Hotfoot
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Posts posted by Hotfoot
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I am looking at a very small picture on a cell phone so detail is poor - but are you sure you haven't worn the tire down to the cords? I've seen tires where all the surface rubber has worn off and you are starting to see the construction underneath, it looked a lot like that.
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Inn of Lancaster is nice, Holiday Inn near Ave K is nice - and it has a huge parking lot, handy for anyone towing a trailer. Comfort Inn is fine, too, but I haven't stayed there recently. They are mid-range hotels about 30 minutes from the track.
Devonshire Inn is closest (in Rosamond) but I only tried staying there once and I'd never do it again, it was terrible.
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Will we be getting any further info in an email. Such as time to arrive and other details?
You should receive a packet of info with arrival time (7am), directions and other details and liability forms. If you signed up a while ago and haven't yet received anything, call the office to make sure they have your correct email address.
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... you may have to stand the bike up, brake to slow down, and then turn it again.
+1. On the road, you should never be so committed to a blind bend that you can't lean it a bit more . But, should the unimagineable ever happen
, standing the bike up, braking and re-steering is your final option.On the track, you won't get caught out by a decreasing radius, of course.
Even when you know it is coming (on a track), a decreasing radius turn can still be a real challenge. Entering a little too fast or rolling on a bit too aggressively can make the last part of a DR turn a little TOO exciting.
That's when hook turn (level 3) comes in very handy.
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Trailering the Panigale ... couldn't get a charter flight to load it up for me!
Great, I'll be hanging around on the 30th and 1st, riding in on either a SC/GT or 916. Camp for me on the 2nd and 3rd so BMW's for me on the track.
Flying or driving?
I look forward to seeing you guys there! Come say hi, I'm Laura. I'm a coach, I'll be the one with long brown hair in a braid.
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You'll need to call the office on this, I think. You should choose Level 1 and a school bike; if for some reason that choice is not available on the site, you'll need to call to find out why.
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Thanks for the quick reply. Sounds like we will need to stack up sessions for 1 day schools levels 1 through 4 as there is no way I think he can handle the BMW, he will probably think he can
. We may need to stay right of the Mississippi but a west coast race school vacation sounds fun. I will check the schedule an contact the office, One last question.. Are there tire vendors and or changing services at the tracks or should I be prepared to change my own?The school offers Dunlop tires for sale, but there would not be any other vendors there. They would not normally stock tires for the Moriwaki, but you could probably pre-order some through the school and have them bring them for you. Will, the mechanic for the school, is usually able to change tires if given a little advance notice (for example, if you tell him the day before he can probably arrange to get it done in the morning of the next day.) Changing between riding sessions is sometimes possible but certainly more difficult and you don't want your son to miss any track time.
The office staff can help with tire questions - pre-ordering tires, etc.
If you are interested in him riding a school bike, you might want to ask the office about that, too - usually we have another style of bike available for short riders, not sure if it would be manageable for him or not but the office staff will know.
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Take a look at the first thread in this section, it will fully answer your question:
http://forums.superbikeschool.com/index.php?showtopic=3364
Everyone starts at Level 1, even pro racers. It is not about riding experience or speed, the material is designed to progress and build through each level. Each rider rides at his/her own pace and passing is allowed. Each Level takes a full day to complete. There are three course levels and then after that is Level 4, which is a program customized for each rider. You can take Level 4 as many times as you want, it will be customized for you - it is personalized coaching tailored to the rider's specific needs.
There are a number of threads on the forum debating the pros and cons of 1 day schools versus the 2 day camp. 2 day camp gives you more track time, 2 riding groups instead of 3, and only 2 students per coach instead of 3. However, you have to ride the BMW for the 2 day camp, so if your son wants to ride his own bike you will have to go with 1 day schools.
Call the office when you have an idea of what school location is interesting to you - tracks have varying age limits so you will want to call to check to see if the track will allow a 12 year old to ride.
Congrats on your Moriwaki, I race one myself with WERA West and I love it, all kinds of fun to ride and it's always a kick to ride rings around the big bikes in the turns.
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So... we know that unwanted bar pressure combined with a front end made light by acceleration can result in a tank slapper. When you watch the video closely, can you tell WHICH bar the rider was pushing on?
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I fully agree with you that open road is not a track. Thus on the roads I stay away from my persoanl limits, with an idea to avoid dangerous situations as well as to have enough reserve of traction to try to overcome by bad habits and SRs.
Well said!
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Lots of helpful advice has been given here; but I do want to add a safety reminder. Good throttle control makes the bike handle predictably; makes it hold its line. It will NOT, however, FIX a really bad line. If you have already made a big error (turning in way too early, for example) and you are headed off the road, good throttle control will not fix that. If you realize your chosen line is going to take you off the asphalt, don't just keep rolling on and hope for a miracle; you may have to stand the bike up, brake to slow down, and then turn it again.
As Lnewqban says above, the best thing is to be cautious on unfamiliar roads and turns; radius and camber changes that you can't see coming can get you into trouble. Good throttle control is a tremendously effective tool for getting the best handling from your bike (and poor throttle control can definitely screw up your line) but it may not be enough to keep you on the road if a turn tightens up sharply and unexpectedly.
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See the news feed on the Superbike School Facebook page for a great article about this, with a quote from Leon Camier:
https://www.facebook.com/californiasuperbikeschool?ref=ts&fref=ts
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how much force and how quick can i push the bars to make bike turn without washing the front out...
had 2 offs recently, confidence is gone, starting to rush corners again and braking to late and hard into them too instead of carrying decent corner speed...
also falling into the habit of looking at the back of the bike infront of me.... new too track days, done 6 but seem to be going backwards since my crash... help
You can apply a great deal of force to the bar to turn the bike quickly - the quick steer is controlled by how HARD you push on the bar, not how fast. A fast "punch" to the bars can tend to upset the bike and give you a less accurate steering result.
As said above, you are very unlikely to lose traction just from quick-turning the bike - UNLESS you are ALSO on the brakes, or you have poor traction such as cold or worn-out tires, or a slick surface.
When you are approaching a turn, have you chosen a turn point (where you want to initiate the turn) and an apex point (where you want to turn TO)?
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Are you currently having a problem with running wide in this turn?
Yes, a pause on the throttle would help weight the front and give you a tighter steering response. That would be a great tool to use if you realized you were coming in a bit too fast and might run wide, so you needed to tighten your line.
However, if you've found a line that is working and allows you to enter the turn on the gas without slowing, do you have enough of a NEED to tighten your line that it is worth the throttle pause you have to use to get it?
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Oilpatch;
I had the same bellypan issue with Sharkskinz. I cut out the area and used modeling clay to make a mold for a sump l fabricated out of fiberglass. Worked like a charm.
Rain
I think that is a really common problem, I had it with the Kawasakis, the BMW, even the Moriwaki, and have heard the same from others, too. I don't think any of the race style fairings (with a full belly pan) are designed to work with stock exhaust, and even with race exhausts they require heat shield (or a modification like you mention above) to keep the paint from getting blackened or bubbling. All the stock (street) fairings seem to have cutouts around the exhaust so it isn't an issue with those - but of course you need the full belly pan to race, so you have to change it.
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You can see the rider running out to the white line and the question I have is did he target fix on them or was just going too quick for his personal skill set (sic) and just ran wide inadvertantly cutting these unfortunate riders down.
Well, clearly he WAS exceeding his skill level, as proven by the fact that he HIT something!! However, the rider does not appear to be going exceptionally fast, and he is certainly not leaned way over trying desparely to tighten his turn - in fact he appears to stand the bike UP, instead of trying to turn it more - so I don't really think speed was the primary problem. It looks more like he panicked, staring straight at the thing he didn't want to hit - and simply did not know what to do, so his Survival Reactions took over. Some of the classic SR responses in Twist II include:
Roll off the gas
Tighten on the bars
Fixed attention (on something)
Steering in the direction of the fixed attention
No steering or ineffective steering
Braking errors (over or under braking)
If the rider did not know WHAT to do, he probably panicked, grabbed a handful of front brake (which would make the bike run wide), stiffened his arms (also makes the bike run wide) and never attempted to steer away from the bicyclist at all - all classic SR reactions.
They should put up a warning on Mulholland that all riders are advised to attend at least one day of California Superbike School before attempting to ride that road.
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This sure was cool too watch! Where on earth did you find it?
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Guys:
Thanks for the responses. I'll leave my Cardo at home, then ;-) and I know what to ask my kids for my B'Day... Would a good set of leathers hikers do in a pinch? I've got a descent set of jungle boots, but they're mostly nylon.
Regarding boots - not sure if you are asking about your upcoming school day or about street riding, but for sure you need protective motorcycle boots for school. If you don't have them by then you can rent them (it's part of your leathers rental). Track boots should have significant ankle protection, for both preventing excessive ankle movement in a crash and to protect from impact or crushing injuries. Hiking boots will not do the job. One never expects to crash and crashes at school are infrequent - but you need to have the protection just in case.
For ANY sort of riding, good boots are important - even just a tip over in the driveway can result in significant ankle injury, if your foot gets caught under the bike, and boots with a rigid ankle support can make all the difference in the world.
One good resource is wera.com, they have a racer forum and the classified section usually has used race boots for sale, many of which have hardly been worn.
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The primary pivot point is your outside knee, that is what needs to be secure to anchor your body (some use their upper thigh, depending on what bike they have and the tank shape). The outside peg is used mainly just as a push point to do a calf raise to press your knee into the tank.
The purpose of pivot steering is to securely anchor your lower body to give you a solid base so your steering action can be stronger and more precise. You can make the strongest steering input if you lock your OUTSIDE knee / leg so you can push effectively with your opposite arm.
In high speed turns it takes more steering effort to turn the bike, pivot steering can help a lot in that situation, or can be used to maintain a secure base in a bumpy turn, etc.
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You will struggle to find WSBK and MotoGP riders that keep their arms relaxed under braking, so I doubt you can call it SR.
If it is not within your voluntary control, it is an SR - something you do automatically in an effort to protect yourself. For example, if a car starts to pull out in front of you and you instantly tighten up your arms and death grip with your hands, that is counter productive to effectively controlling the motorcycle and is a survival reaction triggered by fear.
However, if a race rider is consciously using his arms to support himself during extremely hard straight-line braking, that is a decision - it may or not be the best strategy but at least the rider is in control of it, not just dealing with an automatic response.
So it may or may not be an SR, depending in the rider.
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Regarding the leathers, the best thing to do would be to call the office and ask, they are very helpful: 800-530-3350.
You will not want to listen to music while on the track. You will have things to work on and plenty to think about, you won't need any additional entertainment.
Also, there will be someone speaking to you right before you go on track, and your coach could stop you briefly during a riding session to talk to you, so having music in your helmet would make that difficult. (Earplugs are fine, though.)
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Great write-up, this was fun to read! I wish I had seen something like it before my first race, it would have been comforting to know it feels that way for everyone!
It definitely does get easier, starts to feel more routine and less frantic as you do more races. Getting everything ready in advance really does help, as does having a very specific place for everything so you aren't frantically looking for earplugs or gloves or something during second call.
Writing down shift points and memorizing them can be helpful, so you don't have to spend attention on what gear you should be in, or time during the race messing around with being in the wrong gear or forgetting to shift.
Good job on getting out there and getting through the race, and thanks for sharing your experience with us!
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Lots of good advice! thanks. I've been playing with the traction control on the 1198, and was wondering why I still could'nt make the turns coming in hot. I guess I was relying too much on it. The guys Im riding with have smaller bikes, and even some hyper motards, and they seem to be crankiing through the turns harder than me?
Smaller, lighter-weight bikes (assuming they have decent handling) are able to corner faster than bigger heavier bikes just because of physics; a heavier bike is subject to greater cornering forces due to its higher mass (Force= mass * acceleration). The higher cornering speed is what attracts some riders to very lightweight bikes like the little RS125, or lightweight supermoto bikes.
Lots of riders that are new to track riding have made the mistake of trying to follow a little bike like an RS 125 or Ninja 250 through a corner and ended up in the dirt! Those little bikes might be slow on the straights but they'll eat a liter bike for lunch in the corners. They can change direction faster (better quick turn) and they can carry a LOT more speed into and through the corners.
Your 1198 will unquestionably be at a disadvantage in the corners - especially DOWNHILL corners! Compared to smaller lighter bikes, you will not be able to enter the corners as fast as a smaller lighter bike. With a sensible entry speed and good throttle control you can gain a bit back but mainly you'll just have to wait until the corner EXIT (and the straight sections) to use all that horsepower to your advantage.
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I've been downshifting in the turn, after coming into the curve too hot, back tire kicking out on me. I'm comfortable on the track in the bowls, but the streets, downhill are kicking my ass.
Ah. Got it. Yup, downshifting IN the turn, especially if you have already come in too fast, is certainly dicey - you are asking too much of the rear tire. It is already unweighted because you are downhill AND slowing down, which reduces your traction - and you are asking it to handle the cornering forces PLUS the braking forces produced by downshifting - and if you are abrupt with the clutch you are almost certain to slide the rear tire. If you have already entered the turn too fast, you are more or less in survival mode, just trying to get through the turn without running wide or sliding out, probably not an enjoyable way to ride the turn.
You already identified an EARLIER problem - coming in too fast. If you entered a downhill turn at a speed where you KNEW FOR SURE you could make the turn comfortably, would that allow you to get back on the throttle soooner? What would getting back to the throttle sooner do to the weight distribution on the front wheel versus back wheel, and how would that affect your overall traction?
If you were entering the turn at a very comfortable speed, where you KNEW you could make it, would that allow you to stay more relaxed in your arms? Would that allow you to turn the bike more quickly?
What would you have to do, in a downhill turn, to give yourself time to set your entry speed properly?
If you have already entered the turn too fast, it is difficult to fix. If you are aware of it early you could use quick turn and hook turn to try to get the bike turned rapidly and tighten up your line; good throttle control and relaxed arms would make the bike handle better, hanging off would help minimize your lean angle to improve your traction and lessen your chance of dragging hard parts. If you realize you are coming in fast, sometimes picking a later turn point ( to give you more time/distance for braking while still straight up and down) and then quick-turning the bike could help.
, standing the bike up, braking and re-steering is your final option.
Hayabusa On The Track
in School Questions/General Discussion
Posted
Most important thing is to have a bike you enjoy having and riding, and as you say, rider skill is generally far more important than the bike itself.
What is your purpose in lowering the bike? If you are planning to ride it on the track, lowering it will reduce your ground clearance (could limit your ability to lean it over without scraping pegs or other hard parts), shorten your suspension travel, and potentially have a negative effect on steering characteristics if it isn't done properly (changing rake/trail).
Larger rear sprocket will make the bike touchier on the throttle - could be good fun but could also make the bike harder to manage in turns. There might be some advantage to waiting until after your school date to change the sprocket; throttle control is important and it could be tougher if the throttle response is too abrupt.