Beginner looking for his first track bike | GTAMotorcycle.com

Beginner looking for his first track bike

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darek_dadr

Active member
Hey Everyone,

I'm looking to get into track riding in the 2015 season. I completed a racer5 school in Grand Bend and did several endurance races with them after. I ride a Triumph 675 on the streets and I was contemplating turning it into a track-only bike until I found that it's a pretty expensive bike to maintain and it's a better idea to go with Japanese for the track.

My dilemma now is whether I should get a used bike in a good condition and turn it into a track-bike myself or get a bike that is ready for track and has already seen some track time. While getting a used track-bike is much cheaper I'm worried it will come with problems. It most likely won't have title and insurance so I won't be able to even test drive it. I would have to get it from a trusted seller and but I don't know the community well enough.

My budget is $6000 (fairly flexible though). I was mostly interested in 06+ R6. Any advice will be appreciated.
 
You'll get more for your money buying used. Conveting a street bike has its pros but it'll cost you twice as much. With your budget I would look for a bike that's already setup.
 
I actually found this bike on kijiji before but my worry is how am I going to make sure everything is ok with it?
 
Just like buying anything used you have to do your due diligence. It's easier to take off track fairings so you could ask the seller to have them off when you come take a look.
 
daisoman said:
Just like buying anything used you have to do your due diligence. It's easier to take off track fairings so you could ask the seller to have them off when you come take a look.
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This is a very reasonable request.

Also, the track community is fairly small in the grand scheme of things. Some sellers will be known by many and i would consider Mikey Moto to be a reliable seller.... Not just some random guy off Kijiji.


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Many track/race bikes sit for ages before selling unless prices very aggressively. Not a very large market
 
I gave the seller a call. Ad says bike was on the track 4 times, on the phone he said 6. Small detail but makes me wonder. It's also in Orangeville, ad states it's in Brampton. He was hesitant to take the fairings off for when I come but he eventually agreed. All in all I don't really trust him too much.
 
daisoman said:
R6 is the way to go for track only. $6000 you can get a very good bike. You will get more bang for buck buying a track ready bike.

This isn't mine but worth a look.

http://www.kijiji.ca/v-sport-bikes/...ilt-mikeymoto-yamaha-r6-track-bike/1027569779
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darek_dadr: If you buy an 06+ R6 you can do fun stuff by flashing the stock ECU, like wire in a silky smooth quick shifter and turn the speedo into a monster sized gear indicator. It also improves the on/off throttle response (no injector shut off on deceleration) as well as a ton of other stuff. Even if the bike already has power commander or bazzaz it makes a huge difference :)

Just one more reason to suggest R6, cheap ECU tuning.
 
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If you decide you wanna invest alot less, have just as much fun, hit me up.
I have a couple interested parties in my very well setup 2002 R6 racing package.....but no cash in my hand yet.
SOAR's Rookie championship was won by a new racer (NWEMAN) on a Lost Era bike this year. You'd be surprised how little difference in laptimes there are between old junk and new bikes.
 
Ok I just bought my first track bike(s) this past season, so consider that when taking my advice lol. Why the urge to start on a 600? I would suggest an SV650 cheap, cheap parts, cheaper to run etc. I would have gotten an sv650 as my first one if I wasn't so smitten with the Aprilia rs250. You said yourself you took the Racer5 course so you know how much fun a small light bike can be on the track. I rented Fawaz's 125 for his VIP track day this year. I had a blast. I ran it in the intermediate group. On a short track like that, I never really held anyone up.(I don't think lol) I did manage to hang with some guys on bigger bikes for a few laps and I absolutely hounded the 250s. I think when you are down on HP you learn much more about corner speed.

I took my new to me Aprilia RS250 to Cayuga this year. There was some decently fast guys in my group and a couple of them stated that they couldn't touch me in the infield and only could catch me on the straight. That is exactly how I want to learn to go fast. Now the Aprilia probably isn't the best example of smaller being cheaper but most 4 stroke common machinery like an sv650, ex500, cbr250 etc would all be significantly cheaper to run/crash then a 600 is my guess, savings on tires alone will likely pay for a few track days.

I think I might have taken the Racer5 track day with you which day did you do yours?
 
dricked said:
You'll get more for your money buying used. Conveting a street bike has its pros but it'll cost you twice as much. With your budget I would look for a bike that's already setup.
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Hey dricked, thanks for the PM! Couldn't reply cause your inbox is full.

omnivore said:
If you decide you wanna invest alot less, have just as much fun, hit me up.
I have a couple interested parties in my very well setup 2002 R6 racing package.....but no cash in my hand yet.
SOAR's Rookie championship was won by a new racer (NWEMAN) on a Lost Era bike this year. You'd be surprised how little difference in laptimes there are between old junk and new bikes.
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Honestly I'm a little hesitant to get a bike this old. I don't want to be constantly bothered with little gremlins that need to be fixed and may potentially end my track day early.

Toast said:
Ok I just bought my first track bike(s) this past season, so consider that when taking my advice lol. Why the urge to start on a 600? I would suggest an SV650 cheap, cheap parts, cheaper to run etc. I would have gotten an sv650 as my first one if I wasn't so smitten with the Aprilia rs250. You said yourself you took the Racer5 course so you know how much fun a small light bike can be on the track. I rented Fawaz's 125 for his VIP track day this year. I had a blast. I ran it in the intermediate group. On a short track like that, I never really held anyone up.(I don't think lol) I did manage to hang with some guys on bigger bikes for a few laps and I absolutely hounded the 250s. I think when you are down on HP you learn much more about corner speed.

I took my new to me Aprilia RS250 to Cayuga this year. There was some decently fast guys in my group and a couple of them stated that they couldn't touch me in the infield and only could catch me on the straight. That is exactly how I want to learn to go fast. Now the Aprilia probably isn't the best example of smaller being cheaper but most 4 stroke common machinery like an sv650, ex500, cbr250 etc would all be significantly cheaper to run/crash then a 600 is my guess, savings on tires alone will likely pay for a few track days.

I think I might have taken the Racer5 track day with you which day did you do yours?
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I am definitely open to less powerful bikes. Funny thing is SV650 is not any cheaper than an R6 to buy. Those bikes are super popular right now thanks to cheap insurance and hold their value really well in GTA (think ninja 250).
 
A track ready SV650 is often much cheaper then a similar R6, street versions may be similar price. Running costs on an SV would be significantly less from my research anyone with first hand experience feel free to chime in. I saw in the classified ads here and on kijiji a fully set up CBR250 for $3500 much less then your budget.

http://www.kijiji.ca/v-sport-bikes/...ke/1031836029?enableSearchNavigationFlag=true

Looks like not a bad deal to me considering what it comes with. I had my eye out for a number of SV's this year and can say that for $3500 you can get a well sorted track bike with ownership. Also don't be afraid to check out the WERA site as well lots of good deals on there if you don't mind travelling south of the border for a deal.
 
Jayv said:
I feel warm below the belly button now.
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Have you checked out the 2015 MotoGP thread? That'll get your motor running.
 
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