2-day At Vir -- Feedback

[mdane]

I really enjoyed the 2-day school at VIR last week. CSS runs a very professional operation. The coaching and on-track reinforcement was excellent. The way the techniques were isolated for emphasis was very effective. Starting from zero as a road rider with a couple of years of experience, and no track time, I feel as if I learned a tremendous amount about how to control the bike. By the end of the second day, I was going faster with far less drama. Here are the things I liked most about the school:

1. Specific techniques to work on every time out on the track
   
2. Frequent feedback and communication from coaches
   
3. On-track guidance and reinforcement by pre-arranged hand signals
   
4. Engaging and useful classroom sessions
   
5. Plenty of track time to work on techniques
   
6. Good organization, smooth flow throughout the day
   
7. Visible improvement in ability
   
8. Immediate feedback from camera bike sessions
   

I would definitely go again for the level 3 curriculum, as I understand now the importance of body position. The only area I think could be improved is making time for the off-track excercises, such as the lean and brake bikes. On the camera bike runs, I was instructed to ride at 70 percent, and while I understand this is done to counteract the tendency to show off for the camera, for me it was a distraction. On my second run, I just rode at my natural pace and had a much better lap.

 

All in all, a wonderful experience that far exceeded my expectations. The entire crew was courteous, professional and competent, as well as being firm where necessary (bad passes, etc.). The curriculum is highly concentrated, and I feel as if it would be very difficult indeed to pack more learning and improvement into two days.

 

-Mike