Track Times at Willow Springs

So I sent an email to Jeff "Slipp" Dixon asking him for some information about the classes and his lap times. Here is what I got.

He races in Fomula Twins Heavywieght and Battle Of The Twins Heavywieght. Mostly competing against open class twins from Ducati and Aprillia. His bike, the Buell XBRR, was built to compete against middleweight machines, 600s so typically he is "out-classed" by more powerful bikes.

Slipp's fastest lap time so far at Willow Springs is 1:23.45. I am not sure if that time was done on the XBRR or another bike. I will let you know as soon as I get the official word from him. The lap record was set last year by Kenny Kopecky on an ex world superbike Ducati 999r at 1:23.39.

The track is 2.5 miles which puts their average speed at about 107 MPH . Pretty Quick!

Performance

I have been looking into increasing performance of my 08 Buell. It has plenty of power but it seems as if there are some issues breathing. After some discussions with Josh over at Glendale Harley-Davidson / Buell I found out that it is due to emission controls put in the bike. He gave me some suggestions to compensate for the problem while not voiding the warranty and I am going to work on them over the next week or so. I will post more on that later.

One Lap at Willow Springs

I would like to thank Mario Vindeni at Glendale Harley-Davidson / Buell for the video. The rider that is being chased by the camera is Mario on a track day. I edited the video to make it shorter and changed the music.




Music Clip: Before I Forget - Slipknot (www.slipknot1.com)

Glendale Buell Race Team

Sunday was great, I got a chance to see Willow Springs for the first time but the best part was the opportunity to be there to see how the pits work for a race. The first thing I noticed was the organization of the entire operation. Ernie Snair runs a tight ship with ease. His team, which included Steve, Mike, and Alex really worked hard to keep the pits working.

I arrived around 09:30 and they were setup and McGinley was on the field for his practice laps. Throughout the day this small but extremely proficient team worked together like a well oiled machine. In addition to running the show Ernie also takes care of the maintenance with Steve assisting. Mike took care of making sure things were organized and kept track of the Glendale Buell assets. Alex whipped up some mean burgers and dogs for us on the grill but more importantly she kept her ears on so Ernie and Crew could focus on the job at hand. She never missed a beat and the team was ready to go on time, every time.



You will have to forgive me for my ignorance on this track and the different classes as I am a newbie. As I get a few more races under my belt I will provide more information on the event. I am also working on getting some video together.


Patrick McGinley (71)

After Erine and Steve prepped his bike for the race Patrick did a once over on the bike. It is always a good idea to have a fresh set of eyes look at the bike before you head out. No better person to do that than the rider.



Just a few days earlier Patrick injured his ankle and was walking with a limp. This was also his first time on this particular bike (XB12R). Despite his injury and unfamiliarity with the bike he got out there and placed 4th.

I had a lot of fun photographing them on the track. It is not easy to do but I think some of these photos turned out OK.









Patrick does production (I think he is a cameraman) for film and TV and unfortunately had to be on-set in the afternoon, so after his run he headed back to LA. What a day, racing in the morning and working on a movie set in the afternoon. This is one of the things that I am referring to when I say Adventure Riding from the SoCal Perspective. Where else in the world could you do this? This place really is an adventure; I love living here.


Jeff (Slipp) Dixon (883)

Jeff is a Racing Instructor with Fast Track Riders and he DJ's in his day (more likely night) job. Jeff started racing at a very young age and has been at it on and off for about 12 years.

Two weeks ago he had an accident on the track which resulted in internal bleeding, bruised organs, and a punctured lung. Despite that he got on the bike this weekend and ran a great race.

The first round resulted in a mechanical failure on the first lap. The crew and supporters watched as he rounded the first turn only to notice that he was having some issues. Once they got the bike back into the pit Ernie found that there was a problem with the clutch. After working on it for about 30-45 mins Ernie made the command decision to move to the XB12R McGinley rode earlier in the day.



The mothership was out of commission for the day. Jeff started to familiarize himself with his new ride. This would be his first time riding this bike (McGinley rode it for the first time on Sunday as well). After a number swap, some adjustments to the suspension, and refueling, the bike was ready to go.



Jeff started the first lap in 4th place and by the end of turn one was in 3rd. I think the first lap was him getting used to the bike but he maintained the 3rd position until the third lap.

Here Jeff is chasing 2nd.



Then in lap three he pulled off a difficult maneuver and took up the 2nd position leaving a nice gap between him and the previous owner of 2nd. Pretty damn good for a guy who had a punctured lung two weeks prior.

And here Jeff is pulling away from 3rd place.



He chased 1st for the rest of the race but didn't find an opportunity to overtake for the lead. All of the races for the day were limited to six laps.



Here is a shot of the final lap of the day for the Glendale Buell team.




At the end of the day the team pulled in the bikes and tore down the pit. Jeff rolled in and Steve put the bike in the trailer. It is hard to see but the wind started to really kick up after the last race. We started to take down the tents and really had to fight the wind. It was a good thing that there were some other supporters there to help take down the tents otherwise they would have blown away.

Being at the track made me want to start learning to race. Talking to the guys and getting to be around the team really inspires you to get more into bikes. I think a lot of us like the sense of community that comes with being a "biker" and the people behind Glendale Harley Davidson / Buell really make you feel welcome.


Future Races / Events

They race every 3rd Sunday of the month. The pit gets there around 7AM and are there until the last race finishes. I am going to organize a ride out there for next month which will take us through the canyons. There is also talk of a Buell night at the Glendale dealership. If you would like updates on events email me with your info and I will keep you up to date. My email address is motocaliblog@gmail.com.

Willow Springs

What a great day at the track. I have some awesome pics of Jeff Dixon and Patrick McGinley running their Buells. There were some mechanical issues with one of the bikes but both guys rode hard and did really well. It was a long day and I am exhausted from a long week.

The Glendale Harley-Davidson / Buell team cooked up some burgers and dogs for the event and there was a good turnout of supporters. I had the opportunity to talk to some veteran racers who shared their experiences with me in the pit. Hopefully the weather will be a bit nicer next month and we can get some folks together for a ride out there. We can take the path over Angeles Crest / Forrest to the track and then ride back before dark. I will post some details on the ride out for that in the coming weeks.

Willow Springs

I will be headed down to Willow Springs on Sunday to watch the races and to support the Glendale Buell team. Hopefully the weather will be good enough to race. Looking at the current weather forecast it looks as if it may rain. If that is the case I am sure they will cancel the race. It will be interesting to attend one of these events. I have heard that they are a lot of fun and am looking forward to it.

According to the Glendale Harley website Jeff Dixon (Glendale Harley / Buell's guy) won on Feb 17th beating the Ducati 1098. Great job Jeff! Can't wait to see you fight it out on Sunday.

I want to see the 1125 on the track. Since I am a Buell owner I can attend the Inside Pass track day where you get some track time with the 08 models. The Willow Springs day isn't until Nov. Maybe I will catch one in a different city during the summer. I need to purchase some leathers before then. I have been trying on every brand under the sun and nothing fits me properly. I have come to the conclusion that I will need to have them custom made to fit me. More to come on that.

Newcombs Ranch, Moto GP, and Accidents

The ride up to Newcombs Ranch was nice. It was my first time up there and really enjoyed the ride up. I was with two experienced riders but we took it easy going up because David was two up with his son.



Once we got up to Newcombs ranch we had some lunch and started to watch the Moto GP race. Unfortunately we were too early and only the 250 class was running.



On our way back down we see an LA County Sheriff's helicopter landing on the side of the road. I am approached by a bystander who tells me that the road is impassable at the moment. The story was that a motorcycle was in an accident with a van and they didn't know how long it would take to clear the road. He seemed very focused on the fact that we had to wait while they helped the motorcycle rider.



I was a bit taken back by the demeanor of the guy passing along the news. I guess he really didn't care that someone was hurt and was more worried that we would not be able to go anywhere for a while. Maybe it was his way of mentally coping with the situation. Either way it reminded me that it is important to remember that you don't know what people are thinking. When you are on a motorcycle you have to think for everyone else around you.

I parked my bike and started down the hill to see what happened. As I started to pass by the helicopter the medics were on their way to the accident scene as well. Once I got down there I saw the injured rider being worked on by the LA County Sheriff's Deputies (Paramedics).



I didn't photograph the injured rider out of respect for him and his family. Once the rider was stabilized they put him on the back of a US Forestry Service vehicle and carted him up to the helicopter.





Once they had the rider in the helicopter and were taking him to the hospital (Huntington Memorial in Pasadena, CA) I decided to get a closer look at the accident scene.

After talking to some people who witnessed the accident I spoke to the CHP officer and confirmed what had happened. Here is what I was able to find out:

The rider was coming down the mountain and crossed the double yellow line headed against oncoming traffic. At that point a green minivan was coming up the mountain and with nowhere to go and no time to react it hit the bike head on. Keep in mind that the bike was in the wrong lane, it was not the van driver's fault. The front of the bike struck the front left side of the van. This caused the rider to fly about 30-40 feet in the forward direction of travel. The bike on the other hand flew in the opposite direction of its initial direction of travel. The van stopped in place in its lane.









There was speculation that there may have been a mechanical problem with the bike and the rider took a moment to look down and check it. At that point he drifted off into oncoming traffic. Based on what I observed of the riders condition I would say that he wasn't going too fast (~35MPH in my unqualified opinion). This may be due to him breaking along with the driver of the van doing the same.

Another theory that people were throwing around was that he was going too fast and couldn't make the turn. I don't think that was the case because if he were going too fast (keep in mind the speed limit is 55) there would have been a lot more damage to the vehicles and the rider.



The rider was wearing sneakers and not boots. One of his shoes came off and landed next to the bike. The shoe was not laced up properly. It was laced in that "cool guy" pop culture way so that it could be slipped on and off quickly.

He also wasn't wearing any other protective clothing like an armored jacket or pants. The medics had to cut away his pants so that they could asses his situation. When I got a look at his belt it was obvious that fashion was his top priority.

The last image shows the trail of debris from the bike. I was standing where the rider was lying and the bike is just in front of the tow truck. To give you some perspective on distance from me to the bike is about 50-75 feet.



I think this rider was very lucky he didn't end up over the side or smacked into the wall. He was conscious and had asked for someone to call his wife. The general assessment was that he would be OK. Pretty damn lucky for someone who went head-on with a van and wasn't wearing any protective gear (except the helmet which is required by law).

We should all take this little incident as a reminder that we are responsible for our own safety while out on the road. Sure other people are supposed to look out for you but they don't. Keep in mind that you are going much faster than anything else on the road and you have a smaller footprint which makes it harder for others to judge your speed.

Almost every accident involving a motorcycle can be linked back to the rider. Riding too fast, not checking tire pressure, riding on faulty equipment, not paying attention to the road, riding beyond skill level, etc.

• Be prepared for that car stopped at the intersection to pull out in front of you.
• If you are riding in a blind spot expect that you are going to get merged on.
• Expect that there may be a stopped vehicle around that blind turn.
• Know that when lane splitting, minivans and SUVs probably can't see you coming up.

It is your life and only you are responsible for it out there. There is such a thing as safely riding hard. If you are going canyon carving wear protective clothing. You are at a higher risk of being injured canyon carving than in traffic. I support that statement with this; in traffic you are aware of everything going on around you and are riding cautious; in the canyons you are focused on taking the turns and practicing your form, traffic is an afterthought.

Think about that the next time you are in the canyons. When you come up on traffic what is your mindset? Are those unpredictable hazards packed with people doing everything but paying attention to the road, or are they obstacles slowing you down? You probably answered obstacles slowing you down. You have to remember they are the same people who you don't trust on the freeways, only difference in the canyon provides for a nicer background.

Final note: The canyons are not the track and if you try to treat them as such you will end up hurt or dead. Always respect the road and those on it with you.

Rock Store

So we had a good safe ride up to the Rock Store despite the heavy winds. We took the easy route in so there was no pressure for those new to the canyons. Here is a pic I took of the bikes lined up on Mulholland Dr.

We will be doing another canyon ride this coming weekend. We will be going up Azusa Canyon and back down. There will be a 30 min riding techniques overview before heading out. I will try to split up the different groups based on bike type and experience.

Please leave a comment with your email address and I will send you a link to the information for the ride. I am moderating all comments and will not post your information publicly. I have also allowed anonymous comments to be posted so you don't have to have a google account.

Santa Ana Winds

Man, riding in the wind sucks but you don't know sucks until you have ridden in the Santa Ana winds. It was so bad I had to turn around and go 125 miles out of my way in order to close a 30 mile distance. I am not sure what the actual wind speeds were but they were blowing semi trucks over on their side.

There were a couple of HD Electra Glides and Road Kings that went by me with no problems but my Buell XB12X is too light and too high to counter act the winds. I wanted to get home to go out and see some live music but that didn't happen. It took me over 6 hours for something that should have taken 2.5.

There did not seem to be any warning and the weather just on the other side of the mountains was clam and clear. I guess it is all a part of the adventure here in the Southern California area. In reality the winds are only problematic a handful of times out of the year. I rode again today and although the winds were still blowing they were tolerable. It also helped that I had my side cases off.