The destination is right outside Union Point, Ga. on a huge parcel of land designed for people who love to be outdoors – over 6000 acres with 1500 miles of marked trails and single track for those who like to trail ride. If you are more interested in motocross d-town has six tracks to choose from with varying difficulty. I can’t forget to mention the dirt oval right beside the drag strip complete with starting lights. Oh, and there’s a complete pro shop for all your incidentals that might arise, with some very good pricing, I might add.

If this doesn’t get your gears turning and make you “wanna ride” you might want to check your pulse and make sure you are still alive. With complete accommodations ‘big Mike’ and his staff will make sure you have an enjoyable time, so do yourself a favour and look into getting down there.

The Daytona Supercross was hosted in the cafeteria and a band played next door in the clubhouse. It was good to see some hard battling on the sandy technical track designed by the ‘G.O.A.T.’ himself. It will be interesting to see how it will all work out in the end.

The 10-man tour this year had everyone itching to ride the second we got back, wishing we never left. Two of our more adventurous (and younger) riders took some lessons from the resident pro and worked up the courage to hit the 30- and 55-foot freestyle ramps! Kudos to Jordan and Dillon, that took some real courage! I was thinking happy thoughts and using body language to help you over the ramp with the rest of the crew. Freestyle is different when you have someone you know and care about hitting the jump; it adds another dimension for sure.

So it worked out to be a very memorable trip for all of us with stories we will share for years to come.

Because this is the Supermoto blog I am happy to share the exciting information about the upcoming season. It looks like Supermoto Ontario has paired up with Parts Canada and AVON tyres to put together a package for rental tires for the three Shannonville races this year – very cool indeed. Fittingly named “Come try Supermoto” new riders will have an opportunity to get coaching and track time as well as rental tires to fit onto their motocross rims. There will be ‘pizza-cutters’ around for sure as this development leaves no reason for you to not try supermoto. ‘Pizza-cutter’ is the slang name for a motocross rim with slick tires. It’s not meant to be a derogatory term, because all of us asphalt surfers started out on a set. It is a rite of passage for the supermoto racer.

So this year is looking better and better all the time. If the recent developments have you wondering what it is like to try supermoto, come out and see us at the track. We will be waiting…

Valentino Rossi is the rider usually credited as the first to use the technique in the early years of four-stroke MotoGP, when he out-braked Sete Gibernau in the last corner at Jerez in 2005 (running the Spaniard off the track in the process). However, if you watch videos of 500cc Grand Prix races from the early '90s, you will occasionally see Kevin Schwantz, Wayne Rainey and others making similar moves.

Most riders do not (or cannot) offer much in the way of an explanation when asked why they put their legs out, other than it feels comfortable and helps in some way. That has not stopped experts and amateurs alike from speculating on the physics behind the leg dangle and what advantages it offers.

One theory is that with the leg extended toward the inside of the turn, the bike can be kept more upright as the rider turns in, allowing the brakes to be used deeper into the turn. Another is that the extended leg lowers the combined centre of gravity of bike and rider, keeping the rear end on the ground under hard braking. Aerodynamics has been cited, with the inside leg acting as a sail to help slow the bike as well as help it turn into the corner.

The theory that I think has the most merit is that hanging a leg off helps physically turn the bike into the corner, and this particular explanation does fit in with body steering as I discussed http://www.insidemotorcycles.com/blogs/item/1051-body-steering.html">in my blog last week. If your inside foot is off the peg and close to the ground, the act of raising it up (and returning it to the peg) will help to rotate the bike around its roll axis and lean into the corner.

All of these theories have at least some basis in the physics involved. The real answer may be that it's some combination of the aerodynamics, centre of gravity and weight transfer that adds up to a benefit felt by the rider and/or measured on the stopwatch.

Just as many other riding techniques become common practice by filtering down from the top rider, the other MotoGP riders took their cue from Rossi and imitated his leg dangling antics. Whether the advantages are real or perceived is almost a moot point. If a rider thinks that hanging a leg off the side of the bike (or sitting backwards on the seat, or wearing a red shirt, or...) helps him go faster, then that's what the rider will do. But here I think the benefits must be real, otherwise it would have faded away over time; I can't see the MotoGP riders expending energy on an unnecessary technique.

Whatever the reasons behind the leg dangle, there are two important aspects to note: One is that your body is a versatile tool when it comes to riding a motorcycle, and there is much more involvement than just turning the bars and moving your butt off the side of the seat. The position of your feet and legs, how you hold your arms, where you place your upper body, and even how you angle your head all affect how the motorcycle behaves. The other is that you shouldn't be afraid to experiment with new techniques, even if it's something no one else is doing; it may just be that the other riders take their cue from you.

{fcomment}

In a previous blog, I discussed http://www.insidemotorcycles.com/blogs/item/822-gearing-and-anti-squat.html">gearing and anti-squat characteristics. On any motorcycle, the relationship of the top chain run and the swingarm can have a drastic effect on handling. When the motorcycle accelerates, weight transfers to the rear wheel and acts to compress the rear suspension - this is commonly referred to as squat. At the same time, however, the driving force at the rear wheel acts to extend the rear suspension (due to the swingarm angle) and the chain pull is also exerting its own forces.

By juggling gearing and the swingarm angle - either through an adjustable pivot or by changing ride height - a precise amount of anti-squat can be generated to offset the weight transfer from acceleration and the motorcycle will stay nicely level and composed exiting a corner.

There are several books that go into more detail on squat and anti-squat, and there are different methods of calculating a representative number to use. Most refer to anti-squat as a percentage of squat; for example, a particular layout may give an anti-squat value of 100 percent, indicating that the squat from weight transfer is perfectly offset by the anti-squat forces. Another layout may give 80 percent anti-squat, indicating that not all the squat tendency is offset.

Of course, that is not the full story and finding the perfect amount of anti-squat is not an easy matter. As the suspension compresses through its travel, the swingarm angle and the relationship between the chain run and swingarm pivot changes; on a chain-drive motorcycle with a conventional layout, the end result is that anti-squat decreases as the suspension sinks in its travel. As the rear end squats more and more, there is less anti-squat to offset it, and that nice balance of forces is soon overcome.

Many motorcycles are designed with 100 percent anti-squat at approximately 30mm into the suspension's travel - roughly equivalent to rider sag - with the sacrifice being more anti-squat at the top of the travel and less at the bottom.

Our intuition says that all would be well if the swingarm pivot and countershaft sprocket were aligned. Chain tension would never change over the suspension's travel, and the chain run would remain constant relative to the swingarm. But in actual fact, once the changing swingarm angle is factored in, the optimum location for the countershaft is a few centimetres behind the swingarm pivot. With this layout - the same layout seen on the Empulse RR - anti-squat can be almost perfectly constant over the suspension's travel, leading to improved suspension action and handling.

{fcomment}

According to Andrea Buzzoni, General Manager of the BMW Motorrad WSBK effort, "Thanks to the development work that the team have done over the last three months, BMW wrote an important page in the history of motorcycle racing as it is the first bike to win with an innovative electronic damping system."

Dynamic Damping Control as used on the production HP4 incorporates electronically actuated valves inside the fork and shock to vary damping almost instantaneously. The system looks at data from the ECU as well as lean angle and rear shock travel, analyses those parameters and determines optimum values for compression and rebound damping. For example, under acceleration the system can stiffen the shock's damping to reduce squat; damping can also be changed as the motorcycle leans into a corner, and even depending on the rate of roll.

The rules for the Superstock 1000 class allow fork internals and the rear shock to be replaced on bikes with conventional suspension. However, for electronically controlled suspension, all the mechanical and electrical components must remain stock. This is a significant penalty for the use of DDC; aftermarket fork cartridge kits and shock absorbers are built with performance in mind and with little regard to cost, whereas the DDC components were designed with mass production - albeit limited - in mind. For the production-based BMW setup to be competitive in its first event is an impressive accomplishment.

Key to Barrier's and BMW's success with DDC at Aragon was no doubt the company's HP Race Calibration Kit for the HP4, which unlocks some interesting features of the system for racetrack use. In stock form, basic stiffer/softer changes can be made to the front and rear damping, and front compression and rebound are tied together; only on the shock can compression and rebound be separately adjusted. Adding a front travel sensor (a rear travel sensor is stock, the front sensor is part of the HP kit) allows for independent fork changes. And with the HP Race lap timer also installed, DDC settings can be altered on a corner-by-corner basis; the system tracks distance from the start/finish beacon and makes changes accordingly. This alone is a significant advantage over any conventional system that cannot be similarly adjusted once underway.

It's interesting to note that the rider plays an influential role in the development of any electronics system. Buzzoni said after the race at Aragon, "I want to congratulate both the team along with our colleagues in Munich for developing the system and Sylvain, who knows how to make perfect use of this new technology."

With Dynamic Damping Control now proven successful on the track in the Superstock class, it may not be long before we see the system's use in World Superbike also.

{fcomment}

Marquez's riding style is noticeably different from the other riders in the class. While elbow-dragging has become increasingly common over the past few years, Marquez has taken it to the extreme and drags his elbow for a considerable distance in every corner - not just at the apex or on the curbing of the occasional turn. And even with that exaggerated body position, he reaches dizzying angles of lean compared with the other riders. It is a distinct style and he has used it to good effect so far this year with the win in Austin and a podium finish at the first round in Qatar.

Like most top riders exploring the outer limits of riding skill and technique, Marquez himself is not able to fully explain his riding style. Talking about his extreme lean angles in an Alpinestars video recorded at the Austin test earlier this year, he says, "Basically, I don't know. Just I try to ride the bike. I think that is the best riding style, but in the end sometimes I try to be more smooth or try to copy the style of Lorenzo, Dani…but I can't. When I concentrate, when I try to push, I start to go with my elbow, my knee on the floor."

The situation is reminiscent of another young rider rocking the established stars of the Grand Prix circus in his first few events: Kenny Roberts. When Roberts first went to Europe in the late '70s, his style of hanging off the side of the bike and dragging his knee was distinctly different from the conventional (at the time) upright, tidy body position. In his book "Techniques of Motorcycle Road Racing," Roberts wrote: "'Sheene used to say to me, 'Why the hell do you move around on that bike so much?' I'd just say, 'Hey, I don't know. I'm just trying to find out how to do it right.'"

Roberts went on to win three 500cc Grand Prix World Championships, and the future looks equally bright for Marquez. As I pointed out in my earlier blog on http://www.insidemotorcycles.com/component/k2/item/1088-the-motogp-leg-dangle.html">the MotoGP leg dangle, new and extreme techniques, if successfully used, generally trickle down from the top riders using those techniques and become more common. That being the case, we will most likely see more of the MotoGP riders experiment with similar extreme body positioning as the year goes on.

It's somewhat ironic and prophetic today to read Roberts' comments on Randy Mamola's riding position, which was considered extreme at the time his book was written: "There is no set limit to how far you should lean off, though I think that sometimes Randy goes too far. Who knows where the limit might be? Five years from now everyone might be leaning off like Randy." Perhaps five years from now everyone will be leaning off like Marc.

I never thought of cars as dangerous (okay, maybe rally cars), especially these days when they seem to be built with safety being the main focus. You see these drivers flip end-over-end and usually walk away. They even drive into each other on purpose in some cases to settle racing feuds!

I showed up in the morning of the test day and the team was ready and waiting for me, the car was set up and they just needed to show me all the instruments, fit everything for me, and go over the shift and braking points around the Zhuhai Circuit.

It was only as they helped me into the car and strapped me in that I started to feel like this wasn't for me. I don't do heights, and I am very claustrophobic. The fear of heights wasn't a problem, but I was not a happy camper being wedged into this piece of rolling carbon fibre with who knows how many horsepower just inches behind me!

I spun the car three times in the first two laps.  It took me five more laps to realize I was driving the car like a bike and braking way too early. I was also downshifting way to early and over-revving the motor (something that would come back and haunt me later).

 I was now on the pace and doing respectable lap times. I started passing cars and the tires were up to temp. Just like I thought - cars are easy, safe, and kinda boring.

It was at that moment as I was downshifting into a corner that I heard a loud bang and the car instantly spun and shut off.  Seconds later, I hear fire crackling away, smell fire, and then everything turns completely black with smoke. And I can't breathe... AT ALL.

A moment of panic set in, followed by some clear and rational thinking. With no experience on quickly getting out of a racecar (it took two people just to get me into it!), I realized there was more to these cars then meets the eye. Getting unbuckled, steering wheel off, harness, getting out of the car all in pitch darkness, holding my breath, with a fire that is getting bigger by the second.  I am writing to tell about it, so needless to say, you know how this story ends. But the moral of the story is that you should never be so quick to prejudge another sport without first trying it.

I now see car racing in a different light and with a newfound respect. I would rather get bucked off a motorbike any day of the week before being stuck in a burning race car in the middle of China!

The car ended up burning to the ground and I ended up walking away. I think i will stick to what I know best... Superbikes are safer.

{fcomment}

Understandably, Ducati is not overly forthcoming with details about the bike, but according to company press information it has a different frame compared with the standard GP13 model, updated electronics and other changes to improve power delivery. From pictures taken at Jerez, it's apparent that the swingarm and exhaust are also different. The frame itself is much more raw-appearing than the standard units, a sign of more hurried manufacture, more emphasis on performance and less concern with appearance.

The altered exhaust may be just that, but it may also indicate that the engine has moved significantly in the frame in order to change weight bias. The position of the motorcycle's centre of gravity - both vertical and horizontal - is an important parameter that affects its behaviour, and the optimum position is constantly changing as tires, riding styles and power levels continue to evolve. On a production-based bike, we can make some changes to the CG position by raising or lowering the front and rear ride heights, or moving the rear wheel in the swingarm. With some aftermarket parts, changes can be made by moving the front wheel in relation to the chassis, either by altering triple clamp offset or rake angle.

Some motorcycles, such as the Aprilia RSV4 Factory, have adjustments for engine position, but this also has a limited effect as the swingarm/countershaft relationship can be compromised if the engine is moved more than a few millimetres. Moving the wheels or engine in relation to the chassis will only get you so far, and at some point more drastic changes - an entirely new frame - will have to be made. The new frame no doubt has different stiffness characteristics compared with the standard GP13 frame, and this is another, constantly changing, design criteria that Ducati engineers are experimenting with.

Has the elaborate development plan worked? Race times for two of the three GPs held so far this year can be compared to last year, and there is definite improvement for the Ducati riders. However, the frontrunners have also shown improvement and the Ducatis remain a stubborn 25-or-so seconds off the leaders over race distance.

According to Bernhard Gobmeier, now Ducati Corse General Manager, the lab bike is just the first step in the new program. Both Nicky Hayden and Andrea Dovizioso rode the lab bike at Jerez the day following the Grand Prix, and noted improvement in corner entry. Both riders also pointed out that the changes are definitely a step in the right direction; the program may bear fruit in the next few rounds of the championship.

{fcomment}

When it comes to traction control, it definitely helps to have more than just rider feedback on which to base any adjustments. One of the biggest drawbacks to any TC system is that it can easily slow the bike down too much, even on the straights. It can be very difficult for a rider to determine if the system is not cutting enough power, is cutting the correct amount of power to maximize traction, or is simply slowing the bike down. This is where data acquisition with a channel that shows when the traction control system is active can be a big help.

Ideally, slip - the difference between front and rear wheel speeds - is compared to the traction control intervention channel, and changes made to the system accordingly. At the top levels, the data systems are accurate enough and the technicians that run them savvy enough that the rider may not even be involved when those changes are made. As I have discussed before, however, http://www.insidemotorcycles.com/blogs/item/308-measuring-slip.html">accurately measuring slip is a difficult proposition and some creativity may be necessary.

The example shown here is for a bike using the Bazzaz Z-Fi system, which works on a throttle position/RPM array to determine when and how much to cut power. It's clear from the chart that there are several instances where the motorcycle is on a straight (speed is rapidly increasing and the throttle is at 100 percent) and yet the TC is active and potentially slowing the bike down. Here, the symptom is clear and the remedy is fairly straightforward - reduce the amount if intervention at full throttle and high rpm. Because that combination of rpm and throttle position is rare in a corner, the reduction in intervention will not adversely affect performance in turns.

Also seen on the chart, some corner exits have a lot of TC intervention; in others there is very little. Here is where the slip channel and other channels can be used along with rider feedback to determine exactly what is happening on the track. The amount of slip can be correlated with how active the traction control system is, and changes made accordingly. Specific to the Bazzaz system, it's handy to have data channels for throttle position and rpm; with that information, the exact cells in the tuning array can be changed as necessary. This massaging of the traction control adjustments will likely be an ongoing effort, as different tracks and conditions can require subtle changes to the mapping.

{fcomment}

I flew from Montreal to Tokyo and, as expected, the team was at the airport waiting for me upon my arrival.  We immediately hopped in the waiting vehicle and away we went.  The good news was that somehow there was wifi in the van which was pretty cool.  The bad news was, I never thought to ask the translator how long we would be driving!

Let me back up for a minute…  No one on the team (including the team owners) speak or understand English.  I don’t understand Japanese.  We would communicate by getting “Jumbo” on the phone or Skype (Jumbo is a friend of theirs who lives in Australia).  He is Japanese but speaks English, and has been an important part of me getting all these amazing opportunities.  It makes for interesting conversation when he is not available, since we both end up agreeing on things we don’t always fully understand. When I come in from a session, we usually call Australia so I can explain what I am feeling on the bike, and then Jumbo explains that to the mechanics.  For race weekends, they always have a translator on hand.  I cannot emphasize enough how professional this race team is on all fronts.

As I sit in the van wondering how long we will be driving, I log onto my iPad and decide to look up where Suzuka is located in relation to the Tokyo airport.  Hmmm.. a five-hour drive, more or less.  That was a shocker after flying 17 hours!  I had a 9 am meeting with track officials the next morning and would be on the track shortly after.  I fell asleep in the van and woke up as we were pulling into the track hotel.  They had already checked me in (some of the team had arrived earlier that evening) and the room key was waiting for me.  I passed out again and next thing you know, I am at breakfast staring face-to-face with raw and possibly still moving seafood on my plate.  I was scheduled to be in Japan for three days and, looking back, I should have brought some peanut butter. 

In all fairness to Japan as a country, I have been from top to bottom and side to side and eaten the strangest things in my life there. None of them ever seem to be cooked.  However, I have never gotten sick there.  They are clean freaks and only consume fresh food for the most part.  I wish I could say the same thing about China.  I have been sick plenty of times over there since they cook everything in oil and I don’t think the food is very fresh...

My meeting with the Suzuka officials that morning was essentially a private riders meeting.  The only glitch was the fact that it was entirely in Japanese and no one knew how to translate to me.  Some things were common sense and some things you could get the idea of by the photos on the projector. However, there were some areas of the meeting that left me with more questions than answers…  yes, I had some anxiety at this point.  Adding to that anxiety was the fact that the team was convinced that I would be fast based on my test earlier in the year at Motegi, which went amazingly well. 

Once I got back to the pit area, I was in awe of how prepared the team was and how seriously they were taking this test.  This was no casual track day (which by the way is a seriously fun way to spend a Saturday) and I realized the bike I’d be riding was the same bike being used by a top Japanese Superbike Championship contender.  It was his “A” bike no less!  I am not sure I had ever been on a motorbike with so many goodies on it.  We adjusted everything to fit me and made some adjustments to the suspension.  They also had the laptop plugged in every time I looked over doing some sort of mapping or programming.  Like I mentioned earlier, the Japanese are all about planning and preparation. It is very impressive. It also got me thinking that this was about as serious of a bike outing as I had ever been involved in…

Tune in next week for Part 2 of Dan's Suzuka test!

{fcomment}

The new rules will focus on reducing costs for machinery and components, and will include limitations on the number of engines allowed through the year. Suspension components, brakes and gearbox ratios were specifically mentioned as areas for controlled costs, and the manufacturers have each agreed to provide a minimum number of complete, race-ready bikes at a set cost or lease price.

When Bridgepoint brought MotoGP and World Superbikes together under the Dorna umbrella last year, one of the stated objectives at the time was to reduce costs in WSBK, so the announcement at Portimao was not unexpected. The move to reduce costs is in response to shrinking grid sizes – there were just 13 finishers in race one at Portimao – due to the still-struggling world economy. It remains to be seen, though, how this framework will be implemented and what the actual rules will be for 2014.

Since its inception in 1988, WSBK has had a fairly open rules structure with elaborate modifications allowed and minimal requirements for homologation. In part, it is this rules structure that is responsible for the early success of the series; the open rules allowed national riders from almost any country to compete on their usual machinery, and allowed in “homologation specials” from the larger manufacturers as well as the boutique manufacturers such as Bimota. This all added to the early appeal of the series, and built a base of fans attracted to their local riders and the wide variety of bikes.

While cost reductions are certainly needed to ensure the future of the series, Dorna does run the risk of losing that fan base if the basic premise of the rules and the original intent of the series are radically changed.

One reason grids have been shrinking is the steady reduction of wildcard entries at each round of the series. As mentioned, in years past a large part of the grid was made up of local riders trying their hand on the world stage. But with national series moving to more Superstock-like rules with spec components, this is an increasingly difficult proposition and the number of wildcards at each race has shrunk to almost none. Curiously, no mention of electronics was made in the WSBK announcement and I would suspect the reason lies here; if the series moves to a spec ECU that is just one more hurdle for wildcard entries to overcome. The cost for the ECU and the associated development would surely be prohibitive for just one event.

While cutting costs by placing price caps on components seems straightforward enough, this too is a tricky proposition as there are plenty of ways around those caps. While a basic bike or component may be provided for a set, reasonable price, that is just part of the overall package. Making those components or that kit bike competitive always takes time, testing and development. This is where the heavy costs often lie, and those cannot easily be controlled by the rules.

As in any series, the cost to field a winning entry is largely dependent on how much one team is willing to spend, and the others must follow suit. If the series is important enough, manufacturers will spend whatever it takes to win races and the championship. Force cost-cutting in one area, and that money will simply be spent elsewhere, and it will be difficult to close all those loopholes.

All this in mind, Dorna and the WSBK organizers definitely have their work cut out for them and it will be interesting to see the rules package derived from this framework.

Christie is two-time and defending national Sport Bike champion and raced a handful of Superbike events last year, but this year the big-bike effort is more serious with factory Honda Canada backing and a pair of CBR1000RRs. The bikes are prepared by John Sharrard and Accelerated Technologies, and through that connection I have been helping the team.

Long ago, Sharrard and I raced each other on 250s in the Canadian national series and at AMA races in the United States. I could fill a year's worth of blogs with those adventures, but the Grand Prix classes had a tight-knit group of people at the time and we have stayed in touch since. When John contacted me in the spring about data acquisition options for the CBR1000RR, I offered my assistance for the year.

Over the past couple of years I've been working with Javelin Broderick in the United States, using data acquisition to coach him on his riding and bike setup as he competed in the AMA Supersport series. I've also been using data as part of Sport Rider's comparison tests for several years now.

Much of what I've learned comes from Kaz Yoshima, a former employee of Honda in Japan that still has ties to HRC and does a lot of data acquisition work; together, Kaz and I have built a website for motorcycle data acquisition: http://www.datamc.org" target="_blank">www.datamc.org. Even with all that experience, I think this year will definitely be a challenge for my skills at interpreting data - the stakes are higher and the improvements we are looking for are smaller than I have encountered so far.

With the help of http://www.aimsports.com/" target="_blank">AiM Sports, we are outfitting one of Jodi's superbikes with a full EVO4 data logger. The EVO4 is a professional system with GPS capabilities and multiple inputs, which will allow us to monitor practically any aspect of the motorcycle - throttle position, rpm, suspension travel, wheel speeds and more - as well as all the information that can be derived from the GPS data, such as lateral and longitudinal acceleration, lean angle, the actual riding line on the track, and so on. Hopefully, I can use all that data and information to help both John and Jodi get the best results possible.

Aside from the data acquisition aspect, I have other experience with the CBR platform in particular through various project bikes with Sport Rider. And, while it too was many years ago, I raced a CBR900RR myself for a year in CSBK.

At the first Canadian Superbike round, Jodi's Bazzaz traction control system used a map I developed using the techniques discussed http://www.insidemotorcycles.com/component/k2/item/1208-trevitts-blog-optimizing-traction-control.html">in my last blog. I've also been helping with chassis setup, and at the next round at Autodrome St- Eustache John has some parts to try that I will talk about in a later blog (if they work…).

I will post throughout the year as to the team's progress and my small contribution. It will be an interesting experience for me and I hope to learn a lot from it.

Part 1 - www.insidemotorcycles.com/component/k2/item/1248-dan-krugers-racing-in-china-blog-testing-at-suzuka-japan-part-1.html

Time to fire up the bike…. I was putting on my helmet and wasn’t facing the bike when they fired it up.  I had an instant feeling of panic when it came to life.  It was then I realized that I was about to get on a factory-prepared Yamaha!  If I closed my eyes, it could have been a MotoGP bike being warmed up for me.  Actually, it could have even been a muscle car from the 70s or even a Ferrari - the deep engine roar was intimidating to say the least as I could feel the power vibrate through my body. 

It was also at that moment that I realized I had never ridden a fully race-prepped big banger, nor had I ever ridden or even walked the Suzuka Circuit before - heck, I never even played a video game that had Suzuka on it.  I took a deep breath and as much as I was a little freaked out at this very moment, I also quickly smiled, soaked in everything, and remembered that it was this very feeling that helps keep me driven and the very reason I enjoy this sport so much.  I remind myself regularly how lucky I have been, and continue to be, in terms of this sport and all the cool experiences.

On the track, I was having trouble getting any grip front or rear.  The first few laps were very tense as the back end kept violently stepping out since I was getting used to the bike's powerband as well.  I was really confused why I was sliding around so much.  I am a diehard Pirelli fan, so much so that I had to convince the Dunlop-sponsored team I was testing for to allow me to bring over my own tires! (Thanks Kevin… and Fed Ex.)  New bike, new team, new track, but at least I'd be on tires I know and trust. I never did sort out the grip issue during the test. 

I also had trouble figuring out one of the chicanes, which was troublesome as I kept going into it too fast and that threw off everything.    I had a big crash at the end of Day 1 that could have been much worse than it was.  I was pretty sure I had broken my leg, but in the end it was a groin injury.  I also had some heavy bruising on my right arm.  No broken bones, but a badly damaged race bike.  The good news was that I was already up to speed and had turned some laps that confirmed I would carry my own weight for the Suzuka 8 Hour.  We all were relieved when the lap times dropped to a respectable time.

The following day, I could barely walk and I just rested. 

We finished the test the next day (Day 3) and the team had spent the previous day moving all the latest 'kit' parts to the 'B' bike.  I was feeling tremendous pressure since I was in a lot of pain, I had already put some quick lap times in, and now I was onto the team's back-up bike.  Crashing was not an option, yet they expected me to go quicker.  They had a race coming up 10 days later as part of the Japan Superbike Championship as well, which added more pressure to me. 

Unfortunately, my injuries were still in the 'getting worse' stage and I needed several people just to lift me onto the bike.  If you've ever had a groin injury, you can relate…  They are strange injuries since they take forever to heal, yet you can still train on an elliptical with no problem.  After a few laps, I was again having a really tough time getting traction.  I am also extremely used to Kawasaki’s kit traction control.  The Yamaha had factory electronics/TC but we never did get it set the way I felt most comfortable. I started getting some pretty wild slides and even front and rear drifts.  At one point, I was about to low side and picked the bike back up with my knee slider/leg.  I knew that I would have to pack it in for the day as my leg muscles were not strong enough to help control the bike.  I felt another crash was imminent if I stayed out. 

I put my head down and was ready to give it my all for my lap and as luck would play out, I had a fairly open track, lots of sliding around but I managed to stay on the throttle.  I still slightly messed up the same problematic chicane, but ended up putting down my best lap of the test by almost a full second.  I kept pushing as I would see each interval on my lap timer and the lap kept getting faster and faster. I immediately pulled in, was lifted off the bike and that was the end of that.  The team was quite happy that I put the fast lap in and that the bike was in 1 piece.  My lap time was actually right in line with their expectations/predictions.  It beat my expectations by a mile!

That night at dinner (more uncooked wildlife, see Part 1), they figured that I would be able to consistently manage 2:12 lap times but could possibly do a sub 2:10 if need be and with fresh tires.  Takuya Fujita, one my teammates is fast - I am talking  World Superbike fast - and he is only 16!  He is amazing to watch an a great kid on top of everything.  He stands out among everyone no matter what track we are at or who is sharing the track with him at any given time. I would be a good balance to the team as I am generally a very consistent rider and love endurance racing.

To be perfectly honest, Suzuka is not one of my favorite tracks.  I picked it up relatively quickly due to my love for fast race tracks, but I have been very spoiled lately as Phillip Island, Motegi and Zhuhai all have amazing grip – even in the wet.  I don’t mind sliding my bike around, but I never really found my comfort level at Suzuka. And the crash hurt… a lot!

Update: I ended up having to back out of this July's 8 Hours at Suzuka since my baby girl (already named Kaitlyn) will be born most likely on the very same day of the race.  I let down the team, and it was a decision that I did have to think about for a while.  The funny thing is that my wife gave me the green light to go and was very supportive if I decided to go.  In the end, it was my own decision 100% to cancel. 

I will do everything I can to get the chance to race the 8 Hours a year from now;  I hope I am given that opportunity.  However, missing the birth of my baby would be something that I could not get another chance to do ever, so that put everything in perspective and made the decision easy for me (OK, maybe not that easy). Actually, I still shed a tear thinking about the missed opportunity, but I am betting that every time I pick up my baby, I will be glad I made the choice that I did!

Dan Kruger #71

{fcomment}

So far, we are looking at the basics - RPM, throttle position and speed - along with suspension travel, a channel that shows what the Bazzaz Z-Fi traction control system is up to, and the air-fuel ratio. I've addressed some of these channels previously and will look at others later, but here I will specifically address the GPS capabilities of the EVO4.

The above image shows essentially what the system is capable of - using GPS, it can track the motorcycle's progress around the track very accurately. But whereas the GPS system in your car or as part of your phone tracks your position to within a few metres and updates about once every second, the AiM's GPS is much more accurate and updates 10 times every second. The system's software uses that accurate position data to generate not just speed, but also lateral and longitudinal acceleration, two very powerful channels for analysis, and other information.

How can we use that data to best effect? Most data acquisition systems' software allows you to split the track into any number of segments, and see the time for each segment. With position data that is accurate enough to see changes in the riding line from lap to lap, it's possible to literally see which of the lines the rider took over the course of the session gave the best result in each section of the track. In theory, those optimum lines in each segment can be put together for an improved overall lap time.

Of course, in actual practice it's not that simple. A particular line in one corner may result in a better time in that segment but put the rider off-line and slower in the next segment. Large sections of the track must still be considered at once, especially when sequences of corners are strung together with short straights between.

During Saturday's qualifying session, Jodi logged a dozen or so complete laps, including the fastest lap for pole position at 45.144 seconds. In our data software, the track is split into 10 segments of seven corners and three straights. Even on a short track such as St-Eustache, that ends up being a lot of sector-time data to sort through, and you can imagine how easy it is to get bogged down in maps, sector times and scenarios on a longer track or with more laps to consider. And even if that data can be boiled down to one or two areas of improvement, the rider must put all this knowledge into practice - sometimes the most difficult part.

Sector times are one of the root capabilities of a data system, but when combined with the accuracy of GPS become a much more powerful tool than the systems of even just a decade ago. It's worth noting that the AiM Solo GPS lap timer generates the same GPS data as the more expensive EVO4 full system, and with the Race Studio 2 analysis software you can access all the same information from the Solo - sector times, speed, lateral and longitudinal acceleration, and so on.

It was an interesting weekend for me, as I did everything from home and on a three-hour time difference; John Sharrard emailed me the data at the end of each day, and there were a lot of texts, emails and phone calls back and forth. Jodi ended up setting the fastest lap in the race and finished second to current champion Jordan Szoke, the same result as at the first round at Shannonville.

Our first weekend with the data was definitely a learning experience for all of us; hopefully we can put it to good use at the next round at Atlantic Motorsport Park.

{fcomment}

Consider speed and its derivative, acceleration. For example, if you sped up from 60 to 80 km/h in five seconds, your rate of change - your acceleration - would be four kilometres per hour per second. If we wanted to see how well your bike gets from 0 to 100 km/h, it would be difficult to tell from speed data alone, and the picture would be far from complete. An acceleration chart, however, shows quickly and easily the rate of change of velocity, and puts a number on that acceleration that can be used for easy comparison. Likewise, if we wanted to see how smoothly you rode your bike on the freeway, we could look at your speed data and see how it varies over time; the less that variation, the smoother you are. Going through speed data alone to find those variations would require a lot of time and effort, but a quick look at acceleration data would show right away how quickly speed changes at any given moment.

The same math can be applied to any channel, not just speed: The rate of change of throttle position will show - and put numbers on - how smoothly a rider opens the throttle exiting a corner, or how quickly it is closed at the end of the straight. Another example is lean angle: The derivative of lean angle will show the motorcycle's roll rate, or how quickly it goes from full lean to full lean in a chicane. The rate of change of any data channel will show a completely new layer of information that can be used for analysis.

At a basic level, looking at raw data is fine for determining performance or for comparing bikes or riders to each other. But at a certain level, all that raw data starts to look the same; pro-level riders all get around the track at about the same speed, open the throttle at about the same time in every corner, and brake at about the same place for every corner. To find differences, it becomes necessary to delve deeper into the data, and that means more time is spent looking at those rate-of-change derivative channels.

Recently, Sport Rider published a profile of http://www.sportrider.com/features/146_1303_team_roberts_mike_sinclair/">Team Roberts' Mike Sinclair, who led the team's development of data acquisition in its early days. Sinclair talks of using the second derivative of raw data for analysis - the rate of change of the rate of change of a particular channel. If we are referring to lean angle, this would mean looking at not only how quickly the bike leans from side to side, but also how quickly it gets to that roll rate - an event that occurs in just a fraction of a second.

At the higher levels, that is what is required to show the necessary detail, and is an indication of the tiny slivers of time and data that teams in MotoGP and World Superbike are dealing with to find every last bit of performance.

{fcomment}

The CBR is equipped with an AiM suspension potentiometer on the front fork and another on the swingarm to measure front and rear wheel travel. The EVO4 system is capable of recording this data 500 times per second, giving a staggering 70,000 data points for the suspension alone for every lap of AMP.

There are numerous ways to collate this mountain of data and derive some useful information. The raw position data is useful for seeing if the suspension is bottoming or topping out excessively, and to see the attitude of the bike at any given time. We can see how much the fork dives under braking or squats on acceleration, for example, and how quickly those transitions are happening. The image above shows position data for the CBR's fork and rear suspension over the course of a lap at AMP.

Because suspension action is so dependent on shaft velocity (as opposed to the speed of the motorcycle), we use a math channel to take the derivative of fork and shock position to find velocity. This data in turn is used to generate a histogram, which shows how much time the fork or shock spends at each speed. AiM's Race Studio 2 analysis software has this feature built-in, making suspension velocity analysis an easier task than it would be otherwise.

Inset into the image above are histograms for the CBR's suspension over a lap of AMP. The histogram charts have shaft velocity across the bottom axis, and show how much time the fork and shock spend at each velocity. At the far left are high negative velocities, which reflect high-speed rebound action. At the far right are high positive velocities, which reflect high-speed compression action. The center portion of the histogram shows low-speed velocities for compression and rebound. Note that the fork spends much more time in the low-speed region than high-speed, giving it the characteristic hill shape. Statistical analysis of the histograms can be used to help determine how the suspension is working and what changes to make.

After the round at St-Eustache, I spent quite a bit of time studying the suspension data and the derived histograms. Previously I didn't have that much experience in this area; most of the knowledge I had came from theory and books related to car suspension and data acquisition. And Sharrard, as you may know, is a suspension expert - his company Accelerated Technologies is a suspension specialist shop - but is new to the data side. To put theory and practice together, I contacted Pete Snell (of Snell Technical Services), who tuned for me in my racing days and has plenty of experience with suspension and data from his time working with Steve Crevier. By the time practice began at AMP, I had a pretty good understanding of the suspension data and how to use it.

As it turned out, that time was wisely spent; from the very first lap of practice the suspension data was key and pretty much all we looked at for the entire weekend. Sharrard was making suspension changes right up until the race on Sunday, and the setup helped Jodi to edge Jordan Szoke at the finish for his first Superbike victory.

The next round of the series is at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park on August 10-11. I have definitely been learning as I go, but for this round I will be at the track with the team for the first time. I've been busy studying the AMP data since the race weekend, and am anxious to put this newfound knowledge to good use.

One of the biggest challenges with data analysis - and I knew this from previous experience - is simply the amount of time required to sift through the mountain of data compiled during each session. There is only so much time available between on-track sessions, and it's practically impossible to go over every lap and every channel trying to find useful information that can help the team move forward. This is always an issue, and I certainly felt the added pressure at Mosport (CTMP) with John and Jodi looking over my shoulder!

Part of the solution is to make additional math channels or use certain graphical methods that make it easier to quickly and easily see exactly what you want to see. For example, one way to evaluate how the traction control system is working is to look at rear wheel speed compared to GPS speed, which will indicate how much wheelspin is occurring. The team's Bazzaz system utilizes a programmable throttle-position/rpm array to change its operation, and it also outputs a signal when it is active (which we feed into the AiM system). Put all those channels - GPS speed, wheel speed, throttle position, rpm and TC active - on a standard graph vs. time or distance, and it is practically impossible to make any sense of it - as you can see from the attached image.

A math channel showing actual slip (by mathematically comparing wheel speed to GPS speed) eliminates one data trace, and some creative charts can be used to eliminate others. If we are interested in how slip varies with throttle position, for example, it makes sense to show it just like that on an X-Y chart rather than showing both channels against speed or time. The AiM software includes many options for graphing data, including the X-Y plot; in this manner, a quick overview of the traction control system is available, and areas requiring further investigation can be easily seen.

The other part of the time-crunch solution is having a structured plan after each on-track session. In one of the books I have, <i>A Practical Guide to Race Car Data Analysis</i>, author Bob Knox outlines a procedure to that effect, and even includes a checklist that can be used; I realized at CTMP just how important this is. In a nutshell, certain data channels must be at least checked after every session - for instance, ensuring that the engine is not over-revving anywhere on the track by a quick look at the rpm channel, or checking that the fork or shock are not bottoming.

Once the basic checklist is complete, attention can be focused on what the rider and crew chief are interested in - at Mosport, as I mentioned, it was usually the suspension and its related channels. Once a decision has been made for setup changes and a direction for the next session, focus can then shift to the remaining data channels and finding any further information that can help the team.

The races at CTMP did not go as well for us as the final at Atlantic Motorsport Park. While Jodi was strong in practice in qualifying, he crashed out of the lead group just a couple of laps from the finish of Saturday's race. On Sunday, a fairing mount broke but we also went astray on the setup from Saturday, holding Jodi back to an eighth-place finish.

As with anything, putting theory into practice is not easy; the data is a big help to setup and provides many answers, but compromises must still be made. And, of course, we are still learning how to best use the data.

Since the races at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, I have been working on combining the suspension channels with other data in order to better see certain parameters that we have discovered to be important. The next event for the team - and another chance to put theory into practice - is the final round of this year's Canadian Superbike Championship on August 25 at Le Circuit Mont-Tremblant.

{fcomment}

Just as we can use data to find areas where a rider can save time at the racetrack, the same data provides insight into how close the rider is to not only the traction limits of the machine, tires and track, but also his or her own personal limits.

Much of the useful information comes from GPS data - including lateral and longitudinal acceleration - which is inherent in any GPS-enabled system. The chart attached here shows math channels derived from GPS data from the AiM EVO4 systems used on Jodi Christie's CSBK Honda CBR1000RR at Le Circuit Mont-Tremblant but we also have the same data available to us through the team's AiM Solo GPS lap timer.

The building block of looking at GPS data from a safety standpoint is that the maximum lateral and longitudinal acceleration values over the course of a lap should not exceed certain values. In part, those values are set by the motorcycle and how much traction is available from the tires - for example, the typical maximum lateral (cornering) and longitudinal (braking) acceleration numbers I see for a rider on a street bike on street tires are about 1 g on a flat, level turn. That said, of course, less experienced riders will generate less aggressive numbers, while more experienced riders will somehow achieve higher values - never mind the physics.

For riders new to the track, looking at the raw braking and cornering acceleration data will show how close they are to the limit. While this may seem obvious and moot, you would be surprised at how often new riders, with no previous experience to draw from, will right away tread dangerously close to the maximum traction limits in braking or cornering. If the rider brakes at .75 g at every corner on the track but one, and braking at that corner is .95 g, that is cause for a closer investigation.

Once a rider gains experience and becomes familiar with those basic limitations, their techniques turn to combining braking and cornering (trail-braking) or accelerating and cornering (I call this trail-acceleration for lack of a better term). Likewise, the lateral and longitudinal acceleration data can be combined using math channels to show graphically just how much the two are used together. Again, there are physical limits due to the motorcycle and how much traction is available, and there are the rider's comfort levels. Any numbers out of line - either with what is expected or what is usual for the rider and track - need a closer look.

With even more experienced riders, the raw data and simple math channels don't show the whole story. The data shown here represents front (blue) and rear (red) weight or load on the bike's tires - what you would see if you placed a scale underneath. This takes into account the added load from cornering as well as weight transfer from braking and acceleration, and shows a much sharper picture than the acceleration data alone does.

Just as we are interested in maximum values on the acceleration data, here we are concerned with high loads at certain times on the track. Note that maximum load on the front end comes trail-braking uphill into a corner near the end of the lap; the load on the front tire is 400 kg, more than 50 percent more than the combined weight of Jodi and the CBR. Shortly after, the rear tire is under its maximum load of 370 kg, as Jodi accelerates while leaned over through a dip in the track.

These channels represent a first approximation of load. Because GPS data includes altitude and slope, it's possible to take those changes in elevation into account, modifying the load estimates accordingly. And, if data for the elevation of the inside and outside of the track is available, it's possible even to include camber into the equations. This gives an accurate indication of how close the rider is to the physical limit at any given point on the racetrack, and is just one way data acquisition can be used for safety purposes rather than performance.

{fcomment}

We are racers after all. We are all chasing the win, the perfect photo, the spotlight. However, whenever the sport goes through troubled times, we all tend to come together, put our beefs aside and help one another. It is this part of motorcycle racing that is truly amazing and I think one of the reasons so many of us love to race. It is also one of the main reasons so many of us try to retire at some point but end up getting sucked back into the sport.

I recently went to the CSBK National at Mont-Tremblant. It was my first time going to a race in Canada in over five years. I haven’t raced in Canada for probably over 10 years. I figured it would be a fun day and it would be great to see all my old friends. Besides, with a one-month-old baby who loves to sleep in the car, a road trip sounded like a great plan!

As soon as I got there, I started seeing a lot of familiar faces. Not 10 minutes went by and I bumped into Michael Taylor. He was one of the top Superbike riders when I stopped racing in Canada, and I clearly remember how friendly he was to me back then as I was just an up and comer and he was an established champion. As soon as I saw him, he saw me and there was an immediate smile and we started talking. He was friendly as ever.

Then I saw Steve Crevier, then Frank Trombino, John Sharrard, Kevin Graham, and so on. It was like a school reunion. The big difference was, everyone was happy to see me and I was happy to see everyone. I don’t know of another sport, or situation in life for that matter where you can pop in and out of people’s lives like that after 10 years and still have that feeling that they would give you the shirt of your back if you needed it.

I often mention how lucky I am to have gone racing/testing on so many world-renowned tracks with some well know riders in various countries around the world. I start by saying that because when I look back and reflect on it all, I realize that no matter what country, what culture, or what caliber of competition, everyone pretty much goes through the same things. It could be the long lonely drives/flights from event to event. It might be as simple as the horrible food we all need to survive on when away from home (I will come back to that in a future blog as there are some funny stories when I travel in Japan). It might be the late nights at the race shop prepping the bikes. In these days especially, it is also the endless struggle to find enough financing to even keep the team’s race program alive. I think the common denominator worldwide is the personal sacrifice we all devote to remain in this sport.

No matter what level of competition, we all like showing up at the track for each event and see the familiar faces. It might be the small talk between teams, it might be the more serious discussions within one’s own team, or it could be as simple as saying hello to the track officials during riders meeting. The same goes when we complete a race and all the corner workers are cheering us on. (I think we can all agree that without them and their love for the sport, there would be no amateur racing, which means there would be no pro racing!)

The race track provides us all with a wide range of emotions. Most of them are good emotions. Unfortunately, from time to time, the emotions turn to sadness. When we lose a fellow competitor the entire racing community shares in the grieving process. 

Recently, Canadian road racing lost two racers doing what they loved to do. It is at times like this when we realize that we all need each other to get through it and, as sad as these times are, having the racing community come together is truly an amazing thing. I personally did not know the two riders we lost recently in Canadian road racing but I am still filled with sadness and feel a great deal of sympathy to their families and loved ones. RIP to them both.

I do want to end off by saying that I left Mont-Tremblant with mixed feelings. The overpowering feeling was definitely one of pride. The Canadian road race community deserves more than it has. I hope there are better times ahead in terms of race support, rider entries, and eventually an across-Canada series from east to west. The riders deserve it, the organizers deserve it, and so do the fans. 

I am proud to know many of these great people and it is comforting to know that they are all part of our big global family of motorcycle racing.

Dan #71

{fcomment}

4. I decide that I want to try to qualify and ride at the finals this weekend, so we take a van from Hong Kong to Zhuhai through the night and arrive one hour before qualifying.

5. I meet with track doctors and circuit management who, after looking me over and talking with me, accept my request to join the weekend.

6. I quality on pole with only two laps out, using a special SuperPole Q tire sent to me by Kevin Graham in Canada. I shock the field and am in pain

7. I start peeing blood and am concerned, but participate in Race 1. Unfortunately I have nothing for the Yes Yamaha rider (Huang Shi Zhao, the points leader at the time).  I stay within four seconds of him the entire race just in case he makes a big mistake, but I was struggling to keep that up as it was. I did end up with the quickest lap of the race but second place in the end.  The entire paddock was in shock and I spent the next four hours doing press from around the world, as what I'd done was apparently nothing short of amazing.

8. I went back to the hospital last night because of the blood thing and also stomach pain.  Doctor feels it is simply the 12 pills I am taking - one of them is known to discolor the urine. I decide to go back the next day to compete in the final race of the year.  If Zhao has any problems and I can still manage a 2nd, I will be the Pan Delta Superbike champion for 2013.  It is a longshot but one I will try for.  Worst case will be I will finish 2nd overall in China again in 2013.

9. Unbeleivable... I followed the Yes Yamaha rider for the first seven laps until we hit lapped traffic; I closed in and got by him. We fought and touched and it was thrilling. With two laps left, I pulled a two-second gap by working the traffic and won the race. I lost the championship by a few points, but it was thrilling for absolutely everyone.

10. The fans poured onto the track and I was mobbed.

11. I was getting sponsor offers for 2014 immediately.

I need to get healthy as it is a very serious injury, but winning was out of this world.

-- Dan Kruger

{fcomment}

Most of us are familiar with camber, where the inside of a corner is higher or lower than the outside, creating a banked effect. Gravity can work in your favour - positive camber, with the outside of the track higher than the inside - or against you - negative camber, with the outside of the track lower than the inside.

If a portion of the track has more positive camber than another, it may be worth the sacrifice of a non-ideal line to take advantage of that camber and save time overall. Here we will deal with slope, which refers to a change in altitude parallel to the riding line. Just as turning on the more cambered portion of the track lets gravity work in your favour, braking on a more uphill part of the track or accelerating on a more downhill part may be faster and quicker overall.

Note that slope and camber are intertwined somewhat; when you arc into a banked turn from the outside to the inside of the track, you are turning the positive camber of the turn into negative (downhill) slope. A good rule of thumb is to try and do more of your turning on the more uphill part of the track, as this turns the slope into positive camber, working in your favour.

Another aspect to consider is how the track dips or crests, as this can greatly affect traction. When you ride over the crest of a hill, your bike can unload a significant amount of weight and lose traction; likewise, at the bottom of a dip in the pavement, weight and traction are added. This will benefit braking, accelerating and turning, and going out of your way to take advantage of a dip in the track - or avoid a crest - can save time.

Motocross riders seem to be able to find the optimum lines and manage the tradeoffs almost naturally, but for some reason it is less intuitive on paved tracks. Riders are often more focused on taking the "ideal" line or the line that everyone else uses, and don't consider potential benefits that something different may offer due to changes in the elevation.

Both the AiM EVO4 data acquisition system and the AiM Solo GPS lap timer that I used with Jodi Christie this year record altitude and slope data, and this can be very useful when combined with sector times and the GPS trace to find the optimum riding line. It may seem like a lot of work for little payoff, but consider this: Autodrome St-Eustache is considered a flat circuit, with just seven metres of elevation change. But even here we were able to use slope and altitude data to find a non-ideal and non-intuitive line for Jodi on his superbike that saved as much as a couple of tenths of a second in just one corner.

{fcomment}