First-Time Rider on a Yamaha R1 - The Power of Preparation and Dedication

[Racer V]

NOTE TO READER: The first 26 pages of this thread are surrounding the question of whether or not I should have been allowed to participate in my first race weekend, given that I showed up to the track with zero prior riding experience. This thread was started in September of 2014 and went dormant in October of 2014. It was recently reignited with a post from Garrinn, halfway down page 26. From then on, an interesting conversation takes place between highly competent riders & racers, about the role of countersteering in piloting motorcycles. I would highly recommend that new riders skip to here and read this. This is the kind of academic discussion I was interested in having when I started this thread last September.

Going back and analyzing the first 26 pages of this thread, I realize that the vast majority of the back-and-forth stems from people trying to join the conversation without fully understanding the facts of what I did, so I'll give a brief synopsis of my actions here, in case you decide to read through the first 26 pages of the thread:

• Mid-July, 2014: I decide to enter a motorcycle race, never having ridden anything with two wheels and a motor before. I sign up for the American Federation of Motorcyclists weekend at the end of August, 2014. The goal? Learning about learning, so that we can apply these lessons in Racing for Science's teen driver safety program. I begin the most intense 7 weeks of training I'd ever experienced, preparing both physically and mentally for what I knew would be the most intense challenge I'd ever accepted up to that point in my life. I start researching motorcycles, watching all the videos, reading all the books, and talking to all the riders I can.
• Mid-August, 2014: I buy a stock, race-ready 2003 R1 for the event at the end of the month.
• August 29th, 2014, 7:30AM: I show up to Sonoma Raceway for the trackday on my new bike that I had just purchased. Up to this point, I had never ridden anything with two wheels and a motor. After passing tech (and embarrassing myself by not knowing how to turn on the bike), I make a few rounds of the paddock to get used to the bike.
• August 29th, 2014, 7:40AM: Fully-suited, I take my bike up to an empty parking lot overlooking the racetrack, in order to practice turning, throttle, and brakes.
• August 29th, 2014, 7:42AM: Confident with knowing how to turn the bike at low speeds, I take to the access roads to practice shifting.
• August 29th, 2014, 7:46AM: Confident with my level of skill with the bikes' controls at low speeds, I start to explore the side-roads of Sonoma Raceway. I head back down to the paddock to attend the mandatory riders' meeting, and to prepare for the first instructor-guided outlaps in the new riders' group (C-group).
• August 29th, 2014, 9:00AM: First run of the day! Another rider and I do lead-follow with the instructor for this first session. After the session, I tell the instructor that I worked with that it's my first day on a motorcycle. He doesn't believe me. I tell him again, harder this time. He believes me. We decide to go out together again next round.
• August 29th, 2014, 10:00AM: Second run of the day! The instructor deems me worthy to go and play on-track without guidance.
• August 29th, 2014, 4:20PM: Last session of the day. I set a fastest time of 2:01.98, making the 2:02.00 cutoff for the fastest group of riders (A-group).
• August 30th, 2014. I take the New Racer School offered by the AFM to get my race license. I tell the instructor that my first time ever riding a motorcycle was yesterday morning. He doesn't believe me. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ . I am deemed worthy on-track, pass the written test, and get my race license. I race later that day in the Clubman Heavy class, finishing 9th of 12. w00t!

Following the dashed line is my original post:

==========================

Hello All,

I run a nonprofit that works with students in East San Jose, Racing for Science. I put together a video for them so that we could show these young ones the tangible results of preparation and dedication.
I'm new to motorcycles. Like, really new. I'll let the video do most of the explaining, but I just started riding last Friday, August 29th. I'd never ridden anything with a motor and two wheels before that date.

My learner bike is a Yamaha R1.

I know what most of you would think about my bike selection, but it gets better: I had my first motorcycle race the following day.

Studying how we humans learn has been a huge interest of mine for a long, loooong time. I used a number of techniques during my preparation for this event that I believe would be very useful to all of us - not only in our enjoyment of riding, but in every other aspect of our lives as well. So, I'll be putting together a video series on my motorcycle racing journey from complete newb to expert, and hopefully we can all learn something about learning in the process I'm open to any questions and discussion (especially about neuroscience and the psychology of learning - I love that stuff).

Let me know what you think of my message, and what I might do to make communication/expression of it better.

Safe Riding, and Happy Riding!

- Andrew

[youtube]ALv8D7C_g54[/youtube]

 

[Racer V]

This is my first video I've made in Movie Maker, and I'd like to ask for assistance from those more experienced with either Movie Maker or the H.264 file format.

You can see that at the apex of Turn 2 (~3:20) the video gets super choppy, whereas the audio is fine. This isn't just an artifact of YouTube - the video works flawlessly in MovieMaker, but when it's exported to H.264, the choppiness shows up. And only in this part of the video, for some reason.

Any ideas/tips/tricks?

Much obliged!

- Andrew

 

[TrackCage]

embedded the video for you

[youtube]ALv8D7C_g54[/youtube]

 

[Loki1000R]

turn left more

cool video though and crack open that visor to the least open setting and it won't fog up like that

 

[DefyInertia]

Can you please explain more about how you accomplished this, your theories/practices/techniques/etc.? This is clearly very interesting.

 

[Abyss]

I was hoping the title was sarcastic and you'd have posted a video of a newb stacking an R1 in spectacular fashion.

 

[UDRider]

I was hoping the title was sarcastic and you'd have posted a video of a newb stacking an R1 in spectacular fashion.

Not everyone stacks it on their first track day.

 

[Hooli]

Not everyone stacks it on their first track day.

Just those who choose to rail on cold tires first time out.

 

[sckego]

I used a number of techniques during my preparation for this event that I believe would be very useful to all of us - not only in our enjoyment of riding, but in every other aspect of our lives as well. So, I'll be putting together a video series on my motorcycle racing journey from complete newb to expert, and hopefully we can all learn something about learning in the process

I gotta say, I can't wait to see this. It's one thing to study and learn the theory behind something, but to be able to pick up the actual physical techniques (throttle control, brake pressure, body position, etc) and commit them to muscle memory in that short time span is nuts. A 2:01 around Sonoma is quite a respectable time; to do that on your second day ever of riding is unbelievable.

Although, I'm curious... you say your first ever day of riding was 8/29, and your first race was the next day, implying that it was the AFM Saturday event on 8/30. Did you take the AFM NRS that day to be able to race that afternoon? I thought the NRS put you in practice session 1, not 2 as the stickers on your bike show. Did you mention to them when you signed up that you had never ridden a bike before...? Just trying to imagine that conversation. edt - also, how'd you get away with the camera mounted on your helmet?

 

[Karbon]

I call bullshit obviously.

 

[tagraff]

Although, I'm curious... you say your first ever day of riding was 8/29, and your first race was the next day, implying that it was the AFM Saturday event on 8/30. Did you take the AFM NRS that day to be able to race that afternoon? I thought the NRS put you in practice session 1, not 2 as the stickers on your bike show. Did you mention to them when you signed up that you had never ridden a bike before...? Just trying to imagine that conversation. edt - also, how'd you get away with the camera mounted on your helmet?

Good questions. I was thinking about the logistics of getting to race too.

 

[Daredevil]

my guess is that video is from the track day on 8/29

i can tell, because at one point in the video i make an inside pass on him into turn 7.

im in a higher practice group than that :wink. but was riding in b+ because of last minute ticket purchasing.


so im assuming the bike had stickers from it previously.

 

[sjuels]

This is my first video I've made in Movie Maker, and I'd like to ask for assistance from those more experienced with either Movie Maker or the H.264 file format.

You can see that at the apex of Turn 2 (~3:20) the video gets super choppy, whereas the audio is fine. This isn't just an artifact of YouTube - the video works flawlessly in MovieMaker, but when it's exported to H.264, the choppiness shows up. And only in this part of the video, for some reason.

Any ideas/tips/tricks?

Much obliged!

- Andrew

When you export to H.264, do you have variable or fixed/max bitrate ?

/Soren

 

[sjuels]

Andrew,

I am curious as to what your theory and your plan for the accelerated learning was ?

I am in no way calling bullshit - in fact we have a new barf member, who was grinding pegs on her ninja on her second day out, who went through a series of steps to get the fundamentals down one by one.

/Soren

 

[Seven11]

i was gonna rag on you for your choice of the bike for a first timer... but wow

just wow

 

[clutchslip]

How old are you?
Young age brings a sense of invulnerability.

Have you ever been hurt doing a physical activity?
Once you experience some fear or pain, things might change.

Did you look at your video?
You kind of sit in the middle of the bike all the time. Not that good. I give the bike a lot of credit for your speeds, and your lack of fear helps, too.

 

[danate]

If this is not complete BS, I'm very curious how you learned things that are usually learned by hours and hours of experience. An awful lot of motorcycling is based on muscle memory, which on your first day you do not have much of.

 

[Gary856]

At this rate the OP can turn pro a week later, and then achieve total world domination in another week. Must've had help from aliens with DNA modification for the accelerated learning.

 

[UDRider]

How old are you?
Young age brings a sense of invulnerability.

Have you ever been hurt doing a physical activity?
Once you experience some fear or pain, things might change.

Did you look at your video?
You kind of sit in the middle of the bike all the time. Not that good. I give the bike a lot of credit for your speeds, and your lack of fear helps, too.

His BP was better then probably 90% of first time track riders.

I am skeptical. Dude is either some kind of natural talent, or yanking our chain.

 

[clutchslip]

His BP was better then probably 90% of first time track riders.

I am skeptical. Dude is either some kind of natural talent, or yanking our chain.

I wouldn't know about the 90%, but go to 3:50 and watch. He doesn't move his butt at all. A real weight change is basically non-existent. I have more weight shift pulling into the Starbucks.