HPR 4/15 Last weekend day for a while.

[dirkterrell]

you need to get those flippers up on the pegs.

I kept waiting for a toe moment.

grim, if you're looking for input I'll be happy to give mine.

[grim]

I kept waiting for a toe moment.

grim, if you're looking for input I'll be happy to give mine.

Please do all critsizm is good.

[WolFeYeZ]

Lets see your footage grim!

[dirkterrell]

Please do all critsizm is good.

Ok, I didn't want come off as a know-it-all, just willing to share what I've learned so far in the continuing quest to learn how to ride these beasts better. Every time I'm out with Dave and Jay, I learn something new so it's good that you got out there with Dave and got feedback from him. There are very few things that are sacred in getting around a track faster, so take input like this, try it out and see what works for you.

Work on getting your feet up on the pegs more. It will not only help avoid an injury, it will give you better control. As you go faster, you'll need to use your legs more and more to steer the bike. I try to do most of the turning work with my legs and body positioning, and limit inputs to the clip-ons as much as I can. Keeping my arms and hands relaxed helps me make finer inputs to the controls and that keeps the bike from getting out of sorts. This could be the source behind Dave's observation that you're more comfortable turning left than right. I'll come back to this.

You said that you were working on your body positioning. That's good. You're mostly staying in the seat and that causes you to have to lean more to make turns. At the pace you're going, you can reduce your lean angle quite a bit and give yourself more reserve for those inevitable oh-shit moments when you're starting out. I try to always move my whole body when positioning myself for a turn. Head and hips move together, otherwise you end up crossed up, and I find that very uncomfortable. It looks like you are moving your hips, but not your head. That gets you crossed up and might be causing you to be using the clip-ons more than you should, making it more difficult to control the throttle, in right turns especially. My advice would be for you to slow down and focus on getting your body in a better position, and having your ams and hands be more comfortable.

Back in the 80's during my first stint in racing, people thought my body positioning was weird. Back then most guys kept their head over the tank and slid their hips out. And it worked pretty well for them. It made more sense to me (being a physicist) to get more of my body to the inside while staying relaxed. Nowadays, my body positioning seems pretty tame compared to how far some of these guys get off the bike.

Here's what I'm talking about. This is in turn 7 at Pueblo. See how my hips and head are in a line parallel to the bike?



and here is a shot a little farther into the corner:



You might try that and see how it works for you. It may feel awkward at first, but if you slow down and work on it, you might find you'll end up going faster while being more relaxed when you pick up the pace. When you're relaxed, you can be much smoother on the inputs to the bike and every fast racer I've ever talked to agrees that smooth inputs and keeping the suspension stable makes for faster lap times.

I see you got bit by the hairpin before the back straight (and had trouble with it early in the video). That's a classic decreasing radius corner and your trouble started on the entry to it. You turned in too soon and ran out of corner on the exit. Watch the difference between your line and Dave's about a minute into the video, and look at the result on the exit. He is using more of the track on the entrance and turns in a bit later. Not a whole lot, mind you, but look at the difference it makes.

So, as I said in the beginning, take this input, think about it, and try it out. Maybe it will help you some.

[grim]

^^ Thank you, a lot of what you said is what Dave had told me yesterday it all makes sense to me and I started applying it towards the end of the day. When i bit it i was actually on Dave's line but it seems my tire pressure was too high and i gave it too much throttle in the turn and lost the front.

The pictures help a lot too ill keep working at it, the wipe out was a learning experience so i plan to continue to improve and pick everyone's brain.

[Bueller]

Ok, I didn't want come off as a know-it-all.

Damn no it awls!!

[Slo]

Every time I'm out with Dave and Jay, I learn something new so it's good that you got out there with Dave and got feedback from him.

Funny you said that, I was going to mention the same thing about me being out there when you and Dave haha.

BTW here is me sneaking onto Buellers back seat, he didn't even know I was there???

[Bueller]

Ahh yes the 2-up Ninja250

Sunday: Rain and snow likely, becoming all rain after noon. Cloudy, with a high near 44. Breezy, with a north northwest wind between 15 and 24 mph, with gusts as high as 39 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%.

I have officially given up hope

[grim]

I have officially given up hope

+1 this sucks i was really looking forward to getting on a real track.

[mauser72]

If I dont go the weather sunday will be perfect but if I do, the weather will be terrible. You just never know in this state, will they be open regardless of weather?(I know they say they run in rain but if the forecast is for snow will they just close the place)

[The GECCO]

Hello All, based on the weather forecast and the cancellations by the few who had signed up we have decided to cancel the motorcycle lapping day on Sunday the 15th.