Just Starting to race

[ninjazxrr]

I just recently took learning curnves at gingerman and i was just wondering if you guys could help me out iwth some questions.  First of all and prob the most important question what type of bike would you say would be best to start off on

[Mark Bernard]

Welcome! Your gonna get a lot of different answers to this question. I guess it is really going to depend on what classes you plan on racing in. Some will say SV, some will say Buell, some will say ride what your most comfortable on. I personally race a Buell and I run mostly LW classes. LW F-40... LW/GP... Thunderbike.. Supertwins... ect. Then you need to ask youself how much money are you willing to spend on a race season and bike set up. Some bikes are more expensive to buy parts for, some are not. There is no real answer to your question, but I am sure you will get plenty of opinions. Any how, welcome to the circus and best of luck to you! Mark!

[spyderchick]

No! No! Turn away! go back! Be afraid! Be very afraid! :o ;) ;D

Seriously, like Mark says, it depends on your personal level of involvement. You might want to come out to the next local race and talk to racers with all brands and sizes of bikes to see what might best suit you.

Middleweights eat tires and the racers like to mix it up. Lightweights are easier on the tires, but no less competitive. Bigger bikes like the litre bikes can get real expensive to run, and then there's the niche stuff like the 250 GPs, which requires good mechanical skills but are a hoot to run.

I know...a whole lot of help we are.  ;D

[LMsports]

My first opinion is that I have no idea who would recommend a buell! ;)

[EX#996]

This thread may be a good read for you.....

http://www.racemotorcycles.com/cgi-bin/board/YaBB.pl?board=ccs1;action=display;num=1064340613;start=0

Start on on LW bike...  You'll be much happier for it.

Dawn   ;)

[ninjazxrr]

what do you guys think about starting on an fzr 400 good or bad and wahts the good and bad things about the 400's

[spyderchick]

Fzr...great starting race bike.

Good:
Cheap bike to start with
Easy on tires
Excellent suspension
I have one for sale ;D

Bad:
Older technology
Parts are getting scarce (esp. cases)
Not as competitive

Again, depends on what your goals are. If you want to get on the track and have a good time, learn the tracks, and learn how to get through the turns quickly rather than just twist the throttle, FZRs are perfect. If you are hoping to be really super competitive in lightweights, you might be better served by getting an SV.

Seriously, I do have one for sale. Race prepped but streetable. Email me if you are interested.

[cardzilla]

You have to decide what you're in it for and what you're budget is.  If you want to be the next Rossi or something, definitely a 600.  Also along that line a 250 2 stroke is a pure racing machine, but a real headache if you are not mechanically inclined.  
If you're just in it for fun and you don't want to spend a lot of money, the FZR 400 is a wonderful machine and you can get them race prepped cheap.  The SV is a little more, but also a great choice.  No offense, but what ever you do DON'T get a buell.  Be sure to do some research on the particular year of bike you choose, they differ quite a bit (GSXR 750 for example).  Be patient and find a package deal that includes all you'll need for the race track (I wish I could follow my own advice on this one), you can save thousands by buying everything at once from someone who is getting out or upgrading.
Good luck, I hope you enjoy roadracing as much as I have.

[Super Dave]

Rossi never started on a 600.  Neither did Jesse Janisch, but that name might not mean much to you.

The SV has some serious advantages.

Plentiful.  It's the prefered race bike for Lightweight classes.  So, if you fall down, you've got friends that can lend you parts.  Information is available.  

Basically, it becomes almost like a spec class.  So, you can focus on set up and riding well vs trying to have a newer bike every couple of years or so.  

It's been reliable.

Because it's been such a good bike, it might cost you more initially compared to say someones FZR400 above.

GP bikes have almost ran their course.  There is no active true professional competition available for them in the US.  You can ride them with club organizations, but you probably won't get much further than that.

Tires are your biggest expense outside of the purchase of the motorcycle.  A lightweight bike is cheaper that way.

[tigerblade]

My first opinion is that I have no idea who would recommend a buell! ;)

Took the words right out of my keyboard!  LOL   ;D

[ninjazxrr]

thanks alot im pretty sure im going to be sticking with a lightweight so i can learn cornering speed so when i do move up into middleweight or heavyweight ill understand the fundamentals

[lbk]

SV again, and for yet another reason. Although the FZR is going to be cheaper the SV will probably last you longer, so the added money ends up being cheaper in the long run.

Resale, when or if you decide to move to another class more than likely you'll find plenty of people willing to take the SV off your hands, whereas again the FZR will be a harder sell because of the fact that it's not as competive and parts aren't as readily available.

Then last but not least you've got from 99-02 where most of the parts are interchangable so again important when it comes to cost. You can usually find what you need secondhand as opposed to buying new.

Opinion nothing more, but I started on a GSXR 750 then moved to the SV and like it a lot better. Again as others have said though it really depends on your goals, and what you want. The SV is a great starter bike, relatively cheap (This is racing nothing is cheap), gives you room to grow, and is competive you can win races in the LW classes on an SV.