Race Starts

[ALANRIDER7]

Now, sadly, we all know just how dangerous they can be. The question is what can be done about it.

I think it would be of great benefit for everyone if more racers went to the dragstrip to practice their launches and refine their technique. I found it helps quite a bit. You actually get to hear your bike and what it's doing. And you don't have to worry if you stall or bog down.

 

[EastBayDave]

It's the most dangerous part of a roadrace start. Everyone going at once! I don't know what you could do other than what you said, & I've said the same many times = take a trip couple times a year to the drags (preferably early in the year before roadrace season starts.)

Make some runs at the drags NOT CARING how you do, & this is just to polish your launches. Look at the 60-foot time, this is the most critical time for a start, 0 to 60'. Hot drag guys get this down to 1.5sec. or less. The average human likely does 2.0-2.5 or so. I did this approximate time too...

This is UNTIL TRYING IT. Don't be afraid of the amateur drags, you can go as fast or slow as you want. No one cares but you getting that time slip at the end. THEN you can practice your times/launches & get it right. You can also figure out if the bike needs something I.E. adjusting your clutch, or the clutch lever, or body position, your arm, etc. This is all about getting consistent launches, every single time...

Listen to the man above folks; this can really improve things for you. :thumbup

 

[Ozymandias]

That's exactly what I'm going to be doing. I get pretty shitty starts as it is and I have NO idea where they came from. I was fine for a long time and out of the blue... last year I just couldn't get off the line. :mad

 

[ALANRIDER7]

Plus it's a cool way to get some trophies. :laughing:laughing:laughing

 

[vooodooo]

The very few starts I have done I had difficulty because I could not hear my motor(as said above). Definitely a skill I need to practice at the drag strip

 

[thedub]

Now, sadly, we all know just how dangerous they can be. The question is what can be done about it.

Only just now we know? Isn't a race start accident ultimately what ended Scott Russell's career nearly 15 years ago?

 

[Wicked4Racin]

Yanagowa (sp not correct) was in a similar incident when WSBK and AMA use to group together. Mid 90s. I remember all 3 separate red flags before the race was shortened. Turn 1 is a bit buster and ball clintcher. I know the events were not in turn 1 but turn 1 forces alot of early issues on an entire group on a race start at Laguna

 

[Wicked4Racin]

Yanagowa (sp not correct) was in a similar incident when WSBK and AMA use to group together. Mid 90s. I remember all 3 separate red flags before the race was shortened. Turn 1 is a bit buster and ball clintcher. I know the events were not in turn 1 but turn 1 forces alot of early issues on an entire group on a race start at Laguna

 

[Dan Halen]

From what I understand Daniel was helping develop the BMW for his new team, and the bike had some problems in the first race, and ultimately it was more of a mechanical problem that triggered the crash, no?

 

[stangmx13]

i was there and ive got video. i wont be posting it.

one rider on the 3rd or 4th row def got away slowly, forcing those behind him to pinch to the left. there was contact between two riders that were side-by-side and that started a bowling-ball effect. i didnt see if the slow rider got hit from behind.

 

[ALANRIDER7]

Only just now we know? Isn't a race start accident ultimately what ended Scott Russell's career nearly 15 years ago?

:rolleyes Anybody with a brain has always known how dangerous starts can be. This is a tragic reminder. I posted this to share what my experience is. I started out racing MX, where I would line up on a grid with 45 guys headed into turn one wide enough for maybe 8 to 10 riders. The launch is critical but in a different way. If you stall when the gate drops, you don't get asspacked to hell.

Going to the dragstrip offers a multitude of benefits and plenty of chances to sharpen your reflexes and your A game. I've had more than my share of dodging stalled bikes on the starting grid- it's plenty fucking scary. Your best reactions still can't keep you from getting creamed by someone else who doesn't react so well. The best crash is one that never happens because you have your shit together. Getting your launch program dialed in is so much easier when that's all you have to focus on. It's just you, the bike, the asphalt and the tree. The other lane doesn't matter. You get a printout of what your incremental times are including reaction times. Not bogging or stalling every single time is easier said than done. Being able to try different launch rpms back to back is worth it.

As important as they are, I found it troubling that the AFM doesn't offer any practical ways for racers to practice their starts so the risks are lower for everybody. That's why Wednesday nights at Sears Point are so bitchin. Repetition is the mother of skill. Being 100% confident on the line can save your ass.

And other asses as well.

 

[TWF]

I found it troubling that the AFM doesn't offer any practical ways for racers to practice their starts

You can practice all day alone, in hot pit.

 

[ALANRIDER7]

You can practice all day alone, in hot pit.

It's a little disorganized.

 

[thedub]

It's a little disorganized.

You go into the hot pit and you practice your launch. What other organization do you require?

 

[Med23]

Yup, practicing in the hot pits is always an option. Along the lines of safety at the start, why doesn't AFM employ a three bike row like MotoGP and WSBK do? It may not prevent stalls or anything freakish, but could lower the amount of contact and risk as everyone files in and jockeys for position leading into turn 1.

 

[stangmx13]

in my first AFM race 4x4 was def an interesting change compared to 3x2 that WERA uses. but given the grid sizes for the races i was in, i can see why AFM does it. the AFM has a ton more people in too many classes compared to WERA. 3x3 was nice an comfortable in MA, but obviously pro grids are smaller.

 

[RaffRacing]

AFM used to be 5-4-5-4 non staggered. We had our own incident that prompted the 4-4 staggered line up and it added a ton more room. Not going to debate on if it could be safer or not... Just providing some perspective. The AFM has made changes for safety and I'm sure the board will listen to anyone that has a good proposal for further improvements.

 

[Catfish]

Alan, that's a great tip for concentrated practice for launches.:thumbup

It's true that starts can be practiced in the hot pits, but the isolated lane of the dragstrip removes any possible distractions that can arise from riders in the hot pits that are doing other things (e.g. scrubbing in tires, bedding in brake pads, etc.). It also negates the aspect that half of the hot pit area has riders coming at you from the opposite direction, as well as reduces the chances that someone who is coming from behind you that isn't paying attention to what your doing doesn't tangle up with you. Imagine a muffed practice launch that has you land a wheelie in a fashion that sends you offline toward that lane of oncoming hot pit traffic or veers you into a upcoming rider's line.

Anyone else take notice of Matteo Baiocco's launch in the first WSBK race this past weekend. He caught it (and luckily only had one rider coming through from directly behind) but is one example of how things can quickly go astray. He certainly had an awareness of what danger he had placed himself in.

Of course these kinds of practice starts won't actually prepare you for something coming into view at the last possible moment. Your being competent in maneuvering around last second obstacles is tough thing to practice. It's more of a consciousness thing and a willing of the mind to be as ready as possible for such a scenario. Be on your triple A game so to speak. In this weekend's incident, Rivas had gotten away at a fair pace (as can be seen in video of his row 3 launch) but I'm assuming (as video moved away from him) he lost power in the unfortunately uphill location there before turn 1 thus slowing him and making the speed differentials w/ riders from behind even greater. Some think the evil here is the turn one kink, but maybe the issue is more the hill immediately after the grid and possibly the limited runoff there right before the bridge.