Tips For Novice Racing an RC51?

So you have two lines showing? Correct. i thought you rode a TL.

 

Ha Ha Ha!

I was waiting for that "Get a SV" remark. Now all we need is someone to bitch about "novices on liter bikes".

 

Ryan,

man you have heard this all before but here goes anyway. The RC51 is an expensive bike to race. Not in that it eats up tire but in it takes alot of dough to even make the thing even close to being competitive with the Gixxers. When I use the words close as in I mean even after you spend a bunch of money a good rider on a well sorted Gixxer will eat your lunch at most tracks. I hate to say that but it's true. If you are looking to run towards the front of the pack you have a hard row to hoe with the RC. Getting the suspension reworked, the geometry setup to your liking and Wheels are the best bang for the buck improvements. It looks like you have done most of those and you still aren't happy with the bike. I am still working to find the ideal setup at most tracks and have been making some progress but it's a slow go. Next on the list for me is to get the bike measured and find out what GMD Computracks suggestions are as well as working with Max a little more. Still I have no asperations of greatness and getting this bike to the front of the experts group. It's just not gonna happen with out spending major bucks.

As far as riding the bike goes it is just harder to turn the RC than a Gixxer I don't care how well dial in it is. Just the mass of the crankshaft is enough to make the bike harder to steer. One tip is to let the motor spin down a little if you have to make a quick flick from side to side. Also if you plan on making good headway towards the front you are gonna have to be willing to ride the bike hard enough to toss it away.

 

Re: Ha Ha Ha!

I meant SV1000

 

Best advice I've heard, even if you are just looking to finish and not get punched in the arm when you take a line that a white plate wanted... If you are not willing to toss the bike and have it cartwheel down the track, leave it at home and find something else to pound into very small, expensive pieces.

I rode a race late last year and my only goal was to finish without crashing. I road like crud and made quite a few white plate and yellow plate "friends". The races where I was all out, not worried about the bike or my health, I was running near the front and having a BLAST. Oh well, that's just my fraction of a dollar...

 

Novice Racing an RC51?

You know, I haven't seen any of these at Loudon lately. With good reason.
Des Conboy (LRRS #8) and one or two other riders found out that you can realize a 50 lb. weight reduction by simply trading it in for an R-1. (It will be cheaper in the long run and Paige won't have an issue with the front numbers!)
Then again, as a novice you can't run an R-1 in either WERA or LRRS, so it's a moot point. How 'bout a nice Ducati 999?

 

I do, but these bikes are similar in that they're difficult to ride and even more difficult against a moderately fast guy on a GSXR. HWT is the one of the few classes they're competitive in, but all it takes is a fast lunatic on a 250GP bike to steal the show.

 

I like mine!

I'm too stupid to know my 51 is a POS racebike

 

That's a kickass ride ya got there Doug. :up:

 

Take a turn or two preload off the rear, or loosen the rebound a click. This will help keep the rear in contact with the ground under braking. Also your fat ass needs a bigger spring in the back.

 

Thanks, Buck. I love this baby. What region are you in? I need more track time!

 

This should help you out when racing at VIR and Road Atlanta. Stay on the GAS and try using less BRAKE. These are the things I'm trying myself and will be happy to show you next time we are at the track together.

WERA #85
Glover
Slowest HWT Rider
www.medievalracing.com

 

i will have to go with 522 remark about the SV650. i raced an Aprilia 1000 last season and this season until a bad crash at Nashville Super Speedway. I really liked the Aprilia as there was little work to get it up to speed for racing and very few rc51's that could keep up in the novice ranks. i once rode a friends SV650, great bike, i never had the feeling that it was ever going to get away from me and i could post the same lap times up. the mille on the other hand would willingly shred the back tire on turn exits if you were not smooth with the throttle. needless to say, i had a great time on my 1000 cc twin until i got bit at NSS an almost lost my arm when the guys behind me ran me over during a race...so this is my thought...go with a small displacment bike and not the porker RC.

 

Re: Re: Tips For Novice Racing an RC51?

I'd like for you to show me a little more gas and less brake, and less SLEEPY TIME!
You got one more time to run out of gas on the white flag or fall asleep on the last lap.
Whiz is quite dissapointed in your performance and it's all I can do to keep him from placing you back on 'Provisional Medieval' status. Anything less than your 'A' game and you'll be sent back to the farm team.

 

I started racing an rc in the absolute worst form you could ever imagine racing one. When these bikes come from the factory, they do as everyone says, handle like huge porkers. Its disgusting but you never realize how bad they handle until you finally get the bike set up right. Its all about the geometry of the bike and perhaps the suspension components. My best advice to you is to get the bike computracked, and get it optimized. When they optimized my 01 they raised the rear something ridiculous like 30+mm (they actually use a link to get it up that far) and the lowered the front something like 15+mm. All I can say is after I had the bike done it was night and day. It literally feels like 600cc motorycle in the turns, has the weight to power ratio of a 750, and the torque to drive you out of corners like a twin is supposed to have. If there is one piece of advice I can give you about this bike, its that if youve never raced before, you better have some serious throttle control, because this bike is not forgiving at all, and it will put you on your ass in a heartbeat. There isnt much room for error at all. Get your forks done, a rear shock, suspension optimized and youll be in good shape, otherwise keep it off of the track.

 

Yep

What dissi said is true almost to the letter. The RC responds well to mods. And yes, it costs a ton of money.
No, you won't eat tires if you're not real fast.
I agree that it will hand you your ass if you aren't careful with throttle control, but ride a 954 or any other liter bike first and you will appreciate the smooooth power of an RC. My 954 weighs 407# and dynoed at 147+ hp. If you want your ass handed to you, wick it up in a hard corner and see!
The RC is like a tractor..... it just keeps pullin'. If you got the bucks, do up the RC and have fun. If not, better get an SV

 

We have a bucket of Mori links holding a door open at my shop to let air in... remove it at once. It flattens out the wheel rate severely. You don't need a link to raise the ride height.

Also, we don't recommend lowering the front . We also have a special kit to elimanate the extensive top out spring in the 02+ bikes. If you don't know what you are doing with this bike you will end up in big trouble, with big bills and big crashes.

I am not a fan of this bike (can you tell) HAHA!!! I am working with HRC Canada this year, and guess what we are going to do for 4th of July (3rd National...). We are going to put our top guy on a 954 and put the RC on display!

Don't think that the bike you are going to ride is anything like Nicky's. It is no secret, the only thing your bike has in common with Nicky's (old bike) is the decal on the gas tank. Other than that, every single nut and bolt on an HRC RC is "kit". And trust me, there is NO ONE in America who has the balls or the budget to pay what HRC asks for one of those fully kitted bikes.


Just curious, how far off of Tray Batey's times are the fastest WERA guys on an SV?

 

if memory serves me well I think Bradley Champion was within 1 to 2 seconds of Batey at NSS.

 

As long as HRC will take a check I can afford their bikes...

 

I would have never thought this true if I didn't see it with my own eyes.
I happened to be working at VIR after the Lightning Nationals last year and observed as Nicky's crew disassembled the bike to take notes & service. I was shocked to find that not a single bolt on that bike was an RC part. Even the radiator was mounted on the front. (sort of like a TL) I asked the guy tearing the bike down- "Is there a single part that remotely resembles an RC part?" He told me. "Possibly the logos, but I think ours are larger than what comes on the RC51" I asked, "How dfo you know what parts to replace & so-forth?" He goes " You don't understand- Not a single part comes from the RC design. We basically take the fairing shape and build a bike that fits in the confines of the fairing......somewhat"