Grass/Gravel tips?

[jsanchez]

Howdy,

Wanted to get some recommendations on what best to do when you are going into grass and or gravel.

I recently attended a racing school this December and they recommended shifting your weight back and not making any input adjustments on grass (brake, acceleration or directional) but there have been recent posts about rear breaking in the grass.  ???  Is this in conjunction with natural engine breaking?  

Another thing mentioned in the class is that it is a good idea to give plenty of throttle as soon as you get in the gravel.

Any comments?

Thanks,
Jav

[Dawn]

If your in the MW....  

Talk to my husband Paul.  I've seen him motorcross in the grass more times than I care to remember.  Some of the infamous corners like turn 7 at BHF (more than once), turn 14 at Road America, and the best OMG moment was at MAM in the rain (he never lost the lead in that race  ;D).  He's never fallen on grass, but he has slid across it.   ;)

Dawn  

[WebCrush]

pull in the clutch, go nuetral on the bar and throttle

light application of rear brake on and off, very touchy

[tshort]

I rode across the entire infield at Gingerman from T4 to T10 (? - whatever the last turn is there) - it was a good long ride, and it was wet.  I clipped the inside curbing on T4 and stood the bike up, shot across the track, and decided to exit rather than turn in.  

Was a fun ride - reminded me of my old dirt-biking days.    Just stood up a bit on the pegs and hung my a$$ back a bit over the tail section - nothing radical.  No throttle, no brakes. Just let the bike run, bleed off speed.  Got to the corner worker station, and we were all laughing.  They gave me the nod and I re-entered onto the front straight.  

So...
1. stay cool - don't hang on too tight
2. butt off seat, weight to back
3. no throttle
4. ideally, no brakes - but if you need them, go with rear, especially if grass is wet.
5. keep bike upright  - no lean/turn.
6. smile and enjoy the ride - cuz you are now just a passenger.

[tshort]

As for gravel, I went off the end of the back straight at RA, Canada corner - v fast entry - into the kitty litter.  Same deal - weight off seat, butt back.  But this time, drop to 1st/2nd gear asap, and get on the gas *hard*.  Lots o' wheel spin and dust.  

The bike will have already slowed right down on entry - the key to not dumping is to keep it moving.  The tow truck operator was already jumping into action for what he thought was going to be an extraction, but I had a rooster tail of gravel coming out the back with the thing nailed.  

It was slow - like walking speed, maybe - so turning was easy.  Pointed it back toward the pavement, looked downtrack to make sure things were clear, got the nod from the corner worker, and was back on the track - with a nice wheelie from the spinning wheel hitting the tarmac.  Interesting.  Worked.

[Super Dave]

I shot off the exit of turn seven at Blackhawk over the curb and airborn, but I didn't need to fall down.  Didn't get back onto the straight until I was in forth gear.

There is less traction;  you don't lean, brake, or accelerate more than you have to because if you do, you fall down because of a lack of traction.  I'm impatient, so I'm looking to loose the least amount of time as possible.  Really, I will try not to let off so that the chassis stays relatively neutral and input remains there.  Remove it and the bike won't respond to normal inputs.

[grasshopper]

Just pretend you're on a dirtbike with really worn out knobby tires, or you're riding on ice. Any sudden input you make to your bike will have you on your ass. Don't turn too hard, brake too hard or give it too much gas. AIM FOR SOMETHING SOFT! Like a big fat corner worker!  :-X

[spyderchick]

I'm impatient, ...

Doesn't that describe 100% of racers?
 ::) ;) ;D

[Dawn]

Doesn't that describe 100% of racers?
 ::) ;) ;D

yeah.....   ;)

[jsanchez]

Thanks for all the valuable information.  It seems to have worked  ::)

At the last CCS event 2/13/05 @ Homestead I ran into the grass coming off the back straight (turn 8?).  The rider in front of me, changed his line due to heavy breaking and forced me to motocrossing in order to save us both a lot of money.  I've never ridden so fast through the grass and I just pulled the clutch in and sat there waiting for it to be over, hoping the rubber side would stay down.  Well, it did and had the pleasure of taking Nascar Turn 4 on my 600cc Honda.  I also had the pleasure of passing the guy the next lap.

Must say, it really does get your heart rate up to go offroading.  
-Javier

PS:  You don't notice it when you're racing, but when you hit it dead-on, the banking is pretty darn steep.  I think it bottomed out my front suspension.  It was interesting.   ;D

[cardzilla]

I think you do what comes naturally, if you try to force it you may get a bad result.  If I have room I will always gas it, get the foot down and grass track my way out.  I think it is much safer.  If there's no room, well rear brake with the weight back and a bail out if necessary.

[tshort]

where you based, Larry?