Jimmy, I'm with you on class time. I had the advantage of being in the lead on this Sunday so from where you sat it would feel like you are working to keep up, but it ain't completely that way. I was riding my line out in front, and that was even making the guy on the Ducati have to work a little bit. He could have passed me in any corner of his chosing, but since he elected to follow he was forced to follow my tight, squared off corner, and then try to catch me on the straight, which is my strong point. You come along 5 guys back, and when you hit the straight it looks like we are ten miles away. (maybe it was 10 miles. :lol: :lol: , but it wasn't 10 seconds!, it's the seconds that matter on the track). Your excitement comes when you try to catch up from 5'th place. Your bike is stock, a tiny bit slower on the drag race, and so you make up the difference by staying on it harder, a little later into the corner. Now you are too fast in the corner and that is really bad. Slow down just a titch and you would be right on your game.
Braking has to be before the corner.
As for classes, I know of one that I would like to do, and one I would like to inquire about.
Peter Black, (an attorney friend with two rides, a Harley and Wing) has taken the "Street Masters" course twice out at Willow Springs, (near Rosamond in the desert). It is on the course called 'horsethief' and I believe that is at the Willow complex but I am not clear on the exact location of that track. The class is, I am told, for heavyweight cruisers and is on a tight track with the class limited to very low speeds, 35-45 mph tops. But the point is getting to where you can corner, tight corners at 35-45 mph. I am confident that I would get my moneys worth on that class, even if I took it 6 times. The low speeds and the structure of the class suggests a person could do it with relatively low risk of wrecking the bike.
The other thing I would LOVE to do is get the RIII on the big track at Fontana. Dana at FastTrack riders is very accomadating and has told me in the past that they do allow big cruisers out onto the track during level one rides. I would still feel stupid unless we could get together a group, and maybe arrange a group class. If we were part of a class, even two or three bikes I wouldn't feel like all the sport bike crowd was staring and thinking WTF is he thinking? (Something like when they get those executive limo drivers out at Bob Bondurants to learn evasive driving for the Corporate clients :lol: :lol: ) Fontana would however create a real risk of a high side, and many, many dollars damage. But you could go wide open on the main straight all the way to the rev limiter. And I am certain you get the back tire to step out as you come out of turn nine. Rossi would be proud. Maybe we could all swear off coffee for a week, take a Valium and do the Fontana thing at a slightly reduced pace?
