Pre-stages of track ready

sounds cool the shifter mechanism is a plus i suppose but you could turn shifter to upside down, you push down never missing a gear to down shift pull up.im looking foward to a trackday-riding school this spring checkout pit-teck.com and consider a rear shock. unless i missed that in your thread suspension and tires is all the viffer needs to be a good track-day bike to have a good time riding. if you plan on club racing its a watse of time and money get a different bike..all in all i think your bike is ready to go finding an extra 2 hp is insignifiacant tires suspension is everything good luck post some pics when completed please good luck..

 

This has always been a bone of contention with me, and I stated my opinion earlier but am now going to add more.

I’m glad Mile High is getting into track days with his VFR. I love to see VFR’s on the track in ANY group. But I have to say many people get the track day thing backwards. As stated by betarace, chick and relic…Training and practice will take you farther than any mod to your bike ever will.

I’ve seen people dump an enormous amount of money on a bike, its suspension and other mods only to be passed by riders on what many consider “old, outdated technology”. When I was passed by betarace at Thunderbolt (nice clean pass too LOL!) I obviously followed him for sometime and I could see why he was faster. Betarace has LEARNED to brake later, thus allowing him to carry more CORNER SPEED. Where did he learn this? Training! He’s on a stock 92 3rd gen and passing riders on way better equipment. I guarantee you if we walked around and asked the people he passed if they have had any formal training, outside of the MSF’s Basic Rider Course, the high majority would say “No”.

Training is what taught me my suspension was shot. Trying to brake hard then snap the bike over to take a turn, while hanging off, was like “Whoa man! This thing feels unstable”. The people training me showed me how to set up my bike. They explained what the bikes suspension does, then when we set it up, we realized it was shot. So I upgraded what I needed, not what I didn’t. Then went back to practicing what I had been taught. Did the upgrade help? Hell yes, but its not the main reason I’ve gotten faster. Training, then practice what you learned, training, then practice what you learned…repeat a thousand times!

Although I agree with chick on most of what he said, but I highly challenge his comments on a VFR being limited on the track. IMO, the VFR is the perfect track bike, just like an SV650 or the numerous 250 two-strokes out on the track. Yes you’ll eventually have to do some suspension upgrades, but the glory of a bike that doesn’t have sheer horsepower is it requires YOU the rider to LEARN and hone your SKILLS to get faster. The beauty of NESBA is their strict ‘passing rules’. These rules force you to focus on skill, not the sheer brute horsepower your bike puts out. I’ve watched guys & girls on the Aprilia RS250 two-strokes, which stock only put out 68 HP, make blazing fast ‘clean’ passes after a turn on bikes much faster than them (In NESBA Beginner group you can only pass on straights, generally longer ones only). And the two-stroke owners love it! Why, because they know skill is what allows such riding. Why is the SV650 so popular as a track bike in EVERY NESBA group? It’s not because it’s the fastest bike on the planet. And if you need more convincing as fellow VFRW member Two4One and PARedVFRRider. Two4One is in NESBAS Advanced group and he actually tracked his 6th gen in that group…and by the video he posted, he held his own. So when people say a VFR doesn’t work at the track. I think of that video and laugh, because they are wrong. And for final convincing, come watch my good friend Jeff ride his stock Hayabusa around the track. Betarace can tell you about it. I love sitting out a session and the spectators watching always say something like: “Holy #$%@, you see that guy on the Hayabusa?” Even the NESBA Control Riders laugh when we pit in for advice saying “that’s not much of a track bike, but you sure ride it like one” Jeff even agrees, he says “I know it NOT the ideal track bike, but I’m having fun”. And he’s fast enough to be in the upper group of B-group riders on a frickin Hayabusa LOL! Chick , you obviously do track days so you know what I’m talking about.

I’ve ridden a new 600 (on street) and just that experience made me realize what the VFR lacks. The newer 600’s are awesome. There is no other word to describe them. But ‘awesome’ doesn’t translate to skill.

To repeat some of the above...I suggest MileHige back off some of the mods, dump that money into good gear and a day of training, do some track days and go from their...unless of course you make good bank and can afford to do it all LOL!


My 2 cents.

BZ

 

You are one blessed person to have that track so close and at THAT price!

BZ

 

Chick,

The first one I let go because it seemed like a simple rant with no harm intended. This, however, is the second time that you have posted a jack ass-ish condescending rant. Maybe it is in your nature to treat people who you feel inferior this way but it really isn't appreciated here.

As far as knowing more than the "men in the white coats", no. I am not smarter than engineers. This goes without saying though that engineers are by no means perfect nor is any product that ever rolls out of a factory. The Interceptor is a sport touring bike that has been optimized for the SPORT TOURING ride. Needless to say that greater potential lies in it as a sport bike but my no means a replacement for a 6 or litre bike. Those ones are engineered on the track and simply made street legal. IF I HAD WANTED ON OF THOSE I WOULD HAVE PURCHASED ONE. I knew EXACTLY what I was buying when I did.

Honestly, who are you to judge me for the way that I ride? You've never seen me on my bike, let alone my face. If you had, you would soon realize that I get out there and have fun but not to the extent of being wreckless or riding beyond my skill. I am well aware of how that bike currently handles after putting 8000 miles on is in a year. It is that fact that allows me to realize the areas of the bike that with some improvement will make for a better and potentially safer (suspension) riding experience.

Excuse me if I don't have nine grand lying around to go out and by a 600RR along with a wonderful set of race gear. I make due with what I have and get what I can when I can. Maybe if you had ACTUALLY READ my posts vice skimming them just to thrust your own words back out there you would see that I have a Sargent seat and a set of Michelin Pilot Road 2 tires currently installed. (I DARE you to find a better SPORT TOURING tire.) Additionally, you would have read that I will likely buy a set of Michelin Pilot Powers from by service tech. Finally, and yet again, you do not know how I ride. I live in Denver so most of my rides are not long distances. When I do get out, it isn't far to go before I am into rather consistent sets of turns. Long distant cruising isn't my deal. Who says that I HAVE to have the bike that way? You do? Do you not see the dozens of people in these forums who have fun with their bikes the same way that I do?

All in all you really need to take a step back and think before you say things. If you had said that stuff to me in person without ever meeting me I honestly would never want to ride with or talk to you. Don't make judgments about me because I do not fit in with your ideals and opinion of "the way things should be". This favor I will return to you.

 

To the rest of the field out there, thank you for all of your info. I had been planning on working with Go4It racing for a while now, long before any other mods came up. Most of what is on my bike has been there since I bought it. The PCIII mod was on my part. It was not nearly as much to get more power out of the bike that it was an attempt to eliminate the horrible and erratic throttle lag that the '02s experience. The mod does it's job and is considerable smoother.

Before dumping $600 into my front end I'll simply pay the few bucks to have the bike set up to me by Faster.

 

MileHigh, I'm sorry if you found my post offensive. Not my intent. My points were:

1) You really ought to be spending your money on proper gear and seat time, not mods

2) The VFR, while a wonderful and capable bike on the street and the track, is not the "perfect" track bike and will never be no matter how much money you throw at it

3) You really ought to be spending your money on proper gear and seat time, not mods... did I mention that?

I won't belabor these further. Good luck with the bike and ride safe.

P.S. Pilot Roads are great touring-sport tires. Pilot Power 2CTs are better for sport-touring. I get about 5k out of the rears; twice that out of the fronts.

 

I thought the original post was mostly in re: performance mods. Maybe I misread it. I've got nothing against mods, and I've done a few myself. I've also seen plenty of people try to turn their perfectly good ride into something that it was never intended to be, sometimes at great cost, only to find that it didn't really work out very well. As in, never try to teach a pig to fly; it wastes your time and annoys the pig.

What I was hoping to do in responding was get the OP (and a few others) to think about priorities. There are very few of us here that can ride a stock VFR at its limits; I certainly cannot. The thing that will make us all "better and safer" riders most quickly is 1) gear, and 2) seat time, IMHO, and should be at the top of the list.

Here's a link for the gear, BTW: Alpinestars SG-1 Perforated Leather Suit at BikeBandit.com. That's the best price I've seen, ever, on these. NewEnough has them for $499, and they're usually the cheapest around.

 

track mods

I have a view on my 92 that any track mods fit into 3 categories

1. mandatory based on the demands of the track and perceived weaknesses of the bike in consideration of track and general use

2. potential changes that make the bike more user friendly and fit for purpose that are of a personal preference

3. cosmetic changes or more extreme mods to drive the bike into a role beyond it's original design parameters

* all mods should be easily reversible to return the bike back to intended design

so to try to answer your question (and get back on topic)

Category 1 baseline mods
Move to HH brake pads
Install FP shift kit
Appropriate/fresh tires
Rider Training

Cat 2 baseline mods
SS Brake Lines
Fork springs/revalving
Shock Springs
Steering Head Bearings
Removal of center stand
More rider training

Cat 3 mods are very much a personal preference

 

I think you are off a bit. The Pilot Road 2's are sport touring tires. (check the chart) Pilot Power 2CT's are ENTIRELY a street tire. They are dual compound, like the Road 2's, but their center compound is the same hardness as a Pilot Power; their sidewalls are 30% softer. They are just about the best that you can get from Michelin for a fair bit street but mostly Track tire without getting into the race series.

 

Well, yes, I know... but what's that got to do with tires?

Seriously, if you're mostly doing "sport" riding and throwing in some touring, go with the PP2CTs. I've tried the Road 2s and they're great, especially if you do a lot of long-distance touring. The PP2CTs are almost as hard in the middle, though, and much stickier when you're leaned over. For me, the small sacrifice in wearability is well worth the extra confidence/margin of safety that provides.

Also a great tire if you're going to run one set on the street and the track; they're plenty soft for C/B group trackdays.

 

I think everyone needs to just ease up a notch.

Some people like mods, makes us feel like we are still in the game even though there is snow out! The folks advocating track time are right also, because nothing will make get around the track better than more experience. Lets just agree that the VFR is a hoot, mods are fun, track time is awesome, and doing it all safely and getting back in one piece is where its at.

As for me, my VFR is done for mods, this spring, a spry young CBR600RR will be joining the garage and will be getting whomped on at the track. It will be a sad day the first time she goes down, but it will happen, and I can deal with that.

To all of you who have a track within an hour. You stink. I have to drive 3 + hours at LEAST! you lucky people.

Oh yeah, and at my last track day, my VFR got compliments left and right from racers AND instructors. Everyone loves this bike. Kinda made me feel like riverdancin'.

 

You are right about that. The 2CT's make for a great track and road tire; probably one of the best on the market, even when compared to Diablo Corsas and such. For me the R 2s were a great buy because of how supremly well they ride around town and through the mountains. I have gotten the bike over nearly the side wall (chicken strips= ~3mm on right, ~6mm on left) and have never felt that the tire wouldn't hold the turn or line. (Only that the front suspension wouldn't. As you said, it wasn't designed for that.) I wanted to get as close to 10k as possible out of my current set being that most of my riding is around town. When I make my run to the track, I will pick up some PPs most likely for it and have them swapped out at the track. Cant really justify spending the money on a second set of wheels.

Thanks for the link to the suit BTW! I've never seen and Alpinestars for so low; only ever used Rocket or Cortech suits for that price. (Bet you could pick one of those up for the same price as a set of wheels.)

Right now I'm just excited to get the bike back. I'm really curious how it will run after the valve job. The bike had been making a clicking sound while at idle that went away after about 20mph/3000rpm. Supposedly the cam chain tensioners. Hopefully that will be quelled.

BTW, TO ALL, my guy at Faster has a set of Pilot Powers off of a stock '07 R1 with less than 50 miles on them. The are a 120/70-17 and a 190/55-17; would be a great fit for your other rides. He has no need for them and will let them go to me for $175/set. If you've looked around, you can barely get a rear PP for that. I would be willing to pick them up and ship them to whoever would like them. Just PM me.

 

Lol. Sorry to hear about that. You know, Colorado is a really great place to live. I've done the whole east coast thing. You should come check it out sometime.

 

look people slow down on the track day vs equiptment stuff they are both very important but; we are all wrong just get a 1970's cb 400 and hang on the lap times will go down 1 second each lap good luck......

 

I have been exploring the option of picking up a bank repo or theft recovery bike from an auction. Some of the bikes on there are pretty mangled but others are in excellent condition.

I have heard stories about a couple of people who'll buy Ducks and make more money parting out every piece of them than rebuilding and selling the bikes. I suppose that if you had the extra time and a good bit of cash you could make it pretty well.

 

Does anyone out there ride track (or street) with two piece suit? I have a Joe Rocket Supermoto jacket that will zip into a pair of Joe Rocket pants. I tried a pair of them on at my local shop and they felt pretty good. That and they were very secure. I figure that may be the best option to go with since it's only about $250 to get the pants vice $400 for a suit. Going that route will allow for more money to get some MX or SP Alpinestars boots and another set of Astars gloves. Debating on a second helmet. (have a Shark RSR2 that has a few small scratches; I'd buy another and use it for track.) Any comments?

 

check with your track day organizer, a lot of folks run w/ two piece suits, and speaking for NESBA (largest track day org), the two piece is OK providing that both pieces are leather, and the zip is a 270 degree zipper (all but the front 5-6" over your dingus). The little 6" zippers in the back aren't allowed. I would imagine most TD rules are similar, but would double check

 

to get a feel for the track bike market check out the following:
Motorcycles - NESBA TrackTalk Forum
Bikes for Sale - 13x Forums