Back in the shop

Isn’t Bautista 135lbs?

bp_SFV4 said:

Isn’t Bautista 135lbs?

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Whi knows for sure, but that’s what I’ve seen listed:

https://www.eurosport.com/superbikes/alvaro-bautista_prs22098/person.shtml

Steven31371 said:

I didn’t intend it, but it kinda reminds me if the Ferrari F1 livery for this year.

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Yes, you are right

California Superbike School this Sunday for some coaching on body position.

Then on the 24th BIG WILLOW!!!

A track I’m not afraid to admit that I’ve been avoiding and am a bit intimidated to do on the bike…lots of laps there in cars, but have avoided the 180 mph straights and dragging knee for a quarter of a mile at 130 mph lol

But I’m ready, will be good for my rider development at this point.

I don't know a single rider who isn't intimidated by Big Willow, myself included. That track will test anyone's nerve and I know a couple of very fast guys who refuse to ride it, haha.
Turn 8 is terrifying. There are times when I enter so fast that my brain is telling me it is a coin flip: heads I make it, tails I die, why am I doing this? It has some bumps too that can slip the front tire at high lean/speed.
T9 is fast too and decreasing radius, with a bump inside and it offers the possibility to run wide and off track on exit.
The straight itself is now bumpy enough to unsettle the bike all the way.
T1 is awesome, banked, and bigger than it looks but I always puss out on entry, over braking from the high straightaway speeds.
T2 is scary to enter so fast, but a fast entry is key to a good lap time. This turn will also destroy the right side of your rear tire.
T3 is a very hard braking zone and many people low side here. CRASH RISK.
T5 is also very hard braking on a steep downhill. Many people low side here. CRASH RISK.
The hill at T6 can contribute to false neutrals or setting the front tire down crooked after a wheelie at 100+. CRASH RISK.
T7 is about the calmest section of the track I think but even so, on a big bike you are building speed fast and preparing to die into T8.
And there are NO safe run-off areas. That said, the track is so wide that a person can screw up their lines really bad and still usually keep it on the track.
And despite it being quite bumpy (most will run lighter springs and damping), I think the surface is abrasive and offers great grip.
Oh, and the wind can come up fierce in the afternoons, 20-30 mph. I've had tumble weeds blow across the track in front of me.
With all of this being said, Big Willow is my favorite track and I'll be there the 23rd. It's very exciting, very fun, and its the best place to stretch the legs of a V4. After a Big Willow day, all other tracks seem easy and babyfied.
Here's some onboard from my last day there:

Awesome vid and course breakdown, I actually misdated above, I’ll be there on the 23rd also.

Your description is exactly how I imagined riding there would be haha, i.e. terrifying but fun as hell, and is the reason I want to tackle it. Seems to me that like you said, after calibrating your brain to those speeds all other tracks will feel like baby tracks lol

So I need it for my development.

How much do you adjust dampening, and what tires do you run there?


That track was the 1st track I ever went to. I was in a semi track prepped Corvette…I thought I was a hell of a driver until I got there and learned that canyon carving was not track riding lol. My 1st lap I thought I was FLYNG taking turn 8 at 85 miles an hour haha

Was a humbling day for a 20 year old who thought he was a badass in a car lol

I usually run my baseline damping for the first session, and with cold suspension it's so bumpy that I want to give up and go home. Then I just go -1 click for comp and rebound, front and back, and try to use my legs more as part of the suspension. You kind of adapt and ride it for what it is. Tires: I have no specific recipe. I'll be running a used SC1 front at 37 psi and a lightly used SC2 rear at 24 psi. I'm half thinking to have a new SC0 rear mounted, in case I feel good enough for a time attack that morning, but we'll see. I'm not planning to run the full day and predict my tire consumption will match my energy consumption, both giving up around noon. I'm looking forward to seeing you there. It'll be an excting and fun day for sure. It's a special track.

Looking forward to the PICs

Training day at California Superbike School, today was lvl 3 and focused on body position etc…a lot of useful stuff in there, a few bits I didn’t like.

Good tips being able to tell how far forward it back on the seat you should be based on how your leg is hooking in, some cool methods for using your inner leg muscles to sorta pinch the tank to slide back and forth across the seat instead of using your quads to lift off the seat and slide thereby putting all the strain on your knees and quads…pushing yourself to the other side of the bike by pushing on the tank with the outside knee is way more energy efficient AND stable than lifting yourself over.

I was also waiting too late to slide off to the side of the bike, so I was rushing myself too much by sliding over, releasing throttle, hitting brakes, then tipping in all too close together, was rushing myself needlessly but cramping too many activities into too tight a space.

Some stuff doesn’t work for me because of my height and size and age etc…like staying off center of the seat for what seemed like pretty long straights where I need to get in the tuck, I’m just too tall and old to be in a tuck off the side of the bike with my rear end up on the fairing

All in all some good stuff today, getting much smoother flow on the bike now.

Definitely improved my technical ability a bit, just in time to do a track that’s very un-technical, and really only about shear guts

This bike is a straight up monster lol, and seems like it’s continuously more so the faster I get haha

Was playing with how fast I could roll on throttle before the rear starts to slide and did my first real wheelie at lean instead around a corner haha, surprised me so much that I didn’t keep my arms relaxed enough and the front end got squirrelly when it came back down still at lean coming off an apex, was kinda fun actually, but narrowly avoided my 1st real tank slapper

had a scare lap 1 Session 1….bike stopped shifting and went into full limp mode. Crawled around the track and back to the truck.

Fry I think you will be right in the end, the Domino quick turn throttle is likely the culprit…after we changed the Quickshifter, wheel speed sensor and gear position sensor I took the bike for test ride at the shop, then a 2nd one for good measure after I got home before I loaded the truck, was fine, but then lap one this morning it’s back..

At 1st I had to go back to my truck and clear the codes after each session and power cycle it to get it t work for each session…eventually I figured out that if I shut the bike down and start it up in neutral and let it warm up a bit before I head out on track it stayed out of limp mode the rest of the day…but…a new throttle sensor/unit is needed…anyone with experience with this set up?

https://www.hsbkracing.com/parts-an...tal-throttle-conversion-control-unit-w-cable/

Steven31371 said:

had a scare lap 1 Session 1….bike stopped shifting and went into full limp mode. Crawled around the track and back to the truck.

Fry I think you will be right in the end, the Domino quick turn throttle is likely the culprit…after we changed the Quickshifter, wheel speed sensor and gear position sensor I took the bike for test ride at the shop, then a 2nd one for good measure after I got home before I loaded the truck, was fine, but then lap one this morning it’s back..

At 1st I had to go back to my truck and clear the codes after each session and power cycle it to get it t work for each session…eventually I figured out that if I shut the bike down and start it up in neutral and let it warm up a bit before I head out on track it stayed out of limp mode the rest of the day…but…a new throttle sensor/unit is needed…anyone with experience with this set up?

https://www.hsbkracing.com/parts-an...tal-throttle-conversion-control-unit-w-cable/

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I have one, haven't used it you are welcome to have it if you want.

I love the “knee-to-knee” drill from CaliSBK! Made a big difference with stamina.

Good report Steven. All these tips, techniques, experiences, and repetitions add up toward quicker, easier, safer riding. Bummer on the limp mode. Those Dominos confound me. I haven't really gotten a solid answer on those (installation procedure, adjusting software parameters, or mfg efects?) but anecdotally, like 5 out of 6 V4 guys that I know have had them fail, and I think limp mode is so dangerous that any path to it should be avoided.

Steven31371 said:

had a scare lap 1 Session 1….bike stopped shifting and went into full limp mode. Crawled around the track and back to the truck.

Fry I think you will be right in the end, the Domino quick turn throttle is likely the culprit…after we changed the Quickshifter, wheel speed sensor and gear position sensor I took the bike for test ride at the shop, then a 2nd one for good measure after I got home before I loaded the truck, was fine, but then lap one this morning it’s back..

At 1st I had to go back to my truck and clear the codes after each session and power cycle it to get it t work for each session…eventually I figured out that if I shut the bike down and start it up in neutral and let it warm up a bit before I head out on track it stayed out of limp mode the rest of the day…but…a new throttle sensor/unit is needed…anyone with experience with this set up?

https://www.hsbkracing.com/parts-an...tal-throttle-conversion-control-unit-w-cable/

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Think I remember @bp_SFV4 selling one of these because he didn’t like it?

I have the new Spider quick action throttle. It's the shizzle

Definitely works, even on dirt

RickD996 said:

I have the new Spider quick action throttle. It's the shizzle

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First I’m hearing of this. Widely available?

craig bush said:

Think I remember @bp_SFV4 selling one of these because he didn’t like it?

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Went back to stock controls. Going to aftermarket controls was kind of a winter project. It really became a pain. I was fighting incompatibilities. I’m using the R&G lock stop savers which don’t work with any clip-ons which relocate the damper mount to the fork tube. That’s just one example. In the end, the stock stuff worked for me and I spent way too much money.

The Domino worked for me and was much higher in quality than the OEM plastic unit. I wasn’t a fan of the quick action part on the track. I’m sure I could get use to it, or just maybe not suck and get some skill.

I think failures are often over reported and people generally put more value on a failure rather than a success. Having handled one, I don’t see what there is to really fail. Maybe if heat gets to the sensor? Maybe vibration?

craig bush said:

First I’m hearing of this. Widely available?

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Jetprime has a throttle also. It’s bigger than the Domino but has slightly less rotation.