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I did the trackday and club racing only thing for a few years and yes, I missed riding on the street very much. The main reason was that I wasnt getting my fix often enough. No trackdays or races meant no riding which really sucked.
Now that I have my SV650 street bike, a bike that is perfect for squirting through traffic, I'm enjoying road riding again. However this time around I'm more careful not to get tickets.
I am from Zimbabwe. Yes that's right, in Africa on the other side of the world where the government doesn't change for anyone, let alone 13 million plus voters. The law here can either work against you or for you, depending on the mood they are in or if its half way through the month and they have to try and squeeze something out of you and if your bike or attitude is not in tip top condition on the day you decide to ride and find 8 or 9 road blocks on your breakfast run. The road blocks consist of 3 coppers seated in the shade under a tree or hidden in some long grass as back up should you put up an argument with the lone ranger standing in the road, as to whether you are wrong or right and if the bike and you have all your papers handy. Other than that in Zimbabwe you can do 300 plus km an hour and if you live and have at least $10 or $20 in your pocket fines can be avoided in this manner, but normally if you are not in the wrong, a strong stubborn argument and a flash of an empty wallet will result in you being sent on your way, because you and your empty wallet are not of any use to this lawfully authorized gang.
I went on my second run this year and found that these runs mostly consist of some slower, safer riders who generally stick to the speed limits or ride slightly above them. However there are a few that run the gauntlet and run at speeds we sometimes cant reach on most tracks at the bottom of the straights. What I am saying is that 90% of these guys are riding 1000cc plus bikes as first time bike owners and have not got much experience let alone a bike licence other than their class 4 car licence which classifies them as a learner bike rider. Thus being in most cases a recipe for disaster, and I have lost a few friends as a result of this.
I have been riding for about 20 years on the street and am still alive, but am main circuit racing now for the past year and a half and still consider myself to be green on the track and learning every day. On the track I can let my hair down, we are all going in the same direction and yes it is still dangerous and I don't have a local taxi with 15 people on board listening to some local tunes on the radio and a couple of chickens and goats tied to the roof rack pulling out in front of me when we doing 270km down the straight or flicking a left indicator and turning right just as you are about to overtake or whilst you are alongside them. This can be experience here daily without any cost or forewarning.
Needless to say I have a road bike, and had many that will do over 300km per hour and now I seldom ride that, I am really enjoying the national race days, am currently 3rd on the national points tally for this year and feel safer on the track than on the road and personally recommend this to anyone interested in the best adrenalin experience one can achieve, every race meeting is like your best fishing day out where you have to come back because your keep nets are full, or that round of golf where nothing can go wrong and you win that competition by 8 strokes, or you train for 2 years for that particular tournament, jump on the mat in the final and annihilate your opponent with a flurry of punches and kicks to win gold. Put all those experiences in a bag and experience that exact feeling every time the flag drops or the lights go green for 8 laps 4 times on the actual day. The rush lasts the entire day and for me for a few days after. So if you currently involved in this sport, then you know exactly what I am talking about, and if you are not but financially capable and are willing to give it a try, your will not be disappointed and you will receive a warm welcome from the rest of the guys on the track. Hope you enjoy, life is an experience...`Ride hard & take chances`....
I'm fed up getting turned in front of the street. Anyone ride racetrack/trail only? Do you miss the street? I'm heavily contemplating it.
I picked up my first bike in 2001 and rode it on the street+track for over 80,000 miles after which I did go track only. I also started racing which I did between 2004 and 2005. Now I just picked up a brand new CBR1000RR and ride it on the street and also did a few track days on it...although I am planning to buy a 600 for the track because I don't want to risk crashing my brand new bike
I do understand the dangers of the street and I am extremely cautious on the street, but riding on the street has it's own appeal. It's just a different experience than the racetrack and I do enjoy it a lot. On the track I ride at a very high pace but on the street it's more about relaxation... I just enjoy the environment and experience of flying through my surroundings I also enjoy the social aspect of it, just going for a casual ride with other riders and hanging out at some spot etc. it's a lot of fun.
Yep. Made the decision to go 'track-only' a little over a year ago. After I did my first couple of track days, I started to enjoy the street less and less. Rides became more frustrating than fun, never mind the danger aspect. I commute from time to time, but that's it.
I occasionally find myself feeling nostalgic and wanting to hit up some of my favorite local runs, but I know a lot of that is just looking through rose-colored glasses. And since I only have one bike, I'm honestly just too lazy to de-track the bike every time I feel like riding. My last real road ride was going from San Diego up to Monterey to watch MotoGP at Laguna. It was an epic, bucket-list kind of trip, and if that's the last one I go on until my little ones are out of the house, so be it.
Having a good variety of tracks around definitely helps, as does having a good group of buddies who are typically down for a track day. Around me, I have Chuckwalla, AutoClub Speedway, Willow Springs, Spring Mountain, and a few others I've yet to ride. And as for buddies, I'm a member of a few riding groups on Facebook, so finding someone to go with (always a good idea) is just a matter of posting up and offering some room in the truck. It's always a blast, especially the ones where a whole crowd of buddies go. Of course, they're all now getting heavy into Sumos because it's (supposedly) more fun and WAY cheaper, so now I gotta either pick up a motard or wait for them to get bored with the small CC stuff and come back to the big tracks.
I try to make 1 trackday per month on average, but with little ones on the way, I'm sure it'll change. Even still, the wife was more than happy for me to go 'track-only' (for safety reasons) in exchange for going to WAY more trackdays. WIN-WIN in my book. Heck, I even got a new (to me) bike outta the deal.
Mike
Thanks for the post man, very informative. We must live relatively close to each other because I have the same tracks around lol.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kotext
Before you kick street riding to the curb, did you take any time to learn collision avoidance strategies? At any point in time, did you become a student of safety? There are several good resources out there that will help a student learn. I'm just guessing when I say this, but if you like to run around town at a brisk pace, and you didn't slow down when approaching an intersection, then you were playing Russian roulette. Roughly half of all motorcycle accidents are caused by other motorists violating the motorcyclists right of way. You can minimize the risk at intersections if you learn and employ the right tactics. If you employed all the strategies but still had a constant problem at intersections with close calls, then quitting is probably the right thing to do.
I have multiple MSF courses and hundreds of thousands of miles of riding to my name. I practice avoidance and braking maneuvers at least once a week. Yes, I generally go by day to (98% of the time) with no real problems on the street. But occasionally there's that one close call that gets me thinking... and they're usually pretty bad. I had one of those tonight. Idiot came into my lane and when I reacted he started honking and flashing me like it was my fault. Things like that get to me.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Blondebaerde
Did that, many years ago when living in northern California and racing with AFM. Roadracing, that is to say.
Helped a lot that it was (is) a Mediterranean climate, with track events running c. March-November every year. In even drier climates, the season is even longer. SoCal seems more-conducive to the concept.
Like another guy on-thread mentions , some realize that treating the street like a track isn't nearly as interesting or profitable vs. track-only. Guys get killed treating street like the track. As also mentioned, hugely-helps to have pal(s) to share experiences and resources with.
I remember after about a year and a half of that returning a bike to the street, once I'd moved to a new place (PacNW, which has a shorter season and fewer nearby tracks). I thought everyone was moving in slow-motion. Decade and a half later (now), it just isn't the same, street-riding, but priorities change. One learns to deal with the vagaries of the street (again).
Also, if economically possible, reserve a spare bike for track days only. I couldn't swing that economically until in my 30s. Switching one to the other is for the birds, and tossing a street bike down the track is economically painful. I've memorably tossed away track bikes (Sears Point and Pacific Raceways), but fortunately never a street bike: wouldn't like to make THAT insurance claim, though guys do it.
Yeah I would never take my street bike to the track without a complete overhaul of bodywork. Even then I probably wouldn't be able to ride it 100% because in the back of my mind I'll know it's still my daily. I'm either on the fence of going full out track bike and getting a car or just sticking to street riding. Lane splitting legally here in California keeps me on the bike for the most part. If I lived in a state where it was outlawed I would've long converted to track riding.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Rhodi1
I am from Zimbabwe. Yes that's right, in Africa on the other side of the world where the government doesn't change for anyone, let alone 13 million plus voters. The law here can either work against you or for you, depending on the mood they are in or if its half way through the month and they have to try and squeeze something out of you and if your bike or attitude is not in tip top condition on the day you decide to ride and find 8 or 9 road blocks on your breakfast run. The road blocks consist of 3 coppers seated in the shade under a tree or hidden in some long grass as back up should you put up an argument with the lone ranger standing in the road, as to whether you are wrong or right and if the bike and you have all your papers handy. Other than that in Zimbabwe you can do 300 plus km an hour and if you live and have at least $10 or $20 in your pocket fines can be avoided in this manner, but normally if you are not in the wrong, a strong stubborn argument and a flash of an empty wallet will result in you being sent on your way, because you and your empty wallet are not of any use to this lawfully authorized gang.
I went on my second run this year and found that these runs mostly consist of some slower, safer riders who generally stick to the speed limits or ride slightly above them. However there are a few that run the gauntlet and run at speeds we sometimes cant reach on most tracks at the bottom of the straights. What I am saying is that 90% of these guys are riding 1000cc plus bikes as first time bike owners and have not got much experience let alone a bike licence other than their class 4 car licence which classifies them as a learner bike rider. Thus being in most cases a recipe for disaster, and I have lost a few friends as a result of this.
I have been riding for about 20 years on the street and am still alive, but am main circuit racing now for the past year and a half and still consider myself to be green on the track and learning every day. On the track I can let my hair down, we are all going in the same direction and yes it is still dangerous and I don't have a local taxi with 15 people on board listening to some local tunes on the radio and a couple of chickens and goats tied to the roof rack pulling out in front of me when we doing 270km down the straight or flicking a left indicator and turning right just as you are about to overtake or whilst you are alongside them. This can be experience here daily without any cost or forewarning.
Needless to say I have a road bike, and had many that will do over 300km per hour and now I seldom ride that, I am really enjoying the national race days, am currently 3rd on the national points tally for this year and feel safer on the track than on the road and personally recommend this to anyone interested in the best adrenalin experience one can achieve, every race meeting is like your best fishing day out where you have to come back because your keep nets are full, or that round of golf where nothing can go wrong and you win that competition by 8 strokes, or you train for 2 years for that particular tournament, jump on the mat in the final and annihilate your opponent with a flurry of punches and kicks to win gold. Put all those experiences in a bag and experience that exact feeling every time the flag drops or the lights go green for 8 laps 4 times on the actual day. The rush lasts the entire day and for me for a few days after. So if you currently involved in this sport, then you know exactly what I am talking about, and if you are not but financially capable and are willing to give it a try, your will not be disappointed and you will receive a warm welcome from the rest of the guys on the track. Hope you enjoy, life is an experience...`Ride hard & take chances`....
Very good post man. Thanks for sharing and thanks for all the info. I'm definitely heading to the track one of these days.
Quote:
Originally Posted by redrocket2
I picked up my first bike in 2001 and rode it on the street+track for over 80,000 miles after which I did go track only. I also started racing which I did between 2004 and 2005. Now I just picked up a brand new CBR1000RR and ride it on the street and also did a few track days on it...although I am planning to buy a 600 for the track because I don't want to risk crashing my brand new bike
I do understand the dangers of the street and I am extremely cautious on the street, but riding on the street has it's own appeal. It's just a different experience than the racetrack and I do enjoy it a lot. On the track I ride at a very high pace but on the street it's more about relaxation... I just enjoy the environment and experience of flying through my surroundings I also enjoy the social aspect of it, just going for a casual ride with other riders and hanging out at some spot etc. it's a lot of fun.
I see. That's something I don't think I'm ready to give up just yet... the camaraderie and freedom of street riding. But, like I said, there's always that one guy who has to ruin the fun.
Riding on the track will ruin street riding for you.
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