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I'll post up for sure but it probably won't be for awhile...couple months unless a deal shows up 
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Jun 1, 2011 06:39
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i'll play 
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Jun 2, 2011 04:39
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Veritas posted:i'll play Looks like a very fun bike. 08-09 Ninjette? What does a race build entail?
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Jun 2, 2011 08:25
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lokigoesrawr posted:Looks like a very fun bike. 08-09 Ninjette? What does a race build entail? yep, 08 ninjette. link to my '250 race thread' http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3411547
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Jun 4, 2011 00:35
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Jun 4, 2011 00:38
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Took my (commuter bike) CBR F2 out to Rockingham with a few buddies. Due to someone dropping oil all over the track during a sighting lap, we got the 2-mile "international" circuit, which was a new one for me. As usual over here, the pits were full of heavily modified liter bikes, but this particular organiser is pretty good about safety and doesn't seem to attract the same coterie of paint-trading, fairing-bashing afficionados as some of the others. Got reassigned to the "advanced" group, which didn't seem like a great idea given that I was riding a ropey old steelie in road trim with a BT010 on the back (I gather that's like a D207 but for people who like Bridgestones ). As it appeared getting put where I'd originally asked to be would mean missing a session, I just went with it. It was a little disconcerting lining up with a stripped-down Mille on slicks on one side and a K1 with BST cabon wheels and swingarm on the other. I had managed to snag a part-worn front Racetec from my local shop though, and I figured if I could keep the front end stuck down, the back should follow along, as long as I didn't get too greedy with the throttle in slow corners. As it turned out, the F2 did OK. There was only one really quick guy on the whole day - a little dude about 5' tall on a lovely and fairly stock looking late-model Tuono. How he physically got on it I don't know, but the only time I saw him was when he was loving off past everyone else on the circuit at a huge rate of knots. You'd never see him for longer than one corner, because that's how long it took him to disappear over the horizon. Smooth with it as well, needless to say. I was a little surprised that the F2 didn't get comprehensively monstered on the two fastest parts of the track. The main straight runs out onto the banking, and you drop off into a fast chicane with only a touch of brake to tuck it in (if any), followed by full throttle back onto the banking for a second straight. I could usually catch people back up if they pulled away on the straight by just caning it through the chicane, and either re-passing them or getting back into touch through the braking zone. That was an experience in fear with original 2-pot brakes, trying to match modern radial calipers! Luckily, the rest of the track is all setting up for corners and complexes, so it's more about corner speed and chassis setup than pure power. The bike was initially dragging its rear end like the SA dog and smashing poo poo violently into the tarmac, but I managed to alleviate that by removing the peg feelers, turning compression up to just short of max and winding back rebound a touch on the shock. This made the rear a bit stiff into dips and transitions and caused a couple of slides, but was better than heavy metal digging in on every corner. The forks are using too much travel - even going fairly gently as I was, max braking had my handy zip tie up to 1cm from the yokes, which must mean it was bottoming. Feel is good though, so I'm not sure it's worth messing with them. I quite like the F2 all in all, although it doesn't seem to have a huge amount of "character" about it. It pretty much does what you ask and has about enough power, if not the most exciting midrange. It doesn't seem to fall between gears in a way that upsets the chassis, unlike the last ('03) RR version I rode, where you could have a choice of too high or too low for a given corner. Too high and the back end got nervous, too low and you couldn't get weight back for grip and both ends were nervous. The ergonomics work well for me - many bikes I have trouble getting my body off of. My 954 felt a bit like leaning off a double-decker bus and the Duke would touch pegs down before my knee approached the ground. Whereas on both the CBR600 and my old 400RR, I'm able to get knees and toes on the deck without any trouble/contortions. That does help to inspire confidence, as at least you know how far over the bike is (or isn't, in my case). In this one track day I managed to destroy more slider just cruising around learning the bike than I did in 3 or 4 years with the 954. It seems to really let you sit on knee, toe slider and peg-end and just cruise around like that all day. One of my buddies was sharing the bike in the novice group, and he sent me out on one of his sessions when he got tired. The disparity in pace was a little silly and I could see how it could get dangerous with people on lots of different lines and riding much more modern bikes with super braking power, so I only did that one session in that group. It was amusing just riding around everything and playing with the bike, rather than concentrating solely on getting the best line and extracting maximum speed. I think for a little more pace, aside from maybe a slightly grippier back tyre, I may get a set of cheap race rearsets and pull the mainstand. That should let me concentrate on carrying speed, without worrying about that almighty midcorner "crash", followed by almighty actual crash as the mainstand levers the back wheel off the ground. The front is a bit too soft and the shock is probably a bit tired, but I don't know that they're limiting me yet. They're certainly not scary. Any current or former F2 owners have an opinion as to whether they're worth addressing? e: circuit map - I recommend it! 
Saga fucked around with this message at 09:46 on Jun 5, 2011 |
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Jun 5, 2011 09:39
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Saga posted:Any current or former F2 owners have an opinion as to whether they're worth addressing? Honestly, there's a balance to old bikes like that. I'd probably match front and rear tires, but there's a point where you don't have the lean angle potential to really take advantage of the latest, greatest DOT race rubber (although the payoff in confidence in all areas can be worth quite a bit of time...) No one out here runs Rennsports, they don't have any distribution/trackside support in the states, so I can't comment specifically on the tires. On the cornering clearance issues: Considering it's your commuter, I'd probably grab some metal stock and cut myself a set of ghetto rearset relocators, to get the rearsets up and out of the way. Figure 20 minutes to swap one way or the other, plus an hour of creation time and 20-30$ in raw material, and you've got a perfect compromise setup. Now, this is done with the caveat that you know what you're gonna drag next. On my ZX6E, if you levered the pegs up out of the way, the next thing you'd end up dragging was the left side engine cover, so, yaknow, watch out for that. Also, rather than increasing compression on the rear, I'd try increasing preload instead. Increasing preload will cause the bike to ride higher in the relative travel of the suspension as it takes more force to overcome the preload you've put on the shock, but it allows you to maintain compliance in the damping. Generally, you should be using preload (or if you're at one extreme or the other of the adjustment, spring rate) to control where in the stroke of your suspension you are working, and compression should be used to fine tune feel and feedback. The complete range of compression adjustment will be a fine adjustment, but a few turns of preload can cause a significant change in where the bike operates in the overall travel of the shock. Of course, this can cause the shock to operate out of it's ideal range on the street, but a couple turns of preload is easy to fix and where I'd start. Rebound should be matched roughly to compression and then fine tuned according to tire wear or corner exit characteristics. Anyways, I hope that this helps you out some, and as always, just my 2c, no warranty given or implied, or even an assurance that the direction I'd take things will help you  Give it a shot though, and let me know what you think next time you get the bike out to the track
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Jun 6, 2011 20:02
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Definitely what I was thinking. I don't know that it's worth doing much to the suspension. It's a commuter and the only reason it has a racetec on it is it was 40% of retail as a part-worn that had done about 5 laps. There's no way I'm putting a tyre on it that will only last 500 miles, and I don't think the extra compliance of a good shock is going to justify the cost. The BT010 held up fine - just a few tiny slides on the throttle in second where there were transitions and dips on or after the apex, and a little porpoising on one corner where the bike was being wrung out in third back onto the banking. No tearing or weird wear at all, so the shock appears to be basically working, even if it's limiting what I can ask the bike to do. The thing that will drag next other than the de-feelered peg ends (nearly there, as most of one toe slider is gone...) is the mainstand, and very close behind that the end can. So yeah, if I have time I should make up some plates and pull the mainstand. The alternative to plates is some $120 stamped-metal rearsets with replaceable pegs and delrin sliders, which are tempting as time-savers. Or woodcraft. I did try preload first, but realised immediately that I hadn't brought a C spanner. Pathetically enough, I couldn't get the preload adjuster to move in what I assumed was the right direction with a hammer and punch, so either it's at max clicks already or I was doing something wrong. So as it was dragging its rear end, esp. in the second half of chicanes, I upped compression and turned rebound down slightly to help it resist jacking down. Seemed to work, other than reducing grip slightly at the back, as the unexpected crashing noises stopped. But yeah, if I got the right spring or preload setting, I should be able to keep the grip AND the ground clearance/fore-aft balance. I do definitely want to remove any clearance issues and get both ends properly set up, even if I don't spend a lot of money on it. I basically got the jetting fixed and had no time to even set the sag before going to the track. Then I basically just messed around getting used to the bike. (e) I have never destroyed knee sliders like I have in one day with this thing, and that while just dicking around. I used like half a vanson trackpuck that's been sitting in my garage for about 7 years, and we only did one or two sessions after lunch. So it's already great fun, if not brim-full of character. I was able to cruise round the outside of my pit neighbour's fully pimped Daytona 675. Knowing his drainpipe-sized Arrow full system cost as much as my bike added extra  to my  I mean sure that just means his skill level was even less than my "mediocre" (!), but $1000 bike plays $10,000 is still funny.
Saga fucked around with this message at 21:33 on Jun 6, 2011 |
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Jun 6, 2011 21:24
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I found on the ZX6E that most of the issues people had with dragging the centerstand could be fixed with proper, early throttle application. With the older bikes, it's even more important to be on maintenance throttle at the apex to pick up the bike chassis and stiffen the rear suspension and lever the bike off the ground. If you were off the throttle or trying to trail in deep you could drag all kinds of hard parts, but those issues disappeared once you got on the gas. Do you have a ramp type preload adjuster? Or is it a ring and lockring? And yeah, riding around the outside with old tech is always fun, although these days I love the modern bikes because holy poo poo it's like cheating. Slipper clutch + 105hp + modern suspension and you can back it in like a superhero with the rear wheel bouncing nearly off the ground and come out of it all going "drat, I could have gone even faster..." What a loving rush.
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Jun 6, 2011 21:36
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Hold on now, I'm trying to enjoy my child-related poverty here. No fair spoiling my fun! < >e: It is a ramp type one - I was just being retarded and couldn't see an obvious index mark, so I had no idea if it was on 1, 4 or 9. Older bikes suit my pipe and slippers style of riding. Plus, um, poverty. Saga fucked around with this message at 06:26 on Jun 7, 2011 |
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Jun 6, 2011 22:47
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I want to take my sportster to a track day
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Jun 7, 2011 01:15
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VTNewb posted:I want to take my sportster to a track day I want you to take your sportster to a track day. I was telling my buddy to take his Bonneville, but he wouldn't. It would have been a lot of fun in the novice group, and we could have trashed the pegs and collected some marbles with the Mez4s. Imagine the parking-lot kudos he would be getting at work right now. It also has a deafening, Ducati-drowning 2-1 on it, which would have brightened peoples' day in the pits.
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Jun 7, 2011 06:30
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Has anyone been down to Inde Motorsports Ranch? I wish it wasn't 200mi away - Chuckwalla is the same distance and I can at least use it as a stop on my way to LA.
BlackMK4 fucked around with this message at 21:42 on Jun 10, 2011 |
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Jun 10, 2011 21:39
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4th place, 3rd would have been my first podium. boohoo 
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Jun 12, 2011 02:19
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Just signed up for a track day at VIR with California Super Bike with a couple friends. Should be a good time. We are running the north course so I'm trying to decide between the SV and the CRF.
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Jul 26, 2011 17:52
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I don't race, but I do tons of marshaling. Any other flaggers around in here? It may not be as exhilarating as racing/track days, but hell it can be lots of fun. Strongly suggest anyone with an interest to at least try it out in your region.
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Aug 9, 2011 01:17
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Do they ever let you run a lap or two when you marshal?
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Aug 9, 2011 01:33
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At the end of the year we usually have like a 20 min lapping thing, but that's not a universal thing. We have some ex/current racers from both 4 and 2 wheeled disciplines that help out (including a woman who drag races a 7 second alcohol rail car) but I get my kicks out of marshaling. I go to the F1 race in Montreal every year, perhaps a Moto GP round next year as well. Carbonate fucked around with this message at 01:40 on Aug 9, 2011 |
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Aug 9, 2011 01:37
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any Houston (or central TX) folks wanna do some trackdays? check out Fastlinemcs.com track virgins get 50% off, and i'll see about getting some discounts for first time customers are well. our next day is on Aug. 20th at Texas World Speedway.
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Aug 9, 2011 03:36
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Veritas posted:any Houston (or central TX) folks wanna do some trackdays? check out Fastlinemcs.com I'll be there with a buddy. Red sv650/yellow and black gsxr 750 both in novice. We're doing GSS the next week too.
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Aug 9, 2011 04:52
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GanjamonII posted:I'll be there with a buddy. Red sv650/yellow and black gsxr 750 both in novice. We're doing GSS the next week too. good deal, i'll be instructing in novice. looking forward to meeting new people =) have you guys done a Fastline day before?
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Aug 9, 2011 05:01
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Veritas posted:good deal, i'll be instructing in novice. looking forward to meeting new people =) Yeah we came out to GSS on the 17th of July for the first time. I really enjoyed GSS, mostly because I learned a lot.. first time everything really clicked for me. It was great even with the minor heatstroke
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Aug 9, 2011 05:12
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Looks like I'm going to have a good fall. VIR north course next week, head to Indy to watch the motogp race next weekend, Barber September and little Tally November. SV is going to get a good workout.
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Aug 9, 2011 13:00
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Went to something called taste of racing at a WMRRA race today. For $20 you get 20 minutes on the track. Went with a friend of mine and we both agreed it was friggin' awesome and I'm glad I went. Felt like a dumbass because I was the only one that taped up my lights but v v    My buddy Tim.  Tires afterward. I guess I should have less air in them? Slim Pickens fucked around with this message at 03:39 on Aug 14, 2011 |
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Aug 14, 2011 03:36
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Nah that's fine. Probably should've leant it further over though
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Aug 14, 2011 05:12
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Yeah, that too I guess. But, there were a lot of people on the track, and I didn't wanna yard sale at a track day, and, and, and... Haha, it was a blast, though. I'm either doing the next one or just a full-on track day next time.
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Aug 14, 2011 08:28
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Slim Pickens posted:Yeah, that too I guess. But, there were a lot of people on the track, and I didn't wanna yard sale at a track day, and, and, and... 27th and 28th Gullous and I are doing the 2 day track day at ORP with PSSR, camping on site, might have tow rig space available.
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Aug 14, 2011 08:54
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are there any control riders or instructors out there with you guys for the 20min?
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Aug 14, 2011 15:22
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There were 3 or 4 marshals out there with us, and if you passed the lead one you got black flagged. I was no where near fast enough to get to him, though, so for a first track day it definitely wasn't a problem.Spiffness posted:27th and 28th Gullous and I are doing the 2 day track day at ORP with PSSR, camping on site, might have tow rig space available. I'd love to, but I think I'll be too busy, and I should really spend the money on improving the rear shock, instead. Thanks, though!
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Aug 15, 2011 04:23
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So we're supposed to load up and be on the road by 10 this morning for VIR...~hour and a half away. My bike has been prepped since Saturday night. I spent all day yesterday helping a friend put his bike back together, we still need to finish up a couple things (oil, fairings, new gaskets on gas tank). He is no where to be found and not answering his phone. Roommate disappeared last night to the girl friends house with his newly mounted tires. No sign of him, he needs to put the wheels/tires back on, flush brakes, change oil, mount race plastics. Ah the joy of track days with friends 
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Aug 15, 2011 13:21
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Spiffness posted:27th and 28th Gullous and I are doing the 2 day track day at ORP with PSSR, camping on site, might have tow rig space available. It's gonna be glorious! Spiffness and I ran the Sunday session at ORP end of last month. This was my first track day ever and Spiff's first of the season/on the bike.  _MG_0547 by scene but not herd, on Flickr  _MG_0408 by scene but not herd, on Flickr My coworker was there, he filmed me from his 1098 for a lap or so. This was early in the session, I was still figuring out the lines. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BUj5u9s-jEc Action at 0:45, too much throttle slides the rear, and 1:30, I try to pass and blow my line :/ And Spiffness's Bum https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dYIX4lUY42I Spiffness had me talk to a track instructor; watching his lines and focusing on smoothness really helped. From the pics/videos I know I need to fix my feet and maybe hang off more, something to work on at the end of August! GI Joe jobs fucked around with this message at 15:25 on Aug 15, 2011 |
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Aug 15, 2011 15:22
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oh 250, how i miss thee.
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Aug 16, 2011 04:38
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Gullous posted:It's gonna be glorious! Spiffness and I ran the Sunday session at ORP end of last month. This was my first track day ever and Spiff's first of the season/on the bike. Yeah, hanging off a bit more wouldn't hurt...however when people kept drilling that into my head I would always hang off more but I forgot the reason why I was hanging off more. Remember to push your bike more upright when you hang off, if you can. I kept going through the same corner, with the same body positioning, the same lean angle. Instructors told me to hang off more, so I went through the same corner with my body further off and the same lean angle and there goes the pegs in the ground...should've gone my body further off and less lean angle Then again this advice only makes sense if you have stock pegs...if yours are aftermarket or raised you probably don't have this issue.
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Aug 17, 2011 06:18
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Got back from VIR this morning at 6am...had some issues on the drive home. VIR is an amazing track, we ran the north course which I really enjoyed. The changes in elevation and wide range of corner types really made it fun. I will be heading back to this track, possibly this year. California Superbike School puts on a great school. We had five 20 minute sessions which each focused on a specific technique. My corner speed and confidence on the bike increased dramatically over the course of the day. For the price (375) I think this was a good deal. Each instructor works with 2-4 students, in our case the instructor worked with the friends I went down with and me. They also have S1000RR rental bikes which looked like a lot of fun. The commuter SV did great on the track. Running commuting tires (pilot road 2 front, street smart rear) I was far from slowest in the group and never felt like the tires were going to give up. I may put something with a slightly more aggressive profile on for barber and future track days.
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Aug 17, 2011 16:54
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Veritas posted:good deal, i'll be instructing in novice. looking forward to meeting new people =) I just realized I didn't come to introduce myself yesterday. You're switch on MH right? Anyway, I had an awesome time, thanks for putting on a great event!
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Aug 21, 2011 23:20
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GanjamonII posted:I just realized I didn't come to introduce myself yesterday. You're switch on MH right? yep, thats me! no worries, we'll catch each other at the next one. i'll be t GSS on the 28th. here is the video i shot of the mock race. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=svxLSqHbGfU&feature=player_embedded used the contour HD cam i picked up thanks to the great deals thread.
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Aug 22, 2011 00:29
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Got a question - how do I overtake bigger bikes? I'm on an sv and the track I rode over the weekend was pretty high speed. We were also restricted to passing in straights so I couldn't just take a wide line through just any of the turns to get around and had to save it for the last corner before the straight. I really felt the power difference when I was getting walked by faster bikes in the straights and then coming up on them in the turns. I was trying to get good drive out of the corners so I could take them on the next straight but unfortunately this didn't work real well - even on full throttle by the time I had pulled up next to them they had opened up and took off. I was thinking about it today and the only thing I can think of is that I should be timing my entrance into the corner at full speed so I can carry higher speed through rather than going in at the pace of the bike in front of me. That way I could get enough speed to get in front of them instead of just beside them before they get on the gas. Is that on the right track or do I need to look at something else?
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Aug 22, 2011 20:23
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GanjamonII posted:Is that on the right track or do I need to look at something else? Your braking zone into corners is considered part of the straight... Honestly that's where it's easy to get around most newer trackday riders. People (myself included) have a tendency to not only get on the brakes too early, but to over-brake as well. If you've tailed some other rider for a few turns you can get a pretty good idea of what their comfort level is on corner entry speed, and how far out they start to brake. If you're off their line a little bit, it only takes holding on to the throttle a tiny bit longer than they do to squirt by. Different trackday orgs have differing opinions on this, but the ones I've ridden newb group with are ok with passing on the brakes as long as you aren't actually leaning into the corner. If they zip around you on the next straight, just pass em again on the brakes. After a couple times they usually get the hint that you're going to carry more speed into and through the corner than you are, and will hold back on re-passing you on the next long straight.
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Aug 22, 2011 21:16
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needknees posted:Your braking zone into corners is considered part of the straight... At TWS turn 1 off the front straight is pretty intimidating because you should hit it really fast and novice (myself included!!!!) group slows down for it a lot whereas the faster guys hit it WOT or so I'm told But its also quite wide so there is room to move around. That turn I didn't mind passing on the brakes but the others I didn't feel as comfortable because I didn't want to get flagged for an unsafe pass and potentially cause someone who's out for the first time to panic (happened to me first time with a different org and I didn't like it much). So just to get it straight in my head, if I was to pass someone on the brakes I would intentionally go inside them to shoot through into the corner ahead of them? Or should I be trying to go around the outside so that they don't turn into me if I misjudge their turn in point/they turn in early. Edit - Everyone in the novice group I rode with was cool enough that if they got passed they didn't immediately get by me in the straights again also. GanjamonII fucked around with this message at 21:57 on Aug 22, 2011 |
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Aug 22, 2011 21:52
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GanjamonII posted:At TWS turn 1 off the front straight is pretty intimidating because you should hit it really fast and novice (myself included!!!!) group slows down for it a lot whereas the faster guys hit it WOT or so I'm told needknees is right in that braking zones are considered part of the straights. You're on the right track though, with the dropping back and then carrying full speed through the corner to pass them on the straights. If you are carrying more speed through the corner, pinned earlier, and brake later, it takes a lot of HP to make up for that. Usually you can be comfortably past them before they even hit the point where they turn in. As to where you want to pass...I prefer the inside line, as there's less chance of them t-boning you vs. an outside pass. You should know you're faster than them, so get past them on the brakes and you've completed the pass before they even have to turn in. Get comfortable with a midtrack entry and you'll give them plenty of space.
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Aug 22, 2011 22:37
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