250 at the track?

[deliveryguy]

Hey guys -

I just got an 09 ninja 250 and I'd like to bring it to the track but I'm not sure if a 250 belongs on a track. Not just because it's slow but because it's light; the other day I was going back and forth on some s-curves in Conway to get the feel for leaning hard and I *think* I felt the rear slipping out from under me.

I wasn't going very fast for the corner but I thought it might be easy to do on a little 250 because the engine doesn't weigh very much at all. Thoughts?

[Sportygurl131]

Hey guys -

I just got an 09 ninja 250 and I'd like to bring it to the track but I'm not sure if a 250 belongs on a track. Not just because it's slow but because it's light; the other day I was going back and forth on some s-curves in Conway to get the feel for leaning hard and I *think* I felt the rear slipping out from under me.

I wasn't going very fast for the corner but I thought it might be easy to do on a little 250 because the engine doesn't weigh very much at all. Thoughts?

ive seen plentyyyy of 250s on the trackk....

adn u may thnk ur leaning really hard... but as i learned from photos at bomo at first i wasnt
adn once i got off the seat then i was leaning!!

do it!

[Mr. Kurtz]

Your Ninja 250 will be just fine on the track.

Roland(rolker here on NESR) has been doing Tony's Track Days events for years on his EX250, and he gets around NHMS(the track in Loudon New Hampshire) and Thunderbolt(one of the tracks in New Jersey) just fine. His track experience on a low horsepower bike even led him to racing a 125 GP bike up here at Loudon.

Bottom line is, that is a great bike to learn on at trackdays , and you can definitely have loads of fun on it as well.

[Chippertheripper]

Annoying (passing) guys on literbikes will never be more gratifying.

[rolker]

Your Ninja 250 will be just fine on the track.

Roland(rolker here on NESR) has been doing Tony's Track Days events for years on his EX250, and he gets around NHMS(the track in Loudon New Hampshire) and Thunderbolt(one of the tracks in New Jersey) just fine. His track experience on a low horsepower bike even led him to racing a 125 GP bike up here at Loudon.

Bottom line is, that is a great bike to learn on at trackdays , and you can definitely have loads of fun on it as well.

I've been seeing more EX250s show up at Tony's Track Days recently. I've been having loads of fun with small bikes at Loudon for many years.

Annoying (passing) guys on literbikes will never be more gratifying.

[Paul_E_D]

The stock tires do suck though... That could be your slipping problem. Light is BEST.

[TTD]

You might be best suited to doing an ARC first (Advanced Riding Clinic).

That will get you feeling more comfortable with your bike, lean angle, etc.

Your bike is very capable on the track and is raced by many (more on the west coast).

Here's some more info on the ARC (there's actually one on Monday with room in it if you wanted to go)

http://www.tonystrackdays.com/catego...ontrol-arc.htm

[butcher bergs]

While I have serious doubts about your tire slipping, the feeling you are noticing could be attributed to high tire pressure and/ or stiff suspension settings.

Your EX250 will be fine at NHMS.

[deliveryguy]

Thanks for the responses guys. As for the ARC course, it looks like you have to have one year of riding experience... I've only been on the road for a couple weeks . Good to know I can go to a trackday with this thing though .

[TTD]

[QUOTE=deliveryguy;944826]Thanks for the responses guys. As for the ARC course, it looks like you have to have one year of riding experience.QUOTE]

The 1 year is a guideling... it really depends on several factors such as actual riding miles and whether or not you rode dirt bikes, etc.

Basically, you should be able to comfortably handle your bike... whether you're doing the ARC or a trackday.

[RocketPunch]

You will be surprised how many EX250 you will see on any given trackday. Have fun man!

[rolker]

The stock tires do suck though... That could be your slipping problem. Light is BEST.

One of the best "upgrade" I did to my EX250 when I started taking it to trackdays was to replace the stock tires with better ones.

While I have serious doubts about your tire slipping, the feeling you are noticing could be attributed to high tire pressure and/ or stiff suspension settings.

Your EX250 will be fine at NHMS.

Unless you weight less than a feather, the stock suspension is probably not too stiff. My other big upgrade for the track was to replace the springs with stiffer ones.

Now, keep in mind that my experience is with a 2005, which is the previous generation so I don't know what tires and suspension come with the newer ninjas.

[deliveryguy]

Good info. thanks guys

[onefootedkid]

Ya a 250 would be great on the track!! My brother has the same bike. I am trying to get him on the track with it.
Hope to see you out there!! GOOD LUCK!!

KID

[curiouser]

Some stickier tires should help quite a bit. I noticed a difference upgrading from the oems to Pirelli Sport Demons. They are a popular choice on the ninja250.org forums.

The suspension might be a bit soft, depending upon your weight, but it might be work-able on track.

[kbroderick]

Some of the EX250Js apparently came with a decent Dunlop, while others come with a low-cost IRC tire. Both, from looking at quick reviews, seem to be better than the damn-near-useless stock tires on the EX250F (88-07).

But yes, a 250 can be a ton of fun on the track; I had enough of a blast on mine last year that I think I went about twice as much as I had planned to (which was perhaps a bit more than I could afford...whoopsie). The newer-generation apparently has better suspension than the EX250F, as well, which was one of the seriously weak points on the EX250F.

[Rambunctous]

I like 250's at the track.

[rolker]

I like 250's at the track.

Of course you do! My 125 is faster than my 250 yet your 250 always kicks my 125's butt in LWGP.