Best Tire Set-Up for T-Hill

[ryanbz2001]

I am a fairly new rider to the track and I am still learning when it comes to trackdays. i am going to be at T-hill this Monday and I am wondering what the best DOT trackday tire compound is ideal for that day. Should I be running a Med/Soft compound on the rear and a soft up front?

And how do you judge what tire compunds to use where? Is Med better for hotter days and softer for colder?

Thanks guys.

[lokisdog]

Exactly what brand/type of tire?

[antarius]

Honestly?

It doesn't matter. Throw some tires on thing, anything at the level of a good street tire or better, warm them up, and have fun.

At this level, it really doesn't matter.... and if it does, you're outriding yourself. (and myself).

[ryanbz2001]

I am probably going to be running the Michelin Pilot race

[ColinP]

Don't run softs at Thunderhill. If you want tires that last I suggest Med front and hardest possible on the rear. Call this guy, he's super helpful: http://afmotorsports.com/

He's on BARF too. afmotorsports

[lokisdog]

Originally posted by antarius
Honestly?

It doesn't matter. Throw some tires on thing, anything at the level of a good street tire or better, warm them up, and have fun.

At this level, it really doesn't matter.... and if it does, you're outriding yourself. (and myself).

Sorry but that's just plain wrong.

It does matter, and I've seen a few track day novices with some skills outride their tires, not themselves, often with a bad outcome.

Ryan, if you're running Michelin's contact Alex Florea as ColinP suggested, he'll steer you in the right direction.

[Outta Control]

I got a set of new Power Race for sale :D

[TL-R-id3r]

You will not use the power race to it's capabilities. A set of pilot power or pirelli corsa will do great don't waste your money until you start run at least B pace. I Ran Corsa III on 2 track days and they did great. I run B. here is pic

http://www.bayarearidersforum.com/forums/images/threads/000/199/726/3078281-rear_tire1.jpg

[Yody]

IF there is one thing you should know about tires and the track, it is that when you ask questions like these, you will get a different answer from each person you ask. If you get dot race tires, get them from a local track vendor and let them figure it out for you. Otherwise run some good street tires like the Pilot power 2CT.

[kyles here]

i did my 1st 2 tds on PP and they held up fine and showed virtually no wear. after that i kicked it up to power races but now im having issuues with them tearing. from what i hear soft tires are bad for thill

http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l145/kylesr6/DSC00467.jpg

[rumblephish]

best tires for the track? In "C" group?


get the round one's, they work really good! :lol:

[afmotorsports]

Don't confuse slower laptimes with getting away with a poor tire choice. As many of the instructors might tell you, often times you can hammer a tire harder when you're following a student and not riding quite as fast. Why? Entry speed is slower, mid-corner speed is slower, but on the exit everybody and anybody can whack the throttle open, so the slower your mid-corner speed was, the larger the difference in speed will be from mid-corner to turn exit. That delta in speed often puts more strain on the tire, so the tire often wears out quicker and is also more likely to lose traction (spin-up, highside). Newer riders are also likely to have their suspension set up "less-than-ideal", so that's another contributing factor.

You certainly don't need 16.5" superbike slicks, but it's advisable to use the right "tool" for the right application. Sure I've even seen a Goldwing at a trackday (unfortunately the guy ended up crashing it in the Cyclone at T-hill), but in general we all have a pretty good idea which "tools" are trackworthy and which are not... arguably a Goldwing and touring tires are towards the bottom of the list.

[afm199]

Stay away from softs and hards. You can get away with softs on a cold day and hards on really hot day, buy Thill is a good track to run mediums front and rear. If you are in C group don't waste your money on super expensive race tires. Corsas would be great. Or Pilot Power

[Yody]

also to add, most high performance street tires warm up very quickly. Most of the time, new riders are not thinking about warming up their tires. This can be a big mistake on a Race tire, especially the cold blooded ones (I've heard michelins are notorious for being like this) So if you decide to run race rubber, make it a huge point to ride smoothly and slow for the first 2 laps.

You have to do this with any tire, and it is just as an important aspect of track riding as anything else, but a good street/track tire will be more forgiving

[kyles here]

defintately warm up tires especially in the mornng session and dont pass on yellow flags :cool

[Yody]

I thought yellow flag meant free-for-all? A time to pass people faster than you?
:x

[thesenior]

Originally posted by yody
I thought yellow flag meant free-for-all? A time to pass people faster than you?
:x

No no.. Red Flag means that... Yellow means pass only in corners.

afmotorsports: what would you recommend for a k7 750 decent B rider on 2CT's at Thill for air pressure? thanks!

[#1Freak]

start at 32/32, see if they are heating up. if you get read tires after your session go to the tire guy and have hum take a look...

Brian

[norcalzx10r]

Originally posted by kyles here
defintately warm up tires especially in the mornng session and dont pass on yellow flags :cool

LOL! Sorry Yody, I don't mean to laugh but it's some funny shit:laughing

[afmotorsports]

Originally posted by thesenior
afmotorsports: what would you recommend for a k7 750 decent B rider on 2CT's at Thill for air pressure? thanks!

You might want to start out with a little higher tire pressure, maybe 34/34 or even 36/36. Pilot Powers have a relatively soft carcass and like more tire pressure than race DOT tires, otherwise they will feel "squirmy" and move around more than they should.

As a little side note... may I politely ask that if you're going to rely on us or Brian from MotoShoes (who works with me at the AFM races) for information and advice on Michelins at N. California racetracks, maybe you would consider actually BUYING the tires from us once in a while... please don't take this the wrong way, but sometimes it feels like we get pumped for information and then some of you go buy your tires elsewhere... and that sort of sucks for small businesses like ours. I'm just saying... keep us in mind... m'kay? :teeth

[afm199]

Originally posted by afmotorsports

As a little side note... may I politely ask that if you're going to rely on us or Brian from MotoShoes (who works with me at the AFM races) for information and advice on Michelins at N. California racetracks, maybe you would consider actually BUYING the tires from us once in a while... please don't take this the wrong way, but sometimes it feels like we get pumped for information and then some of you go buy your tires elsewhere... and that sort of sucks for small businesses like ours. I'm just saying... keep us in mind... m'kay? :teeth


yeah Brian is a great guy!












O, I guess Alex is ok too. :teeth

[thesenior]

Originally posted by afmotorsports

As a little side note... may I politely ask that if you're going to rely on us or Brian from MotoShoes (who works with me at the AFM races) for information and advice on Michelins at N. California racetracks, maybe you would consider actually BUYING the tires from us once in a while... please don't take this the wrong way, but sometimes it feels like we get pumped for information and then some of you go buy your tires elsewhere... and that sort of sucks for small businesses like ours. I'm just saying... keep us in mind... m'kay? :teeth

thank you so much and yes dude.. actually.. i had no idea you guys sold tires. Back in TX i used to always buy from the small businesses that either helped support our CMRA races/Trackdays or racers that had their own businesses. You just earned a new customer :D thanks!

[afmotorsports]

Originally posted by thesenior
thank you so much and yes dude.. actually.. i had no idea you guys sold tires. Back in TX i used to always buy from the small businesses that either helped support our CMRA races/Trackdays or racers that had their own businesses. You just earned a new customer :D thanks!

At the CMRA races you probably dealt with Dave Hirsch from Island Racing Services... so basically, I'm just a younger, taller, thinner, faster version of Dave... :teeth btw, Dave comes out here a few times a year for some AFM and AMA races (Infineon and both Laguna rounds), so feel free to stop by the Michelin tent and say hello.

[Trackho]

Originally posted by afmotorsports
... so basically, I'm just a younger, taller, thinner, faster version of Dave... :teeth btw,

Yeah Alex(ia) is a regular supermodel, did you really think that she was a guy?? :laughing :p :laughing

[thesenior]

Originally posted by afmotorsports
At the CMRA races you probably dealt with Dave Hirsch from Island Racing Services... so basically, I'm just a younger, taller, thinner, faster version of Dave... :teeth btw, Dave comes out here a few times a year for some AFM and AMA races (Infineon and both Laguna rounds), so feel free to stop by the Michelin tent and say hello.

Jeez its a small world! yeah... Dave's the man! always hooked me up with the info on the tires and would slap a tire on a wheel faster than i could turn my head and cough :p

Yeah man... ill be stopping by to say hi when i see yur tent. Im the short greek guy with curly hair that comes up to you and calls himself Konstantine :D

[KaWySiCkHuNdReD]

Originally posted by afmotorsports


As a little side note... may I politely ask that if you're going to rely on us or Brian from MotoShoes (who works with me at the AFM races) for information and advice on Michelins at N. California racetracks, maybe you would consider actually BUYING the tires from us once in a while... please don't take this the wrong way, but sometimes it feels like we get pumped for information and then some of you go buy your tires elsewhere... and that sort of sucks for small businesses like ours. I'm just saying... keep us in mind... m'kay? :teeth

Alex you are great on your input and you sell amazing tires. Good thing I listened to you. I went to Miller this weekend and the tire choice you gave me was awesome. Alot of people were having tire problems. Alot of people were tweaking suspension, changing tires. I didn't change a thing and I had a blast.

BTW the SRJLs felt great breaking at the end of the front straight.