CTS488
BARF Racing
Whats going on everyone?!?!?!
Well, I got to attend the Freddie Spencer 3 day pro school this past week. Alex Florea and Dale Kieffer (the two cali michelin dealers) helped me out and talked me into going.
Having never been to a school before I was a little nervous cause i know I was going to have people watching me closely and analyzing my riding. I've heard really good things about Freddies' school so i knew that i'd learn something no matter what. I've also heard bad stories of people who took other schools and were not so lucky and said that it was a big waste of time and money and that they didn't learn a thing. Hearing that also made me wonder if i'd suffer the same fate as these other riders. So here's the break down of the three days and what went on!
Day 1: Alex Florea and I drove down the Las vegas on sat. cause Alex had to attend a michelin meeting on sunday so i hung out for the day and relaxed and prepared myself for the coming week. We got up and headed to the track and arrived at 8 on the dot. We were greeted by Nick Ienatsch, on of the school instructors, and a handfull of other students, around 18. Ken Hill, owner of Hayward Kawi was there, as well as afmers Kim Nakashima and Chip Roberson. Their were a few guys from the washington area that came down and also a few guys from the mra out in colorado, a guy from puerto rico, a guy from canada that rode in their canadian superbike series. It was quite an asortment of talent and ages. We jumped into a small bus with Nick and we went for a ride around the first track we were going to ride on. Nick talked about lines and also about what we were in for the next 3 days! After the small ride we went back to the school and ate a small breakfest and went into the class. The instructors inroduced themselves(Nick Ienatsch, Jeff Haney, and Dale Kieffer) as well as Freddie Spencer. Freddie and Nick went over riding techniques and was very detailed about how the proper way to brake, turn, accelerate, positioning and pretty much everything that goes along with riding. After the classroom session we suited up and head for the bikes. Most of the bikes were Honda CBR600F4i's but they did have a few CBR600rr's which i was lucky enough to get. We were split up into three groups with the three intructors and led to the track where we proceeded to do a few laps to get familar. After we all figured out which way the track went we did various drills with cones and with the intructors following us. We did drills for most of the day, broke for lunch and continued after lunch to ride. Towards the end of the day Jeff Haney(instructor- and overall badass on a bike!!!) had each one us do a lap with him following us, Jeff had a camera mounted in the nose of his bike. Everyone did a lap and then at the end of the day we went back to the class room and discussed what went on and watched the video of everyone riding. It was so cool cause you can see what mistakes you were making and they were there to tell you what needed fixxing. Wrapped the day up and head back to the hotel!! I learned so much on the first day, their were a few things that i was a little confused on that Freddie and Nick had talked about but I just needed to be patient and wait till the next day to see if i could pick it up.
Day 2 : Alex, Ken, Kim and myself were very pleased with the first days class. I think we all learned something but still needed it pounded into our heads. We had another class session in the morning and talked even more in depth about Freddies' techniques plus about the mental aspect of riding. Suited up and jumped on the bike for another round of drills. To keep us on our toes they changed the track on us and switched up the configuration of the track, it was cool cause we got to try new types of corners and apply Freddies' techniques to new types to show us that it works on any type of track. We did a few new drills and again right before lunch we were video taped again. We broke for lunch suited down and put on our dirt riding gear. We got to go dirt track riding on XR100's!! This had to be the funnest part of the school. We went out to a the dirt area and Jeff Haney taught us how to flat track and get use to having very little traction and how the bike slides and moves around. It really taught a lot of us how to be smooth on the throttle and how to use the rear brake. Freddie isn't big on using the rear brake but he says its not a bad thing to use it when you need to, as long as it doesn't distrupt you mid corner speed and your front braking. Ken and I had a blast chasing eachother on the Xr's. I think i'm going to go out and get one now to start flat tracking a lot more, its such a great tool for roadracers and teachs so much. We did that till sundown and then went back to class to watch the video from earlier and also eat dinner. We watched what we had improved over the previous day but also saw what we needed to improve on for the next. Nick and Freddie spoke again at the end and the two of them finally said a few things that just totally made Freddie's whole philosophy make sense. It was so strange cause as soon as they mentioned it everything else that was siad the previous day hit me like a ton of bricks, it was way cool. I was looking so forward to the final day to try techniques that freddie had said and showed us.
Day 3 : The final day was going to be packed with riding. We had our morning class session with Freddie and Nick. He talked about suspension and a bit more of mentally preparing yourself for riding and racing. He told us a ton sotories from when he was racing in the early 80's. He got so many cool stories its crazy. He's got so much experience and knowledge its amazing to just hear him talk about things, how he went to suzuka(i think it was suzuka, it was a gp track!) for his first time and learned the track in 7 laps and on the 8th or 9th lap he set the lap record, truely amazing what he did on a bike! Thats just a tid bit of Feddies' talent on a bike.
We suited up and once again we were treated to another track. The same track that the AFM ran at vegas back in september. It was a tricky track to learn with some strange corners. We drilled for a bit and once again video taped. I had some one-on-one time with Jeff Haney and he really changed my body positioning around so i can turn the bike better, it was so cool cause it actually worked what he was showing me, i was kind of in shock about it. He did the same for Ken and Ken was surprised as well I think. Even Alex was looking like a Nicky hayden out there, his body positioning, and the way he was riding looked so much better than it did before, Alex even started playing with the rear brake a little to try and get the feel for a sliding bike into a corner and also using it to get the bike to turn just a bit sharper as you reach the apex, i was impressed with Alex!! Freddie came out and did a few drills for us and showed us a few laps. He's so cool to watch, everthing he does is so smooth, and seems in slow motion but he really hauling ass. Being smooth is one of the things he emphsizes, smooth with everthing you do on a bike. The last part of the day we had some open sessions and got to play. Ken and I played cat and mouse with Dale Kieffer. Ken and I were flying around that track on these stock bikes. Ken thought that we were close to the times that the top 3 600 guys were doing durning the AFM round there, it sure felt like we were going good. We finished the day and went back to the class to talk once again about everything that we went through in the past 3 days. Freddie handed out certificates and a few gifts. It was truely a great experience.
I can't say enough about this school, i thought that i really wasn't going to be shown anything new or benifial to me but boy was I wrong. I'm not trying to sound like a commercial for Freddie but he's just really that good. I can't wait for my next race weekend to try these techniques out, i really feel that i'll be able ride smoother and faster and in the long run, win more races. Freddie and his crew are top notch class acts, very professional. I strongly suggest that all you racers out there take this class, Freddie has 3 world championships under his belt, riders like Nicky Hayden, Kurtis Roberts, Ben Bostrom, Jason Disalvo, Tony Meiring and the list goes on of top names, all still come to him for advice. Freddie told us that Nicky was just at the school a week or two previous to us doing the exact same braking drill on the 600 as us. His system works, its proven!
If you don't believe me, ask these AFMers: Ken Hill, Alex Florea, Chip Roberson, Kim Nakashima. We all felt pretty much the same about our experience!
Thanks to all who read this!!! I know it was long but its something that I feel should be known and talked about.
Thanks you guys!!
Chris Siglin
p.s. here's the link for freddies' school to those interested
Freddie Spencer School
Well, I got to attend the Freddie Spencer 3 day pro school this past week. Alex Florea and Dale Kieffer (the two cali michelin dealers) helped me out and talked me into going.
Having never been to a school before I was a little nervous cause i know I was going to have people watching me closely and analyzing my riding. I've heard really good things about Freddies' school so i knew that i'd learn something no matter what. I've also heard bad stories of people who took other schools and were not so lucky and said that it was a big waste of time and money and that they didn't learn a thing. Hearing that also made me wonder if i'd suffer the same fate as these other riders. So here's the break down of the three days and what went on!
Day 1: Alex Florea and I drove down the Las vegas on sat. cause Alex had to attend a michelin meeting on sunday so i hung out for the day and relaxed and prepared myself for the coming week. We got up and headed to the track and arrived at 8 on the dot. We were greeted by Nick Ienatsch, on of the school instructors, and a handfull of other students, around 18. Ken Hill, owner of Hayward Kawi was there, as well as afmers Kim Nakashima and Chip Roberson. Their were a few guys from the washington area that came down and also a few guys from the mra out in colorado, a guy from puerto rico, a guy from canada that rode in their canadian superbike series. It was quite an asortment of talent and ages. We jumped into a small bus with Nick and we went for a ride around the first track we were going to ride on. Nick talked about lines and also about what we were in for the next 3 days! After the small ride we went back to the school and ate a small breakfest and went into the class. The instructors inroduced themselves(Nick Ienatsch, Jeff Haney, and Dale Kieffer) as well as Freddie Spencer. Freddie and Nick went over riding techniques and was very detailed about how the proper way to brake, turn, accelerate, positioning and pretty much everything that goes along with riding. After the classroom session we suited up and head for the bikes. Most of the bikes were Honda CBR600F4i's but they did have a few CBR600rr's which i was lucky enough to get. We were split up into three groups with the three intructors and led to the track where we proceeded to do a few laps to get familar. After we all figured out which way the track went we did various drills with cones and with the intructors following us. We did drills for most of the day, broke for lunch and continued after lunch to ride. Towards the end of the day Jeff Haney(instructor- and overall badass on a bike!!!) had each one us do a lap with him following us, Jeff had a camera mounted in the nose of his bike. Everyone did a lap and then at the end of the day we went back to the class room and discussed what went on and watched the video of everyone riding. It was so cool cause you can see what mistakes you were making and they were there to tell you what needed fixxing. Wrapped the day up and head back to the hotel!! I learned so much on the first day, their were a few things that i was a little confused on that Freddie and Nick had talked about but I just needed to be patient and wait till the next day to see if i could pick it up.
Day 2 : Alex, Ken, Kim and myself were very pleased with the first days class. I think we all learned something but still needed it pounded into our heads. We had another class session in the morning and talked even more in depth about Freddies' techniques plus about the mental aspect of riding. Suited up and jumped on the bike for another round of drills. To keep us on our toes they changed the track on us and switched up the configuration of the track, it was cool cause we got to try new types of corners and apply Freddies' techniques to new types to show us that it works on any type of track. We did a few new drills and again right before lunch we were video taped again. We broke for lunch suited down and put on our dirt riding gear. We got to go dirt track riding on XR100's!! This had to be the funnest part of the school. We went out to a the dirt area and Jeff Haney taught us how to flat track and get use to having very little traction and how the bike slides and moves around. It really taught a lot of us how to be smooth on the throttle and how to use the rear brake. Freddie isn't big on using the rear brake but he says its not a bad thing to use it when you need to, as long as it doesn't distrupt you mid corner speed and your front braking. Ken and I had a blast chasing eachother on the Xr's. I think i'm going to go out and get one now to start flat tracking a lot more, its such a great tool for roadracers and teachs so much. We did that till sundown and then went back to class to watch the video from earlier and also eat dinner. We watched what we had improved over the previous day but also saw what we needed to improve on for the next. Nick and Freddie spoke again at the end and the two of them finally said a few things that just totally made Freddie's whole philosophy make sense. It was so strange cause as soon as they mentioned it everything else that was siad the previous day hit me like a ton of bricks, it was way cool. I was looking so forward to the final day to try techniques that freddie had said and showed us.
Day 3 : The final day was going to be packed with riding. We had our morning class session with Freddie and Nick. He talked about suspension and a bit more of mentally preparing yourself for riding and racing. He told us a ton sotories from when he was racing in the early 80's. He got so many cool stories its crazy. He's got so much experience and knowledge its amazing to just hear him talk about things, how he went to suzuka(i think it was suzuka, it was a gp track!) for his first time and learned the track in 7 laps and on the 8th or 9th lap he set the lap record, truely amazing what he did on a bike! Thats just a tid bit of Feddies' talent on a bike.
We suited up and once again we were treated to another track. The same track that the AFM ran at vegas back in september. It was a tricky track to learn with some strange corners. We drilled for a bit and once again video taped. I had some one-on-one time with Jeff Haney and he really changed my body positioning around so i can turn the bike better, it was so cool cause it actually worked what he was showing me, i was kind of in shock about it. He did the same for Ken and Ken was surprised as well I think. Even Alex was looking like a Nicky hayden out there, his body positioning, and the way he was riding looked so much better than it did before, Alex even started playing with the rear brake a little to try and get the feel for a sliding bike into a corner and also using it to get the bike to turn just a bit sharper as you reach the apex, i was impressed with Alex!! Freddie came out and did a few drills for us and showed us a few laps. He's so cool to watch, everthing he does is so smooth, and seems in slow motion but he really hauling ass. Being smooth is one of the things he emphsizes, smooth with everthing you do on a bike. The last part of the day we had some open sessions and got to play. Ken and I played cat and mouse with Dale Kieffer. Ken and I were flying around that track on these stock bikes. Ken thought that we were close to the times that the top 3 600 guys were doing durning the AFM round there, it sure felt like we were going good. We finished the day and went back to the class to talk once again about everything that we went through in the past 3 days. Freddie handed out certificates and a few gifts. It was truely a great experience.
I can't say enough about this school, i thought that i really wasn't going to be shown anything new or benifial to me but boy was I wrong. I'm not trying to sound like a commercial for Freddie but he's just really that good. I can't wait for my next race weekend to try these techniques out, i really feel that i'll be able ride smoother and faster and in the long run, win more races. Freddie and his crew are top notch class acts, very professional. I strongly suggest that all you racers out there take this class, Freddie has 3 world championships under his belt, riders like Nicky Hayden, Kurtis Roberts, Ben Bostrom, Jason Disalvo, Tony Meiring and the list goes on of top names, all still come to him for advice. Freddie told us that Nicky was just at the school a week or two previous to us doing the exact same braking drill on the 600 as us. His system works, its proven!
If you don't believe me, ask these AFMers: Ken Hill, Alex Florea, Chip Roberson, Kim Nakashima. We all felt pretty much the same about our experience!
Thanks to all who read this!!! I know it was long but its something that I feel should be known and talked about.
Thanks you guys!!
Chris Siglin
p.s. here's the link for freddies' school to those interested
Freddie Spencer School
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