So I was watching a Moto America race on TV the other day. Truly enjoyed it but less the commercial breaks though. During one of those commercial breaks, there was one of a more or less renowned motorcycle racing school, which appeared to me to operate more on the smarter edge. I’m not to shy to admit that I was wrong…
Fancy production, but still on the cheesy side they explained how Trail Braking works. Goal is to ‘appear samaritan’- but you figure quick that the actual goal is to showcase that they actually teach to Trail Brake in their school. That’s the truth. However, that’s not my problem. What bothers me at this point is, that they blasting critical information with a wide spread shot to riders who mostly NOT READY for such skill yet. Trail Braking separates the men from the boys. This is a skill to be mastered only when other physical skill subjects are sitting well enough and habits are successfully removed beforehand.
What the problem is
You also can’t just drop off only a fraction of the full scoop to a wide spread of people and leave the rest to ‘figure out’. Do Trail Braking wrong and it can turn to a death trap. Quite a risky move on their end if you ask me. To Trail Brake, lots of things will have to be adjusted under control. Only then you can move into it. Trail Braking goes way beyond physical capabilities.
This technique demands a solid range of ‘mental coolness’. This can freak most riders out, because throttle, brake, clutch and shifting procedures are different then what MOST riders have learned over years. Change all this and more while you go way faster into turns under Trail Braking could also trigger to panic. Your eyes and brain are not trained and ready for this yet (mental coolness) and that will be the biggest problem.
Things have to be unlearned to be able to learn. Mental coolness has to be established to be able to try and master.
Spreading these information without all of the above is almost like a half-way-instruction on how to climb Mount Everest without a guide. Now how many pairs of ears and eyes who’ve seen that commercial are even capable to climb Mount Everest in the first place… especially when there is no guide?!
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What a hot class yesterday, in many ways actually. 30 motivated riders under heat wave gave their best- so did we. Ones more the Superbike-Coach team was highly prepared to secure the safety of all participants and to give our students the full SBC scoop. Hot track- hot temps- and I was on fire!
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There is ‘that one bolt’ which extends a simple job in regard time, dirt, and resources… ONE stupid bolt. You know those?!
So I did a brake job on my Multistrada Enduro Pro, because ‘Indy’ was missing braking power, which is already restricted with those knobby tires. The plan: New brake fluid and bleeding air- new pads and cleaning caliper pistons- and 2 new rotors.
While everything else went well, the rotor bolts are glued in the wheel, and I knew that was coming. Some manufacturers also make it harder by using bolts you’d need Torx tools for. I have, but those are really fragile. One after another coming off, not without a fight though… a bleeding finger and a trip to the hardware store for a new set of Torx tools is what that took. Then there is that one bolt. Out by a quarter and a destroyed head.
“MacGyver mode” is on now, as well as a never surrender mind set. Not enough meat to grab it with clamp pliers. Not enough out to saw its dead head off. Figuring that those cheap bolt removal tools you can buy with those TV commercials are senseless. Drilling the head was next, but the next half size bigger hexa did the job after hammering it in as much as possible. Then turning it as straight and smooth as possible got it finally out.
Four f’n hours and a garage floor covered with dirt, tools, sweat and blood for that one bolt :-)
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So ‘Indy’ came up with something when I did that road skill at Lake Tahoe last week. He started misfiring and lacking throttle response. he kinda was in a bad mood all day. Then around noon- loss of mid range power by at least 50%. No lights, no warnings, nothing. Electronics on those modern Ducatis is a big deal and I was really worried that this is going to be deep down there, so I dropped it off at A&S Motorcycles in Roseville. Not just because I ran lots of seminars there- mostly because I know they know their stuff! I couldn’t have make a better choice, cuz’ issues like that can end up like the search for the needle in a haystack. They were busy as hell but took the bike in right away for substantial diagnostics… nothing to be found. Next day, they wanted to eliminate the ‘little stuff’ before contacting Italy and found that the evap canister was topped out with gas- bypassed it and the problem was found. The needle was found but ordering parts would take weeks, so Randy Felice authorized to take out a canister from a new bike to donate it Indy. I mean… if this isn’t showing flexibility on a high level, then I don’t know what else!!! Top notch tech’s, top service and flexibility when needed. BRAVO!
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Their portfolio covers all motorcycle categories, so something you should look into. A Bridgestone tire is a fast and long living tire for its grip level, but what I like the most is that they are transparent. That means that they have a gentle way to tell you that you’ve reached their limits. Also a positive thing is, that they are very easy on almost any suspension set up and that they deliver decent grip while warming them up.
The entire Superbike-Coach team uses Battlax slick race tires for the Supermotos and other track/race bikes, but I can assure you that their Battlax RS10 or S22 hypersport street tires are rock solid in performance and transparency as well. Give it a shot. You’ll be surprised.
You feel like your baby could use a little bit more punch? This article is going to help you to unlock an up to dramatic improve in regard torque character and ride-ability for about 150 bux!
That might sound like those endless advertisements which promising 10% more horsepower for a race air filter- or some shiny extra strong glowing hyper-kryptonite-supersphereographical spark plugs, and you’ll get more for a extra fee :-)
Nope, this one is totally legit and easy to do yourselves. Let’s look into the slight sketchy background first.
graphic credit: www.motorcyclespecs.co.za
All those motorcycle manufactures are selling their models mainly based on two numbers… horsepower and top speed. Yea, that’s how they get you, just admit it. While the horsepower is one thing- they are achieving those crazy top speed numbers mainly via primary ratio, gear box ratios and secondary ratios. Of course also the wheel sizes have and influence as well as the general weight and aerodynamics of your bike, but that’s something you kinda have to live with if you don’t want this to be your financial grave.
Let me just give a small overview what kind of weight this has for race teams, because racing is all about acceleration and only a fraction of time about top speed. We could set up every single gear in the transmission to match corner speed and RPM’s in a perfect torque range for turn exit performance. A “longer” (more top speed) 6th gear could gain passing chance coming out of a slipstream before late braking. The ratio was calculated on the mile exact to be fully rev’d out in 6th gear about one second before braking. Wind direction or a strategical aspect depending on- if you probably lead the race or if dog fights were predicted. All of this is a crucial part of racing. For you, we are looking at the secondary- also called the final drive. This is literally ‘outside’ the bike and can be done with regular tools and affordable parts. The influence can be surprisingly good.
So here is your scenario as the street rider or even track rider. The Germans have the Autobahn, giving their riders some top speeds we Americans on our Freeways won’t get to see ever. That might doesn’t include idiots here, but generally you are doing 70-80 miles per hour max, while your baby could do about 200 actually. That’s wasted energy if you ask me, sitting there literally never used. Another effect is, that the 1st gear is so damn long that you could do 70 with it already. The ratio makes this gear almost useless. So if we would change the final drive, it’ll also have a positive influence over the entire primary ratio for more ride-ability. Cool huh?!
The terms here are ‘longer’, for more top speed- and ‘shorter’ for more acceleration, and that’s what we want. The useful torque range will move by giving up on top speed. My Panigale 1199 is topping out at a 165. She doesn’t make 200 anymore, but the acceleration beats down the brand new V4, no kidding! So here is what I do, and that’s actually a good start out point for you as well…
I chose a specific ratio because this way, my ‘Cleopatra’ can still cruise at a 6800 rpm’s in 6th on the Freeway- while this ratio is still fair enough for the most race tracks I am going to to teach track riders. So no swapping drama here for me then. The general rule is:
Front:
A smaller c-sprocket = shorter (more acceleration)
A bigger c-sprocket = longer (more top speed)
Rear goes the opposite way:
A bigger sprocket = shorter (more acceleration)
A smaller sprocket = longer (more top speed)
Generally, I swap the sprockets this way: One tooth LESS on the front sprocket- and one tooth MORE on the rear sprocket. Rule of thumb is- one tooth more or less on the front sprocket is just like two and a half teeth on the rear. That is huge in terms of acceleration, drive-ability and responsiveness and you have no idea what you’ve been missing out here. So bare with me and get to it.
Go count front and rear sprocket teethes of your bike. Let’s say you have a 16 on the front- you go get a 15 for about $40. Now let’s say you count 45 teeth on the rear- you go get a 46 for about 80-100 bux. That small investment is the biggest ‘power upgrade’ you’ll ever get. Also no need to swap chain, because 1 down front/1 up rear needs the same chain length you already have- unless you also want to convert from your huge OEM chain to a 520 chain kit (I covered that in ‘Coach’s Motorcycle Bible‘)
Most of the needed parts are easy to get to at BikeMaster. They come affordable and fast. They also have chains if needed. if you want to go a slight different route with your sprocket choice, I’d suggest to see the ratio/speed differences ones you know the numbers of teeth your bike originally has, and compare it with the numbers you plan to go with here. If you are not sure about something- just drop a comment and I’ll see if I can help.
Please note though… if you make any changes in this regard- make sure all bolts are tight and take it easy riding it. Give it time to re-feel the new character of your bike. I’m not responsible for you bullshitting around, you hear me?! :-)
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I seriously love to ride our 2018 Ducati Multistrada Enduro Pro. When this version came out and I saw a pic of it- the first thing I thought was that the damn thang looks like a Indiana Jones movie. This is why we’ve gave it the name ‘Indy’ :-)
There are lots of reasons why I like this bike so much. Besides a ton load of technology in regard electronics (like an semi-automatic suspension), it’s got that mean battle cry only a 1200 V2 can put out. Well, especially after some mid pipe modifications. Furthermore it’s wild design, combined with all the tech and it’s pure size. That fascinated me the most.
But there was something else which got my racer blood temps up. Something which make this a bad ass ride. The aggressive look of those mud slinging animalistic appearing tires man. So I was sitting there looking at the picture smiling… who the hell is gonna ride that thing on asphalt?!
Even those Italian engineers an designers came to my mind. They seem to have a blast and went “F… it. Let’s give it 160 horses and put it on dirt tires!” So yea… I would ride it :-)
So when Indy finally arrived last January, it came on Italian manufactured 70/30 (dirt/road ratio) dirt tires with about 400 mls on them. So enough meat on them to do a row of Road Skill 1on1’s while I was waiting for Continental to send us replacement. In other words- I can compare here directly, right?!
Now here is the thing. 99% of the time I use this bike to work with lots of Road Skill students, so on asphalt. You might look for the sense of even putting 80/20 dirt tires on again, and even my boys at Conti are asking questions. But I have three reasons. I already mentioned one reason above, and the second is to literally keep me physically in check. You know… ex pro racers are very sick people ;-)
Logically, a dirt bike tire is not good on Highway mileage and top end grip, but the TKC delivers a hell of grip for a 80% knobby tire. I mean… look at the pic above. I have less chicken strips on my sides then most street riders have on their Sportbikes. That should tell the story in this regard.
So yea, the mileage I got out of my first set of Contis is not really compelling, especially when you are a true Adventure Biker. This is all relative though. I mean, if I would have used a Sportbike with comparable power- I also would get about 5000 miles out of the rear tire- BUT this set here cost only half as much. OK, I swapped the first TKC rear with 5200 mls on it, but I still had about 20% left. The 70/30/ tire the bike came with was totally done at 2800 mls already, and not to forget that the TKC is a 80/20.
At the air pressures I am riding at, I have phenomenal feedback from the rear and front. I ride those tires on the lowest Traction Control setting I have, and I can hang on exits right in there. I bet if Conti would redesign them a little, they would cost lots of Sportbike confidence for some. They could connect the smaller knobbies on the sides with the bigger one next to them to achieve more stability in full lean. Oh boy :-)
Good bridge to make my third reason. I kick so much ass on those TKC80that it should turn on a light bulb on you, for what more asphalt appropriate tires from Continental must be capable of then, right?!!
You also can’t just drop off only a fraction of the full scoop to a wide spread of people and leave the rest to ‘figure out’. Do Trail Braking wrong and it can turn to a death trap. Quite a risky move on their end if you ask me. To Trail Brake, lots of things will have to be adjusted under control. Only then you can move into it. Trail Braking goes way beyond physical capabilities.
The entire Superbike-Coach team uses 
