Lets talk first time MRA racing

[tecknojoe]

Can someone just quickly list out the full tech requirements?

Also, what is the cost of getting your licence for the first time? It's just the friday night class, then sat + sun track days, right?

List of costs for a basic race weekend?

Cornerworker discount? (I did a decent amount last year and plan to do it when I'm not racing this year).



I'm trying to an idea of where I stand. I'm still not sure if I'm keeping the R6 to race in the amateur clusterfuck class or if I want to try to find a 250 / SV

[asp_125]

.. How bout superstreet? Basic track day prep (similar to Chicane) .. IIRC it's like $100/weekend.

or attend the first MRA meeting and ask away
http://forums.mra-racing.org/viewtopic.php?t=14159&highlight=&sid=67249019551265658b941b1d8b06b36a

I'll let the rider rep answer in more detail. Not sure if Brownie (new rider director) gets on here but he's on the MRA forum.
http://forums.mra-racing.org/viewtopic.php?t=12289

[tecknojoe]

After cornerworking this year and watching superstreet, I've decided that I want no part of it. I'm hoping to just get my licence and lurk around the track with a minimal budget race day here and there. In between, I'll be in the corners as usual


Thanks for the info. I tried looking for an MRA tech sheet but it seems like it's burried somewhere. Looks like that 2011 thread will have all the info that I'm lookin for

[Graphite675]

Here is last years rulebook. It has the tech requirements in it. Don't think they changed at all for 2012.

http://filezilla.mra-racing.org/files/2011MRARulebook.pdf

.

[vort3xr6]

On a budget weekend I spent 500. With new tires I spent about 850.

[UglyDogRacing]

Can someone just quickly list out the full tech requirements?

Section 5 Technical and Safety Requirements starts on page 30 - http://filezilla.mra-racing.org/files/2011MRARulebook.pdf



Also, what is the cost of getting your licence for the first time? It's just the friday night class, then sat + sun track days, right?

New Racer School - $200
Competition License - $200

School will be a Friday evening classroom on April 13th, then either Saturday or Sunday at the track.



List of costs for a basic race weekend?

Entry Fees $140 1st race, $60 2nd race $30 third race
Tires
Fuel
Power
Shelter
Travel



Cornerworker discount? (I did a decent amount last year and plan to do it when I'm not racing this year).

There is no corner work discount.



I'm trying to an idea of where I stand. I'm still not sure if I'm keeping the R6 to race in the amateur clusterfuck class or if I want to try to find a 250 / SV

As a novice you will be more competitive on an R6. Why is amateur a clusterfuck?

[tecknojoe]

Why is amateur a clusterfuck?

I'm just referring to turn 1 of any of the novice middleweight races. A lot of "omg omg omg don't crash omg omg omg, ok everyone through turn 1"


Lets see:

$400 race licence + spring time class
$300 warmers
~ $600 for something to trailer my shit
$350-$400 for tires to start the season

good lawd :lol:

[Cornfed]

On a budget weekend I spent 500. With new tires I spent about 850.

LMAO! $850 a weekend is budget racing. Sad but true

[tecknojoe]

Well that's why I had considered a ninja 250. I heard the tires last damn near forever, along with brakes and other shit

[Bueller]

Tire warmers can be found around $200 if you start shopping now. Or MJ MOTO Gear (http://mjmotogear.com/SINGLE-TEMP-TIRE-WARMERS-warmer.htm).
Generator. Cost TBD
Transponder $150-$300 but start looking aggressively NOW!
EZ UP (shade) is almost mandatory.
If you don't have a damper on the R6 plan for a few hundred more.

On the 250 I went through 3 rears and 4 fronts with racing and a bunch of track days last year. I also used cheaper street/trackday tires that cost me <$175 a set.
Brakes are not as long lived as you would think, 4 sets for me but at $35 a set, and only single rotor it is not a big deal.

[CaneZach]

Here is what I spend on an average race weekend (I only race Endurance):

Initial costs:

Bike: I bought my 2007 GSXR racebike used for under $3k after I totaled my original racebike in 2010
Suit and helmet: I wear RS Taichi and AGV, so $1500ish between the two. I could have used my A* suit, but I fell in love with the RS Taichi. I already had several sets of boots and gloves.
Penske rear shock: I paid $450 for a used triple clicker and $100 or so each season to have it refreshed
Vortex clip-ons: Around $100? $115?
Accossato master cylinder: around $215
Warmers: $300 and change. I went with Woodcraft because they're a very reliable brand
Generator: I think it was around $300 +tax. I bought a 2000w from Harbor Freight and it's worked fine. Want a better one? Spend more.
License: I don't even remember. $125 to renew last year?
Tires: I bought several sets before the season started. I think my sets averaged out to around $325 a set. I can usually get two weekends out of a set.
Transponder: Bought it in 2010 for my first season for $250
Brake pads: Ferodos, Vesrah, EBC, etc. for around $50 a set, but you'll need two sets.
Braided brake lines: My bike came with them. If you don't have them yet, you should consider getting them. Around $100 a set.

My initial costs were around $8300 for last season. The good news is I'm not spending nearly as much this year because my bike is set up the way I want it, so about $5500 to $6k of that was buying a new bike and adding the parts I wanted. I don't include things like stands because I use those for my racebike and streetbike.


Weekend costs:

Entry fee: IIRC, Endurance was around $65
Fuel for the bike and generator: Probably around $20
Fuel for the SUV to get me and my bike/gear back and forth: around $85 a weekend to get to HPR. $45 to get down to Pueblo. Maybe $20 to get to PPIR
Food and water/Gatorade: Maybe $20-$25. I don't eat much when I'm racing, but I am constantly hydrating, so I usually bring a bag of trail mix, Twizzlers, and chips. I bring two bottles of Gatorade and around five or six 32 oz. bottles of water.


Miscellaneous costs:

Maintenance: I change the oil after every weekend, so figure $25 x however many weekends you're going to race. There are also other costs involved, like buying safety wire, which will last you forever if you buy a large enough spool. I think I bought a can of wire for around $10 or $12. Safety wire pliers are another $10 for cheap ones and up to $125 for the professional grade ones.

Drill bits to safety wire your bike: Buy yourself a few bits. You WILL break several bits the first time you drill.

Crash repairs: Crashing isn't cheap. The more you spend on quality gear/tires/etc., the better off you are. New race plastics aren't cheap, either. You can buy an inexpensive set for $325 and they'll last you one, MAYBE two crashes (and you WILL crash). Better brands, like Sharkskinz or Armour Bodies, will run you around twice as much, but they'll last a lot longer. If you lowside, you may need to replace your crankcase cover, so budget a replacement in. If you have stock rearsets, you can pick up used ones fairly cheap online. If you have use an aftermarket set, you can typically find replacement parts.

[tecknojoe]

Wow great info!

I've got a damper and braided lines already on the R6. Along with track plastics(although very shitty ones) and full gear

One question: Is it required to have aftermarket case covers?

[UglyDogRacing]

Wow great info!

I've got a damper and braided lines already on the R6. Along with track plastics(although very shitty ones) and full gear

One question: Is it required to have aftermarket case covers?

On your R6, yes.

[Slo]

Wow great info!

I've got a damper and braided lines already on the R6. Along with track plastics(although very shitty ones) and full gear

One question: Is it required to have aftermarket case covers?

I joined the MRA in 08', I am the definition of a budget racer on an even more severe budget.

I had a list of things I had borrowed:
transponder
generator
shared dirks canopy
Dirk brought his truck to pull the trailer I had borrowed haha
trailer
tie downs
rear set (crashed a week before)
helmet (from the crash a week before)
tools

Had friends like Dirk, Chris, Doug help with safety wiring bike, fitting non-painted bodywork. I bought the cheapest numbers and plate, never have had still new race tires, always take offs.

But with under 1k, I was able to race with what I had. Stock bike..... except a slip on, case covers, and take offs. But with a huge amount of support from CSC members that all helped out.

[jgixxer1]

Can a guy race without a transponder and just forfeit results or take a DNF? I'm also on a tight budget and don't plan on racing every round, so I don't care if I see any points.

[Graphite675]

Can a guy race without a transponder and just forfeit results or take a DNF? I'm also on a tight budget and don't plan on racing every round, so I don't care if I see any points.


I'll let one of the MRA staff chime in with the official answer but I am going to guess no you cannot race without a transponder.
IMO that would just open the races up to joy riders or people just looking for a track day. May get confusing for those that are actually racing for points.

.

[Bueller]

I know a guy that left his transponder at home and didn't want to pay to rent one and they let him race but I believe he could only get last place points. Not sure if they would go for it on a regular basis.

[jplracing]

Don't know what year or model R6 you have

Just in case pay close attention to sub section 5.2.2 item number F in the rule
book

[drago52]

This is great info. Thanks for detailing the costs out.

[UglyDogRacing]

There is nothing in the rulebook that says you are required to run a transponder. However, I suggest that you use one if you plan on getting scored. What happens if you finish well and plan to race another weekend? You will be gridded in the back again for having no points. We have a limited number of rental transponders that you can rent.

[spideyrdr]

I was racing on a budget last year big time. I am going to leave out the up-front costs because those can vary wildly. We'll assume you have a race-ready bike, you have the transponder, and you have a transportation method.

I am no speed demon, but managed to get out there each weekend and finished tied for 7th in Middleweight Endurance. This more than met my season goal seeing as this was my first full year of racing (I did about 1/2 a season in 2010).

- I ran in the MW Endurance class on my '03 R6. Entry fee for just endurance was $60 a weekend last year. It's going to be $80 this year. The endurance class is a great place to start for several reasons. 1) It's cheap. 2) Lots of race time (30 minutes vs. ~15 you are out there for a sprint race) 3) There tend to be fewer incidents in endurance since people aren't quite as desperate to make a pass (there's plenty of time for that)

- I ran Dunlop Q2's all season except for 1 weekend. I went through basically 2 sets of the Q2's (so about $500 for the entire season) and that included (5) normal endurance races and me riding maybe 75 to 90 minutes in the 4 hour endurance event. I also did one sprint race at PPIR on the Q2's. The one round I didn't run Q2's I had race takeoffs and burned through them practicing at Pueblo / racing the next day. I definitely could have gotten through the entire season on just the 2 sets of Q2's.

- Technically warmers are not needed for Q2's so you could defer on buying warmers and a generator until you had the cash if you were running a tire like that. If you ran endurance, a lap or two would be more than enough time to get the tires good and warm. I did use the warmers with the Q2's on a low temp this season just to help get them to temp, but it's completely possible to go without. Hell, if you are pitting with someone who isn't running the same classes as you, you could borrow their warmers.

- I spent about $80 a week on gas for my Jeep and the bike. Race gas is a waste for a new racer, so don't even bother.

Breaking it down if you run a season similar to mine with Q2's in endurance and using pump gas:
- $200 for the class or 2 SuperStreet rounds
- $200 for your license (it goes up to something like $250 after March 15)
- $80 per weekend for fuel for the bike and the truck x7 weekends = $560
- $80 per weekend to run endurance x7 weekends = $560*
- $250 x 2 = $500 for tires
= $2220 for the entire season.

*The 4 hour endurance weekend was a little higher than the other weekends but not by much.

That works out to $317 a weekend. If you decide to do practice days, stay at hotels, eat at Red Lobster, etc. the costs of course are going to be higher, but there you have a breakdown of a season.

Since I don't need the class, I budgeted $2000 to do this season if I ran it exactly like I did last year.

A couple of grand isn't trivial but it's also cheap for racing. Save up your pennies and get out there!

[jbnwc]

On a budget weekend I spent 500. With new tires I spent about 850.

Haha suckers!!(in my best Minion voice) That is more than I spent all last year running 4 of the Superstreet races!! That even includes a new master cylinder and a Strider from Rybo. If you want fun on a limited budget(<$1000), there is no sport on earth that can match the fun per $ ratio as the MRA Superstreet class.

[steamboat27]

TechnoJoe I raced last season for the first time and I would be more than happy to go over what I spent and how it worked out Give me a shout 970.819.0843

[powers]

I am in the same boat for this year also. First MRA season and on the cheap. My only remaining "todo" item is my tow vehicle.

See you out there!

[powers]

there is no sport on earth that can match the fun per $ ratio as the MRA Superstreet class.

Can we do Superstreet and normal races? i.e. get a race license and race in the 250 class, but also race my stock/street R6 in Superstreet toward the end of the year?

[Snowman]

Once you have a racing license you can not run Super Street. The whole point of Super Street is to give people with limited finances the chance to race and to figure out if they want to move into a scored class style of racing. If you did everything necessary to race a 250 then it would be actually cheaper over the course of a year to setup and race your R6 in Middle Weight Endurance for instance.

[spideyrdr]

Once you have a racing license you can not run Super Street. The whole point of Super Street is to give people with limited finances the chance to race and to figure out if they want to move into a scored class style of racing. If you did everything necessary to race a 250 then it would be actually cheaper over the course of a year to setup and race your R6 in Middle Weight Endurance for instance.

This is correct, and I would like to add I that licensed racers are disqualified from SuperStreet to keep the fast novices and experts from going out there and screwing with the riders who are trying it for the first time.

[tecknojoe]

I forget, do you get your license after you do superstreet?

[spideyrdr]

I forget, do you get your license after you do superstreet?

If you do SuperStreet twice or more you CAN get your license by paying for it and getting the approval from the New Rider Director. But it is not mandatory (ie. you aren't booted out of SuperStreet just because you do it twice).