LP track days come to Midwest on Saturdays!

[chris_chops]

I agree with what Dave is saying about another series being created but wasnt that tryed befor with glrra?

GLRRA was a great organization.  It was founded on the principles that CCS wasn't cutting it and GLRRA could do better.  In my opinion, they did.   Eric Nacke and his crew were personable and listened to you.  They were very concerned with safety and punishing rule violators, including tech violations.  Eric saw the big picture, but it became a one track    series at Grattan when CCS offered many tracks.  The contingency got screwed up often and payouts were very slow if they got there at all.  Still, almost everybody liked Eric and crew and believed they were out for our best interests.  I'm sorry to see GLRRA gone and I quess I helped by not racing there at all last year.  Where is the best of both worlds?

[Super Dave]

What's good, what's bad?  Guess we have to start there.  

It will never be cheap, we can count on that.  

I think there should be racing for riders that a specifically in their first year, or something.  Then another class for the riders that have moved up from their first amateur year, or don't wish to race where the crazy fast guys are.  You could call that the pro class.

Seems as though there are people that don't want to be what we call expert, and there are amateurs that have been doing this for four to eight years.

[Xian_13]

Okay I have a habit of opening my mouth one I shouldn't. I am guessing this might be a prime example.

These LP trackdays are a joke and take away the cred of real racers looking for sponsors.

Have you ever heard the phrase "Race it on Sunday, Sell it on Monday!"?
Well the way I see it, With the "squids" there, there are more pockets to pick from. Thus more potential sponsors wanting their name on the Go fast bikes. Having a track day on the weekends might draw more interest to the sport, as people will not be forced to take time off of work. Might just be my prospective, but I don't see the track day as being a problem with sponsors.
(p.s. I don't think sponsor will have any problem knowing who is a "real racer" in fact the "squids" make the racers look that much faster)

K3 Chris,
Are you talking about the turn 4 incident at BHF last race on Sunday?
I was there that weekend, and I even took class, two weeks earlier, with the guy (Spencer) that crashed.
*Note*
This is where I go off on a bit of a tangent!
I whole heartily agree there should be a separate race of complete newbies.
But... there is a worst problem here. The skills of  complete newbies are SO far apart, not to mention the bikes they bring. When I took my licensing class we had a EX250 Ninja to a built RC51 and everything in between. To mix those all together is a recipe for disaster as it is. Though I understand that is no happy medium here, I agree to a point it should be addressed.

What options do a new racer have to learn?
Track days!!

Till the time I was ready to go racing, I never knew there were track days. Had I known that, I may have waited to get licensed.
I humbly think that anyone showing up for a track day on a race weekend might think twice before the jump headfirst into racing. Though I am not 100% clear as to how the track day time will interfere with the normal schedule, I am pretty sure CCS will handle it in the safest of manners.
Further on the thought, I honestly think that having weekend dates will help attendance, drawing more people to the track.

Maybe I am missing the down side to this (aside from the oil-coolant part), but I see this as a possible good thing.

[duc995@aol.com]

I guess you weren't at Willow this past weekend to witness the recipe for disaster yourself then...? :o

[Steviebee]

ok you guys are making me nervous.

I've decided to jump head first and go racing this year.   I did some track days last year, and after that had a problem riding on the street (doing stupid and crazy stuff, cause 65 just aint what it used to be).  So im going racing, got what i needed to convert my bike to a race bike, and signe up for some races.

At the track days i was in the Intermediate group, but i was definitle being held back by most guys there.  So i've been told that fast I group guys should be ok to start racing.

But, i'll be going to tracks ive never been to before.  I originally thought the LP days could give me more track time (which i desperatly need to learn all the new tracks).  But it dont look like it.

I just hope that im not one of the guys thats going to slow to be a saftey risk to the other ones.

Oh and im not happy that the LP days are taking track time away from practice (or making it too crowded) , and the blackhawk schools.  My 2 cents

[TZ_Boy]

Danger, Danger, Will Robinson.  I think one point your missing is that fast trackday rider's on liter class bikes mixing it up with slow amateur's on lightweight machines will make for dramatic closing speed's.  Are we the racer's responsible for this due to low attendance at Gingerman.  Why the f### doesn't anyone show up to Gingerman?  It's close, the pit's are paved, the track surface is good.  Is it a lack of a straightaway?  Are we to lazy to drive what 2 hours?

[Xian_13]

Me? I loved my first trip to Gingerman.
And I hear there are spare brake pads on the bottom of the pond ;D

[SliderPhoto]

Didn't make it to Gingerman last year, wanted to, it's about 7 hours for me, i'm sure longer for others. Don't assume it's 2 hours for everyone. It came down to lack of money and time, I need a tire tree or money tree, anyone have some seeds? :)

It can go both ways. I was at a Friday trackday/practice at Gateway last year. Some dip on an Aprilia felt the need to try and stuff me in the chicane going back onto the banking, he ended up going in to hot and blowing the chicane anyway, what a dumb move.

As a track day rider, I have my own concerns. Turn out will probably be dismal, so CCS will probably bunch all track day riders into one group. Closing speeds, yeah I worry about that too, but I also worry about the nube following me into turn 1 and punting me when he gets in over his head. It goes both ways....

Track days, racing, it's always been dangerous, always will be. It would be nice though to think the people running the show have the riders' safety as their primary concern.

[DRU2]

Still why should we have to pay extra to practice!havent we payed enough to practice that day? entry fees gate fees.I just dont feel its rite to put some of the people in with people that have been racing for a year or two. Some guys do track days and are realy fast,there not the ones that im thinking of its the people that think that there fast and go into the advance group. Just because they think there fast on the street doesnt meen there fast on the track.remember way back when when we all got are first dose of reality?!! ::)

[K3 Chris Onwiler]

Okay I have a habit of opening my mouth when I shouldn't.

K3 Chris,
Are you talking about the turn 4 incident at BHF last race on Sunday?
I was there that weekend, and I even took class, two weeks earlier, with the guy (Spencer) that crashed.
 

Oh, I wouldn't know anything about that opening mouth thing! ;D

Yes, that was the incident.  How did he make out?  Do you know?
What happened was really a shame.  To be honest, when we caught them it was just as bad as if we had been street racing.  The speed difference was just that great.  I agree with your observation that newbies have a very wide range of beginning skill levels.  I was finishing 20th out of 30 my first weekend, but was 40 seconds off the lead expert's pace.  Did we belong out there together?  
This year, a crop of 15-year olds showed up.  They'd been racing since age 5, but were road racing newbies.  It took them 2-3 weekends to start winning, and by seasons end, I saw one of them get a few overall Am/Ex wins from the back on the Am grid!  How do you sort these new guys out?  That's what the squid class is for.  Race there until you've proven yourself to be safe and fast enough to not be a hazard to those you will be sharing the track with.
And the squid class could be run in that huge gaping hole of unused time between our ample practice and our overly-long races that is currently being sold to track day people.  Now there's a new session that I would have no problem with!

[chris_chops]

O.K. Xian, Race on sunday doesn't mean trackdays.  You see, a trackday is not racing.  You don't realise many of the experts, myself included, don't like having to deal with squids sharing our weekend.   Period!  I am at a loss because I don't know exactly how to explain it to you.  I want to share the track with racebikes, not streetbikes with tape and very inexperienced riders.  I don't want to tell my sponsor that his mom, (without a race liscence) can come out and ride too.  It takes away from the cred of what I do.  Some of us racers are tired of the too little track time we get at a CCS weekend already.  These LP days threaten tracktime because ambulances and red flags don't promote practicing.  Bikes that wouldn't pass CCS tech are also a threat to tracktime and overall safety of the racing surface.  This fact is very scary to me!  Very, very scary to me!  Racing is inherently dangerous. The margin for error for most experts and fast ams is very small.  Lack of practice and possible fluids from tech issues will expose this margin and seriously hurt man and machine.  This is a fact!  I enjoy criticism, so shoot!!!
Matt "chris" "chops" "mothra" "hurricane" "spider" Carr                  sooooooooooooo many nicknames

[TZDeSioux]

Listern here you spider! Call me this week dammit!