SpencerYPM Posted October 4, 2009 Report Posted October 4, 2009 Currently running in the top ten of the YPMRC, but more by sheer aggression than total skill. I can ride alright, and know that I'm making mistakes - but I need to improve this next season dramatically. Currently not riding competitively due to a highside at Cadwell thats left me with an A/C joint dislocation. What would you suggest as a starter at the school for me? Thanks Spencer Quote
lwarner Posted October 5, 2009 Report Posted October 5, 2009 Currently running in the top ten of the YPMRC, but more by sheer aggression than total skill.I can ride alright, and know that I'm making mistakes - but I need to improve this next season dramatically. Currently not riding competitively due to a highside at Cadwell thats left me with an A/C joint dislocation. What would you suggest as a starter at the school for me? Thanks Spencer I'd start at the beginning, Level 1. You may have read A Twist of the Wrist 2 already, if so I'm sure you can appreciate what the mastery of the concepts in it could give you. I am not an instructor, I'm a student, but that is my advice. Quote
Bullet Posted October 5, 2009 Report Posted October 5, 2009 Currently running in the top ten of the YPMRC, but more by sheer aggression than total skill.I can ride alright, and know that I'm making mistakes - but I need to improve this next season dramatically. Currently not riding competitively due to a highside at Cadwell thats left me with an A/C joint dislocation. What would you suggest as a starter at the school for me? Thanks Spencer Hi Spencer, Welcome to our forum mate. Hope that injury is coming ok? Highside eh? ouch, well, thats a throttle control problem, which we work on, on level 1, drill 1. Your story is very common at the school, we get lots of club racers coming to the school after reaching a ceiling in performance, or when they realise they start crashing and really don't understand the reasons why. Can we help you? Without question. Unfortunately, all the UK Schools for 2009 are now done an so you'll have to wait for 2010 now. Where do you start, well, like everyone, you'll start on level 1, doesn't matter who you are, where you've been before., how long you've ridden or raced, its essential that you fully understand the fundamental concepts and technology of what works and why, and you can apply it succesfully. What else can you do over the winter? Well, if you don't have it, Twist of the wrist 2 is the bible of what we teach, its quite tough going at times, but really is very detailed ib its techinical descriptions of what/why, etc, etc. Also, the new Twist of the wrist DVD is being launched, look on here and you can find the homepage. This looks like its going to be very good indeed, great camera work to emphasize the points. Hope that helps cover it for you mate, if you have more questions, please just ask. Bullet Quote
SpencerYPM Posted October 5, 2009 Author Report Posted October 5, 2009 Thanks mate, I've read Twist of the wrist/Soft science etc a good few times and applied the teachings where I can. I even read it just before a race sometimes to jog my memory I have found it useful to say the least, that and my onboard camera that shows clearly mistakes being made by the boatload. Highside was so fast I could do nothing about it, I never even realised I'd highsided until the marshall's told me! Anyway, I'll get along to a school next year and get my training underway. Quote
Cobie Fair Posted October 5, 2009 Report Posted October 5, 2009 Hi Spencer, For sure the school will help (Leon Camier is a big fan, done a lot of training with us). Their is an exact reasno why highsides occur and how to make sure they don't . The books are great, good start there, lets see if we can get you at the school as soon as we can. In the meantime, if you would like to go over the highside, the guys up here are happy to go into it (sometimes in nauseating detail). Best, CF Quote
SpencerYPM Posted October 7, 2009 Author Report Posted October 7, 2009 I interviewed Leon for the Metro when he was on the Duke with Shakey and he gave me some pointers - really nice guy. His advance after your training certainly is part of my theory that its me that needs tuning - and not the bike. Anyway Here's the highside story, make of it what you will. I went to Cadwell and never practiced and only ever managed one race last season before blowing an engine. So I was a bit blind, the current leader in the YPM is awesome through the hall bends section and he walked the bit with me and showed me where to be and where gear changes should be etc. Come the first race I should have gone a bit easier, but... I got one of my customary good starts and settled in 5th I think? So I was with racers that knew the ground better than me and I was being pulled along. I dropped to 8th or something and it became a bit of a dogfight and I know I was a little aggressive and ragged. I was using his tips and clearly quicker through the section he'd walked with me. So I was doing all my passes or catching riders in this part. On the 5th lap I came over the mountain and into Hall Bends I downchanged, tipped it right, then left. I wound on the throttle same as the last four times through I thought, I felt the rear tyre chatter/slide and go down on the left hand side. Next I'm bouncing along hearing that tarmac fibreglass sound. From the kit its apparent I landed on my left temple/shoulder first. I thought I'd lowsided until the marshalls informed me I did a Lorenzo and was a good 15 feet up? Not sure how much they exaggerated. My teamate broke down on that corner and witnessed the lot all he remembers seeing is me holding on to the bars handstand style before it ejected me. Recently at Brands the bike was recognised by some Superteen riders and they witnessed it and thought I was a goner. So it was obviously quite impressive . the only pics of it are aftermath here. http://www.swaffs.co.uk/gallery/BMCRCAug20...k-YPM/image/31/ http://www.swaffs.co.uk/gallery/BMCRCAug20...k-YPM/image/30/ Bike was almost undamaged which was odd, brake lever was sheared though at a weird angle. So I need to get faster off my own bat I think rather than ride others races and score by purely being brave. Quote
Jasonzilla Posted October 8, 2009 Report Posted October 8, 2009 Urgh. My wrecks were never as elevated as yours, and I'm not even sure I push hard enough to highside (or at least I minimize my risk), but I'm thinking that if four times you got slippage through that section and weren't comfortable with that, you got four warnings. Unless you were doing something differently, like if it were a different type of elevation or radius corner, you probably should have changed where you accelerated by a fraction, or put more pressure on your knee so you weren't as troubled by the slippage. Were you coming off the gas the other times? I'm guessing that if you went that high, it was pretty fast and violent, and you didn't get much, if any, time to react. Quote
SpencerYPM Posted October 11, 2009 Author Report Posted October 11, 2009 I never once got any indication of the tyres sliding or even any movement on the previous five laps. Then it just let go ferociously, normally they howl, or slide quite gently as a warning. Quote
Jasonzilla Posted October 11, 2009 Report Posted October 11, 2009 I never once got any indication of the tyres sliding or even any movement on the previous five laps.Then it just let go ferociously, normally they howl, or slide quite gently as a warning. Sorry, I read that you had felt it sliding. Quote
Bullet Posted October 11, 2009 Report Posted October 11, 2009 Spencer, if you'd been well stabilised and locked on that bike, you'd would have also discovered another really big feedback mechanism of the bike sliding. We'll teach you this on level 3...... Bullet Quote
SpencerYPM Posted October 22, 2009 Author Report Posted October 22, 2009 Posted this up for fun/discussion this was my onboard at Snett this year I'm on a RD350YPVS which has more drive but heavier and worse brakes than the TZR's its pitched at. warts and all! Quote
Jasonzilla Posted October 22, 2009 Report Posted October 22, 2009 That looked fun. Loved your line through turn one. Quote
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