Ah shit. I'm in trouble now.

[the chi]

Ceo has it right on, as does DL.

You are going to be nervous. I am EVERY time, but once you get out there, you will feel your groove and get moving...if you dont feel it, get off the track. It's ok to take a break. Dont kill yourself the first day out.

More accidents happen cuz the riders head isnt in the right place than anything else out there. You wont have time to worry about paying the bills or anything else...focus on your teachers and remember your technique.

Techinique brings improvement and speed. Simply trying to haul ass without proper technique is like trying to take a test without reading the book. You wont get any better. As you improve, you speed up naturally.

And remember this, your tires will NOT be ready after a lap or 2, get a good 3-4 laps on your tires to get them warmed up before you decide to test yourself and your tires.

And most importantly - There will ALWAYS be someone faster and better than you. Learn from these people, dont get pissy or try to outdo your skill levels by trying to beat them.

[marko138]

What Rae said is equally important. Make sure your tires are good and warm. I went slower than shit on the first couple laps to make sure I had sufficient heat in the tires. I'll be damned if I'm gonna crash b/c of cold tires. That is completely avoidable.

[ceo012384]

Originally Posted by marko138

What Rae said is equally important. Make sure your tires are good and warm. I went slower than shit on the first couple laps to make sure I had sufficient heat in the tires. I'll be damned if I'm gonna crash b/c of cold tires. That is completely avoidable.

Agreed.

However after I did that I was a huge pussy about getting my tires warm unnecessarily. Then afterwards as I got my speed up and became more relaxed I started to be able to really 'feel' when they were sticking, plus hard braking and accel gets them nice and hot.

Now I'm knee down in turn 6 when pit in is by turn 2 (and turn 5 isn't really a turn). After a little less than one lap I'm full out now...


That's with Corsa III's, btw. They heat up pretty fast.

[marko138]

Originally Posted by ceo012384

Agreed.

However after I did that I was a huge pussy about getting my tires warm unnecessarily. Then afterwards as I got my speed up and became more relaxed I started to be able to really 'feel' when they were sticking, plus hard braking and accel gets them nice and hot.

Now I'm knee down in turn 6 when pit in is by turn 2 (and turn 5 isn't really a turn). After a little less than one lap I'm full out now...


That's with Corsa III's, btw. They heat up pretty fast.

I've got Corsa III's on the Buell. No issues with heat up time. I'd go full deal jones on lap 2 with them....no question.

[the chi]

by lap 3 on my PP's I am comfortable going full out and could manage lap 2, but for a total newb who cant feel the difference, those few laps could make or break him... Ive seen too many senseless crashes now for something silly like cold tires to even think about risking it and pushing too early...

[Phenix_Rider]

Originally Posted by Rae

by lap 3 on my PP's I am comfortable going full out and could manage lap 2, but for a total newb who cant feel the difference, those few laps could make or break him... Ive seen too many senseless crashes now for something silly like cold tires to even think about risking it and pushing too early...

Yep. I have Pirelli DOTs- never ridden on them. I'll take it slow. But even cold, they have to grip better than the sport-touring tread I'm used to.

[Trip]

Originally Posted by Phenix_Rider

Yep. I have Pirelli DOTs- never ridden on them. I'll take it slow. But even cold, they have to grip better than the sport-touring tread I'm used to.

Why did you go with DOTs? It takes a lot more to heat those up and you really got to be pushing it for them to reach ideal temp without tire warmers. Not the best choice for a first track day especially if you are in novice and spend a lot of time in the first few sessions not even heating the tires up.

[dReWpY]

Originally Posted by Phenix_Rider

Yep. I have Pirelli DOTs- never ridden on them. I'll take it slow. But even cold, they have to grip better than the sport-touring tread I'm used to.

i have ran those before, money of a tire, loved it only got >1500 out of them before they were shot, but they were awesome tires...

[DLIT]

When I was running PP's I would turn it between 2 and 3. I always made sure to accelerate hard and brke hard during the first couple laps. Not lean as much but accelerate and brake fairly hard to heat 'em up. I run Pilot Races now and also tire warmers. I turn it on between lap 1 and 2 now.

[the chi]

yeah the braking is good to warm, ive finally started using my front brakes myself and it made noticeable difference!

Phenix, im stoked I cant wait to hear how your day goes, and its a month away!