Bumping from Am to Ex

[Pittenger5]

An actual serious question from me for once, so try to leave the name calling and insults out of this one.

How do / did you guys decide when to bump from AM to EX? I ask because I wasnt planning on doing it any time soon, hopefully by the classic next year, but I've now had 2 experts (they will remain nameless, but they are not borderline experts) say I should bump as soon as I possibly can. I always figured I'd wait cause A. I dont think my times are there yet, and now the biggy, I'll be on a new bike next year.
On one hand like I say, Ill be on a new bike, and I don't think my times are appropriate for expert status yet.
But on the other, I'm already on track with them as is, and they dont seem to have any trouble passing me, Mike and them can chime in if they do, so I dont think its a safety issue me moving up.

Just curious how and when you guys decided to bump up.

[Jim]

would the expert racing push you to be a better racer? that would be my only reason to bump

[RyanNicholson]

don't be scared of it.... its just another race every time you go out to the grid. The only difference is everyone has more experience that you can learn from. Its intimidating as hell at first, but you'll quickly realize how much more fun it is going up against the fastest guys at the track...and trying to become one of them.

[The Snowman]

If your index shows that you can do it, why the hell not? I say go for it. Chasing guys who are faster allows you to see firsthand WHY they're faster and would also help you, IMO.

[Pittenger5]

And for what its worth, since the flip side has been presented to me via PM, I dont think I'm gonna bump till I can bring my times down a bit, and get comfortable on the new bike. Just the fact that these 2 experts told me privately that I should bump asap makes me start to wonder. I definitely wont bump because the people of NESR say I should or shouldnt, but I'm just curious as to how other people made their decisions.

[The Snowman]

Well, it is only you who can feel when you're ready. Don't rush in if you're not feeling it.

[OreoGaborio]

C'mon, Dollah... how many times have you caught & passed an expert from the wave in front of you? I KNOW it happens and are they getting told they need to bump down? NO.

I'm sure you've read that I'm in the position to bump now... the only thing that would keep me from bumping is getting contingency money & wood. Other than those two things I don't see any reason why someone SHOULDN'T bump up unless index is inflated for some weird reason like they went racing in other orgs that are less competitive than LRRS.

[eboos]

I can only say that I am glad that LRRS has Novice licenses. I couldn't imagine being a rookie rider riding in the same races as experts. I think that would be incredibly dangerous.

With that being said, if you are already racing with the experts, but need to drop your lap times and get used to a new bike, there seems to be no benefit of rushing into bumping up.

[Pittenger5]

C'mon, Dollah... how many times have you caught & passed an expert from the wave in front of you? I KNOW it happens and are they getting told they need to bump down? NO.

I'm sure you've read that I'm in the position to bump now... the only thing that would keep me from bumping is getting contingency money & wood. Other than those two things I don't see any reason why someone SHOULDN'T bump up unless index is inflated for some weird reason like they went racing in other orgs & kicked major ass cuz they're all slow

Haha your thread was another that made me start wondering.
Im not getting any contingency, and I like wood, but whatever, its nothing.

And my index is DEFLATED cause of the GTL and ULSB, so there

[PPS26]

you are def going to want to run a bunch of amature races on the motard before you bump to expert.. im not even close to thinking of bumping..

[zx1012r]

A friend of mine (that was a goood racer) got me into racing. He said move up as soon as you can. I went from novice to expert in 1 season. Granted it was on an EX and that would be much harder on virtually any other bike, but the mantra is the same.

If you stay on the EX you will be mid-pack and have some serious carrots to make you faster. You are ready, jedi.

Mark Dages 454

[a13x]

I dunno. I'm the opposite. I personally had no desire to bump to Expert unless I knew I could be 'competitive'. I had two factors:

1) competitive (imo) was running within a 'decent' time of the Podium, like within 3-6 seconds of the podium (depending on class of course).

2) Was I easily running in the front 3 or 4 of my class in Amateur. If I was lining up on the grid every weekend for Amateur and knowing I'd either win or be battling for win. Then I probably should bump.

That was my thinking. I never had a problem teaching myself to go faster and since I had great competition with me in Amateur, it wasn't like I was lacking 'fast guys' to chase around in the races.

I really really hate the theory that bumping to Expert will make you faster. Incorrect. Amateur or Novice are the classes where you develop your skill for the next level and when you are able to blend into the next level seamlessly, you bump. If you can't consistently improve your PB in whatever class you are currently in, bumping up to the next one isn't going to do it for you.

Scott Ferguson is a great example. Scott is at the point where he is easily winning every race he enters in AM, riding around alone like 4 seconds ahead of 2nd. Scott will learn alot by bumping up to Expert (which he is for 2009). However, if you are running 2nd, or 3rd in Amateur right now, and can't catch Scott.. WTF makes you think you'll be able to catch the guys in Expert?

I know my opinion on this tends to be unpopular, but it worked for me and I don't look down on anyone that rides in a class lower than Expert. No shame in developing at your pace and there is nothing wrong with yellow backgrounds or red numbers.

Personally if I just bought a brand new bike I'd at least run one or two weekends at the start of 2009 and figure out WTF was going on before diving into the deep end... because once you bump, you bump.

[a13x]

BTW this isn't a commentary on your situation Richie. Just a rant on the subject as a whole.

But in your situation, I'd def recommend doing at least one weekend as a AM to see how the motard shakes out.

If you run a trackday prior to LRRS #1 and are dropping 22's on the piece, by all means bump up thou!

[BLACK SQUIRREL]

I dunno. I'm the opposite. I personally had no desire to bump to Expert unless I knew I could be 'competitive'. I had two factors:

1) competitive (imo) was running within a 'decent' time of the Podium, like within 3-6 seconds of the podium (depending on class of course).

2) Was I easily running in the front 3 or 4 of my class in Amateur. If I was lining up on the grid every weekend for Amateur and knowing I'd either win or be battling for win. Then I probably should bump.

That was my thinking. I never had a problem teaching myself to go faster and since I had great competition with me in Amateur, it wasn't like I was lacking 'fast guys' to chase around in the races.

I really really hate the theory that bumping to Expert will make you faster. Incorrect. Amateur or Novice are the classes where you develop your skill for the next level and when you are able to blend into the next level seamlessly, you bump. If you can't consistently improve your PB in whatever class you are currently in, bumping up to the next one isn't going to do it for you.

Scott Ferguson is a great example. Scott is at the point where he is easily winning every race he enters in AM, riding around alone like 4 seconds ahead of 2nd. Scott will learn alot by bumping up to Expert (which he is for 2009). However, if you are running 2nd, or 3rd in Amateur right now, and can't catch Scott.. WTF makes you think you'll be able to catch the guys in Expert?

I know my opinion on this tends to be unpopular, but it worked for me and I don't look down on anyone that rides in a class lower than Expert. No shame in developing at your pace and there is nothing wrong with yellow backgrounds or red numbers.

Personally if I just bought a brand new bike I'd at least run one or two weekends at the start of 2009 and figure out WTF was going on before diving into the deep end... because once you bump, you bump.

This is the Hickspiggle Truth

+1

[a13x]

This is the Hickspiggle Truth

+1

What the shit is Hickspiggle?!

[BLACK SQUIRREL]

What the shit is Hickspiggle?!

Something I picked up in the square states

[Tricky Mike]

What the shit is Hickspiggle?!

seriously... thefuck you just call me?

[Pittenger5]

But in your situation, I'd def recommend doing at least one weekend as a AM to see how the motard shakes out.

Bare minimum 2 weekends as an AM. Ive already reserved the friday of opening weekend for practice. But I figure I did 1 full season of novice, Ill do at the minimum of 1 full season as an AM and then see where Im at. The goal is to bumped for the classic though. But who knows, if it doesnt happen, I wont cry about it

[a13x]

Bare minimum 2 weekends as an AM. Ive already reserved the friday of opening weekend for practice. But I figure I did 1 full season of novice, Ill do at the minimum of 1 full season as an AM and then see where Im at. The goal is to bumped for the classic though. But who knows, if it doesnt happen, I wont cry about it

:thumbsup:

[Paul_E_D]

Enjoy some success as an amatuer, win some races, learn some craft, then bump and take you licks as an expert. You may never get the chance to win a race again... seriously. Look at the list of champions in the other thread. There's only a few names on there.

[a13x]

Enjoy some success as an amatuer, win some races, learn some craft, then bump and take you licks as an expert. You may never get the chance to win a race again... seriously. Look at the list of champions in the other thread. There's only a few names on there.

Yea no shit!

[13]

Personally if I just bought a brand new bike I'd at least run one or two weekends at the start of 2009 and figure out WTF was going on before diving into the deep end... because once you bump, you bump.

Uhhhh, yeah. This is a VERY good idea.

[OreoGaborio]

Well now I'm considering staying an Am

[Kitt]

I play with the thought of a motard, and I wish I could race yellow plates with it while learning haha...


As for when and why I bumped. I definately could have gone faster (was hoping to get some 16's before bumping) but I was eligible after 4 weekends this year, and didn't quite feel ready. I was placing 3-8 in am classes. Now, I had a crap 4th row or worse grid all year, so I felt I was fighting through too much traffic each race to be able to throw down PB laps... So, I spent 2 more weeks focusing on the passing aspect, less concern of where I ended up, then bumped. My times dropped, because I wasn't "stuck" behind anyone, but I have plenty of learning to do, and upgrades to the bike to let me compete at that level. I'm not looking for championships, but I would like to be in the top 10 next year... There's some pretty significant changes I can make that should help right off the bat (tune the bike, and brakes that work, mainly - as well as get back into great shape).

If I was learning on the motard, I would get some am races in, have fun racing my buds, and see where my times compare to the EX classes. If I'm above 25% of the field, time to bump.

[BMFR6]

well, heres a thread I started last year, may be some good info in it for you.

http://www.nestreetriders.com/forum/...857-am-ex.html