Csbk 2013 | Page 2 | GTAMotorcycle.com

Csbk 2013

Brian P said:
There are still rumblings about another, independent national series. There is a thread about it on Cherrypicker, with the latest status update being today with a promise of more news after the December bike show.

This could go either way. On the one hand, setting up another series would be a challenge and, strictly speaking, is the last thing roadracing needs (there is not enough room for two national series). On the other hand, the management of the existing series has burned its share of bridges over the years, and maybe, just maybe, enough of those potential sponsors might support the new one.
Click to expand...

I think if a better model is given to the racers, even the top 10 pro's, then they will move. There isn't really any prestige (or money) in winning a CSBK championship anymore - especially when a pro grid is so small (pro 600 was as low as less than 10 bikes).

And I agree.. the management and ownership of CSBK over the years has burned its bridges with sponsors as well as the racers through bad decisions, biassing towards each other, cash grabs, not paying prize pools, rule switching... the list goes on. And I recall Parts Canada mentioning they were looking for a series to sponsor after they pulled from CSBK. Hmmm....

I won't even go into the RACE series grid sizes (4 bike Pro 600 race?) and less than 10 bike AM600 races... It just makes me sad that they grids used to be so full, that winning a championship actually meant a LOT- hell winning a race was an impossible feat. Now, you can get on the box almost just by showing up. Granted there are some REALLY FAST guys still around, but not as many as there used to be.
 
Last edited:
Re: Tammy giving up on racing, having talked to her about it a few years back, she had some sponsor that was going to make life a lot easier for her to race and at the very last moment, the sponsor bailed, and that was kinda... the last straw, I guess. Funding and making time for supporting a race effort is a lot tougher than the racing itself, for a lot of people. It's what keeps me from being serious about it, too.

Regarding RACE: a lot of riders are not showing up for the series because of the pitiful state of Shannonville. I think they're kidding themselves a bit about how bad the track REALLY is, but I have heard several riders state that the track is too rough for them to race on. It looks worse than it is, in my opinion... I was on it in early October and it hasn't changed much in four years... the esse has got a bit bumpier and someone needs to draw a big circle around the highside hole on corner three of Nelson again, but otherwise it's actually better... they patched up the divots on the inside of 7 (after the carousel 6a/6b).

Dealing with track imperfections is part of racing too... you should try Nelson Ledges after a 24 hour Viper race!
 
Last edited:
Being new to this....

I, like dricked, thought that this was a sport where sponsors help alleviate the costs. Not pay for a person's living based on 5 or 6 weekends.

I understand the basis for tire specs, fuel specs etc if it is meant to help fund the sport and to level the field. The days of factory teams with all the money are gone no?

4 options in Ontario for racing is not sustainable. I see 2 camps of people. The pros who strive to spend lots to go faster. And the rest of us who just want to have fun and go to work the next day. I know people aren't all one or the other to fit in either group.

So why don't the non-pro's race more? They by defintion are largely enjoying track days. I was. Where is the financial incentive for this group to fill the grids with more racers?

Not enough young people coming up through the ranks to fill the grid? Yep. Shoot I show up with 3 bikes and will be paying entry fees this year for 3 riders. 2 of them kids. The problem for me is the grids for the young ones at RACE are bare. Why should I pay entry fees and then end up riding against my kid just to give him competition? And people complain about too many classes on the weekends.

I will skip race weekends. I will run tires to the bare. I will run pump fuel. I don't worry about # of sprockets. I just try to go faster with the bike I have by working on my abilities. And I hope none of us get hurt.

I guess for me I will just convince myself that it is for fun. Suck it up. And fund what I can afford.

Just my rambling 2 cents.

By the way I am looking for sponsors.....
 
Last edited:
Part of the issue I see is: they are not giving you much for your dollar at amateur race weekends. You're lucky to get 45 minutes of practice in a weekend and a lot of sitting around waiting for something to happen (which sometimes works in your favour if you have issues).

It was costly as hell but in my car racing days, I got two hours of practice and four heats a day (time attack type, mind you).

Just saying.
 
I feel like I get ample amounts of practice during a race weekend and sometimes I don't even do all the sessions. It's more about quality than quantity. I can say that at the last track day I did I got maybe 5 clean laps in, the rest of the time I was getting held up and felt like I wasted fuel tires and time. At a race weekend there is a lot less of this and your trying to get your setup dialed or get yourself up to speed not turn laps for the sake of riding. In one Friday practice I can get the same amount of time in as a track day, then 2 practice sessions Saturday morning before a qualifier race and then another 2 practice sessions before the final race (depending on the size of the grids and your bike you can get 4 sessions before each race, I did on my 1000). Each practice session is either 15 or 20 min depending on the entries and amount of classes so its much more than 45min in a weekend. The time I get to sit around I use to change tires, refuel, make suspension adjustments, drink water, eat, rest, and try to get my head where it needs to be. Sometimes I feel like there isn't even enough time to get all this done and I'm always busy. I get every dollars worth out of my entry fees and love every minute of being around people that are serious about being at the track and not there to just show thier buddy's pictures of them dragging a knee or how small their chicken strips are. People need to come out and race to make thier own decision if its somthing they like. Track days are good for getting on the track, racing is where you go to see where you stack up but have fun at the same time. It's not for everyone but you don't know that till you atleast try it.
 
Having done both, I obviously don't agree with you. But you know what they say about opinions (applies to me as well).

I use "getting held up" at track days as a good way to practice passing. And usually I get a few clean laps per session, which is partially because I start out at the front of most groups and stay there until usually a more experienced rider might sneak past, which rarely slows my roll... as I get to watch how they outpaced me.

On a related note, I often stay out even with suspension setup issues, etc. and ride around them, as it makes me more tolerant to those issues... which pays dividends in overall rider ability. For every Biaggi who whines about their bike, I can show you a Haydon who perseveres and makes the bike do what he wants.

To each his own, I guess.
 
Last edited:
Practice passing someone that's 10 seconds a lap slower doesn't really count but again there's that opinion thing.

I think you should just come out and race the national at Shannonville this year.
 
It could happen. More likely regional.

Sent from my SGH-I747M using Tapatalk 2
 
Shaman said:
Regarding RACE: a lot of riders are not showing up for the series because of the pitiful state of Shannonville. I think they're kidding themselves a bit about how bad the track REALLY is, but I have heard several riders state that the track is too rough for them to race on. It looks worse than it is, in my opinion... I was on it in early October and it hasn't changed much in four years... the esse has got a bit bumpier and someone needs to draw a big circle around the highside hole on corner three of Nelson again, but otherwise it's actually better... they patched up the divots on the inside of 7 (after the carousel 6a/6b).

Dealing with track imperfections is part of racing too... you should try Nelson Ledges after a 24 hour Viper race!
Click to expand...

The problems with Shannonville's track surface have slowly developed over the last several years. It's just been a slow, progressive decline. I've had the same race bike for the last 15 years and for a lot of that, it has been in pretty much the same condition and using the same tires. I'm a couple seconds a lap slower than I have been in the past. How much of that is because of the track and how much of it is because of me getting old ... is something that can be argued, but it is what it is. The 600 and Superbike times have still had the occasional record broken but the bikes and tires have been getting better in those classes.

At Shannonville, my bike spends almost the entire lap with the suspension and handlebars slamming and banging. Somewhere around a third of the way through corner one, there is a divot or groove in the pavement that I haven't been able to visually pick out, but I sure know when I hit it. Everyone knows about the highside hole exiting long track 3, and everyone knows about pro track 2. Long track 6a and 6b entering the corner is a big issue, major chatter bumps just before the entrance. The chicane is a disaster.

Motards do okay ... and no question, bikes with newer suspension designs (USD cartridge forks that are well set up) ought to do better than my olde low-tech bike does. BUT. At Grand Bend, I don't have any of the issues described. It has gotten to the point at Shannonville where there are only a couple of corners where I feel comfortable knee on the ground (the corner coming onto the front straight being one of them). At Grand Bend ... almost every corner almost every lap! Grand Bend does have a couple of reminders that you are in Canada but it's no comparison. Even Cayuga works better on my bike.

Now that there is a choice in the matter, I'll be renewing my SOAR license, and for the first time in 20 years, will not be renewing my RACE license unless something drastically changes that would indicate that RACE wants us back. Otherwise, I'm out.
 
The reason I stopped racing was for several reasons:

1) Expensive as hell. I could afford it, but I eventually ruled it not worthy of the costs involved, because of 2) and 3). With the recession, I, like many others, had job changes and could not afford racing anymore.

2) No track time - I was only good enough for RACE regional, novice or amateur. And RACE was really notorius for cutting practices, cutting races down or cancelling entirely. I recall a weekend where qualifying and the race were cancelled due to weather and crashes in other races. The race was not rescheduled. So here are a bunch of new racers, trying to get into the sport, who spent a **** ton of money to get out, build bikes, buy tires to put 6 laps on them, fuel, food, time off work - only to get screwed over by the race series which relies on them as an income source. No wonder people never came back.

3) SOAR started the year I transitioned out of the sport temporarily. Then this year I moved to Kingston, so its a bit far to drive to Grand Bend. Though SOAR does sound nice.

4) I am biassed against CSBK. I hate spec tire rules, because I don't like Pirelli tires, and I think the owner of Pirelli is a coc. Unfortunately Kevins reputation precedes him, and it isn't good. I also didnt like how CSBK or the previous PCSBC was run. Frazer being biased towards certain suppliers, which you can see in his articles for the mag he works for (thats a big no no) and later Kevin buying bailing out PCSBC and turning it into CSBK, for which his company is the tire supplier (major conflict of interest). So as far as CSBK is concerned, it will always be a spec tire series. Spec tire series just doesnt work. The prices weren't greatly cheaper, the tires arguably not better. All in all I hate the series. I supported rider that raced in it, but with my labour and with my money and time. I even went to the races as a spectator and bought tickets etc etc. But there was no way in hell I'd race in that series.

5) Someone else wanted my RACE number. I was going to pay and keep it, but he asked nice, so I let my license go so he could have the number.
 
Last edited:
Grimmy: afraid that you and I agree. I wonder if the world will continue to turn....
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Back
Top Bottom