New to road racing

Billy Snodgrass

New Member
I'm new to road racing I have raced motocross and gncc for 20 years my question is I see the wera and ccs races and stuff but all the n2 track days and stuff are a lot more local then ccs or wera does n2 have their own points series?
 

HondaGalToo

Control Rider
N2 is a trackday organization. No competitive events, just organized trackdays for fun and improving skills. At select events N2 does run a race school that will enable you to get a provisional license with wera.
 

Evil Cupcake

Control Rider
Though N2 is not a race organization, there are quite a few racers in the paddock and staff who can help answer most all your questions if getting on grid is your ultimate goal. Track days, especially those with N2 offer the opportunity to work on a certain corner or fundamentals in a low stress environment. Many riders come out to fine tune their bikes, practice, or just twist the throttle with great folks.

N2 Track Days will give you the opportunity to get faster in a safe environment. There are some incredibly fast riders that will only help you get faster. Days such as those paired with YCRS are excellent opportunities to get phenomenal instruction at an affordable price. After 2 days with YCRS, I immediately dropped 1.8 seconds off my lap times. Third time to NJMP Thunderbolt, I was running sub 30's and felt safer than when I was turning 35's.

Welcome!
 
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Billy Snodgrass

New Member
Thanks think I understand things a little better I'm very interested in the racing side of things I just wish my "region" wasn't so spread out I live 30 mins from VIR though so that's a plus things are just a lot different then dirtbike racing
 

HondaGalToo

Control Rider
Definitely for WERA, I'm not sure about CCS. Not sure if all the N2 race school dates are right before a WERA race weekend, but the May one is. If you successfully complete the N2 racer school at Summit on May 8th, you can race there with WERA May 9 & 10.

Perhaps someone else will chime in about whether or not the N2 school also applies for CCS. I'm not a racer, just a trackday junkie! :)
 

Billy Snodgrass

New Member
Their is one in april according to n2 calendar its 4/5/15 that's the one I was looking at I also want to do a lot of the n2 track days for sure but ill always be a racer no matter what kind of motorcycle I'm on i have raced motocross gncc drag racing and flat track the gncc is my strong suit i am a A Class rider so I'm pretty well rounded and looking to try road racing something I have always wanted to try its a lot more confusing then any racing I have done but thanks for the replys their very helpful I still have a thousand questions lol
 

HondaGalToo

Control Rider
Welcome! Start out with a few trackdays, and like Cupcake said, there are a lot of N2 guys and gals who do race who can answer your questions!
 

Otto Man

John
Control Rider
Thanks think I understand things a little better I'm very interested in the racing side of things I just wish my "region" wasn't so spread out I live 30 mins from VIR though so that's a plus things are just a lot different then dirtbike racing

N2 is not a race org. We are a track day org. Think of track day orgs like trail riding - you just go out with your buddies and have fun. There are no points, no "official" checkered flag that you race to the finish line. Of course there is always shit talking among your good friends, generally about how slow you are, etc, but nothing official. It's generally expected in the track day crowd to distinguish track day riding from racing. It's a very common mistake for new guys to the track to label it "racing"...but all that does is confuse the shit out of the people that actually do races/track days. It's like calling up your friends and asking if you wanna go racing this weekend...when you meant trail riding the Hatfield McCoy trails, not an actual MX/GNCC race.

For your area, WERA or CCS is going to be your racing orgs to choose from. I would highly recommend going to this link, and just reading. This is the "Info for new racer's" forum of WERA. I can assure you, there is not a question you have that has not been answered a million times before. Take a few hours and just browse through it. Tons of information.

http://forums.13x.com/forumdisplay.php?f=61

WERA has much more information online than CCS does, however, CCS grids are generally larger. With WERA, you are lined up on the grid based on points. With CCS, you can get pole position if you are the first person to register for that race. In fact...there are some that have already dropped thousands of dollars with CCS to ensure they are on the front row for all the 2015 races. CCS also generally has more options/dates to go racing with than WERA.

Having a dirt bike background will help you out tremendously on the track. All of the world's best riders train on dirt bikes during the off season. However, in my experience, those that are good dirt bike riders are generally much more likely to crash their first few track days. I can tell you that riding a sport bike at race pace and riding a dirt bike at race pace is very, very different. If you ride your sport bike like a dirt bike, you will eat shit very quickly. It's extremely hard to convince seasoned dirt bike riders to be humble their first few days on the track, but you really need to be. Many, many times there are people like you that look at the Novice class and think "Novice? I ain't no Novice! I'm advanced!" No...no, you are not. Not in the race track world...not YET, at least. There is no need to try and go 100% right off the bat. Learn the bike, learn the track, and learn about yourself while riding out there. You probably will, however, advance in skill and pace much quicker than those that only have street riding experience.

N2 provides an excellent environment to come out to the track, without the pressure of trying to win (Again, using the trail riding to GNCC analogy). I would strongly recommend coming out to several N2 days, and getting a good feel for what it's like before signing up for your first race. WERA/CCS has much tighter bike restrictions (Safety wiring, belly pan regulations, transponders, etc) than N2. You'll meet a bunch of people at the N2 track days that also race (Myself included), and from there you can pick their brains and learn from others.

Oh...and lastly, racing is EXPENSIVE. Much, much more expensive than racing dirt bikes.
 

Billy Snodgrass

New Member
What makes it so much more expensive exactly what is like and average figure for a wera race I usually average around 450 a race after gas and all that stuff racing dirtbikes
 

Otto Man

John
Control Rider
What kind of bike you have plays a big part of how expensive it can get. Liter bikes destroy rear tires, 600's aren't that bad, and SV650's are way cheaper (last longer). You can damn near race a Ninja 250 on the same set of tires all year. And with racing in general, going fast is expensive, how fast do you want to go? You can go out on any bike and have fun, but if you want a consistent podium finish, you're gonna be coughing up the dough. Race tires are in the neighborhood of $400 a set. If you want to be competitive, you'll burn at least one rear a weekend, with fronts lasting 2 weekends.

On average, I would say each WERA weekend costs about $1,000. By the time you factor in the cost of tires, fuel for the bike, fuel for the tow rig, entry fees, camping fees, etc. Some are cheaper (closer tracks) and some are more expensive, but like I said, on average, about a grand a weekend. CCS runs a cheaper transponder, but it's prone to problems and it's not uncommon to have a FUBAR finish (They don't know who finished where). WERA's transponder is much better...and it's also about $450. Just for a transponder. You can rent them per weekend (For about $75), but it adds up. I sucked it up and bought a new one before the price hike and it's proven to be a worth while investment. The $1,000 guestimate is also assuming you have a race ready bike, tire warmers, spares, etc. Yes, spare parts aren't needed, but it absolutely sucks to spend all that money, and miss out on the races because you don't have a foot peg, clip on, etc.
 

Evil Cupcake

Control Rider
800.00-1500.00 is what I budget for a race weekend.... It all depends on if it is a double header weekend, how close it is, and how many races I race.
 

kaleido

New Member
I spend $450-500 a weekend racing.

-entries $180
-gas $125-175
-tires $75 (sc1 - 8 races, 2 rear : 1 front, resell take-offs)
-fuel $25
-gate fees, etc $25
 
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Evil Cupcake

Control Rider
Racing a bike that is more popular makes finding parts and such, much easier. R6's are around every corner..not so much for the Kawi's
 

LesPow

Control Rider
Going racing does not necessarily require deep pockets. It only gets ridiculously expensive if you want to win a championship, and I do understand the mind set of why else would I race. Well, its fun, fun, and lots of fun. So if you want to know what its like, to be on the starting grid, waiting on the flag to drop, pushing your limits competitively, sign up for a race. Once a month, every other month, only at your fav. track....NJMP etc. Its a great experience. Deciding which race Org. to race with depends on the proximity to tracks that are most convenient for you. WERA vs CCS posts have been exhausted. Pick one and have fun.
The N2 schedule for race school license have been posted, so what are you waiting for! If you only raced once, or twice, for the year it will be worth it. Grab a friend an sign up for a race. It helps also to share expenses with a fellow enthusiast.
Racing is also not for everyone, so if your in the Novice group, I would recommend that you wait until you have assimilated quite well into Intermediate level riding to be safe(er).
 

crash675

Member
Thanks think I understand things a little better I'm very interested in the racing side of things I just wish my "region" wasn't so spread out I live 30 mins from VIR though so that's a plus things are just a lot different then dirtbike racing
Im 15 minutes from vir. Where are you from? Some friends and I will be heading to summit in may with wera. Follow us up or meet up in the paddock. We could walk you through. Alot of good info has already been covered by some good peeps.
 
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