AITTI$I|FIHE TTRIST

AruE$I|FTHE
uHt$
IHEMI|IIIRITGI.E
RI|AII RAGER$
HAilDB00t(
by lGith Gode
t.
Acknowl edgements
Editorial Assistance
Bi l l St er mer
Mi chael Chur ch
Help and Encouragement
Cort Sutton
Kawasaki Motors Corp., U.S.A.
MotorcycIist Magazine
Cycle World Magazine
Cal i forni a Superbi ke School
Design a nd I ll ustrat io n
Cameron Ashby Associ ates, Inc.
Jeff Skri mstad
lmportant Lessons and Friends
Bob West
Mel Di nesen
Pi erre Des Roches
Ri char d Davi s
Gr i f f i t h Par k
L. Ron Hubbar d
Judy Code
California Supertrike School, Inc.
800 530-3350
Photography
Kevin Ashby, page 80
Pat ri ck Behar, pages 3, 74, 75, 79, 94, 95
Ri ch Chenet, page 82
Mush Emmons, page 17
Freud, page 42
Mary Grothe, back cover action
photograph
Motorcyclist Magazine, page 14
Tom Ri l es, pages 26, 51, 56, 88
John Ul ri ch,
page 109
Copyright 1983-2002 Code Break, Inc.
I SBN: O- 918226- 08- 2
Li brary of Congress
Cat al og Car d Number
82- 7 3771
Al l ri ghts reserved. No part of thi s book may be reproduced i n any form or by any
means wi t hout
per mi ssi on i n wr i t i ng f r om t he aut hor .
Pri nted i n the Uni ted States of Ameri ca
Warning: The riding techniques contained in this book are intended for racing
purposes
onl y. The author and publ i sher accept no responsi bi l i ty for any acci dents resul ti ng i n bodi l y
harm or
property damage that mi ght occur from the i ncreased speeds and ri der abi l i ty that
may be gai ned by t he use of t hi s mat er i al . The aut hor and publ i sher do not guar ant ee t hat
r eader s wi l l at t ai n t he same hi gh degr ee of r i di ng ski l l s t hat ot her s have by appl yi ng t hese
techni ques. Suppl emental notes and endorsements by noted ri ders that have used these
techni ques shoul d not be taken as any guarantee as to safety or competency that mi ght be
gai ned, but mprel y as personal experi ence. l f expert assi stance i s requi red, the servi ces of a
state l i censed agency shoul d be sought.
vi
Al ways wear proper protecti ve cl othi ng and observe l ocal speed l aws.
Foreword
Even though I' ve onl y been road raci ng for two out of the twel ve years of my
car eer . i t seems as t hough I ' ve been doi ng i t al l al ong. Ever yt hi ng goes so
smoot hl y now. l f t her e' s a pr obl em, I handl e i t r i ght away. Thi ngs ar e goi ng r i ght -
they must be. I fi nd mysel f i n the wi nner' s ci rcl e at al most every race. Of course
my di rt track raci ng hel ped, but bel i eve me, i t wasn' t al ways thi s easy.
My fi rst ti me on the asphal t-for more than a coupl e of l aps-was at the Cal i forni a
Superbi ke School . l t was real l y a good experi ence. I wasn' t the fastest guy out
there but i t gave me the i dea of what to do and, more i mportantl y, that I di d want
to do i t. Kawasaki had been hel pi ng me wi th my short track program. There are
some great peopl e down there who bel i eved I had some promi se, so they gave me
a box stock racer and hi red Kei th Code to work wi th me for one year.
Here i s the part that real l y surpri sed me: We spent days goi ng over stuff that Kei th
had wr i t t en down about r aci ng. I t hought we wer e goi ng st r ai ght t o t he t r ack, but
her e I was act ual l y l ooki ng up wor ds i n t he di ct i onar y and t al ki ng about r i di ng.
Af t er we di d get t o t he t r ack t he whol e t hi ng t ur ned ar ound and t her e I was, wr i t -
i ng down ever yt hi ng t hat I was doi ng on t he t r ack. Kei t h made me t hi nk bef or e
we got to the track. whi l e I was on the track, and after I got off the bi ke.
I don' t know i f everyone can get i nto the wi nner' s ci rcl e as fast as I di d, but I know
now t hat bei ng abl e t o t hi nk about your r i di ng i s i mpor t ant . Get t hat par t done f i r st .
Thi s i s where I started. I hope i t works for you.
Wayne Rainey
vil
Gontents
Foreword
Aut hor' s Not e
l nt roduct i on
CHAPTER ONI
The Road You Ri de
The Myst eri es of Asphal t Reveal ed
10
14
24
34
CHAPTER TWO
What You Do
You Become A Sci ent i st
CHAPTER THREE
The Product
Devel opi ng Preci si on Wi t h Underst andi ng
CHAPTER FOUR
What You See
Programmi ng Your Comput er Through t he Eyes
CHAPTER FI VE
Ti mi ng
Put t i ng Thi ngs i n Order
42
CHAPTER SI X
Deci si ons
Deci si on Maki ng: Reci pe f or Ski l l
54
60
76
CHAPTER SEVEN
Barri ers
Keys t o l mprovement
CHAPTER EI GHT
Braki ng
The Art of Regul at i ng Speed
CHAPT ER NI NE
Steeri ng
I t Happens Backwards
CHAPTER TEN
Sl i ppi ng and Sl i di ng
Tract i on: How t o Lose l t and Use l t
vi l l
80
. - &- . r :
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Hangi ng Of f
I t Looks Good and l t Works
90
96
CHAPTER TWELVE
Passing
Who Was That l Just Passed?
CHAPT ER T HI RT EEN
Supervise Yourself
Yes, Homework ls Necessary
102
104
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Advice
Ask Your Best Friend-You!
CHAPTER FI FTEEN
How t o Fal l
Rel ax-You' re Just Road-Test i ng Your Leat hers
CHAPTER SI XTEEN
108 Sponsorshi p
There l s No Free Lunch
1 15 A Parting Word
117 Appendi x
t rMargi n Not es and Comment s
by Eddie Lawson
Speci al Not e:
Ext ra wi de margi ns are provi ded f or your not es.
Author's Note
The i nf ormat i on cont ai ned i n t hi s book i s i nt ended t o be used
by a ri der t o i nvest i gat e and mast er t he basi c ri di ng ski l l s covered i n each
chapt er. None of t hi s i nf ormat i on i s magi c. l t has been devel oped duri ng
more t han si x
years
of t rai ni ng more t han 2, 5OO ri ders and get t i ng resul t s
t hat ei t her i mproved l ap t i mes or i ncreased ri der conf i dence. Thi s
i nf ormat i on works i f i t i s appl i ed.
There i s a cert ai n magi c, however, i n usi ng i nf ormat i on t hat i s
underst ood, and t he best way t o do i t i s one st ep at a t i me. Go over t he
i nf ormat i on and real l y underst and i t , t hen go out and appl y i t , bi t by bi t .
Mast eri ng each poi nt wi l l est abl i sh a cert ai nt y t hat you can do i t .
The things that Keith goes
over in hls semrnars and
book are things I do all the
time. You can learn the same
thtngs.
lf your face shield leaks air,
tape it up. The alr won' t come
through and get your atten-
tion.
l ntroducti on
I ' m goi ng t o begi n t hi s book wi t h a l i t t l e conf essi on. l ' ve never
real l y been al l t hat i nt erest ed i n raci ng-l
j ust
want ed t o ri de. Throughout
my raci ng career I regarded t he ot her ri ders on t he t rack as most l y
j ust
a
nui sance. Many t i mes t hey got i n t he way of t he observat i ons I was maki ng
about my r i di ng, about how I coul d i mpr ove my r i di ng and how t hat
i nf ormat i on coul d be present ed t o my st udent s. l ' ve al ways had
j ust
as
much f un r i di ng al ong by mysel f i n a r ace as I have compet i ng wi t h ot her
ri ders.
My r easoni ng f or t hi s i s si mpl e- no mat t er how many ot her
ri ders are on t he t rack, you must st i l l rel y on
your
own abi l i t y. The t rack i s
t he ever - pr esent chal l enge- not t he ot her r i der s. Thi s i dea has been
st rengt hened over t he
years t hrough my observat i on t hat t he most suc-
cessf ul racers can go nearl y as f ast i n pract i ce as t hey do i n t he race. They
use t hei r under st andi ng on t he t r ack when t hey pl ease, wi t hout t he
pressure of compet i t i on f orci ng t hem t o
"go
f ast . "
Pl ay the Game Wel l
Ri di ng f ast on a mot orcycl e i s a t remendousl y exhi l arat i ng and
chal l engi ng game. Thi s game has rul es and barri ers. There' s somet hi ng t o
wi n, somet hi ng t o l ose, and a purpose f or each i ndi vi dual who pl ays t he
game. l t demands your at t ent i on. The consequences of a maj or mi st ake
can be severe-severe enough t o make t he game wort h pl ayi ng wel l . The
pur pose of t hi s book i s t o descr i be t he t echnol ogy and t he r ul es of r i di ng
f ast so t hat every ri de i s a
"wi n, "
so t hat you' l l approach t he barri ers wi t h
conf i dence and under st andi ng, and so
you
can f ur t her your pur pose i n
ri di ng or raci ng, what ever i t may be.
My overal l approach t o ri der i mprovement i s: To si mpl i f y t he
act i ons of ri di ng by def i ni ng t he basi cs, and by i nvest i gat i ng t he
deci si ons you
must make t o ri de wel l .
What ' l l l t Cost ?
At t ent i on, and where you spend i t whi l e ri di ng a mot orcycl e,
i s a key el ement i n how wel l you
wi l l f unct i on: At t ent i on has i t s l i mi t s.
Each per son
has a cedai n amount of i t , whi ch var i es f r om i ndi vi dual t o
i ndi vi dual . You have a f i xed amount of at t ent i on
j ust
as you have a f i xed
amount of money. Let ' s say you have a t en-dol l ar bi l l ' s wort h of at t ent i on.
l f you spend f i ve dol l ars of i t on one aspect of ri di ng, you have onl y f i ve
dol l ars l ef t f or al l t he ot her aspect s. Spend ni ne and you have onl y one
dol l ar l ef t , and so on.
When you f i rst began t o ri de you probabl y
spent ni ne dol l ars
of your at t ent i on on how t o l et out t he cl ut ch wi t hout st al l i ng. Now t hat
you' ve ri dden f or years and t housands of mi l es, you probabl y spend onl y a
ni ckl e or di me on i t . Ri der s t el l me t hat some common movement s, l i ke
shi f t i ng, have become
"aut omat i c. "
l t ' s not t rue. They are si mpl y spendi ng xr l
l ess at t ent i on on i t . Ri di ng i s l i ke t hat . The mor e oper at i ons you r educe t o
t he cost of a ni ckel or di me, t he mor e of your t en- dol l ar s wor t h of at t ent i on
i s l ef t f or t he i mpor t ant oper at i ons of r i di ng or r aci ng.
You must make hundr eds of deci si ons whi l e r i di ng
j ust
one l ap
of a racet rack or one st ret ch of road-especi al l y when ri di ng f ast . Hun-
dreds! l f you underst and enough about ri di ng t o have correct l y deci ded
how t o handl e 25 of t hose si t uat i ons, you ar e pr obabl y
a f ai r r i der . The
t hi ngs t hat you do not underst and are t he t hi ngs t hat wi l l t ake up
most of
your
at t ent i on. Whenever a si t uat i on ari ses t hat you do not
underst and, your
at t ent i on wi l l become f i xed upon i t . You of t en f ear a si t -
uat i on when you
cannot predi ct i t s out come, and pani c cost s
$9. 99-you
may even become overdrawn. The course of act i on you have al ready
deci ded upon t o handl e a pot ent i al pani c
si t uat i on cost s much l ess t han
t hi s and l eaves you pl ent y of at t ent i on t o sort out your
opt i ons.
On t he posi t i ve si de, sodi ng out t he act i ons of ri di ng bef ore-
hand buys you
t he t i me and f reedom t o become creat i ve wi t h t he act i vi t y
of ri di ng,
j ust
as havi ng l ot s of change i n your pocket
al l ows you
a cert ai n
f reedom of movement . On t he race t rack, t hat l ef t -over at t ent i on al l ows
you t o experi ment and t o i mprove your ri di ng abi l i t y.
Hi gh-perf ormance ri di ng and raci ng demand not onl y t hat you
be abl e t o perf orm t he necessary act i ons, but al so t hat you
be abl e t o
observe t hem. Maki ng accurat e observat i ons of your perf ormance i s t he
key to being able to improve them. lf you
know what you
have done-
you know what can be changed. lf you did not observe what you were
doi ng, t he changes become haphazard and i naccurat e. Do you agree?
l n t he next chapt ers we' l l l ook at t he game and where t he
at t ent i on i s bei ng f ocused or spent . We' l l i nvest i gat e t he barri ers t o ri di ng
wel l and put i nt o act i on t he st eps
you' l l
t ake t o bri ng home a
"wi n"
every
t i me.
And finally, let' s not lose sight of the basic reason we started
ri di ng-i t ' s f un and makes us f eel good. Here' s readi l y avai l abl e f reedom,
and all it takes is A Twist of the Wrist.
What l s a Ri der?
Bef ore l aunchi ng i nt o anyt hi ng heavy, l et ' s agree t hat t he ri der
i s t he person
cont rol l i ng t he mot orcycl e, not a passenger. The ri derworks
t he brakes and cl ut ch, t he t hrot t l e and st eeri ng. He det ermi nes whet her
t he bi ke goes ar ound t he t ur n f ast or sl ow, smoot h or r ough, up or down.
/ might only use one-tenth of
a cent on some thtngs that
cost another nder
$5 00, but
you
spend something on
everythtng
You
do on a race
track. The better you get the
less most thrngs cost.
and i s t he onl y i ndi vi dual who deci des what act i on t o t ake, car r i es i t out ,
t hen deci des how wel l i t al l wor ked.
I t al most sounds t oo si mpl e, but i t ' s t r ue: What you do i s
what happens; what
you
don' t do-doesn' t happen. Mot orcycl es
don' t do anyt hi ng by t hemsel ves. They don' t wi n races or l ose t hem; t hey
don' t make mi st akes or do anyt hi ng r i ght . Ever yt hi ng t hat happens dur i ng
a r i de depends sol el y on t he r i der .
Have
you
ever seen a new ri der on t he t rack or road st ruggl i ng
t o oper at e hi s machi ne? The basi c cont r ol oper at i on, t he t r ack and who he
i s i n rel at i on t o t hese are a myst ery t o hi m. He honest l y f eel s he i s bei ng
t aken f or a ri de. l f you' ve had t hose f eel i ngs. f i ne; even expert ri ders have
f el t t hi s way at t i mes.
Ther e' s an act ual t echnol ogy t o r i di ng. Peopl e ar e not bor n as
good or bad ri ders-ri di ng ski l l i s l earned. A ri der i s a
person who can
lap a race track or ride down the road, fast or slow, and know
what he di d and how t o change i t .
AITilI$OTIHE IilRI$I
CHAPTER ONE
The Road You Ride
The Mysteries of Asphalt Revealed
Ri ders i nvari abl y have t hei r f avori t e sect i ons of road, t he part s
t hat f l ow t oget her i nt o a dance where everyt hi ng happens
j ust
t he way
i t ' s supposed t o wi t h no surpri ses. On t he st reet or t rack, you know whi ch
ones t hey are-but
you want t o know why t hey' re so comf ort abl e. How
much shoul d
you know about t he road you ri de? Whi ch aspect s are i mpor-
t ant and whi ch are not ? Why are some sect i ons of road harder t o ri de
t han ot hers?
Fi rst , some background. Hi ghways are const ruct ed so t hat
mot ori st s can t ravel f rom Poi nt A t o Poi nt B very easi l y. The hi ghway engi -
neers are very t hought f ul ; t hey want t o see you make i t i n one pi ece. The
t urns are of t en gent l y banked. Decreasi ng-radi us corners are rare. Sel dom
i s t here a hai rpi n at t he end of a st rai ght st ret ch of road. Of f -camber
t urns are avoi ded whenever possi bl e. Corners are const ruct ed i n a
predi ct abl e and st rai ght -f orward manner.
Designed to Fool You
A racet rack i s anot her sort of beast . Not much of anyt hi ng i s
done f or your conveni ence. The desi gners have purposel y
const ruct ed a
cour se t hat wi l l cont i nue t o cr eat e changi ng si t uat i ons f or t he r i der , t o f ool
and chal l enge hi m. Hai r pi ns ar e
put i nt o t he most di f f i cul t sect i ons, usu-
al l y af t er t he f ast est st rai ght , and
"S"
t urns, or chi canes. of t en have a
sl ower exi t t han ent ry. Corners may baf f l e you
wi t h several camber and
r adi us changes t o br eak your f l ow and f or ce you i nt o unusual si t uat i ons.
And al ways, t he f ast er t he t urns are negot i at ed, t he more di f f i cul t t hey
become. There are, however, onl y f i ve maj or changes t hat can be desi gned
i nto an asphal t road. Have you noti ced thi s?
Types of Road
1. Changes i n Camber : A pi ece of r oad can have a posi t i ve
camber-banki ng, or i t can have
"of f , "
or negat i ve camber. Thi s means t he
i nsi de of t he road i s hi gher t han t he out si de. Or, t he road can be f l at . A t urn
may be desi gned wi t h any combi nat i on of t hese cambers.
2. Changes i n Radi us: A si ngl e t ur n may be a const ant r adi us,
as i n a perf ect hal f ci rcl e. l t may decrease i n radi us, t i ght eni ng up t oward
t he end, or i t may have an i ncr easi ng r adi us, openi ng up at t he end. Or i t
may be a combi nat i on of al l t hree.
3. Seri es of Turns: l n a seri es of i nt erdependent t urns, t he l i ne
you
t ake t hr ough t he i ni t i al
par t
of t he t ur n wi l l be par t l y det er mi ned by
where you want t o exi t i t t o set up f or t he next t urn. A seri es of t urns can
have any or al l of t he camber and r adi us changes l i st ed above.
4. Uphi l l , Downhi l l and Cr est ed Tr ack Changes: El evat i on can
be added at any poi nt t o any t ype of t urn or change i n a road or t rack.
5. St r ai ght Sect i ons: These ar e sect i ons wher e l i t t l e or no t ur n-
i ng i s requi red. l ncreases or decreases i n el evat i on may be added.
These are t he f i ve maj or changes t hat can be engi neered i nt o
a
pi ece
of asphal t . Wi t h t he addi t . i on of bumpy sect i ons, whi ch were not
pl anned by t he desi gners,
you have al l t he possi bl e
si t uat i ons. I n order t o
underst and a road ort rack,
you must underst and i t s charact eri st i cs. Each
of t hese changes has a di rect i nf l uence on you and your
bi ke' s progress
t hrough t he corner. I n order t o ri de qui ckl y
and saf el y, you must under-
st and how t hese changes af f ect you and how you can best handl e t hem.
Posi ti ve Gamber or Banki ng
Most everyone i s comf ort abl e ri di ng a sect i on of road t hat has
some banki ng or posi t i ve
camber . The banki ng has t he ef f ect of hol di ng
you up by cr eat i ng a
" wal l "
t o push agai nst wi t h your
t i r es. The bank al so
sl ows
your
bi ke down even more when you
ent er t he t urn because of t he
i ncreased resi st ance creat ed by t hi s wal l . Gravi t y i s worki ng f or you. pul l -
i ng you and t he machi ne down t he wal l , count er act i ng t he out war d- bound
corneri ng forces. Some exampl es?
I t i s ver y di f f i cul t t o see t he banki ng whi l e you' r e r i di ng on i t .
You may not not i ce a sl i ght bank at al l , unl ess you l ooked at t he t urn bef ore
Banked t urns are com-
fortable for most riders-
Underst andi ng t hem
al l ows you t o t ake t he
full advantages they offer.
On banked l rackyou don' t
enter low and come out htgh
you rode i t . On t he hi gh banks at Dayt ona, af t er ri di ng several l aps on t he
out si de t ri -oval i n a record at t empt , t he banked sect i ons act ual l y appeared
f l at t o me and t he
pi t
area l ooked t i l t ed at a 2O-degree angl e. l t i s easy t o
be decei ved by even a smal l amount of banki ng because you' re l eaned over
and don' t have a st rai ght vi ew of t he road. Al so, t he banki ng becomes l ess
not i ceabl e as
you i ncrease
your
speed.
Al ways desi gn
your approach so you can use t he banki ng t o
your best advant age. Go l ow i n t he bank, cl ose t o t he i nsi de of t he t rack, at
t he poi nt wher e t he banki ng begi ns t o f l at t en out . Thi s gi ves you and
your
bi ke t he maxi mum hol di ng advant age t he banki ng has t o of f er bef or e
your
bi ke begi ns t o swi ng out ward on t he f l at t er sect i on f rom t he f orces
generat ed by accel erat i on.
I n a t ur n. your bi ke and
you ar e
j ust
l i ke t he wei ght you swi ng
around
your head on a rubber band. The f ast er you swi ng i t , t he heavi er t he
wei ght becomes f rom cent ri f ugal f orce, and t he more i t t ri es t o swi ng t o
t he out si de. The banki ng
"hol ds"
you i n unt i l you move ont o t he f l at t er
sect i on of road t hat f ol l ows.
You can go i nt o banked t urns f ast er t han i t seems
you can
when
you
si ze up t he t urn and l ook at i t f rom past experi ence. The banki ng
wi l l f ool you i ni t i al l y and
you wi l l pr obabl y go i nt o i t much t oo sl owl y.
Al so. when you are exi t i ng a banked sect i on of road t o a f l at t er
surf ace,
you must st rai ght en t he bi ke si nce i t wi l l drag more easi l y when
t he banki ng i s gone. Exampl e: l f you are i n a banked sect i on and are l eaned
over t o t he pegs, you must l ean t he bi ke over even more i n rel at i on t o t he
t rack surf ace t o keep t hat degree of t urni ng radi us when t he bank i s gone.
l f t he bank i s 1O degrees,
you must l ean t he bi ke over at l east t en more
degrees t o keep t hat t urni ng radi us on t he f l at t er road surf ace.
The banki ng gi ves you more ground cl earance t han does a f l at
sect i on of t rack. I have known ri ders who coul d run l ap t i mes on racet racks
t hat were very cl ose t o record t i mes and who had raced t hat same course
3O or 40 t i mes, who f i nal l y di scovered t hat one sect i on of t rack was
banked-t hat was why t hey coul d
go so f ast i n t hat part . Af t er knowi ng,
t hey went even
qui cker. l f you don' t di scover t rack angl es,
you mi ght be
get t i ng away wi t h ri di ng maneuvers
you f eel you shoul dn' t be wi t hout even
knowi ng why. Once
you di scover t he r easons behi nd your abi l i t i es,
you can
begi n to use the track to your advantage. Wi tt thi s i mprove your ri di ng?
Off-Camber or Negati ve-Gamber Turns
I don' t know any ri ders who regard of f -cambert urns as t hei r
f avori t es. These t urns l eave i ess room f or error and def i ni t el y do not i nspi re
conf i dence.
A t urn t hat begi ns wi t h a bank and ends of f -camber demands
t he most changes and adj ust ment s i n l ean angl es. l n or der t o cont i nue
around i t , t he bi ke must be l eaned over f art her. The ef f ect i s much t he
same as goi ng f rom a banked t o a f l at surf ace. Gravi t y i s now worki ng
agai nst you, pul l i ng you and your bi ke t o t he out si de. You l ose gr ound
cl earance. Theref ore, you set up of f -camber t urns so t hat you are i n t he
of f
-camber
si t uat i on as short a t i me as possi bl e-j ust t he opposi t e st rat egy
''rffil
as f or a banked t urn. Use st rai ght l i nes on t he part s of t he t rack t hat are
of f -camber because you don' t want t o be commi t t ed t o your maxi mum
l ean angl e goi ng i nt o an of f -camber sect i on. l deal l y, you woul d onl y com-
mi t yoursel f
t o t he maxi mum l ean angl e at t he very end of t he sect i on.
An ef f ect i ve al t ernat i ve i s t o set up so t hat your great est l ean-
i ng occurs i n t he mi ddl e of t he of f -camber sect i on. l t has been cal l ed
"squari ng
of f " a t urn or
"goi ng
sl ow i n t he sl ow part s. " l t ref ers t o t he t ype
of t ur n handl i ng t hat al l ows you t o st r ai ght en out t he negat i ve camber as
much as possi bl e. Basi cal l y, you ent er as ver t i cal l y as possi bl e, t hen make
t he maj or st eer i ng change and exi t as st r ai ght as possi bl e.
Ri ders t end t o see t he basi c t urn more cl earl y because i t i s
more obvi ous t han t he camber change. Thi s i s one of t he decept i ve t ri cks
of t he racet rack desi gner. The ri der i s sucked i nt o t he t urn because he i s
basi ng hi s r i di ng t act i cs on what t he t ur n l ooks l i ke i nst ead of t aki ng i nt o
account t he changes i n camber t hat can so ser i ousl y af f ect hi m. He must
r eal i ze t hat gr avi t y i s now pul l i ng t he bi ke i n t he opposi t e di r ect i on of hi s
i nt ended t ur n, and t he t endency of t he bi ke t o go t owar d t he out si de i n
an of f
-camber
t urn i s dramat i c . Wi t t t hi s het p?
Fl at Turns
Turns wi t h no negat i ve or posi t i ve camber-f l at t urns-wi l l not
i ncrease or decrease t he l ean angl e necessary t o negot i at e t hem at a
As speed increases,
cent ri f ugal f orces genef -
at ed by t he bi ke/ ri der
combi nat i on wi den t he
corneri ng arc. The l i ne
must change as t he
speed goes up.
Gamber changes
dramatically aff ect how
a t urn can be ri dden.
const ant radi us or const ant speed. Turn Two at Dayt ona i s a great exampl e
of a basi cal l y f l at t urn wi t h no radi us changes, and most f ast ri ders pref er
t o ri de i t on t he i nsi de. I n t urns of t hi s ki nd, t he f ast est way t hrough i s t he
st rai ght est l i ne-i t ' s al so t he short est di st ance around t he t urn. I n a f l at t urn
t her e i s no at t empt t o f ool t he r i der unl ess a r adi us change i s put i n f or
var i at i on. These t ur ns commi t t he r i der t o hi s maxi mum l ean angl e and
maxi mum speed f or t he l ongest per i od of t i me. Si nce
you' r e goi ng t o be
r i di ng ar ound t he i nsi de at max speed and max l ean sooner or l at er , you
may as wel l get down t o i t at t he begi nni ng. Taki ng a wi de ent ry i nt o a f l at
t ur n onl y
gi ves someone a chance t o pass you.
Of f Camber
Ghanges i n Radi us
Desi gners change t he radi us of a t urn t o put an addi t i onal t wi st
i n t he act i on. Her e ar e t he basi c ki nds of r adi i and how t o handl e t hem on
t he t rack.
Gonst ant -Radi us Turn: A const ant -radi us
(CR)
t urn nei t her
i ncreases (wi dens) nor decreases
(t i ght ens)
as you go t hrough i t . As men-
t i oned above, i f i t i s a f ai r l y l ong const ant - r adi us
( CR) t ur n wi t h no camber
changes, you wi l l event ual l y wi nd up on t he i nsi de of t he t ur n f or most of i t .
l f i t i s a short hai rpi n,
you may have ot her opt i ons as t o how t o set up t he
ent r y and exi t . I n a r eal l y t i ght hai r pi n you must make an abr upt t ur ni ng
change- i t shoul d be done at t he poi nt at whi ch you f eel most conf i dent .
Ther e i s no r ul e as t o how i t shoul d be done.
l f a const ant - r adi us t ur n has camber changes, i t can act as a
decr easi ng- r adi us
( DR)
or as an i ncr easi ng- r adi us
( l R) t ur n. For exampl e, i f
t he t urn i s banked on t he ent ry and f l at t ens out on t he exi t i t wi l l have
exact l y t he same ef f ect on your bi ke as t he decreasi ng radi us. l f i t i s f l at on
t he ent ry and banked on t he exi t , i t act s as an i ncreasi ng-radi us. l t i s very
common f or amat eurs-and
prof essi onal s as wel l -t o ri de t he t urns t he way
they appear at speed and not the way they really are. lt is very easy to have
your at t ent i on st uck t o t he radi us of a t urn so you don' t see t he camber
changes. Thus, knowi ng t he l ocat i on of t he camber changes wi l l hel p you
greatly in a turn. Where does this apply?
,--F1
---=-'-t-
'
I
H
Posi t i ve Camber
Const ant Radi us
Increasi ng Radi us
Decreasi ng-Radi us Turns: Thi s i s a t urn t hat t i ght ens up as
you go t hrough i t . l n a decreasi ng-radi us (DR)
t urn, t he desi gner t ri es t o
t ri ck you i nt o t reat i ng i t as a const ant -radi us, si ngl e-apex t urn. l f you f al l
f or t hat , you
must do one of t hree t hi ngs: 1
)
Run wi de at t he exi t , 2) Lean
t he bi ke over more at t he end of t he t urn, or 3) Back of f t he gas so t hat
one and t wo above don' t happen.
A decreasi ng-radi us t urn has at l east t wo apexes. Try t o cheat
t he t urn out of one apex and i t wi l l get you back wi t h t he ot her. I n a DR t urn
you must ri de what i s t here: don' t t ry t o make t he t urn i nt o somet hi ng i t
i s not . Some mi sl eadi ng i nf ormat i on has been ci rcul at i ng f or years whi ch
says you
"l at e
apex" DR t urns. Thi s may be t rue i n a very t i ght DR t urn, but
i n a l arger t urn you must doubl e-apex t he t urn.
You can make t he t urn l onger f or yoursel f
by t aki ng a wi de
ent ry l i ne. Thi s keeps your
speed up and cut s down on t he abrupt ness of
t he act ual st eeri ng change. A DR t urn t hat i s f l at on t he ent rance and
banked at t he exi t wi l l act as an l R or CR t urn, dependi ng upon t he severi t y
of t he banki ng. l f a t urn i s const ruct ed so t hat i t f orces you
t o go sl ow at
some poi nt , you must deci de where t o go
sl ow i nst ead of l et t i ng t he
desi gner deci de f or you. By f i guri ng a t urn correct l y, you
ri de t he t rack-t he
t rack does not ri de you. l f you make a bi g mi st ake i n l i ne, you have prob-
abl y
j ust
been sucked i nt o ri di ng t he t rack t he way i t l ooks rat her t han
t he way i t i s.
I ncreasi ng-Radi us (l R)
Turns: Thi s t urn wi dens-i t s angl e
becomes less severe-as you go through it. An lR gives you the safest feel-
i ng because you have room at t he end t o make changes and correct i ons.
You can easily recover from going into an lR turn too fast because you
have pl ent y of room. An l R t urn can be changed dramat i cal l y by t he cam-
ber of t he road,
j ust
as t he DR t urn can be. l f i t i s banked goi ng i n, and f l at
or of f -camber at t he exi t , i t wi l l act as a CR or DR t urn, dependi ng upon
how much negative camber it has. The radius of the turn is usually
second in importance to its camber. Are you
aware of this?
Seri es of Turns: Two or more t urns l i nked t oget her i n such a
way as t o i nf l uence each ot her are cal l ed a seri es of t urns. They' re usual l y
designed to slow you down at a place where you
otherwise could go faster.
The notorious decreas-
i ng radi us t urn. Desi gned
to invite you in faster
t han i t l et s you
out -
Usually oasy to rlde, the
i ncreasi ng radi us turn
can be made di ffi cul t
with camber changes.
Some places you
have to use
a real wrde line so you
don't
scrub speed off, but not
always.
=
For exampl e. t he ent ry i nt o a t wo-t urn
"S"
i s f ast er t han t he exi t ' l f t he
ent ry i s t aken as f ast as possi bl e. i t wi l l spoi l t he exi t . l f t he ent ry i s
appr oached wi t h t he exi t i n mi nd, t he r i der wi l l sacr i f i ce some speed goi ng
i n f or a more const ant dri ve out of t he t urn. Of t en t hi s i s a bet t er st rat egy
t han havi ng t o back of f and set up agai n f or t he exi t .
I t i s very di st ract i ng t o make t hi s ki nd of change i n t he second
t urn i n a seri es. Kenny Robert s has of t en sai d t hat
you must go
sl ow i n
some
pl ace i n order t o go f ast i n ot hers-hi s
"sl ow, "
of course, woul d
put
most of us i nt o cardi ac arrest . Here agai n, t he desi gners at t empt t o l ul l us
i nt o t aki ng act i on ei t her t oo soon or t oo l at e. I n some hi gh- speed chi canes,
bei ng t emperat e wi t h t he t hrot t l e on t he way i n and set t i ng up a smoot h
exi t i s wort h over a second i n l ap t i me. Chi canes such as t hose at Pocono,
Daytona and Sears Point are good examples- Can
vou
applv this?
Uphi l l , Downhi l l and Crest ed Turns: When a t rack
changes i n el evat i on, i t can creat e some exci t i ng changes i n how i t must
be r i dden. Uphi l l and downhi l l sect i ons of a t r ack don' t
pose any par t i cu-
l ar pr obl em unl ess t hey ar e i n conj unct i on wi t h a t r i cky camber change,
r adi us change or bot h. Di f f i cul t i es i n up and down sect i ons usual l y ar i se
where t here i s a crest or sharp ri se f ol l owed by a downhi l l . At t hi s poi nt t he
bi ke wi l l f eel l i ght and wi l l act ual l y be l i ght on t he
pavement . Braki ng over
a crest ed hi l l i s t ri cky because t he downward
pressure of t he bi ke i s
l essened. Thi s resul t s i n l ess t ract i on.
A t urn wi t h a crest i n t he mi ddl e i s al so t ri cky because t he bi ke
t ends t o st and up and go t oward t he out si de. Agai n, t here i s a l oss of
traction. lt has the same affect as a short
patch of off-camber road. lt is
best to go over a crested road as vertically as possible. Anv examples?
On uphi l l sect i ons where
you must brake, you have t he advan-
t age t hat
you can st op or sl ow t he bi ke f ast er t han on f l at or downhi l l
sect i ons. l f t he hi l l t hat
you' re braki ng on has a 1 5-degree sl ope, t he f orce
of gravi t y pul l i ng you back and down gi ves you a 27 per cent bet t er st op-
pi ng f act or. You can uset he brakes 27 per cent harderwi t hout l ocki ng
t hem up, and t hat ' s a l ot ! On a downhi l l sect i on t he si t uat i on i s r ever sed;
t he br akes l ock mor e easi l y. The ot her
possi bl e pr obl em wi t h uphi l l , down-
hi l l and cr est ed r oads i s t hat bi kes t end t o wheel i e over t hem. Thi s i sn' t
real l y a probl em unl ess
you have t o make a t urn whi l e t he f ront wheel i s
st i l l i n t he ai r .
St rai ght Sect i ons: These are st rai ght
port i ons
of t rack wi t h
no t urns or changes t o af f ect
you. St rai ght aways are a great pl ace t o rel ax
f or a second or t wo. Check t o see t hat
you are breat hi ng regul arl y. Ri ders
of t en hol d t hei r breat h duri ng i nt ense ri di ng, whi ch sl ows t hei r ef f i ci ency.
Lack of oxygen i s one cause of muscl e cr amps whi l e r i di ng.
The road you ri de, whet her i t be publ i c or racet rack, i s made
up of t he f i ve component s: camber, radi us, el evat i on, seri es of t urns and
st rai ght s. How t hese component s are combi ned det ermi nes your approach
t o r i di ng t hem. not onl y wher e speed i s t he consi der at i on, but f or saf et y' s
sake as wel l . The purpose of a racet rack i s t o t est and ret est your ri di ng
ski l l ; i t i s i nt ended by t he desi gners t o be di f f i cul t . Your t ask i s t o unravel
t he myst eri es of t he const ruct i on by usi ng
your knowl edge t o your advan-
t age. No amount of bravery wi l l subst i t ut e f or underst andi ng, and no
amount of suspensi on changes wi l l ent i rel y overcome t he f orces
generat ed by t hese f i ve component s. Do you get i t ?
Note: Track Surfaces
Most race tracks and canyon roads are constructed from
asphal t compounds. Asphal t can be, and of t en i s, mi xed wi t h vari ous sub-
stances to create different types of road surfaces. Race tracks, for
i nst ance, of t en have gr ound- up sea shel l s or gr ani t e chi ps mi xed i nt o t he
asphal t t o gi ve t i res a bet t er surf ace t o bi t e on, and t heref ore bet t er t rac-
t i on. The compoundi ng i s of t en very di f f erent f rom t rack t o t rack and road
t o road, whi ch i s one of t he reasons t i re choi ce has become a very cri t i cal
el ement i n r aci ng.
Ot herf act ors, especi al l y heat , pl ay a huge rol e i n det ermi ni ng
what t i re wi l l be t he best t hat day. An overcast day t hat does not al l ow t he
t rack surf ace t o heat up may requi re a di f f erent t i re t han a sunny day, even
i f ai r t emperat ure i s t he same. Asphal t surf aces t hat are darker i n col or
heat up more t han l i ght er-col ored sect i ons. Thi s i s t he case at Sears Poi nt
Raceway i n Sonoma, Cal i f orni a, where t he t rack i s a composi t e of t hree or
f our di f f erent asphal t compounds. Ti res t hat work very wel l i n one area
t end t o sl i de around i n ot hers. And t i res t hat work wel l i n t he morni ng,
bef ore t he t rack has heat ed up, somet i mes wi l l not provi de good t ract i on
i n t he af t ernoon-and vi ce versa.
The amount of rubber on t he t rack al so makes a di f f erence i n
traction. I have heard it said that traction is better after an auto race where
a l ot of rubber has become i mbedded i n t he asphal t ; l ' ve al so heard ri ders
say it was not as good. My own observation is that lap times are faster
af t er t he t rack has a good l ayer of rubber on i t , especi al l y f rom an aut o-
mobi l e race-provi di ng t here aren' t l oose pi eces of rubber on t he t rack
surface.
Ti res and asphal t are an ent i re t echnol ogy unt o t hemsel ves and
l wi l l not t r y t o deal wi t h t hem i n t hi s wr i t i ng. By t he t i me you r ead t hi s, t he
t echnol ogy wi l l al ready have changed and t here wi l l be new t i re
compounds-bet t er t han what we now have.
You've got to be able to
"read"
pavement.
I can tell
whether I want to push rit or
not. There are a lot of klnds of
pavement.
Sometrmes the
ones that look lrke they are
really gorng to be strcky are
lust
the oppostte.
CHAPTER
TWO
What You Do
You Become A Scientist
The ri der' s ul t i mat e weapon i s hi s abi l i t y t o perf orm t he act i ons
of ri di ng, and t o be abl e t o observe and remember what he has
done. Thi s i s a key t o i mprovement .
Don' t Badmouth Yoursel f
Many ri ders have a bad habi t of t al ki ng i n negat i ves about
t hei r ri di ng.
"l
di dn' t go i n hard enough, "
"l shoul d have got t en a bet t er
dri ve of f t he corner, "
"l
don' t use t he brakes t hat wel l , "
"l
need t o get a
bet t er l i ne t hrough t hi s t urn. " Di dn' t . Can' t . Shoul dn' t have, Don' t , Too
much, Not enough. Most ri ders use t hese negat i ve words much t oo of t en.
How can i nf ormat i on about what he di dn' t do ri ght , or t hi ngs t hat were
al most -or not
qui t e-done, ever i mprove hi s ri di ng? l f a
person i s ri di ng at
al l he i s al r eady doi ng mor e r i ght t han wr ong. The
j ob
i s t o add t o t hose
correct actions and drop the incorrect. Do you do this?
You Gan' t Correct What You Di dn' t Do
The onl y way t o make changes i n your r i di ng i s t o change what
was done. To do t hat you have t o know exact l y what
rye5;
done. not what
Was! : !
You di dn' t do a l ot of t hi ngs on t hat l ast l ap-you di dn' t wash your
car.
you
di dn' t
go t o church, and
you di dn' t do
j ust
about everyt hi ng el se
t her e i s t o do i n l i f e. You onl y di d what you di d. Don' t f al l i nt o t he t r ap of
t ryi ng t o correct
your ri di ng by l ooki ng at what
you di dn' t do. Thi s l eaves
you not hi ng t o change.
" l
don' t br ake l at e enough i n Tur n Two, " sounds
i nnocent enough, but what i nf ormat i on does i t cont ai n f or you t o i mprove?
l f you
say i nst ead,
"l
st art ed braki ng at t he asphal t
pat ch j ust
bef ore t he
number t hree market and now I know I can brake even l at er t han t hat "' you
know what was done and now have somet hi ng t o change.
I t ' s si mpl e- t hi nk of
your r i di ng i n negat i ves and you don' t have
anyt hi ng t o change. Look at i t t he way i t was and
you have somet hi ng t o
chan
ge. Negat i ve t hi nki ng i s i ncr ed i bl y non- pr oduct i ve. Ghangi ng some-
10
t hi ng you di dn' t do i s i mpossi bl e. Thi nki ng negat i vel y about
your ri d-
i ng put s you i nt o a maze. A mi rror maze works l i ke t hat -i t gi ves you
nowhere t o st art your t hi nki ng f rom, t hen di sori ent s you by coveri ng up
where you' ve been and where you
can go. You have no reckoni ng poi nt .
The maze t ri es t o make you l ose a f i rm poi nt of di rect i on by openi ng up
many possi bi l i t i es. When you have a f i rm i dea of where you
came f rom you
can al ways go back t o t hat poi nt and st art over. l t ' s t he same on a race
t rack. l f you know
j ust
what you
di d.
you have a st abl e base f rom whi ch t o
make corrections on the next lap. Wilt it work for you?
Ri di ng i s One Thi ng-Ri di ng Pl us Bei ng Aware
of What You Are Doi ng i s Oui te Another
You have onl y so much at t ent i on t o spend on what you
are
doi ng, your t en- dol l ar bi l l . l f you
spend i t al l on
j ust
r i di ng and none on
observi ng what you' re doi ng, you can go qui t e
f ast . But i f you
spend f i ve
dol l ars on ri di ng and f i ve on observi ng yoursel f
and what you' re doi ng,
you
have somet hi ng t o l ook at and change when you ret urn t o t he pi t s. You
don' t have to hope you
can work yourself into a fever pitch to go faster-
you
can go faster by figuring out how to do it better.
How do you devel op t hi s wonderf ul abi l i t y t o ri de and observe
what you' re doi ng at t he same t i me? You si mpl y deci de t o do i t . You make
an effort to look at what you
are doing while you are doing it.
Try i t . l f you
al ready have a record of your l ap t i mes on t he t rack, go out
and make an ef f ort t o observe
yoursel f . The f i rst t hi ng you' l l not i ce wi l l be
t hat you went sl ower whi l e doi ng bot h t he ri di ng and observi ng. l t cost s a
l ot of at t ent i on t o do bot h t hi ngs at once. You won' t be wi l l i ng t o ri de as
hard. Don' t gi ve up. You' re spendi ng a l ot on l ooki ng and a l i t t l e l ess
on doi ng.
/ know what I look lrke gotng
through the turns lt might
look ugly, but it works
I go slow tn the first practrce.
look at the track and get the
ieel of the btke.
An accurate mental
recording of what you
do
on t he t rack i s i nval uabl e.
When everything is rightyou
can tell exactly which laps
were good.
Take lt as a Whole
Now, t ake an ent i re
pract i ce
sessi on on t he t rack and t ry t o
observe everyt hi ng you' re doi ng. Come back t o t he
pi t s and t hi nk i t over.
Then, t ake t he next pract i ce and
j ust
ri de. You' l l not i ce one of t wo t hi ngs:
1) You went f ast er, or 2) t he ri di ng became l ess work t han bef ore. l t ' s al so
possible
that both things happened-you went faster with less effort.
Ri di ng wi t h l ess ef f ort means t hat you' re
spendi ng more of
your
at t ent i on on what ' s i mport ant and l ess on
j ust
bei ng ready f or sur-
pri ses. l f you don' t know what ' s comi ng up i n a t urn, you wi l l be t ense. l f
you
have t aken some t i me t o observe what was happeni ng,
you
have spent
less attention on possible surprises.
It Costs More Attention to Keep Something From
Happeni ng Than l t Does to Make Somethi ng Happen
As i n anyt hi ng, when you f i rst begi n t o observe what you' re
doing it will cost you a lot of attention. After you
become more comfort-
abl e wi t h i t you
wi l l spend l ess at t ent i on on i t . l t may t ake a ri der a year or
more t o deci de i t ' s okay t o sl i de t he rear t i re a bi t on cert ai n
part s
of t he
t rack. He mi ght pi ck
up one t o f i ve seconds by doi ng i t . But bef ore comi ng
t o t hat deci si on. whi ch may t ake onl y a spl i t second on t he t rack, he mi ght
have been spendi ng al most al l of hi s at t ent i on i n t ryi ng t o keep t he rear
wheel f r om spi nni ng and sl i ppi ng.
Observi ng where and what happened on t he t rack wi l l make
somet hi ng l i ke a l i t t l e rear wheel sl i de a
predi ct abl e part
of ri di ng. A ri der
who observes a drop i n l ap t i mes, and al so not i ces where he was sl i di ng
and what brought i t about , has somet hi ng t o base a deci si on upon-he can
deci de i f t he sl i di ng was hel pf ul or i f i t di dn' t work and shoul d be st opped
al together. Does i t make sense?
Observi ng l s the Basi s for Change
l f you go out on t he t rack and run a bet t er l ap t i me, but have
not observed what you
di d t o cause i t , you wi l l not be abl e t o st rengt hen
t he act i ons t hat worked. Ri ders who
j ust
ri de and don' t observe bel i eve
t hat everyt hi ng t hat happened on t hat l ap must be reproduced exact l y and
i n t he same order f or t hem t o repeat a good perf ormance. Thi s i s one of t he
ways riders become superstitious. Because they don' t know what
helped, riders go about trying to keep all factors the same as they
were at the time they rode well. You can keep things the same, but
onl y by observi ng what you di d and by deci di ng whi ch f act ors worked
best. Observing what you do is the key to learning by your
mistakes.
You can easi l y cheat yoursel f out of t he knowl edge t o be
gai ned f rom mi st akes. Let ' s say you got i nt o a t urn a l i t t l e t oo hard and
went wi de of your l i ne. Normal l y, you woul d t ry t o get back t o t hat good
l i ne-t o what worked. That ' s f i ne, but t here' s a t wi st . l f you
"ri de
out your 12
mi st ake, "
you
wi l l l earn how t hat di f f erent l i ne works. Tryi ng desperat el y
t o get back t o t he i deal once
you' ve made a mi st ake won' t t el l you anyt hi ng
except t hat you' ve made a mi st ake. Ri di ng out t hat mi st ake wi l l gi ve you
val uabl e i nf or mat i on about how t o handl e i t shoul d i t ever happen agai n.
Everyt hi ng you do may be a l i t t l e wrong, but at l east you' l l
know what happens-and t hat ' s t he st art i ng
poi nt f or change. Ri ders have
been known t o adapt a compl et el y new met hod of ri di ng af t er maki ng mi s-
t akes. Ri de a mi st ake out and see what happens. l t wi l l cost you
more at t ent i on t o t ry t o keep somet hi ng f rom happeni ng t han t o go
through wi th what you have started. Do you thi nk i t wi tt work?
By the Time You Notice a Mistake lt ls Too Late
To Gorrect lt
You may have heard t hi s bef ore-i t ' s t rue. Once a mi st ake
occurs on any l ap or i n any t urn, you can' t rol l back t he cl ock or t he asphal t
to correct it. You' ll
just
have to make the best of it. Figure out what went
wrong and correct i t on t he next l ap.
It ls the Last Thing You Did That Got You lnto Trouble
The root of t he mi st ake i s t he cont rol change or deci si ons
you
made and act ed upon
j ust
bef ore t he probl em occurred.
A good exampl e of t hi s i s goi ng i nt o a t urn t oo wi t Je. The ri der
got t here because i t was where he had poi nt ed t he bi ke t he l ast t i me he
had made a st eeri ng change. Most ri ders woul d say,
"l
di dn' t t urn soon
enough. " That i sn' t t rue. Act ual l y, he kept i t poi nt i ng st rai ght t oo l ong. l t
wi l l t ake a l ot l onger f or t he ri der t o real i ze what happened i f he begi ns
l ooki ng f or t he probl em f rom when he not i ced i t t han i f he goes back t o t he
earl i er
poi nt
of where he was st eeri ng bef ore he began t he t urn. He has t o
realize that he was operating from an earlier decision to go
straight, not the later one to turn. Does this apply to you?
l f You Deci de Upon the Wrong Expl anati on for a
Mi stake, the Sol uti ons for It Wi l l Al so Be Wrong
Thi s i s anot her basi c reason f or bei ng a caref ul obseruer of
what
you
do.
Being able to ride is impottant, but riding and
observing leads to understanding.
13
CHAPTER THREE
The Product
Devel opi ng Preci si on wi th Understandi ng
What i s t he l i ne t hrough Turn Three? What i s t he best l i ne
t hrough any corner? Why i s one ri der' s l i ne so di f f erent f rom anot her' s?
5O Years of lmprovement
Li nes used t o be easi er t o f i gure out . A l ot of raci ng t heory has
been developed in the last 50
years
of racing, and that' s a lot of history to
back up t he i deas t hat st i l l haunt us f rom t he 1950s and earl i er. On a
mot orcycl e, i t was reckoned, t he st rai ght est l i ne t hrough t he t urn was t he
f ast est way, or
"l i ne. "
But t hi ngs have changed t oday. l t was t rue t hen, but
it' s not necessarily true today.
Physi cs and nat ural l aws have not changed-t i res and suspen-
si ons have. I n t he
' SOs
and earl i er, ri ders were l i mi t ed by t he l ack of
sophisticated technology. They had to take the smoothest, straightest,
short est l i ne t hrough t he t urns because t he hard-rubber t i re compounds
and non-compl i ant suspensi ons of t he earl y days made abrupt changes i n
di rect i on, braki ng on rough or ri ppl ed surf aces. over-ent husi ast i c braki ng
whi l e l eaned over and ot her current -day ri di ng possi bi l i t i es si mpl y out of
State of the ail? Good
enough to win laconia
i n 1 9 6 5 . . . .
14
t he quest i on. l f you had owned a set of Dunl op Spor t El i t es i n 195O and
had gone t o t he l sl e of Man on a 198Os Kawasaki GPZ 55O,
you pr obabl y
woul d have won t he race. That ' s a st reet bi ke wi t h st reet t i res t oday.
Ti r e and suspensi on t echnol ogy have made i t possi bl e t o r i de
mor e t han one l i ne t hr ough a t ur n and make i t wor k. Ri di ng st yl es have
changed ver y dr amat i cal l y si nce t he 1 950s, but t he out dat ed r i der i nf or -
mat i on f rom t hose days st i l l conf uses some of us i n t he
' 80s.
A f resh l ook
at ri der i nf ormat i on and t echnol ogy can hel p you ri de bet t er now.
Def i ni t i on: A product i s somet hi ng t hat i s produced;
it is the end result when all the work is done. A product is what
you
can hol d i n your hand-or i n your
mi nd. You can t urn i t over
to see if it can be produced better or differently, corrected or
l ef t al one.
Product of the Turn
A t urn or seri es of t urns has a
"product . "
l t i s t hat poi nt where
you can say,
"l ' m
done wi t h t hat t urn now-here' s what I di d t hi s t i me,
here' s what happened. Now, what can I do t o i mprove i t ?"
The si mpl est way t o recogni ze t hat spot i s t o remember where
you were brave enough t o t hi nk,
"l
coul d go t hrough t hat one
qui cker. "
Wlren you
have enough attention left to reviewyour progress,
and the turn is no longer affecting you,
!hg!
is when you' re
done
with it. Have you experienced this?
At t hat poi nt , t he sum t ot al of everyt hi ng you di d i n t he t urn
i s neat l y wrapped up; you know t hat what you di d ei t her worked or i t
di dn' t . Some part s of t he product were assembl ed correct l y-maybe some
wer en' t . Thi s pr oduct has a l ocat i on on t he t r ack, whi ch f or exampl e mi ght
be a poi nt t hree f eet f rom t he out si de edge or
j ust
next t o
"t hat pat ch"
of
asphal t . Thi s poi nt
on t he t r ack now r emi nds you
of exact l y wher e you' r e
f i ni shed wi t h t he t ur n f or t hat l ap.
Other Factors
Ot her f act ors, besi des your
l ocat i on on t he t rack, are i mport ant
part s of t he product : what gear you' re
i n, your
speed at t hat poi nt , your
body posi t i on on t he bi ke. Usual l y some amount of l ean angl e. The amount
of cont rol you have over t he bi ke. The st eeri ng act i on you
are-or are not -
t aki ng. Throt t l e act i on. Ti re t ract i on. Your i mpressi ons of what you
di d and
how wel l i t worked out . And a compari son of t hi s pass
t hrough t he t urn
wi t h your
earl i er passes. Al l of t hese, and more, are part of yeqr product
for that turn. The quality
of your product is determined by all of
what happened and how it worked.Any thoughts on this?
Note: You use that product
to develop a set of known
circumstances that can be thought over and changed when
necessary. A sub-product is a definite set of known circum-
stances that lead to the product for that turn.
Bot h your product s and sub-product s have an exact l oca- 15
t i on on t he t rack. There i s no uni versal product or sub-product -t hey wi l l
be sl i ght l y di f f erent f or each bi ke and ri der. Your product i s a known
dest i nat i on al ong a known rout e. You are supposed t o know where
you' r e goi ng on a t r ack, and t he pr oduct i s t he pl ace you ar e goi ng. The
guy wi t h t he best product wi ns. The product and sub-product s are t he
resul t of a
pre-det ermi ned
and
pre-deci ded pl an
of act i on, based upon
your knowl edge of t he part s of t hat t urn, and your
knowl edge of how t o get
your
machi ne ar ound i t .
End back to begi nni ng.
Pavement pat ch
A Sub-Product al ert s
you t hat you are on
t he ri ght t rack t o your Product . You see i t .
Rough spot
Each new RP l eads t o anot her t hat
you
know i s goi ng t o be t her e.
The Product i s where you are done wi t h t he
t ur n. l t i s a pl ace you know.
You l ocat e anot her Sub-Product or Ref er-
ence Poi nt t o gui de you t hr ough t he t ur n.
You bui l d conf i dence by knowi ng wher e
you ar e on t he t r ack wi t h t he RPs.
You become abl e t o
"see"
t he t urn bef ore
you even begi n t o go t hr ough i t .
16
From t al ki ng t o most ri ders, i t i s easy t o bel i eve t hat once you
f i nd t he " r i ght l i ne" f or a t ur n. ever yt hi ng wi l l magi cal l y t ur n out OK and
your l ap t i mes wi l l i mprove because of t hi s knowl edge. l t i sn' t t rue.
I once experi ment ed wi t h showi ng ot hers t he "ri ght l i ne"
t hrough t he t urns of a race t rack. I had st udent s f ol l ow me l ap af t er l ap at
moderat e speeds as I di d preci sel y
t he same t hi ng at preci sel y t he same
pl ace
on t he t rack each l ap. The st udent was t hen asked t o repeat t he
procedure
t hat had been shown t o hi m. I never f ound a st udent who coul d
do i t exact l y. Eddi e Lawson observed t hi s same t hi ng whi l e i nst ruct i ng
Gal i f orni a Superbi ke School st udent s at Loudon. Onl y one ri der out of
25 was abl e t o reproduce hi s l i ne af t er bei ng shown. (Act ual l y
t wo ri ders
were abl e t o do i t . The ot her was my 12year ol d son, who Eddi e of f ered
to sponsor afterwards.
)
l' ve placed myself in the same situation and asked a better
ri der t o show me hi s "l i nes" around t he course. The course was Ont ari o
Mot or Speedway, 3. 1 9 mi l es and 20 t ur ns; t he r i der was t hen- 25Occ U. S.
champi on, Davi d Emde, who was al l but unbeat abl e t hat
vear on t he
1/ q-l i t er
machi nes. We went around t he t rack at a good pract i ce pace
as I
caref ul l y observed what he was doi ng i n hopes of f i ndi ng out some deep,
dark ri di ng secret s.
I di d f i nd out . I f ound out t hat a ri der' s l i ne i s hi s pl an
f or
goi ng t hrough a t urn. Hi s pl an i s based upon what he does wel l and
what he doesn' t do wel l . I observed, t hen and now, t hat a ri der' s pl an wi l l
be based upon hi s st rengt hs and weaknesses. Hi s l i ne i s t he resul t of how
hi s st rengt hs and weaknesses f i t t oget her.
For exampl e, ri ders who use t he maxi mum amount of l ean
angl e t he bi ke has t o of f er wi l l usual l y desi gn t hei r " l i ne" t o use l ean
angl e t o t hei r advant age. Thei r "l i ne" i s of t en t i ght t o t he i nsi de of t he
t urn. By cont rast , a ri der who does not use al l of t he ground
cl earance
avai l abl e t o hi m wi l l desi gn hi s " l i ne" ( pl an)
so t hat he does not have t o
spend so much t i me l eaned over t o t he maxi mum. He wi l l f i ni sh hi s st eer -
i ng as soon as possi bl e, st r ai ght en t he machi ne and move away f r om t he
t ur n as ver t i cal l y as
possi bl e. Al l r i der s wi l l desi gn t hei r t ur ns ar ound t he
st rong poi nt s t hey bel i eve t hey have.
*MW;*- :q + s-tii * *L- t*' . i'
-.r'
. .
Davi d Emde perf ormi ng
mi r acl es on 25occ GP
bi ke. At 185 pounds and
6' 3" t al l , hi s " pl an" i s
di f f erent t han yours.
When the Superbike School
was at Loudon I let 24 riders
follow me around the track so
they could see my line. Then
/followed them to frnd out
how they were dotng.
Twentythree of them got it
wrong from what I could see.
The thing about riding on the
back of a motorcyc/e wr:th
someone else drivrng rs that
thev never do it exactly like I
would and it scares me.
Your Li ne l s Your Pl an
17
lf someone
pulls me I change
my line tn that turn and see if
it works / have films of me
racing wrth rrders and I'll pull
them five bike lengths off a
turn and still they
lust
keep
on doing the same thrng lf
the other guy' s plan rs better
you
can fit it rnto yours
and
beat him
Learni ng a Li ne
Fol l owi ng anot her ri der can be very i nst ruct i onal i f you can
det ermi ne hi s pl an by wat chi ng hi m. l f hi s
pl an i s bet t er desi gned t o
handl e a t urn t han
yours,
and
you can see why i t i s bet t er.
you may have
l earned how t o use your own abi l i t i es t o bet t er handl e some t rack si t ua-
t i ons. The val ue i n f ol l owi ng anot her r i der - i f t her e i s any- i s i n under st and-
i ng hi s pl an and bei ng abl et o expand
your own r i di ng because of i t . l t ' s not
i n l ear ni ng t he l i ne; i t i s l ear ni ng t he pl an t hat count s.
Basi c Goal
Your basi c goal i n any t urn i s get t i ng t hrough t he t urn wi t h
increased rnph, decreased time spent in it and adequate control
of t he bi ke. You are l ooki ng f or dri ve out of t he t urn t hat wi l l carry
you t o
t he next t urn or down t he st rai ght i n t he short est amount of t i me wi t h t he
great est amount of speed. Of course.
you must st i l l be i n cont rol of t he
bi ke. You bal ance t he f act ors of speed and t i me t o get t he best product .
Yet i t i s possi bl e t o come out of a t urn f ast er t han bef ore and st i l l not
decr ease
your l ap t i me. Tur ns can Suck
you i nt o maki ng mi st akes l i ke t hat '
Turn Bal anci ng
Get t i ng t he best product f rom a t urn requi res t urn bal -
anci ng: t hi s i s wher e you bal ance
your speed out of t he t ur n agai nst t he
amount of t i me i t t akes
you t o get t hrough i t . The most common
mi st ake
ri ders make i s t o
go i nt o t he t urns f ast er and f ast er, t hen come out of t hem
at t he same speed or sl ower. l t ' s easi er t o go i nt o a t urn f ast er t han i t
is to come out faster. Going in too fast can Gost
you your drive
comi ng out . You' ve got t o be abl e t o carry a f ast er ent rance speed
t hrough t he exi t of t he t urn t o i mprove
your l ap t i mes. Goi ng i n t oo f ast ,
t hen f oul i ng up i n t he mi ddl e of t he t ur n, wi l l l ower
your exi t speed.
Turn bal anci ng i s l i ke your t en dol l ars wort h of at t ent i on.
Fi gure t hat you have onl y so many mi l es per hour
(MPH) t o spend i n a t urn
on any
part i cul ar l ap f or any
part i cul ar l i ne. l f you spend
your MPH
unwi sel y at t he begi nni ng of t he t ur n, you don' t have t hem at t he end.
Excess speed at t he wrong t i me can cost
you t i me. Don' t
j ump
at t he f i rst
chance
you get t o go f ast er. The i ncreased speed
you have aS
you exi t one
t urn wi l l be added t o t he speed t hat you carry al l t he way t o t he next . Don' t
bur n up MPH at t he begi nni ng of t he t ur n; use t ur n bal anci ng t o pr oduce
your correct product : I ncreased MPH, decreased t i me spent i n t he
turn and the bike still under control at the turn exit.
Fi nd the Product
How do you f i nd t he
product ? Let ' s assume
you have ri dden
t he t rack f or a f ew l aps and have f i gured out what t he desi gner has engi -
18
neered i nt o t hi s pi ece of t armac. You have st udi ed t he radi us changes and
t he camber changes
(see
Chapt er One,
"The
Road You Ri de"). You' re sus-
pi ci ous of t he t urns on a race t rack and know t hey' re meant t o chal l enge
and f ool you. Wi t h t hi s i nf ormat i on you have a good i dea of how every t urn
af f ect s you and your bi ke. You become aware of what t he product i s f or
you and your machi ne by appl yi ng t hat i nf ormat i on and experi ence f rom
ri di ng. Now you have a st art i ng poi nt , a pl ace on t he t rack t o work wi t h,
correct and change, t o make deci si ons about .
Having a product in mind for a turn is like having a
road map and a destination for a trip. You' d have a very hard time
get t i ng t o your dest i nat i on i f you di dn' t know where i t was. You can' t get
f rom New York t o Kansas Ci t y unl ess you know where Kansas Ci t y i s!
Obt ai ni ng a preci se product f or a t urn i s t he f i rst st ep i n
deci di ng how t o i mprove t hat product . Havi ng no product i s l i ke
having no destination. Do you agree?
'@.
End t o Begi nni ng
You must work f rom t he end back t o t he begi nni ng of t he t urn
t o est abl i sh
your product . Deci de i n advance, bef ore you go i nt o t he t urn,
where you are goi ng t o exi t . You must be abl e t o
"see"
t he product of t he
t urn i n your mi nd as you ent er i t . Thi s enabl es
you t o keep t he pi eces and
part s of t he t urn worki ng t oward t hat product . Thi s overvi ew al l ows
you
t o f i gure out each st ep necessary t o arri ve at t he product or dest i nat i on.
You can become hopel essl y l ost by cont i nui ng t o
"l ook"
at a
t urn f rom begi nni ng t o end i nst ead of f rom t he end back t o t he begi nni ng.
Havi ng your
end poi nt
(product) wel l known,
even i n wi de open
sweepers, creates
confi dence.
'**
%
.-ltt
,|&r,
'."6
19
I go out and set my plan and
a lot of trmes the ftrst one ts
the best. lf lt doesn' t feel rrght
I change rt. maybe every lap
Once
you know where you' re goi ng, you can spend
your at t ent i on more
wi sel y on t he probl ems t hat come up i n t he t urn, such as t i re sl i ppage and
passi ng. You' l l have pl ent y of spare change l ef t t o handl e t hem. Ot herwi se,
wi t hout a
product and dest i nat i on,
you wi l l al ways be spendi ng t oo much
at t ent i on on what i s goi ng t o happen at t he end of t he t urn. Keepi ng
your
pr oduct i n mi nd hel ps you handl e t he uncer t ai nt y.
Once
you have a
product , whet her i t i s perf ect or not , you can
use i t as a
yardst i ck t o measure
your progress. Any changes
you make i n
t he t urn wi l l change t he product somewhat . You wi l l be abl e t o t el l whet her
t hose changes are worki ng or not . As you i ncrease your speed t hrough a
t urn. t he product wi l l change sl i ght l y-or
perhaps a great deal i f you' re a
begi nner. An experi enced ri der may make a change t hat i s t hree f eet back
f rom hi s previ ous product and one MPH f ast er. A begi nner' s
product
may change 1O f eet , and may be a gear hi gher and f i ve MPH f ast er duri ng
t he course of a day on t he t rack. A product gi ves you somet hi ng t o shoot
f or-somet hi ng t o change. l f you bl ow t he t urn,
you
can al ways go back t o
a l ess aggr essi ve or sl ower
pr oduct and get t hr ough i t wel l enough.
Locate the Product
Where and how you
enter a turn is totally decided by
what and where t he product i s. Onl y rarel y wi l l you go i nt o a t urn t he
way i t l ooks f rom t he approach and have i t work out wel l i n t he end. New
and i nexperi enced ri ders commonl y begi n t he t urn t oo earl y because t hey
have no product i n mi nd. Even pros can be seen doi ng i t . Thi s opens t he
door t o a l ot of mi st akes and uncert ai nt y.
A product i s made i n st ages, one st ep at a t i me. These
st ages of i t s devel opment are marked by sub-product s. Sub-product s
al so have a l ocat i on on t he t r ack and ot her f act or s t hat ar e si mi l ar t o an
overal l
product . Lean angl e, speed, body
posi t i on,
amount of cont rol ,
st eeri ng and more are t he sub-product s
you can use as i ndi cat ors t o t el l
you how you' re progressi ng t oward your product .
Medi um-speed and sl ower-speed t urns wi l l produce more
sub-product s t han f ast er t urns. You don' t have t he t i me t o make a l ot of
changes i n f ast er t urns, and you must make t hem as si mpl e as
possi bl e t o
l eave yoursel f
enough at t ent i on t o do i t ri ght . Usual l y, f ast t urns do not
have mul t i pl e camber or el evat i on changes- i f t hey di d t hey woul dn' t be
f ast t ur ns. Sl ow and medi um- speed t ur ns of t en have t hese ki nds of
changes, and t hey of t en r equi r e dr amat i c st eer i ng changes. For you t o
reach t he desi red product , t hese changes must be made at preci se pl aces
on t he t rack. These are sub-product s-pl aces t hat requi re a change
i n order t o reach your product f or t hat t urn. Changes i n gears, st eer-
i ng, t hr ot t l e, br aki ng, body posi t i on and t he poi nt s wher e you l ook f or
course markers are all sub-products. Any examples?
Poi nt of Entry
Just as t he end product has a preci se l ocat i on on t he t rack,
so does t he begi nni ng poi nt , t he
poi nt of ent r y wher e t he maj or st eer i ng 20
change f or t he t urn occurs. Thi s i s a sub-product . I n banked t urns, your
ent ry poi nt shoul d al ways be desi gned t o use t he banki ng t o best advan-
t age comi ng out of t he t ur n. What happens t o you and t he bi ke when t he
banki ng f l at t ens i s al ways a sub-product , a change. Preci sel y l ocat e t he
poi nt of your maj or st eer i ng change goi ng i nt o t he t ur n so you
can have
somet hi ng t o adj ust , a
poi nt t o t hi nk f r om. The emphasi s i s t o use t he
banki ng t o your advant age. You can t hi nk of i t as
" connect - a- dot "
r i di ng.
l f you
" go
i nt o" t ur ns t oo soon,
you
ar e commi t t ed t o maxi mum
speed and l ean angl e f or a great er port i on of t he t urn, whi ch l eaves you
f ewer opt i ons f or correct i ons, and you f eel you
can' t or shoul dn' t make any
changes i n your l i ne. Now passi ng, gr oundi ng
out on bumps, st eer i ng,
t hrot t l e and gear changes al l become mat t ers of great concern and
become more di f f i cul t t o do smoot hl y. Goi ng i nt o t urns t oo soon i s your
i ndi cat or t hat you do not have
your product wel l def i ned, t hat you' re
sl i ght l y l ost . Not knowi ng where you' re goi ng
i n a t urn i nvi t es you
t o go i n t oo soon. The t r ack desi gner f ool s you i nt o r i di ng t he t ur n t he
way i t l ooks at t he begi nni ng r at her t han t he way i t wi l l wor k out i n t he end.
Worki ng out t he product and sub-product provi des
a map t hrough
t he t ur n.
Faster l s Deeper
Here' s anot her way of l ooki ng at i t : i f you make your maj or
st eer i ng change at t he same
poi nt goi ng i nt o a t ur n- and i ncr ease your
speed past t hat poi nt -you wi l l run wi de of t he poi nt you passed on t he l ast
l ap because of t he i ncr ease i n cent r i f ugal f or ce. l f t he bi ke r uns a bi t t oo
wi de at t he exi t ,
you may bel i eve
you went t oo f ast . Act ual l y, t he remedy i s
t o go i n deeper bef ore maki ng t he st eeri ng change. The f ast er you wi sh
t o go t hrough a t urn, t he deeper you have t o ent er i t t o i ncrease
your speed at the exit.what will change if you do this?
l f you go i n deeper and f ast er, t he st eeri ng change wi l l need t o
be more abrupt , and t he bi ke wi l l not want t o t urn as easi l y as bef ore. The
t ri ck t o goi ng i n deeper i s t o
go a bi t sl ower ri ght at t he poi nt where you
make your st eeri ng change. You must l earn t o rest rai n yoursel f . As Kenny
Robert s says,
"Learn
t o go sl ow t o go f ast . " l f you
do i t ri ght , you' l l be abl e
t o go f ast er f r om t hat poi nt on t hr ough t he t ur n. The bi ke can be st r ai ght er
up and down, l ess commi t t ed t o maxi mum l ean angl es and speed, so
you
can adj ust your speed and set up a product more easi l y. The i mpof t ant
part i s knowi ng where you went i nt o t he t urn so t hat you have somet hi ng
t o change and adj ust . Thi s i s a sub- pr oduct , and an i mpor t ant one.
Ol d Racer' s Tal e
Anot her i mpof t ant poi nt i s t he f al se i dea t hat you must use up
al l t he t rack at t he exi t of a t urn, whet her you have t o or not . Perhaps t hi s
comes f rom t he ol d corneri ng t heory t hat says you begi n t he t urn wi de and
exi t i t as wi de as possi bl e. Wherever i t comes f rom, i t not onl y i sn' t al ways
t rue, but i t can act ual l y
prevent you f rom goi ng f ast er t hrough t he t urns.
How? lf you let the bike go wide at the exit,
iust
because there is
t rack l ef t over, i t can gi ve you a f al se i mpressi on you' re goi ng
as
f ast as you
can. You can f ool yoursel f i nt o bel i evi ng i t can' t be done
f ast er . As you' r e f i gur i ng t he t ur ns and di al i ng i n t he pr oduct , you use t he
i nf ormat i on you' ve
st ored up f rom t he l ast l ap t o deci de i f any changes can
be made. lf your information says
you went all the way to the edge
of the track the last time through, it makes it diffieult to decide
t o go f ast er t hi s t i me. You know t he bi ke wi l l go wi der i f you go f ast er,
and
you' l l
run out of t rack. Your product
wi l l change. You won' t f eel as
conf ident that it can be done. wiil it work for vou?
Hol d That Li ne
The remedy f or t hi s common error i s t o hol d t he bi ke t o t he
tightest line possible
on the exit so you can get
an accurate idea
of where that speed takes you
on the track. Where the product
of
t hat speed put s you.
l f you hol d your l i ne down at t he end of a t urn and
t here i s st i l l ei ght f eet of t rack l ef t , you coul d saf el y assume you
can go
f ast er. l f t he next t i me you keep everyt hi ng t he same goi ng i nt o t he t urn,
usi ng t he same l i ne but i ncr easi ng your
speed, and you st i l l have f i ve f eet
of t rack l ef t , you
can go even f ast er yet . The poi nt i s, don' t f ool yoursel f
by usi ng up t he t rack when i t i sn' t necessary.
By handl i ng t he exi t s of most t urns i n t hi s way, you
can begi n
to establish a very accurate product
and good sub-products.
you' re
engi neer i ng t he t ur n t o f i t your
r i di ng and equi pment , deci di ng on a
product ,
t hen maki ng adj ust ment s t o i mprove upon i t . You are not bei ng
t aken i n by t he t rack, maki ng usel ess changes
j ust
because t here' s an
opport uni t y t o do so.
A good
exampl e of bei ng sucked i n on t he ent rance of a t urn i s
t he ol d t rap of t he decreasi ng-radi us t urn. You go i n f ast because you
can,
t hen have t o pl ay some ser i ous cat ch- up at t he poi nt
i t begi ns t o t i ght en.
Hol di ng your
speed down on t he ent rance can gi ve you t he exact i nf orma-
t i on you
need t o go f ast er-i f i t ' s possi bl e.
That ' s you
t hi nki ng now, not
sucking yourself into making an error. Where wiil you try it?
Your Resul ts
The product s
and sub-product s gi ve you
a dest i nat i on and
accurat el y mark t he pl aces where you can make changes on t he road. They
are
your
way of breaking down the
process
into smaller parts you can
underst and and change. Your conf i dence and smoot hness i ncrease when
you know where you' re goi ng and what t o do when you get t here. Your
basi c requi rement as a ri der i s t o observe where your product s
and sub-
product s
are, what t o do at t hose poi nt s and t o remember t hem so you
can make use of t hem.
22
O
Most ri ders use t he
whol e t rack upon exi t i ng
t ur ns.
I
Hol di ng a t i ght l i ne, and
st i l l havi ng t rack l ef t
over, lets you know it
can be done even faster.
23
CHAPTER FOUR
WhatYou See
Programmi ng Your ComPuter
Through the Eyes
What
you
see t hrough your smoke-t i nt ed Bel l shi el d has much
t o do wi t h how wel l you ri de. You can' t count t he number of obj ect s
you
can see at any one spot on t he t rack, any more t han you can count what
you
see
j ust
st ari ng at t he back of
your hand. The more you l ook, t he more
you
see. Thi s al so appl i es t o t he race t rack. You can st op at any t urn and
l ook f or hours at what ' s t o be seen. But whi l e you' re raci ng or ri di ng down
t he road,
you can' t st op t o gaze.
How do
you
deci de what t o l ook at , what i s i mpof t ant and what
i s not ? And how do
you
use what
you
see? How can what you see hel p or
hi nder your ri di ng? Thi s chapt er i s about seei ng correct l y t o i mprove
your
r i di ng.
Where Are You?
The reason you look at points on the track is to learn
where you are and where
you are
going' On any piece of road you
l ook i n f ront of
you t o obt ai n i nf ormat i on about where you are so you can
deci de what t o do wi t h t he i nf ormat i on. Many ri ders have sai d,
"You
go
where
you l ook. " What t hey f ai l ed t o say i s,
"You
can
go where you don' t
l ook, but
you rol l of f t he t hrot t l e f i rst . " Let ' s rest at e i t so t he ri der i s more
i n cont rol : Look where you want t o go.
Reference Points
You use ref erence
poi nt s t o f i nd out where
you are on t he
t rack. Thi s
poi nt i s a spot or obi ect of whi ch you al ready know t he
l ocat i on. l t i s somet hi ng whi ch cl earl y marks a pl ace. You can ref er t o t hi s
object for information. Two reference
points present a better picture of
your l Ocat i on. Three or more gi ve you your exact l ocat i on. Exampl e: you' re
l ooki ng f or a st ore on Mai n St reet . You go t o Mai n St reet -t hat ' s one
ref erence
poi nt . You f i nd t he ri ght bl ock-t hat ' s t wo. You check t he
24
numbers t o see whi ch di rect i on t hey run-t hat ' s t hree. You deci de whi ch
si de of t he st reet t he st ore i s on-t hat ' s f our. You f ol l ow t he numbers t i l l
you reach t he st ore. That ' s f i ve or more ref erence poi nt s
t hat you woul d
use i n f i ndi ng an addr ess. On a r ace t r ack or r oad you
do t he same t hi ng.
l f you
don' t have enough ref erence
poi nt s
t o know where
you
are-you' re l ost! Any examptes?
Ref erence Poi nt s
{RPs)-
a cert ai n remi nder of
where you are; basi c
bui l di ng bl ocks f or your
pl an.
"{
25
Referen ce
p o t nts
-yea
h. you
might not thtnk about them
but
You' ve
got to use them.
Just little things on the track
I remember-rt helps to put
it all together.
Fami l i ar RPs al l ow you
t o l ook "around" t he
t urn, wel l ahead of
yoursel f .
An RP givee you informa-
t i on. l t si gnal s where,
and how much, t o
change what you do.
l "
l&ir
,W
l,' '
:#
26
Thi ngs happen f ast on a mot orcycl e at speed, and t he si t uat i on
changes const ant l y. Where you are on t he road i s very i mport ant because
i t det ermi nes
your course of act i on. l f
you
don' t know where
you al e,
you
al so don' t know what you' re supposed t o be doi ng. Your l oca-
t i on on a race t rack or road can be
pl ot t ed i n i nches and f eet -not i n ci t y
bl ocks-and t here are no st reet si gns on t he t rack. l t ' s up t o you t o deci de
what reference
points to use and what to do when you reach them.
You must deci de.
What to Use as Reference Points
Your best Ref erence Poi nt
(RP)
i s somet hi ng ei t her on t he t rack
orvery cl ose t o i t : a
pat ch
of asphal t , a
pai nt ed l i ne, a spot , a crack, curb-
i ng, anyt hi ng t hat doesn' t move. Obj ect s t oo f ar f rom t he t rack surf ace wi l l
t ake your
at t ent i on away f rom t he t rack. Your RPs must be easy t o f i nd t o
be usabl e. At t i mes you must use t he edge of t he t rack, but a poi nt t hat ' s a
f oot i n f rom t he edge i s bet t er because i t keeps your
at t ent i on on t he t rack.
l f you go t o t he l i mi t wi t h an RP t hat ' s one f oot f r om t he edge, you st i l l have
a f oot l ef t over. Goi ng t o t he edge of t he t rack means goi ng t o t he l i mi t and
l eavi ng yoursel f no margi n f or error. l t i sn' t necessary t o go t o t he edge of
t he t rack whenever
possi bl e unt i l you f eel comf ort abl e doi ng so. The i dea
t hat you must use al l t he t rack i s l i ke t he i dea you must "hang
of f " t he bi ke
-onl y
do i t when i t becomes necessary and comf ort abl e.
The RPs you
choose t o l ook at shoul d be i n your l i ne of vi si on
and al ong your pat h
of t ravel . Don' t choose somet hi ng as a ref erence poi nt
j ust
because i t ' s t here and easy t o see. l t mi ght not be t he ri ght RP f or you
because i t ' s t oo f ar of f your l i ne or i t doesn' t work f or t he speed
you' re
t r avel i ng. On t he ot her hand, don' t nar r ow
your vi si on t oo much or you' l l
not have a wi de enough vi ew of t he t rack surf ace t o f i nd where you are.
RPs t hat are di rect l y on your l i ne of t ravel est abl i sh your l ocat i on on t he
t rack l engt hways. RPs al ong t he si de est abl i sh
your l ocat i on i n rel at i on t o
t he wi dt h of t he t rack. The bot t om l i ne f or an RP i s, does i t work? l t can
be anywhere-so l ong as i t works f or you.
How to Use A Reference Point
A ref erence poi nt i s not merel y somet hi ng you
can see easi l y
on or near the track, the reference point must mean something to
you when you
see i t . Every t i me you pass
or approach i t , t hi s
poi nt
must communi cat e a message t o you, l i ke,
"Thi s
i s where I begi n l ooki ng
f or my t urn marker, " or
"l f
l ' m t o t he ri ght of t hi s t oo much l ' l l hi t a bump,
but t o t he l ef t of i t I ' m al ri ght . " Or,
"Thi s
i s where I begi n my t urn. " Ref er-
ence points
are reminders of where you
are or of what action
you
must take. Can you apply this?
You' ll need two or more reference points to accurately find
yoursel f
on t he t rack. You' ve got t o know where t he RPs are so
you
can
r el at e your
own posi t i on t o t hem. Thi s may sound si mpl e- mi nded, but i f
you narrow your at t ent i on t o one obj ect , i t becomes your onl y RP and you
become a vi ct i m of t arget f i xat i on. You go t o t he RP because you
don' t
have anyt hi ng el se t o do. Thi s occur s i n a pani c
si t uat i on and can happen
anywhere on a race t rack. You must have enough RPs so t hat t arget
f i xat i on doesn' t occur.
When you
have suf f i ci ent RPs i n a t urn or on t he t rack, t he
scene movi ng i n f ront of
you appears t o move smoot hl y, l i ke a wi de-screen
70mm movi e. Too f ew and t he scene l ooks l i ke an ol d-t i me movi e, bounc-
i ng and
j erki ng
al ong. Havi ng onl y one RP i s l i ke wat chi ng a sl i de show
frame-nice picture,
but where do you go from there?
Having too few RPs
causes t arget f i xat i on.
Enough RPs "open up"
t he t rack, maki ng i t
appear l arger, and cost s
l ess of your
at t ent i on.
\
f'
28
No doubt
you' ve heard t hat
you must l ook down t he road
where you' re goi ng, not where
you are. Thi s i s good i nf ormat i on-you
need
t hat second RP t o l ocat e
yoursel f on t he t rack. Looki ng t oo cl ose t o t he
bi ke won' t hel p
you f i nd i t .
Look Ahead for Reference Points
At 60 mph
you' re traveling at 88 feet
per second; at 1 20 mph
you' re hurt l i ng t hrough space at 176 f eet per second. That second t i cks by
very qui ckl y, and i f you' re not ready f or t he next move, ahead of t i me,
you' l l make a mi st ake. Looki ng ahead f or
your ref erence
poi nt s and
sub-product s
gi ves you t i me t o prepare f or t he next move so t here are no
surpri ses and so everyt hi ng
goes smoot hl y.
Thi s i dea can be t aken t oo f ar, however. l ' ve seen ri ders l ooki ng
150 f eet down t he r oad whi l e r oundi ng a t i ght 4o- mph cur ve. They wer e
i gnori ng what was t o be seen i n f ront of t hem, l i ke curbi ng and hol es. St i l l ,
ot her ri ders i n t he same t urn were l ooki ng at t he curbi ng and hol es, but not
unt i l t hey were
j ust
2O f eet i n f ront of t hem. Bot h of t hese ext remes are
unworkabl e; t hey produce uncert ai n ri di ng t hrough t he t urn and sl ow
cor ner i ng.
Where to Look
Two f act ors wi l l hel p
you det ermi ne where t o l ook whi l e you' re
r i di ng or r aci ng.
1 . At speed, t he f urt her ahead
you l ook, t he sl ower
you bel i eve
you' re goi ng; t he cl oser t o yoursel f you l ook, t he f ast er you bel i eve
you' re
going. Look far enough ahead to avoid accelerating the scene, but
not so far that you lose your feel for where
you
are on the track.
Wath RPs you have a choice of where tolook.wittyou trv it?
2. Havi ng enough RPs has t he ef f ect of openi ng up t he
track, making it appear larger. When
you look too far ahead or too
cl ose t o t he bi ke, t he t rack seems t o narrow. l f t hi s begi ns happeni ng, i t i s
your
si gnal t o ei t her change RPs or t o f i nd mor e of t hem i n t hat t ur n or
sect i on of t rack.
These ar e
gui del i nes. Adj ust t he RPs so t he scene i s movi ng at
t he ri ght speed f or you, and so
you can see enough t o keep t he t rack
"opened
up. "
Havi ng onl y one RP i s l i ke havi ng onl y one car. l f i t breaks or
doesn' t work,
you don' t go anywhere. l f
you have anot her
you
can easi l y
use t he one t hat works. Wi t h onl y one ref erence
poi nt ' or car, i t
becomes t oo val uabl e and necessary. l f
you f i nd t hat your at t ent i on i s f i xed
on one
poi nt on t he t rack or road, i t ' s because
you don' t have anot her
ready t o use. That one becomes very val uabl e t o
you and
you over-use i t .
You depend upon i t f or t oo much i nf ormat i on and mi ght begi n st ari ng at i t .
You can become sl i ght l y l ost when i t no l onger l et s you know where you
are or what t o do. l f
you
f i nd
your at t ent i on becomi ng f i xed on one RP,
you
need to f ind another in the area so the
"movie" will smooth out.
Stepping Stones
Ref erence poi nt s are your
st eppi ng st ones t o t he product s
and sub-product s
you wi l l produce i n a t urn or seri es of t urns. These l i t t l e
st eps l ead t o t he maj or changes
you wi l l make t o get t he bi ke around t urns
f ast er or wi t h mor e conf i dence. RPs si gnal t he poi nt s on t he t r ack wher e
you wi l l make t hese changes.
Concentration
On the track or road, concentration is a smooth flow, or chain
of events that moves from one to another without a break. Reference
poi nt s are part s
of t hat chai n, one l i nk dependi ng upon t he next f or
st rengt h and a cont i nuous f l ow. l f one l i nk breaks, t he ent i re chai n st ays
broken unt i l i t can be repai red or repl aced. l f you
have a sect i on of t he
t rack wi t h no, or t oo f ew RPs, your
chai n of concent rat i on wi l l break.
Ref erence
poi nt s
are t he bui l di ng bl ocks of concent rat i on.
Let ' s get back t o t he i dea of your at t ent i on and how much of i t
you have, your t en-dol l ar bi l l . When your concent rat i on i s good, you
spend
j ust
enough of i t on each RP so t hat you know where you
are and what t o
do. Thi s keeps t hat st eady f l ow goi ng. When you
have t oo f ew RPs i n an
area, most of
your
at t ent i on wi l l be spent i n t ryi ng t o f i x t hi s bad si t uat i on.
The
points
or
places
on the track that you
do not know, or under-
st and, wi l l occupy most of your at t ent i on. Havi ng enough RPs l et s
you spend
j ust
t he r i ght amount of t i me and at t ent i on on each one t o get
t he i nf ormat i on you need. You have enough l ef t over t o buy ot her t hi ngs,
t o make smal l changes i n your r i di ng t hat wi l l hel p you go j ust
a bi t f ast er
or lean over
just
a bit more. Everything you
do on the track takes up
some at t ent i on. When you don' t have enough RPs your
at t ent i on goes
ri ght t o t hat area and wi l l -or can-break
your
concent rat i on.
Some of t he st rangest t hi ngs happen when you
have a break
i n your concent rat i on. One ri der t ol d me t hat every t i me hi s concent rat i on
br eaks he begi ns t hi nki ng of a l eaki ng f aucet he has at home. Your mi nd
may not wander t o a l eaki ng f aucet , but when your
concent rat i on breaks
you wi l l not i ce t hat ot hert hi ngs come i nt o your
mi nd. Oo you do t hi s?
Concentration
-The
Twist
There' s a twist to this subject of concentration; when you' ve
got i t , i t doesn' t seem t o you you' re l ooki ng at anyt hi ng i n part i cul ar. The
ref erence poi nt s j ust
bl end i nt o t he scene i n f ront of you. When asked,
"What
do
you
l ook at i n t urns?" t wo or t hree of t he t op ri ders i n t he worl d
have sai d,
"l
don' t real l y l ook at anyt hi ng. " But i s t hi s real l y what t hey
mean?
When your
concent rat i on i s good, you
spend
j ust
ni ckel s and
di mes on t he RPs and none of t hem capt ures your
at t ent i on. An exampl e of
t hi s i s t hat one maj or di f f erence bet ween ri ders i s t hei r abi l i t y t o l earn
tracks. Learning a track means knowing where you
are on the track.
It's important to
prck
up good
RPs. especially on the exrt
"efa
-&**
;.
.*,a-;t;, ,,
29
I like to go ta new tracks-rt's
fun. The firstyear I raced we
went to the tracks that every-
body raced and ljust drd OK
At the new tracks though. I
was right there frrst or second
Find a stopwatch or wall
cl ock wi t h a second hand
and t ry t hi s eye-openi ng
experi ment . Do i t agai n
af t er
you have ri dden t he
t rack l ooki ng f or RPs.
Some ri ders can do i t i n f i ve l aps, ot hers can' t do i t i n 5OO l aps. Bot h guys
have t o l earn where t hey are by ref erence poi nt s; t he t op ri ders
j ust
do i t
so f ast t hey can beat
you
on
your f avori t e road t he second t i me you t ake
t hem t here! ! One f act or t hat separat es t he t op ri ders f rom t he rest of t he
f i el d i s t hat t hey
pi ck up RPs qui ckl y and accur at el y t o t he poi nt t hey can
see t he
" whol e
scene" wi t hout havi ng t o pi ck out t he i ndi vi dual RPs.
Enough Reference Points
Once you have enough RPs, you can see the
"whole
scene"
comf ort abl y wi t hout havi ng t o st are at t he RPs i ndi vi dual l y. Thi s i s your
goal , and t he i ndi vi dual bui l di ng bl ocks of t hat scene ar e RPs. l f your con-
cent rat i on becomes l ost you wi l l have t o go back and rel y on or rel ocat e
your sel f wi t h t he RPs t hat ar e f ami l i ar t o you.
That ' s how you rest ore your concent rat i on as sool 3bs
possi bl e:
Go back to the reference
points you know and pick up the thread
of concentration. lf you don' t have any RPs in the area, it' ll cost
you time
on t he t rack as
you hesi t at e and rol l back t he t hrot t l e.
Do Not Read Past Thi s Next Paragraph Unti l
You Have Completed the ExPeriment
1. Get a st opwat ch.
2. Si t down i n a comf ort abl e chai r.
3. Now, cl ose
your eyes and t hi nk of a race t rack
you' re f ami l i ar
wi t h. St art t he wat ch and run t hrough a compl et e l ap on t he t rack. Do i t
f rom memory. Try t o go t hrough i t exact l y as f ast as you di d t he l ast t i me
you rode t here. You are t i mi ng your memory of t he t rack and how you
rode i t .
4. Now, cl ose
your
eyes and t ry i t agai n.
Memory Lap
l f you' re l i ke most ri ders,
your memory
"l ap
t i me" wi l l be ei t her
much t oo l ong or much t oo short . l f you j ust
broke t he absol ut e l ap record
30
by 2Q or 30 seconds, or i f you added 20 or 30 seconds t o your act ual l ap
t i mes, i t means t he same t hi ng-not enough ref erence poi nt s.
The sl ow-
l ap r i der ' s
" movi e"
i s i ncompl et e and he f i nds hi msel f st ar - gazi ng at t he
pl aces he has no RPs. Hi s at t ent i on i s on t he areas of t he t rack he does
not know.
l n t he very f ast l ap si t uat i on t he ri der st i l l hasn' t got enough
RPs, so he f l i t s f rom one t o t he next very qui ckl y
because t hose are what
he does know. Having sufficient RPs gives you
a better sense of
time because you
now have points to mark your
motion around
t he t rack. Your at t ent i on goes ei t her t o t he pl aces you
know very wel l , or
t o t he pl ace you don' t know very wel l . Or, i t becomes spl i t bet ween t he
t wo. Thi s cost s you a l ot of at t ent i on you can' t spend on ot her t hi ngs.
Find the Lost RPs
Here' s an easy met hod you
can use t o f i nd out where you
don, t
have enough RPs. You can use i t anyt i me.
1. Cl ose your
eyes.
2. Caref ul l y run t hrough your
own
"movi e"
of t he t rack as i f you
were ri di ng.
3.
"Ri de"
t hrough one compl et e l ap i n your
memory.
4. Open your
eyes and draw each turn on a separate sheet of
paper,
marki ng t he ref erence poi nt s you' re
sure of i n each t urn.
5. Make a not e of what each RP means t o you.
l i ke:
, , Br aki ng
Poi nt , "
"St eeri ng
Change, "
"Locat i on
on t he Track. "
"Bump, , ,
, , Exi t
Marker, , ,
"Product , "
et c.
6. Cl ose your eyes agai n and go
back over
your
, , movi e, , ,
not i ci ng t he pl aces you
hesi t at e. go bl ank, where t he scene get s f oggy, or
where you
hurry t hrough i t t oo f ast . Each of t hese si t uat i ons i ndi cat es you
have too few reference points
at these locations.
7. Now make a not e on your t urn drawi ngs at each pl ace you
have a bl ank spot or any ot her
probl em
si t uat i on f rom No. 6 above.
8. Fi nd more RPs f or t hose areas t he next t i me you ri de t he
t rack.
You can use t hi s met hod t o f i nd your
weak spot s-and st rong
poi nt s as wel l , as i t i s your memory of t he t urns you
rel y on when you
ri de.
Thi s i s how you know where you' re goi ng. Knowi ng where you
are goi ng i s
part
of the thread of concentrati on. Wi u i t work?
That's the Twist
You must get t o t he poi nt
where you
can see t he whol e scene
i n f ront of you wi t hout havi ng t o spend a l ot of at t ent i on on any one
poi nt .
You' re bui l di ng t hat scene wi t h i ndi vi dual ref erence poi nt s.
l f your
con-
cent rat i on i s l ost , go back t o t he RPs t hat you
know and bui l d t he scene
agai n.
31
A lot of guys I see out there
seem to forget about the
whole rest of the track. They
are paytng too much atten-
t i on t o t hat one l i ne.
Good RPs help keep a
steady flow of concen-
tration for a rider. You
spend
(use) RPs to save
at t ent i on.
The Bi g Twi st to Goncentrati on and Reference Poi nts
The t ri ck t o usi ng RPs and gai ni ng concent rat i on i s you
have
t o l ook at somet hi ng. Your eyes work by f ocusi ng on some obj ect or
some pl ane, t hen everyt hi ng i n t hat pl ane i s i n f ocus, l i ke on a movi e
screen. You may be l ooki ng at onl y one area of t he screen, but t he ent i re
screen i s i n f ocus.
Another point is that when your eyes move, they do so in short
st oppi ng movement s. They f l i t f rom one obj ect t o anot her l i ke a but t erf l y.
l f you t ry t o sweep
your eyes across a scene wi t hout st oppi ng on anyt hi ng,
t he scene becomes a bl ur. Try i t .
A ri der' s probl em i s t hat he want s t o see t he t rack i n f ront of
hi m f l owi ng as a whol e scene, t o mai nt ai n a st eady f l ow of concent rat i on,
but hi s eyes don' t work t hat way. l f he st ares at one ref erence
poi nt t oo
l ong, he' l l exper i ence a f or m of t unnel vi si on. But because of t he way hi s
eyes work, he has t o l ook at some speci f i c t hi ng! There' s t he t wi st .
@
:
.
,ilt
1 *
\ \ \
w
rr-rl' -"-
. -, . , .
F-
L
'..1*',,-:4:.
"ffi
q
*:t*-"
i
I
t
See Fast
How do t he t op ri ders manage t o ri de so f ast wi t hout experi -
enci ng
probl ems i n seei ng? Here' s a dri l l t hat wi l l hel p you pract i ce t he
proper seei ng t echni ques.
1 . Fi nd a wal l t hat i s ent i rel y vi si bl e t o
you. You can see al l f our
corners by movi ng
your
eyes, but not your head.
2. Focus your eyes on a spot i n t he mi ddl e of t he wal l .
3. Remai n f ocused on t hat spot , t hen move your at t ent i on, not
your eyes, t o t he upper ri ght -hand corner of t he wal l .
Still focusing on that spot, move
your attention to different
pl aces
on t he wal l . You are l ooki ng at one spot but are aware of t he ot her
areas of t he wal l .
5. St i l l f ocusi ng on t hat spot , move
your
at t ent i on t o t he
obj ect s bet ween
you and t he wal l , and on t he wal l as wel l .
32
. - - . . . - - " - . * E
The Whol e Pi cture
You can see the whole scene while still looking at one
pl ace
or spot ! You probabl y not i ced t hat duri ng t hi s experi ment you
wanted to move your
eyes from the spot you were focused on to the spot
t o whi ch your at t ent i on had gone. Thi s experi ment becomes easi er wi t h
pract i ce. You can pract i ce movi ng your
at t ent i on around, whi l e l ooki ng at
one spot or area, as
you' re
dri vi ng t o t he races or
j ust
si t t i ng i n a chai r. l t ' s
a ski l l t hat can t ake t i me t o devel op i f you haven' t mast ered i t al ready.
Now, when you
see t he whol e scene i n t hi s way you
have t o
real i ze t hat t he poi nt s
i n t he scene must be wel l known t o you.
You need
t he ref erence poi nt s i n t he scene t o make t he scene. l f you
don' t know
t he RPs your eyes wi l l hunt f or somet hi ng t hat i s f ami l i ar and l ose t he
whol e scene ef f ect .
Bei ng abl e t o see t he t r ack i n f r ont of
you
as a whol e scene
makes r i di ng much easi er and br i ngs your
concent r at i on back i f i t f al t er s.
As you
can see i n t he dri l l above, i t i s where your
at t ent i on i s di rect ed,
wher e you' r e
spendi ng your
t en- dol l ar bi l l , t hat ' s much mor e i mpor t ant
t han what you' re
l ooki ng at . Your at t ent i on must be spent economi cal l y,
and l ooki ng at t he whol e scene r at her t han at one t hi ng i s spendi ng i t ver y
wisely, and getting interest back on your
investment. You
just
have to
practice. Will you
try it?
, " , . .
%
'!
This is the way I see lt most
of the time-the overall scene
That's when things are gorng
nght everything is worktng
nght
You begin to understand
a t urn wi t h RPs. Then
pi eces of t he t urn
become cl earer. Fi nal l y,
t he whol e scene i s
vi ewed as a st eady f l ow
of act i on. You spend t he
l east and get t he most .
CHAPTER FI VE
Ti mi ng
The first couple of practice
laps feel fast, too fast. and
then it slows down from
there.
Putti ng Thi ngs l n Order
Ti mi ng real l y has not hi ng t o do wi t h your
sense of t i me. l t has
to do with taking the correct action at exactly the correct
place
on
t he t rack. The whol e i dea of t i mi ng i s t o pul l
t oget her your ref erence
poi nt s, product s and sub-product s so t hey' re usef ul t o you on t he
t rack. Doi ng t he correct t hi ng at t he wrong pl ace on t he t rack produces
poor resul t s. Knowi ng what t o do, but not exact l y where t o do i t , can real l y
f oul up a ri der.
My Ti mi ng Lesson
I l earned my l esson about t i mi ng f rom ri di ng skat eboards. I
was t ryi ng desperat el y t o make a
"ki ck"
t urn, whi ch i s t he 1 8O-degree t urn
you make t o get yoursel f back down af t er ri di ng up a ramp or t he si de of a
pool . l f el l at l east a hundred t i mes t ryi ng i t . Fi nal l y, I di scovered t hat t he
board woul d not t urn unl ess i t was goi ng at a cert ai n sl ow speed. l f I t ri ed i t
t oo f ast -t oo earl y-l coul d not make t he t urn. Too sl ow-t oo l at e-and t he
boar d woul d begi n sl i di ng backwar ds
j ust
enough t o make t he t ur n vi r t u-
al l y i mpossi bl e. There was a very f i ne margi n of speed t hat woul d al l ow t he
board t o be t urned, yet
st i l l keep up t he moment um so I coul d st ay on and
cont i nue back down.
How You Let Off
I t ook a very cl ose l ook at my mot orcycl e ri di ng, keepi ng i n
mi nd what I ' d l earned on t he skat eboard, and di scovered some very basi c
mi st akes I was maki ng as a ri der. Many ot her ri ders were maki ng t he same
mi st akes f or t he same reasons.
ln turns where
you
use the brakes, exactly where you let off
t hem and when you begi n st eeri ng can make a great di f f erence i n your
smoot hness. Though l coul d make t hat change i n many di f f erent ways,
one worked bet t er t han t he ot hers. Let ' s l ook at t he possi bi l i t i es:
34
1. You can f i ni sh t he braki ng and t hen t urn, l eavi ng t he
throttle off.
2. You can f i ni sh t he braki ng af t er you begi n t he t urn, wi t h no
th rottle.
3. You can f i ni sh t he braki ng, t hen t urn and appl y t he t hrot t l e.
4. You can f i ni sh t he br aki ng, and t hen cr ack t he t hr ot t l e
sl i ght l y.
5. You can f i ni sh t he braki ng af t er you begi n t o t urn and appl y
t he t hrot t l e.
6. You can f i ni sh t he braki ng af t er you
t urn and
j ust
crack t he
t hrot t l e on.
What Happens
l n Number One above, t he f orks are al most bot t omed out f rom
t he braki ng, t hen when you l et up on t he brakes t he f orks ext end and t he
bi ke
" st ands"
up. You t hen put t he bi ke i nt o t he t ur n, and t he cor ner i ng
f orces compress t he f orks agai n. l f you put i t i nt o t he t urn hard, t he f orks
compress very f ar, t hen come back up a l i t t l e. The bi ke i s goi ng up and
down, changi ng t ract i on and f ork angl e. That changes t he st eeri ng and
reduces the stability of the bike.
I n Number Two above, t he f ork i s down, and when you
t urn
t he t hrot t l e back on i t comes up, t hen back down agai n f rom t he t urni ng
f orces. Here' s t he same si t uat i on agai n-l oss of t ract i on and st abi l i t y.
l n Number Three, t he f ork i s compressed f rom t he braki ng,
t hen comes up when you rel ease t he brakes, t hen down agai n f rom t he
cor ner i ng l oads, t hen up agai n as you
appl y t he t hr ot t l e. The ot her
exampl es provi de
si mi l ar
possi bi l i t i es.
To get
i nt o t he t urn correct l y,
you
must t i me t he braki ng and
t urni ng so t hat t he bi ke st ays even, not goi ng up or down, at t he poi nt you
let off the brakes. You must let off the brakes at the exact moment your
f ork i s compressed
j ust
enough f or t he speeds and corneri ng l oads i t wi l l
be undergoi ng t hrough t he t urn. Appl y t he t hrot t l e so t hat f ork ext ensi on
doesn' t change, or changes t he l east amount possi bl e. Thi s wi l l al l ow you
t o go i nt o t he t urn wi t hout any up and down mot i on. l f your t i mi ng' s of f ,
you
may compl ai n t hat t he bi ke handl es poor l y, possi bl y t hi nki ng t he
shocks are gone. Some examples?
Your Ti mi ng Target
Your t arget , or sub-product f or any t urn i n whi ch you
brake
and t urn i n successi on, i s t i mi ng t he braki ng, st eeri ng and t hrot t l e
so that fork and shock extension are kept as even as possible.
Fast "esses" and compound turns. When two or more
t urns are st rung t oget her and cannot be t aken wi de open, t i mi ng i s
i mport ant . On a qui ck ri ght / l ef t or l ef t / ri ght combi nat i on, t i me t he st eeri ng
change so t hat t he t hrot t l e i s rol l ed of f ri ght bef ore t he t ransi t i on f rom si de
t o si de. Rol l i ng of f t he gas
j ust
an i nst ant bef ore maki ng t he st eeri ng
36
change di ps t he f ront end sl i ght l y, maki ng t he st eeri ng easi er
(overst eer)
because of t he decreased f ork angl e
(rake). Maki ng t hat st eeri ng change
and compressi ng t he suspensi on t o i t s maxi mum
poi nt f or t hat t urn keeps
t he bi ke f rom bobbi ng up and down excessi vel y. When done ri ght , even a
bi ke wi t h
poor
shocks wi l l handl e f i ne. When done wr ong, t he best -
handl i ng bi ke i n t he worl d wi l l handl e poorl y.
Rol l -Off Ti me
The f ast er
you ri de, t he harder t he st eeri ng becomes, especi -
al l y i n hi gh-speed
"esses. "
Rol l i ng t he t hrot t l e of f , t hen st eeri ng, t hen get -
t i ng back on t he gas agai n i n t he mi ddl e of t wo t urns, can act ual l y
get you
t hrough f ast er t han i f you "push" t hrough and have t o rol l of f at t he exi t of
t he t wo t ur ns. The r ol l i ng of f and back on agai n shoul d not t ake mor e t han
one second, and t he gas i s compl et el y of f f or onl y a smal l f ract i on of t hat
t i me, i f at al l . Avoi d snappi ng t he t hr ot t l e on and of f unt i l your t i mi ng
is perfect.
Ti redness
:
Loss of Ti mi ng
When
you become t i red, t he f i rst t hi ng you l ose i s
your
t i mi ng. Thi s i s anot her reason i t ' s so i mport ant t o have your ref erence
poi nt s and
product s wel l est abl i shed.
sub-product s, t he maj or st eps
or changes i n a t urn, are al so
poi nt s of t i mi ng
(POTI .
Not al l RPs are
poi nt s of t i mi rl g. Some onl y t el l you where
you
are, si gnal i ng an upcomi ng change or POT/ sub-product .
l f you
know where t hey are and what t o do t here,
you won' t have t o sl ow down
as much when you become t i red. You probabl y won' t be wi l l i ng t o go
f ast er, but t hat can wai t unt i l
you' re sharp agai n. Does t hi s appl y t o you?
Ti mi ng and the Road You Ri de
changes i n t he road af f ect t i mi ng dramat i cal l y.
You not onl y
have t o work t he cont rol s correct l y, but
you have t o f i t t hat i nt o t he camber
changes and r adi us changes as wel l . For i nst ance, i f you wer e comi ng up t o
a banked t urn where
you woul d have t o use t he brakes f i rst ,
you shoul d
know t hat t he suspensi on wi l l compr ess mor e i n t hat t ur n t han i t wi l l on a
si mi l ar t urn t hat i s f l at wi t h no banki ng. To go i n perf ect l y, you woul d l et
of f t he brakes as
you go i nt o t he banki ng
j ust
as t he suspensi on i s t aki ng
t he l oad f rom t he cent ri f ugal
f orce. Thi s wi l l gi ve you t he smoot hest ent ry.
You back out of the brakes
iust
as the turn takes over
the
iob
of
compressi ng t he suspensi on.
l f you brake t oo hard and t he corneri ng
speed i s down, t he bi ke wi l l ri se up when
you hi t t he banki ng, t he suspen-
si on wi l l unl oad. l f you get of f t he brakes t oo soon and t hen hi t t he bank-
i ng, t he suspensi on
wi t l compress. The second of t hese i s t he bet t er of t he
evi l s as i t of f ers a bet t er t ract i on Si t uat i on.
Doi ng i t ri ght , of course, i s
best of al l .
l n of f -camber t urns:
1. Spend as l i t t l e t i me i n
t hem as possi bl e.
2. Desi gn
your pl an
around t he f orces pul l -
i ng
you t o t he out si de
of t he t urn.
Off-Gamber Ti mi ng
I n an of f -camber t urn i t i s bet t er t o have t he bi ke as l i ght as
possi bl e
on i t s wheel s t o keep i t f rom movi ng t o t he out si de of t he t urn t oo
much. You must t i me your cont rol operat i ons so
you' re
on t he gas t he l east
amount i n t hat part of t he t urn. Tract i on det eri orat es rapi dl y i n of f
-camber
sect i ons, compared wi t h f l at or banked sect i ons. Rol l i ng of f t he t hrot t l e
very hard i n an of f -camber has an ef f ect si mi l ar t o t hat of rol l i ng on t oo
har d. l t l oads one wheel mor e t han t he ot her - i n t hi s case t he f r ont - and
can cause t he f r ont end t o sl i de out . The r i der mi ght be puzzl ed- he r ol l ed
of f t he t hrot t l e and st i l l t hrew i t away. Rol l i ng of f usual l y hel ps hi m get
t hrough t urns when he' s been goi ng t oo f ast . Keepi ng t he wei ght even on
t he wheel s by cracki ng open t he t hrot t l e, not accel erat i ng or sl owi ng, gi ves
t he bi ke i t s best t ract i on i n of f
-camber
t urns. I n an of f -camber, set up your
POT so t he bi ke i s accel er at i ng or sl owi ng t he l east amount possi bl e. That
wi l l prevent t ransf erri ng t oo much wei ght t o ei t her wheel .
Ghangi ng the Track wi th Ti mi ng
I n a sect i on of t rack where a di p compresses t he suspensi on,
i t i s somet i mes possi bl e t o t i me your rol l -on f or t hat poi nt .
Ground cl ear-
ance i ncr eases when t he bi ke i s accel er at i ng because t he suspensi on i s
ext endi ng; t hi s t act i c may st op some of t he bobbi ng up and down t hat
occurs i n di pped part s
of t he t rack. Ti mi ng can change t he t rack condi -
t i ons f or bet t er or worse. l f you get t he POT ri ght i t can work-i f you
don' t ,
i t won' t .
,Cl**L*'*a+
Products and Ti mi ng
Keep i n mi nd t hr ough al l t hi s t hat your goal i s st i l l t he over al l
product
of t he t urn. You st i l l want t he maxi mum speed, t he dri ve comi ng
out , or you want t o be set up f or t he next t urn. l f you make
part s
of t he t urn
work, but l ose t he dri ve comi ng out , you' ve won t he bat t l e but l ost t he war.
At l of t he RPs and POT/ sub-product s must make t he product bet t er or
you
have done a l ot of f ancy ri di ng t hat ' s sl ow ri di ng. Somet i mes i t ' s bet t er
t o go
di rect l y t hrough a rough sect i on of t rack wobbl i ng and out of shape
t han t o f i gure a smoot her-but sl ower-way around i t . Your measure of
progress i s i n whet her or not your product i s i mprovi ng.
Poi nt s of t i mi ng are sub-product s, and t hi s i s where
changes are made. Every pl ace where you t ake any ki nd of act i on i s a
poi nt of t i mi ng, especi al l y when you' re i n a t urn. Upshi f t i ng on t he
st rai ght -away, l or i nst ance, i s a POT, t hough i t ' s l ess i mport ant t han where
you st eer i n a t urn. Becomi ng f ami l i ar wi t h your POT and
product s al l ows
you
t o l oaf on t he rest of t he t rack because now you underst and where you
have t o work hard and where you don' t . l f you get t hese f act s down on
paper, orwel l memori zed, you won' t be sayi ng t hi ngs l i ke,
"l ' m
havi ng
t roubl e i n t he esses. " You' l l see whi ch POT are worki ng and whi ch are
foul i ng up your product. What wi l l change i f you do thi s?
Ti mi ng i n Perspecti ve
To put t i mi ng i n perspect i ve, l et ' s l ook at Turn Si x at Ri versi de
Raceway i n Ri versi de, Cal i f orni a. l t ' s a good exampl e because hundreds of
ri ders are st i l l baf f l ed by i t , and i t ' s t he most compl ex t urn I know of .
Each change i n t he t rack
requi res t he ri der t o
adj ust hi s bi ke at exact l y
t he ri ght pl ace. l f not , t he
bi ke wi l l seem t o handl e
poorly,
38
Turn Si x
7h
iztiziit)
'q//2
Viiti4
47h
'%t
iriii,
Turn Six, Riverside
Turn Si x i s part
of a seri es begi nni ng wi t h Turn Fi ve (see
di agram). Turn Fi ve i s f ast er t han Si x, and most ri ders brake and go down
a gear comi ng i nt o Fi ve. l t l ooks very narrow on t he approach, but as
t hey' re comi ng out of i t , most ri ders f i nd t hey' ve gone t hrough i t t oo sl ow.
The gas comes on f or an i nst ant as t hey r i de up t he hi l l i nt o Tur n si x,
where t hey have t o use t he brakes agai n. Most ri ders overuse t he brakes
here, f i nd t hey' re goi ng
a bi t t oo sl ow, t hen
j ump
on t he gas
agai n. Just at
t hat poi nt , i t seems t he gas i s on t oo much agai n, so t hey rol l i t of f . Now i t
seems t oo sl ow agai n, so t hey get back on t he gas. Now t hey see t he end
of t he t urn, but t he bi ke' s headi ng t o t he out si de t oo f ast , ai mi ng f or t he
di rt and t he Armco barri er. Here' s anot her roi l -of f . Now t he bi ke' s on t he
st rai ght -away and back ont o t he gas. Thi s i s a rough way t o go t hrough
a t ur n!
Here' s what happened-comi ng i nt o Turn Si x, t he ri der f i rst
not i ces t hat he has overbraked and i s goi ng
t oo sl ow because he has f ai l ed
t o see t hat t he t rack i s banked at t hi s poi nt .
Now he has t he advant age of
t he banki ng, but
j ust
when he begi ns t o rol l on, t he t rack f l at t ens out and
he l oses t he banki ng. The new rol l -on begi ns where t he t rack pi cks
up t he
banki ng agai n about t wo-t hi rds of t he way t hrough. The f i nal rol l -of f
begi ns where t he banki ng goes away agai n at t he exi t of t he t urn. That ' s
f our camber changes i n one t urn!
other factors affect this turn. At the beginning, where we lose
t he f i rst banki ng and t he rol l -of f begi ns, t here i s a crest on t he t rack. Not
onl y does t he banki ng t aper of f , but t he bi ke becomes l i ght as i t goes over
t hi s crest . The suspensi on unl oads, t ract i on goes
away and t he bi ke want s
to go toward the wall-very fast!
The bi ke set t l es down at t he banked part
of t he exi t and t he
ri der f eel s he i s goi ng t oo sl ow agai n. Now i t t akes t i me f or hi m t o not i ce
t hat t he t ract i on i s bet t er here and t i me t o get back on t he gas
agai n. By
t hen, t he banki ng begi ns t o go away at t he exi t and t he bi ke i s goi ng t oo
f ast . The l ast rol l -of f occurs. The addi t i onal t wi st t o t hat l ast part
of t he
t ur n i s t hat i t t i ght ens up and goes
downhi l l a bi t .
Thi s t urn has f our camber changes, t wo radi us changes, t wo
el evat i on changes and a hump i n t he mi ddl e of t he f i r st camber change!
To make i t worse, t he pavement ' s poor. The t rack desi gner must have
r eal l y had f un wi t h t hi s t ur n.
Fi nd the Ti mi ng
There i s not hi ng real l y wrong wi t h ri ders rol l i ng on and of f t he
t hrot t l e. The probl em
i s t hey' re not doi ng i t at t he ri ght pl ace
on t he t rack.
Thei r t i mi ng i s al l wrong. Thi s i s because, f i rst of al l , t hey have not l ooked
at t he t rack and f ound where i t changes. Remember; you
cannot see t hese
changes very wel l when you' re ri di ng. secondl y, no poi nt s
of t i mi ng
ar e est abl i shed t o si gnal t he changes. As a r esul t , t he br aki ng and t hr ot t l e
responses t o t he t rack occur i n t he wrong pl ace. Thi rd, t hey est abl i sh no
pl an
t o t ake advant age of t he banki ng. Use t he r ul e of t humb t hat t he bi ke
. : , , E ; : *
shoul d be at t he l owest
poi nt
of t he banki ng when l eavi ng i t . Fourt h, no
overal l
product has been det ermi ned f rom previ ous experi ence.
My descri pt i on of ri ders goi ng t hrough Turn Si x mi ght sound
l i ke bad drama, but wat chi ng t hem i s worse. Thei r worri ed expressi ons
and f rozen at t i t udes t el l t he whol e st ory. Thei r bi kes bob up and down f rom
t he t hrot t l e changes as i f t hei r shocks were broken. Af t er ri di ng Turn Si x
l i ke t hi s a whi l e, you can begi n t o f eel very st upi d. As a resul t , many ri ders
choose a const ant -radi us l i ne and
pret end i t ' s al l j ust one t urn wi t h no real
camber or r adi us changes.
Riders take this turn many different ways, but the fastest ones
consi st ent l y do t hree t hi ngs: 1
)
They use t he banki ng
$oi ng
i nt o t he t urn
t o maxi mum advant age. 2) Rat her t han t ryi ng t o f i ght t he mi ddl e of t he
t urn, where i t f l at t ens out , t hey l et t he bi ke dri f t out , whi ch al l ows t hem t o
t ake advant age of t he f ol l owi ng
poi nt . 3) They use t he banki ng on t he exi t
t o i t s best advant age. Thi s l i ne coul d basi cal l y be cal l ed a doubl e apex,
whi ch i s a good descri pt i on of t he t urn. Keep i n mi nd t hat t he t i mi ng must
be correct f or i t t o work ri ght .
Turns wi t h f ewer changes can be equal l y baf f l i ng, i f t he
t i mi ng i s wrong. Some ri ders, of course, can go t hrough t h i s t urn very f ast
by keeping up a fever pitch
of concentration and cat-like ref lexes, but they
won' t be as f ast as someone who underst ands i t . And ri di ng at , or
past ,
your CgngentratiOn redline wears
yOU Out SOOner. Are you aware of this?
Shaving the Track
You don' t have to keep up a razor edge of concentra-
tion everywhere on the track. You' ve still got that ten dollars worth of
at t ent i on
you' re t ryi ng t o spend wi sel y. l f you
cont i nue spendi ng al l of i t al l
t he t i me,
you' l l soon use i t up. spendi ng t he whol e t en dol l ars t o go down
t he st rai ght i s a wast e. Put i t i n savi ngs t o draw i nt erest i n at t ent i on-
savi ng, t hen wi t hdraw i t agai n f or t he next t urn.
Your at t ent i on and abi l i t y t o concent rat e come and
go; t hey' re
better at some times than at others. By spending
your attention only
when necessary, it will be there when
you need it. This is another
part of t i mi ng, recogni zi ng where
you have t o do t he t rght work, and
cool i ng i t t he rest . At si x-hour endurance
races I have heard a number of
riders say they were pacing
themselves to last the whole race by trying to
rel ax-and t hey went qui cker t han t hey had i n t he spri nt races! They f orced
t hemsel ves t o get
smart . l f you
can use t hi s at t i t ude f or spri nt races, you
can be even sharper when you have to be. Just f igure where your
pOT
are
and what you' re
supposed t o be doi ng at each one. Rel ax whi l e goi ng
down the straight-it' s fun to go fast. set up a reference point
to tell you
when to start paying
attention. Make it work for you. You can always set up
a RP t o si gnal
you
t hat a POT i s comi ng, and t hi s wi l l hel p you rel ax. Get
ready when
you
see it, not before.
Rhythm
:
Ti mi ng
Riders talk about the rhythm of a race track or
piece
of road,
of get t i ng
t he f l ow of t he road. Thi s i s t i mi ng. The ri der i s f i t t i ng hi msel f
and hi s equi pment i nt o t he t rack and al l t he act i ons he has t o t ake on i t .
The basis of timing is understanding-not
super-fast reflexes. Fast
reflexes are not a substitute for good
timing. At the speeds attained
on a road-race track, good
or even incredible ref lexes don' t win races.
lf you plan to go
road racing because you
have fast reflexes, figure out how
long you have to make a change at 1 8o mph when you' re
traveting at 264
f eet per second! There i s no subst i t ut e f or underst andi ng on a race t rack.
You' ve got to have RPs, POT, sub-products and products
to guide you
around. Fast ref l exes hel p, but t i mi ng i s t he key t hat unl ocks t he
mysteries of the asphalt.
Timing Involves Both an ldea and an Action
You must understand both the track and your
own actions so
you' re not f i ght i ng each ot her. Do t hi s by knowi ng what t o do and where
t o do i t . l ' m sure you
can l ook back over your ri di ng and recal l si t uat i ons
where, because yourt i mi ng
was of f , you
experi enced uncomf ort abl e
si t uat i ons. The second part i s i n goi ng
out and act ual l y doi ng i t . Get t he
t i mi ng ri ght f i rst , t hen add speed.
Spend attenti on when
necessary but save it
where you
can.
Not e: Some of t he prob-
lems of timing that a?e
part of going into a turn
have been helped by the
various anti-dive devices
now available on stroet
bikes and more widely
applied to GP racing
machines and superbiker.
lf your
timing is right you
can
make tt smooth. lf I make a
change
lust
before the matn
event and tt doesn' t work out.
lJust have to make it work
wtth good
timing.
41
CHAPTER SI X
Deci si ons
I' m always talktn' to mvself
outthere on the track. I can
get outside of mYself and
look at what l' m dorng and
sometlmes, if what is going
on rsn' 1
;ust
right, I get mad
at myself.
Deci si ons i n mot i on.
Eddi e Lawson' s f l awl ess
st yl e i s t he resul t of hun-
dreds of correctly made
deci si ons. Maki ng deci -
si ons
put s you i n cont rol .
Deci si on-Maki ng:
Reci Pe for Ski l l
The act of ri di ng a mot orcycl e amount s t o put t i ng a whol e
string of decisions into motion. Every movement
you make on a bike is
based upon a deci si on
you have made i n t he
past , or are maki ng as
you
ri de. You don' t do anyt hi ng aut omat i cal l y
or wi t hout maki ng a
deci si on.
For exampl e, agai n, some ri ders say t hey shi f t
gears
"aut o-
mat i cal l y" wi t hout t hi nki ng about i t . That ' s not t rue. They may spend onl y a
ni ckel or a di me of t hei r at t ent i on on t hi s deci si on, but t hey' re spendi ng
somet hi ng.
lf you study it, you' ll see that many little decisions
go into
maki ng one
gear change. You deci de when t he engi ne i s spi nni ng at t he
ri ght rpm. You deci de how f ast t o make t he
gear change. You may deci de
t hat one
pl ace i s bet t er t han anot her t o shi f t , and how much t hrot t l e t o
appl y when
you t urn i t on agai n. None of t hese t hi ngs i s
"aut omat i c, " but
once
you have made a deci si on, i t cost s
you l ess at t ent i on t o do i t . That ' s
t he magi c of deci si ons.
42
You Must Make a Deci si on
At al l t i mes
you' re operat i ng upon deci si ons, whet her t hey' re
past or
present . For exampl e, you can l et out t he cl ut ch i n several ways. l f
you' re f ami l i ar wi t h t hese di f f erent met hods, you st i l l must deci de whi ch
t o use. You st i l l must make a deci si on.
You can arrive at a decision in two ways. One is to work at the
probl em unt i l
you have narrowed i t down by t he process of el i mi nat i on, or
Tri al and Error
(T&E). I n t he above exampl e, t hi s i s how we l earn t o cl ut ch
our bi kes. The second met hod of arri vi ng at a deci si on i s t o t hi nk t hrough
t he t ask, t hen make t he deci si on. We' l l cal l t hi s met hod Thi nki ng l t
Through (Tl T).
"-
Spe@-
$
-..,s
Force
Traction
T&E
The first method, Trial and Error, orT&E, depends less upon
underst andi ng and more upon pract i ce. You don' t t hi nk t hrough t he prob-
l em, you
keep
perf ormi ng t he act i on t i l l i t works. l f you come up wi t h t he
correct met hod,
you' re al ri ght . But t he drawback t o maki ng deci si ons by
T&E i s t hat i f you change t hem, you must go t hrough t he whol e
process
agai n t o f i nd anot her way. Real l y good ri ders who l earned by T&E have
gone t hrough t he many possi bl e met hods of ri di ng a mot orcycl e so of t en
t hat t hey can use any of t hem at wi l l . They have an ent i re ment al l i brary of
T&E deci si ons t o draw on.
TIT
Met hod Two, Thi nk l t Through. orTl T, al so has drawbacks.
To arrive at a correct decision
you
must start with correct infor-
mat i on. The ri der has t o be a good observer, he has t o revi ew t he i nf or-
mat i on f rom t he l ast ri de, and i t has t o be correct and usef ul i nf ormat i on.
A wi l d exampl e woul d be t o deci de t o go
t hrough Turn One at Dayt ona
wi de open i n si xt h gear. A person who l earns by Tt rE probabl y woul dn' t
make such a mi st ake. The
"t hi nker, "
of course, woul d onl y make t hat
mistakg orlce. Can
you see it working for you?
.-''*zt*a*;ijdipt*At:f.'.,.
.:.-
^^
Decisionr are the detaals
of your overal l "pl an.'
Making a decision gives
you a
place to start, and
somethi ng to change, or
stop, if it doesn't work
out.
Yojected Speed
Lean Angle
43
A proper balance of
"Thi nki ng l t Through"
(Tl Tf and "Tri al and
Error" (T e E) can el i mi -
nate many mi stakes.
A Drawback
The seri ous drawback t o Thi nki ng l t Through i s i n
maki ng deci si ons based upon ot her peopl e' s
i nf ormat i on. One
ri der t el l s anot her t o ri de i n a cert ai n way, t hen t he second ri der goes out
and t ri es t o f i t hi s ri di ng st yl e i nt o what he was t ol d. l f t he i nf ormat i on i s
accurat e i t can work. For exampl e, a ri der t ol d me t he reason my l ef t arm
was crampi ng was because I was usi ng t he cl ut ch f or upshi f t s, whi ch i sn' t
necessary. I st opped usi ng i t t o upshi f t and my arm no l onger cramped.
Thi s was great -i t worked!
Anot her exampl e of t hi s, and a gri m
one, was when one ri der
t ol d anot her he coul d go
over t he crest of Turn Seven at Ri versi de wi t h t he
bi ke f l at out i n f i f t h gear. Act ual l y, i t ' s a 60-mph t urn. The ri der went over
t he crest at more t han 100 mph on hi s f i rst l ap. . . . Need I say what
happened?
The Best Approach
A combination of the two methods, Trial and Error
fT&E)
and Thinking lt Through
(TlTl,
is the best approach to
deci si on maki ng. TEE i s t i me- consumi ng. Unl ess
you' r e a f ul l - t i me f ac-
t ory-cont ract ed racer you may f i nd i t di f f i cul t t o regul arl y go ri di ng or t o
rent t i me on a race t rack. You' ve got t o make every t ri p t o t he t rack count ,
and that means
you must return from every session with information that
wi l l be usabl e f or t he TI T met hod. Laps on a r ace t r ack wi l l do not hi ng but
wear out your equi pment i f you don' t t ake accurat e i nf ormat i on home so
you' ll have a clear
picture of what decisions you have made and what
to do in the tuture.wittthis help?
44
T&EOnl y
A rider who uses the T&E method only cannot work on
hi s ri di ng when he i s of f t he t rack. He can' t work out new deci si ons
on how t o ri de f ast er because he doesn' t have t he i nf ormat i on st ored i n
hi msel f . T&E ri ders f ace anot her di sadvant age. Li f e somet i mes t hrows
upset s at us t hat go wi t h us out on t he t rack. These upset s can
consume vast
quant i t i es
of at t ent i on-usual l y more t han we can spare.
When T8E ri ders are upset t hey have an
"of f "
day. Some t hi ngs t hat hap-
pen can af f ect one' s whol e l i f e, i ncl udi ng t he abi l i t y t o make deci si ons.
TI T-met hod ri ders are l ess af f ect ed by what happens of f t he t rack because
t hei r deci si ons are based on what t hey underst and.
Real -Worl d Ri di ng
Let' s leave the world of ideas for a time and return to the real
worl d of ri di ng t o see how t he deci si ons we make can af f ect us on t he road
or t rack. Take braki ng f or exampl e. The overuse of t he rear brake i s t he one
braki ng deci si on t hat commonl y t urns out t he worst . When most ri ders
learn to ride, they learn that the rear brake can stop the motorcycle. They
deci de i t wi l l do t hat . They know t he f ront brake wi l l al so st op t he bi ke,
but whi l e t hey' re l earni ng i n a parki ng l ot or st reet i t ' s upset t i ng when t he
front end of the bike dives down every time they use the front brake. They
deci de at t hat t i me, ri ght f rom t he st art , t hat t he rear brake i s bet t er.
Now even af t er a ri der i s t ol d t o use t he f ront brake, t he rear
wi l l be hi s f i rst choi ce because he has al ready made t he deci si on t he rear i s
bet t er. St udi es of mot orcycl e acci dent s have concl uded t hat i n most
cases, when a ri der i s t ryi ng t o avoi d an acci dent he uses onl y t he rear
brake. He may know t he f ront brake wi l l st op hi m much qui cker, but t hat
ori gi nal deci si on i s so st rong i n an emergency t hat down go t he bi ke and
rider. ln an emergency, a rider will do what he has already decided
wi l l work. I n t hi s case, and possi bl y many ot hers, what he deci ded was
incorrect for that situation. Does this apply to you?
Ghangi ng Deci si ons
I n order t o change a deci si on t hat doesn' t work, and t hat has
become a bad habi t , you must go back t o t he ori gi nal deci si on and
un-l earn i t . Maybe
"un-l earn"
i s not correct -act ual l y, you' re maki ng a
new deci si on af t er t he ol d one has been i dent i f i ed and t hrown out . You
don' t make a new decision over the old one,
you
erase the first
decision before making another.
I n raci ng, you are creat i ng an al most cont i nuous emer-
gency si t uat i on by pushi ng t o your l i mi t s. The same sort of t hi ng
appl i es i n emergenci es. The ri der perf orms
an act i on t hat has appeared t o
work i n t he past i n si mi l ar si t uat i ons.
Not knowing causes and effects creates the opposite of
decisions-that is, in-decision. In an emergency, indecision can be
very cost l y. l f you don' t underst and t he f ront brake' s l i mi t s, you' l l spend a
l ot of at t ent i on usi ng i t . That ' s because you know t he f ront brake does t he
best
j ob
of sl owi ng and st oppi ng
(t hat
deci si on has al ready been made),
but you
don' t know at what poi nt i t wi l l l ock up and cause
you t o f al l . Thi s
creat es i ndeci si on. Once a ri der l earns at what
poi nt
t he f ront brake l ocks
up, and what t o do about i t , he can make cl ear-cut deci si ons on how
t o use i t .
Anot her deci si on-maki ng myt h i s t hat a ri der can f i gure out hi s
l i nes by st udyi ng a t rack di agram. l t ' s i mpossi bl e t o deci de how t o ri de a
race track or
piece of road before you have actually seen it. Studying a
t rack di agram at t hat poi nt i s usel ess. Tryi ng t o f i t a t rack di agram i nt o t he
real worl d of ri di ng, whi l e you' re
st i l l t ryi ng t o l earn t he t rack, wi l l onl y t ake
your
attention away from the real
job.
Do you agree?
Make l t Happen
Deciding to do something is the first step to making it
happen. You can make lots of decisions, but making too many of them
wi l l conf use
you. St art
Wi t h
t he i mport ant deci si ons f i rst . Fi nd Ref erence
Points, Points of Timing, Sub-Products and Products, then decide how
they fit together with the track. You put it together by deciding how it' s
going to be done, then you
do it. Of course, you must have a very accurate
underst andi ng of t he t rack changes. That i ncl udes knowi ng t he l ocat i on of
t he camber changes and radi us changes. Al l t he i nf ormat i on f rom Chapt er
One,
"The
Road You Ride," must be
gathered first. Always look at the track
and remember t hat t he man who desi gned i t was t ryi ng t o f ool you i nt o
making poor decisions.
Deci di ng How
Deciding how to ride a track by looking it over does not
al ways work, especi al l y i f you aren' t ri di ng i t . Af t er ri di ng Cal i f orni a' s Sears
Poi nt once, I wal ked t he t rack t o f i nd out what I coul d l earn. I l ai d on t he
ground and l ooked at each t urn f rom t he begi nni ng, t hen wal ked t hrough
and l ooked at i t backwards. I st ood i n t he mi ddl e. I got up on t he hi l l s. I
l ooked at every t urn f rom t he i nsi de out . As I was doi ng t hi s, I was f i guri ng
t he
" i deal "
l i ne t hr ough each t ur n.
Duri ng pract i ce I rode i t
j ust
as l had deci ded i t shoul d be
ri dden. I went t hree seconds sl ower t han I had t he l ast t i me at t he t rack. l t
di dn' t work. The
"i deal "
l i ne doesn' t t ake i nt o account bumps, sl i di ng and
speed.
I went back to riding it the way I had decided to from my
earl i er ri de. My l ap t i mes were now t wo seconds f ast er t han I had ever
gone
bef ore, and f i ve secondsf ast ert han my "i deal "
l i ne. I had l earned
t hat a combi nat i on of T8E and TI T i s t he key t o success.
You can' t have one wi t hout t he ot her, but i t ' s i mport ant t o f i rst
deci de how t o do i t , t hen deci de why i t di d or di d not work. l t i sn' t
j ust
bl i nd experi ment i ng, but a f i rm deci si on t o do i t one way, doi ng i t t hat
way no mat t er how i t f eel s, t hen l earni ng t he resul t s by l ooki ng at t he l ap
times. Should it be tried?
lap Times
lap times are
your most reliable method of deciding
what works. You si mpl y deci de what t o do, t hen go out and do i t . Thi s
means deciding where your Points of Timing, Products and Refer-
ence Poi nt s are, t hen deci di ng what you' l l do i n t hi s pract i ce sessi on,
t hen revi ewi ng your l ap t i mes t o deci de i f i t worked or not . Di d t hese
changes i mprove your l ap t i mes? Di d t he l ap t i mes st ay t he same, but you
f ound i t easi ert o ri de at t hi s l evel ? Bot h of t hese concl usi ons are val uabl e.
Wren
you
become comfortable with the decisions at one level
of riding,
you
can move on to the next level.
Lap t i mes must be t he basi s f or your deci si ons because any
ot her met hod can f ool you t oo easi l y. I n most cases, ri ders wi l l do what
f eel s ri ght , but what f eel s ri ght i s not al ways t he qui ckest way around t he
t rack or down t he road. I l earned anot her t hi ng f rom my Sears Poi nt
"i deal "
line adventure. You can be going faster in the entrance and middle sec-
tions of a turn, but can sacrifice a
good drive on the exit because of it. Get-
ting out of the turn with a one- or two-mph faster product will make a
great difference on the next straight. A good speed through the center of
the turn, but a poor drive, will be worse for lap times. lt' s easy to fool
your-
sel f t hi s way. Here are t hree poi nt s t o consi der: 1) Good deci si ons
result in good lap times. 2l Good lap times are those that improve
and can be done consistently. 3l Lap times are a reflection of the
quaf ity of the rider' s decisions. Any notes?
Go Faster
There is, of course, a twist to the decision-making
game
which has to do with how powerful a decision can be. Sometimes a rider
si mpl y deci des t o
go f ast er. He wi l l appl y t hi s overal l deci si on t o hi s ri d-
i ng and-bang! -hi s l ap t i mes come down
j ust
l i ke t hat ! l t can happen f or
many different reasons. Watching other riders going faster can sometimes
change
your mi nd about how f ast you can ri de. You deci de you can do i t ,
t oo. Deci di ng t o beat a
qui cker ri der can spark new l i f e i nt o t i red l ap
t i mes.
But deci di ng t o
go f ast er wi t hout gai ni ng enough experi ence
f rom ei t her TbE or TI T can get you i nt o t roubl e. Of t en, af t er a day' s race,
you can hear racers t al ki ng about al l t he pl aces t hey can make up t i me.
"l
know I can go a l ot f ast er i n Turn Three and Turn Ni ne. " The pi t racers
are cut t i ng record l aps by t he hundreds! Beat i ng your
own
perf ormance i s
one of t he great rewards of raci ng, but be caref ul . Deci de t o go f ast er onl y
when you' ve had enough experi ence t o back i t up. Si mpl y deci di ng t o cut
bet t er l ap t i mes i n pract i ce may not work i f you
don' t know where you' re
goi ng t o pi ck up t hat t i me. Work out t he deci si ons t hat wi l l back up
an overall decision to go faster. can you do it?
47
*nn:;&i'S'&&*;-
: .:::::+t:5a1;+*=';:;'.k*.*fli
48
Of t en t i mes. when a baby l earns t o wal k, he deci des t o run
af t er he' s t aken hi s f i rst f ew st eps. The run usual l y l ast s about t hree st eps;
i n a racer' s case, maybe t hree l aps. Ot her sweepi ng deci si ons t hat usual l y
work out rat her poorl y are:
"l ' m goi ng t o out -brake hi m, no mat t er what , "
and
" l ' l l
shut down l at er t han he does. " At 1 20 mph, l at er i s a l ong way
down t he road.
Past Deci si ons
To ri de a mot orcycl e,
you must draw on your past deci si ons,
and on
your abi l i t y t o make deci si ons i n t he present . The deci si ons you
make det er mi ne how wel l your r i di ng wi l l go. The r i der ' s
j ob
i s t o sor t out
t he deci si ons he i s usi ng t o get ar ound t he t r ack, t o know t hem and t o
change t hem when necessary. The deci si ons can be si mpl e ones l i ke
usi ng l ess rear brake t o prevent wheel hop whi l e goi ng i nt o a t urn, or t i m-
i ng your ent rance t o a t urn so t he bi ke doesn' t undergo a l ot of up and
down suspensi on movement . The deci si ons can be harder t o f i nd and
correct . Havi ng t roubl e goi ng i nt o t urns t oo soon, a common error, mi ght
be based on t he deci si on
"not
t o go i n hi gh or wi de, " rat her t han t he
deci si on
"t o go i n l ow or t i ght . "
You see, t hi s can be very t ri cky. A ri der coul d spend a l ot of
t i me t ryi ng t o deci de how t o ent er a t urn, t ryi ng t o f i gure out anot her way
t o do i t . He di scovers he i s al ways goi ng i n l ow, so he t hi nks t hat he has
decided to go low. His real decision ,
way back when, was
"l
don' t want to
go
i n t oo hi gh because i t ' s unsaf e. " So he now deci des t o go hi gher
agai nst t hat earl i er deci si on not t o go hi gher. When he t ri es t o use t he
hi gher l i ne he r uns i nt o a r esi st ance. whi ch i s l i ke a ment al wal l , t el l i ng hi m
not t o do i t . Hi s earl i er deci si on has made i t very uncomf ort abl e f or hi m
t o change. A deci si on can be very powerf ul i f you don' t underst and i t .
Every once i n a whi l e you mi ght di scover one of t hese past
deci si ons and t hi nk,
"Hey, I can do t hat ! What ever made me t hi nk I
coul dn' t ?" When you change your earl i er deci si on,
you can suddenl y
make a great breakt hrough i n your ri di ng. You have t o real i ze when you
have made a f al se deci si on, t hen put a bet t er, more workabl e one i n i t s
place. Some examples?
Discover Your Decisions
The deci si ons
you make whi l e ri di ng are based upon t he past
deci si ons
you' ve made, whet her t hey were made recent l y or a l ong t i me
ago. Here' s a way to discover your decisions.
1 . Thi nk over your act i ons on a par t i cul ar t ur n or t r ack si t ua-
t i on. Do t hi s f or sect i ons t hat ar e goi ng wel l , and f or t hose t hat ar e gi vi ng
you t roubl e.
2. Eval uat e how wel l your act i ons work.
3. How cl ear are al l t he st eps i nvol ved i n t hi s act i on?
4. What st andard t el l s
you how wel l you' re doi ng or goi ng?
5. What deci si ons have
you made t o hel p you reach your goal s,
or what deci si ons are keepi ng you
f rom reachi ng t hem?
6. Shoul d
you
deci de t o:
A. Change t he deci si on?
B. Not change i t ?
C. Check again to see what decisions you have already
made?
D. Or, l ookf or more i nf ormat i on bef ore maki ng a new
deci si on?
I n each i t em you come up wi t h i n 1 t hrough 6 above,
you
may
al so ask:
1. How i s my t i mi ng?
2. What are my Points of Timing?
3. What Reference Points do I use?
4. What is my Product?
5. How much at t ent i on am l spendi ng?
You can do t hi s f or each t urn of t he t rack. l t wi l l t ake you
a l ong
t i me, and i t i sn' t easy t o do, but i t wi l l hel p. Al so, i t ' s cheaper t han t i res
and engi nes.
Some Deci si ons About Braki ng
The f ol l owi ng i s a part i al
l i st of deci si ons you
coul d make
about usi ng t he brakes. They are not of equal i mport ance, but each of
t hem i nvol ves a pot ent i al
deci si on.
Take a l ook at each one. Consi der each very seri ousl y by appl y-
i ng i t t o a si t uat i on you' ve
been i n. Or, you
can
j ust
l ook t hem over f or
reference and be aware of them.
lf you have the time over the long winter months, you may even
make your
own l i st s of ot her aspect s of ri di ng. Take anot her, l i ke st eeri ng
or t hrot t l e cont rol , and break i t down i nt o t he deci si ons and act i ons you
must make whi l e ri di ng.
Here are 104 possi bl e
deci si ons t hat you
have made or can
make concerni ng t he use of brakes. some of t hem are more i mport ant
t han ot hers and some cover t he same ground i n a sl i ght l y di f f erent man-
ner. Look t hem t hrough and ref l ect back upon your ri di ng wi t h t hese i n
mi nd. You may be abl e t o t hi nk of ot her deci si ons t hat appl y t o t he use of
brakes. Just l ooki ng over t hi s l i st and t hi nki ng over t hese deci si ons can
hel p i mprove your
braki ng.
How many f ingers to use for the front brake
How much lever pressure it takes to lock up the front brake
How much lever pressure it takes to lock up the rear brake
How hard you
can use the front brake going into slow turns
How hard you
can use i t braki ng i nt o f ast t urns
How hard you
can use i t braki ng i nt o medi um-speed t urns
How hard you
can use i t braki ng i nt o a seri es of t urns
How hard you
can use t he brakes i n t he f i rst t urn of a seri es
How hard you can brake goi ng
i nt o t he second t urn of a seri es
Braki ng i n downhi l l sect i ons
49
Br aki ng i n uphi l l sect i ons
Braki ng i nt o a banked sect i on
Braki ng i nt o a f l at corner
Braki ng i nt o an of f -camber t urn
Braki ng i nt o a decreasi ng-radi us t urn
Braki ng i nt o an i ncreasi ng-radi us t urn
Braki ng i nt o a const ant -radi us t urn
Braki ng on a smoot h surf ace
Braki ng on a choppy surf ace
Br aki ng i nt o r i ght - hand t ur ns
Br aki ng i nt o l ef t - hand t ur ns
Braki ng on crest ed roads
Where you
shoul d be on t he t rack as you begi n t o brake
Wher e you shoul d be on t he t r ack dur i ng br aki ng
Where you
shoul d be on t he t rack at t he end of t he braki ng Some exampt es?
More Deci si ons
What you l ook f or t hat t el l s you when t o begi n braki ng (i n
each ki nd of t urn)
What you l ook f or t hat t el l s you when t o end t he br aki ng
( i n
each ki nd
of t ur n)
(The
above t wo
quest i ons
can be appl i ed t o part i cul ar t racks)
Ti mi ng your br aki ng goi ng i nt o sl owt ur ns
Ti mi ng your
braki ng goi ng i nt o medi um-speed t urns
Ti mi ng your braki ng goi ng i nt o f ast t urns
Ti mi ng your braki ng
goi ng i nt o a seri es of t urns
Ti mi ng your braki ng on downhi l l sect i ons
Ti mi ng your br aki ng on uphi l l sect i ons
Ti mi ng your br aki ng on banked t r ack
Ti mi ng your
br aki ng on f l at t r ack
Ti mi ng your br aki ng on of f
- camber
t r ack
Ti mi ng your br aki ng i n decr easi ng- r adi us t ur ns
Ti mi ng your
br aki ng i n i ncr easi ng- r adi us t ur ns
Ti mi ng your
br aki ng i n const ant - r adi us t ur ns
Ti mi ng your br aki ng i n const ant - speed t ur ns
Ti mi ng your braki ng on smoot h surf aces
Ti mi ng your braki ng on choppy surf aces
Sti l l More Deci si ons
\Mrat Points of Timing or Reference Points do
you use to tell if the
br aki ng i s goi ng wel l ?
What POT or RP do
you
use t o deci de t he l ocat i on of
your begi nni ng
braki ng
poi nt ?
What POT or RP do you use t o deci de t he l ocat i on of
your end braki ng
poi nt ?
What i nf ormat i on do you use t o deci de i f t he braki ng began earl y enough?
What i nf ormat i on do
you
use t o deci de i f t he braki ng st art ed t oo l at e?
What i nf ormat i on do
you
use t o deci de i f t he braki ng st art ed on t i me?
50
Decisions With Practice
Braki ng over di scol ored or changi ng pavement surf ace
Usi ng t he rear brake i n conj unct i on wi t h t he f ront
Usi ng t he rear brake onl y
Usi ng t he f ront brake onl y
What t o do when t he rear end begi ns t o hop or sl i de
How t o correct rear-wheel hop or sl i de
Locki ng up t he f ront brake
Locki ng up t he f ront and rear brakes t oget her
Ot her peopl e' s i nf ormat i on on t he use of brakes i n general
Ot her peopl e' s i nf ormat i on on t he f ront brake
Ot her peopl e' s i nf ormat i on on t he rear brake
Ot her
peopl e' s i nf ormat i on on usi ng bot h brakes t oget her
I nf ormat i on you got f rom wat chi ng ot her ri ders use t he brakes
What i s usef ul t o do wi t h t he brakes
What is not useful to do with the brakes
Braki ng when t he bi ke i s st rai ght up
Braki ng when t he bi ke i s l eaned over
Braki ng wi t h onl y t he f ront brake whi l e l eaned over
Braki ng wi t h onl y t he rear brake whi l e l eaned over
How far
you
can be leaned over and still use the brakes
Braki ng and st eeri ng at t he same t i me
How good i s your braki ng overal l ?
How much t i me can be made up wi t h brakes?
How much di st ance
you can make on anot her ri der by usi ng your brakes
Your seat i ng posi t i on whi l e braki ng
A cri t i cal moment of
deci si on. How much
brake to use while
leaned over?
*#&:e;*a*",8";*-.,',..
Use of t hrot t l e and brake at t he same t i me
How sl owl y or
qui ckl y you can l et of f t he f ront brake
How sl owl y or
qui ckl y you can l et of f t he rear brake
How t o
j udge your speed at t he end of t he braki ng act i on
Where t o
posi t i on t he brake l ever
Where t o posi t i on t he brake pedal
How much st oppi ng f orce t he f ront brake has
How much st oppi ng f orce t he rear brake has
How much st oppi ng f orce t he f ront and rear brakes have t oget her
How much t he l ever and
pedal pr essur e can be changed whi l e br aki ng
More Deci si ons Wi th Practi ce
Where t o put your wei ght whi l e braki ng
Put t i ng your wei ght on t he handl ebar whi l e br aki ng
Put t i ng your wei ght on t he f oot pegs whi l e braki ng
Put t i ng your wei ght on t he t ank whi l e br aki ng
Si t t i ng up whi l e br aki ng
Hangi ng of f whi l e br aki ng
Br aki ng and downshi f t i ng at t he same t i me
Passi ng whi l e usi ng t he brakes
What happens t o t he st eeri ng
geomet ry duri ng braki ng
What happens t o wei ght t ransf er duri ng braki ng
What happens t o t he suspensi on duri ng braki ng
How much at t ent i on
you
spend begi nni ng braki ng
How much at t ent i on
you spend duri ng braki ng
How much at t ent i on
you
spend at t he end of braki ng
Whi ch i s t he most i mport ant part of braki ng-begi nni ng, mi ddl e or end
How much f ront brake can be used i f t he rear i s l ocked up
How good i s your sense of t ract i on whi l e braki ng
How good i s your sense of speed whi l e braki ng
How good i s your dept h
per cept i on whi l e br aki ng
Your abi l i t y t o i mprove your braki ng wi t t t hi s het p?
Phew! !
52
CHAPTER SEVEN
Barriers
Keys to lmprovement
Bar r i er : Anyt hi ng ser vi ng as a l i mi t at i on or obst r uct i on. A
bar r i er obst r uct s but i s not i mpassabl e. Whi l e r i di ng and r aci ng, you' l l con-
st ant l y conf ront barri ers t o your goi ng f ast er. Your goal i s t o l ower your l ap
t i mes by r i di ng ar ound t he t r ack at hi gher speeds and wi t h mor e cont r ol .
Ri ders hi t l evel s of l ap t i mes t hat act as barri ers, however, and t hey can
become st uck t here. l deal l y, you woul d be abl e t o ri de a l i t t l e f ast er and
i mprove your average l ap t i me each t i me
you ret urned t o a t rack. That
woul d be a good t arget f or
you t o consi der, and a real goal t o set f or
yourself.
Ti me Barri ers
When you begi n t ryi ng t o go f ast er, you
wi l l not i ce t hat t hi ngs
al so happen a l ot f ast er. You have l ess t i me bet ween corners. bet ween
Ref erence Poi nt s. and t here' s l ess t i me t o make deci si ons. You have cre-
at ed t hi s emergency si t uat i on by addi ng speed, and by compressi ng
your
t i me t o act . l f you' r e abl e t o cope wi t h t hi s change, your l ap t i mes wi l l
i mprove. But i f you have t o put yoursel f i nt o pani c
react i on t i me, you
may l earn not hi ng by t he ext ra speed-except what i t f eel s l i ke t o pani c.
Havi ng l ess t i me t o make your deci si ons i s not necessar i l y bad,
f or i t i s one of t he i ndi cat ors t hat
you' ve i ncreased your speed. Whenever
you reach one of t hese t i me barri ers
you' re knocki ng on t he door of your
next area t o conquer. A ri di ng barri er i s usef ul because i t ' s t el l i ng you t hat
you need t o make new deci si ons f ast er. l t i s your
aut omat i c i nst ruct or.
You don' t need t o f i nd a new l i ne t hr ough a t ur n- you need t o f i gur e out
what f act or s ar e br i ngi ng
you near pani c, t hen cont r ol t hem. These bar -
r i er s ar e l i ke war ni ng l i ght s on t he dashboar d of your car . l f you handl e
each one as it appears,
you' ll avoid a catastrophe later. where does this apply?
A Ri di ng Barri er Si gnal s an Area That
Needs l mprovement
You can recognize these
problem areas in several ways. The
f i rst i s t hat you' re bei ng pressed t o react a l i t t l e beyond your abi l i t i es.
54
You' re not being pushed completely beyond your
ability, but enough that
your at t ent i on i s f i xed upon t he probl em. An exampl e i s t hat you' re ent er-
i ng a t ur n and t he br aki ng and downshi f t i ng ar e cr owded so cl ose t o t he
st eeri ng act i on t hat you' re unabl e t o accurat el y pi ck a good Poi nt of
Ti mi ng t o act wi t hout bei ng absol ut el y f rant i c. l f you' re
snappi ng and
gr abbi ng at t he cont r ol s l i ke a shar k at f eedi ng t i me, you know somet hi ng
i sn' t ri ght .
I n t hi s exampl e, many probl ems
coul d be af f ect i ng
your
approach. Here are some possi bi l i t i es. A l ack of good Ref erence Poi nt s
can cause t hat ki nd of pani c t hat occurs when you' re
sl i ght l y l ost . Or you
may si mpl y be downshi f t i ng t oo l at e and crowdi ng i t i nt o your ot her
act i ons. You may be goi ng down one gear t oo many and have your
at t en-
i ,
r:r';,
i i
*.s'
Y
' ' t
*,*5',,ffi
Track barri ers, or prob-
l em areas, are
pl aces
where your ri di ng i s
"sof t . " You are ei t her
I at e and have t o pani c,
or are wai t i ng f or some-
t hi ng t o happen. What
you are doi ng i s def i ni t el y
uncl ear.
u--!6tnt#;r:x,i,;.:..
Go over
your decisions.
First
year road racer,
Wayne Rai ney, t hi nki ng
i t t hrough
i ust
moment s
bef ore hi s f i rst Nat i onal
Superbi ke wi n at Loudon.
t i on st uck t o an engi ne spi nni ng at 13, OOO r pm when i t shoul d be on
t urni ng. You may be braki ng so l at e t hat you' re l osi ng si ght of your ent ry
speed, resul t i ng i n a pani c si t uat i on. The cont rol s on your bi ke may be set
at such an uncomf or t abl e angl e t hat you can' t r each t hem qui ckl y.
The t r ack const r uct i on i t sel f may cont r i but e t o your di st r ess.
For exampl e, t he ent rance may be of f camber or downhi l l , and of f ers l ess
pot ent i al braki ng t han a f l at surf ace. You may not have a product f or t he
t urn and t hat wi l l bot her
you. You may not know where you' re goi ng. Of
t he many possi bl e probl ems i n approachi ng a t urn, t hese are
j ust
a f ew.
Other Gl ues
Besi des bei ng pr essed f or t i me t o act , ot her cl ues wi l l t el l you
you' re not on t op of t he si t uat i on. A f eel i ng of uncert ai nt y comes f rom not
f ul l y under st andi ng
your si t uat i on. l t coul d st em f r om one of t he above
reasons or f rom many ot hers. What ever t he reason, t he uncert ai nt y wi l l eat
up your at t ent i on-at t ent i on t hat coul d wel l be spent el sewhere f or a hi gher
ret urn. Thi s i s anot her barri er.
Mistakes
Anot her great i ndi cat or t hat al l i s not wel l i s when you make
mi st akes on t he t rack. when
you make a mi st ake, f i nd out where
your
at t ent i on was f ocused
j ust
bef ore i t happened. Look at t he deci si on l ead-
i ng up t o t he mi st ake, as i t ' s al ways t he l ast t hi ng
you do t hat get s you i nt o
t roubl e. Remember, a mi st ake i s a resul t , not a cause. Thi s i s why you
must al ways know what
you
do and be abl e t o remember i t i n det ai l .
Mi st akes aren' t al l t hat val uabl e-i t ' s i n rememberi ng what
you di d t o bri ng
t hem about t hat wi l l hel p you correct t hem. A mi st ake i sn' t t o be
i gnored i n t he hope i t wi l l di sappear wi t h pract i ce-i t i s some-
t hi ng t o be st udi ed and f i gured out . l t i s a barri er t o i mprovement ,
and t heref ore a key t o i mprovement i f handl ed correct l y.
Feel i ng Li ke You Gan' t Do l t
This is very frustrating to a rider, and it creates trouble for him.
Thi s hel pl ess f eel i ng of t en resul t s f rom not knowi ng t he t rack l ayout wel l
enough, or f rom not bei ng i n f ul l cont rol of t he bi ke i n some si t uat i ons. l f
you can' t handl e count er - st eer i ng i n a t ur n, you mi ght begi n t o bel i eve i t
can' t be done t he way i t l ooks. The worst probl em wi t h t hi s f eel i ng i s t hat
you may deci de i t can be done because someone el se i s doi ng i t , t hen you
t ry t o do i t bef ore
you
have t he ski l l necessary. You berserk i t . Thi s danger-
ous condi t i on resul t s f rom f rust rat i on, and i t ' s anot her i ndi cat or of a
bar r i er t o your r i di ng.
Overcomi ng your
barri ers i s not i mpossi bl e-i t
j ust
t akes some
work. You can do t he work at t he t rack, i n bet ween ri di ng sessi ons or
races. Fi rst , draw yoursel f pi ct ures
of each t urn, t hen go t hrough t hem,
marki ng down t he spot s where you' re havi ng di f f i cul t y or maki ng mi s-
t akes. Cl ose your eyes and go
over t he t urns i n your mi nd as
you
t ry t o f i nd
t he probl em areas
(see
Chapt er Four-"What You See"). As you' re
st udyi ng
the track f rom memory, some parts will be foggy, unclear or
just
not there.
Mark down t hese spot s on your
t urn di agrams. Go over t he ent i re t rack by
memory and mark al l t he pl aces t hat are barri ers t o you, whet her t hey' re
caused by uncert ai nt y, rushed t i me, mi st akes or ot her probl ems.
The Barri ers Ghange
Once you have l i st ed your barri ers, go back over t hem and
deci de how you can change
your ri di ng t o overcome t hem. Remember,
t he barri ers wi l l change as you go f ast er. There i s a t wi st t o barri ers.
Don' t over l ook t he possi bi l i t y
t hat t he same pr obl ems
can occur agai n,
even i n t he same t urn, as you
i ncrease your speed.
Overal l , barri ers are good t hi ngs. They t el l you aut omat i cal l y
where your probl ems l i e. They are sayi ng,
"Thi s
i s your next area t o expand
i nt o, your next l evel of i mprovement . " Wel come i t when you
not i ce t hat
somet hi ng' s not goi ng ri ght . Once you recogni ze your barri ers, you
won' t
have t o guess what ' s keepi ng your l ap t i mes down-t hey wi l l poi nt t o your
problems. ft' s free instructionl Wittyou remember this?
57
l-ook for the other indi-
cators that there is some
ri di ng barri er sl owi ng
your pf ogress.
1. Mi st akes.
2. Feel i ng hel pl ess or
l i ke you
can' t do i t .
3. Pressed for time to act.
4. Doi ng not hi ng, wai t i ng
f or somet hi ng t o
happen.
5. Can' t get a cl ear
pi c-
t ure of some t urn or
area.
6. At t ent i on st uck on
some part of t he t rack.
W
',*aiWr
F
Remember, the track is
what
you have to beat.
You don' t beat ot her
racers,
you beat the track
bet t er t han t hey di d.
Break the track i
ti ons-turns, or
J
a turn. Pay parti r
attenti on to the
you are unsure o
Handl i ng your ri di ng
barri ers i s anot her way
t o save, and wi sel y spend
your
$1O
wort h of
at t ent i on.
59
CHAPTER EI GHT
Braking
The Art of Regulating Speed
Mot orcycl e brakes have undergone many maj or t echni cal
breakt hroughs si nce t he advent of t he di sc brake, and t hey have become
ext remel y ef f i ci ent . Brake t echnol ogy has surpassed most ot her t echnol o-
gi es, such as suspensi on, f or i nst ance. You can buy a set of brakes t hat
woul d st op a car , and i nst al l t hem on your bi ke i n an af t er noon. Tuni ng
your suspensi on, however, can be an endl ess and
pai nst aki ng t ask. Thi s
chapt er wi l l di scuss t he purpose of brakes i n hi gh-perf ormance ri di ng and
raci ng. t hei r l i mi t s, and what you shoul d know about t he busi ness of
braki ng.
The Most lmportant Factor
The si ngl e most i mport ant f act or t o be aware of i n braki ng i s
t he wei ght t ransf er t hat occurs when t he brakes are appl i ed. Let ' s say
you
have a 45o- pound bi ke and a 1 5O- pound r i der , and t hei r wei ght i s di s-
t ri but ed 50 per cent f ront and 50 per cent rear at rest . Thi s means t he f ront
and rearwheel s each carry a 300-pound l oad. At a normal boul evard st op-
pi ng pace, t he wei ght t ransf er amount s t o about 75 per cent on t he f ront
wheel and 25 per cent on t he rear. The f ront end now wei ghs t hree t i mes
what t he rear does.
At r aci ng speeds t he st oppi ng f or ce i s gr eat er st i l l . Usi ng t he
st at i c
(or
st opped) wei ght -t ransf er f i gures, 90 per cent of t he wei ght or
more may t ransf er t o t he f ront , and 1O per cent or l ess wi l l remai n on t he
rear. The rear end now wei ghs 60
pounds or l ess, and t he rear brake must
st op onl y 60 pounds of t he bi ke' s wei ght , pl us t he moment um of t he rear
wheel and engi ne.
Rear Brake Overuse
Overusi ng t he rear brake i s so common as t o be al most a f act
of life. Many riders and racers have given up using the rear brake
for hard braking. lt requires too much attention to use correctly, and can
cause the rear end to hop or slide when used incorrectly. Both sliding and
60
, " v . Ei
Braking forces erc awe-
some. The accel erat i on
of a 15O hp racebi ke wi l l
get i t t hrough t he 1/ 4
mal e at 145 mph. But t he
brakes wi l l bri ng i t f rom
145 mph t o O i n much
l ess di st ance!
Wei ght Transf er
5oo/o Front 5oo/o Rear
Weight Transfer
750lo Front 25o/oRear
Weight Transfer
l OOo/o Front Oolo Rear
j
,#,;
1
A lot of rlders don't
pay
enough attention to the
smooth use of their brakes-
even experts.
hoppi ng render t he bi ke out of cont rol t o some degree. You can' t f eel good
about l eani ng a bi ke i nt o a t urn i f i t ' s basi cal l y out of cont rol . You have
onl y t wo smal l cont act pat ches on t he ground, and when one of t hem i s
gone i t ' s a def i ni t e di sadvant age i n t r act i on- one of
your mai n concer ns
dur i ng cor ner i ng.
I n a pani c or race-speed braki ng maneuver, al most any cont rol
wi l l hel p you more t han a l ocked rear brake. l t ' d cause
you l ess harm t o use
t he hi gh-beam swi t ch or choke l ever. The f ront i s where t he wei ght and
st oppi ng
power
are-not t he rear.
The use of t he rear brake requi res some backwards l ogi c. l t
seems l ogi cal t o use t he brakes t he hardest at t he begi nni ng of t he brak-
i ng act i on, when you' re goi ng t he f ast est . Thi s i s t rue f or t he f ront brake-
I n t he back, however, use t he l i ght est rear brake at t he begi nni ng of t he
braki ng act i on when t he f orks are most compressed and t he wei ght t rans-
f er i s t he great est . As t he f ront brake i s rel eased, some of t he wei ght
t ransf ers back t o t he rear wheel and t he rear brake can-i f i t ' s goi ng t o be
used at al l -do more of t he work of st oppi ng or sl owi ng at t hi s t i me. You
have t o get
smart wi t h your ri ght f oot i f you want t o make any use at al l of
t he rear brake under heavy st oppi ng.
Li ght Grand Pri x bi kes or Superbi kes have such huge di sc
brakes and st i cky t i res t hat t he rear wheel can l i f t of f t he ground under
heavy braki ng. Lesser st reet and race bi kes do t he same t hi ng. but f or a
di f f erent reason. Hard braki ng over ri ppl i ng pavement or bumps can
l aunch t he rear end of t he bi ke of f t he ground because of i t s unwei ght ed
condi t i on. The shocks, whi ch are set t o operat e under heavi er l oad condi -
t i ons, cont ri but e t o t hi s by not al l owi ng t he rear wheel t o f ol l ow t he road.
The net resul t i s ai r bet ween t het i re and t he road-a very poort ract i on
situation. Have you experienced this?
Purpose of Braki ng
The purpose
of the brakes is to adjust and correct the
speed of the motorcycle downward, controlling deceleration.
You know how sensi t i ve you
can be wi t h t he t hrot t l e; comi ng out of a t urn
you can adj ust
your
speed i n t ent hs of a mi l e per hour by worki ng t he t wi st
gri p. Goi ng i nt o a t urn you can make changes
j ust
as accurat el y wi t h t he
brakes.
Most ri ders have t he i dea t hat brakes are some ki nd of on/ of f
swi t ch. Reach a brake marker and
pul l t hem
on-get down t o anot her
marker and l et t hem of f . Thi s i sn' t t rue. You can' t use brakes l i ke t hat and
expect t o i mprove your ri di ng. You' re aski ng t oo much of
yoursel f . The
purpose of brakes i s t o adj ust t he speed downward; t he overal l
purpose i n
raci ng i s t o get around t he t rack or down t he road qui cker. t aki ng seconds
of f l ap t i mes.
One Second Faster
Let ' s i nvest i gat e what part brakes pl ay i n goi ng one second
faster per lap. On most American tracks you must average about
62
one mph faster around the trackfor a one-second better lap time.
To do t hi s you must go t hrough t he t urns one mph f ast er, t hen hol d t hat
advant age down t he st rai ght s. You won' t go f ast er down t he st rai ght s i f
you don' t get
out of the turns faster. You have to adjust the speed of
your
bike accurately to go around the turns one mph faster. How
can you j udge
t hat one mph accurat el y wi t h t he bi ke pi t chi ng f orward and
bounci ng over t he ri ppl es as you t ry t o compensat e f or brake f ade, and a
f ul l t ank of gas or an empt y one? l t ' s t oo much t o ask. You must t reat
yoursel f more ki ndl y and make t hat one mph easi er t o f i nd.
Thi nk of t he brake as a reverse t hrot t l e. I nst ead of t urni ng t he
control you pull or press it to start the braking action and downward speed
change. The speed that remains when you release the brakes is
the speed
you
will enter the turn with. lf you want to go one mph
f ast er t han t he l ast l ap. you must be abl e t o go i nt o t he t urn t hat much
f ast er. You can' t hope t o make up t he speed l at er i n t he t urn-you must
set it up right in the beginning.Where wittyou try it?
Si gn if icant I mprovements
You can' t make significant time improvements by
using the brakes harder or going in deeper. You can make time
with the brakes by adjusting the cornering speeds accurately.
Where and how you let off the brakes is much more important
t han where you pul l t hem on, as i t set s your
corneri ng speed. You can di ve
i nt o a 120-mph t urn 25 f eet deeper t han t he l ast t i me and reduce your l ap
times about one-tenth of a second. Going in 50 feet deeper would improve
i t t wi ce as much. l f your braki ng was f i ne t o begi n wi t h, you mi ght pi ck
up t wo-t ent hs t o t hree-t ent hs of a second on most t racks. But goi ng i n
t hat much deeper
j ust
mi ght permanent l y
enl arge your
eyebal l s, and i t
woul d cert ai nl y i ncrease t he possi bi l i t y
of errors and t ake up a consi dera-
bl e amount of at t ent i on-your t en-dol l ar bi l l -t hat mi ght be bet t er spent
elsewhere.
By begi nni ng t he braki ng act i on at a comf ort abl e l ocat i on and
set t i ng t he speed f or t he t urn correct l y, you can pi ck up a second or more
late braking often does
more harm to l ap ti mes
and corner speeds than
good.
Set comfortable
brake points for yourself.
Speed adj ustments
cost attention.
End braki ng
at 60 mph.
Speed correctly
adj usted.
End braki ng
at 61 mph.
every t i me you use t he brakes! By goi ng i n t oo deep and upset t i ng your-
sel f ,
you' l l onl y make i t more di f f i cul t t o
j udge your speed. l t i s bet t er t o
back of f on
your i ni t i al braki ng marker and al l ow
yoursel f more
t i me t o set
your speed ri ght t han t o
pani c wi t h l at e braki ng.
Resi st t he t empt at i on t o l at e brake i n t urns when i t won' t be an advan-
t age. For passi ng purposes, you must l at e brake goi ng i nt o t urns. l t won' t
usual l y i mpr ove your l ap t i mes, but
you
can
pi ck up a pl ace i n t he
st andi ngs.
Try f oryour absol ut e l at est braki ng
poi nt i n
pract i ce
so
you' l l
knowwher e
you' l l wi nd up on t he t r ack i f l at e br aki ng i s r equi r ed i n a
passi ng si t uat i on dur i ng t he r ace.
Look at l at e braki ng f rom t he st andpoi nt of t i me, l ap t i mes and
your posi t i on i n t he race rel at i ve t o t he ot her ri ders. l f you' re wi t hi n a sec-
ond of t he f ast est ri der on t he t rack and can make a l ot of i mprovement i n
braki ng, t hen t he t wo-t ent hs or t hree-t ent hs of a second
gai ned can real l y
do you some good. l f you need mor e t han a second t o get i nt o wi nni ng l ap
t i mes, don' t l ook f or i t wi t h t he brakes al one;
you' ve got t o get your
average speed up in turns. Does it make sense?
The Product of Braking
The real product of braking is: To set the speed of the bike
correctly for that place on the track so that no further changes
are necessary. lf you go in too fast and require more braking when
you
shoul d be t urni ng, i t can t hrow
your t i mi ng of f . l f you go i n t oo sl owl y and
have t o i ncrease your
speed, t hat ' s one ext ra operat i on t hat wi l l t ake t i me
and effort to correct. lt takes time to realize when something is not
ri ght , t i me t o f i gure out what i t shoul d be and t i me t o correct i t .
When
your
speed i s set by adj ust i ng i t correct l y wi t h t he brakes, gradual l y,
you won' t have t o make any correct i ons and your at t ent i on wi l l be f ree t o
r i de t he t ur n.
Est abl i sh a Ref erence Poi nt
(RP)
t o mark t he spot you wi l l
begi n braki ng. Braki ng i s a Sub-Product and i t i nvol ves at l east t wo Poi nt s
of Ti mi ng
( POT) :
one at t he poi nt you begi n t he br aki ng act i on and one
where you have compl et ed i t . l t i s
j ust
as i mport ant t o est abl i sh a
marker for the end of the braking as it is to have one for the
begi nni ng. Havi ng a good end-braki ng marker al l ows
you t o see i n
advance where you' l l be f i ni shed wi t h t he brakes and al l ows you t o adj ust
your speed more easi l y. There i s no guarant ee t hat t he bi ke wi l l sl ow down
exact l y t he same amount each l ap, even i f you brake at t he same
pl ace-
t hi ngs change. But an End-of -Braki ng Marker wi l l gi ve you a const ant
to work f rom.witt it work for you?
Braki ng and Your Sense of Speed
Your sense of speed is your ability to
iudge
whether
you
are ri di ng f ast er or sl ower t han
you were duri ng
previ ous
t ri ps t hrough a t urn or sect i on of road. l n order t o go f ast er you
The brake is used to cor-
rectly adjust the speed
f or t hat t ur n. Beabl et o
get i t ri ght each tame and
then work on late braking
to compress the amount
of time it takes.
65
When mV concentratton is
good I know I dtd everything
Trtght. but it' s llke lwasn' t
really there I get tnto that
frame of concentration and
rf I go 1
l4
mph slower or
faster. / know rt.
You can make accurate
speed adj ustments.
There are two results
from thi s:
1. You develop a better
senae of speed.
2. You can spend your
attenti on on ri di ng
the turn when you get
i t ri ght the f i rst ti me.
I let it coast a little tn the turn
after braking to get everythtng
settled and ready for the exrt
must know what f ast er i s. I cal cul at e t hat a worl d-cl ass road racer must be
abl e t o
j udge
hi s speed t o wi t hi n one-hal f of one mi l e an hour-and
possi -
bl y even f i ner t han t hat . Pl us or mi nus one-hal f mph
gi ves t he ri der a one-
mph range of sensi t i vi t y. A
pl us or mi nus sensi t i vi t y of f i ve mph al l ows
you
up t o a 1O-mph range i n your sense of speed. That mi ght be t oo much. Fi ve
mph f ast er i n a t urn i s real l y a great deal -enough t o put you down i f you do
i t al l at once.
By usi ng t he brakes as a di al you can el i mi nat e radi cal changes
i n t he bi ke' s behavi or and make i t easi er t o devel op
your own sense of
speed. Using the brakes as an on/off switch, however, creates dramatic
changes i n t he bi ke' s wei ght t ransf er and at t i t ude, whi ch makes t he sens-
i ng of speed di f f i cul t . Usi ng t he brakes as a reverse speed di al al l ows you
to reach the speed more gradually and become more sensitive to speed
adj ust ment s. The more you are abl e t o sense speed, t he easi er and
qui cker
i t becomes f or you t o make t hese speed adj ust ment s accurat el y.
&
l
Another Twist to Braking
Another twist to braking is that you can effectively increase
your speed by letting off the brakes. lf you use a comfortable braking
point
as
you
enter the turn, then sense
you may be going too slow, let off the
brakes and maintain a speed that will be correct 25 or more feet down the
road. l f
your
speed i s set ri ght -a l i t t l e f ast er t han t he l ast l ap, you prob-
abl y won' t l ose as much t i me as
you mi ght by l at e braki ng and upset t i ng
yoursel f , and l eavi ng t he door open f or a mi st ake.
There' s a great er advant age t o f i ne-t uni ng
your sense of speed
by goi ng i nt o t he t urns comf ort abl y, wi t hout pani c, usi ng t he brakes as an
adj ust ment , and bri ngi ng t he corneri ng speed up a l i t t l e at a t i me. Cont rol
and conf idence can be developed from this skill. Do you think it willwork?
The Braki ng Dri l l s
Whi l e i t i s t rue t hat
you wi l l f i nd t he rear brake of l i t t l e use
under hard braki ng, i t ' s a good i dea t o f i nd out exact l y what happens when
i t i s l ocked up and sl i di ng. The si mpl est met hod i s t o ri de al ong t he t rack
at a comfortable speed, then lock up the rear brake.
&
{'
Observe one i mport ant caut i on whi l e maki ng t hi s t est ; i f t he
rear end of t he machi ne sl i des out of l i ne wi t h t he f ront and
you l et up on
t he rear brake, i t wi l l -or can-snap back i nt o l i ne wi t h t he f ront wheel . l f t he
f ront and rear are severel y out of l i ne, t hi s act i on may be so abrupt i t coul d
throw you
and the motorcycle down.
Some motorcycle safety instructors suggest you
can avoid the
above si t uat i on by l eavi ng t he rear brake l ocked unt i l t he machi ne i s
st opped, or nearl y st opped. Thi s may not al ways be a pract i cal
sol ut i on,
especi al l y whi l e raci ng.
I t i s possi bl e,
wi t h pract i ce,
t o gui de
t he wheel s back i nt o
al i gnment wi t h body Engl i sh and pressure
on t he handl ebars, t hen l et up
on t he brake and cont i nue. The best si t uat i on i s t o not have l ocked i t up
t o begi n wi t h. Here i s a dri l l
you
can pract i ce
t o l earn t he l ock-up poi nt
and
t he sensi t i vi t y of
your rear brake.
St ep 1 . Ri de al ong at a comf ort abl e speed i n an area wi t h no
traff ic or d ist ractions.
Step 2: Apply the front brake at a steady and even rate.
St ep 3: Appl y t he rear brake gradual l y t o l earn how much pedal
pressure it really takes to lock it up.
St ep 4: Repeat st eps 1 t hrough 3 unt i l you know when t he
brake wi l l l ock. Do i t at vari ous speeds and braki ng f orces, rememberi ng
t hat t he harder you use t he f ront , t he l i ght er t he rear wi l l be.
1O mph
l OO mph
The Front Brake Dri l l
The purpose
of t hi s dri l l i s t o f i nd out how much l ever pressure
i s requi red t o l ock up t he f ront wheel , and what happens t o t he bi ke when
t he wheel i s l ocked. wi t hout t hi s i nf ormat i on you' l l
al ways be af rai d of t he
front brake to some degree.
St ep 1 : Ri de al ong at f i ve t o t en mph.
St ep 2: Lock up t he f ront wheel , usi ng onl y t he f ront brake.
You wi l l not i ce t hat t he f ront wheel t urns under or t urns i n when i t i s
l ocked, and t he bi ke f eel s as t hough i t i s goi ng t o f al l over. l t wi l l -i f you
In rtralght llne braklng,
a locked-up front wheel
feels the same at l OO
mph as i t does goi ng 1O
mph, but the ski d mark i s
longer.
You figure out
your
brakes, make your
decisions on what can
be done, and spend that
attenti on on the turn
comi ng up.
keep t he brake l ocked. The si mpl e and onl y sol ut i on i s t o l et of f t he l ever
unt i l t he sl i de ends. The bi ke wi l l st r ai ght en up i mmedi at el y. The same
t hi ng t hat happens at 1O mph wi l l happen at 1OO mph. The onl y
mi st ake you can make wi t h a l ocked f ront wheel i s not l et t i ng of f t he
brake lever soon enough.
At 100 mph t he st ri p of rubber
you put
down on t he pavement
wi l l be l onger t han t he one at 1O mph. l f you l eave t he wheel l ocked f or
1/ 1Ot h of a second at 1 O mph t he wheel wi l l sl i de f or 1 . 5 f eet . At 1 OO mph
i t wi l l sl i de f or nearl y 1 5 f eet . The bi ke of course has more f orces keepi ng
i t upr i ght at 1OO mph, but i t f eel s t he same as i t does at 10 mph.
Cutting Costs
The purpose
of t hese exerci ses i s t o f i nd t he
poi nt where t he
brakes l ock, and t o become accust omed t o t hat f eel i ng so
you' l l
know
what t o do i f t he brakes l ock whi l e you' re ri di ng. That ki nd of surpri se can
cost you
$9. 00.
l f you' re f ami l i ar wi t h i t , i t cost s 250 or l ess.
St ep 3: Repeat St eps 1 and2 above at hi gher and hi gher
speeds unt i l you
are cert ai n what happens, and are cert ai n you can cont rol
t he machi ne.
Braki ng and Downshi fti ng
Downshi f t i ng i s cl osel y associ at ed wi t h braki ng because t he
t wo al most al ways occur at t he same t i me. From observat i on, i t appears
t hat most ri ders bel i eve t he engi ne i s supposed t o hel p sl ow or st op t he
bi ke. When you hear an engi ne spi nni ng up t owar d r edl i ne goi ng i nt o a
turn, you know the rider is trying to use it as a brake. Does this apply to you?
The Engi ne l s Not A Brake!
I t ' s supposed t o i ncrease t he speed of t he machi ne-not
decrease i t . At any pl ace where you have t o use t he brakes and downshi f t
at t he same t i me, i t i s not ef f i ci ent or correct t o use t he engi ne t o sl ow
you.
Ther e i sn' t much wei ght on t he r ear wheel t o begi n wi t h, and usi ng t he
engi ne means you' r e goi ng t o have t o r epl ace t he cr ank and
pi st ons
sooner. l f you wi sh t o sl ow down t he rear wheel a bi t , use t he rear brake.
I t ' s cheaper t o repl ace brake pads t han crankshaf t s. Secondl y, i t ' s not
correct t o use t he engi ne as a brake because t hat ' s not t he purpose of
downshifting. The purpose of downshifting is to bring the engine
68
7, 5OO- 1O, 5OO r pm
Begi n accel erat i on.
The purpose of down-
shi f t i ng i s t o have t he
engi ne i n t he power
when you begi n t o accel -
erate. You could leave it
i n si xt h gear ri ght up t o
t he poi nt
of accel erat i on
and t he bi ke woul dn' t
care,
Up-shi f t i ng whi l e st i l l
leaned over costs a lot
because it must be
perfect.
Wi t h t he bi ke pul l i ng
strong off the turn
{with-
out up-shi f t i ng), you can
spend
your
at t ent i on on
speed, t ract i on, RPs, et c"
Must shi f t whi l e
leaned over.
At redl i ne.
Bel ow redl i ne
( i n power band)
Shi f t poi nt wi t h
bi ke st rai ght er,
cr eat i ng easi er
dr i ve out .
&Ew
ln blg sweepers I don't let the
bike bog down offthe power
-it
seems to slrde easrer I
keep it spinning up tn the
power band.
i nt o t he ri ght rpm range as
you begi n t o accel erat e out of a t urn.
Most ri ders seem t o f eel i t ' s necessary t o downshi f t as soon as
possi bl e af t er t hey begi n t o brake. I n some cases t here i sn' t t i me f or a
l ei surel y approach-t he downshi f t i ng must be done i mmedi at el y. But i f
t here i s t i me t o wai t , change gears when you can do i t more l ei surel y.
The Bike Doesn't Gare
Goi ng i nt o a t urn, t he bi ke doesn' t care what gear i t ' s i n. The
ri ght gear mat t ers onl y when you begi n t o accel erat e. l f you have a t hi rd-
gear t urn at t he end of a si xt h-gear st rai ght , and
part
of t he t urn requi res
const ant - speed r unni ng, t he bi ke wi l l not mi nd i f i t ' s i n si xt h
gear t hr ough
t hat
part
of t he t urn. Of course i t ' s i mpof t ant t o make t he correct num-
ber of downshi f t s at t he proper l ocat i on. Thi s usual l y i sn' t at t he f i rst
oppor t uni t y,
j ust
as
you begi n br aki ng. The best
pl ace usual l y i s not when
you' re i n t he t urn l eaned over-t hat upset s t he bi ke somewhat when t he
gear changes are made. Changi ng gears i n a t urn may cause t he bi ke t o
bob up and down, as t he shi f t s wi l l af f ect t ract i on and st eeri ng.
The best
pl ace t o make t he gear changes i s t oward t he end of
t he braki ng but bef ore t he bi ke i s act ual l y put i nt o t he t urn at a st eep l ean
angl e.
You' ll save a lot of attention by knowing how many
gear
changes t o make bef ore comi ng i nt o a t urn. l f you don' t know t hi s, you' l l
f eel you have t o st art downshi f t i ng i mmedi at el y i n case
you make a mi s-
t ake-t hi s i s why many ri ders begi n t he downshi f t i ng t oo soon. You don' t
have to know what gear you' re in, so long as you know how
many gears you have t o go down. l t ' s amazi ng how much at t ent i on
can be f reed up by simply knowing this, and doing it. Shoutd it be tried?
Tal l est Gear Possi bl e
To deci de how many
gears t o go down f or a t urn, use t he
t al l est
gear possi bl e t hat st i l l al l ows t he bi ke t o pul l t he t urn i n
i t s powerband. l f you go down t oo many gears and run t he t urn wi t h t he
engi ne spi nni ng up t o r edl i ne,
you ar e al most
guar ant eed a gear change
whi l e t he bi ke i s st i l l l eaned over al l t he way. You wi l l have t o make t hat
change i n t he mi ddl e of your dri ve out of t he t urn-a pl ace where
you need
t o be concent rat i ng on ot her t hi ngs. Somet i mes, of course,
you mi ght not
have a choi ce wi t h t he geari ng t hat i s on t he bi ke, and you' l l have t o change
gears whi l e l eaned over. Somet i mes
you can change t hi s si t uat i on wi t h t he
overal l
geari ng so i t ' s correct f or t he i nf i el d t urns and overrevs or under
revs a l i t t l e on t he st rai ght . l f i t resul t s i n bet t er l ap t i mes-and i t can-
then sacrif icing a little top end is worth it.anv examptes?
Second Probl em
The second
probl em wi t h goi ng down t oo many
gears and red-
l i ni ng t he engi ne i n a t ur n i s t hat engi ne vi br at i on can hi de t he vi br at i on of
=)
t he t i res bi t i ng i nt o t he road. You need t hi s vi brat i on t o t el l you your
t rac-
t i on si t uat i on. There i s a vi brat i on when t he t i res are gri ppi ng
wel l and not
sl i di ng because t hey are t aki ng t he maxi mum l oad. When t he t i res begi n t o
sl i de t he vi brat i on i s di f f erent and much f i ner. A hi gh-rewi ng
engi ne
can' i n a t urn, cause t he ri der t o bel i eve hi s t i res are sl i di ng.
Your sense of t ract i on al l ows you
t o know what condi t i ons your
corneri ng speeds and l ean angl es are creat i ng f or t he t i res-how wel l t hey
are bi t i ng i nt o t he asphal t . The vi brat i on f rom t hi s carri es up t hrough t he
f rame and you
sense i t at t he handl ebars,
seat and f oot pegs. The
changes in that vibration give you
a picture
of the traction at
every moment . l f t he engi ne vi brat i on i s "drowni ng
out , , or smot heri ng
t hat i nf ormat i on, i t becomes di f f i cul t t o sense exact l y what t he t i res are
dOing. nre you aware of this?
Goast Racing
"Canyon
racers" have a great pastime
called
,,Coast
Racing.,'
sever al r i der s l i ne up at t he t op of a l ong hi l l wi t h l ot s of t ur ns i n i t , shut of f
t hei r engi nes and begi n coast i ng down. The r i der who uses hi s br akes t he
l east wi ns. Good ri ders have not i ced t hey were goi ng f ast er
on t he same
t ur ns whi l e coast i ng t han when t hey wer e r i di ng
t hr ough t hem wi t h t he
engi ne on. Thi s does not mean you
shoul d coast t hr ough t ur ns on a r ace
t rack or anywhere el se-you shoul d have t he bi ke i n gear
so
you
can cont rol
t he exi t of t he t urn. Thi s exampl e i l l ust rat es t hat you
can
, , read' ,
t i re t rac-
t i on much bet t er when t he engi ne vi brat i on i sn' t drowni ng i t out . Not e:
I don' t recommend coast Raci ng because I have seen a number of peopl e
get
hurt doi ng i t .
Ri der' s Job
The ri der' s j ob
i s t o be abre t o separat e t he engi ne vi bra-
tion from the tire traction vibration so he can constantly sense
t ract i on. Your sense of t ract i on i s somet hi ng you
shoul d be spendi ng
Redl i ni ng the engi ne i n a
turn gets your
attenti on,
doesn' t i t? Cut that cost.
It al so smothers your
sense of tracti on.
I like to use earplugs. The
quieter
lt is the faster I go.
a lot of attention on. The combination of
your
sense of traction and
your
sense of speed will help you determine the cornering speed
you
are wi l l i ng t o use. No mat t er what l i ne or RPs or Product you use
f or a t urn, t here i s a maxi mum speed f or t hat approach. You won' t be abl e
t o get t hat maxi mum speed i f you can' t sense t he t ract i on of t he t i res.
You can' t i gnore t he ot her basi cs of downshi f t i ng: Throt t l e and
cl ut ch act i on must be correct l y t i med when changi ng
gears. Downshi f t i ng
at t he ri ght pl ace on t he t rack i s i mport ant , but f ai l ure t o rev t he engi ne t o
mat ch t he road speed of t he bi ke wi l l l ock up t he rear wheel or make i t
chat t er. Al ways rev t he engi ne t o t he ri ght speed bet ween downshi f t s.
Front Brake * Throttle
Most experienced riders have mastered the technique
of usi ng t he f ront brake and t hrot t l e at t he same t i me. l t comes
f rom pract i ce. The purpose of t hi s t echni que i s t o al l ow
you t o use t he
f ront brake as hard as possi bl e and st i l l be abl e t o t wi st t he t hrot t l e enough
t o rev t he engi ne bet ween downshi f t s. The t ri ck i s t o be abl e t o keep t he
brake l ever pressure const ant , or t o change i t when necessary whi l e
worki ng t he t hrot t l e.
How
you
l et t he cl ut ch out af t er rewi ng t he engi ne can make a
difference between a smooth or a rough gearchange. Good riders let the
cl ut ch out smoot hl y and evenl y so t he shi f t has t he l east af f ect on t he bi ke.
Even i f you don' t rev t he engi ne enough, l et t i ng t he cl ut ch out sl owl y can
save t he downshi f t f rom bei ng rough.
I t may seem f ar-f et ched t hat how and where
you
downshi f t
can i mprove
your corneri ng speeds, but I urge you t o use t he met hods i n
t hi s sect i on t o i mprove
your overal l ri di ng and sense of t ract i on, as wel l as
to f ree up more of
your attenti on. Wi l l thi s i mprove your ri di ng?
Using the brake and
throttle together is an
important technique.
Performing hno things at
once cuts costs, when-
ever
possible.
1. Get the
gas off and then the brake on.
2. Do as much braking as
possible
before
you
start to downshift.
,%
,
d
3. While still maintaining brake
rotate the throttle on and off
up for your
downshift.
4. Repeat step thrce for each downshift.
5. Release the brake for the corner.
fever pressure,
(
Wr
to bring the revs
I
%-
W
a{
ffifu#;;
i:';
Eddi e demonstrates
enteri ng the corkscrew,
the correct way to end
the braki ng and begi n a
t ur n.
Notice the almost
unchanged f ork ext en-
si on f rom begi nni ng t o
end. That ' s what i s
eal l ed smoot h.
1.
2.
j,
W
&
74
' 1' :
4.
Just as the bike is entor-
ing the banked pave-
ment, he begins to accel-
erate
iust
enough to ke6p
the bi ke from bobbi ng up
and down.
CHAPTER NI NE
Steering
I use countersteering and it
lust
gets right over wrth very
little effort. After I get the brke
over then I use the throttle to
steer it. l'm drlfttng both
wheels. Let off and tt wtll quit
driftlng
It Happens Backwards
Many ri ders have l earned t o st eer a mot orcycl e wi t hout under-
st andi ng t he process. The purpose of st eeri ng i s t o cont rol t he mot or-
cycl e' s di rect i on of t ravel . l n raci ng or i n any ri di ng si t uat i on, you must f eel
t hat t he st eeri ng and t he di rect i on of t he bi ke are under your
cont rol . The
f ast er you go, t he more you want t o be cert ai n t hat t he machi ne wi l l do
what you
want i t t o.
Counter Steeri ng
St eeri ng i s si mpl e enough-you push t he bars i n t he opposi t e
di rect i on of t he di rect i on you wi sh t o t ravel . That begi ns t he t urn, and t he
bi ke l eans as i t t urns. Del i berat el y t urni ng t he bars i n t he opposi t e di rec-
t i on of t ravel i s known as count er st eeri ng. Count er means
"agai nst , "
and t o st eer means t o
"gui de
or di rect . " To go ri ght you must t urn t he bars
left-to go left, turn the bars right. Gounter steering is the only way
you
can direct a motorcycle to steer accurately.
Thi s, i n f act , i s how you' ve been st eeri ng
your mot orcycl e al l
t he t i me, whet her you knew i t or not . You cannot st eer a mot orcycl e si mpl y
by l eani ng i t . You can get i t t o veer of f i n ei t her di rect i on by l eani ng your
wei ght of f t o one si de at l ow speeds, but t hat i sn' t st eeri ng. We are t al ki ng
about cont rol l i ng t he bi ke, and t hat met hod i s somet hi ng l ess t han cont rol .
You can onl y guess where t he bi ke wi l l go. At speed you can' t do much of
anyt hi ng i f you' r e not hol di ng ont o t he handl ebar s.
Let ' s t ake a l ook at what happens when you
st eer. You are
appr oachi ng a r i ght - hand t ur n. You l ean r i ght , and t he bi ke begi ns t o go
ri ght . Si nce you are hol di ng ont o t he bars and movi ng over t o t he ri ght
your l ef t arm i s pul l i ng t he l ef t si de of t he bar t owards you, whi ch t urns
t he bars t o t he l ef t . l f you l ean l ef t t o go around a l ef t t urn, you pul l
on t he
ri ght bar. Thi s must happen i f you' re hol di ng ont o t he bars. l f you' re not
hol di ng t he bars. t he bi ke wi l l not begi n t o t urn where you l ean. You may
be pushi ng on t he ot her bar as wel l as pul l i ng- i t depends on how you hol d
the bars. ls it explained?
76
ii
ffi
ffi
: a; r. l : i i : . i
' : : : i . i t : : i : . ' r: , 1
.i.lrri:tir:i..
ilii
iiiiixffi
1
r
ffi
, ' ,
-
, ' , , ' . ' i t l
The faster you go, the
more preci se your st eer-
i ng must be, Product s,
RPS, Sub-Product s,
Poi nt s of Ti mi ng-al l
become usabl e wi t h
accurat e st eeri ng.
Push/ Pul l
As l ong asyou cont i nue pushi ng
or
pul l i ng
on t he bars,
the bike will continue to lean over and turn more sharply. When
you
ease t he pressure
on t he bars, t he bi ke wi l l st ay at t he l ean angl e you
reached when you
eased up t he pressure. You don' t have t o hol d t he bi ke
i nt o t he t urn wi t h any great amount of f orce, i f at al l . On most bi kes, once
you have t he machi ne at t he desi red l ean angl e, you no l onger need t o hol d
ont o t he bars. Act ual l y, i f you were ri di ng 60 mph on most bi kes wi t h a
cr ui se cont r ol i n a huge open par ki ng l ot wi t h no bumps, you
coul d t ake
your
hands of f t he bars once you had i t l eaned over and t he bi ke woul d
cont i nue goi ng ar ound i n a ci r cl e at t hat l ean angl e unt i l i t r an out of gas.
When you f i nd your sel f
hol di ng on ver y t i ght l y i n t ur ns, you' r e
doi ng a whol e l ot of unnecessary work. Bumps and ot her surf ace i rregu-
l ari t i es can change t he si t uat i on of course, so you do have t o hol d on t o
make steering corrections. Do you do this?
Ti ghten the Turn
To t i ght en up a t urn and i ncrease your l ean angt e,
you
must count er st eer agai n. You' re i n a ri ght -hand t urn, but i t ' s a
decr easi ng- r adi us and you need t o t i ght en i t up. Now you must pul l t he
bar s t o t he l ef t agai n unt i l you r each t he desi r ed l ean angl e. The same
appl i es i n a l ef t - hand t ur n; you must pul l r i ght and l ean over mor e t o
t i ght en t he t ur n.
To st r ai ght en t he bi ke up af t er f i ni shi ng t he t ur n, push t he bar s
i nt o t he di r ect i on of t he t ur n. Exampl e: You' r e i n a r i ght - hand t ur n and
want t o go st rai ght -t urn t he bars t o t he ri ght unt i l t he bi ke st rai ght ens out .
Ri ders have probl ems
wi t h t hi s especi al l y on f ast , decreasi ng-
radi us t urns. They get i nt o t roubl e, t hen t ry t o f orce t he bars i n t he di rec-
t i on of t he t urn. The maj or t roubl e ri ders have wi t h decreasi ng-
radi us t urns i s i n not knowi ng how t o st eer. You can act ual l y see
ri ders cl i mbi ng ont o t he t ank, exert i ng a l ot of pressure
on t he bars t ryi ng
@f#Biffie{ffi+*
".
+i-:";1eeo;cs-
78
t o make t he t urn. They become ri gi d as t he bi ke goes f urt her t o t he out si de
of t he t urn and makes t hem bel i eve t hey' re goi ng
t oo f ast .
you
can see t he
ef f ort and hear t he t hrot t l e bei ng rol l ed of f .
Most t urns can' t be made wi t hout correct i ng f or mi st akes,
camber or radi us changes or surf ace i rregul ari t i es.
Al so, t o hol d a const ant
radi us l i ne t hrough a t urn whi ch has changes (camber,
bumps, et c. ), st eer-
i ng adj ust ment s must be made. Most of
your
st eeri ng occurs wi t h t he
ori gi nal st eeri ng act i on goi ng i nt o t he t urn, but you
must be abl e t o correct
t he bi ke t o compensat e f or sl i di ng, changes i n camber, i n radi us, or ot her
changes. l f you
can' t corl ect t he st eeri ng i n a t urn, i t wi l l l i mi t
you
t o a "one l i ne t hrough t he t urn" approach.
your
speed and
progress
can be l i mi t ed by how wel l or poorl y you
can correct t he bi ke' s
di r ect i on. Any l i ne has a maxi mum speed t hat i t can be r i dden by a
part i cul ar
ri der on a part i cul ar
bi ke on a part i cul ar
day. Any t housht s on t hi s?
Steeri ng Backwards
I n essence, mot orcycl e st eeri ng i s backwards f rom most ot her
f orms of t ransport at i on. An aut omobi l e goes i n t he di rect i on you
t urn t he
wheel , as do most ot her vehi cl es. one probl em
we have i n l earni ng t o ri de
st ems f rom a cruel t ri ck pl ayed on us by our parent s.
They gave us a
t ri cycl e t o pedal
around. A t ri cycl e t urns i n t he di rect i on you
st eer i t . when
we rode a bi cycl e f or t he f i rst t i me, we f el l down, and everyone sai d i t was
because we di dn' t have good bal ance. Act ual l y, i t was because bi cycl es
al so count er st eer.
Bal ance had not hi ng t o do wi t h i t l The conf usi on i s caused
because t he chi l d expect s t he bi ke t o go ri ght when he t urns t o t he ri ght .
Event ual l y, out of sheer survi val i nst i nct s, he goes t hrough t he st eeri ng
mot i ons wi t hout under st andi ng t hem and wi nds up on a mot or cycl e 1 5
years
l at er not knowi ng what he has been doi ng t o go around t urns.
Pract i ce count er st eeri ng and become aware of i t . Be aware of
how much at t ent i on i t cost s
you
t o st art a t urn. See i f you
can remember
what happened when you
saw an unexpect ed pot hol e or rock on t he road
and t ri ed t o go
around i t . Most ri ders, i n an emergency, t ry t o t urn
t he bi ke i n t he di rect i on t hey want t o go. l t doesn' t work and t hey
f i nd t hemsel ves doi ng some r eal l y st r ange t hi ngs t o make t he bi ke t ur n.
Raci ng, because of t he speed, i s a sel f -creat ed emergency. By t hi nki ng
and pract i ce, you
can l ower t he amouqt of t i me and at t ent i on necessary t o
count er st eer down t o an accept abl e l evel .
I have known peopl e who have ri dden f or 30 years wi t hout
havi ng t o f ace an emergency si t uat i on. Then, one day a car
pul l s
out i n
front of them. They try to avoid it but the bike won' t do what they want it
t o. So t hey get scared and qui t ri di ng. They real i ze t hat t he cont rol t hey
al ways t hought was t here-wasn' t . Underst andi ng how a bi ke st eers can
hel p a f or mer r i der l i ke t hi s t o deci de t o go r i di ng agai n.
I have hear d var yi ng expl anat i ons about what i s happeni ng
duri ng count er st eeri ng, but I have never heard any t wo engi neers agree
t ot al l y on t he physi cs of i t . Despi t e t hi s, everyone agrees t hat count er
st eeri ng i s necessary f or good cont rol of a mot orcycl e. St art pract i ci ng
and
appfyi ng i t to your ri di ng. Wi l t thi s i mprove your ri di ng?
Kenny Roberts, the
master of fast and pre-
cise steering, sets up for
the ri ght hander i n the
corkscrew. Noti ce the
wheel sharpl y counter-
steered to the left.
79
CHAPTER TEN
Sl i ppi ng and Sfi di ng
Traction: How to Use lt and Lose lt
Sl i ppi ng and Sl i di ng Your Way to Vi ctory
Ver y l i t t l e wi nni ng i s done t hese days wi t hout some sl i di ng
around on t he t i res. l f you want t o wi n, you' l l have t o l earn t o do i t , t oo.
The bi ggest si ngl e breakt hrough f or most ri ders occurs
when t hey f i nd out t hat sl i di ng around doesn' t al ways mean
they' ll fall. The biggest single drawback is when riders become
fascinated with sliding and think it is an end in itself. They must
see i t s purpose. Sl i di ng i s a t ool , and t hat t ool shoul d become a usef ul
part of
your
ri di ng. The f i rst st ep i s t he hardest -deci di ng t hat i t i s OK t o
sl i de. l f you
ar en' t used t o sl i di ng, wor k up t o i t a l i t t l e at a t i me. Don' t
make a wi l d deci si on t o r un i nt o a t ur n t oo f ast i n hopes you wi l l be abl e t o
handl e t he excess speed by sl i di ng. Wor k up t o i t by i ncr easi ng your
speed
t hr ough t he t ur ns unt i l you begi n t o sl i de. Thi s usual l y f i r st occur s when
r i der s get
on t he
gas comi ng out of sl ower t ur ns.
Sl i di ng on asphal t can be
di st ract i ng when over-
done, but i s a usef ul ri d-
i ng t ool when used i n
moderat i on.
80
Three Ki nds of Sl i di ng
Three ki nds of sl i di ng commonl y occur under raci ng
condi t i ons:
1 . The rear wheel begi ns t o spi n on accel erat i on and t he rear
end
"comes
around, " or goes out more t han t he f ront end.
2. The f r ont t i r e begi ns
" pushi ng" - i t
i s sl i di ng, but t he back
i s not .
3. Bot h wheel s are sl i di ng, or t he bi ke i s i n a si deways hop-
and- sl i de mot i on.
None of t hese ki nds of sl i di ng i s caused
f rom goi ng i nt o or t hrough t he t urn t oo f ast or f rom
breaki ng tracti on. Have you noti ced thi s?
Exceedi ng the Li mi ts
by braki ng; t hey are
usi ng t he t hr ot t l e and
'
Sl i di ng occurs because you have exceeded t he l i mi t s of t i re
adhesi on f or t hose ci rcumst ances. Too much speed or t hrot t l e are not t he
onl y reasons t hat sl i di ng can occur-rough
pavement
or rough ri di ng can
al so cause i t , as can a poor
suspensi on syst em.
The back end can
"come
around" al l by i t sel f i n a t urn, whi ch
may be regarded as t he f ourt h ki nd of sl i di ng. Many t i mes t hi s and ot her
ki nds of sl i di ng ar e due t o t he r i der ' s own handl i ng of t he t ur n, such as
when wei ght t ransf er t o t he f ront or rear causes t hat end t o break away.
For exampl e, i f you were t o come i nt o a t urn wi t h
j ust
a l i t t l e t oo much
speed and then roll off the gas suddenly, the front end would become
heavi er t han t he rear and coul d st art t he f ront t i re sl i di ng. The si mpl e rem-
edy i s t o crack t he gas open sl i ght l y t o hel p even t he wei ght on t he f ront
and rear. Some bi kes are heavi er on one end t han t he ot her. and have a
bui l t - i n t endency t o sl i de t hat end. The r oad sur f ace can det er mi ne whi ch
end of t he bi ke sl i des. Goi ng over a crest , f or rnst ance, t he l i ght er end-or
bot h wheel s because t he downward f orce i s l essened-sl i des. Usual l y,
however, t he wheel wi t h t oo much wei ght wi l l break t ract i on f i rst .
Another Deci si on
Anot her deci si on must be made t o use t he sl i di ng t o your
advant age. A good dri ve comi ng of f a t urn usual l y i nvol ves some
rear-wheel sl i ppage. The harder you accel erat e, t he more rubber you
have t o accel erat e wi t h as t he wei ght t ransf er generat ed by t he accel era-
t i on f l at t ens out t he t i re and enl arges t he cont act pat ch. Thi s hol ds t rue
onl y t o a
poi nt ,
of cour se. l f t he wheel begi ns spi nni ng t oo much f or ef f ec-
t i ve t i re adhesi on, i t wi l l heat up rapi dl y and of f er very l i t t l e t ract i on. Al l ow-
i ng i t t o spi n
j ust
a bi t wi l l al l ow t he bi ke t o cont i nue accel er at i ng and
mai nt ai n enough t ract i on so i t won' t sl i de out compl et el y. You can even
st eer t he bi ke t o your advant age wi t h t he rear end sl i ght l y l oose by poi nt i ng
t he bi ke t o t he i nsi de of t he t ur n. Thi s i s cal l ed
" t hr ot t l e
st eer i ng. "
The next st ep f or t he ri der who f eel s he has reached t hat poi nt
l' ve only high sided once.
Itry to keep it slidrng and
bring it up with the steerrng.
then it quits.
especially with
a superbike.
81
A moderat e and ef f ec-
t i ve sl i de smoot hl y done.
The sl i de i s obvi ous
because t he f ront wheel
i s not t urned i n enough
t o t rack at t hat amount
of l ean. Not e: The sl i de
i s bei ng correct ed wi t h
Kenny' s knee. Thi s t ech-
ni que i s covered i n t he
f ol l owi ng chapt er-
wher e t he sl i de has become a l i mi t i ng f act or i n hi s r i di ng i s t o use t he
sl i de t o gui de t he bi ke wher e he want s i t t o go. As t he r i der you must
deci de wher e and when t hat sl i ppi ng ar ound can be used t o your advan-
t age r at her t han
j ust " wor r yi ng"
t he bi ke ar ound t he t ur n and bei ng l i mi t ed
by t he t r act i on. Sl i di ng,
you wi l l pr obabl y f i nd, cost s a f ai r amount of your
$10
wort h of at t ent i on. Get used t o t he sl i di ng and t hen begi n
di rect i ng t he bi ke wi t h i t .
Brake Sl i de
Sliding is a very effective tool to use when you have entered
a t urn a l i t t l e t oo f ast . Leani ng t he bi ke over a l i t t l e more
j ust
at t hat poi nt
wi l l al l ow t he bi ke t o sl i de and
"scrub
of f " t he ext ra speed. You don' t have
t o use t he brakes and chance somet hi ng wi l l upset t he bi ke,
you si mpl y
t urn i t i n a l i t t l e more, scrub of f t he ext ra speed and cont i nue. Tract i on
becomes anot her mat t er i n f ast t urns because of t he i ncreased amount of
at t ent i on bei ng spent . Medi um speed t urns are l ess of a t hreat t o t he ri der,
he r api dl y l ear ns t hat a l i t t l e sl i di ng ar ound can wor k out . Ri der s t end t o be
more t i mi d of t ract i on i n f ast er t urns. Al so, i n medi um speed banked t urns,
such as Loudon, sl i di ng i s mor e pr edi ct abl e and l ess dr amat i c. The r i der
can bal ance of f hi s use of t hrot t l e st eeri ng agai nst t he downward pul l of
t he banki ng
"hol di ng"
hi m i n t he t urn. Losi ng t ract i on can somet i mes
be more of an advantage than keeping it. witt it work for you?
Built-ln Safety Valves
Ti re sl i di ng and sl i ppage are bui l t -i n saf et y val ves.
They' r e t el l i ng you t he t i r e i s r eachi ng i t s l i mi t s. Pr emi um st r eet t i r es and
raci ng t i res are desi gned t o operat e i n t hi s area of f ri ct i on and heat . The
used-up rubber
"bal l s
up" and goes away, exposi ng a f resh rubber surf ace
t o t he pavement . A st andard st reet t i re usual l y wi l l not gi ve up t he used
and unresi l i ent rubber f ast enough, so i t b t op l ayers become dry and sl i p-
82
pery. The
"oi l s"
t hat are used t o keep i t resi l i ent have been
"cooked"
out
of t hat t op l ayer of rubber, but t he l ayer st i l l cl i ngs t o t he t i re. l f you' re not
l et t i ng your r aci ng t i r es sl i p, you' r e r eal l y r i di ng under t he abi l i t y of t he
ti res.
Foryour own i nst ruct i onal purpose, I suggest usi ng a t i re and
ri m combi nat i on t hat wi l l al l ow you t o sl i de t he bi ke around at
your l evel of
ri di ng. Buyi ng raci ng t i res t hat are beyond your
capabi l i t i es as a
rider will not allow you
to experience how tires perform at their
l i mi t s. Most new ri ders can f i nd out more about ri di ng wi t h a set of Dun-
l op K- 81s ( whi ch
sl i de ver y pr edi ct abl y) f i t t ed t o t hei r Yamaha TZ2SOs
t han t hey wi l l by mount i ng a set of st at e-of
-t he-art
sl i cks. That goes f or
ot her bi kes as wel l . l f you are used t o ri di ng on st i cky t i res, but haven' t
f ound t hei r l i mi t s, mount a set of t i r es you' l l be abl e t o sl i de ar ound.
The ot hert ypes of sl i di ng shoul d be approached i n t he same
way. Fi nd out what sl i di ng i s l i ke so i t won' t surpri se you when i t happens.
Thi s wi l l i mpr ove your
r i di ng, as sl i di ng can cost t oo much of
your
at t en-
t i on i f you
aren' t comf ort abl e wi t h i t . once you
have sl i di ng under cont rol
as
j ust
anot her part
of raci ng, you wi l l be abl e t o use i t as a t ool . wi l i t work?
You can get away with a lot
of sliding on small GP blkes
that you
can' t on a superbike
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Hangi ng Off
It doesn' t look hke you' re
going fast when
Vou
are.
It Looks Good and lt Works
Not hi ng has changed road-raci ng phot ography
more i n t he
l ast ei ght years t han t he pract i ce and t echni que of hangi ng of f . Knee drag-
gi ng i s t he most dramat i c pose racers of any ki nd have ever i ndul ged i n.
Spect at ors are i n awe of i t , and ri ders aren' t sat i sf i ed unt i l t hey' ve mas-
t ered i t . Bot h canyon and caf e racers are l i kel y t o cast i n pl ast i c t hei r f i rst
pai r of desi gner
j eans
t hey t ouch t o t he t armac whi l e hangi ng of f .
Jarno Saari nen was t he f i rst ri der t o exhi bi t dramat i c knee-out
ri di ng. He had been an i ce racer bef ore comi ng t o road raci ng, and t here
knee draggi ng i s bot h part of t he st yl e and t he onl y way t o be seri ousl y
compet i t i ve. Saari nen pi oneered i t , Kenny Robert s ref i ned i t and most
everyone who races successf ul l y has pi cked up knee draggi ng f or hi msel f .
Real Reasons
Asi de f rom t he
great phot ography possi bi l i t i es, t here are real
reasons f or hangi ng out a body
part t hat i s capped by a pi ece of bone weak
enough t o be broken by a 4o-pound bl ow. The f i rst and most usef ul
reason f or hangi ng of f i s: you
are movi ng your body wei ght f rom
t he t op of t he bi ke t o a
posi t i on t hat i s l ower and t o t he i nsi de. Thi s
changes how your wei ght i nf l uences t he bi ke when cent ri f ugal f orce
begi ns pushi ng i t t oward t he out si de of t he t urn. When your wei ght i s
hi gher on t he bi ke, i t gi ves t he corneri ng f orces a l ever t o work wi t h. To
overcome cent ri f ugal f orce, t he bi ke must be l eaned over i n t he t urn. The
greater the force, the more you must lean to overcome it. By hanging off,
you move your wei ght t o t he i nsi de of t he bi ke and l ower t o t he ground,
present i ng l ess of a l ever f or t he f orces t o act upon. Thi s does not weaken
t he f orce, i t si mpl y l essens i t s ef f ect . Now t he bi ke does not have t o be
l eaned over as f ar t o make t he same radi us of t urn, and can go f ast er
wi t hout havi ng t o i ncr ease t he l ean angl e. Even i f you go t hr ough t he t ur n
at t he same speed as a r i der si t t i ng upr i ght on hi s machi ne, you can
begi n your accel er at i on sooner t han he can because
your st r ai ght - up bi ke
has more rubber on t he road. Thi s can be a t remendous advant age. 84
Remember, increasing your speed in a turn effectively decreases
the radius of the turn.
Not e: Ot her suggest i ons have been made as t o why hangi ng
of f works. The l aws of physi cs must have somet hi ng t o do wi t h i t but my
underst andi ng of t hose physi cs i s l i mi t ed. Some even argue t hat i t i s no
real advant age and si t e ri der exampl es of t he past
such as Mi ke Hai l wood,
who di d not hang of f . You must t ry i t f or yoursel f
and f i nd out i f t here i s
an advant age or not .
Another Advantage
How much wi nd resi st ance does a l eg creat e when i t i s hung
out t o t he si de of a mot orcycl e at 1bo mph? At 1oo mph, or even 60 mph?
wi t h t hi s addi t i onal "sai l "
on one si de, i t ' s easi er t o t urn i n t hat di rect i on.
You can make a quicker
and easier steering change with a knee
out because the bike and you
will pivot
around the point
of
resistance
that it offers.
For the Records
l f i rst not i ced t hi s ef f ect of hangi ng
of f at Dayt ona whi l e
at t empt i ng t o set a 24-hour speed record f or 7Socc machi nes i n 1g77 .
we were ri di ng Kawasaki Kzoso st reet bi kes wi t h l arge gas
t anks and rac-
i ng t i res around and around t he out er banked t ri -oval at Dayt ona. comi ng
of f t he banki ng ont o t he l evel st rai ght s was a st eeri ng chore because t he
cent ri f ugal f orce was t ryi ng t o send t he bi ke out t o t he wal l . we were run-
ni ng at a const ant speed of about 120 mph. As you
mi ght i magi ne, i t was
qui t e
bor i ng r i di ng ar ound f or hour s at a t i me al most f l at out , wi t h t he wi nd
t uggi ng at you
and t ryi ng t o l i f t your
hel met of f . I st i l l have permanent
grooves
i n my
j aw
f rom t hat chi n st rap. out of boredom I began experi -
The leverage theory. A
t al l mass woul d t end t o
heve a wi der arc t han a
short erone, i n a t urn, at
t he same speed. Ri ght or
wrong, everyone who is
current l y com pet i t i ve
i s
hangi ng of f .
Have you
ever tried it?
85
An extended knee offers
enough ai r drag to make
steeri ng easi er, espe-
ci al l y i n hi gh speed
sectaons of the track.
ment i ng and f ound t hat poppi ng a knee out
j ust
as I made a f ai rl y sharp
st eeri ng change comi ng of f t he banks made t he st eeri ng dramat i cal l y
easi er-by about one-t hi rd. The records were set , t he champagne was
great and I had l earned a new t ool .
Second Advantage
So, t he second advant age of havi ng a knee of f i s t hat st eeri ng
i s easi er when t he bi ke and ri der
pi vot around t he resi st ance
of f ered by t he ext ended l eg. Fl i cki ng t he bi ke f rom si de t o si de i n
esses or any seri es of t urns i s much easi er when i t i s t i med wi t h t he knee
comi ng out
j ust
bef or e t he st eer i ng change i s made. Thi s hol ds t r ue f or
si ngl e t ur ns as wel l . The l i abi l i t y i s obvi ous- you' r e
cr eat i ng
mor e wi nd
resi st ance and t he bi ke wi l l sl ow down somewhat .
Remember, use t hi s
t echni que as a t ool ;
pul l i t out when
you need i t and
put i t away when you
don' t . Thi s woul d be especi al l y t r ue wi t h smal l er or under power ed
machi nes. use i t onl y when necessary t o make t he st eeri ng easi er.
Thi rd Advantage
A t hi r d r eason f or hangi ng of f has t o do wi t h l ean angl e. Lean
angl e i s one of t he i ndi cat or s
you can use t o t el l how f ast
you can
go and
how much t ract i on t o expect f rom t he t i res. l t l et s you know where
you are
i n t he del i cat e bal ance of l ean angl e, st eer i ng, t r act i on and speed. Your
knee i s a del i cat e and cost l y i nst rument ;
you must make i t your busi ness t o
know how f ar i t i s f rom t he surf ace of t he pavement .
The Knee Gauge
The knee i s an i ncr edi bl y accur at e
gauge of l ean angl es- i f
you
put i t i n t he same posi t i on each t i me. To do t hi s
your body must be i n t he
86
The knee draggi ng t ech-
ni que i s an excel l ent
"curb f eel er, " or gauge,
t hat i s used t o det ermi ne
your l ean angl e f rom l ap
t o l ap.
same posi t i on
on t he bi ke each t i me. l t s posi t i on
can change f r om t ur n t o
t ur n, but i t shoul d be t he same each t i me t hr ough a par t i cul ar
t ur n. Then
you
can use t he di st ance f rom t he ground t o measure:
"l
was over t hi s f ar
on t he f i rst l ap and i t was oK, so next t i me around t hi s t urn I can go a l i t t l e
f ast er. " The knee doesn' t have t o drag t he whol e way around a t urn; you
can drop i t now and t hen t o
"sampl e"
your
l ean angl e. Do you t hi nk i t wi t t work?
How You Look and Feel
There are three good reasons to master the skill of hanging
of f -f our i f you
count t he great phot o possi bi l i t i es.
Now we get t o t he f i f t h
reason: knee dragging gives you
a sense of security. lt is strange
how t hi s works, and I don' t t ot al l y underst and i t , but somehow bei ng i n
cl ose pr oxi mi t y t o t he pavement makes f al l i ng of f seem l ess danger ous.
Perhaps i t i s because you have al ready cont act ed t he enemy and know
wher e he i s. l t doesn' t hur t t o f al l when you' r e
onl y an i nch above t he
ground. Of course, I ' m not t aki ng t he speed i nt o account -j ust t he f al l .
A f al l f rom t he t op of t he seat i s a much l onger f al l , and t hat
ext ra di st ance coul d be t he st art of a pai nf ul
bounci ng. Most sl i de-out s
don' t r esul t i n i nj ur y when no bounci ng and f l i ppi ng occur .
you
j udge
f or
yoursel f
whet her or not i s i s any
"saf er, "
but i t f eel s more secure.
Sixth Advantage
You may not bel i eve t hi s, but ri ders have saved t hemsel ves
f r om f al l i ng because t hey wer e abl e t o hel p t he bi ke back up wi t h t hei r
knee af t er i t had begun t o sl i de out . A f r i end of mi ne once act ual l y
bounced a bi ke back up ont o i t s wheel s wi t h hi s el bow and cont i nued
r aci ng.
You can underst and how t hi s mi ght work i f
you
consi der t he
amount of wei ght t hat i s t aken of f t he bi ke t he moment t he knee i s on t he
gr ound and pushi ng up. At any r at e, t hi s t act i c has wor ked- and wi l l no
doubt work agai n. At an advanced sessi on of t he Cal i f orni a Superbi ke
School where Eddi e Lawson was t he guest i nst ruct or, he was asked t o
comment on t hi s. When asked,
"How
of t en do you use t hi s t echni que?",
Lawson' s repl y was
"About
once a l ap. " There may be a measure of heroi cs
i nvol ved, and cert ai nl y f i ve or more l ayers of duct t ape wi l l hel p keep
your
l eat hers and knee l ooki ng smart .
Usi ng t he knee as an ant i -sl i de devi ce, or an ai d t o sl i di ng'
must al so t ake i nt o account wher e t he sl i de occur s i n a par t i cul ar t ur n. A
r ecur r i ng sl i de becomes a poi nt of t i mi ng
( POT)
i n a par t i cul ar t ur n.
" OK,
t he bi ke i s goi ng t o sl i de here every t i me because t here i s a crest t hat
unl oads t he bi ke when I get on t he gas. " Fi ne, i t ' s no bi g deal , you make
i t part of
your pl an f or t hat t urn. Now, i f you keep your knee f i rml y pl ant ed
i nt o t he asphal t f or every t urn on every l ap of a 20 l ap race, you are
goi ng
t o run out of duct t ape and st art i nt o your knee or l eat hers. That won' t work.
What wi l l wor k i s: You get t hat l ocat i on on t he t r ack r eal l y wel l known,
your
POT, and
you di p t he ol d knee down. i ust bef ore t he sl i de happens. when
t he sl i de ar ea i s passed, you unwei ght t he knee and Save t he t ape' On t he
ot her hand, i f
you wai t f or t he bi ke t o sl i de every l ap and t hen put t he knee
down, i t wi l l
put you i nt o a mi nor
pani c each t i me i t happens. Pani cs
cost a lot.
Here i s what you' ve done t o handl e t he si t uat i on'
l . You' ve f ound an RP t o t el l
you t hat t he sl i de area i s
approachi ng.
2. You' ve f igured out where to
put your knee down' That' s
your POT.
3. You' ve f i gured out where t o
pi ck up t he knee, at t he end of
t he sl i de area. That ' s anot her POT'
4. You' , ve t urned t he dri f t i ng or sl i di ng i nt o a predi ct abl e part
of t he t urn.
5. You' ve saved many dol l ars wort h of at t ent i on t hat can be
The knee i s extended
i n
readi ness to correct for
sl i di ng, shoul d i t occur'
used f or
j udgi ng
speed, adj ust i ng your l i ne, passi ng,
t hrot t l e cont rol , f i g-
uring out a better plan, getting a better drive, etc., etc. Can it be done?
Hang Loose
Never become ri gi d whi l e hangi ng of f . Be rel axed and
set t l e i nt o t he posi t i on you nor mal l y t ake whi l e i n t hi s maneuver . You' ve
got t o be as rel axed as possi bl e
so t hat you don' t become a bobbi ng
wei ght on t he bi ke t hat act s l i ke a passenger
who doesn' t know how t o
rel ax. l f you encount er any krnd of rough pavement
or handl e t he bi ke
roughl y, i t wi l l move up and down. l f you' re
l oose, you
wi l l f l ex up and
down wi t h i t . l f you' re
ri gi d, t he bi ke wi l l go i nt o i t s mot i on, t hen you wi l l ,
t hen t he bi ke wi l l move agai n, cr eat i ng a wobbl e.
Don' t use t he handl ebar s t o suppor t your
wei ght when you
hang of f . Thi s sends i nput s t o t he st eeri ng and can st art a wobbl e as wel l .
Use your l egs t o get f rom one si de of t he bi ke t o t he ot her. and hord on
wi t h your
out si de l eg. Then rel ax.
l ' l l see you i n t he phot os.
Not e: Many ri ders have f ound t hat a l i t t l e t al cum powder
on
the seat is helpful when changing from side to side. wit it work ror vou?
Note:
l f you
don' t f eel comf ort abl e hangi ng of f , don, t do i t .
you
can
wast e a l ot of t i me and ef f ort t ryi ng t o work out somet hi ng you
don' t need
t o do. Use hangi ng of f as a t ool . when you begi n t o have gr ound
cl ear -
ance pr obl ems
whi l e cor ner i ng, or any ot her pr obl ems
t hat coul d be hel ped
by hangi ng of f , t hen do i t .
A ri der' s st yl e i ncl udes how wei l he accompl i shes each of t he
part s
of ri di ng. l t i s al l of what he underst ands
and al l of what he doesn' t
f eel good about rol l ed i nt o hi s own
package.
Hangi ng of f may be part
of
your ri di ng package,
or i t may not be, ri ght now.
A ri der t el l s a great
deal about hi msel f by hi s st yre. For exam-
pl e,
a ri der who can st ay t ucked down behi nd t he bubbl e and l ow on t he
bi ke i n f ast or t ri cky sect i ons knows t he t rack. He has Rps.
poi nt s
of ri m-
i ng and ot her
f act or s wel l under st ood.
The r i der who doesn' t wi l l be si t t i ng
up t ryi ng t o see where he i s goi ng.
st yl e i s based on wher e t he r i der i s spendi ng hi s
$1o
wodh of
at t ent i on. Fi t t i ng yoursel f i nt o a st yl e f or no reason
can cost
you
a l ot .
Be comfortable rather than
sul t sn.
Don' t hang off if you
don' t
need to.
CHAPTER
TWELVE
Passing
Who Was That I Just Passed?
| t i ssomet i meseasi er t opassar i der youar er aci ngwi t h'
someone wi t h equal or si mi l ar abi l i t y t o your own, t han i t i s t o
pass l apped
or sl ower
ri ders. The ot her racer on
your l evel i s t here l ong enough f or
you
t o make out some aspect of hi s ri di ng st yl e, where t he sl ower
ri der i s a new
and unobserved commodi t y.
Many t i mes
you wi l l become wary of t hese
ri ders
j ust
f rom t he f act t hat t hey are a l ap down on you. l t makes
you
wonder i f t hey know what ' s
goi ng on.
Passi ng comes up of t en i n new-ri der di scussi ons.
l t i s def i ni t el y
one of t he craf t s i nvol ved i n raci ng and somet hi ng
t hat onl y a f ew, even of
t he t op ri ders, have mast ered'
Thegr oundr u| esi npassi ngandf o| | owi ngwi | | i ncr easeyour
under st andi ng
of t he act i ons i nvol ved:
Ground Rul es of Passi ng
1. Mot orcycl es
go t o t he out si de of t he t rack when
t hey f al l , and so do ri ders. l f you are di rect l y behi nd a ri der and he l oses
cont r ol and f al l s, i t i s al most i mpossi bl e t o hi t hi m. By t he t i me
you get
t o t he
pl ace he f el l he wi t l no l onger be t here. Al umi num si de covers
and f ai ri ngs of f er l i t t l e t ract i on, so once t he bi ke i s over,
i t wi l l rapi dl y
t ravel t o t he out si de.
l f you' re posi t i oned t o t he i nsi de of anot her ri der and he f al l s,
i t i s not possi bl e t o hi t hi m. The onl y except i on t o t hi s i s i n hi gh, banked
t ur ns such as at Dayt ona. Ther e t he banki ng
i s so st eep t hat t he sl i di ng
machi ne and r i der wi l l t r avel f ai r l y st r ai ght f or some di st ance,
t hen begi n a
downward course t o t he i nsi de of t he t urn. Bi ke and ri der l i t eral l y f al l down
t he hi l l because t he cor ner i ng
f or ce i s no l onger hol di ng t hem up on t he
banki ng.
Lesser banked t ur ns have a si mi l ar but somewhat
l ess dr amat i c
t endency
t o do t he same t hi ng.
Passi ng on t he out si de
has i ncr eased
l i abi l i t i es because t hi s
maneuver
makes i t possi bl e t o i nt ersect t he
pat h of a f al l en ri der or
machi ne on i t s out ward swi ng.
2. Often, two-rider accidents are the result of the
t rai l i ng ri der f ol l owi ng t he l ead ri der, t he f i rst t o f al l , of f t he
t rack. One of t he concret e exampl es of t he ol d axi om,
"You
go where
you l ook. "
I t i s very upset t i ng t o have someone f al l of f i n f ront of
you and
i t can
possi bl y be danger ous t o you.
Al l t oo of t en, t he t r ai l i ng r i der wi l l
wat ch t he f al l en one and go down wi t h hi m. Perhaps i t i s because t he f al l en
r i der i s now havi ng a mor e i nt er est i ng r i de, per haps i t i s t he danger . l t may
be
j ust
mor bi d cur i osi t y. What ever t he r eason, t he si mpl e sol ut i on i s t o not
l ook at t he f al l en r i der . Cont i nue goi ng wher e you had or i gi nal l y i nt ended
and t here i s l i t t l e possi bi l i t y of becomi ng ent angl ed wi t h hi m.
3. l f you
become i nvol ved wi t h wat chi ng t he ri der i n
f ront of you, passi ng becomes very di f f i cul t . Spend your at t ent i on
on t hat ri der and you
are not spendi ng i t on where you are goi ng-your
$
1 O bi l l has not expanded.
Al so. i f you
are l ooki ng at anot her ri der you are usi ng hi m f or
a RP and not l ooki ng at t he RPs t hat you know wi l l get you
t hrough t he
t urn. You become l ost .
Here' s some advice. and an exampfe, of riding in traffic from
t hree Ameri can mast ers: Kenny Robert s, Eddi e Lawson and Mi ke Bal dwi n.
I have seen each of t hem run near-perf ect l aps, onl y t ent hs of a second
slower than their best race laps, in very heavy traff ic.
Baldwin says he treats slower riders like trees in the woods. He
consi ders t hem st at i onary obj ect s he i s goi ng by.
Lawson suggest s t he correct procedure i s i n not l ooki ng at t he
l eadi ng ri der.
Af t er Kenny Robert s' i ncredi bl e openi ng l ap at Sears Poi nt ,
where he went f rom 32nd t o si xt h on a t rack t hat doesn' t real l y have a
st rai ght away, nobody even bot hered t o ask hi m. He obvi ousl y di dn' t
consi der t here was anyone el se t here.
rysww$i.rn!|ffit
Guys get ln trouble watching
the rlder in front. You're
aware that they' re there, but
you look at the track
Look where you want to
go, not at t he ri der you
are about t o pass.
The
at t ent i on spent on hi m i s
t he amount you
need t o
get by.
.:-. -;i -,..-ri :J. .. t' +.:--"
91
4. Fol l owi ng ot her ri ders can hel p you l earn t he t rack
l ayout when i t i sn' t cl ear t o you. Fol l owi ng t oo cl ose can be a l i abi l i t y,
but f ol l owi ng at a comf ort abl e di st ance can i mprove your
own mast ery of
a t urn. When a ri der i s out i n f ront of you he creat es a
"rol l i ng
Rp. "
Let ' s say anot her ri der i s ahead of you by 25 t o 1 OO f eet . l f t he
t rack surf ace i s hard t o see because of el evat i on changes or radi us
changes you
can know where t he t rack i s goi ng by l ocat i ng t he ot her ri der.
So l ong as he st ays on t he t rack, hi s presence
l et s you know t here i s
asphal t ahead of
you. l t gi ves you
a bet t er pi ct ure
of what you
can' t see. As
you dr aw cl oser you must t hen abandon hi m as an RP, keepi ng your
at t ent i on on your Product , Sub-Product or RPs. Does i t make sense?
Passi ng Si gnal s
I n Cal i f orni a i t i s l egal t o spl i t l anes-t o ri de bet ween t he l i nes
of cars on t he f reeway. From t hi s
pract i ce,
Cal i f orni a ri ders have l earned
t hat t he aut o dri ver al ways does somet hi ng bef ore he changes l anes. l t
may be a l ook i n t he mi rror, a t wi t ch of t he head, shoul der movement , a
gl ance t o t he r ear or a change of hand posi t i on
on t he st eer i ng wheel . I n
raci ng, a ri der of t en makes a movement , usual l y of t he head,
j ust
bef ore
changi ng di rect i ons. l t i sn' t al ways t rue and i t i sn' t 100 per cent ef f ect i ve
as i t seems t o be wi t h car dri vers, but i t does happen and you
can use i t i f
you
see i t .
Your abi l i t y t o
"read"
t he ot her ri der' s l i ne and where i t wi l l put
hi m has a l ot t o do wi t h passi ng. A ri der who i s l eaned over t he t he maxi -
mum l i mi t s of hi s machi ne i s not l i kel y t o make any r adi cal moves t owar d
t he i nsi de of t he t rack. Hi s l i ne of t ravel i s pret t y wel l set . You must be abl e
t o si ze up hi s l i ne, det er mi ne wher e i t wi l l t ake hi m, and deci de i f you can
make t he pass.
Judgi ng t he amount of space t hat you need f or a
pass i sn' t al l
t hat di f f i cul t . l t onl y t akes a l i t t l e more space t han t he wi dt h of a
doorway to pass another rider. lf you
can see that amount of space,
you can get through.wittthis hetp?
Basi cs Appl y
I n passi ng, t he basi cs of r i di ng st i l l appl y. You must spend your
at t ent i on on get t i ng around t he t rack. not on ot her ri ders. Your RPs, Sub-
Product s, Product s, what you do, t i mi ng and t he abi l i t y t o concent rat e on
t he t r ack wi l l be t he deci di ng f act or s i n who cr osses t he f i ni sh l i ne f i r st .
92
The wi dth of a common
doorway i s al l the track
that is necessary to pass.
; i
{
I
*l \
Th i s sequence represents
two seconds of ti me. A
wel l -executed pass from
the set-up through to
compl et i on.
. l
#
1.
2.
94 J .
$
ot&*.,
CHAPTER THI RTEEN
Superuise Yourself
I go into a race. on the start-
ing line, with the attitude that
I' m gonna get beat-these
guys are gonna smoke me.
Yes, Homework ls Necessary
To hel p supervi se your raci ng program, keep accurat e records
and be worki ng on some aspect of i t each t i me you go t o t he t rack. Thi s
way, you' l l be maki ng t he best use of your t i me, expensi ve t rack t i me and
of
your bi ke.
Record Your Lap Times
The first absolutely necessary record to keep is of lap times.
lap times indicate your overall base-line improvement from lap
t o l ap and race t o race. Lap t i mes t el l
you
di rect l y what your ef f ort s are
bri ngi ng i n t erms of i mprovement . When you t ry somet hi ng new, t he l ap
t i mes are a sure-f i re way of weedi ng out what i s worki ng f rom what i s not .
Keepi ng accurat e records i s not hi ng more t han keepi ng a di ary
of
your ri di ng. Deci de what
you are goi ng t o work on and make a not e of i t
i n t he book. Go t o t he t r ackwi t h a
pl an. That
pl an shoul d i ncl ude al l of
t he i nf ormat i on you have gat hered t here on
previ ous l aps. l f you haven' t
ri dden t he t rack bef ore, st art f rom t he begi nni ng, l earni ng t he course and
al l i t s pecul i ari t i es. You mi ght al so st art at t he begi nni ng of t hi s book and
go t hrough t he t rack, worki ng on t he poi nt s ment i oned i n each chapt er.
Not i ce t he const ruct i on of t he t rack i t sel f , what product s you are l i kel y
t o have f or each t urn or sect i on of t he t rack, not e what
you are doi ng i n
each, what ref erence
poi nt s you' re usi ng, or have avai l abl e t o use, how
your t i mi ng i s worki ng i n each sect i on, what deci si ons
you' re operat i ng on,
where t he barri ers are and what t o do about t hem. See what you can do t o
sl i ck up your br aki ng and shi f t i ng, or how mor e consci ous st eer i ng coul d
make
your way around the course easier. Do you agree?
lmprove Problem Areas
Pick up
your problem areas and try to better them;
leave your strong
points alone for now. A good way to check
your
96
progress on t he t rack wi l l requi re t wo good st opwat ches and a
person t o
act as t i mer. Thi s wi l l hel p you narrow down t he areas you' re worki ng on
so t hat you
can see i f you' r e gai ni ng or l osi ng t i me i n a par t i cul ar sect i on.
The t i mer shoul d be i n a
posi t i on t o see t he whol e t rack, or at l east most
of i t . The st op wat ches shoul d be t he vari et y t hat can record every l ap, or
you may use t wo or t hree si ngl e l ap t i mers.
Break the Track
Break t he t rack i nt o sect i ons and t i me each one
separat el y. You mi ght have your t i mer cl ock f rom, f or exampl e, t he st art /
f i ni sh l i ne t o Turn Three; Turn Three t o Turn Si x, t hen Turn Si x t o t he
st art / f i ni sh l i ne. The t i mer wi l l record your t i mes f or each sect i on, t hen
record the overall lap time beside it. Now you' ll know exactly r4q@Ie you
need work. I have seen, for example, Wayne Rainey-formerly a Class C dirt
t racker-run a box-st ock Kawasaki l <Zl 50 t hrough a t i ght sect i on at Wi l l ow
Spri ngs Raceway (f rom Turn Three t hrough Turn Si x) f ast er t han nat i on-
al l y-ranked ri ders on t hei r Superbi kes! Rai ney' s bi ke was equi pped wi t h
st reet Dunl ops, and t he Superbi kes ran sl i cks on wi de ri ms pl us t hey had
consi derabl y more ground cl eara nce.
lf you can also time your competition, you may find where they
are picking up time on
you and where you need to get your times down.
Your only limit is the number of watches you have and the people you have
t o run t hem. Thi s i s val uabl e, bot t om-l i ne i nf ormat i on you
can work and
think with. Should it be tried?
Work On One Thi ng At A Ti me
When you supervi se yoursel f , go out i nt endi ng t o i mprove one
t urn or one aspect of al l t he t urns, l i ke braki ng, ref erence poi nt s
or
poi nt s
of t i mi ng. When you do t hi s, don' t change anyt hi ng el se. Keep t he rest of
t he t rack and what you' re
doi ng t here t he same. Thi s wi l l gi ve you a bet t er
pi ct ure
of t he resul t s.
You can t hi nk of endl ess' t hi ngs t o do whi l e you' re
out on t he
t rack, but st i ck t o your pl an and
j ust
work on what you had i nt ended t o
from the start.
Breaking the track into
threo or more timed
secti ons pi npoi nts your
improvement.
I like the big sweepers, fast
corners. Somettmes the guys
l'm lapping go through the
slow ones faster than me.
97
Freddie (Spencer) is fearless
coming out of slow turns.
You can al so t ry t o do not hi ng. Homework i sn' t f un al l t he t i me,
so t ake a f ew l aps when you
can and
j ust
ri de. Don' t concent rat e on any
improvements. At the most, try to relax more and concentrate on your
breathing. Often, I have seen great forward surges in lap times by riders
who were i nst ruct ed t o
j ust
t ake a f ew l aps f or f un. Thi s i s t he t i me when
you
can i nt egrat e al l t he t hi ngs you were worki ng on i nt o a smoot h and
f l owi ng ri de. You go
out and ri de
j ust
l i ke you know what you' re doi ng.
Go Faster
Most riders try to go faster each time on the track.
That i s a whol e deci si on i n i t sel f t hat shoul d be reserved f or raci ng and f or
when you have done a good amount of t hi nki ng about t he t rack. Once
you' ve gone t hrough t he bori ng part s of l ooki ng and experi ment i ng t o see
what works, you are armed wi t h enough knowl edge t o make
your
deci si on
to go faster really work. Without solving some of
your
barriers and
rough spots on the track, you just
make mistakes at a higher
speed. lt has been said many times by many good riders: First do it
right, then add the speed. "Right" is what works best for you and
produces t he best l ap t i mes. Set your pl an t hen add t he speed. That ' s your
starting pface. Can
vou apply this?
Use practice
to your best advantage. lf you' re
one of the fastest
riders that day, go
out in front of the
practice
session so you won' t have to
cut through a lot of traffic. lf you' re one of the slower riders, go
out
towards the end of the group
and stay out of the distracting traffic.
Practice
:
lnformation
'=
Think
Come back from each
practice
session with informa-
tion you
can use to think with. Whether you are working on some
aspect of
your raci ng or
j ust
t aki ng a rel axed ri de, have a sol i d i dea of what
went on duri ng t he l aps you
have
j ust
run. l f you
have a hard t i me
remembering what you have
just
done, your
attention is so stuck
on something that you
don' t have enough of it left to observe
yoursel f . Thi s happens more t han we l i ke, and i t makes i t di f f i cul t t o
operat e wi t h underst andi ng. When you
can' t remember, your preci ous t en-
dol l ar' s wort h of at t ent i on i s bei ng spent t o such a degree on somet hi ng
el se t hat you onl y have t i me t o operat e. Thi s wi l l l eave you
shof t on under-
st andi ng and makes i t di f f i cul t t o t el l what works and what doesn' t .
Waste Paper, Not Track Time
Paper i s cheap-use i t t o make drawi ngs of t he t urns and t o
show yoursel f what you' re
doi ng i n t hem-make X' s and O' s on t he draw-
i ngs t o i ndi cat e t he RPs, POT, Product s and your pl an of at t ack t o get
around t he course f ast er. Draw one t urn at a t i me unl ess you have some
esses.
98
Make your own drawi ngs-don' t use t rack di agrams- What
count s i s how t he t urn l ooks t o
you. Track di agrams are f i ne f or hel p-
i ng spect at ors f i nd t hei r way t o t he grandst ands, but t hey don' t i ncl ude
camber changes, rough spot s, exact l ocat i ons of uphi l l s and downhi l l s, et c.
Track Drawings
Make your track drawings as exact as
possible, Anyone
who can ri de a mot orcycl e can make a si mpl e l i ne drawi ng of a t urn' l t
doesn' t t ake af t i st i c abi l i t y. l f you f i nd i t di f f i cul t t o make a t urn drawi ng
af t er
you' ve ri dden t he t rack, sl eepi ng t hrough art cl ass wasn' t t he
prob-
l em,
you j ust
don' t know t he t urn. Part s of i t are st i l l uncl ear t o you.
A drawing makes your thoughts one step closer to the real thing.
Paper i sn' t asphal t , but i t i s cl oser t o i t t han t he st uf f t hat t hought s are
made of . Drawi ngs get you i nvol ved i n a very di rect way wi t h what i s goi ng
on whi l e
you' re ri di ng.
Drawings bring your
thoughts one step closer
to the track. Work out
problem turns on paper.
Have you ever tried it?
TT{g BIKE uINIDADS
TOO MUCH
WHEN
E
HOI-D
lr
OrJ
OvgR-
THE CR.EST
Airlltg
Exr-r 6
*3.
CHANGE PqI SO
THAT
THE. BTKE ISN'T
AccetsennrNG
qu\TE
So H,\RD oVER..THE
OVERATL
PRDDtrCT
\S
uNCLEAR
)
Mt\Kl N&
t.AE, RDLL
ir oxr
,
AND OFtr
IN
ENTRANeE
Tn /-JJ4f*\
TuRN
**4
rs"A
V5
/
Ll TTt-g
B\T
ut{cLErS<
'
D
.
S.,b-
Frodurcts
O: POr
,or,
I
I
btr
99
' .': =r1.- =i.;A;*J:*:i,
Fast
:
Fast
You gai n more t i me i n t he f ast t urns t han you
do i n
slow ones. You will find, as every rider has, that a little faster in the fast
turns makes much more difference than a little faster in the slow ones.
You cover more di st ance i n t he f ast t urns, whi ch bri ngs up your overal l
average f ast er. Remember, i t t akes onl y about one mph hi gher average t o
go one second f ast er per l ap. A t ypi cal sl ow t urn may be 1 O0- 1 50 f eet i n
l engt h, whi l e a f ast one may be 300 t o 900 f eet or more. That i s a l arger
part of t he t rack i n whi ch your
average can be hi gher.
Racer' s Tool s
(1
)
Look at your ri di ng f rom t he st andpoi nt t hat you i nt end t o
i mprove.
(2)
Set yoursel f l ap-t i me t arget s f or t he day.
(3) Make sure you
come of f t he t rack wi t h i nf ormat i on
you
can use.
(4)
Make every
pract i ce
sessi on count even more by worki ng on a paf t i cul ar poi nt whi l e you' re
ri di ng. (5)
Don' t become di scouraged.
(6) Read over t he mat eri al i n t hi s
book agai n af t er
you have ri dden. l t wi l l make more sense t o you t hen.
Can you see it working
for you?
100
A page
from Wayne
Rai ney' s not ebook.
: i
g
"dx,?Eoop
NE^gEl,{
"ff
ffiP-.s"sN
Jilt?
iiii
EFFoRE
rHe-
Rep
Cor'oe
'
THEN :L
Do\N'N
SH\
FT
iiii cN r
THEN
s-rART
tlovirla
N\Y-eenr
ovER
it
151N\RD=
riHE
Lr=trT AND"G\N
LEF-
' TF\EN
5-
i*
3TART
Rcuur\JQ
THE
t\rRorn:=
BA.K
oN
\N
-niE.
iiii
cENTER
cF'fir
coR\rER/s-rn.rl-|,ENtts&
LEtrt
iiii AND GRADu\LLY
RN\S\
NA
rft grg t-tP>-fR\lGHr'
li+
T\it*
Bo*lo
'tHF
sHoRT sHurE
INTD
TURN
T1AJO
fii As
s APPROAC\{ TUR\r
TWb x:
sTART-ro
LEAN
:;i;i;i;
iu Rrc*Ht
\Bcur
trlVE
F.=gr FRoM
THE
c!"rrslDE'
i:r
SDGE
OF THE
TRACK,
RouurNe ThE
fHRDTTI-E
i
\/a
cFF/
LEANTIsG Rrei-l-r AND Gor\lG
-rHRu
r$rz
. ce'uree oF
THF
TURN AtrotlT
s/q
THRDTTLE
'
AS
1i1+En-reN sfARrS
T0 T\GI-trE\r
yPr:
ROL\-
THg
-11*R,DT11-F
otJ uelsl\N&
T!\E-
B\K-E
1OWAKDS
n*E
INSIDE
PoLE .
IHEN
s
A{'\ GolNq'
STgqlq*t'
tURt\l
TIARSE
IS
A*PPROA,CAITJG
'
g
SHTIT
OtrF
T1+g-
'n+ROt-r\-E-,
Db\)NS\+\FT
OIJE
GEA[<
Af
-Tl+F.-
t<e>
coNg. AnD
Trrpx
rHe
FT\oNr
AJI)
Qg,qg
gg6g.Es,
LEN)
LEtrT
At{D
RDt.t-
T1+E
TT+ROTTI.
BACI<
6N AS
-THE
LI]SES
\T5
BNxn<rsG-
SV
-lrhEN
S'f"f
SIRA\G*\T
T?^^
I
H'J;H16'
{i.-"-
\xrr-?
-ruRN
rc\^r<'
= AT'\
ii ON T1*E
INS\DE
P6UE AS:tr
ELT{rIEI<THE
a , \ a . , \
T\.1RN, ROuursG
THE
q5S
BAo'
CN,
I
AM
FNEreE{pSoMTHg-0\^TSl DEi
EDGE
otr
TFtg
cE''fiEtc.
oF Trtg
coRxlE-R"
AxlO f*exr
:tr
AM
LEANIINQ rf
OVgR
\+AR>
I=oe, THE-
Ex tT OF
I_HE
\1JRN} .
liii::::ii:ii:
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Advice
l'm not one for giving out
advice. I don't want to give it
away. especially at the track
or race oaY wnen someone
has a particular questron. But
I wont screw a guy up and
give him wrong or dangerous
advrce.
You are tho one who hae
to ride the track. A
nickel' s worth of bad
advice could cost a lot
more
($1Ol on t he t rack.
102
Ask Your Best Friend: You
One word of advi ce about peopl e gi vi ng you advi ce about
your ri di ng-you are your
best advi sor. You' re t he one si t t i ng i n t he sad-
dl e and ri di ng. No one has bet t er i nf ormat i on about what i s goi ng on i n
your
head than
you. Deal with yeg! own decisions, y9!rr barriers,
ysgf products and reference points, yggg points of timing and
at t ent i on-not someone el se' s.
Sort lt Out for Yourself
The way your ri di ng l ooks t o someone besi de t he t rack has
not hi ng t o do wi t h how you are t hi nki ng about i t . I n t he end you have t o
sort i t out f or yoursel f . Anot her ri der' s l i ne, even i f he goes f ast er t han you,
mi ght not be t he correct one f or you. I nf ormat i on can be val uabl e, but you
have t o wat ch where i t ' s comi ng f rom and who' s gi vi ng i t . Ot her ri ders are
, cf t en
operat i ng f rom t hei r own f al se i nf ormat i on. Pi ck i t up and
you wi l l t ry
t o make i t work, t oo. l t can wast e your t i me and energy.
I have t ri ed not t o gi ve you
advi ce about ri di ng i n t hi s mat eri al -
i nst ead, I ' ve t ri ed t o expl ai n what happens whi l e you' re on a mot orcycl e,
and what a ri der must t hi nk of when speed and
preci si on are i mport ant .
lt's your job
to decide how they apply to you.
How do you feel about it?
Behind the race face, the
gl are of concent rat i on.
Pumpi ng up t he adrena-
l i n or goi ng over hi s pl an?
w
"w
w
:t
CHAPTER FI FTEEN
How to Fall
Relax-You're J ust Road
-Testing
Your Leathers
Three really important factors about falling off a motorcycle
are: What you do when t he t i me comes t o unl oad-How
you keep t hi s bad
si t uat i on f rom get t i ng worse-and How you f eel about t he busi ness of
f al l i ng of f .
Be Willing to Fall Off
Let' s consider the third factor first. As a racer,
you should be
Wt!.!ng
to fall off . You don' t have to
Wan!
to, but being willing to is very
di f f erent , and i t has t o do wi t h
your at t i t ude about f al l i ng. l f you ri de a
mot orcycl e-and especi al l y i f you race one-f al l i ng i s an act i vi t y
you' re
l i kel y t o become i nvol ved wi t h. l t goes wi t h t he t erri t ory of ri di ng. l f you
resist falling,
you are more likely to fall. This is the key-it works very
si mi l arl y t o a t arget f i xat i on. That ' s where you l ook at an obj ect
you don' t
want t o hi t , t hen become so f i xat ed on t he t hreat t hat
you don' t l ook f or a
way out and hi t i t anyway. Fal l i ng i s si mi l ar i n t hat t he more
you resi st i t -or
f i xat e on t he i dea of not f al l i ng-t he more i t wi l l t ake your at t ent i on away
from
your riding. You can spend
your entire ten-dollar' s worth of attention
resisting falling, then because
you have no attention left to operate the
machi ne, f al l f rom a mi st ake.
Here agai n i s t he magi c of t he deci si on. You si mpl y deci de
t hat
you mi ght f al l of f and accept t hat i t can happen. at any t i me. anywhere.
You have t o l ook at i t and say,
"okay, I can f al l of f one of t hese t hi ngs. I
mi ght br eak a bone or have a hel l of a sl i de, or l j ust mi ght di e doi ng i t . "
Al l of t hese t hi ngs can and do happen t o mot orcycl e ri ders. So, get i t out
of t he way by t aki ng a l ook at i t and t hen maki ng
your deci si on f rom t here.
I woul dn' t advi se raci ng t o anyone who wasn' t wi l l i ng t o f al l down.
Fal l i ng Insurance
No one want s t o f al l down, but once
you' ve done i t and i t
comes out al ri ght , f al l i ng i sn' t as f earsome any more. Your best
insurance against falling is to not resist it.
lf you do fall, however, here' s how to come out of it with the
l east amount of damage t o your body:
Let Go
1. Let go
of t he bi ke: l t i s much l arger and heavi er t han you
and very l i kel y t o t ravel f urt her down t he road t han you wi l l . l f you' re hol d-
i ng ont o i t , you' re goi ng al ong f or t he ri de. You want t o mi ni mi ze your
mot i on so
your new l eat hers don' t get hol es ground t hrough t hem. Mot or-
cycl es have hard t hi ngs st i cki ng out t hei r si des t hat can cat ch on t he
ground and send t hem rol l i ng and doi ng endos. l f you' re
st i l l at t ached t o
the bike,
you' ll do the same. When
you let go, the difference between
your
wei ght and t he bi ke' s wi l l general l y drop you of f at some ot her pl ace.
2. Rel ax: l f you l ose i t ,
j ust
rel ax. Don' t do anyt hi ng. The act of
rel axi ng wi l l usual l y get you away f rom t he bi ke. l f you ext end your arms or
l egs t o t ry t o break
your
f al l , you wi l l be provi di ng yoursel f wi t h a pi vot t hat
can send
you f l yi ng or t umbl i ng. When your body' s ri gi d i t ' s easi er t o break
t hi ngs. l f you' re rel axed, ski ddi ng al ong l i ke a rag dol l , i t ' s more di f f i cul t
to break bones.
- : Gl
,61
.." ri .
..1"
'!.
r:
'$,,i'
tu.,'
t*'$js
In a fall, let go. Motor-
cycles are out of your
control once they begin
to slide on the sidecov-
ers. Hol di ng on wi l l
extend your tri p.
Rel axi ng compl etel y wi l l
spread out any impact
and help protect against
broken bones. Scuff up
a lot of the leatherc a lat-
tle bit, not scuff a little
part a lot.
lfl,*,,'**
xh*
t!*fwl$xx*"";
;i$sii*c$$1ffi*Sa**
Rel axi ng al so put s more surf ace area ont o t he ground and
spreads t he i mpact over a l arger area. For exampl e, i f you wei gh 1 50
pounds
and f al l on
your pal m, t hat t hree square i nches of
your pal m wi l l
t ake a f orce of about 50 pounds per
square i nch f rom t he f al l al one-t he
f orce of t hat i mpact wi l l i ncrease great l y wi t h t he speed. l f you l and on
your back, arms and l egs i nst ead, you' re f al l i ng ont o a coupl e square f eet
whi ch bri ngs t he l oad
per
square i nch down bel ow one
pound. A
pound
dropped on
your hand wi l l hurt a l i t t l e bi t . Fi f t y pounds
dropped on your
hand wi l l hur t l i ke hel l .
Relaxing spreads the impact over a larger area. This is
one of t he t echni ques used by st unt men and mart i al art s
peopl e t o l essen
t he possi bi l i t i es
of
pai n and damage t o t hei r bodi es.
Probabl y everyone has heard of except i onal si t uat i ons where
t he ri der sl i des out , t hen cl i mbs on t op of t he bi ke and wai t s f or i t t o st op.
He never t ouches t he ground and i s unhurt . You deci de i f you want t o t ry
t hi s, but underst and t hat t he worst ki nd of f al l i s when t he bi ke i s sl i di ng
al ong and somet hi ng cat ches whi ch f l i ps i t over on t he ot her si de. l f you' re
st i l l hangi ng on- you
get l aunched. Thi s i s cal l ed
" hi gh- si di ng" when
you' re t hrown over t he hi gh si de of a bi ke i n a t urn.
"Low-si di ng"
i s when
t he bi ke i s l eani ng over and t he t i res wash out , droppi ng i t st rai ght down.
Stop Before Standing
One ot her i mport ant aspect of f al l i ng i s t hat somet i mes
you
can' t tell when you' ve
stopped. Strange as this may seem, it' s true. When
you f al l , i t upset s t he i nner-ear f l ui d t hat governs your sense of bal ance
and motion. You can think
you are actually stopped while still
sl i di ng al ong at 1OO mph. l t can make f or an exci t i ng t i me i f you deci de
t o st and up bef ore t he sl i di ng has st opped. l t has happened t o me and
l ' ve seen i t happen t o ot her ri ders. You wi nd up t aki ng 1 5-f oot st ri des
down the track, and
you look like a kangaroo. To avoid this, count to three
when you t hi nk you have st opped, t hen l ook around t o see i f t he sky and
ground are where they' re supposed to be. Some examples?
Practice Falls
As I mentioned,
you prepare for the possibility of falling by
rel axi ng. Here' s an exerci se t o hel p you
do t hat :
1. Stand up in the middle of a carpeted room, or use a
gym t hat ' s equi pped wi t h wrest l i ng mat s.
2. Ext end bot h your arms t o t he si des t o shoul der hei ght '
3. Command t hem t o rel ax and
j ust
l et t hem f al l . l f you not i ce
any resi st ance i n your muscl es af t er
you have made t he command, do i t
over unt i l your arms
j ust
f l op down t o
your
si des.
4. St and i n t he mi ddl e of t he r oom and command
your whol e
body t o rel ax. Just l et go of i t and l et i t f al l . l f you do i t honest l y
your l egs
wi l l buckl e f i rst and
you won' t f al l st rai ght f orward or st rai ght backwards-
you' l l crumpl e t o a heap on t he f l oor. Do i t unt i l
you can compl et el y rel ax
106
your body on command.
l f you want t o be creat i ve wi t h t hi s dri l l you can do i t on sof t
mat s whi l e wal ki ng or r unni ng. You can al so do i t on a t r ampol i ne. The
i mport ant t hi ng i s t o rel ax t he body on command so i t wi l l f al l rel axed and
spread the impact over a large area. I have road-tested this technique at
over 1 30 mph and can personally testify that for most motorcycle acci-
dent s
you' l l have a much bet t er chance of avoi di ng i nj ury i f you hi t t he
ground relaxed. Do you agree?
After A Fall
lf you try to dodge oncoming traffic, there is a greater
chance
you' ll be hit. Look at it from the point
of view of the other riders-
t hey have a chance t o avoi d
you i f you st ay i n one spot . l f you' re up and
movi ng i n a pani c, t hey don' t know whi ch way you' l l run. l f you' re st opped,
t hey have somet hi ng t o avoi d. Al so, i t ' s much bet t er t o have a l eg run over
by anot her mot orcycl e t han t o be hi t by one whi l e you' re st andi ng up.
A pl an of act i on, such as rel axi ng when you f al l of f , i s l i ke wear-
i ng a hel met . You don' t need i t unt i l you hi t t he road, t hen you real l y need
i t . Bei ng wi l l i ng t o f al l of f wi l l hel p keep you of f t he ground; knowi ng how
t o do i t can mi ni mi ze your i nj uri es.
A motorcycle and rider
wi l l wi den t hei r arc of
travel after a craeh,
except in heavily banked
t urns.
107
CHAPTER SI XTEEN
Sponsorship
There ls No Free Lunch
l ' l l get t o t he ni t t y of sponsorshi p ri ght away: you need one of
t hree t hi ngs-or al l t hree-t o get sponsorshi p support .
1 . Know someone who i s i n a posi t i on t o sponsoryou.
2. Work hard promot i ng yoursel f and cover every
possi bl e
sponsor.
3. Be so good at raci ng t hat ot her peopl e want you
on t hei r
t eam carryi ng t hei r st i ckers and l eat hers.
A P.R. Worl d
In most cases,
people want to sponsor riders they like.
Somet i mes, t hat ' s more i mport ant t han your abi l i t y t o ri de, but usual l y i t
j ust
hel ps a l ot . Your pot ent i al
sponsor may pi ct ure you on t he wi nner' s
st and at Dayt ona sayi ng great t hi ngs about hi m. He may
j ust pi ct ure you
at
t he cl ub races sayi ng good t hi ngs about hi s product t o ot hers. Are you t he
ki nd of person t hat ot hers bel i eve? Your sponsor-or pot ent i al sponsor-
must underst and one t hi ng i f he i s t o be at al l successf ul . We l i ve i n a
P. R.
(publ i c
rel at i onsl worl d and good P. R. hel ps. l f you j ust
expect
t o be a cl ub racer and not hi ng f urt her, t hi s doesn' t excl ude
you f rom t he
f rui t s of sponsorshi p. Local raci ng has been t he spawni ng ground f or
some of the most successf ul product lines evar. Have you noticed this?
His Honor, The Racer
Racers are opi ni on l eaders i n t hei r f i el ds. That f i el d i s mot or-
cycling. Throughout racing history, the majority of
products that are sport-
or
performance-related have shown up on the race track, then on many
street bikes.
lf you have raced and have frienos, you will notice that your
credi bi l i t y has i ncreased among t hem. Your f ri ends and t hei r f ri ends are
dependi ng on you t o gi ve t hem t he hot t i p on perf ormance part s and even
on what bi ke t o buy. An opi ni on l eader i s somewhat of a cel ebri t y. You, as a
racer, must f ul f i l l t he requi rement s of a cel ebri t y. l f you have any success i n
108
raci ng, be wi l l i ng t o answer endl ess
quest i ons about mot orcycl es. Your
sponsor shoul d underst and t hat you are wi l l i ng t o promot e hi s product s.
When you are a great racer, nobody wi l l expect
you t o do any of t hi s
because
you wi l l have become overpai d and cocky. Not real l y-but t he
wi nni ng wi l l be f i rst
pri ori t y.
The basi s f or sponsorshi p, whet her
you are a
good racer or not ,
i s t he exchange
you can make wi t h t he sponsor. What can
you do f or hi m
and what i s he goi ng t o do f or you?
Deci de, Pl an and Do!
It' s up to
you to decide upon and sellto your potential
sponsors t he exact
pl an you have f or get t i ng hi s name out i nt o t he worl d i n
t he best possi bl e l i ght . Pl an f or act i vi t i es such as arrangi ng f or art i cl es,
maki ng your pi t area i nt o a sof t of mi ni t rade show f or hi s product s, show-
i ng hi m t hat you have a sphere of i nf l uence, poi nt i ng
out t hat raci ng i s-
and has been-good
promot i on, and anyt hi ng el se you can dream up t o
show hi m how i t wi l l benef i t hi m. Then do i t t
Keep your sponsor informed of what you' re
doing, or
propose
t hat you wi l l i nf orm hi m. Take pi ct ures, wri t e l et t ers and keep hi m up
to date. Can you
do it?
Proposals
Proposal s shoul d be wel l -organi zed and l ook prof essi onal . l f
you
out l i ne a great season of promot i on and show up wi t h a di rt y or di sor-
gani zed proposal , he wi l l see t hrough i t f rom t he st art . He won' t be conf i -
dent t hat you
are t he consci ent i ous, wel l -organi zed person he needs t o do
t he
j ob.
You must begi n t o t hi nk of yoursel f as an empl oyee of a
company in which you own shares of stock.
Don' t
promise anything you can' t deliver. Thinr out the year
Step One is ge(tlng the
sponsor. Step Two is
spreadi ng hi s name
around. Step Three i s
wi n, wi n, wi n.
ahead and wri t e up a
pl an you
can act ual l y carry out . The number of com-
pani es t hat wi l l pay you
t o run st i ckers at t he amat eur l evel i s dwi ndl i ng
and has al most di sappeared. Don' t base a sponsorshi p package on t he f act
you wi l l run hi s st i ckers on
your
bi ke. Too many ri ders wi l l run st i ckers f or
a quart
of oi l or
j ust
f or f un. Desi gn your package
so i t wi l l st and on i t s own
whet her you have st i ckers on t he bi ke or not . Propose t o make yoursel f
availabf e for promotional
activities. eny thoughts on this?
The Year Ahead
The most important part of any sponsorship package is one
t hat you
and
your
sponsor must bot h be wel l aware of . I have seen i t over-
l ooked count l ess t i mes wi t h unf ort unat e resul t s. At t he begi nni ng of t he
year
compani es are l ooki ng around t o see how t hey wi l l spend t hei r pro-
mot i on dol l ars. They are ent husi ast i c and expect t hat t he comi ng
year
wi l l
be good. They have dol l ars t hat t hey f eel compel l ed t o spend. The adver-
t i si ng peopl e ar e pumpi ng t hem up f or t he comi ng season. l t i s wi nt er and
t he grass wi l l be greener i n t he spri ng. You go i n wi t h a good proposal
and
everyt hi ng l ooks ri ght . You' re pumped, t he company i s goi ng t o gi ve you
$5OO
and al l t he product you
can use. l t wi l l be a hel p.
The season begi ns and you go about promot i ng
t he
product
as you
sai d you woul d. When t he season ends, you go back t o your
spon-
sor to see about next year
and he says,
"What
did you do for me this year?"
You t al ked up t he product
and spent a l ot of t i me keepi ng up
your
commi t -
ment , but now i t al l sl i ps away f rom you
and i t seems pet t y t o ment i on
each t i me you t al ked t o a group of ri ders on t he Sunday ri de t o
pump
hi s
product ,
each t i me you
caref ul l y pl aced st i ckers on t he
j ohn
wal l s, every
t i me you got someone t o bel i eve you about i t .
Here' s the Deal
lf the sponsor spends money on
you,
he had better be
wi l l i ng t o spend more money t el l i ng peopl e
about i t . Sponsorshi p
i s a t wo-way st reet . You don' t get somet hi ng f or not hi ng and nei t her does
he. l t t akes an ef f ort on bot h of your part s t o get t he word out . On t he cl ub
l evel he shoul d be suppl yi ng you wi t h banners and pi ns
and st i ckers t o
give
away, and maybe an ad in
Qycte
ftletyS to commemorate your good
perf ormance. A race program
ad, f or i nst ance, hel ps hi m get hi s name out
and al so makes you
bet t er known at t he same t i me. The sponsor bui l ds hi s
ri der and hi s product at t he same t i me. l t ' s a P. R. worl d, and t he more t hey
see of you and the product, the better P.R. it is. You' ve got to have your
sponsor agree to back you
throughout the year-win,
lose or draw.
l f t he sponsor won' t back
you i n t hi s way, f i nd anot her spon-
sor. Your guy doesn' t underst and what he i s sponsori ng you f or i n t he f i rst
pl ace, and you wi l l l ose hi m when he l oses hi s i ni t i al ent husi asm. At t he
end of t he year, i f he has used hi s resources t o put you and hi s
product
out
t here, he won' t ask you what you
di d f or hi m-he wi l l know. As ri ders, we
have t o el i mi nat e t hi s i dea t hat t here i s some ki nd of magi c t hat goes al ong 110
with racing. A win-or lots of wins-will not do anything for the sponsor.
lt wilf be his follow-up that gets the word out. Do you
set
it?
Your P.R. Program
Even without a bunch of first places you
can still do plenty
to
make yoursel f
known. Raci ng i s st i l l such an unknown quant i t y-i n
t he U. S.
especi al l y-t hat you
can promot e yoursel f
on l at e-ni ght radi o t al k shows,
publ i c-access TV and t aki ng part i n ci vi c-mi nded act i vi t i es duri ng t he of f -
season such as t al ki ng t o boys' cl ubs. St art a
"Get
raci ng of f t he st reet s
and ont o t he t rack" program t hat mi ght save a l i f e or make a racer of
someone. You can even pl ug your
sponsor here. Local newspapers are
al ways hungry t o f i l l space wi t h st ori es about l ocal peopl e. You can go i nt o
one of t hem wi t h t he same ci vi c-mi nded approach and i t woul d be di f f i cul t
f or t hem t o t urn you down. Urge ot her ri ders t o do t he same. l t may seem
you' re
shari ng t he spot l i ght , but i n t he end i t makes raci ng more popul ar,
which gives sponsors a better reason to participate.Any
examptes?
Satel l i te Sponsorshi p
Your key t arget i s one wel l -known sponsor. Thi s al l ows your
ot her sponsors somet hi ng t o i dent i f y wi t h, somet hi ng l arger t o be con-
nect ed wi t h t han
j ust
Joe Smi t h, racer. They revol ve around and bask i n
t he l i ght of t he bet t er-known cent ral sponsori ng company. The possi bl e
advant ages of bei ng a sat el l i t e l i nked t o a l arge company wi t h a mul t i -
mi l l i on-dol l ar advert i si ng budget i s very appeal i ng t o t he smal l er busi ness-
man. You are doi ng hi m a f avor by l i nki ng hi m wi t h your
cent ral sponsor.
For exampl e, when a new man i s si gned ont o a f act ory t eam,
i n many cases he i s st i l l an unproven ri der-hi gh pot ent i al
obvi ousl y, but
he has not yet
won any races. st i l l , a new t eam ri der f or any f act ory has
l i t t l e di f f i cul t y i n f i ndi ng sponsors t hat wi l l pay handsomel y f or a pat ch
on
t he l eat hers. The sponsor i s now connect ed t o t he f act ory t eam and t he
f act ory advert i si ng campai gns. The ri der, i n t hi s case, i s of secondary
i mport ance. The sponsor may pay t he ri der
$b, ooo
f or praci ng t he pat ch
or
st i ckers, but t he f act ory may use phot os
i n mi l l i ons of dol l ars wort h of ads,
posters
and promotional
items. Some examples?
Bi g Fi sh
Landi ng a bi g sponsor can be usef ul i n hel pi ng you gat her
sat el l i t e sponsors. Goi ng t o a bi g company wi t h a smal l , but ef f ect i ve pl an
t hat wi l l not drai n t he promot i onal
budget can be of more val ue t o you t han
i s goi ng i n wi t h an expensi ve program
t hat may be t urned down. l t i s st i l l
t he same i dea as above. Large compani es l i ke t o get bargai ns, t oo, and t he
smal l er company f eel s connect ed. Remember, your
cont ract t erms may be
kept conf i dent i al i f you
choose so t he ot her sponsors you approach don' t
know whether you are getting
$1O,OOO or
$100.
Keep it that way.
*afu-*. ,;,.;a+oj.
- -
111
-, ; - -!,+Ae:,:., :.;:*:;Ittii.it
Where To Fish
The si ze of t he pond you f i sh i n f or sponsors i s i mport ant . A
f act ory i s a l arge f i sh i n a l arge pond, worl dwi de. They have t he money t o
buy t he best . l f you are not t he best -yet -st art f i shi ng i n a smal l er
pond t o
begi n wi t h. You may onl y get a set of shocks f rom your l ocal accessory
store, but that now makes you appear connected to something larger. You
are a sat el l i t e and revol ve around
your sponsor as wel l . l f you can do a
great
j ob
of
promot i ng t he shocks t here mi ght be some
gas money t he
next t i me you t al k t o t he sponsor. Pl ast er t hei r name over everyt hi ng
you
can, and even spend money on
your own t o pri me t he pump. (l t makes you
l ook l i ke you' re get t i ng more f rom your sponsor, and a new sponsor wi l l
expect t o pay more f rom what he has seen i n t he past . ) Move up t he spon-
sor l adder one si ze
pond at a t i me. You may even st art i n a l arge
puddl e,
but at least it is wet. Does this apply to you?
Over the Limit
Once
you begi n t o cat ch sponsors, don' t go over t he l i mi t -
t hrow back t he smal l ones. l f you
come out on race day wi t h 30 st i ckers on
your
bi ke and l eat hers, your sponsor may have t o ask where hi s name i s.
Pi ck t he best sponsor and make hi m t he cent ral f i gure, t hen don' t crowd
your
space. A few sponsors, three to f ive, still allow everyone to get his
share of exposure wi t hout f eel i ng l ost . Thi nk of your own t i me al so. You
won' t be abl e t o do as good a
j ob promot i ng 10 product s as you wi l l wi t h
onl y t hree.
That' s Show Bi z
Sponsorshi p i s t he busi ness end of t he raci ng
game. l t has
l i t t l e or not hi ng t o do wi t h t he ri di ng i t sel f except f or one very i mport ant
thing: having enough money to operate
your program buys
you
t i me t o concent rat e on
yoursel f as a ri der. Spendi ng al l your t i me
doi ng your j ob
t o make money f or raci ng can get very ol d, very f ast . l f you
coul d spend ei ght hour s each day on
your r i di ng ski l l s r at her t han wor ki ng
on
your
bi ke or at t he
j ob, you woul d see some dramat i c i mprovement s.
One of t he ori gi nal i deas of sponsorshi p was t o l et ski l l ed art -
i st s and craf t smen have t he t i me t o creat e t hei r work. Use
your
sponsor-
ship to create
yourself as a better rider.
Treat sponsors i n a busi ness-l i ke and f ri endl y manner.
I ncreased sal es i s t hei r bot t om l i ne. Keep t he busi ness separat e f rom your
ri di ng, but don' t f orget t hat i t i s part of t he t hree mai n f act ors f or success.
They are: Good ri di ng, good equi pment and good sponsors.
112
Factory Rides
Sponsorshi p al so bri ngs about t he possi bi l i t y
of a f act ory ri de.
The f act ori es, and t he peopl e t hey l i st en t o, are very good
at spot t i ng who
has t he pot ent i al t o
be a t op-not ch ri der.
A word of caut i on: even t hough i t has become ever more
popul ar
t o t ake drugs i n t hi s soci et y, t hi s i s somet hi ng t hat smart t eam
managers are on the lookout for. Riders who have a reputation for partying
are not bei ng l ooked on wi t h f avor. Drugs are l i ke a decreasi ng-radi us t urn
-t hey
f ool you i nt o goi ng i n t oo f ast , t hen make i t very hard f or you
t o get
out .
I n cl osi ng on t he subj ect of sponsorshi p, a wri t t en agreement
i s al ways i n order. l f you
obt ai n sponsorshi p, get t he t erms i n wri t i ng-at
l east unt i l you
see how each ot her operat es. Somet i mes i t ' s bet t er t o pay
f or suppl i es t han t o get t hem wi t h i nvi si bl e st ri ngs at t ached. Herei n l i es a
great
truth: lt often costs more to get things free than it does to
pay f or t hem. Keep up your
agreed-upon exchange wi t h your
sponsor
and i t shoul d work out f i ne.
Taking drugs and racing is
crazy. I don't want to nde
with those guys and usually
I don' t have to.
From your
sponaor you
get mon6y and stickers,
etc. Money is payment
for how well you
expose
the stickers and his
name. Magazi ne phot os
real l y pump-up
sponsors.
9{tstof
$ovgord
d
sFffi
d^6
stt$s$s\s\\
113
A Parting Word
Many t hi ngs have not been i ncl uded i n t hi s book because t hey
do not have t o do wi t h t he act ual ri di ng of a mot orcycl e. Track saf et y
i nf ormat i on, machi ne preparat i on
and ot her val uabl e dat a are not i n my
area. Much of t hi s has al ready been covered i n t he publ i cat i on "How t o
Fl y" by Joe Zi egl er, who runs t he Pengui n Raci ng School at Loudon, New
Hampshi re and Bri dgehampt on, New York.
By t he same t oken, al l t here i s t o say about ri di ng i s not i n
t hese pages. The mat er i al t hat i s i ncl uded i s wor kabl e and wi l l i mpr ove
your ri di ng i f i t ' s appl i ed. l t i s meant t o be appl i ed and t o be used.
Spend your
$1O
wisely, and most of all, have fun riding!
Rider Checklist
1. Oil at Proper Level
A. Engi ne
B. Transmi ssi on
C. Chai n
D. Forks
2. Wheel s Are I n Li ne
3.
Forks Don' t Bi nd
4. Chai n Adi usted
5. Tire Pressures Are Gorrect
A. Col d Pressures Front - Rear-
B. Hot Pressures Front Rear-
6. Steeri ng Head Beari ngs Ti ght
7. Front Axl e CaP Bol ts Ti ght
8. Axl es Ti ght
9.
Wheel s Are Bal anced
1O. Gontrol s Are Comfortabl e and Usabl e
1 1 . Fork Travel Correct
(Forks shoul d not bottom out or top out)
1 2. Shock Travel Correct
(Shocks shoul d not bottom out excessi vel y
but shoul d use most of the shock
travel .)
13. Throttl e OPerates Smoothl Y
(Doesn' t sti ck, no excessi ve free pl ay.)
14. Brakes Work Wel l
A. Pads are maki ng
good contact on di sc.
B. Pads are not bi ndi ng di sc.
C. Enough
Pad
mat eri al .
15.
Ti res Have Enough Rubber
A. Unevenl y worn or st epped t i res can cause handl i ng di f f i cul t i es'
B. Ol d raci ng ti res dry out and become
"greasy' "
c. Race ti res work best when they have
j ust
been scrubbed
i n and have
pl enty
of rubber.
16. Enough Fuel
17. Master Li nk i n Pl ace
(Master
l i nk shoul d be safety wi red unl ess i t i s an endl ess chai n.)
18. Someone to Record l -aP Ti mes
Most of these i tems are not thi ngs that a techni cal i nspector l ooks at. They are
i tems that di rectl y affect
your abi l i ty to
put your equi pment
to use as a racer'
They ensure t hat
you can make i t around t he t rack wi t hout
maj or mi shaps
(enough f uel , et c. ).
(Use
t hese and make
copi es for your
notes.)
Race Day Record
O
Date
Track
Raci ng Or gani zat i on
Length of Track
Number of Turns
Weather Condi ti ons
Ambi ent Temperature
El evat i on
Cl asses to be Run
Ti res Run: Brand
Compound/ Number
Front - Rear
Rear-Col d
Rear-Hot
Rear
Ai r Correcti on -Ai r Screws
Fl oat Level - Ot her
Ti re Pressure: Front-Col d
Front-Hot
Ti re Mi l eage: Front
Jetti ng
Mai ns
Pi l ot
Sl i de
Needl e
Gasol i ne Type
Gas/ Oi l Rat i o
l gni t i on Ti mi ng
Spark Pl ug Heat Range
Cam Ti mi ng: I nt ake
Val ve Adj ustment: I ntake
Exhaust
Exhaust
Rear Sprocket
- Overal l Rati o
Gear i ng
Countershaft
Shock Dampeni ng
Front-Compressi on
-
Rebound
Spri ng Setti ngs
Front- Pre-Load
Lap Ti mes
Rea r-Compressi on- Rebou nd
Rear-Pre-Load
Practi ce
Races
Posi ti on Each Lap
Poi nt s Earned
Pri ze Money Won
Comments
Rider Ghecklist
1. Oi l at Proper Level
A. Engi ne
B. Transmi ssi on
C. Chai n
D. Forks
2. Wheels Are ln Line
3. Forks Don' t Bi nd
4. Chain Adiusted
5. Tire Pressures Are Correct
A. Col d Pressures Front - Rear-
B. Hot Pressures Front - Rear-
6. Steeri ng Head Beari ngs Ti ght
7. Front Axl e GaP Bol ts Ti ght
8. Axl es Ti ght
9. Wheel s Are Batanced
10. Controls
Are Comfortable
and Usable
1 1 . Fork Travel Correct
(Forks shoul d not bottom out ortop out)
1 2. ShockTravel
Correct
(Shocks shoul d not bottom out excessi vel y but shoul d use most of the shock
travel .)
13. Throttl e OPerates Smoothl Y
(Doesn' t sti ck, no excessi ve
free pl ay' )
14. Brakes Work Wel l
A. Pads are maki ng
good contact on di sc'
B. Pads are not bi ndi ng di sc.
C. Enough
Pad
materi al '
1 5. Ti res Have Enough Rubber
A. Unevenl y
worn or stepped ti res can cause handl i ng di ffi cul ti es'
B. Ol d raci ng ti res dry out and become
"greasy"'
C. Race ti res work best when they have
j ust
been scrubbed i n and have
pl enty
of rubber'
1 6. Enough Fuel
17. Master Li nk i n Pl ace
( Mast er | i nkshou| dbesaf et ywi r edun| essi t i sanend| esschai n. )
18. Someone
to Record l -aP Ti mes
Most of these i tems are not thi ngs that a techni cal i nspector l ooks at' They are
i tems that di rectl y affect
your abi l i ty to
put your equi pment
to use as a racer'
Theyensur et hat youcanmakei t ar oundt het r ackwi t hout maj or mi shaps
(enough f uel , et c. ).
(Use
t hese and make
copi es for your
notes.)
Race Day Record
@
Date
Track
Raci ng Or gani zat i on
Length of Track
Number of Turns
Weather Condi ti ons
Ambi ent Temperature
El evat i on
Cl asses to be Run
Ti res Run: Brand
Compound/ Number
Fr ont - Rear
Rear-Col d
Rear-Hot
Rear
Ai r Correcti on
-Ai r Screws
Fl oat Level
Ti re Pressure: Front-Col d
Front-Hot
Ti re Mi l eage: Front
Jetti ng
Mai ns Pi l ot
Sl i de
Needl e
Ot her
Gasol i ne Type
Gas/Oi l Rati o
l gni t i on Ti mi ng
Spar k Pl ug Heat Range
Cam Ti mi ng: I nt ake
Val ve Adj ustment: I ntake
Exhaust
Exhaust
Rear Sprocket
- Overal l Rati o
Geari ng
Countershaft
Shock Dampeni ng
Front-Compressi on- Rebound
Spri ng Set t i ngs
Front - Pre-Load
Lap Ti mes
Rea r-Compressi on
-
Rebound
Rear-Pre-Load
Practi ce
Races
Posi ti on Each Lap
Poi nt s Ear ned
Pri ze Money Won
Comments
Ri der Gheckl i st
1. Oi l at Proper Level
A. Engi ne
B. Transmi ssi on
C. Chai n
D. Forks
2. Wheel s Are In Li ne
3. Forks Don' t Bi nd
4. Chai n Adj usted
5. Tire Pressures Are Gorrect
A. Col d Pressures Front - Rear-
B. Hot Pressures Front - Rear-
6. Steeri ng Head Beari ngsTi ght
7. Front Axl e Cap Bol ts Ti ght
8. Axl esTi ght
9. Wheel s Are Bal anced
1O. Gontrols Are Gomfortable and Usable
1 1 . Fork Travel Gorrect
(Forks shoul d not bottom out ortop out)
1 2. Shock Travel Correct
(Shocks
shoul d not bottom out excessi vel y but shoul d use most of the shock
travel .)
13. Throttl e Operates Smoothl Y
(Doesn' t sti ck, no excessi ve free
pl ay.)
14. Brakes Work Wel l
A. Pads are maki ng good contact on di sc.
B. Pads are not bi ndi ng di sc.
C. Enough
pad materi al .
15. Ti res Have Enough Rubber
A. Unevenl y worn or st epped t i res can cause handl i ng di f f i cul t i es.
B. Ol d raci ng t i res dry out and become
"greasy. "
C. Race ti res work best when they have
j ust
been scrubbed i n and have
pl enty
of rubber.
1 6. Enough Fuel
17. Master Li nk i n Pl ace
(Mast er l i nk shoul d be saf et y wi red unl ess i t i s an endl ess chai n. )
18. Someone to Record l -aP Ti mes
Most of these i tems are not thi ngs that a techni cal i nspector l ooks at. They are
i tems that di rectl y affect
your abi l i ty to put your equi pment to use as a racer.
They ensure t hat you can make i t around t he t rack wi t hout maj or mi shaps
(enough f uel , et c. ).
(Use these and make
copi es for your notes.)
Race Day Record
@
Date
Track
Raci ng Or gani zat i on
Length of Track
Number of Turns
Weather Condi ti ons
Ambi ent TemPerature
El evati on
Cl asses to be Run
Ti res Run: Brand
Compound/Number
Front - Rear
Rear-Col d
Rear-Hot
Air Correction -Air Screws
Fl oat Level Other
Ti re Pressure: Front-Col d
Front-Hot
Ti re Mi l eage: Front
Jetti ng
Mai ns
Pi l ot
Sl i de
Needl e
Gasol i ne Type
Gas/ Oi l Rat i o
l gni t i on Ti mi ng
Spar k Pl ug Heat Range
Cam Ti mi ng: I nt ake
Val ve Adj ustment: I ntake
Exhaust
Exhaust
Rear Sprocket- Overal l Rati o
Geari ng
Countershaft
Shock Dampeni ng
Front-Com
pressi on
-
Rebound
Spri ng Setti ngs
Rea r-Compressi on
-
Rebound
Rear-Pre-Load
Front- Pre-Loao
Lap Ti mes
Practi ce
Races
Posi t i on Each LaP
Poi nts Earned
Pri ze Money Won
Comment s
Ri der Gheckl i st
1. Oil at Proper Level
A. Engi ne
B. Transmi ssi on
C. Chai n
D. Forks
2. Wheel s Are In Li ne
3. Forks Don' t Bi nd
4. Ghain Adjusted
5. Tire Pressures Are Gorrect
A. Col d Pressures Front- Rear-
B. Hot Pressures Front- Rear-
6. Steering Head Bearings Tight
7. Front Axl e Gap Bol ts Ti ght
8. Axl es Ti ght
9. Wheel s Are Bal anced
1O. Controls Are Gomfortable and Usable
1 1 . Fork Travel Gorrect
(Forks
shoul d not bottom out or top out)
1 2. ShockTravel Gorrect
(Shocks shoul d not bottom out excessi vel y but shoul d use most of the shock
t ravel . )
13. Throttl e Operates Smoothl y
(Doesn' t
sti ck, no excessi ve free
pl ay.)
14. Brakes Work Wel l
A. Pads are maki ng good contact on di sc.
B. Pads are not bi ndi ng di sc.
C. Enough pad materi al .
1 5. Ti res Have Enough Rubber
A. Unevenl y worn or st epped t i res can cause handl i ng di f f i cul t i es.
B. Ol d raci ng ti res dry out and become
"greasy."
C. Race ti res work best when they have
j ust
been scrubbed i n and have pl enty
of rubber.
16. Enough Fuel
17. Mast er Li nk i n Pl ace
(Master l i nk shoul d be safety wi red unl ess i t i s an endl ess chai n.)
18. Someone to Record l ap Ti mes
Most of these i tems are not thi ngs that a techni cal i nspector l ooks at. They are
i tems that di rectl y affect your abi l i ty to put your equi pment to use as a racer.
They ensure that you can make i t around the track wi thout maj or mi shaps
(enough f uel , et c. ).
(Use
these and make
copi es for your notes.)
Race Day Record
4
Date
Track
Raci ng Organi zat i on
Length of Track
Number of Turns
Weather Condi ti ons
Ambi ent TemPerature
El evati on
Cl asses to be Run
Ti res Run: Brand
Compound/ Number
Front - Rear
Rear-Col d
Rear-Hot
Air Correction -Air Screws
Float Level Ot her
Ti re Pressure: Front-Col d
Front-Hot
Ti r e Mi l eage: Fr ont
Jetti ng
Mai ns
Pi l ot
Needl e
Sl i de
Gasol i ne Type
Gas/ Oi l Rat i o
l gni t i on Ti mi ng
Spark Pl ug Heat Range
Cam Ti mi ng: l nt ake
Exhaust
Exhaust
Val ve Adj ustment : I ntake
Gear i ng
Countershaft
Shock Dampeni ng
Front-Com
pressi on- Rebound
Spri ng Setti ngs
Rear Sprocket Overal l Rati o
Rea r-Compressi on-Rebou nd
Rear-Pre-Load
Front- Pre-l oad
Lap Ti mes
Practi ce
Races
Posi t i on Each Lap
Poi nts Earned
Pri ze Money Won
Comments
Ri der Gheckl i st
Oil at Proper Level
A. Engi ne
B. Transmi ssi on
C. Chai n
D. Forks
Wheel s Are l n Li ne
Forks Don' t Bi nd
Chai n Adj usted
Tire Pressures Aro Gorract
A. Col d Pressures Front- Rear-
B. Hot Pressures Front- Rear-
Steeri ng Head Beari ngs Ti ght
Front Axl e Cap Bol ts Ti ght
Axl es Ti ght
Wheel s Are Bal anced
Gontrol s Are Gomfortabl e and Usabl e
Fork Travel Gorrect
(Forks shoul d not bottom out or top out)
Shock Travel Correct
(Shocks shoul d not bottom out excessi vel y but shoul d use most of the shock
t ravel . )
Throttle Operates Smoothly
(Doesn' t
sti ck, no excessi ve free pl ay.)
Brakes Work Well
A. Pads are maki ng good contact on di sc.
B. Pads are not bi ndi ng di sc.
C. Enough pad mat eri al .
Ti res Have Enough Rubber
A. Unevenl y worn or st epped t i res can cause handl i ng di f f i cul t i es.
B. Ol d raci ng ti res dry out and become "greasy."
C. Race ti res work best when they have
j ust
been scrubbed i n and have pl enty
of rubber.
Enough Fuel
Master Li nk i n Pl ace
(Master l i nk shoul d be safety wi red unl ess i t i s an endl ess chai n.)
Someone to Record l ap Ti mes
Most of these i tems are not thi ngs that a techni cal i nspector l ooks at. They are
i tems that di rectl y affect
your abi l i ty to put your equi pment to use as a racer.
They ensure that you can make i t around the track wi thout maj or mi shaps
(enough fuel , etc.).
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
(Use these and make
copres for your notes.)
Race Day Record
@
Date
Track
Raci ng Organi zati on
Length of Track
Number of Turns
Condi t i ons Weather
Ambi ent
El evat i on
Temperature
Cl asses to be Run
Ti res Run: Brand
Compound/ Number
Front - Rear
Rear-Col d
Rear-Hot
Rear
Ai r Correcti on -Ai r Screws
Float Level Other
Ti re Pressure: Front-Col d
Front-Hot
Ti re Mi l eage: Front
Jetti ng
Mai ns Pi l ot
Sl i de Needl e
Gasol i ne Type
Gas/Oi l Rati o
l gni t i on Ti mi ng
Spar k Pl ug Heat Range
Cam Ti mi ng: I nt ake Exhaust
Exhaust Val ve Adj ust ment : I nt ake
Gear i ng
Countershaft
Shock Dampeni ng
Front-Com
pressi on- Rebou nd
Spri ng Set t i ngs
Rear Sprocket Over al l Rat i o
Rear-Compressi on
-
Rebound
Rear-Pre-Load Front- Pre-Load
Lap Ti mes
Practi ce Races
Posi ti on Each Lap
Poi nt s Ear ned
Pri ze Money Won
Comment s
DI SC<3VER THE ART
CORhIERING $CHOOL
I
Cornering is the fun...and the fear
.
Confidence comes from exact skills
.
Ride our new ZX-OR's or
your
bike
t
Learn the 15
precisicn
techniques of Pros
t
Ti med l aps...gauge your i rnprovement
I
Full ridlng
gear
available
o
World Class Cornering
r
KEITH CODF'S
CALIFORNIA SUPERBIKE SCHOOL
(818)
841-7661 Fax
(818)
841-7019
superbikeschsol.com
ffi &
l*inffffi
DsrrnoPl(awdri ffi
sqam
rc&
ry
RIDER.
:TR.AIT\TII\TG
CIASSICS
tu.
More riders and racers have used
Keith Code's books to improve their
cornering skills than any others.
They are the all time best sellers on
sport/perform a nce ridi n g.
"A Twist of the Wrist" AUDIO CD, read by Keith with dozens of NEW NOTES
and COMMENTS to clarify and add depth to this classic instruction manual.
Get it straight from the man in this brand new 4 CD set.
"The companion video that brought life to Keith's "A Twist of the Wrist" is now
available in DVD. Just like the book, the video went on to become the world's
best-selling and most widely viewed instructional tape. YOU CAN SEE lT now
in all the clarity and convenience of DVD format.
Keith Codeb Books and Video
A Twist of the Volume I
$19.9s
A Twist of the Volume 2 fln $1s.95
The Soft Science of
$t9.9s
A Twist of the Wrist Videa
$24,95
A Twist of the Wrist Audio CD
$27.95
A Twist of the Wrist DVD
s26.95
ry
|IFOBN|A SUPERBIKE SCH00L Inc.
(818)
841-7661
.
Fax:
(818)
841-7019
n i I : cornering@earth I i nk.net
J s ite : www.su p e rh i k esch o o l.co m
Shipping & Handling
(per
itenl:8.$ in the U.S.
(excluding
Alaska and Hawaiil
ffi.95 for others
(including
non-contiguous U.S.)
CA Besidents please add Sales Tax (per item): Books
$1.64 / Video $2.05.
Audio CD $2.30 / DVD $2.22
ffiw *lk:., :*;i*#i:rn: