include it as a quote, needs a bracket and the word quote [quot] then another braket with a backslash and the word quote to end it [/quot]. I deleted the "e" in quote, so it would show you, and not be a quote. Hope that makes sense. Another aid is the BB Code help, bottom right. Best, Cobie ok, thanks, got the qoute pert . Now if I could only get my personal photo up. Go to my controls, top right hand of the screen, into avitar settings and upload your picture there! Thanks Ace, Now can you come to Sears Point and show me the correct line for turn 2?

Hi Bill, Didn't add the photo myself, but I'll find out. Regarding the quotes: normally just hit the "reply" button, and it will include the quote. To include it as a quote, needs a bracket and the word quote [quot] then another braket with a backslash and the word quote to end it [/quot]. I deleted the "e" in quote, so it would show you, and not be a quote. Hope that makes sense. Another aid is the BB Code help, bottom right. Best, Cobie ok, thanks, got the qoute pert . Now if I could only get my personal photo up.

Hotfoot, I'd rather be skilled then brave anyday. But I think perisitence is the key to success in everything in life.

Hello all,My name is Bill, I'm from the SF Bay Area of California. We are lucky in this area, we can do track days at Luguna Seca, Sears Point, Thunderhill, and Willow Springs, all within 3 hours drive. I joined a few days ago, I have a few questions. 1: I tried adding a personal photo, but it doesn't show up on the forum,(at least I can't see it), any help?2: how do you add the quote from someone else reply to your reply?any Help?Thanks

all good advise guys, thanks. I put some of those knee grip pads on my bike prior to my last track day and tried to grip the tank with my knees during hard stops. It helped a lot.

That's my point, smooth as relative to what? I don't think the Moto GP riders are muscling the bikes around the course, I just don't think it is as smooth as it looks. Any time you make a 400#, 200hp machine slow down from a high rate of speed, change directions then accelerarate rapidly there are going to be some laws of phyisics fighting back. What i would like is to recognize and understand those laws and mitigate the effects.

I think I would rather be fast. If you go to Moto Gp and watch, those guys aren't as smooth as it looks on TV. there is a lot of head shake coming hard out of turns and lots of rear end drift when going in fast or hard on the brakes. Maybe i'm wrong but smooth may be an illusion.

yes, My question is directly related to how much do slicks lower lap times. My lap times are low enough to qualify for the superbike or formula classes. My bike (749r Ducati) comes with Ohlins front and rear already and could handle the presure forces from slicks. I'm trying to determine if an 848 kit plus slicks will lower my times enough to run in the faster classes or should I just run production for a year and get more experiance racing.

I'm running in the low 1:50's on dot/race pirelli's at Infineon. I've pushed the front once and the back several times. However I'm thinking it was more rider error,(me), then the tires. My question really is more about which class to run in next season. Production class does not allow slicks, but the superbike and formula classes are much faster.

question for the experienced racers: How much of a difference is there in the grip of a dot race tire vs racing slicks. what does your gut tell you in terms of seconds off your lap times?

The slide bike broke down right before it was my turn to ride it.....as for the controlled enviro, my Ducati is not street legal, I don't think people would like me practicing in the race track parking lot, (or worse on the track).

OK, What is a controlled enviroment? I took level 1 & 2, I don't remember a stopping bike. My bike has radial mounted Brembo brakes,( Ducati 749R) and comes to a stop very quickly. Seems like when I'm on the brakes hard after a long straight it is all I can do to keep from sliding right over the fairng.... ha ha.....

Hmm.... maybe I'm just naturaly pre-braking then, because I've never felt like I was locking up the front wheel. thanks for the help.

Although I have over 35 years on 2 wheels, and have raced off road, I'm new to road racing. I've taken level 1 & 2. My question is; what is this pre-braking I hear Rossi talk about? I understand Spencer did it also. What is the science behind squeezing the brake lightly for a second or so before full on braking?