it appears to be an optical illusion. The front tire is also seen but appears to be part of the rear tire, just for a little bit causing what looks to be a flat spot. The right curve of the tire is actually the edge of the front tire. Anyone else see that?

nope, you can see the front tire to the left of the rear

Actually I think you are right... Would need a more high res picture to be able to make out the tires from each other though... But with that making up the "bulge" that doesn't belong there on the right side, I'd still say there is enough of a flat spot on the centre of the tire to give it a pronounced ridge... Not really good for track... I did spin my rear tire on that ridge a couple of times just before I swapped... (I somehow managed to wear the edges and the center but not much in between... Makes for a very strange feeling rear...)

29/29, so you're pretty close.

That is really strange. Though I think it IS the front tire making the rear profile an illusion.

Cuz I'm fukkin fast as hell....duh! No, actually it depends on the track. I will run further back on a large fast track. The tighter the better for me. NJMP is pretty tight and that was mid-pack.

I think it was an illusion cause I went and checked the tires again. It's got a good shape to it, and hardly worn in the middle at all. There must be some other explanation. :shock:

I'll get high res pictures later in the week from the photographer, so that may show more.

Here's another one. Same corner, similar time of day. :confused:

ok i guess i was a little wrong, the tire looks better in that pic, but you still have a bit of a flat spto.

Yeah, maybe a little. But at least it doesn't look like he has a car tire there anymore! :eek:

Looking good there Dave. One suggestion I would have is that your head needs to be turned left and preferably down (toward the mirror position of your fairing).

That's the most fun you can have with your clothes on, huh! BREAK A LEG BUDDY. :)

You are 10000000% correct. One of the great thing about the professional track pics is being able to see yourself. As is probably the case with newer track riders, I "forgot" some of the eariler track lessons because I got too focused on improving speed. Funny though, my form looked lots better on my Triumph. I already decided that my next track day is going to be devoted to better form and cornering and not on the speed.

At the time the pictures were taken, I was really (overly) concerned about my speed with having moved up to Intermediate in the middle of the day. In my zest to run at better speeds so that I wasn't a hindrance to other "I" riders, I went brain-dead on form. I'll be working on it though! :)

That's how you learn. Just look past the riders ahead of you to where you're going next. After you get used to it, it becomes habit allowing more attention for other aspects of your learning.

I always try to remember the "go slow to go fast" mentality because it works. And given all the technology and the recent evolution of riding schools, learning can occur faster and to a higher degree than possible just a few years ago. Read Kevin Cameron's CW article on what Maladin had to do to get on top and stay there.:)

I'll be at CMP their first session of the year practicing it! :D

I finally got around to reading A Twist of the Wrist II, by Keith Code.

His description and instruction on adjustment of chassis attitude and weight distribution through throttle control is absolutely golden. It makes perfect sense, but I never would have figured it out.

I very highly recommend it for all track day riders. NCDave, it may very well be the root cause of your traction problem. Probably is.

I won't be tuning my suspension for a while. It's all in the right wrist.
Now I really want to go riding...

You could be right. I'll have to pick up the book and take a look. I don't know squat about suspension tuning, so I paid the company at the track to do an initial setup. I can't honestly say that was or wasn't part of the reasons though.

The turn you crashed in is a very hard turn, I would sooner blame cold tires over worn tires. What lap was it on? With the temps we had it could take 3 or more laps to warm up the left side of the tires. We have a bunch of guys running in the A group with PPs, they aren't bad, but I run the Power Race tires. I was glad to see the Super Hawks at the track.

Jay
Sundays lead instuctor, the guy with the Super Hawk Streetfighter.

I was on about lap 7 or 8, so it wasn't that they were cold. My primary guess is that I spun the tire coming out of the turn and it slid out from under me. That's my story and I'm sticking to it! :-D

Hey...for everyone else that was commenting about my squared-off-tire picture, I finally got the hi res pics. It's still hard to tell, even with them, but the right part of the tire is actually the front. I can tell by the blurry edges of the right compared with the left being clear. That's cause the front tire on the right side being farther away did not focus as well. Anyway mystery solved. :D