Bmc & Pirelli Trackday Sunday 6Th Feb 2011

[charlieman]

BMC & Pirelli Trackday is on this Sunday 6th February 2011 at Bira Circuit (Pattaya)

Competizioni Moto (CM) is organising open motorcycle track day at Bira International circuit for bikes 250cc and above.

Track day is the best place to practice your riding style and to go fast in a safer environment than on the public road.

It is also a good opportunity to meet up with fellow bikers.

For those of you who want to experience the thrill of motorcycle racing, join our friendly race at 15.30 in BMC Pirelli SBK Trophy.

Registration Fees

+ 1,500 Baht

- 300 baht rebate for bike fitted with Pirelli tyres front & rear

- 200 baht rebate for bike fitted with BMC air filters and BMC decals on the bike

+ 400 Registration Fee for Pirelli SBK Trophy (optional)

Red Group :

Racer & very experienced track day riders

Green Group:

This group will include riders that have had racetrack experience and/or are comfortable at an increased speed.

Blue Group:

Beginners

Itenary BMC Pirelli SBK Trackday 8.30 - 15.30

8.00 - 8.30All riders register and sign liability waiver form8.30 - 9.00 Riders briefing9.00 - 15.30Riders proceed to the track for a 20 minute session, starts from the red group, green and blue respectively and repeatedly.

Itenary BMC Pirelli SBK Trophy 15.30 - 17.30

15.30 - 16.00 Racers register and draw for grid position.16.00 - 16.20 Race Green group 10 laps (no over taking rules) 16.20 - 16.40 Race Blue group 8 laps (no over taking rules) 16.40 - 17.00 Race Red group 10 laps (no over taking rules) 17.00 - 17.30 Trophy Presentation

For more details or register pls contact:

Charlie 089 003 8886 or <A href="mailto:[email protected]">[email protected]

[charlieman]

You can register via our website

http://www.competizioni-moto.com/trackday/index_eng.html

[BigBikeBKK]

Cheers Charlie!

I already started a thread about the upcoming Pirelli Track Day here:

and I included the poster that Ko sent to me:

Perhaps the mods can merge the threads?

Hope you received my RSVP that I emailed to you last week.

Look forward to seeing you on Sunday!

Tony

[VocalNeal]

You can register via our website

http://www.competizi.../index_eng.html

Hmm I might ride down. Not buying boots though just to ride on the track.

[BigBikeBKK]

You can register via our website

http://www.competizi.../index_eng.html

Hmm I might ride down. Not buying boots though just to ride on the track.

It always makes me a bit queasy to see guys riding in sneakers or even worse, sandals... I'd post a pic of a friend's mangled foot but it's probably too graphic for this forum. You really don't have to spend a lot to get some decent quality steel toe leather work boots that will offer you very good protection...

[VocalNeal]

You can register via our website

http://www.competizi.../index_eng.html

Hmm I might ride down. Not buying boots though just to ride on the track.

It always makes me a bit queasy to see guys riding in sneakers or even worse, sandals... I'd post a pic of a friend's mangled foot but it's probably too graphic for this forum. You really don't have to spend a lot to get some decent quality steel toe leather work boots that will offer you very good protection...

BTW the conditions specifically say no steel toe leather work boots.

"No construction boots or steel toes, trainers, tennisshoes, sandals.

Just don't feel the need to buy "special' motorcycle boots, and tape the lights . I was going to add something about the side stand but then realised it says must firmly retract which mine does. But then off course it is OK to have the centre stand flapping around but the side stand must be cable tied. Poppycock, elitist stuff. OK if one fancies oneself as a "red" guy but for green and blue who just want to ride around?

I have safely done many laps of Bira without all that stuff. Had a good time met some nice guys......

Might still come for a ride anyway.

Edited February 2, 2011 by VocalNeal

[BigBikeBKK]

Hmm I might ride down. Not buying boots though just to ride on the track.

It always makes me a bit queasy to see guys riding in sneakers or even worse, sandals... I'd post a pic of a friend's mangled foot but it's probably too graphic for this forum. You really don't have to spend a lot to get some decent quality steel toe leather work boots that will offer you very good protection...

BTW the conditions specifically say no steel toe leather work boots.

"No construction boots or steel toes, trainers, tennisshoes, sandals.

Just don't feel the need to buy "special' motorcycle boots, and tape the lights . I was going to add something about the side stand but then realised it says must firmly retract which mine does. But then off course it is OK to have the centre stand flapping around but the side stand must be cable tied. Poppycock, elitist stuff. OK if one fancies oneself as a "red" guy but for green and blue who just want to ride around?

I have safely done many laps of Bira without all that stuff. Had a good time met some nice guys......

Might still come for a ride anyway.

I was speaking about proper footwear in general, not just at the track... If you consider basic safety standards "elitist" so be it. (The rules aren't really enforced at BIRA anyway)... I've never seen a track bike with a centerstand...

[VocalNeal]

I was speaking about proper footwear in general, not just at the track... If you consider basic safety standards "elitist" so be it. (The rules aren't really enforced at BIRA anyway)... I've never seen a track bike with a centerstand...

It's their track day so they can have whatever conditions they wish. If however from a tire promotion point of view they wish to attract riders who may one day be interested in purchasing Pirelli tires then maybe the condition should be relaxed a little for the "blue" and "green" riders. The one most likely to crash are the "red" riders in the "race"

Riding around a track is a great way for the average or new rider to gain more knowledge about their or the bikes ability in a safe, stable environment with no traffic coming the other way.

As you say maybe it isn't such a big deal as I have never seen anyone discouraged from doing laps.

As for centre stands many bikes don't come with them but it doesn't say that say a BMW GS is excluded or a Versys or ER6 with an optional centre stand. It also doesn't say the bikes have to be "track bikes". Maybe some guys will actually ride to the track.

[BigBikeBKK]

I was speaking about proper footwear in general, not just at the track... If you consider basic safety standards "elitist" so be it. (The rules aren't really enforced at BIRA anyway)... I've never seen a track bike with a centerstand...

It's their track day so they can have whatever conditions they wish. If however from a tire promotion point of view they wish to attract riders who may one day be interested in purchasing Pirelli tires then maybe the condition should be relaxed a little for the "blue" and "green" riders. The one most likely to crash are the "red" riders in the "race"

Riding around a track is a great way for the average or new rider to gain more knowledge about their or the bikes ability in a safe, stable environment with no traffic coming the other way.

As you say maybe it isn't such a big deal as I have never seen anyone discouraged from doing laps.

As for centre stands many bikes don't come with them but it doesn't say that say a BMW GS is excluded or a Versys or ER6 with an optional centre stand. It also doesn't say the bikes have to be "track bikes". Maybe some guys will actually ride to the track.

Actually mate I assure you the "conditions" are VERY relaxed, and most of the accidents happen in the Blue group because that's where most of the the least capable bikes and inexperienced riders are...

In fact some of the Blue Group riders could benefit a lot from some new tires...

I can't speak for Charlie and Ko and the other organizers of the Pirelli Track Days, but I rather suspect the safety language you read on their site is copy and paste from an event in the US, UK or Australia, because here in Thailand they do no scrutineering of the bikes whatsoever, no safety wiring is required, and everyone seems extremely permissive of the types of bikes and gear people take out on the track. I saw a guy turn up on a maxi scooter in sneakers and a jean jacket and they let him participate...

So, come on down, check it out, and by all means, go out for some sessions! If you take it easy there should be no drama. They have flag-men at all the corners and medical staff on hand all day. It's a hell of a deal for 1500 Baht or less.

Happy Trails!

Tony

ps. they even have a top notch fire crew!!!

T

Edited February 3, 2011 by BigBikeBKK

[VocalNeal]

In fact, it's probably the Blue Group riders who would benefit most from some new Pirelli Tires..

Exactly

No scrutineering

I'll need to get really enthusiastic and find a riding partner from BKK.

[BigBikeBKK]

In fact, it's probably the Blue Group riders who would benefit most from some new Pirelli Tires..

Exactly

No scrutineering

I'll need to get really enthusiastic and find a riding partner from BKK.

Um...

Not sure the meaning of your smilies...

Scrutineering is common in most motor sports. Racing series typically have a set of technical regulations to which the cars, bikes or other vehicles must conform. The role of the scrutineer in this case is to confirm that vehicles entered for the race meet the relevant regulations.

As I mentioned earlier, the Pirelli Track Day is pretty casual and there is no formal scrutineering of bikes at the event.

See you on Sunday!

T

[VocalNeal]

[um...

Not sure the meaning of your smilies...

You said it not me. Hence the smile.

because here in Thailand they do no scrutineering of the bikes whatsoever,

Have been on both sides of the scrutineering process when I used to race I do know what it entails. In cases where the process is , shall we say, relaxed there is usually someone wandering around and unofficially checking to make sure there are no glaring infractions.

Edited February 3, 2011 by VocalNeal

[VocalNeal]

Went to track day. I confess I did drive there not ride.

I was encouraged to see no bike with taped up lights Even a guy doing laps on a humble new CBR250 and what looked like a stock Versys. I met at least one old friend and also happy that there were a couple of stokers doing laps. Even the guy on the stock Multistrada was doing well and Graham's bike with the open pipe sounds quite nice.

May even be encouraged to purchase required riding boots. But may have to get a gum shield to avoid losing teeth on Bangna-Trat

For anyone who has not been the circuit is getting quite civilized with a restaurant/noodle-shop and a convenience store.

[ChangNoi1]

Blime me ... I actually live near the track ... worse I drove past it early that day.

And I always read that therw WAS a track-day. Not that I am racer, but it would be nice to meet other riders.

So how do I find out when the next track day is?

Chang Noi

[BigBikeBKK]

Fantastic fun at the Pirelli Track Day at BIRA Circuit yesterday-

West showed up with TWO bikes! His Ducati Multistrada and his Suzuki GSX-R K5-

LOTS of impressive hardware!!!

The Suzuki GSX-R 1000 seems to be the top choice for most track junkies-

These super-friendly guys got up at 2am and drove all the way from Hua Hin with their Buell Thunderbolt!

First time at BIRA and they went on to win second place in the Blue race!

TBC!

Edited February 7, 2011 by BigBikeBKK

[BigBikeBKK]

Ko had his beautiful S1000RR on display but unfortunately he didn't take it out on the track this day...

KTM RC8!

MV Agusta F4!

Ducati 749s (never seen one of these before)-

another beautiful Ducati-

Honda CBR1000RR-

A bright pink CBR... He was fast so I forgive him his color choice

Pirelli had a couple of pretties on hand which of course put a big smile on Banana Boy's face-

I didn't mind posing for a shot either

TBC!

[BigBikeBKK]

Things were going well and I was clocking some decent lap times when I nearly crashed... Got to the end of the straight doing about 240kph and then on the front brake hard going down the hill when my front brake lever suddenly sank all the way to the grip and I lost my front brakes!

Got on the rear brake and managed to scrub off some speed but there was no way I was going to make the corner so I went off the track but managed to keep her shiny side up and stop before I hit the wall- whew!

Pumped the brake lever and the pressure came back, but was still pretty spongy... Got back to the pits and tried to figure out what made my brakes fail. I installed a new ZX10R reservoir a few months ago and bled the brakes myself so I knew there shouldn't be any air bubbles. Fluid level was fine and still quite clear. No leaks. What else can cause brakes to fail like that I wondered?

I looked and it seemed the pads were still ok. Turns out, they weren't! Got home and took apart the calipers and finally figured out the problem.

Here are the pads out of my right caliper-

The pad on the left, which is the outside pad, is cracked. Probably no big deal, and it still has over a millimeter of pad left. That's the pad I can see when the calipers are on the bike. I always assumed that brake pads wear more or less evenly. Looking at the inside pad (the one on the right in the picture above) I now know that my assumption about even pad wear is wrong. The inside pad is down to almost nothing- there is only about a fingernail's width of pad material left!

Left caliper pads were even worse:

Here again, the outside pad is ok, but the inside pad is toast- only a bit of brake pad left, leaving the backing to press directly upon the disc, no doubt creating a lot of heat, but not much braking power.

I actually did a few more sessions yesterday with the bike and only figured out the problem when I got home and took the calipers apart. But I was a lot lighter on the brakes and they stayed with me for the rest of the day.

Lesson learned! Just because one pad appears ok does not mean the other pad is ok! Check ALL pads regularly!

I'm not even sure what kind of pads these were, but I'm replacing them with EBC HH sintered pads and expect good things from them.

Ride On!

Tony

Edited February 7, 2011 by BigBikeBKK

[BigBikeBKK]

So after losing my brakes I decided to take it easy and slapped on the GoPro hoping to get some decent footage while following people.

Well, turns out my placement of the camera, while fine on the road (where despite what some like to say I ride rather conservatively), was not fine for track where I lean the bike over a bit more-

Ended up rashing the camera case and bracket on some of the right turns and unfortunately the impact/vibration caused the memory card to pop out so the video was corrupted...

Ah well, at least the camera is fine, so I'll just have to be a bit more careful where I put it next time

Ride On!

Tony

[JonnyF]

Nice report Tony, really good to see all those bikes, some pretty rare bikes anywhere in the world but in Thailand - quite a collection!

How did you go on the track? Good finish?

[BigBikeBKK]

So, not trusting my brakes I decided not to race, which earned me the SOFT COCK of the day award

Ah well, better a soft cock than a dead one!

West entered the Blue race on his Ducati Multistrada-

His umbrella boys were a bit, um, distracted

Weren't we all!

Grid positions were determined by random draw and West took position 4 with three Gixxers in front of him-

Trio of Gixxers-

Ready to race!!!

Go West!

As always seems to be the case at these events, there were a lot of fast racers in the "beginner" group...

I was particularly "impressed" by the "beginner" on the GSXR who pulled a wheel stand for the length of the straight and lapped half the field... . Yeah, he belongs in the Blue group... NOT!

Green Race next!

[NormanW]

So, not trusting my brakes I decided not to race, which earned me the SOFT COCK of the day award

Ah well, better a soft cock than a dead one!

West entered the Blue race on his Ducati Multistrada-

His umbrella boys were a bit, um, distracted

Weren't we all!

Grid positions were determined by random draw and West took position 4 with three Gixxers in front of him-

Trio of Gixxers-

Ready to race!!!

Go West!

As always seems to be the case at these events, there were a lot of fast racers in the "beginner" group...

I was particularly "impressed" by the "beginner" on the GSXR who pulled a wheel stand for the length of the straight and lapped half the field... . Yeah, he belongs in the Blue group... NOT!

Green Race next!

I'm glad my mate Tony didn't race, as I suspect I would be now visiting him in hospital now. I didn't want to wait the 2 hours for the race and so also got a 'soft cock award'.

Never mind, it is my daily commuter bike afterall eh.

Keep those good times rolling.

Note to self: Take photos because we can't re-live these great times we are living!!!!!!!!:jap: :jap:

[NormanW]

Tony, for the next track day I will buy a camera like yours. Where is the best place to get one, and a bracket with a suction pad as well?????????

Then as I follow you, be able to upload onto youtube etc.:jap:

Edited February 7, 2011 by NormanW

[BigBikeBKK]

Tony, for the next track day I will buy a camera like yours. Where is the best place to get one, and a bracket with a suction pad as well?????????

Then as I follow you, be able to upload onto youtube etc.:jap:

Kratos is the official distributor for GoPro in Thailand and there are already quite a few retail shops selling GoPro cameras and accessories in Thailand.

You can find a list of shops on their website:

http://www.kratos.co.th/

Ride On!

Tony

[BigBikeBKK]

WOOT!

[BigBikeBKK]

[BigBikeBKK]

WOOT!

My K5 is for sale btw- http://classifieds.thaivisa.com/automotives-vehicles/motorcycles/suzuki-gsx-r-1000-gixxer-k5-fully-legal-with-book-for-sale-86363.html

Planning to upgrade to something even BETTER!

Ride On!

Tony

[NormanW]

Cheers Tony

[NormanW]

WOOT!

My K5 is for sale btw- http://classifieds.t...sale-86363.html

Planning to upgrade to something even BETTER!

Ride On!

Tony

Your're selling the Beast???????????

That is a seriously FAST/RAPID/NO SLOUCH/ MEGA QUICK/SUPER SWIFT bike man.

Good price too.

[BigBikeBKK]

This one's for you NormanW!

[NormanW]

This one's for you NormanW!

Cheers Tony.

I was wondering who the Thai guy was on the 180 after the first left hander?

I am trying to track him down, he had a blonde wave in his hair and looked like he was downing a sterling job of us with our right knee scraping the track. Did you notice him?

He must have some brilliant pics of us??????????