Bullet

Hi Firebeast, Thanks for your post on our Forum. OK, Firstly, glad you enjoyed reading Keith's bible. Whilst it can be a little tough going at times, it really has so much great information in to read, and keep going back to again and again, and again. Have a read of it, go try something, go back and re-read it, and so on. Its right what you've observed, now your more aware of what you're doing, you'll be thinking more about the what, the whys, etc. etc. I'm afraid the only way to make this easier is to slow down a little and try and concentrate on just one thing at once otherwise you can just overwhelm the poor brain. :-) As for your questions : - 1) How do I get to know where to turn, (well, we teach that on Level 1) 2)Lean angel is combination of speed, of the line and the radius of the turn and your ability to turn the bike quickly. I'm glad to say, we also teach these aspects on level 1. 3), it always becomes more difficult to turn a bike at greater speed because of the gyroscopic rotational force of the front wheel, however, most riders can dramatically improve their ability to turn their bike quickly and would you believe it, we have a drill for that also on level 1. Should you decide to visit us at a School date, all of your areas of observation and interest will be covered in great depth in the classroom with Andy Ibbott, and then practiced on track in a systematic manner with an on track coach to remove confusion and to ensure you really understand are able to leave the day with improvement in your skills. Additionally, we have great fun doing it too! :-) I hope this helped with your query? Bullet (UK Riding coach)

Hi there, I think it has been discussed that we'll be running the Silverstone Stowe circuit in clockwise manner, which is differnt to our usual anti-clockwise direction. I guess this is only of an issue if you've done Stowe before, though I'm unclear from your post if you have or not? To this date, it hasn't happened, and we've continued to run Stowe in it's usual configuration of anti-clockwise, and I know not of any desire to change it, though this could happen. The southern loop is a new to us circuit, you can find a video of it here http://www.superbikeschool.co.uk/video/ and you'll see it is in the main, in actual fact the lower part of the GP circuit from what is the Maggots complex, down hanger straiight, club, alway back up the other side, then back across to Hangar straight. The configuration looks excellent for sure, and definitely worthy of a trip to Silverstone in my opinion. I don't believe any of the trackday companies use this lower circuit loop, as its almost exclusively used by the Silverstone race school for Ferrari / Aston experiences. Some of the race clubs do use it, but I am afraid I don't know if any trackday companies provide this sorry. Hope this helped with your questions? Bullet (Uk Riding Coach)

No problem, I'll be about quite a bit from now on, to help out with UK queries. Be nice to hook up, say hi at Rockingham my friend. Bullet

Hi Thomas Glad you enjoyed level 1 and are coming to see us in the UK for level 2. Am not sure if you have booked with us already, but there at the time of writing this post only 1 slot at both Brands Hatch, and 1 on the second date we have in June at Silverstone. We aren't able to run the lean bike at Brands as there is not space in the paddock to do so, and we're often constrained by other events running at Silverstone which also don't allow us to run the lean bike. Whilst having a go on the lean bike is a very valuable experience, certainly in getting your body position established correctly for level 3, your day will still be exceptional without going on the bike should we be unable to run it due to either space, or weather restrictions. I hope this helps answer your question, though if you have further comments, please just ask. Bullet (UK riding coach) Hi, I completd level 1 in the UK in 2002 and have only just been able to book level 2. It's been a long wait and i too am keen to experience the lean bike for the next level. Everything that i've read about this and the other training aids is positive. After all, Keith wouldn't have gone to the trouble of designing them if they weren't of benefit. Having just booked i received the information pack in the post. I was extremely disappointed to read 'Due to the circuits now wanting to charge us for the use of paddock space, we are no longer able to run the lean bke for level 2, the brake rig for level 3 and the slide bike for level 4'. It appears that UK Students will not have the priviledge of using these training aids. Maybe it would have been a little easier to swallow if it had previously been mentioned on the website before i booked? Hi there, Clearly the drill do offer benefits, as you rightly pointed out Keith did indeed invet them to help with the body position situation in isolation in a paddock area without distractions of corners etc. It is possible to have similiar improvements with your riding coach, though this is typically addressed in Level 3, rather than 2. I appreciate your situation, and I know this something thats been mentioned to the coaching staff by Andy at one of the schools of late that the circuits were charging excessive, (and I mean excessive), amounts of money for being able to run the lean bike/Slide bike and brake rig. Steering drill has still been possible, as it takes so little room in comparison. I think the challenge that the school has had really is, should the cost of the having this open to each student be tagged onto the school cost, and when we say additonal cost, we're talking around 50 quid extra per student for the privilege. In the current economic climate, and with prices already edging up anyway, it was felt I understand that people wouldn't stomach this cost and so I believe this decision has been taken. I'd be interested in your view on this point by the way? I'm not certain if this is the case for all locations, though Brands has always been possible, and I know that Silverstone has become constrained by costs. For confirmation of whether they'll run at Rockingham or not, ring into the office, speak with Lynn, and she'll be able to provide a definitive answer on this. Sorry if you felt misled in some way, but I hope this explanation helps a little the reasoning behind this decision. Bullet (UK riding coach)

Hi Thomas Glad you enjoyed level 1 and are coming to see us in the UK for level 2. Am not sure if you have booked with us already, but there at the time of writing this post only 1 slot at both Brands Hatch, and 1 on the second date we have in June at Silverstone. We aren't able to run the lean bike at Brands as there is not space in the paddock to do so, and we're often constrained by other events running at Silverstone which also don't allow us to run the lean bike. Whilst having a go on the lean bike is a very valuable experience, certainly in getting your body position established correctly for level 3, your day will still be exceptional without going on the bike should we be unable to run it due to either space, or weather restrictions. I hope this helps answer your question, though if you have further comments, please just ask. Bullet (UK riding coach)