Nov. 18 MSR - 1.3 Role Call

[DarcShadow]

Anyone planning on hitting the 1.3 on the 18th?

[Rhino]

I'm assuming that's MSRC and not MSRH?

[milesmiles]

Ill have to see how this moving goes, but it sure would be nice

[Striple]

Out. Gonna be out of town.

[Fish R1]

Level 1 not registered

[DarcShadow]

I'm assuming that's MSRC and not MSRH?

yeah, I don't acknowledge MSRC, it's MSR damn it! MSRH is just a copy and MSR will always be the track in Cresson.

[Grinner]

I'm assuming that's MSRC and not MSRH?

yeah, I don't acknowledge MSRC, it's MSR damn it! MSRH is just a copy and MSR will always be the track in Cresson.

Yeah but true trackies know it as MSR-C!

[Striple]

I'm assuming that's MSRC and not MSRH?

yeah, I don't acknowledge MSRC, it's MSR damn it! MSRH is just a copy and MSR will always be the track in Cresson.

Yeah but true trackies know it as MSR-C!

[Stardog]

Registered lvl 1

[fixxervi6]

Registered lvl 1

Uh oh

[Rhino]

Heh.

I'm out, found out I'm on call. Which is really sad, I wanted to take the Versys out again with sticky rubber this time.

[Stardog]

Registered lvl 1

Uh oh

I am dealing with a lot of very confusing motorcycle emotions right now. I think that I need at least one more track day before the end of motorcycle riding season and the beginning of motorcycle buying season.

[El Diabro]

I really want to do this, but if I don't have another pair of eyeglasses, then I won't be on the track

[Rhino]

I am dealing with a lot of very confusing motorcycle emotions right now. I think that I need at least one more track day before the end of motorcycle riding season and the beginning of motorcycle buying season.

Heh.

Speaking from experience, don't try to buy a bike to do more track learning unless it looks like a Ninja 250/300 or SV-650 or something. I'm on my 3rd "track" bike and I had a better learning experience on my Versys than I did on any of the "track" bikes.

You'll feel like you need more engine, more brakes, more whatever to go faster. Fight that feeling, it's wrong.

Trust me when I say the very best thing you can do to get better on the track is take your engine completely out of the equation. A 250 can run L2 pace. A 650 twin can run L3 pace. BUT, you MUST have the skill to get it going that fast.

It took me probably way to long to accept that fact that going fast around the track is all tied to:

1. Perfecting the line
2. Perfecting technique
3. Being consistent

Notice that the type of bike you're riding is nowhere in there. The more forgiving the bike, the better chance you have of learning instead of fighting your survival reactions.

It took me a while to come to that, and I think the biggest eye-opener was back to back experiences on a liter bike and a 650 twin with tall gearing (i.e. the gutless wonder) but gobs of lean angle.

[nitzer]

I think I would like to buy a 250 for track use. Have to see how that goes next year.

[fixxervi6]

ZX6 R6 CBR600 GSXR600 675 all excellent track bikes, if you get one in good condition it's ready to go out of the box.

I wouldn't recommend a 250 as a track bike, playing on one is one thing, having a dedicated 250 as your "track bike" is another. I would only take a 250 that's been fully race prepped for a track bike, and by the time you buy all that you can get a descent 600 super sport.

Same with the SV, I've been behind stock 650 class twin bikes watching the rear wheel come off the ground because the suspension is so bad from factory. If it's upgraded that's another story.

I personally recommend a bike with a damper, especially if it's a super sport (be aware that damper's will not prevent headshake)



At the end of they day it isn't going to matter if your on a naked, stock 2001 ninja 250r or a 2013 panigale, your going to learn. If your not going to the track to become a racer, get what you think you are really going to enjoy the most because at the end of the day it's about having fun, and I would be shocked if you have fun on a stock 250 for more than a handful of track days.

Forget what you "should" get and go buy what you "want" to get because none of us are going to make it to motoGP and at the end of the track day, there is no prize money.

[MattStrada]

Just buy a 750 and ride it like a 125

IE

<---------That guy.

[Striple]

My $0.02:

This really depends on your goals. If you want to optimize your learning curve, then a smaller bike (250 or 650-twin) is by far the best option. The smaller the bike, the more easily you are going to learn. On the other hand, if you just want to have fun and ride fast on a race track, pretty much any bike will do. I did a few sessions on a 600-lb behemoth this weekend, and I had a blast. Hell, there were guys on 900-lb baggers riding the 1.3 on Sunday, and were having a blast. No matter what you choose -- you're always going to learn, but be aware that the incremental difference in learning on small vs. larger displacement bikes is substantial.

[Rhino]

For reference, Striple and I did our first track days together, at the beginning of 2011.

Striple is now a licensed racer, I'm barely into L2. He picked a SV-650 and is 100% dedicated to learning to go faster. I bought fun bikes.

Granted he's done almost 3x the track days I have, but I wouldn't discount his wisdom on this. It's one of the reasons I'm kicking around the idea of trading the S3 in on a Ninja 650 and a full suspension upgrade. The S3 is a fun bike, but it's hard as hell to learn on. It's too easy to compensate for mistakes with the throttle.

[DarcShadow]

While I've never been on the track with anything other then an inline 4, 600-650cc it would seem to me it wouldn't take long for a 250 to become boring. MSR 1.3 is the only track were it would hold it's fun value. All the other main Texas tracks you're going to be topping it out rather easily. Now granted it'd be fun to learn to run MSR 1.7 full throttle nearly the entire track, but once you get to that point it's going to loose most of it's charm.

If you're looking for a dedicated track bike and wanting to stay away from the 600 super sports you might consider looking for a used SV track bike. The used SV track bike will most likely have everything you need already to make it a fun safe bike.

[fixxervi6]

I took a 2001 250 to the 1.3. I was having fun until I start scraping hard parts, bogging down going uphill (I'm not little), both tires leaving the ground while the bike fly's to the outside (NOT cool) and pushing the front real bad. When all of that started, it wasn't fun anymore.

I've had a 2010 out on the road riding MUCH harder than I should have been and what I found it lacking was a stable feel, in stock form I have no doubt the 2010 would also suffer similar problems that I was experiencing on the 2001 minus the dragging hard parts.

That is why I have stated that if I picked a 250 as a dedicated track bike, it would be fully race prepped.

Between a 250 and a 650 I would choose the 650, but I would only chose either bike if they had some money put into them. I've ridden a stock 650r and the suspension was even worse than the 250. The brakes suck too.

[fixxervi6]

And to quantify, when I took a 650r out for a test ride, I was used to a Katana at the time, and it blew my mind how bad the brakes and suspension were.

The power curve was grunty down low for sure, but it needs good suspension and good brakes.

[Striple]

The power curve was grunty down low for sure, but it needs good suspension and good brakes.

Yep, very true. For proper track riding, any bike -- and 250s and 650s even more so than others -- will need an upgraded suspension and brake system. Once those two weak points have been properly addressed, then you can ride the wheels off those things and have a blast.

While I've never been on the track with anything other then an inline 4, 600-650cc it would seem to me it wouldn't take long for a 250 to become boring. MSR 1.3 is the only track were it would hold it's fun value. All the other main Texas tracks you're going to be topping it out rather easily. Now granted it'd be fun to learn to run MSR 1.7 full throttle nearly the entire track, but once you get to that point it's going to loose most of it's charm.

Try running a (properly set) 250 at the track, and you may change your mind. The ability to remain fully pinned throughout the majority of a given track requires a lot of cornering skill, and I'm always amazed at how fast some of the podium contenders take certain turns.

[milesmiles]

Try running a (properly set) 250 at the track, and you may change your mind. The ability to remain fully pinned throughout the majority of a given track requires a lot of cornering skill, and I'm always amazed at how fast some of the podium contenders take certain turns.

This is one of the reason i want a 250, i think i could greatly improve in the corners with my entry speed and hopefully that would translate to bigger bikes

[Telomere]

I think '84 is looking at the 675's.