2 wheeled track day
07-08-2009, 10:03 PM
#1
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2 wheeled track day
posting this up since there's some racers on here and i don't frequent any racing forums. 2nd trackday and had a blast but again struggled with body/foot position. last track day i was dragging the peg feelers so i took them off, all as good. this time i'm dragging the peg itself, and get this....dragging the ******* stator cover. so i'm leaning like to the limit maybe over the limit but with better body position i wouldn't have to lean the bike so much so it's something i MUST work on.
picture guy didn't catch me doing anything good
, oh well but in this pic imagine how far i would be leaning to drag the stator cover.
picture guy didn't catch me doing anything good
, oh well but in this pic imagine how far i would be leaning to drag the stator cover.
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07-08-2009, 11:02 PM
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oh it's fun and sickly addicting. here's my problem, my bike is near mint other than now having a ground down left peg and stator cover. I want to get another bike. Do i turn my bike into a track bike and buy something nice and new for street duty? or do i keep mine on the street and pick something up for track duty?
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07-08-2009, 11:11 PM
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You're going to loose a lot of money converting a street legal bike into a track ****, less so if you manage to sell off the parts you take off (blinkers, lights, licensee plate bracket, passenger pegs/handles, stator if you go total loss), but that's not a guarantee.
I'd buy a bike someone's already prepared. Track related problems have supposedly already been solved, the PO ate the money loss, and most likely put on a few go-fast bits.
I'd buy a bike someone's already prepared. Track related problems have supposedly already been solved, the PO ate the money loss, and most likely put on a few go-fast bits.
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07-08-2009, 11:30 PM
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You're going to loose a lot of money converting a street legal bike into a track ****, less so if you manage to sell off the parts you take off (blinkers, lights, licensee plate bracket, passenger pegs/handles, stator if you go total loss), but that's not a guarantee.
I'd buy a bike someone's already prepared. Track related problems have supposedly already been solved, the PO ate the money loss, and most likely put on a few go-fast bits.
I'd buy a bike someone's already prepared. Track related problems have supposedly already been solved, the PO ate the money loss, and most likely put on a few go-fast bits.
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07-09-2009, 12:14 AM
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Buy a bike from someone who has a reputation of building quality things which is already prepped for track riding. Don't risk losing a completely nice new bike.
Btw, LOL @ stator cover... Don't think I've seen that before.
Btw, LOL @ stator cover... Don't think I've seen that before.
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07-09-2009, 02:46 PM
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A buddy who tracks his bike nearly every weekend has wrecked probably 15 - 20 times in total for various reasons.. Hes an overly ambitious rider.. LOL... Never a scratch on him. His leathers on the other hand.
On the street I feel safer in a Miata. I get a lot of **** from fellow riders for that, but my ***** are much larger in the car. Track I'm perfectly content on 2 wheels.
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07-09-2009, 04:49 PM
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that's kinda the scary part, at no time during my track day did i feel like i was about to lose control, but it wasn't till after washing my bike last night and noticing my stator cover being ground down i realized i was over the limit. As of right now i'm blaming the ground down stator cover on 3 things; me not getting my *** off the bike enough(easier said than done because it feels like you are but when you see pictures you weren't), needing aftermarket rearset because i think dragging my peg caused my front forks to load up and dive even more, and lastly the notoriously undersprung front forks in the 929 which are optimal for a 150lb rider, and i'm around 210.
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07-09-2009, 05:40 PM
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Welcome to the addiction 
Track days are the thin edge of the wedge for some (like me). I'm going on my 5th (6th? I forget) season of racing, which I started after my first track day about 2.5 years before that. I'm doing a track day tomorrow with one of my team mates, then a 6 hour endurance race this Saturday. Three riders, two one-hour stints each, assuming there are no red flags (race stoppages). Good times.
Yeah at first it feels like you are WAY off of the bike, feeling like a hero, then you see the pictures... 'Oh, is that it?' LOL, Been there. Just keep working on it and you will get to where it feels normal. Now I feel weird if I do not hang off of the bike going through a corner. I could run through all of the technique stuff but if you are getting good instruction they are probably telling you everything I would anyway. Best advice, keep working on your technique, be smooth, and the lap times will start dropping on their own later. LOOK THROUGH THE CORNERS! That is a big deal and helps with just about everything.
Real quick. looking at your picture, you look a little stiff-armed. Elbows out works for Ben Spies but he is an exception. Loose and easy. You could rotate your torso around the tank and get your butt out more over the bike. When I am hanging off I only have one butt-cheek touching the seat. When you are hanging off farther the outside forearm should be resting gently on the tank. Your outside calf will be hooked against the frame. You just kind of float in that position. Get your body positioning done before you turn into the corner. It feels weird at first getting on the brakes while hanging off of the bike but you get used to it.
Track days are the thin edge of the wedge for some (like me). I'm going on my 5th (6th? I forget) season of racing, which I started after my first track day about 2.5 years before that. I'm doing a track day tomorrow with one of my team mates, then a 6 hour endurance race this Saturday. Three riders, two one-hour stints each, assuming there are no red flags (race stoppages). Good times.
Yeah at first it feels like you are WAY off of the bike, feeling like a hero, then you see the pictures... 'Oh, is that it?' LOL, Been there. Just keep working on it and you will get to where it feels normal. Now I feel weird if I do not hang off of the bike going through a corner. I could run through all of the technique stuff but if you are getting good instruction they are probably telling you everything I would anyway. Best advice, keep working on your technique, be smooth, and the lap times will start dropping on their own later. LOOK THROUGH THE CORNERS! That is a big deal and helps with just about everything.
Real quick. looking at your picture, you look a little stiff-armed. Elbows out works for Ben Spies but he is an exception. Loose and easy. You could rotate your torso around the tank and get your butt out more over the bike. When I am hanging off I only have one butt-cheek touching the seat. When you are hanging off farther the outside forearm should be resting gently on the tank. Your outside calf will be hooked against the frame. You just kind of float in that position. Get your body positioning done before you turn into the corner. It feels weird at first getting on the brakes while hanging off of the bike but you get used to it.
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07-09-2009, 05:56 PM
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well i wasn't getting any instruction this trackday, i would have had to sign up for ART "advanced rider training," which i didn't. I really want to move up into the intermediate group because i was spending mostly the whole time either passing people or getting help up by people but the feeling i get is i have to be "bumped," but all the instructors are watching their students. i need to get a track bike.....
the few things i do know:
1 my body positioning is awful, must get my *** off the bike
2 for whatever reason i keep draggin my feet, i try to get them further back and in but not much succes. when my feet are so far back i feel like my toes can't support my weight. maybe slimmer/stiffer/smaller boots would help? rearsets?
3 looking through the turn has never been a problem been doing that since i've been riding and never target fixated.
the few things i do know:
1 my body positioning is awful, must get my *** off the bike
2 for whatever reason i keep draggin my feet, i try to get them further back and in but not much succes. when my feet are so far back i feel like my toes can't support my weight. maybe slimmer/stiffer/smaller boots would help? rearsets?
3 looking through the turn has never been a problem been doing that since i've been riding and never target fixated.
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