2 Things I ponder for this season...

[dwilson]

I know it's only January but I'm already starting to get a little psyched for this season.  I'll have a modern machine this season and plan to spend plenty of time at the track.  I've been reading Keith Code's books and though they've helped clear up some ideas in my head I have one really big question...  How do you remember all your brake spots, lean in spots, where to hit the gas hard again, etc...  I only race Summit Point and they're opening another track this season (Awsome!) so I'll have to learn to memorize all that much more stuff.  I have a bad memory as it is and find my self lost all the time, how do you remember your ideal lines?  I thought about brute memorization but is there a better way?  Do I need to just spend more time there?  

I'm also curious as to what everyone weighs...  Seriously, some of us spend rediculous amounts on aluminum/titanium parts but don't seem to mind chowing down on less-than-high-performance foods  ;D  If I'm going to be riding a lighter bike I figure I should slim down.  I'm currently 6', 170lbs & 15% body fat.  I'm just curious what other racers weigh.

[EM JAY]

   As for remembering the break marks etc... for some corners it will just become "natural" or automatic, some I still search for lines etc.  My .02

   I have been trying to slim down myself, 5'9" and 163lbs, would like to get to 140ish....  :P

[diesel748]

I just thought I would make you feel better I'm 6'2 215lbs I doubt I could get down past 2 bills if I tried.

[Super Dave]

170ish for me...

Is it important?  Yeah, and no.  If it makes you feel better, then yeah.  

Can't afford the Ti or Al parts myself, so you must hang out with some people that have more disposable race income...

Even then, are you riding what you have well enough within the set up?  Could it be better?  

Then loosing lost of weight matters.  Until then, it probably will never be dramatically reflected in lap times.

[Super Dave]

Memorizing...

It's like driving to the store.  It's pretty much the same thing lap after lap.  Make the receipe simple.  Go fast, hit brakes here, dowshift, etc.  

Each bike can be different and have a specific timing rhythm all its own as does each track...

[GregR6]

I won't go too long winded here. I'm a newbe. But I believe this is where "natural talent" and "instinct" come into play. Some folks just have 'it'.
They automatically "know", generally speaking, the "right" lines, the turn in points, the braking points, when to roll on, etc... Sure, they follow the faster guys and pick up a tenth here and a tenth there....
Racing is extremely mentally demanding. You MUST be thinking ahead all the time, which in essence means you shouldn't be staring at the brake markers coming into T1 or looking for that spot on the track where you should turn in. You should be looking somewhere in the vicinity of the entrance. I brake when I know that if I wait another tenth of a second I'm gonna end up in the gravel (but I'm really not thinking about at that point in time, I just do it) Sometimes I misjudge slightly, run wide, or worse yet brake too early, but usually you can correct your self and not crash, or not get passed, but not always.
My first time at Summit I ran a 1:19.8 my second race. Granted, I never matched that the rest of the weekend, but that was because I was fighting for a spot...adrenaline helps, and so did following that other rider. Racing alone I only ran :20-:21's.

If you've got a bad memory, well, don't forget your key... but seriously, you hit the same points every minute and a half, coupled with the repetition... memory shouldn't be an issue. What you have to realize though, is that all your points are going to change slightly as you get faster. So you just kinda have to go with the flow. Test yourself each time around until you "know" (in quotes, because it's all mental- it's all perception) if you go any harder you're going to crash. Once you're more comfortable at that speed, push a little harder, and so on.

Wt: I weigh 195 in gear (roughly 15%BF) and have a pretty bone stock bike. I don't feel it necessary to dump money into mods to drop the wt of the bike. How about SAVE money, and stop EATING?!  ;D (like you said...)
Running competitive times, there's definitely going to be an advantage to being somewhat physically fit .  No one can argue that it takes alot of muscular endurance to muscle a 400# bike avg'ing 80mph for 20 minutes  :o  I don't think your weight/BF is an issue, if anything, improve your musc endurance a little and you'll probably be surprised at the results.

[r6_philly]

I have 1 quit smoking  ;D 2. play Dance Dance Revolution on the hardest mode for 1-2 hours aday... its like going joggin only it helps sharpen your relexes too..

I am training and having fun at the same time, beat the heck out of aerobics...

[ecumike]

How do you remember all your brake spots, lean in spots, where to hit the gas hard again, etc...

I have this problem... if you ask me where I brake or turn in for any turn at VIR, I couldn't even tell ya.  Except for T4.. turn at the  hole in the pavement. :)

Sometimes, it's kinda embarassing, when people ask me.. "Well, where/what # are you braking at for T1"   me.."Uh.. I don't know"

I just do what feels right. Maybe unconsiously I'm remembering where, but I honesly can't tell you where, anywhere. Kinda sux. Wish I could learn/remember those things.

[r6_philly]

didnt you read the twist of the wrist? its all about reference points  :P

[ecumike]

Yea I did, and "Soft Science of RR" ... but I have this little problem of REMEMBERING those reference points :)

[Xian_13]

I tip the scales at 135 with about 2% Body fat.

My goal for April is to weight in at 145  and be able to ride 100 miles in one session on my Bicycle with atleast a 18mph average speed

I want to gain wieght to get closer to the weight of another racer that I have plans of doing a Team Challenge with (he needs to loss 20#s). My main focus is raising my endurance threshhold.

[dwilson]

I tip the scales at 135 with about 2% Body fat.

Are you serious?  Body builders rarely go below 3%, you should consider riding horses  ;D

I found boxing was good excersize.  one of the endurance excersizes they'd do is run as fast and as far as you can while holding your breath.  The instructor said he wasn't training runners but fighters...

I geuss I'll forget about trying to memorize markers and spend more time on the track.