Number Plate ?

[GSXR RACER MIKE]

Props to you guys that just jumped in and started racing.  That's not me.  I didn't learn how to snowboard by throwing on a board and tumbling down the big boy hills.  I'da wrecked myself.  I started on the bunny hills.  Thats what trackdays are to me.  They're bunny hills and hopefully this year I'll be out on the big boy track after 2 seasons of track days.  You can't rip on someone for taking their time and learning a dangerous sport before jumping right in.

I'm so glad you used this example because it reminds me of when I learned how to downhill ski. When I went skiing for the 1st time it was with a group of my freinds who (all except for 1 of them) already new how to ski. When I got there I saw that they had instructional classes available but my freinds said they were unneccessary, that they would teach me what I needed to know and that we had to start on the bunny hill - so that's what we did. I had so many problems doing anything on that hill and wasted a couple hours there until my freinds suggested going to the beginner hill which wasn't very steep or long at all, that hill was a little better but I was still having problems. I had been suggesting most the morning that we just go to the longest 'Green' easy hill so I could have more continuous time going downhill, but my freinds kept saying I needed to be able to ski the bunnyhill before that. Finally in the early afternoon I talked them into going over to the longest easy hill which was a bit harder than what I had been skiing so far that day, that was the best thing to happen all day and was like a light bulb turning on when I went down that run. I was watching the other better skiers and applied what I saw and could now finally turn and did really well, within a few hours of getting on that run I had skied every 'GREEN' easy run and progressed to skiing several 'BLUE' intermediate runs before we left.

My freinds were able to teach me some things that allowed me to get down the hill, but in the end they were causing me more harm than good by unintentionally telling me to do things that weren't in my best interest. After skiing quite a while I had gotten to the point where I wasn't too bad at it, but I still had some issues that had plagued me since the beginning. Eventually I was talking with a person I knew at the local ski shop who was a long time avid skiier / instructor and mentioning a couple of the issues I was having, he was suprised that I had never been taught some basic fundamentals from the beginning that were now giving me problems as I tackled harder slopes. When I told him I never had actual instruction he said "Well that's obvious. Did you learn from your freinds or something?" - that was a very humbling moment, but a reality check.  My freinds had the intention of helping me, but in the process had skipped basic fundamentals and had me doing things I shouldn't have been because they thought I should be based on what they knew.

Now compare my good intentioned freinds with track days, there are some 'coaches' at track days that are truely experienced and knowledgable racers, there are alot more who are not either of those things and/or may strictly be there to get the free track time by 'coaching'. A sad trend I've seen is for the most experienced 'coaches' to be only involved with the fastest groups when they should be the ones creating that great base of knowledge for new people just getting on the track, using lesser experienced 'coaches' to build the foundation of knowledge with the new people scares me. Bad Habits are a big issue in racing, repetition of doing the wrong things over and over from the beginning (at track days for example) is a great way to develop some very deep seeded bad habits that can be tough to get past. What I mean by 'wrong things' here is things like not running actual race lines and not getting use to being close to other riders from the beginning. A major advantage someone starting out immediately in racing as a true Amateur has over someone going the track day to racing route is always having been in a situation of being close to other racers - starting from the beginning when they're slow, like new actual Amateur racers do.

Think and justify what you want, but as some freindly advice the whole 'bling' aspect of your bike for example will be much more of a handicap than a help. Having a bike that's all fancy from the beginning often times leads to people riding in a way that's more about reducing the possibility of hurting their paint job than doing what needs to be done, a new racer bringing that state of mind to an actual racing situation will most likely sky rocket their chances of problems. I've know people that when they get a new racebike the 1st thing they do is knock it over or scratch the paint so it's not perfect anymore, that may sound weird but your racebike should be considered a total write-off from the beginning or your probably going to be doing things you shouldn't be on the track. 

[cbr-racer]

First off, don't call me a poser.  You don't know me.  I really hope your car isn't red.  The majority of Ferraris come in red and I hope you wouldn't be posing pretending you're in a Ferrari.  (Sounds kinda foolish huh?  Now re-read what you wrote above.  Sounds kind of foolish too huh?  Wow.  The things we learn after the fact).

Of course you CAN learn how to ride a bike and just jump into racing.  But you must agree that racing a motorcycle is pretty intimidating.  You don't learn how to play street hockey, then jump into the NHL.  You play years and years to get good enough to get to the show.  Now of course you're still playing in a competitive league, but if you started playing hockey at 18.  You're never making it.  Thus, the theory behind it would be that if you started riding on a closed course at 18, what makes you think you could race.  I mean racing is like the big times.  Some people have bike riding training from their youth (50cc's etc.).  Most don't. 

Props to you guys that just jumped in and started racing.  That's not me.  I didn't learn how to snowboard by throwing on a board and tumbling down the big boy hills.  I'da wrecked myself.  I started on the bunny hills.  Thats what trackdays are to me.  They're bunny hills and hopefully this year I'll be out on the big boy track after 2 seasons of track days.  You can't rip on someone for taking their time and learning a dangerous sport before jumping right in.  And...you can't rip on someone for running Pirellis and putting those stickers on their bike.  Last I heard Pirelli "sponsorship" wasn't that hard to get...fill out a form online or in tech maybe?  Sure some of you guys actually go out and "sell" yourself to get people to sponsor you, and again props for that because it's business and not everyone can do it...but again, you're no better than the next guy because you put a Pirelli sticker on your bike and so did he...because you MIGHT get $ from them.

I didn't miss all the trackday/racer threads...I browse this forum daily, however...I just held my tongue because I didn't want to get into any of it (though I have my opinions)...but this time someone's calling me a poser, so I felt like stating how I feel.

First off, I was not calling you a poser cause of the repsol replica bike, I would like to have one. And  I don't drive a car I drive a truck cause in case you didn't know you can't ride a race bike to the track. And as for it's not that hard to get some sponsor's your right it's not, but I am sure you have to have a racing license to even be considered. Yes it is a dangerous sport but like GSXR RACER MIKE said some of the things you learn from trackdays / some of the coaches just hurts you more if you did go racing.  I just think anyone doing trackdays with the intent of getting into racing should just spend their money on a good racer school . Hell for the $ of trackdays if you do two or more, that can pay for a few or more then a few good schools . if someone was to get into racing like that they would have a big head start and move up fast. I wish thats what I did.
Oh yeh and the only thing that sounds foolish is the fact that you just want to run white plates and you have never ever raced your bike.

[gonecrazy]

Hmmm...Well or local club "mcra" is gear toward getting rider that are using country roads as a track to the track in a safer enviorment. What alot of you might be missing is some of these riders never even thought of racing till after they started doing trackdays. Our club is racer supported with the support of trackday enthusist also. we have a race clinic, out own low cost club races to help those that would like to try racing. we even have a sportsman class for those that think they are to slow or not skilled enough to get out there and give it a shoot. I really dont understand why someone would get bashed for lack of knowledge. I have seen a few that have come striaght out of a school into racing with little track experience and some of them scare the shit out of me on the track for the simple fact they are very unperdictable.

I do both trackdays and race weekends just because I like to ride and cant seem to disapline my throttle hand when it comes to backroad riding. Ialways seem to tell my self that I am going to run a moderate pace and then end up leave black marks around every corner

[Woofentino Pugrossi]

Lets not turn this into a 15 page bitchfest.

[r1owner]

How about 13 then?

[GSXR RACER MIKE]

It's been so boring lately and this subject always gets the post count up for the advertisers!   

[tzracer]

your racebike should be considered a total write-off from the beginning or your probably going to be doing things you shouldn't be on the track. 

I tell people that they should accept the fact that they may be taking their bike home in a basket. This applies the track days as well as racing.

[Burt Munro]

Lets not turn this into a 15 page bitchfest.

Don't look at me!!!  I gave an honest answer to an honest question.

Now, Scott on the other hand...........  

[PolishPete]

To each his own.  If you think its gay that I've got white number plates this year on my mostly trackday bike...I don't really care to be honest.  I didn't have them last year, but since I'm racing this year, I need to have number plates...however, they must be yellow since I'm not an expert (see above posts about how that makes you cooler).  Thus, because I need the basic outline and shape on there, but don't want the ugly yellow ones because they don't flow with the paint scheme, I'm putting white ones on, then I can easily tape yellow ones over them on the day of the race.  So I'm using the white ones as a base/outline for what my yellow plates should look like, but I'm not going to run yellow because they don't match.  If you think that's gay, well...

If your g/f, wife, regular girl whatever wears thongs instead of granny panties, then that's gay too.  You see I don't need white plates, but I'm going to run them.  She doesn't need thongs but wears them anyway.  In fact, running thongs over granny panties is counter productive because they don't have the same coverage.  So, if a girl wearing thongs for looks is gay, then I guess your right, white plates on non-race bikes are gay too.  But I'd rather say make the girl look good...put her in a thong....AND...make the bike look good, put on white plates.

What we've found here is:  yellow plates look like granny panties, and white plates are thongs.  (again, to each his own on both parts....I don't the look of the yellow plates on non white/yellow schemed bikes).

Not here to start any fights or ruffle any panties (like my tie-in here?)...I'm just here to converse and explain I don't think it's cool to rip on track day guys.  I think we started with trackday guys just aren't cool and found that that wasn't true, so then we've moved on to people with white plates who aren't experts aren't cool.  Just trying to make sure we're on the same page.

[r1owner]

Hell, I have white plates... I'm not sure why...

[Palanon]

I started last year doing track days. I'm old and slow. If I can afford a track bike, I may start racing as a novice. With LRRS the novice plates are white with red numbers. If doing a track day before or after a race, I'd either have the red numbers on or I'd remove the plates. If I was riding in an area that had yellow or white plates only, I'd have yellow or none at all.

White plates are EARNED. I would be personally humiliated if the Woods or any expert rider saw me with blank white plates. I didn't EARN them, I don't DESERVE them, I SHOULDN'T run with them.

Believe me, if it wasn't for a retired racer getting my 40+ year old ass out there in track days, I wouldn't be thinking of trying racing either. However, I would find it insulting to every racer who earned expert status by slapping white plates on my bikes. A lot of good folk have died trying to earn white plates or, racing with them. To me, no matter how good your bike looks with them, your not entitled to be on track with them until you've earned them the hard way.

hmmm... did I say earn(ed) enough ?

[r1owner]

Eh... it's pretty easy to get the white plates in CCS IMO...