Track riding advice needed

Yea - this supplicant cometh into the temple, seeking the profound wisdom
and guidance of the track-fiend elders of UKRM, for verily, I am naught but
a track-weenie.

Preamble: I started riding 18 months ago (at the age of 34) and have
recently attended an "advanced road riding" course and an "advanced
cornering and braking" course. I have reached the point where I have "sort
of" got the knack of getting my bum off the seat and moving around on the
bike.

So... I went and did my first track day on Sunday, at the (gloriously sunny)
Eastern Creek Raceway in Sydney. Now I didn't do too badly - recorded
"reasonably embarassing" times, which was much better than I expected. But I
ran off at one corner (turn 9 - a downhill hairpin right-hander) due to some
fairly dreadful rear braking (I kept it upright on the grass thankfully).
All my other attempts at this turn were equally piss-poor. Basically I don't
know how to use the rear brake on a right-hander.

Now when approaching a tight turn I was taught to do the following, in this
order:
1 - adjust body position,
2 - brake (downshift if necessary),
3 - lean bike into the turn

Now what got me into trouble at Turn 9 - with my body shifted off the bike
to the right, I couldn't use the rear brake properly. I ended up mashing it
down, promptly fishtailed and made a fool of myself.

So to my question - is there a secret technique for proper handling the rear
brake properly when taking a tight right hander? Or is it simply just a
matter of learning not to mash it down (as I did). If the latter does anyone
have any advice they can give me on how to develop this level of rear-brake
finesse? Finally, is my basic approach (body-brake-lean) even correct in the
first place?

Cheers Manning

 

I would suggest that you are over-reliant upon your rear brake and that
engine-braking and front braking (with your arse pushed as far back in the
seat as possible) should be sufficient. Also you don't really want to be
applying either brake mid-corner (unless you're particularly experienced).
Get all the braking/slowing-down done before you start leaning the bike
over. I appreciate that this might not give you as much time to shift your
body into an off-the-seat position but, again, I don't think you need to be
using your back brake so much (or at all). Once you start leaning the bike
over you want to be speeding up, not slowing down, with a smooth and
progressive throttle action that pulls the bike round & through the bend.

 

Most people just don't use the back brake on the track. It's as
simple as that.

If you're braking hard enough, you'll have a lot of weight transfer
onto the front - tending to 100%. At 100%, the rear brake is useless
(duh). But even with, say, 80% weight transfer, the amount of mental
effort you need to use the rear without locking it is much more than
the value you get from the braking. (If you read "Twist of the
Wrist", he talks about having "10 dollars worth" of concentration -
you need to spend your dollars wisely.)

I never touch the rear brake when racing.

If you *must* use the rear, cos you want to relate this to road
riding, you need to swap the order - brake in a straight line, and as
you release the brakes and prepare to tip in, this is where you adjust
your body position. In fact, the very act of moving your body becomes
part of the turn in process. This is how I ride in the wet on the
road.

hth

 

AOL - the book and the race schools definitely helped me. I think I nailed
most of the exercises but still don't trust myself to use them to the full -
so I really need a trackday bike I can practice on without the fear of
bending my road-bike.

I did L1 & 2 at Oulton Park and L3 at Rockingham - it pissed down on L2 & 3.
Where did you do yours Andy?

Actually - I'd be interested to know how many other UKRMers have done the
Cal Superbike School. C'mon - reveal yourselves! I know DWB has done some.

 

I agree with what Champ said but would add, riding on the track requires
different techniques to riding on the road. A lot of racers [1] drag the
front brake into a bend, the theory being that you keep the load on the
front wheel. This is something Pier-Francesco Chili teaches.

Why don't you do a race school?

--
Alan

http://www.ads-training.co.uk
"Kneesliders Sponsored by Cane"
GSX-R1000 , Triumph Thunderbird, ZXR750L2 Racer(gone), GS500,
GHPOTHUF#27
TGF, UKRMFBC#7, Two#24, BOTAFOF#11, YTC#9, GYASB#1. SbS#23.
DFWAG#2, DS#2, DIAABTCOD#20. remove "thisbit" in the reply
http://sportsbike.org (our own endurance team) http://Team-ukrm.com
"Nemo repente fuit turpissimus"

 

Ah! I've not done either of those schools.

Heh - I've had a similar experience at Mallory Park's hairpin.

That's such good advice - what have you got to lose?!

I think the scariest corner at Cadwell in the wet would be Mansfield (the
left hander at the bottom of the steep drop) - it's bad enough in the dry!

 

I've encountered this technique before but haven't tried it yet - crawl
before walking, etc.

Indeed - very good advice. Am already booked into Level 1 of the Aust
Superbike School (the same crowd who run the Cal Superbike school) on Jan
16.

Cheers Manning

 

I did the Mallory Park race school when they were using Hondas (they use
Suzukis now) - Drayton Croft ran it I think.

Indeed - I thought Oulton Park was extreme until I went to Cadwell.
That corner before Barn is called the Hairpin and it's such a tight & slow
corner that, on a trackday some urkmers attended, SimonK famously came to a
complete halt !!

 

Oran Park in Sydney has got a nasty corner with it's own personality - it's
a 220 deg, downhill right hand tear-drop corner, and if you run straight off
you've only got 10 yards of grass before you wind up on a completely
different part of the track. It's called 'Suicide Corner'.

Q: Are there any websites which give overviews (and maps) of the main UK
bike tracks?

Cheers Manning

 

You may find what you're after here ...

http://www.racingcircuits.net/

 

My 2p:

Its all about being ahead of things. You know when you're not because
it feels fast and like you're riding on the edge about to crash. When
you are ahead of everything it feels smooth & safe. If it feels fast &
risky, slow down cos you're not learning anything, will be tense and
are likely to crash.

Going approaching a corner setup your hang-off body position as you
start to brake, way before you turn. Adjusting your position as or
during the turn upsets the bike (which a lot of novices do). When
hanging off keep your back parallel to the bike (ie dont twist round
like most journalists do).

Brake into the bend, slowly come off the brakes as you load up the
suspension. Do this gradually as you learn. Most road riders brake in
a straight line and come off brakes as they turn but you can go lots
fast into a corner by carrying the front brakes deep into the turn.

Counter steer to turn the bike. Going fast you'll want to turn in late
and hard with the brakes on so you'll need to push the inside bar
quite hard.

Always try and tell yourself to pick up your vision - most riders dont
look far enough ahead. Looking further makes you smoother & faster.

Open the throttle as soon as you come off the brakes. You should never
'coast' on a closed throttle. Apply enough throttle during the max
lean section to keep the bike balanced, then wind it open as you pick
the bike up (pushing the outside bar).

I wouldnt bother with the back brake.

Above all, RELAX. Loads of percieved handling problems are caused by
the rider being too tense therefore holding onto the bars too tightly.
The Kieth Code excercise for this is a good one: Flap your elbows like
a chicken mid corner - if you cant do that you're not relaxed and
holding on too tight.

Steve
www.spleen2.demon.co.uk/sbr

 

Hi Steve - good stuff that... and enjoyed perusing your site..
www.spleen2.demon.co.uk/sbr

Have you done some Cal Superbike schools then? Given your racing experience
and skill-level how did you find the schools?

 

<snip loads of excellent advice>

Listen to this man - he knows of what he speaks

<checks Steve's web page>

Hang on a bloody moment! I've just checked your "2004 season" link,
and it says "Endurance". C'mon, what's the story?

 

I'd say this is a tip for experts only.

 

This is where I seem to go wrong a lot of the time.
Too many years riding on the road. On the track I'm always
just slightly over cautious on corner entries which when added
up round a complete lap means *loads* of lost time.

Cue lots of mysterious crashes at track days next year
where the crashee was strangely seen trying to achieve
unpowered flight shortly before the incident. ;-)

--
Alex
BMW R1150GS
DIAABTCOD#3 MSWF#4 UKRMFBC#6 Ibw#35 BOB#8
http://www.team-ukrm.co.uk
Windy's "little soldier"

 

Hi Steve - my wife read this and asked if she could repost it to the email
group of her all-girl riding club. (I assumed it would be OK.)

Thanks - your tips are really top-notch.

Cheers Manning

 

Hi Champ

Yes this is the plan - to do KRC in 2004. Ya see, my wife and I are
expecting our first baby, like, any time now so I cant spare the time
next year to do a full MRO or BEMSEE championship - KRC being just 5
rounds fits the bill and I really fancy the whole endurance racing
thing - although I admit I know naff all about it!

I'm currently trying to setup a team with two of my club racing mates
- but one has just dropped out - so we're looking for someone else. If
anyone knows of someone who wants to join us please let me know. We're
planning to do class D on a GSXR750.

By the way - glad people found the advice useful - thanks for the nice
words everyone.

cheers
Steve

 

Hi

Yeah I did the California Superbike School (2 days) quite a few years
ago while I was still doing track days. I found some of it very useful
and there were new things I hadnt done before (like pick-up exiting
corners). I adjusted my body positioning on their advice and that made
a big difference to being relaxed on the bike during corners. Some of
it is stuff we all do anyway (like counter steering) - but the good
thing is they drill it into you so you think about it more.

One area it didnt even touch on was braking. I think this is a big gap
- however it is a cornering school I guess, and not a race school.

Steve.

 

Oh dear. That's our class. And you're quick. Shit

Anyway, I do know someone who could be interested in the ride - I'll
email you later...

 

I hate Park corner. It's so bland, flat and no reference points. Oddly enough
it's one of two places I crashed at Cadwell. [1]

I went into that corner (Old hairpin) too fast and on one wheel on my motard [2]
this summer and kind of had to use the bales as a berm to get round. [3]

flook - kind of paying attention again. [5]

[1] The other being the exit of the gooseneck where I discovered that even a CR
on slicks doesn't have enough grip to stop or turn enough to allow one to miss
the tyre wall when one is travelling at a rate of knots and was forced wide due
to 2 stopped bikes in the middle of the track.

[2] Wheelie courtesy of the little crest on the apex of the previous corner in
the woodland section, makes the front wheel pop up when changing direction
which, together with the slight downhill slope to the hairpin makes things
interesting.

[3] The marshalls had the flags out before I tried to get round the corner and
were pissing themselves next time I came round.

[4] Is it allowed to have footnotes that are so much longer then the main post?

[5] Sometimes.

[6] Goto [1]