BikeSpeedman

I'm another 20 seconds off a good time which is fine. But I'd really like to perfect my form even if I never have the courage to flirt with great lap times. Currently, I cannot get my butt as far left as I can to the right. I mean I don't get as far over with my flick. With a more clumsy effort, I can force my way off and then I feel a lot of tightness in my hips and back getting into the correct form. For the life of me I cannot figure out where the tightness is coming from and what kind of stretches would fix this. When I'm in a corner, I am limited by how low I can get my head by visibility through the visor. Here's a pic which shows how limited I am - this is as low as I can go. Note the nerd-like refusal to quit covering the brake. In this pic I'm actually doing a decent job of hanging off but it required so much more effort than going to the right and I felt tightness in my back getting into that position which I never feel to the right. I think I'd have more good pix if Thunderhill had more rights.

Hi Cobie, I was there for L2/3 last summer and left without getting my lap times. Any way I could still get them? I had paid for them. BTW, I'm glad I read this post as I'm coming back for L4 in Sep and didn't know we could ask to focus on lap tiimes but I definitely want to do that. On that note, I know you guys do not go to Thunderhill East but I really really want you to in the future so this is just me being a pest about it. Please start doing Thunderhill East. Would love to get some CSS help around this track.

Closest I've come to riding any of them is the 2016 S1000RR from CSS. I thought it was great but IMO a superbike is an opportunity to go all out on a true dream machine and the Bimmer doesn't stir me at all. They're all really amazing machines and you could probably just buy whichever one set your heart a flutter the most and never regret it. The Panigale will roast your nuts. That's a deal breaker for me. The Kawi and Suzuki just look chincy IMO. The R1 is amazing to look at and has slide control and is the only machine to knock the RSV4 from the top spot of nearly all SBOTY tests but the brakes are weak and lack feel and the throttle is snatchy. I suspect that would bother me. The new Blade looks fantastic but it seems to be having teething problems with reliability to the point of making it dangerous. The new RSV4 finally got a TFT dash and auto blip downshifts. IMO it's the best looking by far (at least in the black RR model. Can't stand silver so the RF is out for me). Everyone says it's the best sounding but I like the old F1 V10esque scream of the Blade more. Still, despite a look that is great but mostly unchanged since 2009 and not being my absolute favorite sound, the RSV4 has it all and is the very top of my wishlist.

I wasn't being a wiseguy btw. I thought Keith literally said "as soon as you can." I remember feeling like he could elaborate a little more but maybe I missed the detail. It was a busy day. If you roll on too soon, you run wide. So if I understand you correctly, by waiting until the right moment, the front tire isn't too busy to deal with the weight transfer.

"As soon as you can." Thanks for your reply. Yes, it makes sense. My brain is sorted out again.

I think I read that in TotW and/or from Level 1 training. Aim for a weight distribution of 60/40 Rear/Front bc our rear tire has more rubber on the road. Something got me thinking about that today and I'm now having trouble making sense of it. I think I've heard about people using setup to get *more* not less weight on the front to improve turning. I thought the logic there was that more weight on the front tire generates more heat and also gets a bigger contact patch. Why would we use throttle to reduce both of those things on the smaller front tire? It seems to me like doing so would simultaneously increase the risk of a high side as well as a low side. There's probably a lot of nuance and subtlety there but I'd rather ask for clarification than assume I figured it out on my own and then risk doing something inadvisable on an indirect route to the hospital.

Lack of lower back strength when riding is what inspired me to start working out. At first, I just wanted to correct that deficiency. It's amazing how fast you will feel the benefit from working your lower back. Within 2 weeks, I noticed an improvement in my posture (regular posture, not bike posture) and the ability to stand for longer periods of time without fatigue. If you belong to a gym, try the back hyperextension. If it's too easy, you can hold weight to make it harder. If you don't belong to a gym, just hold some dumbbells and do the Romanian Deadlift. There's tons of info on youtube showing the correct form which will help keep you from getting hurt. About the abs thing... Yeah, I remember being shown that at CSS and it was an aha moment. I'm like you in that I can't really explain why. But if you know how to activate your abs and do that as you lean forward, you'll feel it there - in your abs - and know they are right.

1. I pay attention to my hand position and set my levers up to allow a full range without re-gripping. I also set the distance to the levers to personal taste. 2. No issues. However, I do have a bad habit which the coaches pointed out and I don't feel comfortable working on it. I do 99% of my miles on the street so I cover the brake. Alllllll the time. It's partially about being ready to use the brake but it's become a crutch to help me modulate or maintain the throttle as needed. So I haven't been practicing moving my fingers onto and back off of the lever without accidentally affecting throttle input or developed the skills to roll on smoothly without using the lever as a crutch. I hesitate to start practicing on the street because there's a reason we cover on the road and I hesitate to practice on the track because I don't trust myself to do it well. Not sure what the consensus among coaches is but I think I still manage (now, but not originally) to get my elbow and wrist in the proper position even while covering so maybe I just have to look dumb.

Fun Track Dayz (love this group of guys) May 29 (Memorial Day) Keigwin's June 18 (Father's Day) -- Bringing my son with me. Both events at Thunderhill East. Hoping to get in one or two days at Sears this year too.

Here's what I do - it keeps me entertained. First, the boring stuff. On regular roads, just surviving in traffic, my target is mainly just to have zero scary moments. I ride in a way where if someone else doesn't see me and I have to take evasive action, I hold myself accountable. If I ever brake with locked bars where steering is affected, that's another ding. Can't remember the last time it happened tho. But basically, on boring rides where you can't play, my mental checklist of mistakes is all I think about it. My commute traverses a 5 mile mountain-peak road with beautiful curves, sheer drops, and smooth pavement... it's a track. On a road like this, my goals include all those others but I focus more on technique. There's a very steep downhill 90 degree turn into a driveway at the end. I practice braking without messing up the steering. There's a lot of slow traffic. I practice timing my passes. I don't really work up speed high enough to need the brakes, but at each corner, I practice rolling off the throttle. My goal is to get the timing perfect so that the engine braking doesn't slow me down too much and make the corner boring. I ride the "racing line" within my lane and practice the 3 step at every corner. I practice rolling on the gas coming out of every corner. If I'm stuck behind a slow car, I practice hanging off at speeds which don't allow much lean. I practice the hip flick and the light bar pressure, exercising my outer thigh and combine this will all the other things I'm working on. There are a couple of really tight corners (intersections) with changes in pavement which tempt my eyes to watch the apex way too long. I concentrate on wide vision to get me around those tight square corners smoothly, fast, and without drama. I don't know if I'm still improving but I know I'm not wasting my miles either. I'm blessed with a daily chance to reinforce what the good folks at CSS taught me. I have fun on the bike without giving up a safety margin and very few of of my rides have a close call (or any call where I depended on another driver to avoid me). So I get to my destination without feeling like luck bailed me out. If you want to know you're getting better, my advice is pick your favorite track and hook up a lap timer and start trying to "get better."

Probably won't be back to another school day this season and I'd love to say hi.

Welcome, geoff2k! IMO the classes are so well thought out that you don't need to do any prep to get the most out of them. I believe it's 5 topics per day and each one leads perfectly into the next. Each one is in the format: introduce topic practice skill on track debrief with coach After the 5th cycle, the pattern breaks a bit and you get some time to reinforce whatever you need. It's your first time on track the whole day where you're not assigned something new to practice and things start to gel a bit more. The first couple of sessions of the day are designed to help familiarize yourself with the track so I never felt like I should have known the track better ahead of time.

Have you noticed how concerts are less and less fun the older you get? I think in-person races are the same. My kid can't sit in front of a race on TV for 5 minutes but he had such a good time at the race 3 or 4 years ago that he's never stopped asking to go back. I really hope we get to do a VIP experience one day. Comfort, good food and drink, and access to the racers.

No I mean the whole package. The off track, between races kind of thing. It's a much bigger event. Much more grandiose. I agree with you about getting a better view on the TV tho. In fact, when it was local, I'd go to the track for Saturday when it wasn't crowded and then watch the Sunday action from home. Made getting out of town easier too.

I've been to 2 MotoGPs, one after son was born and one before. I've been to 2 or 3 WSBKs but the difference is night and day. MotoGP brings a show. I can't imagine how nice it's going to be at a world class venue like COTA. Laguna was close and easy but certainly not world class. Part of why they no longer come here. That said, Ducati Island is awesome. Also the music, the vendor stands, watching a dude have his gf take a pic of him with his arms around 2 grid girls, the Yamaha guys giving little kids (including my 3yo) rides on 50cc bikes doing wheelies and stuff, and kart racing on an infield area.

$89 for GA for me. Free for him. It's the plane, hotel and car that add up. Much easier when MotoGP was just a 90 minute drive from home. Total cost just over $2k. Could have had VIP experience tickets for that cost if not for the travel.

Taking my boy to his 2nd MotoGP race and 1st since they pulled out of America's only cool state. Had to spend more than I have any business spending but it's quality father son time so eff it.

I'm fascinated by the flexibility of top riders. It takes so much time to make even tiny gains I can't imagine being as flexible as they are.

Simply not true. Drag is not a big concern at most corners because the speeds are not high enough and because they're limiting their acceleration to avoid over stressing the tires while leaned over (or the TC is doing it for them). That picture of MV that started this thread is not a time when drag is keeping him from going as fast as he wants. That picture you included is not relevant to this discussion. It looks really outdated. When was it written? I'm asking because that rider ("rider crouched right down") whom I agree is not doing it correctly, is also not doing it the way the pros are doing it these days. It's easy to see the rider is not doing the same thing MV is doing. That rider has his body on top of the tank and his helmet is actually a little bit to the other side. MV's whole torso and head are all down to the side of the bike. Yes, he is "low" but if you look at the 2 pix you can tell the cg is not in the same place for both riders. The real reason that rider's cg is in the wrong place is because it's placed in line with the bike. MV is super low but he's attached to the side of the bike and his cg is exactly where it should be. MV is not crossed up. His rear end is not causing his body to pivot incorrectly. And his head and vision are perfect too. I agree I get neck spasms when I get that low. But I have forward neck posture which I'm slowly correcting. I'm no MV or anyone other pro for that matter but I'd rather strive to emulate MV than Kevin Schwantz any day. And it's not about style. When I'm really pushing hard and get way off to the inside and low (down beside the tank) the bike tells me how much happier it is. The game has moved on. Tire tech has moved on. Bikes are better, and the old style is just nostalgic and/or uninformed.

So basically every top pro forgot to read this book. Shame.

I found 2 exercises made a huge difference in my ability to ride without fatigue. They're both hitting the same area so you can do either one. Romanian deadlift and back hyper-extension. You can buy a kettle bell or some dumbbells for the deadlift and do them at home. If you belong to a gym, the hyper-extension allows for greater isolation but they both work great. Start light and do 20 reps a day for a couple of weeks. I found it not only made riding easier but also improved my posture. I'm never tired, my wrists never hurt, my back is strong enough stay low and move side to side without issues. Interestingly, I my fitbit records my rides as cardio.

I sometimes do but not often. I actually find it completely comfortable other than the muscle knots I get in between my shoulder blades from having to crane my neck so far.

ya know what makes more sense? Prolly just left over from track days I did last summer and I'm just now noticing the area that hasn't been used since then. Speaking of tires, tho, I have a track day on May 29. Hope you guys will have the Q3+ in my size by then.

WSBK has it's own plan. You don't have to watch it live if that's what you mean. Actually this doesn't come up often but sometimes on the overseas races I want to watch it live but I'm late. Once a race starts, you can join it live but you can't start from the beginning until 30 min to an hour after it's finished. Once it's posted, you can watch it whenever you want. I've never tried to wait more than next day but I've been told by friends that the press conferences, practices, and possibly qualifying get taken down eventually. This is from a guy who lets the entire season finish before starting. Anyway, it is nice to watch qualifying which FS1 and Speed never covered. Not sure about Bein bc I don't get it. I usually watch at least some of the practice sessions too. If they'd make an app for Tivo or even AppleTV to free up my phone I wouldn't mind having to shell out the money. But I really like, nay love, TV so I'm not even considering cutting the cable. For me it's just an added expense and a less convenient way to get my MotoGP content.

Thanks for inspiring me to look deeper! Okay, so shortly after our conversation, I began to test rear edge grip coming out of the corners. I had a lot more grip/drive than I had given my bike credit for. The front did feel a little unstable but the rear was hooked up. I got home and noticed the rear was chewed up and went to the very edge. Weird for road riding bc I wasn't leaning any more than I had been. I'm guessing just an issue of putting more load on the rear squishing the tire more and getting the contact patch all the way to the edge. Anyway, I remembered your post and started looking for info about improving drive out of corners. It was recommended to bump up the reb and comp in the front to keep the front from lifting under throttle. I started there (2 clicks up from my baseline and equal to Triumph's recommended Race setting). The difference was amazing. So much more stability and control. It feels so good now. But then last night, I took a look at my rear shock settings. I was in full comfort mode in the rear, 5 or 6 clicks from Race. So I decided to give it a shot and had my first chance to test it on the way to work this morning. It feels fantastic. Can't wait to get back on the track and beat Josh Hayes. survive in the B group without getting run over.