Where to begin? I'll start at the start, I guess.
I went up to NHMS over the weekend and did their
Basic License Certification Course and it ended.. ignominiously. :o During the 5th lap of the first Follow the Leader session, I low-sided the bike (left side down) coming out of turn 6:
This was frustrating for three reasons. One, it was the first session of the day, and I felt like an idiot. Two, that's the place on the track where I feel the most comfortable -- it's an uphill left-hander with a lot of banking. Three, I don't know why it happened. Things were going fine (relatively speaking) until it felt like a force pushed the bike over onto its left-hand side. I don't recall the feeling of the bike washing out, nor of a big bar input, but rather it just went down and I went with it. Perhaps my tire pressures were a little high -- 31psi front, 33psi rear (factory is 36/42) -- but still I must have made some mistake.
Thankfully, I was unhurt and the bike sustained only a little damage. The gear-shift lever's barrel snapped off, as did the handlebar bar end. I ended up dropping maybe an ounce of anti-freeze on the track, which got me in a bit of trouble. When I did the day in June, I specifically asked if I could run anti-freeze, and the answer was "yes". This time, not so much. I understand why they have the restriction, but it was frustrating to have been misinformed.
In retrospect, I think the "follow the leader" pace in the course was too quick for me. I didn't feel uncomfortable at the time, but given the outcome (and my lack of understanding why it happened) I don't think there's another conclusion. I talked with the instructor afterward, and said that I wasn't sure if I could (mechanically) or would (mentally) continue with the day. He said to put the bike back together and see how I felt.
Repairing the bike took several hours. Street & Competition were a
huge help, suggestion that I grind flat the broken part of the gear lever & then providing me with an aftermarket replacement barrel. Many friendly folks in the garage lent me tools (file, die grinder, drill, Loctite) and got me going. Then I had to drain and dump the anti-freeze, and refill with water & water-wetter. In the process I flattened the battery, meaning I had to jump-start it with the Subaru :roll eyes: costing me even more time.
After I got everything back together it was about 1:30pm. The Penguin staff were
very helpful and understanding, and I asked if I could switch up to the Track Experience sessions and they agreed it was a good idea. So, I did that the Experience for the rest of the day. It went well -- no crashes!
Now that I was back on the bike, I really tried hard to focus on my body positioning. I was concentrating on getting one buttcheek off the seat, but at the same time keeping my arms loose and my knee out as far as I can. Not to drag it necessarily, but just to help keep my shoulders and pelvis straight so that I wouldn't twist my upper body and thus get my feet all out of position. Which had been a problem before...
The day got better as I got more comfortable. I only really used 3rd and 4th gear, with the occasional sojourn into 2nd gear when I would mess up the approach into turns 3 & 4. The best session of the day for me was the last session of the day, when I was able to put everything together -- both my body positioning and the correct (or, close to correct) racing lines. I certainly wasn't setting the world on fire in terms of speed, but I felt smooth (for me) and fluid (ditto).
I spoke with the instructors (Scott and Steve) at the end of the day, mostly about the VFR's suitability for my learning to ride on the track. They said it wasn't impossible, but it probably wasn't the best course of action -- which wasn't a surprise. I would need better tires, re-worked suspension front & rear and bodywork at a minimum. Which would probably cost me $1500 or so, which seems pointless money to throw at a $2700 sport-tourer. So, now I have to decide what to do next :o
Huge thanks to my buddy Ivan for hooking me up with his trailer. Never riding the bike to & from the track again!