very charitible of you there fella can i take it youāre completely right then again?
yep, iām not doing 100%. race pace there is 50s (and under if youāre on proper race bikes). some people can get past me with ease in the fast group. I could try and chase 'em by just trying harder but that might mean crashing which holds me back. at silverstone i was struggling to get past some slower riders as the margins were tighter for the passes, but jonesy nailed past me on a 600. i still make mistakes, and iām not running race rubber so I have to accept iām not going to be showing my heels to everyone. iām ok with that
iām sorry but the āriding well withinā on the road is rubbish. we all have plenty of days where we take fair too many risks to have a big safe margin for error but like you say weāre all entitled to a view
what i meant about the lamp post is your bike ended up being shrapnel as did mine from a simple mistake on the road. trying to give a bit of balance to your āroad is safe, track is deathā
personally i think the main point is that a novice should not be trying to push to their limit. even the inters group is a bit iffy sometimes as you get people who think theyāre quick and they exceed there ability and should be calming it down a notch, especially given the mix of standards you get with overbooking.
youāre right that some red flags are because the rider got cocky. personally iād say it just goes in a bucket of reasons like cold tyres, mistakes, bike issues, tyre issues, errors caused by other riders, getting spooked etc.
its just a rule of thumb mate, not an arbitrary degree. its just backing it off a little thats all
there are usually clues that youāre pushing too hard (or close to your limit) - youāre not hitting apexes cleanly, youāre having to exert harder to muscle the bike, your use of the controls gets more aggressive, you get heart in the mouth moments, and for me the most important one is that you lose the sensation that youāre having fun which rings all sorts of alarm bells! I know iāve had those days and have come in a session when iāve been doing that and iām sure there will be more - I just hope i keep listening to the voices in time!
The biggest factors of me comming off at silverstone was cold tyres going to fast and not knowing the track,it is a lesson learned not much damage (luckily). It hasnt stopped me booking another trackday at brands on 8th oct , i slid off at over 60mph and not a scratch on me , unlike when i hit that car that pulled out on me on the road in 2002 doing 60 mph . i love doing trackdays i wish i knew others that did them as its more fun with someone but still great fun on your own, if it ever feels like its no longer fun ill give it up:)
Thatās why I use tyre warmers, not because I think Iām Rossi but it removes one of the unknowns. The bike feels so much better on hot tyres, they start working from the pit lane and you can focus on the track, riding and the other riders, makes a big difference and for what they cost are much cheaper than an off.
shrapnel is a bit OTT. I could have fixed it but chose to claim on insurance for financial reasons.
I know I donāt push it as hard on the road as I do on the track. You canāt fly into a corner with your knee on the deck not knowing what is on the other end of the bend. A good example of which is the car that almost took me out, also the road had gravel on it, which my front wheel washed out on, from a shitty little unmetaled lane leading off the bend and no clear warnings signs that it is a sharp right hand bend. It was at night, in the countryside with no street lights so I couldnāt see the cornerā¦ am I making too many excuses? Sometimes it is not one thing but a combination of several factors. I think we can both agree about that.
What is the bike in the picture?..Looks cool.
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thanks Afro
Its a 98 carbād gsxr750 the topfairing is fibreglass with a cbr400 head light fitted. bought it like it is:) but now i have wavy disks fitted
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Nice oneā¦Howās the handling compared to more modern machines?
its pretty good feels a bit heavy compared to the k6 gixer ive got actually it feels like a barge, when you get on it compared with the k6 ;)the bike has had a fortune spent on it so i was told ohlins internnals , r&d347 tripple clamps (verified) ect engine work as in cams dyno jet . its good on the track. but it doesnt compare to my k6 on the road , so guess the k6 would be better on the track too, im not really an expert im am no expert on handling it does handle better than any other srads ive had (4) and i find my limits before the bike finds its , so guess its quiet a good bike really i paid about 1600 so not complaining:cool: i think i will be switching the rear tyre to a 180 instead of a 190 same as p/w has on his, as it is a little slow steering ive got some jack up plates to go on it too so that should quicken up the steering, and im going go get -1 front sprocket+2 rearā¦ so i get a bit more out of second gear cause 1st gear outa clearways was a bit scary to say the least!!.. but i am seriously thinking about giving up road riding and putting my k6 on the track. i dunno have to wait n see i guess
Cheers for thatā¦When I can actually afford a track bikeā¦Still debating whether to go for something of vintage for cost reasons or go for something more modern as the handling will be what Iām used to.
Been looking at 03-04 Kawasaki 636 Ninjas as a good compromise as theyāre pretty cheap and handle brilliantlyā¦Weāll see.
they are good and get better and better the faster you ride them, extrememly planted bike but makes them turn sloooow. 2 complaints with the bike in general were weak brakes and slow turning. other than that they are a good bike for the track.
Not worth throwing loads of money at though as they dont hold there value. I have a 97 srad750 that is now sorned that I will sell if anyone is interested?
Cheers for the positivity JB - Iām doing my first track day next sunday and reading this put the crap into me!Iām riding my road bike at rockinghamā¦ so iād best not bin it!!!
can i take it youāre completely right then again?