PSA: Race Tires & Race Tracks

This. I'm always shocked at the number of people that post on forums and FB asking what pressure to run. Like everyone know where you are riding, what you are riding, what's your riding style and what's your load.

I still call PDV/JJ and ask what pressure to run in my tires on my street bikes.

 

I'm surprised at how many dirty wheels we see. I cleaned my racebike before every event so I could tell if something started leaking or having a problem. You would be amazed at what you find when you go over your bike cleaning it.

Plus, if your wheels are dirty enough to need gloves, then my hands are going to get dirty when I change you tires. I'll be grabbing your new tires with those same hands. The dirt/chain line/grease will be spread on the new tires, possibly the rotors.

If you clean them before the weekend, it doesn't take much to wipe your wheels down before getting new tires.

 

It's 202o so bump

 

Bumpa corona bump

 

Not that I ever heard anyone doing it on a race vehicle, but don't put Slime in your tires (street or track) and not warn the tire guy. Had an asshole do that where I used to work. Salesman wanted his cars' tires changed (we did that when we weren't too busy building conversions). We used an old Coats 4040 tire machine there. Popped the bead and BOOM, Slime everywhere. Was fun to call the salesguy up and have him come over to clean the wall, tire machine, tire balance and floor.

 

Tire slime sucks.

 

And tire beads too LOL

 

Yes. The tire machine will make crunchy noises for a while after messing with the beads.

 

Time for a bumpa da bump

 

I wipe my wheels down with Pledge furniture polish when I clean them...spray it on the rag and wipe them down.

The Pledge attracts and makes it easier to wipe the brake dust off the wheels. It leaves a coating on the wheel surface that
repels dust and what does get attracted to the wheels is easier to wipe off.

I also use it on my bodywork when I'm cleaning/wiping my bike down. There's not much difference between Pledge and Plexus as far as I can tell, and
the Pledge is a hell of a lot cheaper per can.

 

I was just reading thru this thread and the main thing that came to mind is why would anyone use slime or dynabeads on a track tire? And why would a person not wipe down their rims before taking them off. I do not like to get dirty either so I clean my shit before I grab wrenches.

 

Put on a pair of gloves, remove wheel, take to tire vendor. No dirt on me, just a bit on the gloves. Actually, I try not to take them to the tire vendor dirty, but sometimes if I am in a hurry and the wheel isn't too icky it happens. I apologized for taking a dirty wheel to a track side vendor once and he told me no problem as it was one of the cleaner wheels he had handled that day.

Oddly enough I cleaned up my shock before taking it for service and my suspension servicer told me not to do that next time so he could see if it was leaking.

 

A great time for a bump

 

theres a product call TubOTowels that will clean wheels super quick... easy to keep in a trailer and dispose of dirty towels. Retail is less than $15

 

The tub is magical

 

And bump dada bump

 

I've had issues with wheel weights not sticking after using TubOTowels. I prefer simple green 50/50 with water in a spray bottle. Now the wheel weight and tape goo is always a challenge. A plastic scraper and brake cleaner followed up with a terry towel works in a pinch, but some brake cleaners are really harsh on the paint/powder coat. A lot of my Thursdays at the track consists of cleaning the wheels of all the goo. Goo gone and a bit of patience, then simple green to get rid of the Goo gone residue.

 

I use mineral spirits on a microfiber towel to clean my wheels. All of the gunk just wipes right off

 

January 2023 so it's time for a bump. And tread carefully out there as you're not just using/ buying tires you need to find a brand & vendor that is actually servicing your needs at the racetrack. Remember good in person sevice and product trumps cheap tire prices without support every single time!

 

Speaking of the worth of tire vendor support at the track, does anyone know if there will be a Pirelli vendor for the North Central Region this year? Mark Junge switched to dunlop last year, and I have not been able to find any reliable information about anyone else stepping in to take that over... My first time racing as an expert this year, and I have no data running Pirelli. So I've just been planning to run Bridgestone since they have contingency and support at our races.. That and, I really enjoy dealing with Quentin, he's great.