Once
Reg Pridmore got up in front of the class to go over the plan for the day it
all seemed very real and exciting. We got an understanding of how the day would
unfold and how we could self-select to be in the more aggressive “A”
group or the more conservative “B” group. This was my first time
on a track – EVER – so I elected to be in the B group.
Note:
There were approximately 60 students in the class each day. Twenty or so moved
into the A group. The rest of us moved into the B group. On Day 1 there were
four women, all in the B group. Three of us were riding SVs! On Day 2
there was one woman in the advanced class and two women in the B group (both
on SVs).
During our first session of the day Reg covered
the philosophy of CLASS Rides – learning how to have control on your bike
and provide it with good input so you can both perform safely and smoothly on
the track and, more importantly, on the street. Then Reg introduced his instructors,
all of whom had once been students. I was impressed by the years of experience
they had. As the day progressed their tremendous skills would be demonstrated
on the track and also in one-on-one coaching sessions in the pits.
Shortly
after the A group headed out for their first session on the track (A and B groups
would alternate track sessions all day), Reg led those of us in the B group
out onto the track. He took us to a safe place where we could park our bikes
and watch the A group being led through several turns and straights. We watched
the A group as they explored the track, taking a hairpin turn, then blasting
by on a straight only to disappear over a hill. Then it was our turn to explore.
We headed back to the pit area where we lined up in small groups behind the
instructors for our tour of the track. We circled the track several times. Each
time we got on the front straight, the first person in line would move out to
the left, let the other 5 or 6 riders in the group pass him/her and fall in
at the back of the line. That way, everyone got a chance to follow directly
behind the instructor.
I said we “circled” the track several
times. That’s not really accurate. Barber is not a track to be circled,
it’s a track to be explored and discovered. Reg told us that it is one
of the most technically demanding tracks he’s been on. It has challenges
for riders of all abilities and it can bite you if you’re not careful!
He and his team of instructors praised the facility and predicted that it will
soon become the premier motorcycle track in the U.S.
When we got back into the classroom after that
first time on the track, Reg started talking to us about throttle management
and being smooth. Other topics were introduced through the course of the day
including: braking, downshifting, body position, weight transfer through the
pegs, maintaining a light touch on the handlebars, and body steering. But throttle
management was a concept that came up again and again. Reg said that as the
rider, you are the only one in control of that throttle. It can get you into
trouble but it can also get you out of trouble if you know how to manage it
well.
During one of the morning track sessions a few
riders were exhibiting some poor judgment with regard to passing in the turns.
After that the topic of track safety came up several times. We also looked at
the best lines to take through the corners. We came back to that one repeatedly
as speeds and confidence levels picked up.
The overarching principles of the day were: keep
loose, stay in control of the throttle, go slow to go fast, and do it all smoothly
(shifting, braking, body transitions).
For me personally, the first time I was out on
the track I was pretty nervous and kinda stiff-armed. I was wondering if my
lines on the track were still OK because I had a few people passing me in weird
places. Before we went out the third time I asked one of the instructors (Terry)
to work with me. He had me follow him, then he followed me. After our 20 minutes
was up he gave me some valuable feedback: he said “You are so stiff out
there! It’s really obvious. You need to relax your upper body more so
that your corners can be smoother.” It turns out that even though I thought
I was relaxing my arms, I really wasn’t. And all that tension was being
telegraphed to the forks. Terry also suggested that I might want to get above
2nd gear at some point. (By the end of the 2nd day I was into 4th on the straights!)
As my first day on the track progressed I worked
on each newly introduced concept and kept Terry’s advice in mind. By the
end of day 1 was feeling more confident and had figured out how to lower my
center of gravity and loosen my arms. I had received some advice about gripping
the tank with my knees in the corners so as to keep my body weight off the bars.
What a cool feeling!
Two
other cool things happened on Day 1. First, for a donation of $100 to the Pediatric
Brain Tumor Foundation you could have a ride around the track with Reg. WOO
HOO! I couldn't let that one pass me by. I rode with Reg on his VFR for three
laps. It was that scary kind of thrill you get on a roller coaster. The lean
angles were unbelievable and the speeds were enough to raise a fear of blowing
off the back of the bike if I loosened my grip on the tank! (Reg asked his passengers
to reach around him and hold on to the tank.) Reg is 64 and he took me on the
most exciting ride of my life. He was only offering a limited number of rides
each day. I wanted to do it on my first day so I could see where he was shifting
and braking and I could feel the lean angles of a professional.
Reg’s shifts and braking were so smooth
that the only way you detected them was by hearing the change in the sound of
the engine. In addition to being a real thrill, it gave me a huge appreciation
for what these bikes are capable of – in the right hands. I also learned
to trust my tires more.
The second cool thing that happened was getting
a nice compliment from Reg himself. He singled me out in class near the end of
Day 1 by asking “who has ROCKT on the tag of their bike?” (As I mentioned,
that’s my plate – it’s supposed to be pronounced ROCKeT.) Then
he told the whole class that I was holding the best line on the track, was very
predictable and smooth and wasn’t making any strange moves out there. “Great
job,” he said, and it sure made me feel 10 feet tall! I wasn’t the
fastest bike out there, but I was doing something right! Day
2 was a carbon copy of Day 1 in terms of the course outline. Several other people
had registered for two days, but we had a lot of new people in the class. The
difference for me was that I was already familiar with the track and I had tried
out all the techniques the day before. Now I was ready to go farther with them
and maybe pick up my speed.
Day
2 was a BLAST! My grin from Day 1 only got bigger as I worked on staying loose
and improving my line on the track. I also increased my lean angle dramatically.
I started turning the bike by applying pressure through the pegs. My top speed
on the front straight was 100mph and I got up into 4th gear. I learned a lot
about smooth downshifts. And I got pretty good at looking far ahead and
thinking ahead by a couple turns to plan my line.
I did scare myself a couple times. Once, something
told me I was going into turn 1 too fast. I carried that fear into
turn 5 where I went wide. That’s when a little voice inside my head
said “relax, loosen your grip, your tension is keeping the bike from being
able to turn!” From that point on I loved turn
5. The lighter and looser my grip, the easier it was for the bike to get
my input to turn. It’s really weird, but it’s almost like a dance.
You can’t force the bike, your partner, to do certain things, but if you
stay loose you can work together to do many things!
My other little scare came when I carried too
much speed into turn 1 (again), made a messy downshift and fish-tailed a little.
Other than that, it was a fantastic experience.
My goals were to learn skills that would make
me a better street rider, to know my bike’s capabilities better and be
more comfortable with it, and to test myself a little. I did all that and more.
Much more! I have more confidence about my riding, and more respect for my bike.
She’s capable of far more than I knew.
I’m also looking forward to my next time
on the track. Hopefully I won't have to wait too long. Barber is a fantastic
track. I was spoiled to have had my first track experience on such an amazing
roller coaster! It’s beautiful in every way. It has some wonderful challenges
and traps. It must be as much of a thrill ride for real racers as it was for
me.
One of the instructors told me I should get knee
pucks for the next time I come to CLASS because he thinks I’m getting
close to putting a knee down. Who knows, maybe I will!
Two
days with my beloved SV on a REAL race track! What a fantastic 40th birthday
present. My wish came true with the gift of two days in Reg Pridmore’s
CLASS Rides school (www.classrides.com)
at the Barber Motorsports track. Reg won 3 AMA Superbike Championships and has
been teaching better technique to riders since 1974, under the CLASS banner
since 1986. In 1998 CLASS was chosen the Best Street Riding School by Motorcyclist
magazine, and in 2002 Reg achieved the honor of being inducted into the AMA
Hall of Fame.