AITTI$I|FIHE TTRIST

AruE$I|FTHE uHt$IHEMI|IIIRITGI.E RI|AII RAGER$ HAilDB00t(lGith by Gode

t.Acknowledgements Editorial Assistance BillStermer MichaelChurch Help and Encouragement Cort Sutton Kawasaki Motors Corp., U.S.A. MotorcycIist Magazine Cycle World Magazine California Superbike School Design and Ill ustrat io n CameronAshby Associates,Inc. Jeff Skrimstad lmportant Lessonsand Friends Bob West Mel Dinesen Pierre Des Roches R i c h a r dD a v i s GriffithPark L. Ron Hubbard Judy Code

Photography KevinAshby,page80 pages 74,75,79,94,95 Behar, Patrick 3, page82 RichChenet, page17 MushEmmons, Freud,page42 MaryGrothe,backcoveractionphotograph page 14 Motorcyclist Magazine, pages26, 51, 56, 88 TomRiles, page109 JohnUlrich,

California SupertrikeSchool, Inc. 800 530-3350

Copyright1983-2002Code Break, Inc.

ISBN: -918226-08-2 O Library of Congress C a t a l o gC a r d N u m b e r 82-73771 All rights reserved.No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any i m e a n sw i t h o u t p e r m i s s i o n n w r i t i n g f r o m t h e a u t h o r .

Printed in the United States of America

containedin this book are intendedfor racingpurposes Warning: The ridingtechniques in resulting bodily for publisher acceptno responsibility anyaccidents only.Theauthorand and riderabilitythat speeds property that mightoccurfrom the increased damage harmor r h a l. b m a yb e g a i n e d y t h e u s eo f t h i sm a t e r i aT h ea u t h o r n dp u b l i s h ed o n o t g u a r a n t ete a t t h t o s h t r e a d e rw i l l a t t a i n h e s a m e i g hd e g r e e f r i d i n g k i l l s h a t o t h e r s a v eb y a p p l y i n gh e s e s that haveusedthese by notesand endorsements notedriders Supplemental techniques. that as shouldnot be takenas anyguarantee to safetyor competency might be techniques of the is lf gained, mprely personal experience. expertassistance required, services a as but agency shouldbe sought. statelicensed vi localspeedlaws. and observe clothing wearproperprotective Always

ForewordEventhough I've only been road racing for two out of the twelve years of my g c a r e e r .i t s e e m sa s t h o u g h I ' v e b e e n d o i n g i t a l l a l o n g .E v e r y t h i n g o e s s o s m o o t h l yn o w . l f t h e r e ' sa p r o b l e m ,I h a n d l ei t r i g h t a w a y .T h i n g s a r e g o i n g r i g h t they must be. I find myself in the winner's circle at almost every race. Of course my dirt track racing helped, but believe me, it wasn't always this easy. My first time on the asphalt-for more than a couple of laps-was at the California Superbike School. lt was really a good experience.I wasn't the fastest guy out there but it gave me the idea of what to do and, more importantly,that I did want to do it. Kawasakihad been helping me with my short track program. There are some great people down there who believed I had some promise, so they gave me a box stock racer and hired Keith Code to work with me for one year. Here is the part that really surprised me: We spent days going over stuff that Keith h a d w r i t t e n d o w n a b o u t r a c i n g .I t h o u g h t w e w e r e g o i n g s t r a i g h tt o t h e t r a c k , b u t h e r e I w a s a c t u a l l yl o o k i n gu p w o r d s i n t h e d i c t i o n a r ya n d t a l k i n g a b o u t r i d i n g . A f t e r w e d i d g e t t o t h e t r a c k t h e w h o l e t h i n g t u r n e d a r o u n da n d t h e r e I w a s , w r i t ing down everything hat I was doing on the track.Keithmade me think before t we got to the track. while I was on the track, and after I got off the bike. I don't know if everyonecan get into the winner's circle as fast as I did, but I know n o w t h a t b e i n g a b l e t o t h i n k a b o u t y o u r r i d i n g i s i m p o r t a n t .G e t t h a t p a r t d o n e f i r s t . This is where I started. I hope it works for you. Wayne Rainey

vil

GontentsForeword Author's Note lntroduction ONI CHAPTER The Road You Ride The Mysteriesof Asphalt RevealedCHAPTER TWO

10

What You Do A You Become ScientistCHAPTER THREE

14

The Product With Understanding Precision DevelopingCHAPTER FOUR

24

What You See Through the Eyes YourComputer ProgrammingCHAPTER FIVE

34

Timing Putting Thingsin OrderCHAPTER SIX

42

Decisions f : D e c i s i o M a k i n g R e c i p eo r S k i l l nCHAPTER SEVEN

54

Barriers to Keys lmprovementEIGHT CHAPTER Braking The Art of RegulatingSpeedCHAPTER NINE

60

76

Steering It HappensBackwardsCHAPTER TEN

80vill

Slipping and Sliding Traction: Howto Loselt and Uselt

.-&-.r:

CHAPTER

ELEVEN

Hanging Off It Looks Goodand lt WorksCHAPTER TWELVE

90

Passing Who WasThatlJust Passed?CHAPTER THIRTEEN

96

Supervise Yourself ls Yes,Homework NecessaryCHAPTER FOURTEEN

102 AdviceAsk YourBestFriend-You!CHAPTER FIFTEEN

104

How to Fall Your Relax-You're Just Road-Testing LeathersCHAPTER SIXTEEN

108

Sponsorship Lunch Therels No Free A Parting Word Appendix

1 15 117

trMarginNotesand Comments by EddieLawson Note: Special are for Extra wide margins provided your notes.

Author's Noteto The information in contained this bookis intended be used in riderto investigate master basicridingskillscovered each and the by a during is Noneof this information magic.lt hasbeendeveloped chapter. riders morethan 2,5OO and gettingresults morethan six yearsof training This riderconfidence. that eitherimproved timesor increased lap information worksif it is applied. that is magic,however, usinginformation in Thereis a certain it is one stepat a time.Gooverthe understood, the bestway to do and it, understand then go out andapplyit, bit by bit. information really and pointwill establish certainty that you can do it. Mastering a eachThe things that Keith goes over in hls semrnars and book are things I do all the time. You can learn the same thtngs.

lntroductionI'm goingto beginthis bookwith a littleconfession. never l've just wantedto ride.Throughout really beenall that interested racing-l in just a my racing career regarded otherriderson the trackas mostly I the Manytimestheygot in the way of the observations nuisance. I was making , m a b o u tm y r i d i n g a b o u th o w I c o u l di m p r o v e y r i d i n ga n d h o wt h a t l've information couldbe presented my students. always to hadjust as m u c hf u n r i d i n g l o n gb y m y s e l f n a r a c ea s I h a v e o m p e t i n g i t h o t h e r i w a c riders. M y r e a s o n i nfg r t h i s i s s i m p l e - n o a t t e r o w m a n yo t h e r m o h you muststill relyon yourown ability. riders on the track, are Thetrackis t h e e v e r - p r e s e c h a l l e n g e - n oh e o t h e rr i d e r sT h i si d e ah a sb e e n nt . tt strengthened the years throughmy observation the mostsucthat over ul as They cessf racers can go nearly fast in practice theydo in the race. as p l e a s ew i t h o u t h e , u s et h e i ru n d e r s t a n d i n g t h e t r a c kw h e nt h e y on pressure competition of forcingthemto "go fast."

Play the Game WellRiding fast on a motorcycle a tremendously is exhilarating and game. challenging Thisgamehasrulesand barriers. There's to something win, something lose,and a purpose eachindividual for to who plays the game.lt demands yourattention. consequences a majormistake The of can be severe-severe enough makethe gameworth playing to well.The p u r p o s e f t h i s b o o ki s t o d e s c r i b eh e t e c h n o l o ga n dt h e r u l e s f r i d i n g o y t o fast so that everyrideis a "win,"so that you'llapproach barriers with the y i c o n f d e n c e n du n d e r s t a n d i na n ds o y o u c a nf u r t h e r o u rp u r p o s en a g, i ridingor racing, whatever may be. it My overall approach riderimprovement to is:To simplify the actions of riding by defining the basics, and by investigating the decisions you must make to ride well.

What'll lt Cost?lf your face shield leaks air, tape it up. The alr won't come through and get your attention.

xrl

Attention, whereyou spendit whileridinga motorcycle, and is a keyelement how wellyou willfunction: in Attention has its limits. p E a c h e r s o n a sa c e d a i na m o u n t f i t ,w h i c hv a r i e sr o m i n d i v i d u a o h o f tl just as you havea fixed individual. havea fixedamountof attention You amount money. of Let'ssayyou havea ten-dollar bill'sworth of attention. lf you spendf ivedollars it on one aspect riding, you haveonlyf ive of of dollars for all the otheraspects. left Spendnineandyou haveonlyone dollarleft,and so on. Whenyou first began rideyou probably to spentninedollars yourattention how to let out the clutchwithoutstalling. of on Nowthat you'veridden yearsandthousands miles, for you probably of spendonlya n i c k l e r d i m eo n i t . R i d e r se l l m e t h a t s o m ec o m m o n o v e m e n t si,k e o t l m "automatic." not true.Theyaresimplyspending havebecome shifting, lt's

l e s s t t e n t i o n n i t . R i d i n g s l i k et h a t .T h em o r eo p e r a t i o ny o u r e d u c eo a o i s t t h e c o s to f a n i c k eo r d i m e , h e m o r eo f y o u rt e n - d o l l a rw o r t ho f a t t e n t i o n l t s i s l e f tf o r t h e i m p o r t a no p e r a t i o no f r i d i n g r r a c i n g . t s o j Y o um u s tm a k eh u n d r e d o f d e c i s i o nw h i l er i d i n g u s t o n el a p s s of a racetrack one stretchof road-especially or when ridingfast.Hundreds!lf you understand enoughaboutridingto havecorrectly decided h a n d l e 5 o f t h o s es i t u a t i o n s , ua r ep r o b a b l y f a i rr i d e rT h e yo h o wt o 2 . a things that you do not understand are the things that will take up most of your attention. Whenever situation a arises that you do not yourattention become ixeduponit. Youoftenfeara situnderstand, will f uation whenyou cannotpredictits outcome, and paniccosts$9.99-you mayevenbecome overdrawn. course actionyou havealready The of p o t e n t i ap a n i c i t u a t i o n o s t sm u c hl e s st h a n l d e c i d e d p o nt o h a n d l e u a s c you this and leaves plentyof attention sortout youroptions. to On the positive side,sodingout the actions ridingbeforeof handbuysyouthe time andf reedom become to creative with the activity just as havinglotsof changein yourpocketallows of riding, you a certain freedom movement. the racetrack,that left-over of On attention allows youto experiment to improve your ridingability. and High-performance ridingand racing demandnot onlythat you be ableto perform necessary the actions, alsothat you be ableto but observe them.Makingaccurate observations your performance the of is keyto beingableto improvethem. lf you know what you have doneyou know what can be changed. lf you did not observe what you were doing,the changes become haphazard inaccurate. you and Do agree? ln the nextchapters we'll lookat the gameand wherethe attention beingfocused spent. is or We'll investigate barriers riding the to well and put intoactionthe stepsyou'lltaketo bringhomea "win" every time. And finally,let's not losesight of the basicreason started we riding-it'sf un and makesus feelgood.Here's readily available freedom, and all it takesis A Twist of the Wrist.

/ might only use one-tenth of a cent on some thtngs that cost another nder $5 00, but you spend something on everythtng You do on a race track. The better you get the lessmost thrngs cost.

What ls a Rider?Before launching into anything heavy, let'sagree that the rider is the person controlling motorcycle, a passenger. riderworks the not The the brakes and clutch, throttleand steering. determines the He whether t h e b i k eg o e sa r o u n d h e t u r nf a s to r s l o w ,s m o o t h r r o u g h , p o r d o w n . t o u

i t w c w a n d i s t h e o n l yi n d i v i d u a l h o d e c i d e s h a ta c t i o n o t a k e , a r r i e st o u t , t h e nd e c i d e s o ww e l li t a l lw o r k e d . h t , I t a l m o s t o u n d s o o s i m p l e b u t i t ' st r u e : W h a ty o u d o i s s what happens; what you don't do-doesn't happen. Motorcycles Theydon'twin races losethem;they or by don'tdo anything themselves. d r h s d o n ' tm a k em i s t a k e o r d o a n y t h i n g i g h t .E v e r y t h i ntg a t h a p p e n s u r i n g o a r i d ed e p e n d s o l e l y n t h e r i d e r . you everseena new rideron the trackor roadstruggling Have t, c l h ? t o o p e r a t e i s m a c h i n eT h eb a s i c o n t r o o p e r a t i o n h e t r a c ka n dw h o h e feelshe is being to to thesearea mystery him. He honestly is in relation fine;evenexpertridershave takenfor a ride.lf you'vehadthosefeelings. felt this way at times. . o a T h e r e ' s n a c t u atl e c h n o l o gty r i d i n g P e o p l e r en o t b o r na s a A goodor bad riders-riding skillis learned. rider is a person who can lap a race track or ride down the road, fast or slow, and know what he did and how to change it.

AITilI$OTIHE IilRI$I

CHAPTER

ONE

The Road You RideThe Mysteries of Asphalt Revealedhavetheirfavorite of the Riders invariably sections road, parts just into a dancewhereeverything happens the way that flow together On it's supposed with no surprises. the streetor track,you knowwhich to you wantto knowwhy they'reso comfortable. How onestheyare-but Which aspects imporare muchshouldyou knowaboutthe roadyou ride? of to tant andwhicharenot?Why aresomesections roadharder ride thanothers? First, Highways constructed that are so somebackground. The motorists travelfrom PointA to PointB veryeasily. highway engican you makeit in one piece. The neers verythoughtful; are theywantto see turnsareoftengentlybanked. Decreasing-radius corners rare.Seldom are is therea hairpin the end of a straight at stretchof road.Off-camber possible. whenever Corners constructed a are in turnsareavoided predictable straight-forward manner. and

Designed to Fool YouA racetrack another is Not muchof anything sort of beast. is purposely have donefor yourconvenience. designers The a constructed o t t c s c o u r s eh a tw i l l c o n t i n u eo c r e a t e h a n g i n g i t u a t i o nfs r t h e r i d e rt,o f o o l s t u a n dc h a l l e n g h i m .H a i r p i n a r ep u t i n t ot h e m o s td i f f i c u l s e c t i o n s , s u e and "S" turns,or chicanes. allyafterthe fastest straight, oftenhavea may baffle you with several slower Corners camber and exitthan entry. y l r a d i u s h a n g e t o b r e a k o u rf l o w a n df o r c ey o u i n t ou n u s u as i t u a t i o n s . c s the And always, fasterthe turnsarenegotiated, moredifficultthey the that can be designed become. Thereare,however, onlyf ivemajorchangesinto an asphalt road. Haveyounoticed this?

Types of Roadp 1 . C h a n g e is C a m b e r : A i e c e f r o a dc a nh a v e p o s i t i v e n o a camber. Thismeans the camber-banking, it can have"off,"or negative or

inside the roadis higherthanthe outside. the roadcan be f lat.A turn of Or, maybe designed with anycombination thesecambers. of : t 2 . C h a n g e is R a d i u sA s i n g l e u r n m a yb e a c o n s t a nrta d i u s , n in as in a perfect halfcircle.lt maydecrease radius, up tightening toward a , t h e e n d ,o r i t m a yh a v e n i n c r e a s i nrg d i u so p e n i n g p a t t h e e n d .O r i t a u maybe a combination all three. of 3. Series Turns:ln a series interdependent of of turns,the line y o ut a k et h r o u g h h e i n i t i a p a r to f t h et u r nw i l l b e p a r t l y e t e r m i n eb y t l d d whereyou wantto exit it to set up for the nextturn.A series turnscan of h a v e n yo r a l l o f t h e c a m b e r n d r a d i u s h a n g e si s t e d b o v e . a a c l a 4 . U p h i l l D o w n h i la n dC r e s t e d r a c k h a n g e s : l e v a t i oc a n , l T C E n be addedat anypointto anytypeof turn or changein a roador track. T 5 . S t r a i g hS e c t i o n s : h e s e r es e c t i o n w h e r el i t t l eo r n ot u r n a t s ing is required. lncreases or decreasesin elevation may be added. These the f ivemajorchanges are that can be engineered into a pieceof asphalt. With the addit.ion bumpysections, of whichwerenot planned the designers, haveall the possible you by In situations. orderto you must understand characteristics. understand roadortrack, a its Each of thesechanges a directinfluence you andyour bike'sprogress has on you throughthe corner. orderto ridequicklyandsafely, must underIn standhow thesechanges affectyou and how you can besthandle them.Banked turns are comfortable for most ridersUnderstanding them allows you to take the full advantages they offer.

Positive Gamber or BankingMost everyone comfortable is ridinga section roadthat has of p o s i t i v e a m b e rT h eb a n k i n g a st h e e f f e c t f h o l d i n g s o m eb a n k i n g r o h c . o y o u u p b y c r e a t i n g " w a l l "t o p u s ha g a i n sw i t h y o u rt i r e s T h eb a n ka l s o t a . slowsyour bikedown evenmorewhenyou enterthe turn because the of increased resistance by is created this wall.Gravity workingfor you.pulli n gy o ua n dt h e m a c h i n e o w nt h e w a l l ,c o u n t e r a c t i n g e o u t w a r d - b o u n d d thcornering forces. Some examples? I t i s v e r y d i f fi c u l tt o s e et h e b a n k i n gw h i l e y o u ' r er i d i n go n i t . You may not notice a slight bank at all, unlessyou looked at the turn before

On bankedlrackyou don't enter low and come out htgh

lapson the you rodeit.Onthe high banksat Daytona, afterridingseveral appeared the actually sections outside tri-ovalin a recordattempt, banked angle.lt is easyto tiltedat a 2O-degree f latto me andthe pit arealooked you'releaned over because be deceived evena smallamountof banking by less becomes viewof the road.Also,the banking and don'thavea straight yourspeed. noticeable you increase as to so Alwaysdesignyourapproach you can usethe banking yourbestadvantage. low in the bank,closeto the insideof the track,at Go y t b o t h e p o i n tw h e r e h e b a n k i n g e g i n s o f l a t t e n u t .T h i sg i v e s o u a n dy o u r t y h h a b i k et h e m a x i m u m o l d i n g d v a n t a gte e b a n k i n g a st o o f f e rb e f o r e o u r h from the forces bikebegins swingoutwardon the f lattersection to generated acceleration. by y I n a t u r n .y o u rb i k ea n dy o ua r ej u s t l i k et h e w e i g h t o u s w i n g you swingit,the heavier the your headon a rubberband. Thefaster around f ugalforce,andthe moreit triesto swingto weightbecomesrom centrif "holds"you in untilyou moveontothe f latter the outside. Thebanking section roadthat follows. of you can turnsfasterthan it seems Youcan go into banked The whenyou sizeup the turn and lookat it f rom pastexperience. banking g w i l l f o o l y o ui n i t i a l l y n dy o uw i l l p r o b a b l y o i n t oi t m u c ht o o s l o w l y . a of section roadto a flatter Also.whenyou areexitinga banked when you the surface, muststraighten bikesinceit will dragmoreeasily and areleaned lf section the banking gone.Example: you arein a banked is to you must leanthe bikeoverevenmorein relation the overto the pegs, whenthe bankis gone. of tracksurface keepthat degree turningradius to you ten lf the bankis 1Odegrees, must leanthe bikeoverat least more on degrees keepthat turningradius the f latterroadsurface. to givesyou moregroundclearance than doesa flat The banking who couldrun laptimeson racetracks section track.I haveknownriders of that samecourse timesandwho had raced that wereverycloseto record that of 3Oor 40 times,who f inallydiscovered one section trackwas banked-that waswhy theycouldgo so fast in that part.Afterknowing, you lf trackangles, might be theywent evenquicker. you don't discover you be gettingawaywith ridingmaneuvers feelyou shouldn't withouteven y y y s k n o w i n g h y .O n c e o ud i s c o v etrh e r e a s o n b e h i n d o u ra b i l i t i e s ,o uc a n wyourriding? begin to use the track to your advantage. Wittthisimprove

Turns Off-Camberor Negative-Gamberas who regard off-camberturns their I don't knowany riders do iessroomfor errorand definitely not inspire favorites. These turnsleave confidence. demands with a bankand endsoff-camber A turnthat begins n t h e m o s tc h a n g e s n da d j u s t m e n tis l e a na n g l e sl.n o r d e r t oc o n t i n u e a Theeffectis muchthe overfarther. aroundit, the bikemustbe leaned is to sameas goingf rom a banked a f lat surface.Gravity now working y o u rb i k et o t h e o u t s i d eY o ul o s eg r o u n d y . a g a i n sy o u ,p u l l i n g o ua n d t you turnsso that you are in the Therefore, set up off-camber clearance. strategy the as off-camber situation shorta time as possible-just opposite

''rffil

asfor a banked turn.Usestraight lineson the partsof the trackthat are you don'twantto be committed your maximum off-camber because to leananglegoinginto an off-camber you ldeally, wouldonlycomsection. mit yourself the maximum to leanangleat the veryendof the section. An effective alternative to set up so that yourgreatest is leaning occursin the middleof the off-camber lt section. hasbeencalled "squaring a turn or "goingslow in the slow parts."lt refers the type off" to y o f t u r n h a n d l i n gh a t a l l o w s o ut o s t r a i g h t eo u t t h e n e g a t i v c a m b e r s t n e a . m u c ha s p o s s i b l eB a s i c a l l y o ue n t e r s v e r t i c a l la s p o s s i b l e h e nm a k e , y a t, t h e m a j o r t e e r i n g h a n g e n de x i ta s s t r a i g ha s p o s s i b l e . s c a t Riders tendto seethe basicturn moreclearly it because is moreobvious thanthe camber This is one of the deceptive change. tricks of the racetrack designer. rideris sucked The intothe turn because is he b a s i n g i s r i d i n g a c t i c s n w h a tt h e t u r n l o o k sl i k ei n s t e a d f t a k i n g n t o h t o i o a c c o u ntth e c h a n g e sn c a m b e t h a t c a ns o s e r i o u s la f f e c th i m .H em u s t i r y r e a l i z t h a tg r a v i t ys n o w p u l l i n g h e b i k ei n t h e o p p o s i t e i r e c t i o n f h i s e i t d o i n t e n d e t u r n ,a n dt h et e n d e n c o f t h e b i k et o g o t o w a r d h e o u t s i d en d y t i an off-camber turn is dramaticWitt hetp? . this

As speed increases, centrif ugal forces genefated by the bike/rider combination widen the cornering arc. The line must change as the speed goes up.

Flat TurnsTurnswith no negative positive or camber-flat turns-willnot increase decrease leananglenecessary negotiate or the to them at a

is TurnTwo at Daytona a greatexample radius constant speed. constant or and changes, mostfast ridersprefer of a basically turn with no radius flat way throughis the In to rideit on the inside. turnsof this kind,the fastest around turn.In a f latturn the distance line-it'salsothe shortest straightest r a d i u s h a n g es p u t i n f o r i a c t h e r ei s n o a t t e m p t o f o o l t h er i d e ru n l e s s l a t v a r i a t i o n .h e s eu r n sc o m m i t h e r i d e r o h i s m a x i m u me a na n g l e n d T t y g p e r i o d f t i m e .S i n c e o u ' r e o i n gt o b e o maximum peedorthelongest f s , a r a r i d i n g r o u n d h e i n s i d e t m a xs p e e d n d m a xl e a ns o o n e o r l a t e ry o u t a intoa flat Taking wide entry a mayaswell get downto it at the beginning. y t a t u r no n l yg i v e s o m e o n e c h a n c eo p a s s o u . sConstant Radius

Off Camber

,--F1 Gamber changes dramatically aff ect how a turn can be ridden.

---=-'-t-

'

HGhangesin Radius

I

Positive Camber

twist the of Designers change radius a turn to put an additional t i n t h e a c t i o n H e r e r et h e b a s i c i n d so f r a d i ia n dh o wt o h a n d l eh e mo n k a . the track. (CR) Gonstant-RadiusTurn: A constant-radius turn neither (tightens) you go throughit. As men(widens) decreases as increases nor (s w t i o n e d b o v ei,f i t i s a f a i r l yl o n gc o n s t a n t - r a d i uC R ) t u r n i t h n o c a m b e r a y w o c h a n g e s ,o uw i l l e v e n t u a l l yi n d u p o n t h e i n s i d e f t h et u r nf o r m o s to f i t . you may haveotheroptionsas to how to set up the lf it is a shorthairpin, y e n t r ya n de x i t .I n a r e a l l yi g h t h a i r p i n o u m u s tm a k ea n a b r u p t u r n i n g t b c h a n g e - i s h o u l d e d o n ea t t h e p o i n ta t w h i c hy o uf e e lm o s tc o n f i d e n t . t b T h e r e s n o r u l ea st o h o w i t s h o u l d e d o n e . i t r ts l f a c o n s t a n t - r a d i uu r n h a sc a m b e c h a n g e si , c a na c ta s a (uR ) t u r nF o re x a m p l e , ls . D o if d e c r e a s i n g - r a d i(u sR ) r a s a n i n c r e a s i n g - r a d i out the turn is banked the entryandf lattens on the exit it will have on lf radius. it is flat on the exactly sameeffecton your bikeas the decreasing lt is the entryand banked the exit,it actsas an increasing-radius. very on professionals well-to ridethe turnsthe way as common amateurs-and for they appearat speedand not the way they reallyare.lt is veryeasyto have yourattention of stuckto the radius a turn so you don't seethe camber will of changes helpyou Thus,knowing location the camber the changes.greatly in a turn. Wheredoesthisapply?

The notorious decreasing radius turn. Designed to invite you in faster than it lets you out-

=

Usually oasy to rlde, the increasing radius turn can be made difficult with camber changes. Increasing Radius

Decreasing-RadiusTurns: Thisis a turn that tightensup as you go throughit. ln a decreasing-radius turn,the designer (DR) triesto trickyou intotreatingit as a constant-radius, single-apex turn. lf youfall for that,you mustdo one of threethings:1) Runwide at the exit,2) Lean the bikeovermoreat the endof the turn,or 3) Backoff the gasso that oneandtwo abovedon't happen. A decreasing-radius hasat leasttwo apexes. to cheat turn Try the turn out of one apexand it will get you backwith the other. a DRturn In you mustridewhat is there:don'ttry to makethe turn into something it is not.Somemisleading information beencirculating years has for which saysyou "lateapex"DRturns.Thismaybe true in a verytight DRturn,but in a larger turn you mustdouble-apex turn. the Youcan makethe turn longer yourself takinga wide for by your speedup andcuts down on the abruptness entryline.This keeps of the actualsteering A change. DRturn that is f lat on the entrance and banked the exitwill act as an lR or CRturn,depending at uponthe severity of the banking. a turn is constructed that it forcesyouto go slowat lf so somepoint,you mustdecidewhereto go slow instead letting of the you.By figuringa turn correctly, ridethe track-the designer decide for you trackdoesnot rideyou.lf you makea big mistake line,you haveprobin ablyjust beensuckedinto ridingthe trackthe way it looksrather than the way it is. Increasing-Radius(lR) Turns: Thisturn widens-itsangle you go through it. An lR givesyou the safestfeelbecomes lesssevere-as you ing because haveroomat the endto makechanges and corrections. Youcan easilyrecover from going into an lR turn too fast because you haveplenty room.An lR turn can be changed of dramatically the camby just as the DRturn can be.lf it is banked berof the road, goingin, andf lat or off-camber the exit,it will act as a CRor DRturn,depending at upon how much negative camberit has.The radius of the turn is usually second in importance to its camber. Areyou aware this? of Series of Turns: Two or moreturnslinked together sucha in way as to influence eachotherarecalleda series turns.They're of usually designed slow you down at a placewhereyou otherwise to could go faster.

Some places you have to use a real wrde line so you don't scrub speed off, but not always.

the Forexample. entryinto a two-turn"S" is fasterthanthe exit' lf the it entryis takenasfast as possible. will spoilthe exit.lf the entryis g w a p p r o a c h ew i t ht h e e x i ti n m i n d ,t h e r i d e r i l l s a c r iifc es o m es p e e d o i n g d driveout of the turn.Oftenthis is a betterstrategy in for a moreconstant to than having backoff and set up againfor the exit. in to It is verydistracting makethis kindof change the second you mustgo slow in has Roberts oftensaidthat Kenny turn in a series. wouldput placein orderto go fast in others-his"slow,"of course, some attemptto lull us the Hereagain, designers arrest. mostof us intocardiac d I e r a i n t ot a k i n g c t i o n i t h e t o o s o o no r t o o l a t e . n s o m eh i g h - s p e ec h i c a n e s , with the throttleon the way in and settingup a smooth beingtemperate suchas thoseat Pocono, worth overa secondin laptime.Chicanes exit is this? Can applv Daytona and SearsPointare good examples- vou Uphill, Downhill and Crested Turns: Whena track in changes how it must it someexciting in changes elevation, cancreate l s a . b e r i d d e nU p h i l l n dd o w n h i ls e c t i o n o f a t r a c kd o n ' tp o s ea n yp a r t i c u c p r o b l e m n l e s sh e ya r ei n c o n j u n c t i ow i t h a t r i c k yc a m b e r h a n g e , n t lar u u a n r a d i u s h a n g e r b o t h .D i f f i c u l t i eis u p a n dd o w ns e c t i o n s s u a l l y r i s e c o At risefollowedby a downhill. this pointthe wherethereis a crestor sharp Braking over be bikewillfeel lightandwill actually lighton the pavement. pressure the bikeis of the downward hill a crested is trickybecause in This results lesstraction. lessened. the with a crestin the middleis alsotrickybecause bike A turn Again, thereis a lossof tendsto standup andgo towardthe outside. affectas a short patchof off-camberroad.lt is traction.lt hasthe same Anv as bestto go overa crestedroadas vertically possible. examples? you havethe advanyou mustbrake, where On uphillsections tagethat you can stopor slowthe bikefasterthan on f lat or downhill the slope, force on lf sections. the hillthat you'rebraking hasa 15-degree you backanddown givesyou a 27 percent betterstoppulling of gravity locking 27 pingfactor. Youcan usethebrakes percent harderwithout t i l t h e mu p ,a n dt h a t ' sa l o t !O n a d o w n h i ls e c t i o nh e s i t u a t i o ns r e v e r s e d ; p w , T h eo t h e rp o s s i b l e r o b l e m i t h u p h i l l d o w n l t h e b r a k e so c km o r ee a s i l y . o t r i h i l la n dc r e s t e d o a d s s t h a t b i k e s e n dt o w h e e l i e v e rt h e m .T h i si s n ' t you haveto makea turn whilethe f rontwheelis problem unless really a s t i l li n t h e a i r . portions trackwith of are Straight Sections: These straight to you.Straightaways a greatplace relax are to no turnsor changes affect regularly. Riders to or for a second two. Check seethat you are breathing theirefficiency. riding, which slows oftenholdtheirbreathduringintense w c o i L a c k f o x y g e n s o n ec a u s e f m u s c l e r a m p s h i l er i d i n g . o publicor racetrack, made is The roadyou ride,whetherit be series turnsand of radius, elevation, camber, up of the f ivecomponents: yourapproach determines combined are Howthesecomponents straights. i n, t t o r i d i n g h e m .n o t o n l yw h e r es p e e d s t h e c o n s i d e r a t i ob u tf o r s a f e t y ' s your riding is of The purpose a racetrack to test and retest sakeas well. to by skill;it is intended the designers be difficult.Yourtask is to unravel to by usingyour knowledge youradvanof the mysteries the construction and for will tage.No amountof bravery substitute understanding, no

amountof suspension changes entirely will overcome forces the generated thesef ivecomponents. you it? by Do get

Note: Track SurfacesMost racetracksand canyonroadsare constructed from asphalt compounds. Asphaltcan be,andoftenis, mixedwith various substances createdifferenttypesof roadsurfaces. to Racetracks,for g i n s t a n c e ,f t e nh a v e r o u n d - u p e as h e l l s r g r a n i t e h i p sm i x e di n t ot h e o s o c asphalt givetiresa bettersurface biteon, andtherefore to to better traction.Thecompounding oftenverydifferent is from trackto trackand road to road,which is one of the reasons choicehasbecome verycritical tire a e l e m e nitn r a c i n g . Otherfactors, heat,playa hugerolein determining especially whattirewill be the bestthat day.An overcast that doesnot allowthe day tracksurface heatup may require different than a sunnyday,even to a tire if airtemperature the same. is Asphaltsurfaces that aredarkerin color heatup morethan lighter-colored sections. Thisis the caseat Sears Point Raceway Sonoma, in California, wherethe trackis a composite threeor of four different asphalt compounds. Tiresthat workverywell in one area tendto slidearoundin others. And tiresthat work well in the morning, before trackhasheated sometimes not provide the goodtraction up, will in the afternoon-and versa. vice Theamountof rubber the trackalsomakes difference on a in traction.I haveheardit saidthat tractionis betterafteran auto racewhere a lot of rubberhasbecome imbedded the asphalt; alsoheardriders in l've say it was not as good. My own observation that laptimes arefaster is afterthe trackhasa goodlayer rubber it, especially of on from an automobilerace-providing therearen'tloosepieces rubber the track of on surface. Tiresandasphalt an entire are technology untothemselves and l w i l l n o tt r y t o d e a l w i t h h e m i n t h i sw r i t i n g B y t h et i m ey o u r e a d h i s ,t h e t . t technology already will havechanged andtherewill be newtire compounds-better thanwhatwe now have.

You've got to be able to "read" pavement. I can tell whether I want to push ritor not. There are a lot of klnds of pavement. Sometrmes the ones that look lrke they are really gorng to be strcky are lust the oppostte.

CHAPTER

TWO

What You DoYou Become A Scientistthe weaponis his abilityto perform actions Therider'sultimate andto be able to observe and remember what he has of riding, done. This is a keyto improvement.

Don't Badmouth Yourselfabout Manyridershavea bad habitof talkingin negatives "l "l didn'tgo in hardenough," shouldhavegottena better theirriding. "l that well,""l needto get a driveoff the corner," don't usethe brakes Too have,Don't, Shouldn't betterlinethroughthis turn."Didn't.Can't. wordsmuchtoo often. Most ridersusethesenegative much,Not enough. aboutwhat he didn'tdo right,or thingsthat were Howcan information lf his everimprove riding? a personis ridingat almost-ornot quite-done, T m o r er i g h tt h a nw r o n g . h ej o b i s t o a d dt o t h o s e d a l lh e i s a l r e a d y o i n g Do do correctactionsand drop the incorrect. you this?

You Gan't Correct What You Didn't Dow i T h eo n l yw a yt o m a k ec h a n g e sn y o u rr i d i n gi s t o c h a n g e h a t done.not what whatrye5; To was done. do that you haveto knowexactly lot of thingson that lastlap-youdidn'twashyour Was!:! Youdidn'tdo a else andyou didn'tdo just abouteverything car.you didn'tgo to church, w h a ty o ud i d .D o n ' tf a l l i n t ot h e t r a po f Y t h e r ei s t o d o i n l i f e . o uo n l yd i d your ridingby looking whatyou didn'tdo.Thisleaves at tryingto correct i l y o u n o t h i n g o c h a n g e".l d o n ' tb r a k e a t ee n o u g h n T u r nT w o , "s o u n d s t for doesit contain you to improve? but enough, what information innocent patchjust before "l the at lf you sayinstead, startedbraking the asphalt laterthanthat"'you even threemarketand now I knowI can brake number to what was doneand now havesomething change. know s I t ' ss i m p l e - t h i n o f y o u rr i d i n gi n n e g a t i v ea n dy o u d o n ' th a v e k to it the way it was andyou havesomething Lookat to anything change. e. i i g h c h a n e .N e g a t i vte i n k i n g s i n c r e db l yn o n - p r o d u c t i vG h a n g i n gs o m e -

10

thing you didn't do is impossible. Thinking negatively aboutyour riding putsyou intoa maze. mirrormaze A workslikethat-it givesyou you nowhere startyourthinkingfrom,thendisorients by covering to up point. whereyou'vebeenandwhereyou cango. Youhaveno reckoning The maze triesto makeyou losea f irm pointof direction opening by up manypossibilities. Whenyou havea f irm ideaof whereyou camefrom you go can always backto that pointand startover.lt's the sameon a race track.lf you knowjust what you did.you havea stablebasef romwhichto makecorrections the next lap.Wilt work you? on it for

Riding is One Thing-Riding Plus Being Aware of What You Are Doing is Ouite AnotherYou haveonlyso muchattention spendon whatyou are to d o i n g y o u rt e n - d o l l ab i l l .l f y o u s p e n di t a l lo n j u s t r i d i n g n d n o n eo n , r a observing what you'redoing,you can go quitefast.But if you spendfive yourself dollars ridingandf iveon observing on andwhat you'redoing,you havesomething lookat andchange to whenyou returnto the pits.You don't haveto hopeyou can work yourselfinto a feverpitch to go fasteryou can go fasterby figuringout how to do it better. Howdo you develop this wonderf abilityto rideand observe ul whatyou'redoingat the sametime?Yousimplydecide do it.You make to an effort to look at what you are doing while you are doing it. Try it. lf you already havea record your laptimeson the track,go out of yourself. firstthing you'llnoticewill be and makean effortto observe The that you went slower whiledoingboththe ridingand observing. costsa lt lot of attention do boththingsat once.Youwon't be willingto rideas to hard.Don'tgiveup.You're spending lot on looking a and a littleless ondoing.

/ know what I look lrke gotng through the turns lt might look ugly, but it works

I go slow tn the first practrce. look at the track and get the ieel of the btke.

An accurate mental recording of what you do on the track is invaluable.

Take lt as a WholeNow,takean entirepractice session the trackandtry to on you'redoing.Comebackto the pits andthink it over. observe everything Then, takethe nextpractice andjust ride.You'llnoticeoneof two things: 1) Youwentfaster, 2) the ridingbecame or lessworkthan before. also lt's possible that both things happened-you went fasterwith lesseffort. Riding with lesseffortmeans that you'respending moreof yourattention what'simportant on and lesson just beingready surfor prises. you don't knowwhat'scomingup in a turn,you will be tense.lf lf you havetakensometime to observe you whatwas happening, havespent lessattentionon possiblesurprises.

It Costs More Attention to Keep Something From Happening Than lt Does to Make Something HappenAs in anything, whenyou first beginto observe whatyou're doing it will cost you a lot of attention. After you becomemorecomfortablewith it youwill spendlessattention it. lt maytakea ridera yearor on partsof the moreto decideit's okayto slidethe reartire a bit on certain track.He mightpick up oneto five seconds doingit. But before by coming to that decision. which maytakeonlya splitsecond the track,he might on havebeenspending almostall of his attention tryingto keepthe rear in w h e e l f r o m p i n n i n g n ds l i p p i n g . s a Observing whereandwhat happened the trackwill make on part something a littlerearwheelslidea predictable of riding. rider like A who observes drop in laptimes,andalsonotices a wherehe was sliding andwhat broughtit about,hassomething basea decision to upon-hecan decideif the sliding was helpfulor if it didn'twork andshouldbe stoppedaltogether. Does make sense? it

Observing ls the Basis for ChangeWheneverythingis rightyou can tell exactlywhich laps were good.

12

lf you go out on the trackand run a betterlaptime,but have not observed whatyou did to causeit, you will not be ableto strengthen the actions that worked. Riders who just rideand don'tobserve believe that everything happened that lap mustbe reproduced that on exactly and in the sameorderfor themto repeat goodperformance. is oneof the This a waysridersbecomesuperstitious. Because they don't know what helped, riders go about trying to keep all factors the same as they were at the time they rode well. You can keepthingsthe same,but onlyby observing what you did and by deciding whichfactorsworked best.Observing what you do is the key to learning by your mistakes. Youcan easily cheatyourself of the knowledge be out to gained rom mistakes. f Let'ssayyou got into a turn a littletoo hardand you wentwide of your line.Normally, wouldtry to get backto that good line-towhat worked. That'sf ine,but there'sa twist.lf you "rideout your

you line mistake," will learnhow that different works.Tryingdesperately you'vemadea mistake won't tell you anything to get backto the idealonce will Riding that mistake giveyou out that you'vemadea mistake. except a h o wt o h a n d l et s h o u l di t e v e rh a p p e n g a i n . i v a l u a b l e f o r m a t i oa b o u t in n you Everything do may be a littlewrong,but at leastyou'll pointfor change. have Riders that'sthe starting knowwhat happens-and newmethodof ridingaftermakingmisbeenknownto adapta completely takes. Ride a mistake out and see what happens. lt will costyou thanto go from happening moreattention try to keepsomething tothrough with what you have started. Do youthinkit witt work?

By the Time You Notice a Mistake lt ls Too Late To Gorrect lttrue.Oncea mistake this before-it's Youmay haveheard occurson any lapor in anyturn,you can'troll backthe clockor the asphalt to correctit. You'lljust haveto makethe bestof it. Figureout what went wrongand correctit on the nextlap.

It ls the Last Thing You Did That Got You lnto Troubleyou or is The rootof the mistake the controlchange decisions the occurred. madeandacteduponjust before problem goingintoa turn too witJe. Therider A goodexample this is of the got therebecause waswherehe had pointed bikethe lasttime he it wouldsay,"l didn'tturn soon Most riders change. had madea steering too he straight long.lt Thatisn'ttrue.Actually, keptit pointing enough." what happened he begins if for will takea lot longer the riderto realize it for from when he noticed than if he goesbackto the looking the problem pointof wherehe was steering the beforehe began turn.He has to earlier realize that he was operating from an earlier decision to go to this straight, not the later one to turn. Does apply you?

lf You Decide Upon the Wrong Explanation for a Mistake, the Solutions for It Will Also Be Wrongof for obseruer basicreason beinga careful Thisis another what you do. Being able to ride is impottant, but riding and observing leads to understanding.

13

CHAPTER

THREE

The ProductDeveloping Precision with UnderstandingWhat is the bestline What is the linethroughTurnThree? from another's? throughanycorner? Why is one rider'slineso different

5O Years of lmprovementtheoryhas Linesusedto be easier figureout.A lot of racing to beendeveloped the last 50 yearsof racing,and that's a lot of historyto in backup the ideas that still hauntus from the 1950sand earlier. a On motorcycle, was reckoned, straightest throughthe turn was the it line the fastest way,or "line."Butthingshavechanged today.lt was truethen,but it's not necessarily today. true Physics natural and lawshavenot changed-tires suspenand 'SOs In riders werelimitedby the lackof sionshave. the and earlier, technology. Theyhadto takethe smoothest, sophisticated straightest, line the shortest throughthe turnsbecause hard-rubber compounds tire in and non-compliant of suspensions the earlydaysmadeabruptchanges over-enthusiastic braking direction, braking roughor rippled on surfaces. ridingpossibilities whileleaned overand othercurrent-day simplyout ofState of the ail? Good enough to win laconia in 1965.. . .

14

i t h e q u e s t i o nl . y o u h a do w n e da s e to f D u n l o p p o r tE l i t e sn 1 9 5 Oa n d f S y K G h a dg o n et o t h e l s l eo f M a no n a 1 9 8 O s a w a s a k i P Z5 5 O , o u p r o b a b l y wouldhavewon the race. That'sa streetbikewith street tirestoday. e T i r ea n ds u s p e n s i otn c h n o l o gh a v e a d ei t p o s s i b l t o r i d e e y m h m o r et h a no n e l i n et h r o u g h t u r na n dm a k ei t w o r k .R i d i n g t y l e s a v e a s v t r li c h a n g e d e r yd r a m a t i c a l sy n c e h e 19 5 0 s ,b u tt h e o u t d a t e di d e ri n f o r mationf romthosedaysstill confusessomeof us in the '80s.A freshlook and can at riderinformation technology helpyou ridebetternow. Definition: A product is something that is produced; it is the end result when all the work is done. A product is what you can hold in your hand-or in your mind. You can turn it over to see if it can be produced better or differently, corrected or left alone.

Product of the TurnA turn or series turnshasa "product." is that pointwhere of lt you can say,"l'm donewith that turn now-here's what I did this time, here's what happened. Now,what can I do to improve it?" Thesimplest wayto recognize spot is to remember that where youwerebraveenough think,"l couldgo throughthat one quicker." to Wlren you have enough attention left to reviewyour progress, and the turn is no longer affecting you, !hg! is when you're donewith it. Haveyou experienced this?

At that point,the sumtotal of everything did in the turn you is neatly wrappedup;you knowthat whatyou did eitherworkedor it didn't.Somepartsof the productwereassembled correctly-maybe some t w e r e n ' tT h i sp r o d u c h a sa l o c a t i o n n t h e t r a c k w h i c hf o r e x a m p l e i g h t . o , m be a pointthreefeetfrom the outside edgeor just nextto "that patch"of a s p h a l tT h i sp o i n to n t h e t r a c kn o w r e m i n d s o uo f e x a c t l y h e r e o u ' r e . y y w f i n i s h e d i t h t h e t u r nf o r t h a t l a p . w

Other Factorsyour location the track,areimportant Otherfactors, besides on partsof the product: what gearyou'rein,yourspeedat that point,your b o d yp o s i t i o n n t h e b i k e .U s u a l l y o m ea m o u n o f l e a n n g l eT h ea m o u n t o s t a . you haveoverthe bike.Thesteering of control actionyou are-orarenottaking. Throttle Tiretraction. action. Yourimpressions whatyou did and of how well it workedout.And a comparison this passthroughthe turn of passes. of these, with yourearlier All and more,arepartof yeqr product for that turn.The quality of your product is determined by all of what happened and how it worked.Any thoughts this? on Note: You use that product to develop a set of known circumstances that can be thought over and changed when necessary. A sub-product is a definite set of known circumstances that lead to the product for that turn. Bothyourproducts andsub-products havean exactloca-

15

product or sub-product-they will tion on the track. Thereis no universal be slightlydifferent eachbikeand rider. for Your product is a known destination along a known route. Youaresupposed knowwhere to y o u ' r e o i n go n a t r a c k , n dt h e p r o d u c t i s t h e p l a c e o u a r eg o i n g T h e g y . a guy with the bestproduct wins.Theproduct andsub-products arethe planof action,basedupon resultof a pre-determined pre-decided and your knowledge the partsof that turn,andyourknowledge howto get of of y o u rm a c h i n e r o u n d t . a iEnd back to beginning.

Pavementpatch

The Product is where you are done with the t u r n . l t i s a p l a c ey o u k n o w .

A Sub-Productalerts you that you are on the right track to your Product.You see it.

Roughspot

You locate another Sub-Productor Refere n c e P o i n tt o g u i d ey o u t h r o u g h t h e t u r n .

Each new RP leads to another that you k n o w i s g o i n gt o b e t h e r e .

16

Y o u b u i l d c o n f i d e n c eb y k n o w i n g w h e r e you areon the trackwith the RPs.

You become able to "see" the turn before y o u e v e n b e g i nt o g o t h r o u g h i t .

David Emde performing miracles on 25occ GP bike. At 185 pounds and 6'3" tall, his "plan" is different than yours.

Your Line ls Your PlanFromtalkingto most riders, is easyto believe it that onceyou f i n dt h e " r i g h t l i n e " f o r a t u r n .e v e r y t h i nw i l l m a g i c a l lty r no u t O Ka n d g u your laptimeswill improve because this knowledge. isn'ttrue. of lt I onceexperimented showingothersthe "right line" with throughthe turnsof a racetrack.I had students followme lap afterlapat moderate as speeds I did precisely samething at precisely same the the placeon the trackeachlap.Thestudent was thenasked repeat to the procedure that had beenshownto him. I never founda student who could do it exactly. Lawson Eddie observed samething while instructing this Galifornia Superbike School students Loudon. at Onlyone riderout of 25 was ableto reproduce lineafterbeingshown.(Actually riders his two wereableto do it. Theotherwas my 12yearold son,who Eddie offered to sponsorafterwards. ) l've placedmyselfin the samesituationand askeda better riderto showme his "lines" around course. the Thecourse was Ontario M o t o rS p e e d w a y ,. 19 m i l e s n d 2 0 t u r n s ; h e r i d e r a st h e n - 2 5 O cU . S . 3 a t w c c h a m p i o nD a v i d m d ew h o w a sa l l b u t u n b e a t a b lte a tv e a ro n t h e , E , h 1/q-liter machines. went around trackat a good practice We the paceas I caref observed ully what he was doingin hopesof f indingout somedeep, darkridingsecrets. I did find out. I foundout that a rider's line is his plan for going through a turn. Hisplanis baseduponwhat he doeswell and what he doesn'tdo well.I observed, thenand now,that a rider's planwill be baseduponhis strengths weaknesses. lineis the resultof how and His his strengths weaknesses together. and f it Forexample, riders who usethe maximum amountof lean a n g l e h e b i k eh a st o o f f e rw i l l u s u a l l y e s i g n h e i r" l i n e " t o u s el e a n t d t angleto theiradvantage. Their"line" is oftentight to the insideof the turn.By contrast, riderwho doesnot useall of the groundclearance a a v a i l a b lte h i mw i l l d e s i g n i s " l i n e " ( p l a n )s o t h a t h e d o e sn o t h a v e o o h t s p e n d o m u c ht i m e l e a n e d v e rt o t h e m a x i m u mH ew i l l f i n i s hh i s s t e e r s o . i n ga s s o o na s p o s s i b l e ,t r a i g h t etn e m a c h i n e n d m o v ea w a yf r o mt h e s h a t u r na sv e r t i c a l la s p o s s i b l e . l l r i d e r s i l l d e s i g n h e i rt u r n sa r o u n d h e y A w t t pointsthey believe strong they have.:q + * *L- t*' .i' -.r' . .

When the Superbike School was at Loudon I let 24 riders follow me around the track so they could see my line. Then /followed them to frnd out how they were dotng. Twentythree of them got it wrong from what I could see.

The thing about riding on the back of a motorcyc/e wr:th someone else drivrng rs that thev never do it exactly like I would and it scares me.

17

lf someone pulls me I change my line tn that turn and see if it works / have films of me racing wrth rrders and I'll pull them five bike lengths off a turn and still they lust keep on doing the same thrng lf the other guy's plan rs better you can fit it rnto yours and beat him

Learning a Lineif ridercan be veryinstructional you can Following another to his determine plan by watchinghim. lf his plan is betterdesigned you mayhave yours,andyou can seewhy it is better. handle turn than a sometracksituato learned how to useyourown abilities betterhandle r i d e r - i ft h e r ei s a n y - i si n u n d e r s t a n d i a T t i o n s . h ev a l u e n f o l l o w i n g n o t h e y e i n g h i s p l a na n db e i n ga b l e t oe x p a n d o u ro w n r i d i n gb e c a u s o f i t . l t ' s n o t t h e p l a n t h a tc o u n t s . i n l e a r n i n t h el i n e ; i t i s l e a r n i n g g

Basic GoalYourbasicgoalin anyturn is getting through the turn with increased rnph, decreased time spent in it and adequate control for of the bike. Youare looking drive out of the turn that will carryyou to amountof time with the in the nextturn or downthe straight the shortest you muststill be in controlof the greatest Of amountof speed. course. the factorsof speedandtime to get the bestproduct. bike.Youbalance to Yet it is possible comeout of a turn fasterthan beforeandstill not y m s y o u rl a pt i m e .T u r n sc a nS u c k o u i n t om a k i n g i s t a k e l i k et h a t ' decrease

Turn Balancingturn balthe Getting bestproduct f rom a turn requires y y o w h e r e o u b a l a n c e o u rs p e e d u t o f t h e t u r na g a i n stth e a n c i n g : t h i si s amountof time it takesyou to get throughit. The mostcommonmistake then comeout of them ridersmakeis to go intothe turnsfasterandfaster, lt's easier to go into a turn faster than it at the samespeedor slower. is to come out faster. Going in too fast can Gost you your drive speed got coming out. You've to be ableto carrya fasterentrance your laptimes.Goingin too fast, to improve throughthe exitof the turn y o t h e nf o u l i n gu p i n t h e m i d d l e f t h e t u r n ,w i l l l o w e r o u re x i ts p e e d . worth of attention. Turn balancing is likeyourten dollars to Figure that you haveonlyso manymilesper hour(MPH) spendin a turn you spendyour MPH particular line.lf lap on anyparticular for any t g u n w i s e l a t t h e b e g i n n i n o f t h et u r n ,y o ud o n ' th a v e h e ma t t h e e n d . y you time.Don'tjump at the f irst Excess speedat the wrongtime cancost you haveaSyou exitone speed you get to go faster. Theincreased chance that you carryall the wayto the next.Don't to turn will be added the speed g b u r nu p M P Ha t t h e b e g i n n i n o f t h et u r n ;u s et u r n b a l a n c i n g t o p r o d u c e product: Increased MPH, decreasedtime spent in the yourcorrect turn and the bike still under control at the turn exit.

Find the Product18

you haveridden Howdo youfind the product? Let'sassume has f out the trackfor a few lapsand have igured what the designer engi-

intothis pieceof tarmac. neered Youhavestudied radius the and changes (seeChapter the camber One,"TheRoadYou Ride"). You're changes suspicious the turnson a racetrackand knowthey'remeantto challenge of you turn andfool you.With this information havea good ideaof how every you andyour bike.Youbecome affects awareof what the product is for you andyour machine applying by that information experience and from point,a placeon the trackto workwith, riding.Nowyou havea starting to correct and change, makedecisions about. product in mind for a turn is like having a Having a road map and a destination for a trip. You'dhavea very hardtime gettingto your destination you didn'tknowwhereit was.Youcan'tget if you knowwhereKansas from NewYorkto Kansas Cityunless Cityis! product for a turn is the f irststepin Obtaining precise a howto improve that product. Having no product is like deciding having no destination. Doyou agree?Having your end point (product) well known, even in wide open sweepers, creates confidence.

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End to Beginningof Youmustworkfrom the end backto the beginning the turn you go intothe turn, yourproduct. Decide advance, in before to establish whereyou aregoingto exit.You mustbe ableto "see"the product of the you and turn in your mindas you enterit. Thisenables to keepthe pieces you partsof the turn workingtowardthat product. Thisoverview allows productor destination. to at to f igureout eachstepnecessary arrive the lost to hopelessly by continuing "look"at a Youcan become to of turn from beginning end instead from the end backto the beginning.

19

I go out and set my plan and a lot of trmes the ftrst one ts the best. lf lt doesn't feel rrght I change rt. maybe every lap

more Onceyou knowwhereyou'regoing,you can spendyourattention and tire slippage that comeup in the turn,suchas wiselyon the problems them.Otherwise, left passing. change to handle You'llhaveplentyof spare you too be product and destination, will always spending much withouta your at attention what is goingto happen the endof the turn.Keeping on y p r o d u c t i n m i n dh e l p s o u h a n d l eh e u n c e r t a i n t y . t or Onceyou havea product, whetherit is perfect not,you can you makein your progress. changes Any to useit as a yardstick measure You the the turnwill change productsomewhat. will be ableto tell whether yourspeed you increase througha are thosechanges workingor not.As a slightly-orperhaps greatdealif you'rea turn.the product will change that is threefeet back ridermaymakea change An beginner. experienced product A product and one MPHfaster. beginner's from his previous maychange1Ofeet,and may be a gearhigherandfive MPHfasterduring to the course a dayon the track.A product givesyou something shoot of go lf for-something change. you blowthe turn,you canalways backto to p i a l e s sa g g r e s s i vo r s l o w e r r o d u c t a n dg e tt h r o u g h t w e l le n o u g h . e

Locate the ProductWhere and how you enter a turn is totally decided by will what and where the product is. Onlyrarely you go into a turn the way it looksfrom the approach and haveit work out well in the end.New they riderscommonly beginthe turn too earlybecause and inexperienced proscan be seendoingit. Thisopensthe haveno product in mind.Even doorto a lot of mistakes and uncertainty. A product is made in stages, one step at a time. These by are stages its development marked sub-products. Sub-products of t r a l s oh a v e l o c a t i o n n t h e t r a c ka n do t h e rf a c t o r s h a ta r es i m i l a t o a n a o product. Leanangle, bodyposition, amountof control, overall speed, to steering and morearethe sub-products you can useas indicators tell you how you'reprogressing towardyourproduct. turnswill produce more Medium-speed slower-speed and sub-products thanfasterturns.Youdon't havethe time to makea lot of to in changes fasterturns,and you mustmakethem as simpleas possible yourself fast leave to enoughattention do it right.Usually, turnsdo not b h a v em u l t i p l e a m b e o r e l e v a t i oc h a n g e s - itfh e yd i dt h e yw o u l d n ' t e c r n td t f a s tt u r n s . l o wa n dm e d i u m - s p e e u r n so f t e nh a v e h e s ek i n d so f S t d s c . c h a n g e s , n dt h e yo f t e nr e q u i r e r a m a t i c t e e r i n g h a n g e sF o r y o u o a places product, thesechanges mustbe madeat precise reach desired the on the track.These sub-products-places that require a change are in steerin order to reach your product for that turn. Changes gears, p o s i t i o n n dt h e p o i n t s h e r e o u l o o kf o r y a w i n g ,t h r o t t l eb r a k i n gb o d y , , are coursemarkers all sub-products. Anyexamples?

Point of Entry20

location the track, on Just as the end product hasa precise p o i n to f e n t r y h e r e h e m a j o rs t e e r i n g p w t t s o d o e st h e b e g i n n i n g o i n t , h e

for Thisis a sub-product. In banked change the turn occurs. turns,your entrypointshouldalways designed usethe banking bestadvanbe to to t a g ec o m i n g u t o f t h et u r n .W h a t h a p p e n t o y o u a n dt h e b i k ew h e nt h e s o banking flattens always sub-product, a change. is a Precisely locate the p o i n to f y o u rm a j o r t e e r i n g h a n g e o i n gi n t ot h e t u r ns o y o uc a nh a v e g c s i s o m e t h i n t o a d j u s ta p o i n tt o t h i n kf r o m .T h ee m p h a s i ss t o u s et h e g , Y b a n k i n go y o u ra d v a n t a g e .o uc a nt h i n ko f i t a s " c o n n e c t - a - d orti"d i n g . t l f y o u " g o i n t o "t u r n st o o s o o n y o ua r ec o m m i t t e do m a x i m u m t , portionof the turn,which leaves you speed and leananglefor a greater feweroptions corrections, youfeelyou can'tor shouldn't for and makeany , i c h a n g e sn y o u rl i n e .N o wp a s s i n gg r o u n d i n g u t o n b u m p s s t e e r i n g , o , throttleand gearchanges become all matters greatconcern and of Goingintoturnstoo soonis your become moredifficultto do smoothly. indicator that you do not haveyourproduct well defined,that you're slightlylost.Not knowing where you're going in a turn invites you t t o g o i n t o o s o o n . T h et r a c kd e s i g n efro o l sy o u i n t or i d i n g h e t u r nt h e r r w a y i t l o o k s t t h e b e g i n n i n ga t h e t h a nt h ew a y i t w i l l w o r ko u t i n t h e e n d . a Workingout the product andsub-product provides mapthrough a t h et u r n .

Faster ls Deeperway of looking it: if you makeyour major Here's at another e s t e e r i n g h a n g e t t h e s a m ep o i n tg o i n gi n t oa t u r n - a n di n c r e a sy o u r c a on speedpastthat point-youwill runwideof the pointyou passed the last n f. l a pb e c a u s e f t h e i n c r e a s ie c e n t r i f u g a l f o r cle t h e b i k er u n sa b i t t o o o you the is wideat the exit,you maybelieve wenttoo fast.Actually, remedy the beforemaking steering change. The faster you wish to go in deeper to go through a turn, the deeper you have to enter it to increaseyour speed at the exit.what will changeif youdo this?

the lf you go in deeper andfaster, steering will needto change The be moreabrupt, andthe bikewill not wantto turn as easily before. as is trickto goingin deeper to go a bit slowerrightat the pointwhereyou yourself. Kenny Youmust learn restrain makeyoursteering to As change. "Learn go slowto go fast."lf you do it right,you'llbe able Roberts says, to t t o g o f a s t e r r o mt h a t p o i n to n t h r o u g h h e t u r n .T h eb i k ec a nb e s t r a i g h t e r f to up and down,lesscommitted maximum leanangles and speed, you so yourspeedand set up a product moreeasily. impoftant The can adjust partis knowing where you went intothe turn so that you havesomething t o c h a n g e n da d j u s tT h i si s a s u b - p r o d u c t , a n da n i m p o r t a no n e . t a .

Old Racer's Talepointis the falseideathat you must useup Anotherimpoftant you haveto or not.Perhaps allthe trackat the exitof a turn,whether this theorythat saysyou beginthe turn wideand comesf romthe old cornering exit it as wide as possible. Wherever comesfrom, it not onlyisn'talways it you prevent from goingfasterthroughthe turns. true,but it can actually

How?lf you let the bike go wide at the exit, iust because there is track left over, it can give you a false impression you're going as fast as you can. Youcanfoolyourself into believing can'tbe done it f a s t e rA s y o u ' r e i g u r i n gh e t u r n sa n dd i a l i n g n t h e p r o d u c t , y o u u s et h e . f t i you'vestoredup from the lastlapto decideif anychanges information can be made.lf your information says you went all the way to the edge of the track the last time through, it makes it diffieult to decide to go faster this time. You knowthe bikewill go widerif you go faster, andyou'llrun out of track.Yourproduct will change. Youwon't feelas confidentthat it can be done.wiilit work vou? for

Hold That LineThe remedy this commonerroris to hold the bike to the for tightest line possible on the exit so you can get an accurate idea of where that speed takes you on the track. Wherethe product of that speedputsyou. lf you holdyour linedown at the end of a turn and thereis still eightfeetof trackleft,you couldsafely you assume can go faster. the nexttime you keepeverything samegoingintothe turn, lf the u s i n g h e s a m el i n eb u t i n c r e a s i ny o u rs p e e da n dy o u s t i l lh a v e i v ef e e t t g , f of trackleft,you can go evenfasteryet.Thepointis,don'tfool yourself by usingup the trackwhen it isn'tnecessary. By handling exitsof mostturnsin this way,you can begin the to establish veryaccurate product and good sub-products. you're a e n g i n e e r i n g et u r nt o f i t y o u rr i d i n ga n de q u i p m e n d,e c i d i n g n a th t o product, then makingadjustments improve to uponit. Youarenot being just because takenin by the track,makinguseless changes there'san opportunity do so. to A goodexample beingsuckedin on the entrance a turn is of of the old trapof the decreasing-radius Yougo in fast because can, turn. you t h e nh a v e o p l a ys o m es e r i o u s a t c h - u p t t h e p o i n ti t b e g i n s o t i g h t e n . t c a t your speed Holding down on the entrance giveyouthe exactinformacan tion you needto go faster-ifit's possible. That'syouthinkingnow,not suckingyourselfinto makingan error. Where you it? wiil try

Your ResultsTheproducts andsub-products giveyou a destination and places accurately you canmakechanges the road. markthe where on They areyour way of breaking down the processinto smallerpartsyou can understand change. and Yourconfidence and smoothness increase when you knowwhereyou'regoingandwhatto do whenyou get there. Your basicrequirement a rideris to observe as whereyourproducts andsubproducts are,what to do at thosepointsandto remember them so you can makeuseof them.

22

O Most riders use the whole track upon exiting turns.

I Holding a tight line, and still having track left over, lets you know it can be done even faster.

23

CHAPTER

FOUR

WhatYou SeeProgramming Your ComPuter Through the EyesBell What you seethroughyour smoke-tinted shieldhasmuch you of to do with how wellyou ride.Youcan'tcountthe number objects can seeat anyone spoton the track,anymorethanyou cancountwhat The moreyou look,the more you seejust staring the backof your hand. at you see. to the racetrack.Youcanstop at anyturn and Thisalsoapplies lookfor hoursat what'sto be seen.Butwhileyou'reracingor ridingdown you can'tstopto gaze. the road, andwhat whatto lookat,what is impoftant Howdo you decide Howcanwhat you seehelpor is not?And how do you usewhatyou see? your to correctly improve your riding? Thischapter aboutseeing is hinder riding.

Where Are You?The reason you look at points on the track is to learn where you are and where you are going' On any pieceof roadyou aboutwhereyou areso you can lookin f rontof youto obtaininformation Manyridershavesaid,"Yougo what to do with the information. decide whereyou look."What theyfailedto sayis,"Youcango whereyou don't it look,but you rolloff the throttlefirst."Let'srestate so the rideris more Look where you want to go. in control:

Reference PointsYou usereference points to find out whereyou areon the track.This point is a spot or obiect of which you already know the Youcanreferto this marksa place. whichclearly location. lt is something points presenta betterpictureof Two reference objectfor information. you're Example: your lOcation. Threeor moregiveyou yourexactlocation. one go to Main Street-that's You for looking a storeon MainStreet. two. Youcheckthe reference point. Youf ind the right block-that's

24

numbers seewhichdirection to they run-that'sthree. which Youdecide sideof the street storeis on-that'sfour.Youfollowthe numbers the till you reach store. the That'sfive or morereference points that you would u s ei n f i n d i n g n a d d r e s s . n a r a c et r a c ko r r o a dy o u d o t h e s a m e h i n g . a O t lf you don't have enough reference points to know where youare-you're lost! Any examptes?

Reference Points {RPs)a certain reminder of where you are; basic building blocks for your plan.

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Reference p o t nts-yea h. you might not thtnk about them but You'vegot to use them. Just little things on the track I remember-rt helps to put it all together.

at andthe situation fast on a motorcycle speed, Thingshappen because Whereyou areon the roadis veryimportant changes constantly. yourcourse action. you don't know where you ale, lf it determines of you also don't know what you're supposed to be doing. Yourlocaandfeet-not in city tion on a racetrackor roadcan be plottedin inches thereareno streetsignson the track.lt's up to you to decide blocks-and what reference points to useand what to do when you reachthem. Youmustdecide.

Familiar RPs allow you to look "around" the turn, well ahead of yourself .

What to Use as Reference Pointsis YourbestReference Point(RP) something eitheron the track line,a spot,a crack, curborverycloseto it: a patchof asphalt, painted a will ing,anything that doesn'tmove.Objects far f romthe tracksurface too awayf romthe track.YourRPsmustbe easyto find to takeyourattention At be usable. timesyou must usethe edgeof the track,but a pointthat'sa your attention the track. it foot in f romthe edgeis betterbecause keeps on l f y o ug o t o t h e l i m i tw i t ha n R Pt h a t ' so n ef o o tf r o mt h e e d g e y o u s t i l lh a v e , goingto the limit and to a foot left over.Going the edgeof the trackmeans yourself marginfor error.lt isn'tnecessary go to the edgeof no to leaving possible the trackwhenever untilyou feelcomfortable doingso.The idea that you must useallthe trackis likethe ideayou must"hangoff" the bike -only do it when it becomes and necessary comfortable. you choose lookat shouldbe in your lineof vision The RPs to point Don'tchoose something a reference as and alongyour pathof travel. just because thereand easyto see.lt might not be the right RPfor you it's you're workfor the speed it's because too far off your lineor it doesn't y t t r a v e l i n g . n t h e o t h e rh a n d , o n ' tn a r r o w o u rv i s i o n o o m u c ho r y o u ' l l O d not havea wide enough viewof the tracksurface f ind whereyou are. to your location the RPs on on that aredirectly your lineof travelestablish your location relation in to RPs tracklengthways. alongthe sideestablish the width of the track.The bottomlinefor an RPis,does it work? lt can longas it worksfor you. be anywhere-so

An RP givee you information. lt signals where, and how much, to change what you do.

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How to Use A Reference PointA reference point is not merely you something canseeeasily on or nearthe track,the reference point must mean something to you when you see it. Every time you passor approach this point it, mustcommunicate message you,like,"Thisis whereI beginlooking a to for my turn marker," "lf l'm to the rightof this too much l'll hit a bump, or but to the left of it I'm alright." "Thisis whereI beginmy turn."ReferOr, ence points are reminders of where you are or of what action youmust take. Canyou applythis?

You'llneedtwo or more reference points to accurately find yourself the track.You've to knowwherethe RPsareso you can got on y r e l a t e o u ro w n p o s i t i o no t h e m .T h i sm a ys o u n ds i m p l e - m i n d e b u t i f t d, you narrow yourattention oneobject,it becomes to youronly RPandyou become victimof target fixation. Yougo to the RPbecause don't a you h a v e n y t h i n g l s et o d o .T h i so c c u r s n a p a n i c i t u a t i o n n dc a n h a p p e n a e i s a anywhere a racetrack.Youmust haveenoughRPsso that target on fixation doesn'toccur. Whenyou havesufficient RPsin a turn or on the track,the scene movingin f rontof you appears movesmoothly, a wide-screen to like 70mm movie. Toofew andthe scenelookslikean old-timemovie, bouncing andjerkingalong.Having onlyone RPis likewatchinga slideshow frame-nicepicture,but wheredo you go from there?\Having too few RPs causes target fixation. Enough RPs "open up" the track, making it appear larger, and costs less of your attention.

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that you must lookdownthe road No doubtyou'veheard need you'regoing,not whereyou are.This is good information-you where too yourself the track.Looking closeto the on that secondRPto locate you find it. bikewon't help

Look Ahead for Reference PointsAt 60 mph you'retravelingat 88 feet per second;at 120 mph ticksby Thatsecond at you'rehurtling throughspace 176 feet persecond. of for veryquickly, and if you'renot ready the nextmove,ahead time, yourreference points and for you'llmakea mistake. ahead Looking for givesyou time to prepare the nextmoveso thereareno sub-products goessmoothly. and surprises so everything l've This ideacan be takentoo far,however. seenriderslooking 4 o - m p hc u r v eT h e yw e r e . a 1 5 0 f e e td o w nt h e r o a dw h i l er o u n d i n g t i g h t Still, what was to be seenin front of them,likecurbingand holes. ignoring but the curbingand holes, not at otherridersin the sameturn werelooking are untiltheywerejust 2Ofeet in front of them.Bothof theseextremes the turn and slow ridingthrough uncertain they produce unworkable; cornering.

Where to Lookwhereto lookwhileyou're will helpyou determine Two factors riding r racing. o you believe you look,the slower the 1. At speed, f urtherahead you're you look,the fasteryou believe yourself you'regoing;the closer to going.Look far enough ahead to avoid accelerating the scene, but not so far that you lose your feel for where you are on the track. Wath RPs you have a choice of where tolook.wittyou trvit? enoughRPshasthe effectof opening up the 2. Having track, making it appear larger. When you look too far aheador too it lf to closeto the bike,the trackseems narrow. this beginshappening, is y o u rs i g n atlo e i t h e r h a n g e P s r t o f i n d m o r eo f t h e mi n t h a tt u r n o r R o c section track. of a i s A T h e s e r eg u i d e l i n e s .d j u s t h e R P s o t h e s c e n e s m o v i n g t a to you,and so you can seeenough keepthe track the rightspeedfor "opened up." or onlyone RPis likehavingonlyonecar.lf it breaks Having you can easily lf work,you don'tgo anywhere. you haveanother doesn't point' or car,it usethe onethat works.With onlyonereference is lf and necessary.youfind that yourattention fixed too becomes valuable you pointon the trackor road,it's because don't haveanother on one it. to very valuable you andyou over-use ready use.Thatone becomes to at and Youdependuponit for too muchinformation mightbeginstaring it. Youcan become slightlylostwhen it no longerletsyou knowwhereyou you fixedon one RP, becoming areor whatto do. lf youfind yourattention needto f ind anotherin the areaso the "movie"will smoothout.

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Stepping StonesReference points areyourstepping stones the products to andsub-products youwill produce a turn or series turns. in These of little you will maketo get the bikearound stepsleadto the majorchanges turns f a s t e r r w i t h m o r ec o n fi d e n c eR P s i g n atl h e p o i n t s n t h e t r a c kw h e r e . s o o y o uw i l l m a k e h e s ec h a n g e s . tIt's important to prck up good RPs.especially on the exrt

ConcentrationOn the trackor road,concentration a smoothflow, or chain is of events that movesfrom one to anotherwithout a break.Reference points arepartsof that chain,one linkdepending uponthe nextfor strength and a continuous flow. lf one linkbreaks, entirechainstays the brokenuntilit can be repaired replaced. you havea section the or lf of yourchainof concentration break. trackwith no,or too few RPs, will Reference points are the building blocks of concentration. Let'sget backto the ideaof yourattention and how muchof it yourten-dollar Whenyourconcentration good,you spend you have, bill. is just enough it on eachRPso that you knowwhereyou areandwhatto of do.Thiskeeps that steady flow going.Whenyou havetoo few RPsin an yourattention be spentin tryingto fix this bad situation. mostof area, will The points or places on the track that you do not know, or understand, will occupy most of your attention. Having enoughRPslets j y o us p e n du s tt h e r i g h ta m o u n t f t i m ea n da t t e n t i o n n e a c ho n et o g e t o o you the information need. Youhaveenoughleftoverto buy otherthings, t o m a k es m a l lc h a n g e sn y o u rr i d i n g h a tw i l l h e l py o ug o j u s t a b i t f a s t e r i t just a bit more.Everything you do on the track takes up or leanover yourattention some attention. Whenyou don't haveenoughRPs goes yourconcentration. rightto that areaandwill-or can-break Someof the strangest thingshappen whenyou havea break in yourconcentration. ridertold me that every One time his concentration h b r e a k s e b e g i n s h i n k i n g f a l e a k i n ga u c e t e h a sa t h o m e Y o u rm i n d t o f h . your concentration maynotwander a leaking to faucet,but when breaks you will notice that otherthings comeintoyour mind.Oo dothis? you

Concentration -The TwistThere'sa twist to this subjectof concentration; when you've got it, it doesn't you you'relooking anything particular. seemto at in The reference points just blendintothe scenein front of you.When asked, "Whatdo you lookat in turns?" two or threeof the top ridersin the world havesaid,"l don't really lookat anything." is this really But whatthey mean? Whenyourconcentration good,you spendjust nickels is and yourattention. example dimeson the RPs and noneof them captures An of this is that one majordifference between ridersis theirabilityto learn tracks.Learning track meansknowing where you are on the track. a-&** ,, ;. .*,a-;t;,

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I like to go ta new tracks-rt's fun. The firstyear I raced we went to the tracks that everybody raced and ljust drd OK At the new tracks though. I was right there frrst or second

laps.Bothguys cando it in five laps,otherscan'tdo it in 5OO Someriders just do it by reference points; the top riders wheretheyare haveto learn roadthe second timeyou take so fasttheycan beatyou on yourfavorite f the Onefactorthat separates top riders rom the restof the themthere!! q o a f i e l di s t h a tt h e yp i c ku p R P s u i c k l y n da c c u r a t e lty t h e p o i n tt h e yc a n R t s " s e et h e " w h o l e c e n e w i t h o u th a v i n go p i c ko u t t h e i n d i v i d u a l P s .

Enough Reference Pointsyou can seethe "wholescene" Onceyou haveenoughRPs, This withouthaving stareat the RPsindividually. is your to comfortably a g o a l , n dt h e i n d i v i d u a l u i l d i n g l o c k s f t h a t s c e n e r eR P s l.f y o u rc o n b a b o you will haveto go backand relyon or relocate lost becomes centration y o u r s e lw i t h t h e R P s h a t a r ef a m i l i atro y o u . f t possible: yourconcentration sool3bs as howyou restore That's Go back to the reference points you know and pick up the thread of concentration. lf you don't haveany RPsin the area,it'll cost you time and roll backthe throttle. on the trackas you hesitate

Do Not Read Past This Next Paragraph Until You Have Completed the ExPerimentFind a stopwatch or wall clock with a second hand and try this eye-opening experiment. Do it again after you have ridden the track looking for RPs.

1. Geta stopwatch. chair. 2. Sit down in a comfortable familiar 3. Now,closeyoureyesandthinkof a racetrackyou're Do it lap with. Startthe watchand runthrougha complete on the track. as to memory.Try go throughit exactly fast as you did the lasttime from of you rodethere. Youaretimingyour memory the trackand how you it. rode 4. Now,closeyoureyesandtry it again.

Memory Lapyour memory"laptime"will be either lf you'relikemost riders, lap muchtoo longor muchtoo short.lf youjust brokethe absolute record

30

by 2Qor 30 seconds, if you added20 or 30 seconds youractuallap or to it means samething-not enoughreference points. Theslowtimes, the " l a pr i d e r ' s m o v i e " s i n c o m p l e ta n d h ef i n d sh i m s e l s t a r - g a z i na t t h e i e f g places hasno RPs. attention on the areas the trackhe does he His is of not know. ln the veryfast lap situation riderstill hasn'tgot enough the RPs, he flitsfrom oneto the nextveryquicklybecause so thosearewhat he doesknow.Having sufficient RPs gives you a better sense of time because you now have points to mark your motion around the track. Yourattention goeseitherto the places you knowverywell,or you don't knowverywell.Or,it becomes to the place split between the you a lot of attention two. Thiscosts you can'tspendon otherthings.

Find the Lost RPsHere's easymethodyou can useto find out whereyou don,t an haveenoughRPs. Youcan useit anytime. youreyes. 1. Close 2. Caref runthroughyourown "movie"of the trackas if you ully wereriding. 3. "Ride"throughone complete in your memory. lap 4. Openyour eyesand draw eachturn on a separate sheetof paper, marking reference pointsyou'resureof in eachturn. the , 5 . M a k ea n o t eo f w h a te a c hR Pm e a n s o y o u .l i k e : , B r a k i n g t ,,Exit "Steering "Location the Track." Point," Change," "Bump,,, on Marker,,, "Product," etc. youreyesagainand go backoveryour,,movie,,, 6. Close noticing places you hesitate. blank, the go wherethe scene getsfoggy,or you hurrythroughit too fast.Each thesesituations where of you indicates havetoo few reference points at theselocations. 7. Now makea noteon yourturn drawings eachplace you at havea blankspotor anyotherproblem situation from No. 6 above. 8. FindmoreRPs thoseareas nexttime you ridethe for the track. Youcan usethis methodto f ind yourweakspots-andstrong pointsas well,as it is your memory the turnsyou relyon whenyou ride. of This is howyou knowwhereyou'regoing.Knowing whereyou aregoingispart of the thread of concentration. Wiuit work?

That's the TwistYoumustget to the pointwhereyou can seethe wholescene in front of you withouthaving spenda lot of attention anyone point. to on You're building that scene with individual reference points. lf yourconcentration lost,go backto the RPs is that you knowand buildthe scene again.

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The Big Twist to Goncentrationand ReferencePointsA lot of guys I see out there seem to forget about the whole rest of the track. They are paytng too much attention to that one line.

Thetrickto usingRPsand gaining is concentration you have to look at something. Youreyeswork by focusing someobjector on in someplane, theneverything that planeis in focus,likeon a movie Youmaybe looking onlyoneareaof the screen, the entire but screen. at is screen in focus. Anotherpoint is that when your eyesmove,they do so in short like movements. Theyflit from one objectto another a butterfly. stopping youreyesacross scene lf you try to sweep withoutstopping anything, on a the scene becomes blur.Try it. a problemis that he wantsto seethe trackin f rontof A rider's a f to him flowingas a wholescene, maintain steady low of concentration, at but his eyesdon'tworkthat way.lf he stares one reference point too . o l l o n g ,h e ' l le x p e r i e n ca f o r m o f t u n n e v i s i o n B u tb e c a u s e f t h e w a y h i s e thing!There's twist. the eyeswork,he hasto lookat somespecific

Good RPs help keep a steady flow of concentration for a rider. You spend (use) RPs to save attention.

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See Fastto Howdo the top ridersmanage rideso fastwithoutexperithe in Here's drillthat will helpyou practice a encingproblems seeing? proper techniques. seeing visible you.Youcan seeall four to 1. Finda wallthat is entirely but by corners movingyoureyes, not your head. youreyeson a spot in the middleof the wall. 2. Focus not focused that spot,then moveyourattention, on 3. Remain youreyes, the upperright-hand cornerof the wall. to Stillfocusingon that spot, moveyour attentionto different places the wall.Youare looking one spotbut areawareof the other at on areas the wall. of to 5. Stillfocusing that spot,moveyourattention the on you andthe wall,andon the wall as well. between objects.--...--"-.*E

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The Whole PictureYou can see the whole scene while still looking at one place or spot! You probably noticed that duringthis experiment you wantedto moveyour eyesfrom the spot you werefocusedon to the spot to whichyour attention had gone.Thisexperiment becomes easier with practice. can practice You movingyourattention around, while looking at onespotor area, you'redriving the races just sittingin a chair.lt's as to or a skillthat cantaketime to develop you haven't if mastered already. it you seethe wholescenein this wayyou haveto Now,when realize that the pointsin the scenemustbe well knownto you.You need the reference points in the scene makethe scene. you don't know to lf youreyeswill huntfor something the RPs that is familiar and losethe wholescene effect. B e i n g b l et o s e et h e t r a c ki n f r o n to f y o ua s a w h o l es c e n e a m a k e s i d i n gm u c he a s i e a n d b r i n g s o u rc o n c e n t r a t i o n c ki f i t f a l t e r s . y r r ba As you canseein the drillabove, is whereyourattention directed, it is y o u ' r e p e n d i n g o u rt e n - d o l l ab i l l ,t h a t ' sm u c hm o r ei m p o r t a n t y where s r thanwhatyou'relooking Yourattention at. mustbe spenteconomically, a n dl o o k i n g t t h ew h o l es c e n e a t h e t h a na t o n et h i n gi s s p e n d i n gt v e r y a r r i wisely,and getting interestbackon your investment. just haveto Youpractice. Will you try it?You begin to understand a turn with RPs. Then pieces of the turn become clearer. Finally, the whole scene is viewed as a steady flow of action. You spend the least and get the most. This is the way I see lt most of the time-the overall scene That's when things are gorng nght everything is worktng nght

,",..% '!

CHAPTER

FIVE

TimingPutting Things ln OrderTiming really hasnothing do with yoursense time.lt has to of to do with taking the correct action at exactly the correct place on yourreference the track. Thewholeideaof timing is to pulltogether points, products andsub-products so they'reusefultoyou on the track.Doingthe correct thing at the wrongplaceon the trackproduces poorresults. Knowing what to do, but not exactly whereto do it, can really foul up a rider.

The first couple of practice laps feel fast, too fast. and then it slows down from there.

My Timing Lessonmy I I learned lesson abouttiming from ridingskateboards. wastryingdesperately makea "kick"turn,which is the 18O-degree turn to you maketo get yourself backdown afterridingup a rampor the sideof a pool.lfell at leasta hundred timestryingit. Finally,discovered the I that lf boardwould notturn unless was goingat a certain it slowspeed. I triedit fast-too early-lcouldnot makethe turn.Tooslow-toolate-andthe too u t t b o a r d o u l db e g i ns l i d i n g a c k w a r djs s t e n o u g h o m a k e h e t u r nv i r t u w b that wouldallowthe allyimpossible. There was a veryf ine marginof speed yet boardto be turned, still keepup the momentum I couldstayon and so b a c kd o w n . continue

How You Let Offin riding,keeping Itook a verycloselookat my motorcycle and mindwhat I'd learned the skateboard, discovered someverybasic on the Manyotherriders weremaking same mistakeswas makingas a rider. I mistakes the samereasons. for whereyou let off exactly ln turns whereyou usethe brakes, greatdifference your in them andwhenyou beginsteering can makea ways, Thoughlcould makethat changein manydifferent smoothness. possibilities: Let'slookat the thanthe others. oneworkedbetter

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1. Youcanfinishthe braking andthenturn,leaving the throttleoff. afteryou beginthe turn,with no 2. Youcanfinishthe braking th rottle. thenturn and applythe throttle. 3. Youcanfinishthe braking, 4 . Y o uc a nf i n i s ht h e b r a k i n ga n dt h e nc r a c k h e t h r o t t l e , t slightly. 5. Youcanf inishthe braking afteryou beginto turn and apply the throttle. 6. Youcanf inishthe braking afteryou turn andjust crackthe throttleon.

What Happensln NumberOneabove, forksarealmostbottomed from the out the braking, thenwhenyou let up on the brakes forksextend the andthe " b i k e" s t a n d s u p .Y o ut h e np u tt h e b i k ei n t ot h e t u r n ,a n dt h e c o r n e r i n g forcescompress forksagain.lf you put it intothe turn hard,the forks the veryfar,then comebackup a little. compress The bikeis goingup and down,changing Thatchanges steering tractionand fork angle. the and reduces stabilityof the bike. the In Number Two above, fork is down,andwhenyouturn the the throttlebackon it comesup,then backdownagainf romthe turning forces. Here's samesituation the again-loss tractionand stability. of ln Number Three, fork is compressed the from the braking, thencomesup whenyou release brakes, the then down againfrom the c o r n e r i n g a d st,h e nu p a g a i n s y o ua p p l y h et h r o t t l eT h eo t h e r lo a t . provide possibilities. examples similar you To get intothe turn correctly, musttime the braking and turningso that the bikestayseven,not goingup or down,at the pointyou let off the brakes. Youmust let off the brakesat the exactmomentyour just fork is compressed enoughfor the speeds and cornering loadsit will be undergoing throughthe turn.Applythe throttleso that fork extension doesn't change, changes leastamountpossible. or the Thiswill allowyou to go intothe turn withoutanyup and down motion.lf yourtiming'soff, y o u m a yc o m p l a i nh a tt h e b i k eh a n d l e s o o r l yp o s s i b l t h i n k i n g h e p , t y t shocksaregone.Some examples?

Your Timing TargetYourtarget, sub-product for anyturn in whichyou brake or andturn in succession, timing the braking, steering and throttle is so that fork and shock extension are kept as even as possible. Fast "esses" and compound turns. When two or more turnsarestrungtogether and cannotbe takenwide open,timing is important. a quickright/left left/right On or combination, time the steering change that the throttleis rolledoff rightbefore transition so the from side just an instant to side.Rolling the gas beforemaking steering off the

(oversteer) easier the making steering change dipsthe f rontend slightly, (rake). change Makingthat