How much cheaper is racing a small bike really?

damn really? i’ve got 3.5hrs on mine and they look toast. i’ll ride them for another practice day but probably not race on them again. and i’m like back of the pack novice slow. how are you getting 10-12hrs out of a set?

 

Well here's a plot twist. Apparently the ZX-25R is going to be sold in North America as 20 are planned to be sold in Mexico. Confirmed on the Kawasaki Mexico FB page, and here's a google translate link to a short article saying the same, if the link works. I've made no progress here locally on exploring the export process, been too busy with work lately. But if they are going to be sold in Mexico, is that reason to believe they'll be sold in US? Why would Kawasaki even bother with selling just 20 in Mexico? To test the waters for interest on the North American side of the pond? I know a guy that is fairly plugged into Kawasaki in the US Southwest and does some racing in Mexico, and he is convinced this means that they will be sold in the US.

https://translate.google.com/transl...-la-ninjazx-25r-a-mexico/&prev=search&pto=aue

 

Just go buy one in Mexico and ride it across the border without telling anyone. Bam, all good.

 

What tire and compound? also what track?

 

oem tires. utah motorsports kart track, no dirt

 

Yeah the Bridgestones don't last very long especially the soft. Michelin just came out with upgraded Supermoto tires I'm wanting to try Otherwise go with metzeler.

I'm working at my supermoto events also, but I'd say i get 2 hours of ride time per event and my tires will last 2-3 events at about 1.5 seconds off the lap record with metzelers.
The compound is really important with the supermoto Metzeler also, k1 front, k1 rear if the track is hot k2 rear if the track is cold

 

Well my new working theory, take it for what it’s worth, is that the ZX-25R is going to be sold in the US. Already announced in limited numbers in Mexico, and now I see that Kawasaki USA has 3 new “track”model announcements planned for release on 23 November, of which the internet rags like RideApart can only guess what maybe two of those are (new ZX-10 and ZX-10RR is what they guess.) We love internet rumors and speculation here don’t we?

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.ri.../new-2021-kawasaki-models-launc-november/amp/

 

I don’t understand the 25r. It still looks like a econo bike with the low seat, low pegs and high bars. Why can’t they just make it a small displacement super sport bike?

 

First, let me say, I’m not the defender of this bike, I’m just a guy that’s really interested in them and I happen to be in a part of the world where I can see them for myself. And I sat on one and took a bunch of pics, and it is a proper sport bike. Out of the box everything you mentioned can be fixed with aftermarket rearsets. I sat on one, and it is a premium bike, it’s apparent this isn’t like the other ULW bikes. The frame is substantial and built for sport use, as are the components. Comes with proper clip-ons as well.

 

Seat height and tank shape are huge turn offs for me. I love the tall boxy tank cover and higher seat on the RC390. Feels like a proper sport bike. I can really dig my outer thigh into it. The 25r looks like ninja 300 tank. I haven’t even seen a 25r in person let alone sat one and felt it out. On the surface it looks frustrating. Like they came so close but pulled back when it came to ergos.

 

Yeah I see your point on the tank shape, it is pretty different from the RC390 in that regard. Isn’t there a product now that is basically big tank grips/extensions made for that purpose that might address that issue? I’m seeing them shared on the CVMA page, seem to be a small startup making them especially for LWT bikes whose tanks are also not aggressively shaped. I’ve had both experiences in the past with seat heights on track bikes, one side of the spectrum being more “on the bike” and the other “in the bike” as people like to say. I never personally preferred either, I just got used to them over time.

 

I had about 1” of stick on foam padding on the back of my ninja 300 tank. I bought Money Gripp tank extenders/grips for it. Hopefully they’ll be the magic ticket for me.

 

cheap lw bikes.. Thee are $10,000 engines on the twins cup grid!

 

Weren’t you looking for a 390 a bit ago? I have a friend looking to sell if you’re still in the market.

 

Interesting. And the H2/H2R is already listed on Kawi’s website for the 2021 MY.

My gut feeling is it’s some bonkers ZX10 variant to keep Rea happy and fend off the V4R and M1000.

If it’s the 25R, I’m going to have to buy one. The carbon track variant that Kwai was peddling a few months ago is a dream bike of mine.

 

I’m with you man. My only real problem with this bike thus far has been that I don’t want to be the only guy trying to race an import special and all the practical hassle that brings. If sold in the US, I’m sold. I want to race ULW anyway, and I’ve always been enamored by 2Ts and high-RPM screamers.

 

Part of me thinks I should just get a 125 and call it a day.

 

I was. I found one in Texas. After some research I learned about a lot of odd failures people are having. KTM is being kinda weird about weak cylinder head too. I backed out and kept my N3. The 390’s just seems to suffer from some manufacturing QC issues.

 

Yea, they’ve had their fair share of issues for sure. It’s a shame because I love the bike.

 

I always fantasize over 2Ts too. But I have never pulled the trigger for some of the reasons I think I mentioned earlier in this thread, boiling down to I want to spend less time futzing with my bikes during and between race weekends. 2Ts and getting the jetting right and top-end replacements and pre-mix, etc, all that gives me pause on 2Ts.

An ULW bike that requires 10-20% less tire removals/flips/swaps over the 1000s I’ve raced in the past goes a long way towards that goal.