California Superbike School, Level 1. My impressions

[Erci]

No sense writing a *review*.. plenty of them out there on the web, but figured I'd share my experience and observations with you all.

I have to start out by saying I had a blast! It was really fun to experience what it's like to push the bike far past street-acceptable levels, in terms of both speed and lean angles.

The school-provided BMW S1000RR is a very smooth and responsive machine with ridiculous amounts of power, but to be fair I've only test-ridden other supersports.. have never owned one.
Let me put it this way.. the BMW makes my FZ1 feel very VERY slow. I did 1st 2 sessions in rain mode and last 3 in sport mode. Having said that, I still don't get why anyone would want it (or any other supersport bike) for street use :don'tknow:

I did find it interesting that the school does not require certain amount of experience to attend level 1. The requirement is: "Students must have some riding experience - we do not train first time riders."

I have many years and miles or riding experience and this was anything, but easy, with tremendous amount of information to learn in a relatively short amount of time. I have to imagine that someone with few months of riding experience would be heavily overloaded.

It was really good to be a student for a change. I believe any teacher / coach / instructor should experience what it's like to be a student every now and then, so this was definitely a bonus for me. It was great to get instructions from coaches on new skills as well as on skills which I felt I already possessed, but realized I could further improve.

The hardest thing for me was switching off my street riding approach. I am so used to constantly scanning for factors and seeing well through turns (very late apex) that the concept of earlier turning points was eluding me until turning points were marked on track. There are no intersections and there won't be a car approaching you head on in a blind curve.. that's guaranteed. Can I be 100% sure that there's no bike / rider lying on the track in my path just as I make it up a hill? But anyway..
Once I knew the correct (suggested) turning point for every corner, things changed dramatically. It went from 1st session being physically and mentally exhausting to 2nd session being fun and educational.. and it kept getting better from then on.

Looking forward to doing level 2 next year (and hopefully 3, same year).

 

[TheSandman13]

No sense writing a *review*.. plenty of them out there on the web, but figured I'd share my experience and observations with you all.

I have to start out by saying I had a blast! It was really fun to experience what it's like to push the bike far past street-acceptable levels, in terms of both speed and lean angles.

The school-provided BMW S1000RR is a very smooth and responsive machine with ridiculous amounts of power, but to be fair I've only test-ridden other supersports.. have never owned one.
Let me put it this way.. the BMW makes my FZ1 feel very VERY slow. I did 1st 2 sessions in rain mode and last 3 in sport mode. Having said that, I still don't get why anyone would want it (or any other supersport bike) for street use :don'tknow:

I did find it interesting that the school does not require certain amount of experience to attend level 1. The requirement is: "Students must have some riding experience - we do not train first time riders."

I have many years and miles or riding experience and this was anything, but easy, with tremendous amount of information to learn in a relatively short amount of time. I have to imagine that someone with few months of riding experience would be heavily overloaded.

It was really good to be a student for a change. I believe any teacher / coach / instructor should experience what it's like to be a student every now and then, so this was definitely a bonus for me. It was great to get instructions from coaches on new skills as well as on skills which I felt I already possessed, but realized I could further improve.

The hardest thing for me was switching off my street riding approach. I am so used to constantly scanning for factors and seeing well through turns (very late apex) that the concept of earlier turning points was eluding me until turning points were marked on track. There are no intersections and there won't be a car approaching you head on in a blind curve.. that's guaranteed. Can I be 100% sure that there's no bike / rider lying on the track in my path just as I make it up a hill? But anyway..
Once I knew the correct (suggested) turning point for every corner, things changed dramatically. It went from 1st session being physically and mentally exhausting to 2nd session being fun and educational.. and it kept getting better from then on.

Looking forward to doing level 2 next year (and hopefully 3, same year).

I assume you went to the one in New Jersey. Was the amount of instruction you received for the price a good value? How long did it last?

-

 

[Erci]

I assume you went to the one in New Jersey. Was the amount of instruction you received for the price a good value? How long did it last?

-

Yeah, the one in NJ. It's an all day thing. 7am to 5pm.

Amount of instruction was adequate for me. There are 5 classroom portions, each one lasting about 20 minutes. These go over certain drill / technique before you go out on track and apply it. On track, a coach will ride in front of you for 5-6 turns, giving you hand signals. Coach will also watch you from the side / back. After each riding session, you talk to the coach 1 on 1 for few minutes to discuss the drill which was practiced and to see what you can do to get better.

 

[metallicat]

So now no one will catch you on the group rides?! :spank:

 

[Erci]

So now no one will catch you on the group rides?! :spank:

No.. now I'll go even slower on group rides :rof:

 

[Erci]

Few pictures

My friend Dave's GXR (putting out about 168hp.. aftermarket traction control, fuel management, rear sets with reverse quick shifter and some other goodies)

Just a picture worthy bike:

Me, completely spent after 1st session (it was the hardest one of the day for me)

 

[Lefty]

Not to devulge my age but I took the California Superbike School in 1987 at Luguna Seca on a Ninja 600. It was so long ago that Keith Code was actually there!
The best part was the following year I volunteered to be a corner worker at the school (for no pay) but during the breaks the corner workers could have free track time on their own bikes, in my case being my Interceptor VFR 500. You haven't lived until you've done the Corkscrew at Laguna. :rockon:

 

[Misti]

Not to devulge my age but I took the California Superbike School in 1987 at Luguna Seca on a Ninja 600. It was so long ago that Keith Code was actually there!
The best part was the following year I volunteered to be a corner worker at the school (for no pay) but during the breaks the corner workers could have free track time on their own bikes, in my case being my Interceptor VFR 500. You haven't lived until you've done the Corkscrew at Laguna. :rockon:

Hahahah sweet Keith has been attending and teaching at most of the schools since then and has only missed a few since 1987! I've been a coach with the school for the past 10 years and I LOVE IT!! I couldn't imagine a better "job" in the whole world. So, to the OP, thanks for posting up about your experiences and to anyone else please let me know if you have any further questions about the school or about any of the techniques taught.

The cool thing about the school in my opinion is that while there is a lot of information to process, coaches work with students in a way where they are only doing one thing at a time and this helps facilitate learning a lot better than if we chuck a whole bunch of things at you and expect you to figure it all out at the same time.

Happy riding!

Misti

 

[Erci]

The cool thing about the school in my opinion is that while there is a lot of information to process, coaches work with students in a way where they are only doing one thing at a time and this helps facilitate learning a lot better than if we chuck a whole bunch of things at you and expect you to figure it all out at the same time.

Absolutely! Same approach we teach in MSF. One skill at a time and if we spot a ride doing multiple things wrong (as many as 5-6 at the same time), we pick out 2 of the most critical ones (sometimes just one) and just point those out. Overloading kills learning (at least when it comes to adults).

 

[MG-242]

Not to devulge my age but I took the California Superbike School in 1987 at Luguna Seca on a Ninja 600. It was so long ago that Keith Code was actually there!
The best part was the following year I volunteered to be a corner worker at the school (for no pay) but during the breaks the corner workers could have free track time on their own bikes, in my case being my Interceptor VFR 500. You haven't lived until you've done the Corkscrew at Laguna. :rockon:

Ahem! I did it at Mid-Ohio in October of 1984 on a GPZ-550! :thumbup: And the best part for me was the following spring I safety wired my SR500 and started racing with WERA. Talk about a little taste of track-crack! Been hooked ever since!

 

[Verharen]

Ahem! I did it at Mid-Ohio in October of 1984 on a GPZ-550! :thumbup: And the best part for me was the following spring I safety wired my SR500 and started racing with WERA. Talk about a little taste of track-crack! Been hooked ever since!

That's why I'm afraid to do it, or even just a regular track day. I think I might be too vulnerable to this addiction...

 

[MG-242]

That's why I'm afraid to do it, or even just a regular track day. I think I might be too vulnerable to this addiction...

I can fully appreciate that. I've been known to corrupt many a rider. It doesn't help your credit card account either. But, it is well worth it in making you a better and safer rider. You find that when you go back out on the street with your newly learned skills, everything slows giving you much more time and space to react.

Come on, just one hit........

Back on topic - Keith does an outstanding job if for nothing else, it makes you think about what you do on the bike and how you do it, has such an impact on so many things.

 

[Erci]

You find that when you go back out on the street with your newly learned skills, everything slows giving you much more time and space to react.

I'll second that. I do feel a bit bored on the street now and I'm not about to push it any harder than I used to. That'll be saved for the track

 

[Misti]

I can fully appreciate that. I've been known to corrupt many a rider. It doesn't help your credit card account either. But, it is well worth it in making you a better and safer rider. You find that when you go back out on the street with your newly learned skills, everything slows giving you much more time and space to react.

Come on, just one hit........

Back on topic - Keith does an outstanding job if for nothing else, it makes you think about what you do on the bike and how you do it, has such an impact on so many things.

Hahaha, come on, just one hit I think we are all vulnerable to this addiction!

You are right that it is well worth it though, track riding and good quality instruction helps make you a much better and safer rider on the street. Can't put a price tag on that!

Misti

 

[Misti]

Ahem! I did it at Mid-Ohio in October of 1984 on a GPZ-550! :thumbup: And the best part for me was the following spring I safety wired my SR500 and started racing with WERA. Talk about a little taste of track-crack! Been hooked ever since!

Hahaha, yep that's pretty much what happens you get a taste of the track and you're hooked! :cheer:

 

[Nelly]

Few pictures

My friend Dave's GXR (putting out about 168hp.. aftermarket traction control, fuel management, rear sets with reverse quick shifter and some other goodies)

Just a picture worthy bike:

Me, completely spent after 1st session (it was the hardest one of the day for me)

So quick no bike required....

Cheers

Nelly