Moto-Brian

I'd say JD pulling a 20+ second lead is boring to watch. Watching 4 superbike racers battle is also boring to watch. Hence, the reason people don't come if you ask. It used to be there were 15+ factory based team riders. Now, there are literally less than half that. 15 superbike grids is lame. 600 racing was cool to watch the kids battle and the 4 front guys in Herrin's class, but again, there used to be almost 20 factory supported riders... If you enjoyed it, cool. But, the spectator count was WELL below what it has ever been at the lowest in years. Racing like seen in WSBK is what people want. More factory participation is needed. No Honda, no Kaw, 1 Zook, no factory riders outside Yamaha and you have a poor recipe for success. We have watched and listened on a marketing standpoint and the spectators are less than impressed... I will say a few notes: Tommy Hayden had a well deserved victory. It was good to see him win again. JD is well... Amazing. Herrin's ride off after a HUGE, I mean H-U-G-E crash and the bike flipped 3-4 times into the gravel trap off the back straight. He then picks it up and gets it running and rides two laps. Fucking balls, man. That kid is amazing and proof that action can lead to success. People will remember that moment and he's going to get signed no matter where he goes...

Another "great" SB weekend? If you meant in terms of the after races events, possibly. But, the during the weekend events, the event was a bust. LOW, LOW turnout and POOR vendor participation... It was one if not THE worse SB weekends I have ever witnessed... The AMA needs to rethink what they are doing to get more people out and to attract more vendors/supporters...

Appreciate it. I think I could have gotten around 12th in Superbike. I did 29s last year and raced on 31s. I think with race fuel and race slicks, I could have landed inside the top 15. Of course, there were only 15 riders... In any case, I am too old and just wanna have fun. Leave that stuff to the young pups...

huh? wasn't about you, mang! Was gonna say something about tire scrubbing...

.....

Serpent hit the nail on the head - you were describing more of an automotive designed clutch. The idea behind clutchless upshifts is time savings. You actually can drop .10 of a second each shift. Count the number of shifts you do a lap at a track day and add .10 to each one. That's a lot of savings... Point is simple. No wear unless doing it poorly. Bent and wear are results of force. The guys doing downshifts are going to argue they aren't doing any damage or wear, but I bet a good bit of money they haven't looked at their tranny since they've owned them. It's like saying that a certain oil has never let them down and when the motor is torn down, it is so worn that it isn't funny. Shit still runs so, it's gotta be good, right?

Just to add, we won the MTT SS class at the RRGC. I also want to congratulate some guys for a good run. Justin Stickboy, David Grey, Wroebel, Thomas, Brian Van, Nemo, Gene, and some others. I think outside Nemo kicking everyone's teeth in, the best novice performance is from Nate Wollerson on a STOCK CBR 600 with STOCK suspension and burnt out tires. I think he was actually the best results guy locally. Cool to see and in only his second race!

Got wood... Uploaded with ImageShack.us Has a 520 kit and rearsets. Outside that, we had to hand make a belly pan (look closely just before the rear wheel... and safety wire it Friday night. Thing still has the horn and lights!!

You just contradicted yourself and stated exactly why clutchless up shifts are fine - if done correctly - vs. down shifts. These guys doing down shifts w/o the clutch are doing harm...

You are doing clutchless down shifts?????!!!!! Clutchless up shifts aren't going to wear anything prematurely if done right. If you keep hammering the lever and it isn't going in, as serp stated, it can bend a shift fork... Clutchless down shifts are something nobody does that I know of. I have heard of people doing it, but it is something that WOULD cause wear due to how much strain there is on the down shift side of things... Motor is revving higher when going down a gear and with constant mesh, it is almost destroying the tranny each time IF you can actually get that done... Up shifting is easy due to the fact that the motor is not revving higher. It drops even slightly for the guys with quick shifters. Essentially, that's exactly what a quick shifter does - cuts the motor out ever so quickly to get that next gear... To the OP, if wanting to "blip the throttle" before an upshift, it is not needed and actually a waste of time. As Serp stated also, only unless you are racing, should the revs be to redline and so high. But, to be quick, blips are not needed. Quick off the throttle, shift on the gas is fine enough... No extra rev needed. On downshifts, for sure, a blip is best. Tries to match the RPMs to allow a smooth downshift. Again, the revs are higher going down a gear and that blip allows for it to be closer and smoother...

Nope... Mine's 190 plus to the ground... I have Reuben and he's been courted by KWS anyways before. Trust me, he's at worse, equal...

Nope, Brian and I talked. Trust me, he didn't bitch slap me at all...

Just a quick note about another coach. Ryan Kerr also does some coaching up there. Ryan is a great kid. Is really showing improvement. In just one year (actually a lot less) he has shown he can listen, change and adapt to riding these bikes. His dad and I once had a bit of a conflict and "meeting of the minds". In looking back and after really talking to his dad, he is passionate and VERY supportive of his son. From what I can tell, he is giving up a lot to give Ryan the support he needs to succeed. His dad and I talk at length now and I actually feel he is a great guy. I think Ryan is a young new rider with potential and it has been an honor to have hopefully helped a bit with him along the way. If you want to see how to go around that track fast and on the proper line, he's one to follow. Personality is VERY positive and very upbeat and is a good egg. Forgot to mention him last night. Wanted to make sure I got him in there... Enough of this pussy talk. I'm out getting ready to see if I am allowed to race this weekend. I hate you all.

Oh, and to echo Rusty - I don't know much... Do what you feel is right and fair to you. If you wish for ANY help from me, just shoot me a PM. I can try and help with pretty much anything and if I cannot, I know someone who can.

See comments. Aparently, I was wrong in thinking it was just sag and adjustment... It is full service - remove forks, replace oil and seals and reinstall. Also includes returning for future adjustments, as well... All for $75. But, I will still suggest the three I mentioned for the same reasons I stated... Check the full story here: http://www.ohio-riders.com/showthread.php?p=524688#post524688

Ok, not really a full on apology, but just a statement from my end. I got approached by Brian Evans today at Mid-Ohio concerning the comments I had in the suspension thread. So, I am going to apologize and comment on some things and get this out and done with... Well, the comments turned into a bit of a tussle and we got into the staff at Mid-Ohio. So, before people start saying shit that isn't true and start slinging comments that are ill informed and not correct, here are some comments. First, Brian Evans... I guess I was wrong in what I understood from Rusty. Apparently, the guy has suspension background that is extensive and he has worked with a guy that is an ex-World Superbike mechanic. Don't know the guy, but anyways, that was mentioned. I was also told that Brian has a bunch of Ohlins tools and is charging $75 NOT to just set sag and adjust suspension. The low down is that Brian is giving anyone that comes to him and pays $75, a complete rebuild and replace fluids, seals and will remove the forks and replace back on to the bike. He also charges a one time fee and you can go back and have him adjust whenever you need it. The idea I had was that he was doing what trackside guys do and charge $50 for. Apparently, it is full service... Now, here's where I stand. I guess I need to apologize as people got feelings hurt. That's cool. I will STILL suggest people to go to Reuben Frankenfield, Mike at Thermosman and Matt Carr. I'm not going to suggest Brian because I don't know what he is about and what his background is. But, if you are in Cols., he's your guy. He has 20 happy customers and seemingly the tools and help if need be from a WSBK guy and that seems to be a good deal. My suggestions for other guys isn't a slap to anyone's face. I'm not saying one is better, I'm not saying one sucks, I am simply suggesting people I know that do a great job and have the background I am sure about. It's like asking where is the best place to eat... Brian stated that he has raced for over 10 years. I have never seen him at any races we have run in the last 16, but there have been a lot of faces. We also moved up through the ranks and many people get glossed over... So, saying he is a one year novice is apparently wrong and even though I have no real idea, I will take his word for it... All I am going to say at this point is that Brian mentioned I was saying negative things towards the Mid-Ohio staff. I never did and never mentioned names. BUT, I will mention that Scotty Evans, Brett Woodard, Brett Bennett, Alan Pett, Steve Duteil, Eric (Monger), Brandon and a few others do a great job. Don't EVER say things that are total BS. Of that group, three I have known for a long time and they know I think highly of them. I'm not a personal fan of Alan's, but he is always following, leading, and talking with customers... I respect that he tries and thus, have to place in in with the good eggs. I will defend the comment that Brian made and want to put out there that I did say some things about a few coaches and stand behind those comments. So, just to prevent a battle where because I am associated with STT, it has nothing to do with it. I am passionate about this stuff and even though some coaches say they are also, it seems somewhat baffling to see them leaving customers w/o help or providing improper help that is more harm than good. Only a few and not the majority... In the end, choose whom you wish to work on your stuff. You feel good about a guy? Run with it. I'm out. Gotta get back to Mid-Ohio for VMD and RRGC...

Who cares? They all look the same and to speak frankly, BMW has had some serious success with doing the exact same thing you describe. To be perfectly fair, the ZX10 has much more in common with it's little brother the ZX6R than what you describe above. One could argue that each brand has been copied from each of the big 4... Copy is a sign of flatery and the factories see each others' bikes well before we do. In fact, the factories buy and test the competition when building their next generation of bikes. They surely had an R1, R6, GSXR family and CBR family of machines when testing and building this bike. And I am sure that as I stated earlier, that BMW while really hot right now, will fade in the distance after the new Japanese machines are unveiled... We just have to wait until 2012 for the new GSXR1000...

Yes, but the cruiser guys don't buy bikes that are designed for race first and street use second. Sportbikes like the ZX10 are built with a single purpose. Not to create a marketing scheme that has guys spending tons of money on radial engine technology from the 40s...

Hey man, either Dub can do it or I can do it, too as I go through Indy once in a great while now... Also, an option is to borrow the fork case I have and UPS them to him and he will send them back. Maybe $30 round trip... The only thing you really need to do is wrap well in bubble wrap, stick in a FedEx triangular shipping tube and blast off to Reuben. Check the sponsor page on here for his info, but his number is 317-850-3884. As for the other info shared here - Doug has done some good things at MPH. If you insist on Ohio, he's probably the best bet at this time. Dept of Suspension? Same thing here - Jason has some issues. He DOES know suspension and has worked with some really good guys with successful results. Rusty gets pissed because Jason would charge $50 to set sag and click the knobs at the track. However, he did understand things and even developed stuff like triples for Duc 999s... Things that were needed and were never done before... Again, take it to someone that knows about suspension. The guy Rusty wants you to take it to is going to do basic stuff to. He isn't going to tear it down, change the fluids and then set it up for that money. Hell, Reuben will replace the fluid, set the forks up and everything for not much more than that... We can help you set sag, understand the clickers and what they do and where to start. If you do track days, we can actually help you by having you stop by and we can assist at the track and dial it in... Racers are here to help and not gouge you for stupid money...for basic things...

Rusty, I love ya, but Brian isn't a guy that can justify charging these guys $75 to essentially check suspension. I've said it before, I'll say it again - if ANYONE on this board wants to set sag, set the suspension for whatever application they are using it for, I will do it FOR FREE! $75 is what guys with YEARS of experience and who have gone to schools, have been at the races getting the newest technology, getting the most recent updates, etc. charge to do the same thing. If you're gonna pay, get someone qualified to do so. If you are going to someone like Brian to do it, I can guarantee I know more and will do it for free. If Brian was charging say, $25 or actually, in my mind since he is not qualified, $0 to help people out, I wouldn't be upset. Here's the way to look at it. Take three people: -Mike at Thermosman -Reuben at 35 Motorsports -Matt at Indy Ducati Compare to Brian Evans... The top listed three people have been doing this for a long time. They've been racers, been around high level racers and have been hands on via seminars, schools, tech briefings, etc about and concerning suspension. They didn't read a book, they didn't race for a year and all of a sudden know everything, they have garnished YEARS of knowledge that can be used to sort your issues out. Suspension is something that cannot be understood solely from a book. The comment where you stated that I believe that if you don't race long enough, you don't know bikes is true. Brian came to me last year and asked if I would help him one on one with getting faster as a racer. Now, he all of a sudden in one years time, has moved up to a suspension specialist and will tell you how much racing and how good he is. Look at his Facebook picture for God's sake... Now, sit around WORLD champs, regional champs and everyone in between. The ones that spend more time telling you about their accomplishments are the ones that probably have less accomplished... You are a friend of Brian's and I respect that. You both have Ducs and I am sure that in passing and talking, you feel confident in allowing him full access to your machine... However, my feelings are that if someone is going to have something done as serious and as intricate as suspension done and ARE CHARGING WHAT TOP TECHS CHARGE to go through and simply set suspension, he better be qualified. I cannot allow a person to go to someone and spend that kind of money when they can go to one of the three I mentioned above and get BETTER service and get better, more in depth knowledge.

Looks sexy, but let's wait and see if it acts like a Heavy Duty Jack Hammer when turning before we get excited... I think Kaw is going to do a better job, but unless they swallow pride a bit and create a solid and dependable (and tuneable) chassis, looks get you nothing...

Don't take it to Brian. Take it to a guy with training and that understands internals and how they work. A guy with a year of novice racing isn't an expert. Call Reuben at 35 Motorsports. Tell him I sent ya. He also gives 20% discount to OR members.

Cool. Just wanted to make sure you got in. Come by the rig and say "hi" - I'll be in an orange shirt with a flat bill hat...

You guys really need to give Mid-O a heads up as I think there is a transfer fee involved...

The V costs more so, it isn't for that tire. Monte can comment on the B compound... It's a matter of preference as a lot of guys prefer the A compound...