Tenere on the track

[Dakota]

[Liquidape]

Which track? Looks like Chuckawalla.

[Dakota]

Willow springs 

[cstatman]

16 hours ago, Dakota said:

 

Looking GOOD man! 

 

[UtahJack]

@Dakota

I see your glass all taped, do they still require you use Redline water wetter instead of antifreeze?

Great track haven't been on it in over thirty years, where you on the big course or button? 

Does Keith Code still have classes there?

Edited April 19, 2021 by UtahJack

[Dakota]

Nope, they didn't require me to change out my antifreeze, they said modern bikes typically don't leak anything if/when they crash.

 

We were on the big course, it was so much fun. I'm not sure About Keith, I didn't see/hear his name anywhere but it's possible he still does. 

[Dakota]

Thanks @cstatman

[UtahJack]

@Dakota

One of my favorite tracks back when I was younger and still bounced.

Put my wife through Keith's classes some thirty five years ago, best money I ever spent.

 

[Dakota]

@UtahJackThat's so cool, she looks like she's having a blast. 

 

To anyone reading this: I was always very intimated by Track Day - thinking it mean I had to go out and try to race everybody. It's not that at all. It's a safe (seems ironic, I know) place to learn how to better control/trust your motorcycle.

 

If you're in the area, look up "Classic Track Days" and sign up. ~170 and that includes free racing gear rental from Alpine Stars. They also have On Track Suspension there to tune your bikes suspension for $40, and after they got to mine it feels like a totally different bike. They told "If it's good for the track, it'll be good anywhere", I'm not sure if that is true for off road, but I can say the bike feels more stuck to the ground, so i'm happy to go play off-road next weekend and see how it goes. 

[UtahJack]

@Dakota

Yea, she is still smiling all these years later.

That little Honda Hawk she is on is one bike I really wish we had never gotten rid of. Was hard to find then, when we did put it up for sale was gone in less than two hours. Bike was way ahead of its time, 650 V-Twin, single sided swing arm, great bike. The class really relived any of my apprehension over her riding her own bike.  Boy in hind sight that has proven to be expensive, always buying two bikes, shoot two of everything instead of one.

[Dakota]

@UtahJack

My first bike was a 1977 CB 550 - I tboned a car who left turned me. I didn't break anything, luckily, but the bike got a bent frame (4 days after I had the engine rebuilt).

Even though there's really no reason for me to keep the bike, I refuse to get rid of it. One day i'd like to fix it.. one day.

 

Another great class is Ride To Live - its put on by Hawthorne PD and is totally free. It's a low speed skills class, and makes you suuuuuppppper comfortable navigating your motorcycle. Perhaps there are other variations of this put on by other departments across the world?

[Hibobb]

8 minutes ago, UtahJack said:

Honda Hawk

The Honda Hawk NT650 was a classic bike. It always shows up on lists of 10 ten bikes you wish you had never sold.

[Dakota]

@UtahJack

Googling it now

[UtahJack]

Sorry everyone thinking back my wife wasn't in Keith's class 35 yrs. ago, it had to be more like 25 yrs. because I  remember I was running a 1995 Honda CBR 900RR at the time, at my age it all starts to blend together. Perhaps too many concussions, as a matter of fact I crashed that 900 RR and was air lifted to the hospital, I have been told that when I got to the hospital they ask me if I knew who was President and told them Richard Nixon, told them I worked at K-mart, which I never have, so I guess it's not the first time I have lost a little time. I guess it was understandable since I had broken an Arai helmet into four pieces in the crash.

So I thought I better set the record straight before someone does it for me. 

[Hibobb]

Keith Code school picture... Late 80's/Early 90's I would guess.

I am in the middle, the rest are my hooligan drinking buddies from back in the day.

Of the five, I came in second. Mike (to my right) came in first (he was an experienced motocross guy). The others were only fast when they were talking on a bar stool.

 

Edited April 19, 2021 by Hibobb

[UtahJack]

@Hibobb

That's cool, we use to call it bench racing, everybody is fast then.

All my previous bike experience is tarmac wore out a lot of knee pucks, boy been a rude awakening in the dirt, I have quickly become aware that at my age, I will not survive the bumps and bruises required to become as proficient on the dirt as on pavement.  Shoot still nursing a sore wrist from crashing my T7 10 months ago, well at least I must have learned something through the years, I slowed down, which was something I never could comprehend when I was younger and rode everywhere like my hair was on fire. My arthritis in the same locations as past injuries tells me that wasn't too smart even when I did bounce better. 

[Hibobb]

Jack,

 

Arthritis... I know of what you speak! I road dirt in the 70's, street in the 80's & 90's, back to dirt after that.

Life has been good but I am feel "age" these days. Pictures of my youth are happy memories now. Here is another picture from around 2,000. Anything more current would more like a painting of "Dorian Gray".

 

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Picture_of_Dorian_Gray

 

[UtahJack]

@Hibobb

I resemble that remark.

[AZJW]

Keith Code has a great school and very talented instructors,  I learned a ton everytime I went.  Did 3 of 4 levels at Firebird Raceway 

 (AZ), first 2 on a 2002 CBR600F4i, level 3 on a DRZ home built SM, which ended up being the bike I finally started grinding knee pucks with. Interspersed track days between those classes, confidence just kept building and @Dakotayou're so right, getting your suspension dialed in helps trim down lap times and increase the grin factor. 

[DT675]

12 hours ago, Dakota said:

@UtahJackThat's so cool, she looks like she's having a blast. 

 

To anyone reading this: I was always very intimated by Track Day - thinking it mean I had to go out and try to race everybody. It's not that at all. It's a safe (seems ironic, I know) place to learn how to better control/trust your motorcycle.

In Minnesota we had something called Hedonistic Enthusiasm. You could bring any bike to the track and ride it for $50.  Also you could get a little coaching throughout the day too.  A great way to really learn your motorcycle. I tried it several years ago and got hooked. Been track riding ever since. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[cstatman]

I dont know much about riding dirt bikes on roadrace tracks... 

but the S7 is quickly turning into one of my fave bikes,   I may have to take it to the track....   when I'm done in the durt.

 

[Dakota]

[cstatman]

PLUS 75 points for the awesome face/art!