tmckeen

The IOM TT uses the same cutting edge communication technology as MotoGP and every other form of Motorcycle racing that I'm familiar with, The Pit Board. Position, and Lead time are easily communicated, It's also not like the TT is without passing or other riders, If you've caught up with the guy that left 10 seconds before you, you're ahead of him , and if someone behind you has caught up, he's ahead of you There are of course some situations where the lead is very slim and the actual positions might change between the final pit board and the finish line and neither racer will be aware until the race is over, but its not like you imply that they have no knowledge whatsoever of where they are in the standings for the entirety of the race

I think your missing the point myself and RChase are making here, Your analogy to golf/ tennis is not relevant to what your proposing, all forms of golf and tennis are played on the same course with the same equipment, what your suggesting is more akin to saying we should have a competition between Figure Skaters and Hockey players since they both wear ice skates and compete in a rink. The TT and "Real Road Racing" looks very similar to Closed course racing, but it is very much different. There are no hedges and stone walls, cliffs and storefronts on race tracks. The rider walks away from nearly every incident at the race track thanks to improvements in track design and safety equipment. The fatality rate of the two forms of racing are not even in the same category. This is the fundamental difference that makes this comparison invalid. To truly compete in the TT you must be willing to flirt with death at a level that is VASTLY different from the race track. Michael Dunlop doesn't ride hard enough to drag his elbow at the TT, and MM isn't risking his life at every corner in MotoGP, there is no middle ground to equalize the differences. You can sometime see the top riders from the TT in BSB and occasionally in WSBK, but they are normally not very high in the standings, For example, Guy Martin contested the 2008 BSB chamionship with a single top 10 finish, mostly finishing in the 12 - 15 th place John McGuinness has contested 3 MotoGP races with a best finish of 12th Michael Dunlop Contested 3 rounds of BSB this year, all were DN'sF , Qualified 26th and 17th There is no comparison

Closed Course Racing and Real Road Racing are really a Apples To Oranges comparison, You may as well toss in the Supercross or MX riders, Each is going to excel in their respective environments and struggle in the other. Back when the IOM was actually on the Grand Prix schedule most of the tracks weren't all that safe for motorcycles anyway. ARMCO barriers limited run off hazards etc. It was truly a different era across the board and comparison to the state of motorcycling today are not very relevant.

I would highly recommend the rental car, getting to the track from LAX isn't a overly complicated affair, just a couple of freeways, but depending on the Time of day LA traffic can make the drive a lengthy one. You also need to keep in mind getting from the hotel to the track each day, and if you want to go out for dinner in the evening. A low end rental car will be less $$ than all the taxi or shuttle costs. There are several options for lodging in Lancaster I believe your information/confirmation email, which you may not have received just yet, will include some lodging options and possibly some codes for a discount. There is a option in Rosamond, but its a pretty crappy one, however if your on a really tight budget and don't mine a dive hotel its there. Last time I checked it was about half the cost of hotels in Lancaster.

Rider trumps machinery every time, which is why a S1000 can easily be out matched by a Ninja 250, Bikes like the 9T only suffer from lack of ground clearance. I've also heard from a reliable source that the XSR 900 is downright scary to ride, and more prone to wheelies than a 450 Dirtbike I kind of think the big 4 have a gentleman's agreement to leave the 600's be, as long as no one steps up and revitalizes their hardware they can maintain the status quo with just BNG every year. the upside to that is that I have a 10 year span of hardware that's interchangeable They also seem to be more interested in more street based hardware than race, they only need to sell enough Race replica bikes for homologation

I'm pretty sure there are BMW sales rep's that are less pro S1000RR than you are and I know that You have to scroll through the gallery, but the sensors are there front and back. BMW doesn't have the same premium brand pricing in the Motorcycle world, all their bikes are priced comparably to the competition in each segment. BMW is also a big Motorsports brand, Racing is part of their DNA, they made motorcycles for decades before they made the S1000RR, and they designed that bike because they wanted to go racing. 600cc racing is HUGE at the club level, and BMW could sell a lot of bikes if they built one. Clearly their bean counters feel otherwise or they would, but IMO they would sell a lot of bikes and help reinvigorate the class, Also you have to keep in mind that we are a minority in the motorcycle world, most bikes will never see the race track and most riders will never use the potential available in a 10 year old 600 , let alone the capability of a new S1000RR or R1M. Regardless you should come to COTA and discuss this over ice cold beverages at my summer chateau

Kawasaki 2016 Ninja 300 ABS .... 5300 $ https://www.kawasaki.com/products/2016-Ninja-300-ABS You can clearly see the wheel sensors in the pictures. KTM RC390 ( 5500 ?? ) , wheel sensors, clearly visible http://www.ktm.com/ph/supersport/rc-390-2016/ For 5300$ your not going to get top notch cutting edge tech, but your argument that only the absolute most bleeding edge tech will save a rider from himself is wrong. Sure the ABS on most bikes is overly intrusive, but most riders cant brake reliably in that bit of extra the ABS is keeping you from, or properly recover a front wheel lock if they overstep the limit. Personally I'd love to disable the ABS on my street bike ( except when it rains ) because it gets in my way, but I'm sure its saved the ass of many a Sunday rider when they stabbed the brakes on the freeway cause someone cut in front of them. Also I believe "Help" is the wrong term, What all that tech offers is a buffer, or safety net, and that safety net's helpfulness is debatable. If your buying a bike primarily for the track, A used 600cc bike is a MASSIVELY better deal than a brand new cutting edge 1000cc bike, regardless of brand, I can replace my entire R6 from Craig's List 4x over for the cost of a new S1000RR, Probably 5 if I buy salvage titles. I'm not arguing that the bikes aren't amazing pieces of technology, but to say that they have obsoleted the entire 600 segment is a little overstated. Personally I'll take 110 Hp and a skilled wrist over 180 Hp and a computer to manage it any day, Neither is right or wrong, its purely a matter of rider preference. I also will point out that there are skilled riders who can manage 180 hp without TC of any sort, but they are very much the exception. My original statement was that I'm surprised BMW hasn't gotten into the 600cc game and I stick by it. BMW could easily do for the 600 market what it did to the 1000 market, the development has been stagnant for a decade from all the major players. A new entry with high end tech from BMW would sell like hotcakes, 600cc racing isn't going anywhere, and its a race class that BMW doesn't compete in due to a lack of hardware.

You make it sound like electronic aids are only available on the 1000CC bikes Kawasaki offered TC on the the 636 in 2013 , You can get ABS on 250's and assortment of other middleweight bikes,

I think the fact that BMW doesn't have a 600cc Sportbike might have a little to do with the decision as well TBH I'm a little surprised that BMW hasn't entered that market segment yet

What kind of bike ? I'd recommend going to GPA's at a minimum, 1:29 is a pretty good lap there, I can get down in the 1:25 range on Q3's myself , but the reduced traction driving out of corners starts to take its toll I'll be there as well, however I wont be on track with you

How far you can lean the bike over is a function of a lot of mechanical issues A MotoGP bike can achieve lean angles of 60-63 deg, a production street bike will be more in the 45 - 50 deg range, depending on suspension and tires etc. etc. Body type and body position will affect how early a riders knee contacts the pavement, extra long legs make it easy, short legs not so much. You can use horrible body position to get your knee down with very little lean angle, but that has no real gains to speak of. At some point the knee does become a reference point for how much lean angle you're using, however when and where that happens is rider specific. It all comes with practice and track time

I once exploded a good size tumble weed with my shoulder at full lean with aggressive hook turn application, it was much more mental than physical, a brief second of panic and preparing for impact, and then nothing. Something like this may help clean out the bees in the vents Cotton tipped applicators: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00E8JOCOE/ref=s9_simh_gw_g328_i1_r?ie=UTF8&fpl=fresh&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=desktop-1&pf_rd_r=04AZCQ1X31GQG5DR2RBY&pf_rd_t=36701&pf_rd_p=2437869742&pf_rd_i=desktop

It appears to me that even though both bikes are in the same spot on the track, they are not on the same line, the position of the front and rear wheels is different, one has both contact patches almost perfectly inline, while the other has the front contact patch shifted to the riders left a few inches. this would suggest that the one rider has the bike turned more and is holding a tighter line through the corner. If this is the case, he could stand the bike up sooner and get considerably more drive out of the corner, something that is demonstrated exceptionally well by Dani Pedrosa's riding style. It's also possible that you both have considerably different turn points and lines through the corner and just happened to be in the same spot on the track Similar lap times doesn't necessarily reflect similar performance through a single corner, one rider could be losing a few seconds through this corner and make it back up later in a different section. His more aggressive body position has a number of advantages, but if he isn't utilizing a good pickup technique and continues to carry the lean angle longer than needed he's cutting himself short and losing out on considerable drive out of the corner.

BEIN Sports, One stop shopping for all you Road-Racing Needs, http://www.roadracingworld.com/news/motogp-world-superbike-and-motoamerica-will-all-be-televised-on-bein-sports-network-in-north-america/ Coverage is quite good with very limited commercial interruptions during the actual race

Is your bike neutral steering in other corners ? I believe the tendency for the bike to continue to turn in can be caused by a number of things from tire profile and inflation to geometry issues. Have you modified the bike's geometry in any way ? Had the suspension set up ?

+1 for http://www.ridersurance.com/ They have a number of different levels of insurance tailored to the thrill seeker. I looked into them for supplemental Life flight / Ambulance coverage when I was considering club racing somewhere far from civilization. Although I later found out I didn't actually need the extra coverage, they were quite helpful in my brief interaction. Also remember that when it comes to insurance companies they might be pesky and ask for things like a police report if your trying to claim your mishap was on a public road, and if your transported in a ambulance of some kind, there will be a record of where you were transported from and too and when etc.

Rob, Does Georgia not have some version of "Planned Non Operational" registration status ? In California you register the vehicle as PNO and you don't have to carry insurance on it and there are no fees or penalties when you decide to return it to registered status. Its a one time thing, the DMV sends me a notice every year with what the cost to register the vehicle would be, but there are no annual fees.

Robert, I think most every insurance company will exclude closed circuit and racing from their policy's, the only existing loop hole that I'm aware of is some insurance company's will waive the exclusion IF you attending a school, which CSS just so happens to be. There are company's that specifically offer insurance on race cars and bikes, but the premiums are INSANE !!! This is one of the big advantages to having a track only bike, you don't register or insure it at all, and just FYI should it be stolen out of the back of your transport vehicle, that is a claim on your homeowners insurance not your auto insurance. You also might wanna just double check the exclusions in your life insurance policy, they wont cover certain high risk activities either, I had a lengthy back and forth with Aflac regarding the wording in their boiler plate and how it applied to track days vs racing. In the end they changed the wording to "Racing as a professional" which cleared the issue right up.

Connor's Unicycle skillz are quite impressive, I've seen them first hand out at the school, but unfortunately photographic or video proof is scarce

Good stuff Rob, sounds like a real one of a kind experience and some major breakthroughs as a rider. I got really close to riding with Nate at Laguna Seca earlier this year, but sadly I was a little to loud going up the hill earlier in the morning, not that I would have kept up with him for more than a turn , perhaps next time

Connor, Always late to the party

If you think that's cool, you should check out this thread http://forums.superbikeschool.com/index.php?showtopic=4451

Rossi needed 6 more points somewhere to win the title, none of what may or may not have transpired at any of the last three rounds would have made up those points, If he had placed 3rd in Australia, cause he didn't have the pace to keep up with Lorenzo or Marquez it would have netted him 4 more points, not enough to make up the difference, In the end Lorenzo won more races, and scored more points despite a DNF, he deserved the championship, But I still would have loved to see Rossi bag # 10

It would appear that Yamaha is already working on engineering a replacement for both riders on their team http://www.roadracingworld.com/news/yamaha-to-display-radical-leaning-multi-wheel-mwt-9-motorcycle-riding-robot-more-at-tokyo-motor-show/

So, here's my take on the Street Tires vs DOT Race Slick's and the advice I've given a few newer track riders that have asked my opinion on what kind of tires they should be using out at the glorious Streets Of Willow. Find a local expert / fast guy and see what kind of lap times he/she can do on street tires, until you're lapping withing a few seconds of that pace, you're just fine using street rubber. At streets of Willow you can easily get into the sub 1:30's on a Q3, and until you're under the 1:30 mark IMO spending money on considerably more expensive rubber isn't the most cost effective way you can use it. The difference in cost is likely over a bit over 100$ a pair, 2 sets of tires and you've given up a full track day, 4-5 sets and you've lost out on another school day at CSS. There's defiantly a time and place for using premium rubber, but I see a LOT of people at the track that are using way more expensive rubber than they need to be. Also unless you're running warmers , street tires heat up WAY faster than a Slick/DOT will Tyler