RHill

First time at Deals Gap and I got to add to the tree of shame. We made our trip north through the dragon without a problem, turned around and I took the lead...about a minute in, out of nowhere, I lost the front. So the scenario I've put together is: Not enough gas to keep 40/60 weight distribution. Front end is upset because of the bump(visible in the slow motion portion of the video), too slow of rebound doesn't allow the tire to regain traction quick enough. "Cold" tire from running in the wet previous turns doesn't pick up traction and pushes(black streak left in the first moonshine "wreck" picture) out from under the bike. Luckily, the guy taking pictures for moonshinephoto.com came to the rescue with a rope, bandages, duct tape and alcohol wipes. He also got a ton of great pictures of the wreck: http://moonshinephoto.photoreflect.com/store/ThumbPage.aspx?e=8927271&g=0CVY010206 in addition to many the next day of riding as well. Thanks to all the guys who helped pull the bike back up to the road! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SRp87M4ifY4&

Plain old jeans, only damage was to the knee, where most riding pants are reinforced or have armor. Actually went and tried on about 7 different styles at cycle great in Greenville before riding to the gap, was not impressed with the quality, protection or fit of any of them. Oh well, I got lucky, almost everything was absorbed by armor in my jacket. I'll post a video in another thread tonight. I dropped to maintenance throttle, weighting the front tire and putting it under too much load. Suspension also played a role, I could feel the front end pushing a lot the next day. Also, less than ideal conditions helped out as well. I'm still surprised it let loose; I was aggressive on the ride to the gap and never felt a slip.

you mean the "ninja kick" and "dayum how the hell are we getting this out of here :(" look

There are a lot to choose from http://moonshinephoto.photoreflect.com/store/ThumbPage.aspx?e=8927271&g=0CVY010206 Plus all the non-wreck ones from the next day. I plan on picking up a few once I get a chance to dig through and make sure I have seen them all; if nothing else, to repay them for the bandages and duct tape he gave me. He also happened to have a rope to pull the bike out with. Great guy, along with the crew I was riding with and the guys that stopped to lend a hand. So thankful for all them being there. Bike repairs...nothing a little duct tape and zip ties couldn't "fix" to ride for the next 3 days. That shit will buff right out. Check out the zip tie weave brake light holder: http://xtremesportsphotography.photoreflect.com/store/Orderpage.aspx?pi=0QAK01DC080972&po=978&pc=3877

Enjoy the trip guys! Just got back from my trip to the gap and SC; it was everything I hoped for. Even with an early lowside(check the new avatar), dragging the bike out from a ravine, and a bunch of rain; I'd do it over in a heartbeat....and hopefully am, after I get more vacation in July.

I'll be there Friday....haven't figured out the rest of the weekend yet

Had a great time riding with you Will, hopefully we can get a few more in before the move.

28 and that whole route I posted was excelent. I'd say anyone coming to deals should take that road.

thanks guys, I think I'll take the route I posted to hit as much NC-28 as I can without extending the ride. I postponed my ride out to teach my oldest nephew how to ride his new dirtbike. Got some footage with the gopro I may upload to youtube as well. He was doing great in the yard putting around, but got aggressive taking turns at full(extremely limited) throttle and lost the front...think he might have grabbed the front brake. Few minutes later he was back at it again. May have lost out on some riding time, but it was well worth it.

could always get a set of take offs to ride on till then, then pick up a new set of tires close to the track time

I'm heading to the Iron horse motorcycle lodge later today. Leaving from Lake Robison in Taylors SC. Starting and end points mapped: http://www.google.com/maps?saddr=Lake+Robinson,+Greenville,+SC&daddr=Iron+Horse+Motorcycle+Lodge,+1755+Lower+Stecoah+Road,+Robbinsville,+NC+28771&hl=en&sll=35.171563,-83.090973&sspn=0.584854,1.330719&geocode=FU86FgIdmAcY-ymJxXKBgtNZiDF_heGGZEuVFg%3BFZv_GwIdwTED-ynnLvD798leiDFiQfboppLL3g&oq=lake+rob&t=h&mra=ls&z=9 Here is a fairly direct route that doesn't look bad, but I am open to suggestions: http://www.google.com/maps?saddr=Lake+Robinson,+Greenville,+SC&daddr=35.1094852,-82.7425136+to:35.1408802,-83.2867854+to:Iron+Horse+Motorcycle+Lodge,+1755+Lower+Stecoah+Road,+Robbinsville,+NC+28771&hl=en&ll=35.344255,-82.845154&spn=1.176164,2.661438&sll=35.199623,-83.251648&sspn=0.584652,1.330719&geocode=FU86FgIdmAcY-ymJxXKBgtNZiDF_heGGZEuVFg%3BFW26FwIdD3MR-ykf2dMwIq5ZiDH_vBO3iswwFg%3BFRA1GAId_yQJ-yl1Eru4SSJZiDHPaJNngXBRhw%3BFZv_GwIdwTED-ynnLvD798leiDFiQfboppLL3g&t=h&mra=dpe&mrsp=2&sz=10&via=1,2&z=9

Yeah, with all the holes the runoff would disappear quick.

I'd imagine the freeze loosened up bits of patchwork and we are just kicking them out....hopefully if they actively patch the holes that appear and help clear debris it will clear up in a month or so. Maybe I'm just too optimistic.

I think Jeff just wants to see it go around the track.....quickly. I'd do it, but somehow at the end of the ride it would come out dirty like all my bikes Plus I couldn't tell you what a "good" setup feels like.....hell I haven't even figured out my own yet.

lol if we tried to clean it at the track, the owners would probably be bitching for contaminating the ground water with the filth that was on the bike. I really dont want to unfold the trailer to load it up to take it to the car wash that is4 blocks away, but I don't want to even think about getting pulled over on it either. Maybe I'll pester someone with a truck at work.

Yep, brownish orange wheels. I think being next to Jeff's bike made it worse in the pits, but at least I don't have to look at it while going around the track I will be giving it some TLC when I get back on Sunday. My street bike is almost as bad, so it will be getting some love after the trip as well. Thank you for your condolences.

Well, first track day and race school with new bike went great. Nothing really unexpected; power felt good, no noticeable leaks(going to have to pull off the body and give it a good once over before washing it down....got made fun of in inspection for a dirty bike ) , clutch wasn't grabby, and suspension felt good. Thanks to Cox and Jeff for helping with measuring sag and suspension help I ran the tires(q2's) that came on the bike friday and saturday; the hot tears left by the previous owner healed up and the surface looks good. I was running 32/32 hot off the track. The siping on the rear has a little buildup(can't remember if it is front or trailing), so I think I need to mess around with the rear rebound to clean that up. Only real issue other than my riding was the front brakes felt like shit. We re-bled the system after the first session friday It picked up slightly but felt like a ton of pull before building any pressure. Lever was adjusted all the way out as well. After wasting about 45 minutes today rebleeding the brakes I realized there was 1 big difference between my street(which was also just bled from a dry system and feels great) and track bike....the levers. The track bike has the fleabay chinese CRG knock offs. Placed a stock lever on and BAM felt great. I can fix the knock offs pretty easy, need to make a small replacement insert and drill a slightly shallower hole for the actuator to sit in. Oh well, I guess you cant always expect cheap shit to work out perfect, should be an easy fix. Need to throw on some take-off slicks thanks to Desmo-Brian, an R6 throttle tube(poor mans quicker turn throttle), finish safety wiring, and get these levers fixed and I should be ready to go for the next track day.....and maybe some last place racing Think I've already scheduled for Friday 31st http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DEU53W8o9T4

Did you get a chance to spectate bikes going around turn 4 and see the banking to the turn? It is easy to trick yourself into thinking you are too hot when really you are about right or even slow. :bow: Thank you Jeff

Had a great time friday and yesterday! Really wanted to get to the races today but I got news that my uncle just passed away late yesterday and have to head to SC tomorrow. Hope everything is going well at the track and the patches are holding up. Enjoy the weather guys! Looking forward to gridding up for an upcoming race. Here is the raw gopro footage from the last session of intermediate/race school...still haven't reinstalled my editing software since the computer took a dump. Sorry the video is just of my ass, but back and forth to race school kept me busy enough I didn't get a chance to use the two cameras. Any tips for launching off the line? At the beginning of the video I practiced a launch since our mock starts were canceled. Never tried it before except the start of the previous session. I had both feet down; think one foot down and the other on the peg would be a bit more stable on take off. I also think I let the clutch grab too much and the revs dropped too far. Anyway, any tips would be appreciated. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DEU53W8o9T4

Trailer finished yet? I'd offer to help you out, but I haven't set mine up to haul 2 bikes yet. On another note, don't let coworkers convince you to go golf when you have the above list of shit to do.... Well maybe if they offer to pay for golf and help you work on your bike after. Bike is ready to go, but nothing else is. Trailer is still folded, generator is in my living room, need to select the tools and supplies to take with me "just in case"....I'll have about 2 hours to get that stuff taken care of tomorrow before heading off to NL....guess I actually mean today.

Got a decent amount of stuff done; could have been a lot more, but bleeding the front brakes from a dry system took too damn long. Change oil Add water/wetter Re-bleed the front brakes after they settle Install chain Exchange exhaust from street bike to track bike temporarily....bumped the can and it sounded like it is rotten out inside or something Install new chain and sprockets(could get by without this if necessary) Install rear wheel Change fluid in rear brake/bleed Install plastics Load everything up and head out Friday after work

Still so much to do.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dNFaAqS2f18 Looks like he does fixate and start standing it up way early, but that spot in that specific turn is weird with lots of wrecks. I linked the video above because the revs and throttle changes are clear in it.

Sorry to hear, glad you are ok!

I'll be there fri-sun, don't know if I'll be racing although the "just do it" peer pressure is really making me consider it. Anyone mind lending a hand on friday for a quick sag measurement session?