First two track days. Addicted and humbled with questions for future track days

[tomlichu]

Had my first two track days in June (6/9 at the Ridge Motorsports, 6/29 at Thunderhill Raceway) on my MT07. It was an exhilarating and humbling experience; I feel like these two days have been more helpful in improving my skills and building trust in my bike than the last year of riding. Never had I done hard braking from 100+ mph before hitting a corner.

I have a few questions

1. I sometimes had issues downshifting from 5th -> 3rd, but the bike would be stuck in 4th. I checked the shifter linkage (90 degrees, free play) and it seems fine. Any theories on why this is happening?
2. I run Dunlop Roadsmart 3s (mainly for commuting), but I think I will transition more to track riding and less street riding. Tires are getting worn so I was looking for sportier tires such as the Hypersport S22s since its OEM for the R7. Do ya'll have any other recs for a mix of street and track riding? What tire pressures do you run?

Bonus pictures, there was a fellow FZ07 in C group at the Ridge. Another rider ran a fully decked out MT07 converted into a track bike as well.

Edited July 1 by tomlichu

[Evill_Ed]

Congratulations for getting on the Track, yes it is addicting, but in a good way 

On the down shifting, Make sure that you fully release the shift lever between shifts. That is, if you shift (up or down) but the shift lever is resting slightly on your boot, it prevents the shift drum from ratcheting to the next gear. The FZ / MT seem to be sensitive to this, I have mentioned it several times in recent posts.

If this is the case, you may want to adjust your shift lever angle. loosen the jamb nuts on the shift rod and rotate it to move the lever up or down to your desired position. Make sure to keep the heim joints (pivots) in line when tightening the jamb nuts. Also one nut is standard thread and one is reverse, keep that in mind when loosening and tightening. 

For Track Day / Street tires I personally prefer Dunlop Q3+ or Q5's. Both offer great grip on the track and perform well on the street. If you log a lot of street miles and occasional rain, the Q3+ are better. Michelin Road 5's are very good too. For these types of tires, 34 psi front and 30 psi rear are typical and provide good track performance. 

 

Good luck and enjoy the track.

Ed 

[19MTMike]

@tomlichu, I also salute you for getting on the track.  Doesn't matter what kind of lap times you're turning, the important thing is that you're actually doing it!  It's way too easy to be a street squid and "talk" about how fast you (think) you are.  It takes work just to get to the track, and a lot of riders aren't willing to put in the effort (assuming that they have access to a track - some don't - I get it).

Also, I'd be willing to bet that, once you've become accustomed to riding in the very controlled environment of a racetrack, you'll actually ride slower on the street.  You sort of become way more attuned to the everyday hazards - people on cellphones, unknown road conditions, drivers coming from opposite direction and drifting into your lane, etc.  You don't have that on a racetrack!

Congrats again!

Mike

[tomlichu]

6 hours ago, Evill_Ed said:

On the down shifting, Make sure that you fully release the shift lever between shifts. That is, if you shift (up or down) but the shift lever is resting slightly on your boot, it prevents the shift drum from ratcheting to the next gear. The FZ / MT seem to be sensitive to this, I have mentioned it several times in recent posts.

If this is the case, you may want to adjust your shift lever angle. loosen the jamb nuts on the shift rod and rotate it to move the lever up or down to your desired position. Make sure to keep the heim joints (pivots) in line when tightening the jamb nuts. Also one nut is standard thread and one is reverse, keep that in mind when loosening and tightening. 

For Track Day / Street tires I personally prefer Dunlop Q3+ or Q5's. Both offer great grip on the track and perform well on the street. If you log a lot of street miles and occasional rain, the Q3+ are better. Michelin Road 5's are very good too. For these types of tires, 34 psi front and 30 psi rear are typical and provide good track performance. 

I'll play around with the shift angle and be more wary about it, did not realize the shifting was that sensitive. At Thunderhill, it was 97 degrees and I ran the rear at ~27-28 psi, it seemed pretty worn though. Does this tire look a little underinflated based on wear? I didn't know that you run front tires higher, but a quick Google search seemed that its to maintain shape of a thinner tire due to harder braking?

40 minutes ago, 19MTMike said:

Also, I'd be willing to bet that, once you've become accustomed to riding in the very controlled environment of a racetrack, you'll actually ride slower on the street.  You sort of become way more attuned to the everyday hazards - people on cellphones, unknown road conditions, drivers coming from opposite direction and drifting into your lane, etc.  You don't have that on a racetrack!

You are absolutely correct, I have been riding slower and less on the street now. It feels like to get the thrills of riding fast, I will need to go at track speeds, which isn't smart. I'm mainly interested in scenic riding, which is great in Washington.