I know that there are plenty of experienced guys on this board who have been racing for quite a while or have done a few track days (Schu, immortal, life sux). What I would like to know is what is the best way to get into this sport? It will strictly be a hobby for me but it is something that I would like to pursue over the next couple of years. I recently traded in the Kawi for a new car and I am bikeless as of now. To start off, would it be best to start by building a bike or purchasing someones set up? Are salvaged bikes bad and what should I look for when looking at one? What kind of licensing requirements are there for going to the track? What are some recomended race schools, preferrably in the midwest. I'm sure I will have more questions but I think these are a good start. I have my North Dakota license and have completed the MSF as well. Any advice is greatly appreciated.

 

If you are looking for a track-only bike, I would start off on something super cheap like a 250cc supermoto bike. Find an old motocross bike that has been converted and have a blast with it. A Sumo would be easier on tires than a 600-1000cc supersport, provide a great base to learn from and ought to put a big smile on your face until you progress in the sport and move up. My 1st trackday was onboard a 1991 Kawasaki EX500 (esentially a Ninja 500r, but with 16" rims and a rear drum brake). The bike was not fast, but in the beginning it was more than I could fully use.

I can't really point you to any schools in that area, but I do recommend taking one if you can afford to. I am planning on one this October.

 

Thanks for the input. Dirt bikes are totally forgein to me . What all is done to one to make it a "supermoto"? The only bike of this sort I have been on is my buddies ttr 230. That thing was a blast to ride around. The only problem with it was that its really tall, I am 5'7'' on a good day . I understand the concept of starting small and definetly don't want to get in over my head but what about an older 600cc bike? I miss my 2001 R6 everyday and wish I would have kept it around for exactly this purpose.

 

The most basic change from a motocross bike to a Sumo is tires. In cases where money is a concern, it is possile to simply mount a set of tires to the stock rims. Avon Gripsters are a popular choice for the guys on dual-sports, or other bikes wthat still have a 21" front wheel. If you enjoy the sport, and want to build the bike up further you can add a set of 17" rims front and rear, and run tires similar to what a sportbike would rum. Upgrading to a larger front brake and radial master cylinder are also popular mods.

 

Wow this seems like a good and inexpensive way to begin. What model bike would you recomend for this type of thing? Also, people throw different tires on motocross bikes and track them? I hate to sound ignorant but I have never seen this type of thing. Do you have any links to videos or anything? Sounds fun as hell .

 

Search around http://www.supermotojunkie.com, TONS of info about supermotards.

Also, from what I've heard and read, it's always better to buy an already built track bike...you can save some money on the process.

 

People put racing slicks on their motocross bike, then race them on super tight paved courses (think go-kart track) and then have a section of the track that is dirt and has motocross style jumps. It is called Super Moto, or Super Motard depending what continent you are on.

Honestly, any actual motocross race bike will have great suspension with plenty of adjustment, aftermarket support galor for sprokets and chains, brakes and even motor hop-up parts. A regular old YZF-250 with Avon Gripsters makes for a pretty fun little bike to get your feet wet on... and, if you saved your knobby tires you have yourself a dirtbike with minimal work.

 

Blah, supermoto is fun, but not as fun as being on a big track, and hauling ***.

Want to become a racer? pickup a track-prepped bike, and start hitting the track as often as you can. Meanwhile, see whom puts on riding classes, and start paying for an instructor to help you with your form, speed, and riding style. Once you've done this for some time, and shown some very good imporvement, sit down with your instructor, and figure out where you'll fit in, and what you need to do to get your lap times down.

From there, you're set. Find a local race series, and start low, and work your way up. if you have the talent, speed, and dedication, you can do anything.

 

OP, the biggest piece of advice I can give you is to gain as much seat time as possible.

This means riding in ALL conditions and ALL styles. Dirt riding will help round out your pavement skills immensely, and doing track days on a regular basis will help build the foundations in bike set up and prepare you for the rigors of doing a club level racing schedule. All this comes at a price, it's not inexpensive to go racing even at the club level... so if you are struggling to put together track day capital, more than likely you will not be able to supplement a club level race season.

Even before you get to budgeting you have to ask yourself... are you good enough to compete at the club level. While the allure of racing is undeniable and affects everyone at some point, you have to be realistic and come to the logical conclusion that you may not have the skill sets or the dedication to go forward and be competitive. That does not mean you can not be associated with racing

Try and keep in mind there are many forms of racing and the AMA series is only one of those forms open to cyclists here in the USA. There are a myriad of local and club level groups that range from vintage racing, sidecar racing, to lower levels of super-bike/super-street racing... but in all those forms the key ingredient is taking the time to be involved, volunteering to help groups that are short handed... hanging out at the track and helping pit or mechanic for someone regardless of there position in the hierarchy of the competition... you can still learn from guys/groups that run at the back of the pack.

If you are fast enough to race... your going to need to pool your resources together and meter those resources out in a logical budgeted fashion, making those dollars stretch as far as possible. keep an accurate record(written and photographically) of your riding experience as this will aid you in putting together a Resume for potential sponsors as you go forward. Visit as many different tracks as you can to help round out your knowledge of set up and riding skill.

If racing is what you truly desire, these are the minimal steps you can take to get started... after you are well immersed in these simple things and in this simple lifestyle, the more complicated path of advancing your riding career will become apparent

 

Here's the list of track schools at Brainerd Intl Speedway. I've wanted to attend one for a while. Hopefully next year.
http://trackaddix.com/track/ev...ck=10

SV650?

 

also check out the WERA board forums, there are a ton of people from the midwest on it. They can point you in the right direction for race schools, and trackdays Good luck and have fun!

 

Wow thanks for all the advice guys. MSchu I will definetly try to get some more seat time on my buddies ttr . Thanks for the link Hando all I had really heard was that there was a track in Brainerd and that was it. I see they have a school for noobs like myself as well. I will be reading alot more and doing some more research to try and decide what type of bike and racing I should start with.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by HandoEX &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Here's the list of track schools at Brainerd Intl Speedway. I've wanted to attend one for a while. Hopefully next year.
http://trackaddix.com/track/ev...ck=10

SV650? </TD></TR></TABLE>

I'm hoping to get into some of those next season, along with some karting. If things work out, I might be able to get a small start in the karting this season.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by rochesterricer &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

I'm hoping to get into some of those next season, along with some karting. If things work out, I might be able to get a small start in the karting this season.
</TD></TR></TABLE>

Good luck, I raced karts when I was a kid...and I ruined my family financially

There's no way trying to be the next Senna when the kid next to you has 192812912 times more money than you...the brazilian "little leagues" of karting are brutal.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Starscream &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">the Brazilian "little leagues" of karting are brutal.</TD></TR></TABLE>

One can only imagine what that must be like in Brasil...

Money is always going to be the key unfortunately. You can have loads of talent, but if you do not have adequate equipment, you are never going to get noticed

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by MSchu &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

One can only imagine what that must be like in Brasil...

Money is always going to be the key unfortunately. You can have loads of talent, but if you do not have adequate equipment, you are never going to get noticed</TD></TR></TABLE>

Karting is soccer for the middle and upper classes. That's how big it is in Brazil. And of course, just like soccer, the kid classes always have grids packed to hell...

You can see next to the biggest circuits (Jacarepagua, Interlagos, Curitiba) various kart tracks...

And yes, money is a primary part of this sport. I was though racing against kids that had a brand new kart for each race, while I was racing on a few years old chassis, with a tired engine and shitty tyres. Even still, I managed to get some good positions every now and then...specially when I raced directdrive karts.

Supposedly there were talks of sponsorship for both me and my cousin, but since I was little, I never understood it fully and don't know why it didn't worked out.

But I want to return to karting someday...just for the kick of it

 

Once you're ready to race, you'll need to pick an org to race with. WERA is one of the biggest, but i believe there are other orgs to race with. licensing requirements, classing, rules/regs will all be org-specific.

My advice to you is to pick an org, and start looking at a class. there are so many classes in motorcycle road racing, and inevitably some will be better subscribed than others--which can be good or bad, depending on what you're looking for.

in general, stuff like the 600cc superbike classes have packed grids and are often considered "meat-grinder" classes, where the action is fast and the riding is very aggressive. Whereas riding a vintage class will be more the playground of the weekend warriors and hobbyists.

the local willow springs race org, WSMC 600 and 1000cc superbike racing has produced it's fair share of AMA champs and WSBK/MGP riders (John Hopkins among others) so you can see why guys are willing to stuff other guys for a meaningless club racing trophy.

after you have an idea, go to a race and watch the racing and see if it's for you. if it is, look at what bikes are winning which classes with what kind of prep ($$$) and pick a class.

then go through licensing and get ready to race!

 

Even the cost of a track day is expensive. Plan on close to two hundred for a day, (depends on your track and club). Your bike is going to need to be prep'd. If your just rolling the C class, you can tape it up and disconnect the taillight and headlight. If you move up and look to race you gotta do more prep and that means money.

For me one track day
hopefully no gate fee
200 dollars for the organization
gas 100 -150(fill the bike and a can, plus car),
Food and water - Sandwich, gatorade, gallon of water, maybe less than twenty
potential injury and bike damage
miss a day of class and hopefully there's no test, have to cancle the day

So at over $300 dollars, I know where my stimulus check is going. I can only swing one trackday this summer. It is expensive. Sometimes I think I should just drag race on fridays

 

A couple more questions. Are these racing organizations national? I have noticed that alot of you guys live in CA or other warmer places down south where there are plenty of tracks. What about up here in ND? Also, what type of bikes would be used in the vintage class races? CB's and other cafe bikes? This would be fun as well since I could really care less about the trophies and don't really want to get run over.

 

Vintage classes are awesome... its more like hanging out with your friends and having the whole track to yourself. the racing is no less competitive, well maybe a little less, but it still can be aggressive. as far as your particular area and what is avalible, your going to have to do your own footwork. Search the various organization websites for information and chapters in your area and go tot he track and watch. usually most club level racing is free so that can only be a good thing.

 

hmm, north dakota isn't very close to any race tracks. you are somewhat close to brainerd (Minnesota), but i'm not sure if any of the race orgs race out of there.

still, sign up for a trackday there and get a year of track riding under your belt. if you feel the need to actually Race, then you can look into more otpions.