Is american superbike really this sad?

Coverage is getting better all the time.
www.motoamericaliveplus.com is really good.

 

electronics are a huge difference. I cant think of any other part of a motorcycle that has such a large impact on the racing, the teams, the riders, and nearly everything else. tons of effort and man-hours both on and off the track goes into electronics, even when just talking about flashes. someone had to write all that software after all. im still waiting for MA to move to spec ECU, but im not holding my breath.

I don't think the MA premier entrants are taking any $$ from the results purse. they all have guaranteed payouts, as long as they turn a lap at an event.

 

If MA and WSBK rules are the same, the factories have to supply the team with the baseline software and support. Hardware is hardware whether its a BSB system, marelli, BMW or Ducati. If your a Premier Superbike privateer team, yes, you are eligible for purse as well. So if you get say 10th place each race, it's another 2K a weekend. If you good enough for 3-5, it's an extra $3k per race per weekend, or 6k on top of your 4k. It's on their entry forms.

 

But yes, electronics suck in general.

 

that part of the rules isnt the same. there are no reference teams in MA and no forced sharing of settings or software. non-factory teams also arent required to run the same hardware/software as the factory teams.

hardware isnt all the same and the software matters. theres a huge difference btw what is possible in the BSB system and the WSBK systems, and this is caused by both hardware and software. the same is true of the many different possible hardware configs in MA.

I used to think the same thing about premier entries, but was told otherwise by a premier SS racer at Sonoma. maybe he needs to win to notice a bigger check, hehe.

 

No rider aids in BSB.

 

The electronic rules are exactly the same as WSBK. If you have a Yamaha and want WSBK spec, you have to purchase it through Yamaha, in this case Yamaha Europe. Wyman purchased his through Ducati. In both cases the manufacture is obligated to support. BSB has no rider aids, so its pretty basic. MA also allow flashed kit ECU for Superbikes. I also remember a middle ground Motech system available for privateers that want to explore the middle ground. I think this is what Jake Lewis is running. On the purse side, it's Superbike only, not Supersport (thats what it looks like on the entry forms) so I can see why your friend said that. Hate to put any undo pressure on him!!

 

so what you are saying is that the MA electronics rules arent exactly the same as WSBK?

 

Spot on

 

LOL, I guess not. WSBK only has one level, MA has three (WSBK spec, Motech approved and Flashed kit).

 

Does country size play a factor in this as well. Look at BSB. They have 12 rounds spread out in a country the size of Illinois. Not too expensive to drive around that state all year. Maximum drive from top to bottom is 400 miles.

Now the teams running MA have to drive from New Jersey to Sonoma and back. that is 3,000 miles one way.

 

I didn’t know about the ban on rider aids in bsb but that sounds fooking awesome! Why don’t we just do that and call it a day?!?!

 

Yes it does...but being devils advocate, as mentioned previously look at ASBK (Australian Superbike).

Australia is more spread out than we are, with less transportation infrastructure, and their SBK grids are packed (so are the other classes).

It isn’t even a close comparison, they typically have 2-2.5x as many guys on the SBK grid as we do.

 

Going back to the intimidation and costs vs competitiveness discussion, look at the Twins class.

At Pitt there were 42 entrants, with 39 gridding up (on the broadcast they said they had to make a cut to actually reduce grid size).

The main differences are cost (or cost to be competitive), and the idea that just about anyone running in the top 10 has a very valid chance at winning, or at least being on the podium.

I know some people like to say “this is Pro racing, if you can’t put together the program/money, then you shouldn’t be there”. Ok, but how long are we going to hold on to that idea? Are we going to stick to that to the point that it drives SBK in the ground, to where nobody wants to be a part of it outside 4-5 teams?

 

The country is pretty damn big but look at the location of the tracks. all in the that right hand section of the country except for The Bend and that's not that far out from the rest.

 

Yes, they are very spread out...which is why they do the schedule the way they do (east and west coast rounds, split up like we do).

Have you checked the distance from Phillip Island to say Sydney, or to Tallem Bend, or to Wakefield Park?

Even if someone lives right at Wakefield Park, or Phillip Island they are still looking at a 10-12+hr drive to reach the other tracks.

It isn’t like driving from our East coast to West coast, but it damn sure spread out a helluva lot more than BSB....as in 7-10x the distance depending on the track.

But yet their grid sizes rival the BSB, and are miles ahead of ours.

 

Even being on the same side, it is still a 9-10hr drive north or south (say PI to Sydney).