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RR on the track

C

criminaldesign

Guest
yesterday I had the great experience of riding the RR at VIR, took the Keith Code class and what a day.

First time on a track and pretty much a crotch rocket for that matter.

I even had the opportunity to play in the mud with it! No damage to me or bike and I was allowed back on track. Get the hose.

Mind you it was pretty much a downpour the entire day which added to the fun. Quite a learning experience in the rain.

Great bike and I was bummed the day was over. What I really like about the bike is the overall smaller size which is close the Kaw 636 that I've rode a couple times. The corners were blast, I couldn't get enough of them and when you want to move, the bike responds instantly. Had me giggling. I've never moved that fast. A far cry from my R100.

Dad and I had a great time and I'll definitely be doing that again.
 
yesterday I had the great experience of riding the RR at VIR, took the Keith Code class and what a day.

First time on a track and pretty much a crotch rocket for that matter.

I even had the opportunity to play in the mud with it! No damage to me or bike and I was allowed back on track. Get the hose.

Mind you it was pretty much a downpour the entire day which added to the fun. Quite a learning experience in the rain.

Great bike and I was bummed the day was over. What I really like about the bike is the overall smaller size which is close the Kaw 636 that I've rode a couple times. The corners were blast, I couldn't get enough of them and when you want to move, the bike responds instantly. Had me giggling. I've never moved that fast. A far cry from my R100.

Dad and I had a great time and I'll definitely be doing that again.

+1,000, Houston! What a blast. :thumb
 
Man you've got me pumped. I am taking the same class at Barber in Birmingham June 7. I've never been on the Barber track, just VIR. Barber looks awesome. Did you do the North course or full course at VIR?
 
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Way to go! Same here

My first Code track class was at VIR several years ago. Gotta go back one of these days. I did NJMP Thunderbolt last Fri (before they headed south). Fortunately the weather help up. A bit muggy and hot but it was dry.

I'd done several days with their Ninja 600/636's. The S1000RR feels physically smaller or about the same. The ergos are not bad though since I'm vertically challenged could use higher pegs and a closer reach to the handlebars. But I think it'd be excellent for the average sized rider. The power is awesome, even in 'Rain' mode. I can't wait to go back. Some things to work on.

And if you have June's Motorcyclist magazine you can see my gorgeous instructor on the cover.
 

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I'm also going to Barber in June for Keith Codes school. I've been so excited I went and bought an S1. The most awesome bike I've ever owned!!! Can't wait!!
 
Time for an update. First, if anyone is wanting to do this, email the Keith Code Superbike School as they may have more days like this around the country. You will NOT find it on the website.

We had five sessions of 25 minutes on the track, and 6 of class time. I've taken 3 track classes and they all were different, but all good in their own way.

One REALLY cool thing they did was to put an X on the turn in point of the curves. This was tremendously helpful for the hairpin turn 4. I thought I turned in OK, but I was turning in at least 20 feet too soon. After hitting their X, I was making the hairpin much tighter and faster. Man, it was pure heaven. That and Museum were my favorite turns.

The track also has one big hill and you can't see over it. That was freaky, roaring up the hill blindly. To do that as a racer, going really fast, man, balls of steel. I don't have those and kept my speed down a bit.

Toward the end of the day, I felt I was in synch and tearing it up. About that time an instructor ripped past probably doing +40mph on me. Oh, OK, THAT's what fast looks like!

The S1000RR is fantastic. In sport mode, we could just put it in 4th gear for the whole time. It has so much pull you never have to shift. It is 'controlled terror' riding this bike. Phenomenal brakes, too. I could never tell this was throttle by wire. It felt perfectly normal to me. Just a beautiful machine with no practical street use that I could find!

My buddy crashed on turn 2 out of the paddock near the end of the third session. He leaned it over hard and low sided. The bike flipped and he broke the frame--there went his $1250 deposit on about $3-4k in damage. He also trashed his helmet bouncing his head along the track. He was sore and had a broken little toe, so his day was over.

The next day, I rode 350 miles back to the trailer and then 5 more hours in the car to get home at 11PM. Next time I won't ride to a track day. I just didn't have any riding left in me after a very demanding, hot, high speed day.

So, I highly recommend you take a Keith Code track school day. They have dates around the country. If the promo is gone, they still have a normal price and it is really worth it. You can ride your own bike for less, but the S1000 is really a significant part of the experience.

Now, back to work....
 
i hear ya, they told us to stay in 4th our first time on the track and it didn't drag abit, pulled itself (and me) right along.

wow, that sucks to hear about yer buddy, at least it's just his small toe, helmet did it's job.

we had to go without the X's cos of the rain, it was really pooled up in places. crazy going down the track and feeling the tail go squirrelly in spots. what a ride.

we never got out of rain mode.

We were thinking of riding down if the rain didn't happen. I'm glad we didn't, I wouldn't have been up for it 100 miles down the road.
 
We had fantastic weather considering Alabama. It was hot, sure, but not humid. So the track was hot and the tires sticky. It's so funny to look at those sport tires and how they just have shreds of rubber like a pencil eraser falling off.

It's too bad you didn't get to try sport mode. It had a lot more torque to lift you out of a heavy lean angle. The other thing was it made it tremendously easy to pass people in the straights since most were still in rain mode. But, the bike is a monster in any mode I will say.

Isn't it amazing how mentally demanding track days are? I've ridden twisties for 12 hours, doing 500 or more miles, and not been as tired as I am after a track day.

Funny thing is, I can't sleep after a track day. I'm just dreaming of track and speed and the beautiful smell of burnt racing fuel and I just can't shut my brain off even though I'm exhausted.

I'd like to get a group together and rent a track like Roebling Roads (it's cheap) but this board is not a good place for it. I think there are maybe 10 guys here who ride track.

I'm burning through about 6 sets of tires a year now. This stuff gets expensive!
 
I was their Sunday and agree with Roborider. It was the most fun and exciting day ever! Very professionally run, first class facility and first class instructors!!! It was a perfect day. Rode better and faster each session. Keith Code was great and very interesting to listen to. Each session was followed by a short debriefing to find out how you did and what you needed to work on. I learned so much! Barber Motorsports is a World Class race track and if you get the opportunity, go!
 
My father was the very fortunate winner of the Keith Code Superbike School that was raffled by BMWMOA at the recent WSB races in Salt Lake City. He had no interest in doing the track day, but was able to provide me the experience. Happy-B-Day to me!:dance:dance

I have not had the opportunity to do a track day, but I am pumped up! I registered for VIR today and will be going in August the week after the AMA races. Getting to experience the 1000rr on the track is going to be amazing.

I need to thank the BMWMOA for this opportunity along with Keith Code school. At a recent rally I was complaining about missing out on the door prize raffles because I was out riding. Then I receive this gift...Holy Cow!

Any advice that you can provide for the school would be appreciated.

What to bring?

What to expect?

What information provided helped you the most?

I will post up details of my experience after my class in August.
 
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This is an unusual track day. Usually, you'd have to bring everything, including snacks, lunch, water, etc. But the school actually feeds you and has drings/snacks.

I would bring a folding chair perhaps if you are driving.

But really, they provide everything including Plexus to clean your helmet!
 
yeah, they really have everything for you. You could show up with nothing and they would hook you up with helmet, suit, gloves, boots and bike. Of course you pay for it.

Yep they feed you and have fruit and water available throughout the day.

you'll dig it. h
 
See, that was the deal with the BMW promo. They included leathers, helmet, gloves and boots FOR NO ADDITIONAL charge! It was a great deal. Otherwise, they do charge a rental fee. The $490 price was a steal!
 
It looks like all I have to worry about is learning and riding.

I have some good friends locally that spend quite a bit of time at the track. I posted details of the school on a sportbike forum and I was amazed how many people offered to help me with gear, advice, and details of the track at VIR. It always amazes how nice fellow riders can be when you are not expecting anything.

I wonder which track they will use for the school?
 
My bet is they just use the north course. Let me know if I'm correct. The Paddock area has a class room there and the north course is around 2 miles or so which is a good length for a class. The long course is much too much to memorize and would be a bit much for a level one class. Hell, it took me a couple of sessions to memorize just the Barber track.
 
I hope to take the class some day... :)

I did get to ride my S1000RR at Infineon using the Rain, Sport, and Race modes. It was raining until the last 2 sessions. Hence me trying out the modes.

The Rain Mode is definitely not too limiting since I did feel the rear wheel break loose and got a bit of a scare there.

Race mode is awesome, allowing me to get on the throttle really fast... it's almost telepathic.

Overall... too much fun! :D
 
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