Help!?! What to ride???

[Todd Baker]

 ???

Hi yall, a new rider here sincerely desiring to start racing this spring for the first time.  Just a "young buck" at twenty years old, I have been riding (sport bikes) for about five years now and am growing bored with track days. In the words of a veteran friend I'm ready to bring another set of britches with me to the track (just in case)  I have all of the information on how to get started but I have an even more important question.  What to ride?

I guess I am just looking for a little vettern advice.  I have been told by a friend that i should start in the light weight supersport class possibly on an SV, however the availablillity of a begginer's priced SV is rather slim.  I was warned that the middle weight class may be to competitive for a first timer but I am drawn by the plethora of cheap in line 4 600's on the market with moderate plastic damage and a hoard of aftermarket parts.

So thats my dilema, what do I ride and in what class?  Any suggestions??  I realize that speed on the track comes with experience before bike capabillities (hence a TWIST OF THE WRIST) However I would like to ride a bike with the potential to be competitive so that I don't have to purchase another one next season.  Well what do yall think?

[Todd Baker]

  ;D Hey yall', me again just thought I would add I ride a 97 Tl1000s on the street/ yoshi cans and some custom body work, nothing to special.

-Thanx

[sportbikepete]

600 class is tough because of the amount of riders. Your buddy is right about the SV class being good but I started in the HW class and found it to be the perfect fit for me. Not as many bikes per grid yet good competition. I ride a 97 GSXR750 and this past weekend at Pocono I got really good finishes. I may be selling this bike soon to enter the "meat grinder" class for $$ reasons. Good luck!

[Litespeed]

I started on a 600 and will stay with them.  The overcrowding isn't really that bad and you are almost always assured of having someone to race with.  I also think the 600 class is the cheapest class to run since they are easier on tires than the bigger bikes and they don't seem to need as much work to get a front running bike.

[dave333]

I started on a 600 and will stay with them.  The overcrowding isn't really that bad and you are almost always assured of having someone to race with.  I also think the 600 class is the cheapest class to run since they are easier on tires than the bigger bikes and they don't seem to need as much work to get a front running bike.

I started on my SV and then found out to run with the top SV's I would need to put 8k into the bike.  NOT!!!  I went with a 600 for the same reason as you!

[Speedballer347]

5 years and a bunch of trackdays is plenty enough experience to race amateur 600SS.

Like the one dude said, no matter how fast or slow you go in that class, there are always plenty of guys to dice with.
Good luck :)

[GAMEDIC]

Don't get a 1000...lol...it is hell on tires...trust me ;D

[r1owner]

Go with a 600.  I have about 10 years street riding, and a couple of race schools under me.  I just did my first AM race at Gateway a month and a half ago.
No problems with people knocking me off the track or anything...I did that just fine all by myself!  :-[


You'll be able to race a lot more races on the 600, and still be competitive.

It sounds like you have plenty enough experience to race the 600's.

[R1Bigguns]

 :-X

Some people would probably like to kill me for saying this but if you really want to race to win the MW amt. class is the lowest class I would start with.  You said you ride a Tl on the street right??  Well think about it on the track!  On the bigger machines (Your Tl would run with the Heavy Weights not the unlimiteds by the way) There is more bike to make up for rider error; where as half of the 600 class rides at 99% potential. Only very few guys do I see riding a 750 or a 1000cc V-twin like yours as hard as it wants to be ridden.  Plus the Heavy Weight/Unlimited bikes really get the girls  ;) ;D

[sdiver68]

Scott,

I was going to knock you off but didn't get the chance ;) J/K

Seriosly, Todd, I've had no problems with 600SS this being my first year.  Another thing about the 600 is you can compete in ULGP (pays your entry fee @ 10th place) and GTU (pays out to 5th).  On an SV, you are going to be down 30+hp in GTU and up to double in ULGP.

[TZDeSioux]

Get a TZ250. It's a bitch to learn to ride fast... it's expensive as hell to maintain and you'll be constantly messing with the damn thing. You'll love it!  ;)

[rmahr137]

dude, if you can find a nice SV within your price range, this is the way to go, especially to start learning on.  Riding a lightweight bike fast will teach you a lot more than riding a middleweight bike sorta fast.  You have to rely on your riding rather than your motor.

How long do tires last on a 600.  I can get three weekends out of a set on my SV.  

[r1owner]

How long do tires last on a 600.  I can get three weekends out of a set on my SV.  

Well, you must not be riding very fast then! ;)

How many races do you run on your SV in a typical weekend?  I was planning on running a total of 5 races at Gateway, plus there were like 2 practices each day.  I think the tires would have lasted the weekend (maybe) had I not binned it.

[Bernie]

Hmmm.  A suggestion to race the TL?  I don't know about that.  I can't speak for the S model, but I currently race an R version.  You would get a kick out of the reaction from people when you tell them what you race, virtually everybody would assume you are truly crazy.  You'll need to pit next to friendly people who can help you load your gear if you crash.  Don't worry , they'll be expecting it.

I'm not sure about picking up chicks racing heavywieght.  Ladies who know about TLs in general will be scared they will have to take care of you while you convalesce.  I'm married and I think it's a plus to have a legally binding contract with a woman to love me in sickness and in health.  On the plus side, my orthopaedic surgeon loves the extra cash and job security.  I'll be having my fourth surgery of the season after Summit to make further repairs after an epic headshake turned tankslapper turned moonshot highside from a preseason trackday this year.

Don't get me wrong I've met some really nice cornerworkers and ambulance crew, and have a far greater appreciation for them than the smarter people who race civil motorcycles.  I've even had a tankslapper or two that didn't cause me to crash.  I'm getting pretty good at fixing it, too. Practice makes perfect.  Actually perfect practice makes perfect.

I'm really not bitter though.  My relationship with my TL is like some bizarre Jenny Jones spousal abuse show.  Anybody else would say enough is enough and buy a proper race bike.  But not me.  My TL has special powers.  It talks really sweet to me and always promises to be nice to me next time.  So I always decide to give it one more chance to kiss and make up.

If you want to win, buy a scooter.  Shee-hit, most of the time none of them show up, so you'd be practically guaranteed to win, and I've never seen one of them things headshake!

Bernie

[Speedballer347]

How many races do you run on your SV in a typical weekend?  I was planning on running a total of 5 races at Gateway, plus there were like 2 practices each day.  I think the tires would have lasted the weekend (maybe) had I not binned it.

I agree w/ R1 rider.  
I did GTO, GTU, HWSB, MWSS, HWSS, UNSS, and UNGP + sat/sunday practices all on one set of tires.  Although I wasn't running a competitive pace due to my steering head falling off, I was still able to place top-4 every race w/ the tires.  So I personally don't think tire wear is a prob w/ the 600's.

Finishing well isn't that much of a problem in the 600 class.  Everyone I know that races a 600 has placed top-5 within a few weekends.  
Sh*t, R1Rider led the first few laps of his very 1st race on his 600 and ran top-5 in every race till he pitched it.
600 is a great learning class w/ plenty of excellent amateur riders of all speeds, to learn from.