Table of contents for March 2019 in Fast Bikes

Yep, I know what you’re thinking – it’s going to be a bit chilly, and it might be a tad wet, but when you get to ride your bike on track, who cares? We sure don’t, and it’s the first sign of impending summer which is always good… So if you fancy it, the No Limits trackday season kicks off on February 16 – a weekend date for all you folks who slog along with the 9-5. It’s at Mallory Park, and with four groups throughout the day, there’s something for everyone. The best part though? It will only set you back £65, which is an absolute bargain... To get booked on, or check out any other of the dates coming up in the UK or in Europe, check out…

HJC RPHA 11 MONSTER 94 Who doesn’t love a race rep, especially when it has the Monster logo plastered on a stealthy dark design? No one, probably. The latest HJC RPHA 11 helmet, sees a Jonas Folger rep stuck on their PIM Plus shell construction of carbon fibre, aramid and carbon-glass hybrid fibre which offers enhanced shock resistant performance with enhanced comfort and a light weight. The lid comes with a clear and light smoke visor, alongside a Pinlock anti-fog lens included in the price as well. £469.99 www.oxfordproducts.com KEIS G501 PREMIUM HEATED ARMOURED GLOVES Winter time is grim really, isn’t it? Well in order to be a little less dreary, Keis have just released their new heated gloves; these G501s. Made from abrasion resistant fabric and leather,…

It always pays to be a step ahead of the game – when we left the hotel on the morning of our track ride I convinced Frodo it was his turn to ride the ZX-6R. That way, when we made it to the track it would be my turn to take the Ninja for its maiden track voyage. He fell for it, hook, line and sinker and my plan worked a treat. We arrived at Circuit de la Ribera in good time for our track session as neither of us could wait to see how well the Kwacka performed on track. Circuit de la Ribera is a tight and twisty little circuit and not much bigger than a kart track so the first few laps on the 636 were a…

We were so impressed with the power figures of the 636 that we thought we ought to see for ourselves just what sort of bhp the thing delivers at the back wheel. So off we went to see our mates at Black and White Bikes in search of some real life power and torque figures. Once we had strapped the ZX-6R down to the test bed, and helped Paul locate a pickup for the rev counter on the dynamometer (actually I think we just got in the way while he located it himself), the little Ninja was fired up, warmed up, and then given a right good pasting. After a few power runs, the best reading we saw was 115bhp, so we asked Paul what he made of it. “That’s…

Pumping out a claimed 90bhp, the CB was the most powerful of the bikes in this mix. It was also the only inline-four and carried the crown for being the priciest too. But at £6,799, you’re hardly breaking the bank. Besides, the Honda sported an air of supremacy in the build quality department. It looked the most finished of the options and drew your eye to its each and every orifice. Okay, it’s never going to make die hard sportsbike fans drool, but the 12-spoke wheels are hard to ignore, as is the case with the wavy discs and the stubby, slash-cut exhaust, fed by iconic 400/4 style headers. Yeah, it looked pretty damn good and paid homage to the deceased Hornet that supplied this model’s DNA. Just like the…

So there we have it, four very different bikes, offering four lots of differing virtues and harbouring more hang-ups than you’ll find in a picture framing shop. Being honest, there was no perfect performer in this gaggle but each seemed able to trump the others in their own unique way. For me, no bike can match the MT’s motor. It wasn’t the most powerful in the mix, but the torque it offered shamed the rest and made wheelies so easy even Frodo could have pulled one. But all that grunt came at a price; namely to your retinas with this particular model’s colourways. There’s no denying this second iteration Yammy has upped its game, and its pricing, but it still looked and felt a bit cheap in places, especially when…

As a little treat, Yamaha let us sample their full-fat GYTR (Genuine Yamaha Technology Racing) World Supersport 300 spec machine for a session and it was an absolute bloody hoot. Dialled in by the Official Yamaha riders on track the day before, these R3s ditch all the excess road tack and don’t mess about when it comes to trick parts. One of these will come equipped with uprated Brembos, Ohlins suspension front and rear, a kit ECU and loom, quick-action throttle, a full system, slight modified piston, cams, gasket kit and air funnel design which when combined with some sticky Pirelli Supercorsa rubber and a whole job lot of other little trick bits makes a corner-speed hungry apex hunter. Trick, eh? Jumping on board the only thing that resembled the…

CROOSIN’ Hi guys, please see attached a picture of my Ducati Diavel on a lovely winter’s day ride in Hertfordshire. Not much else to say other than this bike is awesome and I love every minute that I ride it. Hope if nothing else you enjoy seeing my picture. Kind regards. Steve Jerome FB: That’s a mega photo! We’ve got some plans to do some cool stuff on one of these, so keep an eye out… AS SEEN ON FACEBOOK FAST BIKES MAGAZINE: Are there any TL1000S owners out there? Or is it another one to add to the list of bikes you wish you never sold? We want to know your thoughts on Suzuki’s original widow-maker… Marc Le Sueur: Owned one, raced one, and anyone who said they are…

Q I had a scary moment riding my bike into London. I was approaching red traffic lights in a three lane carriageway. In lane one was a large earth moving truck and in lane two was a foreign registered articulated lorry. I looked at the gap between the trucks and went for it. I thought I could squeeze through, but then I realised I would not get through the gap. Just as I realised I was not going to get through the gap the lights turned green and both trucks moved off, and I was stuck between them. I had my left foot down, which the earth moving truck ran over, and it broke some bones in my foot. The foreign truck ground against my hand, but I managed to…

WHAT IS IT? Exactly what it says on the tin. This is a specialist tool used to break and rivet motorcycle chains. HOW DOES IT WORK? Just like a Swiss army knife there are quite a few functions to this Bikeservice chain breaker and riveter, that’s capable of tackling chains from 415-632 pitch. The box the tool’s supplied in contains three different sizes of push pins. According to the size of chain you’re working with you’ll choose the most appropriate size pin and insert it into the body’s main chamber, being secured in place by the correct size guide for the pin (there are three different size holding tips – one for each pin). At the other end of the tool’s securing channel, you’ll insert another holding tip that’ll locate…

The Buildbase Suzuki BSB team, run by Hawk Racing are set to take on the BSB 2019 championship with Brad Ray and Luke Stapleford, but it’s taken 20 years for Hawk Racing to get to where they are today; they have had plenty of success but a few tricky seasons along the way. After a strong 2018 season in the British Superbike Championship which saw Ray securing a place in The Showdown, finally finishing sixth in the championship and teammate Rich Cooper ending the season in twelfth place, we caught up with Steve Hicken, boss of the Mallory Park based Superbike team. Hawk Racing has been a pretty big name in the British Superbike Championship for a lot of years now, but we wanted to know where it all started.…

I’ve been keeping myself busy over the last few months working with a gang of tarmackers and it’s been great. I’ve had a real good time learning about it, but the best bit has been working with the lads – we have a right laugh all the time. But it’s only going to be for another month or so, as my dad has asked me to come back to the farm. I think he is obviously missing my farming expertise – I’m the best fert’ spreader around, and soon there will more work than him and Tom can cope with. I just hope Tom hasn’t crashed all the tractors while I’ve been away. He manages to crash everything else! Since my last column we have had Christmas, which was a…

[I TurnOne Anglesey has one of the shortest start/finish straights in history (or so it seems), so you need to be prepared for Turn One . as soon as you're out the last corner, making sure you're on the right hand side of the track. Youwon't be carrying much speed in due to the short straight so the braking point is at about .. where the other track tarmac ..···ends, and make sure you get the ..···front nice and loaded - there's ···a chance you might not even .. need to downshift. .. There's a slight rise on the .. way into the corner and the .. outside grass will come out .. slightly on the way in, but hold it .. as late as you can; as you're past…

[I Brabham Straight It may be called Brabham Straight, but it's fair to say you won't be getting any time to rest. You've just exited Clarke Curve which means you'll be hard on the gas and holding on for dear life as you drift over to the left hand side of the track amid all the bumps. The track dips away before the rise into turn one, so be aware that you're going to be unsettled, and rear braking helps to keep things in check. In order to make things harder, the track is also fairly undulated as well towards the pit wall, so you'll be at a constant angle. Here you'll . probably be in about fifth gear .···(bike and gearing dependant) so it's incredibly quick, but be .…

Wait, what? No we aren’t pulling your leg, and you did actually just read that right. The Italian firm say they are ‘giving younger and less-experienced motorcyclists the opportunity to experience an MV Agusta’, by offering the naked Brutale 800 and the supersport style F3 675 in a castrated form so anyone on an A2 licence can ride them. Both bikes will come identical to the full blown models but will be electronically restricted to 47bhp; so you still get all the gadgets and gizmos like an up and down shifter, slipper clutch and eight stage traction control… just in case you need a hand holding on to all that power. On the brighter side though, if you do cough up the dosh to have one of these at 47bhp,…

Who doesn’t love some winter TLC? Well we sure do, especially when said improvement is set to develop two of the best circuits in the UK. Starting with Brands, the biggest change coming up is on the approach to Graham Hill Bend: the downhill left hander, as MSV are expanding the run-off area on the right hand side as you approach the corner. The ground level is being raised in certain areas to ensure that the new run-off lies on a consistent plane as well, so there won’t be any barrier smashing crashes like we’ve seen before… most recently Taz Mackenzie, who ended up missing the final round of BSB last year after suffering a concussion after crashing there. It’s not just the entry that’s being reworked though, as the…

Just when you thought that the Supersport sector was falling by the wayside, thanks to most of the main manufacturers ploughing their sportsbike R&D budgets into 1000cc (and sub 500cc, if you can call them sportsbikes) models, Kawasaki have pulled an all-new ZX-6R out of their magic green hat. It’s not really an all-new model – it uses the same 636cc motor and chassis as the outgoing ZX-6R 636 – but with some clever tweaks here and there. The decision to use the 636 motor in the new ZX-6R sparked a reasonable amount of controversy when it was announced, with die-hard racing fans arguing a 636cc engine would rule the new model out of Supersport competition. But there was method behind Kawasaki’s apparent madness. You see, with Euro 4 doing…

The decision to pitch the big Gixer thou’ R against the new ZX-6R was born from an alcohol lubricated discussion over the Christmas period. I say discussion; it was more of an argument. My friend's argument was that, as far as sportsbikes go, 600s are just for racing and could never hold a candle to a proper ‘superbike’ on the road. The friend in question has had a ton of Gixers over the years and one thing we could agree on was how fantastic a bike the current GSX-R1000R is, but we couldn’t agree on whether or not we wanted to see a resurgence in the Supersport sector. So once we'd finished flipping tables over and punching each other in the face (I mainly just got punched, as per) I…

It’s a fact that the latest and greatest sportsbikes can sometimes be a little bit too fruity for Her Majesty’s highways, so there should be no shame in looking to a more manageable alternative that offers all the thrills with less risk of personal harm or a spell in a cell. That’s not to say middleweight nakeds are pussycats, hell no, but you’re likely to hold on to your licence and your limbs for a little while longer, should you cast-off down this largely sub-100bhp, model-rich route. For the sake of science, a few laughs and some time out of the office we gathered together a cluster of naughty little nakeds that will neither break the bank nor pull your arms out of their sockets, but which are sure to…

If this test were based purely on fun ratings, you’d be staring at your winner. The MT is up there with a sauna full of Playboy Bunnies, and just as cheeky too. You only have to look at the thing to get it reared up on its hind wheel, terrorising the local driving instructors as you power your way past in pursuit of your first ASBO. Personally, I love it and can’t compliment Yamaha enough for making this A2 weapon as exciting as it is. When the MT first came out it was considered something of a parts-bin special, bolted together with more hand-me-down pieces than you’d find in a charity shop. It wasn’t pretty, but it kind of did the trick. Then in 2018 Yamaha got its pimp stick…

YAMAHA YZF-R3 There’s no replacement for displacement right? Nah, Wrong. If you measure a bike on fun alone, the sub-500cc category can offer some of the biggest and best laughs in the business, not to mention the fact it’s getting more people on two wheels… which is always good news. Yeah, it may not be as cool as the two-stroke terrors from yesteryear but we all had to start somewhere, and it’s much more of a laugh to blast around on one of these than some sort of chavved-up race car anyways – especially when said machine looks as fit as the R3. For ’19 Yamaha has given its little Supersport weapon a proper facelift, which not only improves the aerodynamics drastically (Yamaha quote a 9% reduction in drag), but…

One of the best 125cc machines on the market has just got tricker, quicker and better. 17 year olds have (almost) never had it so good… Who remembers their first bike? I certainly do, and it’s a memory that sticks for life… whether that be good or bad. So just imagine being 17 right now and sticking one of these in the garage; it would be pretty damn cool. I mean, for a four-stroke starter bike, the R125 has always been a popular weapon among the youth of today, and in its third reincarnation, it looks to have got even better. Much like the R3, the 125cc has been given a major overhaul externally, with a drop-dead gorgeous design that really does mimic its bigger siblings and improve the aerodynamics…

PERFORMANCE: • 1299 Superleggera full Akrapovic Ti exhaust • Sprint P08 air filter • RapidBike fuel module with pit limiter • Renthal front & rear sprockets w/ti bolt kit • DID chain • Samco hoses HANDLING: • 1299 Superleggera carbon wheels with Ti bolt kit • 1299 Superleggera rearsets • 1199 Superleggera titanium rear shock • Brembo GPRX callipers with Z04 pads • Venhill quick release brake lines • Brembo RCS 19 & 16 master cylinders with Ti bolt kit • Brembo span adjuster • CNC carbon calliper ducts AESTHETICS: • 1199 Superleggera top yoke • Ducabike left & right switch gear controls • Spider engine casings • Ducati fuel cap • Ducati race screen • Rizoma rear resi pot • Ducabike carbon pro-guard • Carbon clip-ons • Evotech rad…

YOSHIMURA RACE SYSTEM: The full titanium Yoshimura Alpha T system weighs less than a KFC Bargain Bucket, binning off just shy of eight kilograms when compared to the standard Suzuki exhaust pipe. This makes it the single most beneficial weight-saving item on the whole of the bike. FUEL CELL: The Suzuki’s superbike fuel tank only saves 500grams over a stock option, but it’s big enough to hold an extra eight litres of fuel. It’s also repositioned so the weight sits lower and more centralised in the bike, aiding the mass’s centre of gravity and improving the handling of the package. FORKS AND YOKES: Custom triple-clamp yokes alter the stiffness characteristics of the bike, while saving 250grams over the standard items. They hold the bike’s Bitubo superbike race-spec forks that reduce…

WINNING RIDE S Becki Ryan Honda CBR600RR Marrying my best friend and having our bikes watch. My husband and I met on a group called Facebook Bikers after he teased me about my CBR 600RR being slower than his GSXR 750. FB: Wow, fair play, that’s a bloody cool photo as well. Just don’t let him steal the hoodie! James Cox Aprilia Tuono V4 Portimao. First Euro trackday, first trackday on the Tuono, first time knee down. Started off in the novice group but managed to shave 20 seconds off my lap time on a drying track. Ended up one of the fastest in inters. All with road tyres and on my road bike. Happy as Larry. Randall Adamson Honda Fireblade Brass monkey rally, New Zealand South Island, Honda Cbr1000RR…

STREET! Hi FB, I’ve owned my Street Triple since 2013 when my first was killed in a smidsy on the way to work. It’s had plenty of cosmetic mods over the years and a few other things like fitting a Speed Triple throttle tube, 15T front sprocket, 2016 R forks, brakes, shock, bar end mirrors, CNC levers, tail tidy, led indicators, led bulbs, full R&G crash bungs, Renthal bars / grips and many more bits I’ve done. In the five years I’ve owned it I’ve put 41,000 miles on it (had 2800 when I bought it). I’ve had my fair share of minor issues with it (electrical) but none mechanical luckily, so I’m quite confident I can share my thoughts to anyone wanting to buy one :) Many thanks, Matt…

FB: What is a coolant? OP: That’s a pretty broad question! In essence, a coolant could be a variety of things, including being purely water, intended to disperse the heat produced by an engine. That being said however, using water on its own does pose certain risks; water will not guarantee safety to the engine in extremes of both very hot and very cold temperatures, compared to a formulation that uses ingredients such as glycol which extends the operating window, raising the boiling point of the liquid and suppressing the freezing point. It’s not just the actual use of a proper coolant that’s a bonus either, as if you are using a quality coolant it can help to protect against corrosion internally. FB: What does a coolant do? OP: Essentially,…

THIS MONTH I HAVE MOSTLY BEEN… “Wobbling round...” When I was a nipper I did quite a lot of off-road riding. In fact I raced an MX bike from the age of six, until I broke my leg at about 12. I was never any good at it but it’s the taking part that counts, isn’t it (that’s what I keep telling myself anyway)? So now I’m an ‘adult’, and I use that term in the loosest possible way, I’ve decided to see if I can remember how to do it. So, when my beloved Yamaha R1M termer went back to Yamaha, desperate to remain on two wheels for the winter period I searched for the best (or should I say most appropriate) MX bike I could find. As far…

Another month gone means we’ve edged another month closer to the 2019 MotoGP season and lights out at Qatar. The MotoGP nuts among us in the Fast Bikes office are already showing signs of cabin fever waiting for the big kick-off. Let’s face it, with a distinct lack of any really juicy news, it’s hard to get properly excited over new team livery presentations and an incessant stream of Instagram posts from the MotoGP millionaires’ snowboarding holidays and luxury retreats in the Maldives. So, in an attempt to break the monotony, I would like to present my top MotoGP predictions for 2019*. *Disclaimer: No obvious predictions allowed; e.g. Marc Marquez will win at COTA and the Sachsenring, Andrea Iannone will post more topless/pouting/private jet photos on social media than anyone…

[I cOpse First things first, this guide kicks offfrom the National Pit and Paddock (not the International Pit). The old start straight is a pretty fast one and you'll want to be far to the left of the broad circuit on the approach to the superfast Copse corner. The most visual guide for a braking reference is the lights bridge that arches over the track. Even on a litre bike you should . be hard on the throttle until you've reached this feature, . ··· . ··· before switching to some hard braking and a down change in ··· . preparation for Copse. It's easy to . run in too deep to the blind right hander, but the trick to nailing . this corner is to scrub off a bit…

Fancy sticking an Italian stallion in the garage for this year? Well Aprilia have just released their prices for the 2019 model range. The Sports Bike of The Year winning Aprilia RSV4 1100 Factory is first up, and will be on sale in February for the bargain price of £21,499 on the road in a range of colours. If you want something a bit more naked though, the Tuono V4 1100 Factory is available from January and has been updated for 2019 with Öhlins Smart EC 2.0 electronic semi-active suspension, which will set you back £16,999, while if you want something a little bit softer (and cheaper), the Shiver 900 with a new integrated navigational system will also be on sale from £7,999 on the road and available from April.…

4SR RACING REPLICA – ONE PIECE SUIT TESTED BY: Pretty Boy MILES: 6000 TIME: 15 months PRICE: Approx. £760 WEB: www.4SR.com When a company’s motto is ‘Life’s too short to wear shit leathers’, there’s a not-so subtle hint that the products have to be pretty decent… and thankfully For Street Racing deliver. I’ve had this suit for more than a year now and even though it hasn’t been down the road it’s taken an absolute battering of being thrown around here, there and everywhere; yet it hasn’t faltered once, the quality is near enough bulletproof and there’s no real sign of wear and tear. This suit is made to measure and the fit was absolutely spot on from the very first outing, and it comes absolutely…

It’s fair to say that Kawasaki haven’t reinvented the wheel with the new ZX-6R. In fact they have boxed pretty clever really. They have taken an old model and made a bit of a fuss about chucking a handful of saucy upgrades at it. Well considered saucy upgrades, I might add. Styling has been modernised with sharper looking bodywork, new LED headlights and a new slightly higher tech (but hardly space-age) dash. Electronics-wise, the ZX-6R has upped its game with KQS (Kawasaki Quick Shifter) now complementing the Kawasaki Traction Control (KTRC) and power mode selection. Engine tweaks have not only ensured that the 636 passes the Euro 4 emissions tests, but have added a little more mid-range power and bottom end grunt. Kawasaki have also shortened the final drive gearing…

STYLING In order to keep the ZX-6R in line with the rest of Kawasaki’s Supersport range, it’s had a pretty radical styling update. From the front the ZX-6R is almost unrecognisable, now with LED headlamps it’s sharper and more angular compared to Ninjas of the past. The rear of the bike is much more angular than before too, with LED tail-lights that look pretty similar to that of the ZX-10R. The heel guard and exhaust end cap are new too. It is available in Lime Green / Ebony / Metallic Graphite Grey or Metallic Spark Black / Metallic Flat Spark Black. ELECTRONICS The Kawasaki comes with a three-mode KTRC (Kawasaki TRaction Control) system, ‘mode 1’ being the least intrusive and ‘mode 3’ the most. KTRC can also be turned off…

It is generally accepted that the supersport class was born in 1985 when Kawasaki released the GPZ600R. Before the GPZ, middleweight four-strokes were fairly crap commuters such as the GPz550 and if you wanted a race-rep, you bought a two-stroke Suzuki RG500 or Yamaha RD500. The GPZ600R arrived and changed all this… Powered by a water-cooled 16-valve DOHC inline four, which was the first time such a design had been used on a middleweight. The GPZ’s 75bhp decimated its rival four-strokes and saw it hit a whopping 135mph. Add to this a box-section steel frame, anti-dive forks and matching 16in wheels and the GPZ’s combination of handling and reliability was a taste of things to come. Two years later Honda released the ‘jelly mould’ CBR600F, effectively killing off the unreliable…

Looks aren’t everything but the little Zed was by far the most striking bike of the bunch, despite its army issue paint scheme which made it a right bugger to spot when parked anywhere near a hedgerow. We lost count of how many times we lost it, but in town it proved quite the head turner and for all the right reasons (we think). Styling-wise, the seat unit is not dissimilar to that of the old ZX-6R, with perhaps a few more angular lines giving it a more modern aesthetic. And if we are drawing comparisons, the linear styling and tubular frame seems reminiscent of Kawasaki’s flagship hypersports bike, the Ninja H2 – making the Zed look more considered than all of its rivals. The truth is it’s hard to…

I’ve never owned an SV, but I’ve had plenty of mates who have. I’m not on about this café racer retro wannabe, but the old school thumper that educated a generation of riders in the art of wheelies and knee down. Now that was a weapon! I wish I owned one, even to this day, but I don’t think I can say the same about the decaffeinated, calorie-free substitute that’s possibly sold with a tub of beard wax? Okay, that’s maybe a little harsh an introduction for a bike that’s not actually that bad to ride, and is priced refreshingly affordably… but, aesthetically speaking, it’s not my cup of tea. For £500 less (£5,699) you can get the stock SV650, which comes devoid of the ribbed dual seat and 90s…

How was your winter break? Fattening? I think we’re all in the same boat, but I’m not too worried. Most of the mail that comes through my door is suggestive of some form of fat camp, or special slimming drink that’ll burn off your man-boobs while you watch Corrie. Of course, not everyone wants to lose weight, but when it comes to riding bikes, there are quite a few benefits to slimming down your bra size. For starters, you might find yourself fit enough to tick off a whole session of a trackday. And then there’s the physics of the matter; the heavier you are, the more your motor will struggle. Losing weight is an essential ingredient when looking to up your performance and it’s as dependent on your mass…

As anyone who has grown-up kids will tell you, 22-years is a long time. Especially, if after all this time your sofa is still being taken up and the fridge regularly emptied by your now fully fledged offspring. But in 2007 Yamaha turned their back on 22 years of technology and for the fifth generation of YZF-R1 created a radically new sportsbike. Well, radically new for Yamaha in terms of its motor… Ever since the launch of the FZ750 in 1985, Yamaha had championed the five-valve head where most of their rivals had instead relied on a more traditional four-valve design. According to Yamaha they were all wrong as the five-valve head was clearly the best way to get power out of a motor because the smaller intake valves (three…

THIS MONTH I HAVE BEEN MOSTLY… Eating, hanging and enjoying festivities. Keeping in mind magazine production schedules means that the earliest you will be reading this is February, as I write we have only just returned to work from the Christmas break – not an easy time for me to add miles, what with family commitments and gargantuan hangovers. The Honda has been underused but well loved as it sat cosy and warm in my garage for the majority of the period. The want to get out could not have been more intense, indeed the traditional Christmas Day jaunt, making the very most of the empty open roads also eluded me. This was impossible for me this year. You may think it some kind of a gag but I genuinely…

[I Start-finish straight It's by no means the longest start-finish straight going but it's possible to be cracking on at a fair rate of knots come the end of it. If you're on a flying lap you'll typically be crossing from the left hand side of the circuit over to the right, so be aware of slower (or faster) bikes doing the same thing. Aside from that, it's a case of keeping your elbows tucked in, your head low behind the screen, and the throttle wide open. r.:, U cOppice You can leave your braking really late for this fast, positively cambered uphill left hander and carry much more speed into it than you think (on smaller bikes you won't even roll off). If you're riding a six hundred or…

[I Redgate Redgate is a really tricky turn to get right. Use the triangle of paint at the pit exit as a braking marker and get the bike as close to it as possible on the approach to the turn (some racers will even cross this paint to open up the first corner, but avoid doing that on a trackday as there will quite often be a bike in there). Go down two or three gears and get the bike settled right down before you turn in. Don't be tempted to turn in too early, stay out until the pit Jane exit ends and then drop the bike on its side. Pull it in to the apex where the gravel path meets the kerb on the inside of the track,…

[I Riches You'llbe heading into Riches flat out and touching sixth gear no matter what bike you're on, meaning commitment is a must. Get as close to the white line on the left as you can, before hitting the anchors at about the 300 yard board and banging back two or three gears. Let off the brakes and tip in at about the 100yard board. Apex at the widest chunk of paint on the kerb as you get back on the gas, drift towards the middle of the track (no further) and clip the second apex at the latest possible point and get hard on the gas for the maximum drive out. 1ly going slow in and fast ··· ··· out to start with in order to build ··up ·…

[I Old Hall Coming over the start finish line you'll be at a slight lean angle and gassing hard, wrestling the bike from the centre of the track to the left hand side; by the time the track runs straight you need to be well onto the lighter patch of tarmac that runs down the side of the track. Just as you come under the start lights get your body in position and hit the brakes where the dirt road starts on the left hand side of the track. There's a few big . bumps so be aware. Peel in as late as possible, just before the .··· .··· start of the inside kerb, and apex where the drain cover dissects ··· the white line. It's a late apex and…