Trackdays for beginners

The requirements for bike preparation will vay from one club to the next. You can use your stock street bike to the NESBA introductory Class and be out on the track with no changes other than putting on a sticker on the front of your bike to show that you've registered and passed tech inspection. Other clubs will require full race prep including replacing the radiator fluid with DISTILLED water and safety wiring things like your oil plug, oill fill cap, and oil filter. Be sure to get the club rules and have the bike ready before you arrive.

At a minimum, all clubs will require you to have a safe machine, and all should reuquire you to pass through a tech inspection before you are allowed out on the track. If the group you are with doesn't havea tech inspection, you may want to re-consider riding with them. Who knowswhat will come flying off the P.O.S next to you?

The basics that all clubs should be checking for are:
useable tires: at least 75% of tread life left. not cut up or damaged.

working brakes, front & back: Good pressure and stopping power. Adequate pad thickess. No fluid leaks. Check for a tight-locking nut on the bottom of the front brake lever pivot bolt.

nothing loose: Especially check the clip-on bars, footpegs, and exhaust.

Chain and sprockets: Make sure the chain and sprocket wear isn't extreme. Check the chain tension. Most street riders run their chains too tight, ad the track environment will intensify the problem. Remember your chain tightens as the suspension compresses. At the track, you will use even more of the suspension travel than you do on the street. Set your chain's free play at, or just a bit looser than the manufacturer's recommended setting. Check the manual to see if the specified free play is for when the suspension is compressed under the weight of the rider. A typical mistake is setting the tension without a rider on the bike which makes it much too tight when under the load.

lights: Most track day organizations require you to tape all headlights and taillights. This will help prevent a miess spray of shattered glass if and unfortunate incident occurs. Unplugging your bulbs or pulling their fuses will keep the tape from melting into a gooey mess on the lights ans will also help your clean-up process.

signals & mirrors: Most clubs ask you to remove your mirrors, and turn signals. Even if not asked, removing these items is a good idea.

Some riding clubs require you to replace your anti-freeze. This is always required for race bikes but is rare for track day organizations that cater to the street rider. (do it anyways) Its's a good idea, however, to remove the anti-freeze because the spills are nearly impossible to clean up quickly, and they turn the pavement sections into non-stick surfaces. If you do change out your anti-freeze, rememeber to keep your bike in a warm storage facility during the winter. Ice takes up more room than water, and a hard freeze could damage your engine if your radiator contains only water.

Requiring riders to saftey wire their bikes might turn away potential track day participants, so it is not always required. Safety wiring is the process of drilling a small hole in the head of a bolt, running a wire through the hole, and wrapping that wire around something else so the bolt isn't allowed to back out or vibrate loose. All race bikes are required to have, at the minimum, their oil drain plug, oil fill cap, and oil filter safety wired. Most racing associations also require safety wire on the brake caliper bolts, axle bolts, radiator fill cap, and on many other bolts and fasteners. Even if you dont race your bike and are not required to safety wire for your trackday, it's a good idea to run some wire anyway. Safety wire serves not just to keep a blot from backing out but it also shows at a glance that you've finsished the job. Take for example, the task of replacing your front tire. By the time you finish, you've tightened the axle bolt, pinch bolts, and caliper bolts to the porper torque. If you safety wire these bolts, you never need to wonder, "did I tightent my caliper bolts?" A quick look confirms that they are wired, and you will then know that they are tight. The safety wire proves the job was done as assures tht it wont get un-done. Frame, bar-end, and swingarm sliders are another consideration as you prepare your soon to be track bike. Having these installed could save a few hudred dollars worth of bodywork during a mishap. Also you might want to consider aftermarket clutch/stator covers, These will hold up in a crash, wont crack, and might save you some heartache buy letting you finish out your trackday. Just because a club doesn't require all the safety precautions of real racing doesn't mean it's not a good idea.