Super Tenere at Track Day (as in race track)

[KevinGoldman]

I'm somewhat new to motorcycle riding as an adult. I purchased a street bike and then quickly realized that I want to go off-road, camping etc on my motorcycle. So, I got a low mileage 2015 Super Tenere that was decked out by the original owner. I've had a blast on it off-road this Summer, camping, multiple off-road classes and such.

But, two weeks ago I took the ChampStreet course and my mind has totally been blown by taking the S10 on the racetrack.

Not only did I learn so much from the program, I'm having as much fun (or more) taking the Super Tenere on the racetrack as I am off-road.

Here's the short two and a half minute video that has footage from the race track about midway through:

If you haven't heard of Yamaha ChampSchool and have never had your Tenere on the racetrack, I highly recommend ChampSchool's "ChampStreet" program. It's world class instruction from some of the top riders.

Home - ChampSchool - Yamaha Champions Riding School

ridelikeachampion.com

By the way, the day I had it at the racetrack I had Dunlap Trailmax Missions on the front and Shinko 705s on the rear. I'm headed back to the track in 2 weeks with a local group. The owner of the local program said it's absolutely okay to bring an adventure bike and I could use those same tires or put on different tires. The only item they require are full leather race suites, which I plan to rent a few times before buying my own.

Has anyone else here had their Super Tenere on the racetrack (asphalt race track, not dirt racetrack ).

 

[gv550]

Great first post, welcome to the forum.

 

[Longdog Cymru]

Hi Kevin and welcome from South Wales, U.K. Good to see that you are enjoying your S10 and good on you for taking it to a track day! Let us know how you get along with your next visit, but I would get some suitable tyres first, think Continental Road Attack, Michelin PR5, Metzler 01 or Pirelli Angels.
Mike

 

[scott123007]

Good for you! A guy actually riding a motorcycle for the SPORT of it. Becoming a rarer and rarer breed these days.

 

[Highwayman]

While Im all for trackdays, though my S10 would never be on the truck when I go.... Id like to add if you plan another go Id HIGHLY suggest at a minimum get some tires suited for playing on asphalt. You have a perfect recipe for an expensive low side out there on the set youre running now.

 

[OldRider]

Like Highwayman said, get some better tires. I sell motorcycle tires for a living, Shinkos included and there's no way I would ever run a Shinko, let alone on a race track.

 

[KevinGoldman]

Thanks for the warm welcome to the forum. I've been a reader for a while!

Yes, tires.

The organizer of the next track event does tire changes at the track. His company is a Dunlap race tire distributor. The owner is a nice guy and called me back promptly when I left a message for him about tires on my S10. He response was pragmatic. His company does race bike Dyno tuning, race suspension tuning, race tires, etc. But again, he's pragmatic. He said many people bring adventure bikes and he also said while it's ideal to have race tires, they certainly aren't required. (They do require one-piece leather race suits). His advice was to go my own pace and as I want to push things more, get more gear, tires, dedicated race bike, etc. https://repartoveloce.com/pages/about-reparto-veloce I think I'll do one more track day before I decide to get an R3 or get another set of tires from my S10.

Many of us adventure bike folks use 50/50 tires (80/20, 60/40, etc) on the street and twisty highways quite often. At least I do. I've discovered that the race track is the best place to have fun while honing skills on the bike I ride every day. Its the best because the race track is the safest place to build skill and confidence on pavement at speed, whatever you ride. (I'm in the Novice "C" group, FYI). Again, many of us ride these 50/50 tires on the road all the time. On the race track however, there's no (or minimal) debris on the road, there are no cars, there are no intersections, there are no guard rails to brake bones if you go wide, or cliffs. I don't need to lean at maximum angles or be at maximum speeds on my second track day in order to have fun and build all-round road skills, breaking skills, rev match skills, weight transfer skills, situational awareness skills, smoothness skills, which all translate to safety and fun on public roads.

Maybe I'll post another video here after Dec 19th, the next track day.

P.S. the ChampStreet day I was in previously had riders on all kinds of bikes, most Harleys, many sport bikes and even a 70's vintage bike with drum brakes. There where people who have only ridden a few weeks and people who've ridden for 30 years. Everyone learned new skills and had a blast in the safest place to hone street skills.

 

[Sierra1]

I get wanting hone your skills with the exact equipment that you're going to use for riding. But, I'm also a huge believer in using the right tool for the job. 1) In my opinion, the Tenere makes a decent sportbike. Others here disagree vehemently. 2) I recently was using a 90/10 tire for the off chance that I would find a dirt road to explore; that never happened. I decided that I wanted more street grip, and went 100% street tire. 3) I don't think you're going to find a tire that will work good on the track, and then conquer Baja.

If you're going to do both, you either need two bikes, or two sets of wheels/tires for the Tenere. It all depends on how much you want to compromise, and what you want to compromise. Heck, the Tenere is one giant compromise of sport/dirt & tour. She'll never be the best in any one class, but she can do all quite well. My favorite bike ever.

 

[thughes317]

I applaud the OP for doing this on the current tires. If you want to find the limit of your everyday setup, the place to do it is on the track, not the street. I got the impression that learning those limits was/is the primary goal of this track day experience. He stated that if he decides to push it to become more competitive he'll be looking at tires and other mods. While well-intentioned, I don't agree with the suggestions that he should have swapped out to more "suitable tires" for his first ever track day. My gosh, if he can't make some easy laps on a closed course with his current tires then it would seem he's cheating death every time he leaves his driveway with that trailmax/shinko combo.

 

[Sierra1]

. . . . if he can't make some easy laps on a closed course with his current tires then it would seem he's cheating death every time he leaves his driveway with that trailmax/shinko combo.

You know as well as I do, that merely being on the track is going to "inspire" much higher speeds than you will around town.

 

[Streethawk]

I'm somewhat new to motorcycle riding as an adult. I purchased a street bike and then quickly realized that I want to go off-road, camping etc on my motorcycle. So, I got a low mileage 2015 Super Tenere that was decked out by the original owner. I've had a blast on it off-road this Summer, camping, multiple off-road classes and such.

But, two weeks ago I took the ChampStreet course and my mind has totally been blown by taking the S10 on the racetrack.

Not only did I learn so much from the program, I'm having as much fun (or more) taking the Super Tenere on the racetrack as I am off-road.

Here's the short two and a half minute video that has footage from the race track about midway through:

If you haven't heard of Yamaha ChampSchool and have never had your Tenere on the racetrack, I highly recommend ChampSchool's "ChampStreet" program. It's world class instruction from some of the top riders.

Home - ChampSchool - Yamaha Champions Riding School

ridelikeachampion.com

By the way, the day I had it at the racetrack I had Dunlap Trailmax Missions on the front and Shinko 705s on the rear. I'm headed back to the track in 2 weeks with a local group. The owner of the local program said it's absolutely okay to bring an adventure bike and I could use those same tires or put on different tires. The only item they require are full leather race suites, which I plan to rent a few times before buying my own.

Has anyone else here had their Super Tenere on the racetrack (asphalt race track, not dirt racetrack ).

GREAT post and thanks for sharing!! I'm a big track day-for-training/bonding advocate. I'm planning to get my 2016 ST ES to the track very soon. I wish it could be through YCRS (AWESOME school) but I attend the schools that utilize the tracks nearest to me (Circuit of the Americas and MSR Houston). They're great organizations but I look forward to learning from Nick Ienatsch and his instructors.

Excluding my recently sold KLR650, I've taken all my bikes to the track to get better acquaintaned (it's the best possible environment to do so, imo). I've found that what you learn on track in ONE weekend, takes years on the street (most of the time unsafely, regardless of high or low speeds).

Good call using your preferred tires on track too. As long as they're what's on your ST for regular use (daily rides, trips, etc.), the track is great place to explore to their paved roads capabilities. TOTALLY different story if you're pushing hard and chasing lap times. For a YCRS option like Champ Street, your preferred tires make sense; as you can't swap rubber mid trip but WILL most likely hit some twisties here and there

Keep leaning and learning

 

[SantoRider]

Great post Kevin. Don’t pay no attention to a lot of these clowns on here. Lol. You had a blast and learned some things too. Win win. Ride with what you have. Adjust speed accordingly. That’s exactly what the instructions told ya. And Btw the way I’ve been using Shinko 705s on my Beast a long time. Great tire for the price. And that’s coming from a fella who knows. Ride on.

 

[Sierra1]

. . . . Don’t pay no attention to a lot of these clowns on here . . . .

To me, "clown" indicates a person that is foolish. Nobody here said anything foolish. I guess that I was probably the most negative, by suggesting different tires for track day(s). Apparently, that's what made me a clown. If you get a chance at quality track training, jump all over it. Track training is fun. You get to ride at speeds that would normally get into some serious trouble. It's safe because it's more or less a closed course; nobody coming off of a side street. Can you find your limits, and those of your bike? Absolutely. But, unless you live on the Nurburgring, track training is more for fun than day to day riding. To me using "dirt" tires on a racetrack is cheating yourself. You'll find the tire's limit(s), but not the bikes' limit(s). That pretty much goes for any vehicle.

Being in Phoenix, Kevin should be able to find some training that uses/offers cone courses. Slow, tight, technical riding is another way to find your bike's limit(s) . . . . regardless of tire choice(s). It'll also help when off pavement.

Motorcycle cops are arguably some of the best riders out there. The lucky ones might get one track day per year, but they'll spend hours/days/weeks on cone courses. You don't have to go fast to find your limits.

Clown out.

 

[Highwayman]

I hear you Sierra. I was thinking who is this dude? I also was one of the guys suggesting a set of more street oriented set of tires for the track for safety and to really learn the bikes abilities and took this dudes post the same. Tires are cheap, crashing isnt, simple. In addition to calling the tire distributor who posted here and sells Shinkos and he personally wouldnt run em in a negative light because "this guy knows" only because he runs around on them on his S10 (like that means shit).... Id listen to the tire distributor and also my friend who owns and runs a shop in town who was given a new set of shinkos to try, hit the road, came right back, pulled em off and put his Anakees back on. Theyre a budget tire, thats all. Not in any means a great tire.

I get what others are mentioning about running dirt oriented tires "because thats what you run on the street".... Thats makes sense to guys never on the track. In theory sounds good. Reality is those tires are going to see much hotter temps, harder use and when pushing you dont just "recover & learn" on a 700 lb motorcycle when it lowsides on knobbies. I run my trailmaxs to the edges, humble crotch rockets in the twisties and personally wouldnt consider them at a trackday here if I did take it out. Just my opinion like some others. Doesnt make any one a clown. I wouldnt run in boots or take a bike to the track on knobbies. Reality is youll push those tires much harder at the track then ever on the street and why have tires be your handicap there.

Kudos to track time OP, I think everyone should. Enjoy, be safe and do what you feel is proper out there.

 

[Streethawk]

Good inputs from all! I pushed my KLR pretty hard through some sweet twisties in NM and AZ. No problems ripping up the asphalt with the GSs I was travelling with ...except in the straights. Lol! Gotta give credit to the tire I was running; Dunlop Trailmax Mission front and rear. Really great tire!

Considering I spent a good amount of time on technical paved roads on that BDR trip, I personally wouldn't have hesitated to feel out the Trailmax Mission out at a novice level / street skills oriented track event. I would NOT feel the same way about the pace of a higher skill level group or race pace oriented program. I do however, recognize that it's rider preference or perhaps the rules of the organization (if the rubber is just too knobby).

Still, if a dual sport type tire is my everyday tire and I'll be using them everywhere, which is often comprised of more on than off road, I imagine a non-race pace event wouldn't be the riskiest proposition. I'd rather explore and bin it on circuit than on a 180° hairpin turn on hwy 191 in east AZ (yikes!). I've been to lots of events and seen riders on dual sport rubber working things out. Always in the novice or "just a track day" levels. Interestingly, they were never the ones going down. It's all the sporty riders (for obvious reasons) Lmbo! XD Fwiw, I've crashed on track and it without ANY doubt made me a safer and more aware street rider.

When I take my Tenere to the track, it'll most likely be on the OEM rubber. I'm coming up on my fourth set in 12k miles. I've found them to work really well for spirited riding and (very) light off road.

Either way, no place like the track man! Most fun I've ever had while learning. Can't wait to get back out there

 

[SantoRider]

Damn Fellas. I was kidding about some riders giving Kevin so much technical shit on just a fun day at the track. Don’t get so butt hurt on me okay. Lol. It’s all good. And yeah 705s are a great tire in its respective price range on my Beast. Put a lot of miles on quite a few pair. They have never let me down so far. Apologize to any rider who think I overdid it with the clown remark. lol. Peace

 

[MonkeyBut]

More video please. You took your Tenere, at least 3x the limits I've taken mine. Bravo.

 

[scott123007]

Damn Fellas. I was kidding about some riders giving Kevin so much technical shit on just a fun day at the track. Don’t get so butt hurt on me okay. Lol. It’s all good. And yeah 705s are a great tire in its respective price range on my Beast. Put a lot of miles on quite a few pair. They have never let me down so far. Apologize to any rider who think I overdid it with the clown remark. lol. Peace

Yeah, Clowns may have ruffled a few feathers, but Armchair Quarterbacks, would have hit the nail on the head.

 

[Donk]

Nothing wrong with the tires the OP is running but.... if you’re going to make it a habit you may want to run a set of 90/10 tires. Best investment you can make for a Track day is good tires.

 

[Sierra1]

. . . . but Armchair Quarterbacks, would have hit the nail on the head.

That might be even more offending. I've seen what a 600+lb sport tour does to high quality full street tires after a day on the track. I can only guess it's even worse on dual purpose tires. I've had a front tire deflate at normal street speed. I can't imagine the results at speed. Sorry, I'm just a "right tool for the job" kinda guy.