California Superbike School <Newbie>

[TDA]

Yesterday I took the level 1 class with California Superbike School at VIR. Let me start by saying that the experience was far beyond my expectations. (Thanks Misti for talking me into sucking it up and going regardless of the weather).
The CSS staff was outstanding. They ran a very tight ship. The years of experience showed because from the jump you could tell they had pretty much every base covered.

The classroom instruction was very effective and you get to immediately go out and apply it. With every session I was able to apply the specific drill and felt an improvement in both my riding and overall confidence. The progression of the exercises complements the next and allows you to see a definitive improvement as the day goes on. The debriefings from your coach are quite interesting.... He would ask questions rather than telling you what you were doing wrong. It was pretty cool....he was making sure that you understood what the drill was and why you were doing it and ultimately how that would improve your overall feel, stability, and confidence.

Now I am by no means a speed demon on a track. This was only my second time ever on one. At the end of the 4th session I got tapped on the shoulder by one of the other students and he said "Dude you were flying". I was dumbfounded...I mean I felt faster but I thought it was just because of the drills that were allowing me to get around the track faster.... I said "Really? I didn't feel all that fast I'm just trying to work on theses drills." the two guys next to him chimed in and said....yea man you lapped me twice
Weird how the track seemed to shrink as the day went on.

I can't say enough about how courteous the ENTIRE staff was. Every one was polite and was always willing to drop whatever they were doing to answer a question or work with you.

I will for sure do level 2, 3 and 4. If you haven't already I would HIGHLY recommend you take this course. Worth every penny.

[deef]

I also found this, I did lewvel 1,2 in Ireland and hope to get level 3 in this year in Aug. As you said well worth the cash.... Plus you have learned it .... Now its with you for life.

[akjitsu]

Good on ya TDA.

I've been through level 4 and I'll still go back again because there's always more to learn.

And yes, the instructor staff is definitely the schnizle.

[Snaefell]

I was in CSS Level 1 at VIR on Monday, too! Very cool. I echo everything that TDA said. It was raining buckets in the morning and standing water all day, but the organization was incredibly smooth and well run. I had a great experience with my instructor, as well, great feedback and communication. The Smooth- no Brakes drills in the rain were a lot of fun, and I can tell that I applied what I learned from the seminars and other trackdays... still so much to learn.

The S1000RRs were a lot of fun too, a lot easier to ride in the rain/on track than my Aprilia.

Side Note-I am a true believer in rain tires after seeing what I have seen now too, worth their weight in gold.

I would recommend the school to anyone who has the time / money and an open mind who wants to learn while having fun.

Cheers!

[misti]

Originally Posted by TDA

Yesterday I took the level 1 class with California Superbike School at VIR. Let me start by saying that the experience was far beyond my expectations. (Thanks Misti for talking me into sucking it up and going regardless of the weather).
The CSS staff was outstanding. They ran a very tight ship. The years of experience showed because from the jump you could tell they had pretty much every base covered.

The classroom instruction was very effective and you get to immediately go out and apply it. With every session I was able to apply the specific drill and felt an improvement in both my riding and overall confidence. The progression of the exercises complements the next and allows you to see a definitive improvement as the day goes on. The debriefings from your coach are quite interesting.... He would ask questions rather than telling you what you were doing wrong. It was pretty cool....he was making sure that you understood what the drill was and why you were doing it and ultimately how that would improve your overall feel, stability, and confidence.

Now I am by no means a speed demon on a track. This was only my second time ever on one. At the end of the 4th session I got tapped on the shoulder by one of the other students and he said "Dude you were flying". I was dumbfounded...I mean I felt faster but I thought it was just because of the drills that were allowing me to get around the track faster.... I said "Really? I didn't feel all that fast I'm just trying to work on theses drills." the two guys next to him chimed in and said....yea man you lapped me twice
Weird how the track seemed to shrink as the day went on.

I can't say enough about how courteous the ENTIRE staff was. Every one was polite and was always willing to drop whatever they were doing to answer a question or work with you.

I will for sure do level 2, 3 and 4. If you haven't already I would HIGHLY recommend you take this course. Worth every penny.

Great write up TDA!!! I'm so glad you had fun and that you were able to improve so much. I'm also glad you took my advice and stuck it out despite the rain As I mentioned in my PM, a lot of students are really nervous about doing the school in the rain but when they get out on the track and focus on working on the drills they gain confidence and learn sooooo much.

Was there one specific thing that really stood out for you in terms of your improvement, one skill that seemed to turn the light bulb on?

Misti

[TDA]

There were several "light bulb" moments but the ones that stood out the most were:
the no breaks 4th gear drill (never realized how much I unnecessarily used breaks)

the Relax drill - made you focus more on what was coming rather than what was happening on the bike

And the one that I felt I got the most from was the two step. Hitting exactly where you were looking thru the turn was unreal. Each time I did I found myself hitting the next turn spot dead on. I was able to carry much more speed once I stopped looking at where I was planning on turning and started looking where I wanted to end up.

As long as you do the drills you can't help but improve.

[MPwarrior]

Thanks for the review, I have been a little curious about what to expect. I signed up for the CSS at VIR in August and I'm really looking forward too it.

Nice to see some fellow SW Virginians on here too.

[TDA]

Originally Posted by MPwarrior

Thanks for the review, I have been a little curious about what to expect. I signed up for the CSS at VIR in August and I'm really looking forward too it.

Nice to see some fellow SW Virginians on here too.

I may see you in August. Gonna sign up for Level 2 either there or at thunderbolt.

[misti]

Originally Posted by TDA

There were several "light bulb" moments but the ones that stood out the most were:
the no breaks 4th gear drill (never realized how much I unnecessarily used breaks)

the Relax drill - made you focus more on what was coming rather than what was happening on the bike

And the one that I felt I got the most from was the two step. Hitting exactly where you were looking thru the turn was unreal. Each time I did I found myself hitting the next turn spot dead on. I was able to carry much more speed once I stopped looking at where I was planning on turning and started looking where I wanted to end up.

As long as you do the drills you can't help but improve.

That is great! I know that when I took the school as a student I was astounded at how much I unnecessarily used the brakes as well. Even now I have to really force myself to not grab a little bit of "safely brake" as I approach the corners.

You mention the 2 step exercise as well as helping you hit your turn spot on, and in helping you carry more speed through the corners. This is the exercise that I myself work on the most. It really helps to alleviate the fear of going in too fast and the need to squeeze the brake lever.

Did you notice how each exercise seemed to influence the others, like the better your visual skills are, the more relaxed you are able to ride?

Misti

[TDA]

Originally Posted by misti

That is great! I know that when I took the school as a student I was astounded at how much I unnecessarily used the brakes as well. Even now I have to really force myself to not grab a little bit of "safely brake" as I approach the corners.

You mention the 2 step exercise as well as helping you hit your turn spot on, and in helping you carry more speed through the corners. This is the exercise that I myself work on the most. It really helps to alleviate the fear of going in too fast and the need to squeeze the brake lever.

Did you notice how each exercise seemed to influence the others, like the better your visual skills are, the more relaxed you are able to ride?

Misti

It is quite evident that you all have figured out the proper progression of the drills and one builds on the other. As you progress, you realize that you can make the bike stable by controlling the throttle. Once you have a stable bike then you have to turn it. Once you turn it you increase the speed at which you turn it so you can carry more entry speed and thus go faster. Once you've stabilized the bike, found your turn-in point, flicked the bike in then all you need to do is relax and enjoy the curve. Then you get to kick it up a notch by looking at where you want to go once you've done everything else correctly. The visual skills make you more relaxed because you are no longer focusing on non relevant things such as the edge of the track that you don't want to go to, or whether or not you have the right turn entry speed. What I found myself doing is looking at the approximate turn in point as it was coming up and then immediately switching my attention to a spot on the track where I wanted to end up. I was amazing that I hit my spots every time and then found myself right inline with the turn in marks on the track. That alone raised my confidence level because it confirmed the fact that if I choose a good line, flick the bike in, relax, and maintain good throttle control, It lines me up for the next turn perfectly.
The best way I can describe it is that I found that the track was shrinking.

If you do the drills and grasp the concepts that Keith is trying to convey, you can't help but improve.