| Author | Message | ||
     Not_purple_s2 |
Had my first track day this weekend at Jennings. I started the day getting the feel of the track with Control Riders in the Novice Group. After a couple of sessions we started to spread out as the pace picked up. I had my girlfriend keeping time for me just to get an idea of my progress. First timed run was a leisurely 2:10, slooooow. The next couple of sessions I fell in behind an SV1000 that was running a nice comfortable pace. I stayed in 3rd gear through the entire track. My time dropped down to 1:56 then 1:53 Woo Hoo, I'm making progress. Then on the next session the SV dropped out after a couple of runs so I picked up the pace and set my sights on a gsxr 600. I started using more gears, getting up to redline in 4th on the straights and shifting down to 2nd in the turns on the back end. My time dropped down to 1:45. Oh Yea!  Amped up by this and the fact that the day was starting to come to an end, I got stupid. I wanted to get a knee down. I came through Turn 8 too hot, I had been taking it tight all day, went wide and hit a rough section of pavement leaned waaaay over. The next thing I know the bike is sliding, she's shaking her head, and then I'm rolling on the asphalt. I came up with some scuffed leathers but no rash or bruises. The bike had minimal damage; handle bars, lever, and shifter toe peg. The pucks and DarkHorse sliders did their job.  I did manage to get two 1:43 laps before I went down. I'm completely hooked.  | ||
| Schmitty |
Hey Curtis, Glad to hear you're alright. The important thing is that you had fun. But now the racer side of me comes out. You made a mistake that a lot of track noobs make, and that's watching lap times. That is the last thing you need to be worried about during your first track day! Also don't let yourself get sucked in when following someone else. You don't know the experience level of the guy in front of you, so trying to follow him could get you in way over your head and end way worse than what happened to you this time. You gotta put your ego aside for the first couple of track days. And a knee down doesn't necessarily mean you're goin fast. I know a couple of pretty fast guys that don't need to touch a puck to turn a seriously fast lap! What you need to concentrate on first is body position and hitting the same lines on the track consistently. Consistent lines are the easiest way to a fast lap. Once you start hitting the same brake markers, apexes and exit points, then it's time to start figuring out where to make time. Again, don't take this the wrong way brother, the more guys on the track the better. It's just a little constructive criticism! Like I said the important thing is that you had fun and you're alright!! Welcome to the addiction bro!!!  | ||
| Ustorque |
glad you and the bike faired well. just sent you a pm...unrelated | ||
| Redbuelljunkie |
+1 on everything Schmitty said. Buy yourself a lap timer, but don't look at the times until the end of the day... that way you can see how you're doing/where to improve, but you won't put pressure on yourself during the day that might result in- well you know all too well. Glad you and the bike are ok. Offs are one of the painful side-effects of the addiction. One last thing... turn 8 is off camber- which makes it that much more challenging. Try to keep the bike as upright as possible through there, especially given the uneven surface. (Message edited by redbuelljunkie on November 10, 2008) | ||
| Barker |
its like crack. After your first time, all you can think about is your next time. | ||
| Reepicheep |
Great picture! That oughta be on the Dark Horse and Buell pages advertising the various sliders. Impressive job of saving the bike. Glad you are OK also... how did the gear hold up? Any lessons learned for us there? | ||
| Wavex |
Thanks for sharing... I am going to Buttonwillow on Dec 6th for my first trackday and I`ll make sure to NOT watch my lap times  Also glad to see that the fork/frame/swingarm sliders worked, as I have the same setup. | ||
| Wardamneagle |
Barker, speaking of crack keep me in the loop about the next track day around here. I'd love to hit that up. | ||
| Slaughter |
This coming Friday is the track day at Willow Springs - they have non-racer/street sessions in addition to racing practice. You have to sign up through http://www.Hypercycle.com | ||
| Not_purple_s2 |
Yeah, I got over confident and was trying to go too fast too soon. I learned my lesson, now I just can't wait to get back. | ||
| Not_purple_s2 |
The pucks and sliders are awesome. here's a close up of the puck  and the slider  I think if I had the bar end sliders they might have saved the handle bars. I got a demonstration when Nemo went down. His bar end ground, caught, and bent but absorbed enough forces to keep his bar from bending. | ||
| Schmitty |
That's the type of attitude to have, well done! Learn from your mistakes. You've gotta be able to get back on the horse and try it again, or you didn't belong there in the first place. Next time you're out, take note of where you feel comfortable. Those are the places you can maybe push it a LITTLE bit harder. Also take note of the places where you pucker yourself up, there you can back off a little and figure out what went wrong. It's a constant learning process. The time will come off in chunks at first, then you'll find it will be tenths at a time. Good luck! Schmitty | ||
| Ochoa0042 |
so the ground only touched the pucks and sliders? (minus the handlebar and shifter-feeler) nothing else? | ||
| Not_purple_s2 |
The brunt of it was taken by the bar, puck, shifter, and rear axle slider. The front axle, lift side scoops side rail all got some light scuffs, nothing a little touch up paint won't fix. I rolled more than slid and only had light scuffs on my gear. My helmet doesn't look like it ever touched the pavement though I'm sure it must have at some point. | ||
| Froggy |
In other words Ochoa, not the primary cover  | ||
| Ochoa0042 |
lol.... my damn luck with the that damn primary cover  | ||
| Paint_shaker |
Plus 1 on what Schmitty said!!! Make sure you are having fun and learning the race line. Speed will follow. My first few days at Jennings I didn't worry about lap times at all. I became mildly concerned with them my last 2 track days only to see if I was turning times close enough to consider racing. I found I am or will be... So... onto my advice for what it is worth... For me, it's all about setting goals. For my first ever track day, my goals were to go fast, drag a knee and not wreck. I accomplished all three without a problem. My next goal was to get into the intermediate class which I have accomplished. For Nov 15, my goal is to become more consistent on my braking points and be more precise on the race line!! My next goal is to complete race school so I can get my race license. School is on Dec 3. My goal at EVERY track day is to have run and ride safe. Jennings turn 8 used to be kinda hairy for me until I was given some advice I found to be very good... That being... the best way to get through turn 8 at Jennings is to tip in late into 7, be on the rumble strips on the outside of 7, tip in almost late into 8 and be tight on the inside of 8. I was amazed at how much better I was able to get through 8 after trying this. I can even pass in 8 now!!! That is real fun!! I'll be back to Jennings Nov 15. Stop by if you can. | ||
| 2008xb12scg |
Glad you came out o.k. I need to go next summer. I gotta get my speed fix off the street. | ||
| New12r |
Trun 8 will get ya!! Glad you had a good day overall. Maybe I will catch some of yall at Jennings next year. Wife just got a new part time job making some good money!! WOOT | ||
| Xl_cheese |
Don't worry about getting a knee down. It's really not that big of a deal. I remember our instructors giving people grief for going way out of their way to extend their knee to the ground. With the lightning pegs you'll find your toes scrape the ground before you knee does. Get some firebolt pegs for track day. | ||
| New12r |
With the lightning pegs you'll find your toes scrape the ground before you knee does. That is not good... You will need to get off the bike to keep it more upright while turning. You dont need to put the knee down but it is a great way to see where you are at. | ||
| Not_purple_s2 |
I have Traction "R" pegs on the bike. But I still scrapped the side of my boot a few times. Here's the only picture I've gotten so far. I'm not sure which turn or which session it was. I should be getting a cd of pictures in the next week or so. I'm really eager to see more so I can see what my bike and body position was like and how it progressed through the day. I believe the above picture is from fairly early in the day. I look tense and I'm sitting almost straight with the bike. | ||
| Paint_shaker |
I should state while getting a knee down may not be required to go fast, it sure is fun to do!!! First time I did it, I thought it was neater than sliced bread!! Now, I am much more concerned with running the race line, proper brake/shift points and proper body position. My how far I have come in the last 4-5 months!! LOL | ||
| Barnyard |
not purple, how long have you been riding? I have been riding for about 6 months. Every day to work and on the weekends. I really want to go to the track and see what I got. Just trying to get a feel of when it would be a good time to even try. I know you ate it but what mad you decide to go? | ||
| Not_purple_s2 |
I got my first bike 10yrs ago. Though I didn't ride much while I was in college so, so most of my experience has really been in the last few years. I got the itch for the track after Buelltoberfest. There just aren't any good curves like that here. Plus the track is so much better to really ride aggressive. It's a controlled environment; no traffic, no ditches if you run off, and when you do go down there will be someone right there to help you out and make sure you're ok. If you're thinking about going then go. The season is about over so start looking for a local track and find a good date in the spring or summer. That'll give you time to get good proper gear and get some seat time on the street. Sign up for Novice, let everyone know that it's your first time and they'll be more than helpful. Just don't do like me and try to ride past your abilities.  (Message edited by not_purple_s2 on November 11, 2008) | ||
| Smoke |
lots of tracks in texas Kevin that should be running through the cold season. if you attend one of the IMS at dallas or houston a couple of the track clubs will have a booth. like Curtis said, let them know you are new and need instruction when you go the first time and someone will step up to do that. 1 caution, it's addictive. have fun, tim | ||
| Xl_cheese |
I really want to go to the track and see what I got. For your first track days it's better to assume you 'got' nothing... It'll keep your bike from looking like the one above. I have no room to talk. I went down on my 2nd track day. I went a lil wide in the middle of a double apex turn and as I neared the outside edge of the track I looked down at the shoulder... I'm sure that had I looked where I needed to go I would not have went down. Lucky for me I had even less damage than the bike above. Bent handlebar, broken shift lever, and broken axel slider. | ||
| Preybird1 |
Hey not purple how did that road attack tire feel on the track, I have the same tires on my bike but i prefer the race attack. I like its flexible shoulder! Hey can you get a pic of the damage to the tire sidewall im curious to how it held up after going down! | ||
| Not_purple_s2 |
I'm running a sport front and road rear and they worked pretty well. I only had the rear slide a couple of times, just a little bit, nothing scary. I'll probably go Sport on the rear when this one is used up. The tires look fined, no sign of damage. | ||
| Paint_shaker |
I ran a Conti sport front/road rear combo on the track. They stuck like glue! | ||
| Hammeroid |
Glad you're alright. Here's mine after turn five at Millville. These bikes take a fall very well. Needed a new brake lever and had to straighten the handle bars out.  | ||
| Hammeroid |
from another angle. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KETK4VSs5ys |
