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galxy5

galxy5
Joined
Jul 1, 2005
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Location
Roanoke, VA 24015
I am going in May and just wondered if anyone would be interested in this as a group event ?? I just want to improve my skills on galxy5 and have some fun on the track !!

 
here's what I do ,, go to VIR on google search ,, go to the event calendar ,, click on March 24th and the cornerspeed page will come up !!

Roadliner Midnight ,, I have not taken delivery yet ,, it is supposed to be here on April 20th ,,

the one I tested was great ,, amazingly light and more power than you might expect ,, so much low end torque I felt like I could rotate the planet !! the handeling is sweet !!!

 
Would love to go but you have to safety wire the bike, drain rad. fluid and replace with H2O tape mirrors/headlights etc-----no way I'll have time for that at this time :cry:

 
The previous owner of my bike had the oil plug rigged with some wire... but in my hurry to change the oil last time, I managed to chip off the piece that had the wire hole in it. No damage to the actual bolt but chipped the plug. Also, the filler cap was rigged w/ a wire & hole... & I've since swapped that cap out & taken any wire off.

It's not that I don't have any interest in going....because I would. My reasoning is more monetary... & I'd have to rent leathers, blah, blah, blah. As much fun as it probably would be, I'm going to have to decline this time around.

I'm definitely up for joining everyone & riding up in the mountains, though.

My friend Jeff (ridgerunner) suggested going back to the same area & riding some different roads, too. I surely wouldn't mind doing that. There's a lot of good roads in that area. I told him to post the suggestion up for everyone to look at.

Have a good time David. I know that you will. So, where is VIR, anyway? Is that in Martinsville? I could see a road trip.......

Heidi

 
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Yo David. I'd be interested but can't go in May. Vacation- I've got a bike trip planned-don't know when you're doing the west coast& back but if you want to go north & check out mts in upstate NY,Conn,Mass,you're welcome to go-just me & maybe 1 other bike. Anyhoo June would work for a track day. Shields

 
yes you have to saftey wire your bike to go on a track, yes you have to remove the toxic fliuds in the rad ,, but it's a track ,, where you can ,, with the aid of proffesional riders improve your skills ,, improve them faster than you can on the street ,, or county roads ,, :cigar:

 
I'm definitely up for joining everyone & riding up in the mountains, though.
My friend Jeff (ridgerunner) suggested going back to the same area & riding some different roads, too. I surely wouldn't mind doing that. There's a lot of good roads in that area. I told him to post the suggestion up for everyone to look at.

Heidi
I'm up for a ride in the mountains too. I missed the last group ride here so am eager to get out soon. I'm pretty open to dates too. Let's do it! B)

Galxy5 - need to get back with you on the VIR. Want to see your Roadliner when you get it though. We'll need to hook up. I'll bring my Silverado...

Cope

 
Not to steal the thread, but I will change direction slightly, I'm interested in going to the Lee Parks Total Control (?) course given in MD. Buddy of mine (USMCret) took it last year and was impressed. Guy who runs it gives a discount to folks from, if I recall correctly, the OTHER site!

 
Jimlor - does the total control school also require the draining of fluids, blah, blah, blah? Not that I don't want to mess with all that, but well, I don't want to mess with all that - unless someone could give me some guidance on that piece.

 
I'll check on what's required for the Total Control class. I don't think it was near what's required for a track day.

 
I'll try and get some dates tomorrow. Here's what USMCret said about the course last July:

First, regarding the discount, I think that is something Tracy Martin does for his specific students in Frederick, MD. It is my understanding that while each location follows the same curriculum each site is independently operated. My guess is that Tracy offered the discount because he owns an FJR and to generate interest in the area. I do know that the discount was between Tracy and me - the Community College that hosts the course was not involved.

About the class. The class was held from 8:00 to 5:00 on a Saturday. We arrived, signed the mandatory releases, adjusted tire pressure and got to work. Although it was only their second class at the site, all the logistics were very well organized and efficient. The students' experience ranged from 5 years to 25+ years.

The class itself is based on Lee Park's book "Total Control - High Performance Street Riding Techniques". Reviewing the book before the class was beneficial, I thought, but certainly not essential. Since the book is pretty comprehensive not everything could ever be covered in one day.

We began in the classroom with an overview of the days objectives. Classroom instruction covered dicsussion of traction, steering, suspension and setup, fear, concentration, attitude, vision, line selection and throttle control as they relate to maintaining control and cornering. The time spent inside was enough to cover what needed to be covered but not so much that it took away from time on the bikes - in my opinion.

The drills were conducted on a closed course ( ie. parking lot). The condition of the course was great. Good pavement and free of any debris - Tracy and his guys had swept the area before we arrived. This was good as it allowed us to focus on what we were dong rather than look for potential hazards.

The first drill we did was on throttle control. Basically it was practice rolling on and off the throttle very slowly in an effort to keep the suspension stable. After a while we went to throttle/brake transitions - Simultaneously rolling off the throttle while shlwly applying the brakes.

The next drills were conducted using a 40' circle marked with small cones with one larger cone in the middle. It was a progressive exercise which began by simply going around the circle in both directions and slowly adding the use of a turning point, focus on making a sharp turn and using the 10 steps of cornering (from the book) and adding additional speed. All the exercises led to the final drill which was a figure 8 anround two 40' circles in which we practiced transitioning from one turn to the next.

At the end of the formal instruction we were given the opportunity to practice more, work on slow speed turning or have our suspension measured ( we had already done three bikes earlier).

During the drills we were broked down into two groups. After each drill an instructor would offer advice or provide feedback and we would get back into line to go again. The waits were long enough for you to digest what the instructor said and think about what you needed to do, but not long enough to be frustrating at all.

I know this is long but I hope it answered some of your questions. If you have any further questions please feel free to send me a PM.

VStar, I didn't ignore your email. Instead I though that answering here may serve to answer your questions and potential questions of others.

 
Jim, I like your latest avatar! You and your bud, right? A good bud it is. Hi Lorie!

Heidi

PS... sorry for the tread hijack.

 
Yup, that's me and my buddy. Same buddy who has had me cleaning out the computer room for the last 3 hours. I've never shredded so much crap in all my life! Oops, I hear her coming to get me...

 
Lorie and I just got back from our Sat night date. The closest course to us is in Frederick MD. There are 2 classes I can see, 8 Apr and 6 May. You have to register through the community college up there. If you want more info on what the class offers, go to: www.leeparksdesign.com and click on the Total Control slogan and it'll give more information. I'm pretty sure there are other classes later in the summer. I'll email them and find all dates. Would be pretty cool if we could have a class load of FJRs, one of the instructors rides/teaches on an FJR.

 
I am in the middle of my second reading of Lee's book "Total Control" and I am most assuredly interested in attending the class. Mult. dates are offered, 8 hr class $295 sounds like a good deal to me.

Toophast

Edit/add on: I am also VERY interested in a VIR track day and will do the safety wire etc thing to my bike for it .... just a question of when I'll get a chance.

Instructions for safety wiring a bike for a track day are covered in Lee's book, for those of us (myself included) who don't have a clue on how to do it.

Toophast

 
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