Two more days at Superbike School

[Mikey777 44]

Going faster can get addicting...

California Superbike School purchased a whole new fleet of 2015 BMW s1000RR's. The new model definitely has improved electronic/dynamic suspension dampening and traction control. Great place to improve your track/canyon carving skills or just have a great time on somebody else's bike with a personal coach too.

[Bagstr 287]

Let's see a photo of your '96 900, Please.

[bikeslut 1]

Looks like fun...face it; the track is the safest place to really go fast!

[KTMrad 508]

Awesome...I haven't been to a track in awhile.

[Mikey777 44]

Here is the 900 SS/SP...had less than 2,000 miles on it when I bought it a couple years ago. (It is actually a '97..96 was typo by my fat fingers)

[meatmord 0]

oh yes, this I must do.

[Mikey777 44]

A buddy and I are going to the Sept. 12 classes at Streets of Willow. Everybody starts at Level 1 and that is actually the best level...Sign up!

[meatmord 0]

Talked my boss into it. We're going to Vegas in November! Super pumped. Can hardly get any work done.

[Mikey777 44]

Cool. You will be amazed how much your riding will change...for the better, safer, and faster.

[darylhunter 1]

Streets is a fun track. Has some technical bits, plus a few spots to go kind of fast.

I remember one weekend back in early 2001 when Anthony and Aaron Gobert plus Tommy Hayden came to race in the CCS club races to get some pre-season practice time in.

Anthony set what was then a track record of 1:20.87 as I remembered it, but when I looked on line just now I see it as 1:20.15. In comparison, the faster of us club guys at that time were down in the 1:24 range. Tommy Hayden was running down in the 1:22s and :23s as I recall. I think Jeremy Toye was there that weekend too. One other cool thing I remember was that Anthony donated his winnings to the corner workers.

The track has been resurfaced and changed a since then and lap times have dropped. I saw online that Jeremy Toye set a new record at the Streets in 2010 of 1:14.271 and I don't know if that's current or not, but in any case it's still moving right along

Racing and track days were a lot of fun and I do miss it. Much safer than riding on the street. Other than one ride to the hospital for a concussion after being taken out by another rider, I walked away from every crash at the track with nothing more than bruises to body and pride.

[dirt dame 559]

I did it back in 1988.

[meatmord 0]

So rad. Are there races for noobs or are there just track days? Separate from Cal Superbike School.

[darylhunter 1]

There are track days at various venues run by different organizations.

You can usually check the track web site or google "track days California" or something like that. From there you can find a schedule of track days that will be running on facilities in the area.

Each organization will have different requirements, but typically these are as a minimum to drain bike of ethylene glycol based antifreeze coolants and add a track safe coolant like water wetter, and remove mirrors and disconnect headlight and brake light bulbs and tape lenses.

Riders are typically required to wear either full or two piece leathers with a zipper in the middle.

Most of the track days that I attended had several levels established to group riders into from beginner to advanced to racer only.

If you don't know what level of group you're in, pick group C or beginner. Even if you are an advanced street rider, this typically is the best place to start. Most clubs will let you move up a level until you're in the right spot.

Typically the beginner and intermediate groups have some restrictions on passing in the corners - with no passing allowed in the corners for the beginners and passing on the outside only for intermediate. Advanced riders can pass on the inside with some clubs but in others, passing on the inside is not allowed at any level.

It takes a little time to learn the track and get up to speed. Start out slow and easy and work your way up to full speed - you have all day. I've seen so many people throw their bikes away in the first session and ruin the rest of the day.

It's better to under estimate your skill level than over estimate it - that is, better to be a little faster than the rest of the group than a lot slower in the more advanced groups. The reason is that the faster you go, the narrower your line becomes and the more committed you are. Slower guys have more flexibility to ride unorthodox lines that put them on intersecting paths with faster bikes sometimes traveling 50+ mph faster through the same part of the track. It can get really scary.

Once you've had a few track days, there are races for novice riders. I've been out of it for some time, but typically you attend a new racer school and get some classroom and on track lessons and at the end of that you get your racing license and off you go

[meatmord 0]

Awesome. Thank you for that thorough answer. Great resource, this forum of ours. I will go to school in November and if I get the bug bad, Ill go from there.

I rode a ninja 650r on the street for about 2.5 years, and thats it, so I am fully anticipate starting in the beginner group and thats cool with me.

[Mikey777 44]

CSS has levels 1-4. I will be back for my second round of level 4, which you can repeat over and over to practice different skills/drills. The coaching is much more specific and directed towards your individual needs. Once you get good enough, you can try your hand at CodeRace at CSS.

http://www.coderace.com/

You are going to want to buy a 2015 BMW S1000RR after doing the school. Not nearly as pretty as the Ducati Panigale 1299s, but man it gets the job done, is very FAST, and doesn't cook your nuts like the new Duc.

[Mikey777 44]

Great pic Mimi!!!

[meatmord 0]

CSS has levels 1-4. I will be back for my second round of level 4, which you can repeat over and over to practice different skills/drills. The coaching is much more specific and directed towards your individual needs. Once you get good enough, you can try your hand at CodeRace at CSS.

http://www.coderace.com/

You are going to want to buy a 2015 BMW S1000RR after doing the school. Not nearly as pretty as the Ducati Panigale 1299s, but man it gets the job done, is very FAST, and doesn't cook your nuts like the new Duc.

re the BMW: yea, I was worried about that. I am out shopping for bikes now and was concerned whatever I pick up will simply feel less than after the school. Still, not quite ready to make that investment.

[skeelo221 0]

Hell ya!

I did it back in 1988.

[paulmbowers 236]

I've done several track schools with Reg Primore's CLASS schools- Willow (both tracks twice), Laguna Seca, and what was then Sears Point.

These schools not only help you be fast, they teach and refine skills you already have, and make you a better rider on the street and off-road. The track experience is perfect for this- no traffic, everybody going the same direction, professional coaching and analysis, etc.

Experienced riders will have a lot of fun going fast, but where these schools really shine is with the LESS experienced rider. You'll be much faster and safer spending the money on a class than buying a new exhaust system or bar risers.

Funny things happen there. I remember at Sears being passed by the A group- all on track bikes, all experienced riders blowing by me at VERY high speeds- with one 1997 BMW R100GS Bumblebee ridden by a 60+ guy from Fresno smack in the middle of their pack kicking a s s. It was at that point I knew I'd eventually own an adventure bike.

Been thinking about putting some street tires on the 990 for a refresher....

[Mikey777 44]

Get some....