'Grid/Starts' etiquette question for the experts

[bmfgsxr]

speed,

the only etiquette is to hold your line bro. you have just as much right to start up front as anyone by pre reg-ing. as long as you can hold the line your good to go, and i know you can. there is no being polite by starting off a little easier to let other have a better chance. that is the exact opposite of what racing is about. now if your a top level rider, and your teammate is chasing the #1 plate and he needs the points and you can help him out that is one thing, but this is club level racing bro. go for yours.

oh, and btw, whats this im not going to be competetive bullshit.. are you giving up before you even try.... i dont like the sounds of that. you better try and be competetive dammit. 8)

[Speedballer347]

...whats this im not going to be competetive bullshit.. ...you better try and be competetive dammit. 8)

hahahaha ;)
When your maXXed in a corner (can't go any faster) w/ both ends slipping and sliding....and Shane Clarke (from Kansas) Flat-Tracks :o past you on his gsxr1000 like you were standing still....it qiuckly illustrates what the word 'competitive' really means ;D

Nah....I don't wanna play before I learn the game.  ...Too much at stake (my body & bike) when I realize I am not experienced/skilled enough yet (if ever) to not make ANY mistakes at those speeds....
I'll take my time in 03 learning, and then try to be competitive in 04

I am sure once we get on the track, I will lose all sensibilities and quickly wad my bike up trying to follow Jeff Kramer into a corner ;D

[Super Dave]

Shane Clarke goes by...

That's just experience, set up, and perspective.  If you're sliding both ends, you might need a different set up...or you're lap times SHOULD be much faster than an old man like me all hooked up.

[Speedballer347]

...or you're lap times SHOULD be much faster than an old man like me all hooked up.

I'm a novice...give me some slack :P ;)

Tires are sliding, cause I try to make up in lean-angle/corner-speed, what I lose w/ bad lines, and amateur entrances.  Anyway, I never said 'controlably' sliding, I just said 'sliding' ;D

I'm sure I'll figure it all out eventually (I hope ::) ) w/ some seat-time and set-up knowledge.

[Bernie]

Am I am moron or just a slowpoke?  I've only slid the front of my sled in the wet and I was cryin' for my mammy for the next lap or two. :'(  Perhaps I'll always be relegated to filling in the back of the pack, but sliding the front sounds fairly frieghtning to me.  Do I have to do that to go fast? ???

[GSXR RACER MIKE]

Am I am moron or just a slowpoke?  I've only slid the front of my sled in the wet and I was cryin' for my mammy for the next lap or two. :'(  Perhaps I'll always be relegated to filling in the back of the pack, but sliding the front sounds fairly frieghtning to me.  Do I have to do that to go fast? ???

     I have gotten use to having the front end slide a bit while racing due to my tires being used alot more than most guys apparently use them. I used the Dunlop 207 GP's when they became available in the late 90's (a definate improvement over the previous model 364's) and could get 2 1/2 to 3 events out of a pair of tires. I thought this wasn't too bad figuring that I was running 6 classes per event on my '96 GSXR 750 at that time (we also got 3 practice sessions per day then).
     In '98 I was racing at Putnam Park when my tires got to the point of being totally trashed and I had to replace them (started sliding excessively). I was having Ken Krebs (Chicago Performance) change the tires when one of the top guys at that time came over and was joking with Ken about how fried my tires were and wondered if I had crashed or even finished the race with them. He was shocked when I told him that I was the one glued to him during the last race and that I finished right behind him (I think he finished 3rd and I finished 4th racing in the heavyweight superbike class).
     The reason I gave this example was to make the point that unless your trying to set the track record or absolutely have to win a particular race, you don't have to have fresh tires constantly to still finish top 5. Racing is expensive and using your tires to the fullest can help to ease the financial burden and allow you to afford more classes. Another benefit to racing on used tires is it helps you to get use to your bike sliding a little. I was told early on that unless your tires are sliding excessively or unpredictably that you don't need to replace them, I have gone by that advice to this day.
     I figure someone may wonder how many times I have crashed due to using tires this much? Only once, at a CCS/NASB combined event at Road America, turn 14, while attempting to pass Ron Foye for 4th position. My front tire was trashed and I got a really bad front end push that eventually hooked up once it built up enough heat in the tire and high-sided me into orbit.
     If you don't want to slide, just buy new tires all the time and you won't have to worry about sliding at all until you get really fast (Sell me your take off's cheap! LOL). But if you learn how to controllably slide a little it will help you once you do get really fast.

[Super Dave]

Personally, I seldom ever slide the bike.  I prefer the bike to be driving forward rather than wasting the energy going sideways.  But, I think after doing this so long, I make up for a lack of agression with experience.  Which is a nice thing to have.

But I have always generally kept the bike pretty hooked up.