Mr Fro

Try this Shorty, it'll help soothe your frazzled nerves. https://youtu.be/H7NLWQ2VKJM

Alright Mega! How was the promised land and what brings you back to the UK?

Nice info there Cocker! Valko - No MOT is required for the track. All you need to take is the paperwork from the company and your license. Putting higher pressures in your tyres makes them deform less as you roll along which is desirable for high speed straight line stuff. On track you'll have the bike cranked right over in the corners so want the tyres to deform a bit to give you a larger contact patch so lowering the pressures a bit is desirable. Plus, because you'll be putting loads of heat in the tyre with continual heavy acceleration, braking and cornering, the pressures will increase naturally by a few PSI. For example; if I run road tyres (PR4) I adjust the pressures from 36/42 F/R to 30/36. For mirrors, you really don't need them as your full concentration should be what's ahead of you. You don't need to worry about what's behind you - it's up to the rider following you to give you space. It's also worth putting tape over your speedo or you'll end up spending too much time looking at it! Additionally, I have RaceChrono loaded on an old phone that I keep in my pocket so I can get my lap times and telemetry.

I think the time of going on the pull has diminished significantly - I don't think people expect it any more. I was in my late 20s when I was dating and only very rarely did a night out in Cambridge yield any results (funnily enough, one of my successes was when I popped along to meet a mate in my biking gear ). Have a go on eharmony, the fact you have to pay means it's for people willing to put in the effort, not just for those who want loads of messages to boost their ego. BTW - if you register (but not pay) then wait 2-3 weeks, they will send you codes to get 70% off. For your profile, don't have any "hilarious" pics of you pulling stupid faces, standing in front of monument xyz or on the razz with your mates - just have some natural shots of you doing everyday stuff. If you've got a few muscles, it doesn't hurt to discretely flash them a bit. For the wordy bit - be conversational, you need to say how great you are without bragging. If you're handy at DIY then mention it - most of the girls I dated said they was a box ticker. Do get someone to run their eye over it if you can.

Which site(s) are you using? I was on eharmony which was pretty good longer term stuff and plenty of fish for the not so long term stuff. My strategy (if you can call it such) was to go on as many dates as possible to triage the long term from the short term and unsuitables. I think it always helped when in the initial communication stages to write stuff that showed I'd read and contemplated their profile garb rather than a generic "alwite luv" type thing. What was also handy was to have a female friend read through my profile and give me feedback and pointers on where I could improve it.

You northerners are a tight fisted bunch.

You're in to the fast group now though aren't you? The expectation to go like the clappers straight out of the paddock is quite high I imagine. It's perfectly possible to keep up in inters for the first lap or so then start pushing on and get some overtakes in on Supercorsa SC1/2 without warmers. You don't have to have them although I'm looking forward to using mine!

RE: tyre warmers, I don't think they are really necessary to have a good day. I've only just bought a set and have done well enough without them. Plus, if you do get some then you have to bugger about getting power which means either the world's longest extension lead or a genny which would have to be pretty hefty to run for 2 sets of warmers.

Today the award goes to... the sales assistant in PC World! I went it with the intention of spending £600 on a lappy (already had a voucher for £100). The boy came over, I showed him what I wanted and he went and found one. So good so far. He told me it was the last one and that they had already pre-installed some stuff on it. I said I expected a discount as I'd have to wipe it and reinstall only the stuff I wanted - he agreed to a tenner off - better than nothing. He then rang it up and said "That'll be £630 please". "That's £30 more than the ticket price - what happened to my tenner off" I say. "Oh" he said "The pre-installation is £40 so you get a tenner off that". "I'm not paying extra for something I have to undo. Either it's £590 or there's no sale". "Ummm, that's the best I can do" says boy. I gave him a little wave as I left the shop empty handed.

I classed myself as a capable rider before I did my first track day - 11 or so years on a bike, quick on the road, knee down on roundabouts, that sort of stuff. The thing I took away from my first track day apart from wanting to do it again immediately was that the bike's capabilities easily surpassed my own. You really get a feel for how far you can push it and be perfectly alright. In the space of a few session it clicked that it wasn't riding ultra aggressive that makes you fast but being smooth and controlled that knocks chunks off your lap times. Like Cocker says, don't worry about booking up tuition in advance, just get yourself booked on a novice day as most places lay on freebie sessions in the paddocks and 1-1 track tuition at a cost. You get all sorts of people on any manner of bikes at novice days and it's a really fun and friendly atmos.

How did you manage to stuff it upside down Tuk?

Don't we all!

Nice one TC!

Maybe - got a new job starting in May so don't know how the boss will be about fetching odd days off.

With MSV? *link* Now I know racing is not permitted in these sessions but...

I feel ashamed. I really should leave the house every now and then.

That is quite possibly the best idea I've heard in my life! Why do we cough £60+ for something that can be made for less than a tenner?

Well done bud and congratulations.

If you don't mind taking a detour south of Cambs there's the Three Tuns in Great Abington. Not exactly cheap but the rooms are great and the beer... oh the beer. I'll ask Mrs Fro - she's from Woodbridge so might know somewhere closer to the destination.

Those two are the same fitment... I'm assuming the one on the right is the old one.

Have fun boys and girls. I'd rather be out with you lot than playing nurse maid (I don't even get a uniform).

I haven't got a pitchfork... will a grass rake be okay?

I was going to say Racer High Racer - first set lasted 10 years and are very good in the event of an unplanned dismount. £100 more than the Rayven jobbies though so hard to justify really.

Sacrilege! You can't go cutting and hammering them you beasts! I may not have used mine for a decade or so but I still keep them because they look nice. Plus they were bast*rd expensive.

You might want to check the carb/throttle body - quite a few bikes have a secondary adjuster there if you're worried about maxing out the handlebar adjuster. That said, you should be fine with just a couple of turns in so long as it's not wobbly with the lock nut nipped up.