Round 5 |Komatsu MotoAmerica Superbikes at the Ridge | Aug 28 - 30

Combines don't make bales.

 

Those feller bunchers are bad ass when in the hands of a good operator.

 

But the single pass bale system trailer does. Why make two passes when harvesting hippies?

 

I really can't imagine the smell...

 

T11 will be a huge passing area because you can block pass like 3 mofos at once if you're tight then 3/4 track on exit. I expect some wild shit there.

13 sucks. It used to be cool but the cars were wrecking it so they made it even tighter and dropped the elevation starting earlier to spread the braking load out over a larger area. Now it is so tight it's kinda lame. There will be a crash there during the race.

Another area to watch is T3. I call it the bone collector and it is the site of some of the strangest crashes I've ever seen. The unloading of the front combined with transistions side to side seems to unload the front in weird ways. I've seen people crash almost straight up and down becuse of stickers on the tires. No shit.

 

T6 entry has plenty of passing options as well.

 

Looks kinda wonky

 

Almost all of our automotive stamping presses are Komatsu.

They're a very big company that people don't even realize.

 

Looking at the track map the pit in/out looks a little sketchy, especially avoiding the entrance to the pit lane. Hope there's no walls or armco there.

 

It's all walls there. You have some room to maneuver, but you need to make your pit-in decision early and obvious, and stay well to the right as you come down the Ridge. A last minute cut-over will end in tears and/or pain.

 

I could see 13 becoming a bowling alley if folks got really aggressive about braking there. Track days typically forbid passing there.

 

its a slow area anyways so long as you stay right for pit out

 

I haven't been there in a couple years but back then passing was allowed, but I've witnessed MANY a "bowling alley" there both in races and on TD's. Riders get sucked in and with the downward slope and just how tight that corner is - recipe for disaster.

 

Yep. It’s a shit corner. It’s the one thing on the track that I genuinely hate. It’s not even fun. It’s like street riding, boring and dangerous.

Track exit and entrance are more than fine. As noted by others, after apex of 14 just stay to right edge of track.

 

Just saw Ashton yates isn't going to be traveling for this. Who thinks MA messed up by having teams trek across the country from Pitt race > washington > NJ... Also only 1 twins cup and 1 Stock 1000 race...

 

Very true, but i wouldnt drive that far to ride a Honda either.

 

Messed up? This isn’t quite the regular planned season, we are lucky to even be racing. They did the best they could with what they had to work with. Heck the whole situation is still dynamic and I wouldn’t want to be in their shoes. Other option was not going racing. You have to keep in mind that MA is not the premier event at these facilities and aren’t going to get first pick at the best dates.

 

Assume he still has his older model as well? I’m sure if they wanted to go someone could’ve hauled their kit but knowing (assuming he’s on the old bike) he’s limited in the kit he’s on it’s a wise choice IMO.

 

I have often looked at the schedule and thought it would be a good idea to SCHEDULE so that the racers & crew (plus sanctioning and organization support personnel) only make a SINGLE lap of America, during the season. The Ridge should have been paired with Monterey.
It is cheaper and much more cost effective to consider logistics (and costs!) before you make other "related" scheduling decisions. Never any easy answers, but if you are not at least trying, you aren't making it better.
Start in the south, go north and then, east or west, and end up in the south again...