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 I want to compete to the best of my ability and when I started flat track racing it was all new to me. I’m a competitive person and needed to go faster, not only keep up with my new friends but I wanted to beat them too! Hey! They wanted to do the same to me and everyone else on the track and we liked it that way! It doesn’t matter to me if you race amateur or pro classes, we all want to have fun and if were luck win once in a while!
A funny thing happened along the way... I would ask questions and my competitors would help me to go faster. I was fortunate to learn how to flat track race from guys that really new how to go fast on a regular basis and the number one lesson I learned was – Make Changes! Yep, change the bike setup and note how it is handling/performing on the track. It was very important to take notes about everything like track conditions, was it a groove or cushion track, weather (sunny, overcast, night, temp, etc.), tire type, gearing (yes changing your front & rear sprocket combinations), and more. What I found out was little things. Yea, it’s the little things I needed to do to improve my chances of going faster and winning. Most of them are pretty simple to do but if you don’t try you will never know what works best. Get a copy of the Riders Race Report Log which can be downloaded HERE.
 I learned how to adjust my front and rear suspension from compression and rebound settings to spring rates and even oil types. On the older bikes we had twin shocks and it was common to have extra springs that you could swap out with different spring rates which would affect handling. Some things I could change at the track and others were changed at home. Even changing the height of the fork tubes could make a big difference in handling. This is the measurement from the top of the fork to the top of triple crown. Many motorcycle manuals have a section that covers suspension tuning and how it works. If you want more help I would suggest Davey Durelle, one of the best around. Another biggie was playing with tire pressure. If you were walking through the pits at a short track race and asked others what they have for tire pressure you might find it ranging from 8lbs to 25lbs. I found with Dunlop/Goodyear tires the typical range is 8-16lbs. Maxxis tires seem to run a little higher from 16-30lbs. A change of 2lbs can make a difference but again if you don’t try you’ll never know.
 Gearing was very critical to the success of going faster! Adding or removing one tooth on the front or rear sprocket can make all the difference. Back in the day many of us used a Gearing Chart. The chart would help you determine best final drive gear to race in and help determine the best sprocket combinations. You want your machine to pull hard at the start and to run at the best RPM during the race. The best way to tell if your changes are working is to have someone to use a stopwatch then you need to run some consistent laps! You may think your gearing change is better but the stopwatch never lies. Flattrackmn.com has a gearing chart download HERE. To use the chart correctly only change items in Blue on first Input page/tab. Then click on the tab labeled Chart to see the results. Get a copy of our expaned sprocket commentary HERE.
Now it's up to you to put the wheels in motion, ask questions and start tuning - Good Luck!
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