Racing Skill

3870 Views 52 Replies 10 Participants Last post by n/a, Oct 29, 2004

n/a

Discussion Starter · Oct 25, 2004

To try and improve my lap times I sit with my eyes closed with a stop watch and run a lap through my mind. Remember to extract all the divets in the track,that one little something that you zone in on when you turn it in, brake markers, apexs, etc. Try it some time, you will be amazed at how close you are to a lap on the bike.

Champ

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jbranson

· #21 · Oct 26, 2004

Zack.. I'm 185-190 without leathers. My bike is 210 lbs. So the package is probably 40 lbs lighter than you on the Duc. Yeah that could make a difference in braking. And I'm sure in practice you weren't braking particularly hard.

Don't know about other bikes, but an extra 500 rpm coming out of 12 moves my 5th gear shift point about 150 feet closer....and I'll see that same 500 rpm extra at the end of the straight in 5th...and it means quite a bit to me there.

JohnnyB

n/a

Discussion Starter · #22 · Oct 26, 2004

My 250 weighs 230, I weigh 192, leather don't know. But I do know that weight to hp is very important.

Champ

UngaWunga

· #23 · Oct 26, 2004

quote:
In my helmet I'm thinking "what can I learn from this" The good guys have a much bigger gyroscope than I have.
-maybe a big pair of them

its all about having fun. The key to having fun is to get your comfort level up. Get the bike to handle well, get the brakes to work, get the engine to be reliable, don't race a bmw, get a decent set of tires...

Get the bike set up so its not that much of the equation anymore. Then the rest is up to you. When you're on a well prepped bike, you can be confident that if you try something new the bike won't fail you.

My bike is ugly as hell, but very functional. I'm suprised with some of the crap that shows up to a USCRA event that people expect to race and do well on.

Branson is a good example. He has a very well prepped bike which allows him to experiment, to push himself.

UngaWunga

· #24 · Oct 26, 2004

quote:
shame on all of you for not liking turns 11 and 12. that's the last gauntlet before start finish...SO important. attack that shit!

I like the exit of 12. my rd is geared so that I'm not on the pipe going through there. I can roll on the gas before flopping over to the left, and by the time I hit the transition onto the oval, the power comes on....

paced_haste

· #25 · Oct 27, 2004

quote:
I do know that weight to hp is very important.

thanks champ.

johnnyB - i wish i could compare notes on shift points, but i just shift when i think it's time. i looked at the tach coming out of 12 on my 125 once and i left a line on the wall with my boot. and a line in my shorts with, well, y'know.

aaron - i'm not sure, i think pete said around 250lbs. i don't think it's much lighter than that. i think he said the his target weight for the new short-stroke bike was 200lbs. why how much do you think it weighs? i'm not being sarcastic, i just don't know.

i couldn't help but take the BMW comment personally. i feel like there was someone who has been doing well on a BMW recently, but i can't seem to think...who was it...?

Z

n/a

Discussion Starter · #26 · Oct 27, 2004

Hey Z,

Your welcome!! Any time you need advise just ask buddy!!!

Champ

n/a

Discussion Starter · #27 · Oct 27, 2004

Hey Z,

Your welcome!! Any time you need advise just ask buddy!!!

Champ

jbranson

· #28 · Oct 27, 2004

Zack....listen to your tack.... hehe.

So there you are going through say turn 1 in 5th gear on the exit of the turn you glance down and note rpm at 10,000.

Next lap you try something a tad different, you go through turn 1 in 5th gear on the exit of the turn you glance down and note rpm at 9,800.... now you know what you just tried didn't work.

I had a problem for a while at the exit of 6, If I screwed up just the tiniest bit it would cost me a downshift on the exit. Sometimes the downshift was literally only for two seconds. After glancing at the tach a few laps I was able to tell in a split second if it would be worth it to make that downshift, or to stick it out 4th. It was literally 300-500 rpm that would make the difference.

A bit further down the track I could tell how the whole thing worked out...if I went to 5th before the treehouse it was good, after the treehouse and I screwed up.

I never watch the Tach, I'm just aware of it, just a glance... so I know when I do it right, I should be in this gear, at this rpm, at this spot. Combine that with the onboard lap timers and you find out quickly how things work. All of this is far more valuable in practice than it is in a race.... in a race my only gauge of performance is how far I am from the guy in front of me.... or the guy behind me.
JohnnyB

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jbranson

· #29 · Oct 27, 2004

Zack,
After reviewing your track video again...I think I can take you.

Both of us on RS125's... you're mine.

Ok ok... I know, in that video you aren't trying very hard.

JohnnyB

And.... ok ok..I've had few Ultrams and maybe I'm not thinking clearly.

Edited by - jbranson on Oct 26 2004 9:34:11 PM

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bfd

· #30 · Oct 27, 2004

Zack

its all about having fun. The key to having fun is to get your comfort level up. Get the bike to handle well, get the brakes to work, get the engine to be reliable, don't race a bmw, get a decent set of tires...

I think that one was for my benefit. Every time I take my BMW out on the track I am reminded of what an accomplished rider your dad is. He told me a long time ago it's a hard bike to ride fast.
The 175 I got together at the end of the season(with no small amount of help from JohnnyB) is a really fun bike to ride but reminded me of something an old music teacher told me- "if you can't play it slow you'll never be able to play it fast". It's not that the 175s are slow, as anyone can see, but that I'm going to have to focus on maintaining my corner speed and being smooth because there isn't as much behind the throttle to make up for my being sloppy.
bill

now all I need is a set of Branson pistons, a cam, Dunlops

joe c

· #31 · Oct 27, 2004

try the dunlops first, you might not need the rest til next year!

jc

UngaWunga

· #32 · Oct 27, 2004

quote:
try the dunlops first, you might not need the rest til next year!

too bad our only options for ordering them are either from Canada or some jerk down in Florida...

So, how much more expensive is it to order from Canada?

jbranson

· #33 · Oct 27, 2004

Joe,
Great advice, very true about the tires.

Bill,
If you could get the bike as light as possible and put on some tires you are very confident with you'd see lap times come down pretty steady for about a year.

Rob,
Marty Yannerilla has gone so far as to order them from the UK. I need at least three of them this winter...yuck. I got the last two from the guy in Florida...it was painless that time. It's been painful in previous attempts. Coming from Canada they aren't bad if you can find a way to get them sent without have to pay the $30 in duty tax. Some people have managed to do that, some haven't (like myself).

JohnnyB

bfd

· #34 · Oct 27, 2004

I know someone with a girlfriend in Quebec that he visits frequently. He'll bring back some tires if we like.

JB
on the 175 I'd like to get rid of my battery and I've lost 10-15 pounds off of me- the cheapest way to freeing up horsepower.

jbranson

· #35 · Oct 27, 2004

Bill,
Hopefully by next season I'll have the PVL setup for 175's figured out. I have to give Penton Imports $400 to figure out a system that will work...then I just get the part numbers off the first system and by them from Europe for half the price.
JohnnyB

bfd

· #36 · Oct 27, 2004

JohnnyB
I'd be happy to pitch in so you don't have to fund everything yourself.
Also- the set up for my 350 is still in the kitchen cabinet. Is there anything on it to use for a reference? I know the firing order is different between the two bikes
bd

jbranson

· #37 · Oct 27, 2004

Bill,
I would be curious to know the part number on the rotor, and any mounting plate.

The 175 has the exact same crankshaft taper and mounting setup as the CB350. Basically I what I need is a CB350 setup except with one stator coil and one dual outlet ignition coil.

The problem is that the various stator coils use difference numbers for windings for different applications. The stator coil used in a CB350 driving a single outlet ignition coil might not be suitable to drive the dual outlet ( lost spark) ignition coil on a 175.

I decided rather than possibly waste a few hundered ordering parts than might not work that I'd let Penton do the work and then copy what they do.
I'm hoping to be able to put together systems from European sources for about $200-250 instead of $400 from Penton. I'll let you know how it works out.
JohnnyB

imslow

· #38 · Oct 27, 2004

I'd like a set of those tirres too, which makes a sizable order for someone to want to get them to us from Canada. Keep in touch, I need em.

scott

bfd

· #39 · Oct 27, 2004

I'll take a look tonight for numbers and let you know tomorrow.
bd

jbranson

· #40 · Oct 28, 2004

I didn't want to post this photo..cause there's guys here that ...you know...kinda think they are good and all. But... here's a shot of me doing some of my typical hard braking at Shannonville.

JohnnyB

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