RhythmRider Posted March 22, 2009 Report Share Posted March 22, 2009 ...and I'm a speed-a-holic My favorite thing to do on the race track is just see how long I can keep the throttle pinned. I don't like going slow. My goal is just to go as fast as possible and do it consistently. Unfortunately I've had a problem with crashing. I'm good friends with a CSS coach named Andy Burnett, and he and another friend of mine felt that an intervention was needed. He gave me Cobie's number and recommended I call and talk to him about my crashes, and after doing that I felt that the school would be able to help me stop crashing and start going fast. So I'm signed up for level 1 and 2 next weekend at Streets of Willow, and hopefully the weather will kick ass and I can figure out what I'm doing wrong and fix it. I signed up on the forum as a way of getting more information about techniques and to see what kind of discussions are going on around here. Hope to see you out on the track Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaybird180 Posted March 22, 2009 Report Share Posted March 22, 2009 ...and I'm a speed-a-holic My favorite thing to do on the race track is just see how long I can keep the throttle pinned. I don't like going slow. My goal is just to go as fast as possible and do it consistently. Unfortunately I've had a problem with crashing. I'm good friends with a CSS coach named Andy Burnett, and he and another friend of mine felt that an intervention was needed. He gave me Cobie's number and recommended I call and talk to him about my crashes, and after doing that I felt that the school would be able to help me stop crashing and start going fast. So I'm signed up for level 1 and 2 next weekend at Streets of Willow, and hopefully the weather will kick ass and I can figure out what I'm doing wrong and fix it. I signed up on the forum as a way of getting more information about techniques and to see what kind of discussions are going on around here. Hope to see you out on the track Hi Aaron, I'm glad that you found a way to get yourself locked on. You're now miles ahead of your peers. Acknowledging the problem is the first step to overcoming it. I'm not trying to be a smartass but have you heard the expressions, "go slow to go fast" or "go slow in the slow parts and fast in the fast parts"? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RhythmRider Posted March 22, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 22, 2009 Yep. Correct me if I'm wrong, but "go slow to go fast" just means you're riding with an emphasis on smoothness instead of on aggression, and the result of that usually equates to faster lap times with less drama. Slow in the slow and fast in the fast stuff... just a reminder that the fast corners are where you make the most time, and going balls out in the slow corners won't make as much of a difference, so you can knock it back a little bit and be more consistent but still produce quick laps by going "slow" in the slow corners. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fire337 Posted March 23, 2009 Report Share Posted March 23, 2009 Welcome Aaron, you are correct in your thinking. I too love pinning it as most of us here do but to do it with consistency requires the kind of control you wil learn from posting here within these forums as well as going through the levels of the school. I have done 1 2 & 3 so far and I can not even begin to explain how much it has changed how I look at riding. Hope you enjoy your weekend at Willow Springs, make sure you post up about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hubbard_28 Posted March 23, 2009 Report Share Posted March 23, 2009 Howdy. I had a love for speed, and still do a little, but it waned when I started doing trackdays. It appears Stuman is our resident fast guy. I think he's the one who said the first thing he wants to know when he gets to a track is; what's the lap record. Getting around the track quicker is still my priority, and for me it was safer and faster to back off the throttle. Not focusing on speed made me that much quicker. In one trackday (when I finally figured it out) getting off the throttle, and paying attention to what is truly important knocked 12 seconds off my time on one track. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RhythmRider Posted March 24, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 24, 2009 Yeah I think Andy might have mentioned him before, because that phrase sounds familiar. I'm pretty ambitious myself, but I don't have the riding skill to back it up! Which is why I'm definitely all ears to the advice of experienced riders, and I'm definitely going to keep my mind focused on smoothness and control, because I know that's where the fast laps will come from. Thanks for the advice! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmccready Posted March 25, 2009 Report Share Posted March 25, 2009 Howdy. I had a love for speed, and still do a little, but it waned when I started doing trackdays. It appears Stuman is our resident fast guy. I think he's the one who said the first thing he wants to know when he gets to a track is; what's the lap record. Getting around the track quicker is still my priority, and for me it was safer and faster to back off the throttle. Not focusing on speed made me that much quicker. In one trackday (when I finally figured it out) getting off the throttle, and paying attention to what is truly important knocked 12 seconds off my time on one track. hubbard_28, The fact that you knocked 12 seconds off your lap time has really got me thinking. I'm new to trackdays, and I'll be going to Thunderhills in July. One of my brothers-in-law rides a Ducati 848, and was on TH last season. He told me that during one lap, on the front straight, he looked up at his speedo and was doing 150+, and it scared him a little. I'm not afraid of speed, but I don't want to spend my $10 looking at the speedo while on the track for the first time. I was thinking of taping over my speedometer to keep me from fixating on it. I've read here, that it's more important to be smooth first, and that speed will come later. Do you think I'm doing the right thing by forcing myself to NOT see my speeds during these first trackdays? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RhythmRider Posted March 25, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 25, 2009 I've read here, that it's more important to be smooth first, and that speed will come later. Do you think I'm doing the right thing by forcing myself to NOT see my speeds during these first trackdays? I think that if you are truly focused on your riding, you won't even be thinking about your gauges. But I also think you should know what your lap times are so you can practice efficiently. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaybird180 Posted March 25, 2009 Report Share Posted March 25, 2009 I've read here, that it's more important to be smooth first, and that speed will come later. Do you think I'm doing the right thing by forcing myself to NOT see my speeds during these first trackdays? I think that if you are truly focused on your riding, you won't even be thinking about your gauges. But I also think you should know what your lap times are so you can practice efficiently. I've always covered my speedo on the track. I can only estimate my speeds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cobie Fair Posted March 25, 2009 Report Share Posted March 25, 2009 We cover the speedos on the school bikes. Cool to see the speed, but takes too much attention for me to look down and back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hubbard_28 Posted March 26, 2009 Report Share Posted March 26, 2009 Do you think I'm doing the right thing by forcing myself to NOT see my speeds during these first trackdays? I don't cover my speedo, but most, as you've read, do. Or they just don't have one. When I'm focusing on my riding, I'm not even tempted to look at the speedo. When I'm warming up the tires I peek down at the end of the straight because I hit the corners at about 60%, but I can't when I'm pushing it. I'll wreck. All I know is when I'm starting on the track I go up 1, up 2 on the straight, down 2 at the end of it, up 1 after the double corner, down 1 etc. etc. Shifting. If you even THINK you're going to be tempted, tape it up. I've seen a new rider wreck at 17 mph in a 50 mph corner and thought it was the biggest wreck. Everyones question to him was "how do you know how fast you were going?" And have fun. You're going to love it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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