Roadracing World – April 2019

By Michael Gougis

H

ead to your local club race,

and chances are you'll see

someone who has taken a

perfectly good racebike and “im-

proved” it to the point where it will

no longer complete a six-lap sprint

race. You really don't need to go

that route for a track day bike (or

a racebike!). Think customization,

not radical modifi cation! Get the

bike to fi t you, to work for you,

and in many cases, that alone will

make you smoother, more confi -

dent and faster.

A brief guide to some basic

upgrades, front to back:

`Tires: As covered elsewhere in

this issue, track-oriented tires

offer signifi cant performance im-

provements all on their own, with

no other changes.

`Brake Pads: Street pads are de-

signed to deliver consistent perfor-

mance over thousands of miles of

use. Track-oriented pads deliver

much more braking power at the

cost of a shorter lifespan. Brake

pads are simple to install and of-

fer much more powerful braking

performance and feel.

`Braided Stainless Steel Brake

Lines: Braided stainless steel

brake lines expand less than rub-

ber brake hoses under pressure,

delivering more feel (and more

consistent feel) at the brake lever.

`Master Cylinder: Aftermarket

front brake master cylinders typ-

ically offer more power and feel

than the stock master cylinders,

and offer the ability to select the

amount of power and motion the

rider prefers at the lever. Research

piston sizes and lever length to se-

lect the right master cylinder for

your bike and riding style.

`Fork Springs: Aftermarket

springs are an inexpensive way

to upgrade your suspension per-

formance at the front. Springs

should be selected with the weight

of the bike and rider in mind. Most

spring manufacturers (and all

suspension tuners) will also offer

advice on the amount and viscos-

ity of fork fl uid to use in conjunc-

tion with the new springs.

`Bodywork and Windscreen: A

simple set of upgrades that typ-

ically require a few hours of un-

bolting stock fairings and lights

and bolting the new pieces into

place. Most aftermarket bodywork

is custom-fi t to specifi c machines,

comes marked for drilling, and is

far less expensive than the origi-

nal bodywork to replace after a

crash. And racing windscreens are

lightweight and remarkably clear,

which is a nice upgrade from a

street screen scuffed and scarred

from miles of road use.

`Clip-ons: Racing clip-on handle-

bars offer more adjustability than

stock bars. You can customize the

height, width and in some cases

even the angle of the bars.

`Brake and Clutch Levers: These

can be color-matched to your ma-

chine for the fashion-conscious.

Also typically allow a greater de-

gree of adjustability, smoother op-

eration, and some even fold in a

crash, helping prevent breakage.

(Above) Aftermarket bodywork saves weight, prevents damage to expensive stock fairings, allows you to

customize your color scheme, and generally looks awesome. Photo by Caliphotography.com. (Below, Left)

Stock brake pads are designed to last a long time on the street. Racing brake pads, like these from SBS, wear

out more quickly, but the trade-off is that you get much more braking power and better feel. (Below, Right)

Aftermarket track-only exhausts sound better and make more power. This M4 Racing Performance Exhaust

carbon-fi ber can is signifi cantly lighter than the stock stainless steel muffl er, and looks better as well.

34—Roadracing World, Trackday Directory 2019

Making It More Awesome

BIKE UPGRADES: