First trip to the dragstrip... ugh.
 

Holy crap I suck. I knew I wasn't good, but I didn't think I was this bad. The important thing is having a good time, not a good timeslip, right?!

My fastest 1/4 ET turned out to be: 11.886@117.72.

not bad considering its your first trip out. what'd you have the most trouble with?

Thats great for the first time out!!!! :) It should have been a learning experience but it should've also been fun!

What was your RT and 60'?

I think the best times I've ever seen for a Zed1 was about 10.7 at 125ish, so for your first time out of the gate you did well.

My quickest ET run had a 60' of 2.2831 while I did manage to cut a 2.2302 on a different run. Most were in the 2.3 - 2.4 range.

My reaction times were real high too. The winning run I had a .7019 (yikes) but my best was a .4821. I know my launches are really lacking. Cars are so much easier.

Other than launching, I was having some shifting issues. Bouncing off the rev limiter, hittign neutral, and simply not getting it to upshift. I played around with my clutch which only made it worse. Lol. It dawned on me later that I lowered the bike when I got to the track and never checked my chain tension. Doh. So I don't know how much of a part that might have played in my shifting trouble. The fastest runs are where I actually managed to just squeeze the clutch in while staying on the throttle, but I only managed a couple runs that way. The other times I would try to shift and it wouldn't then i would stare at the RPMs bouncing back and forth until I could finally shift again. Once I even hit neitral and had to sit there and coast until I could get it back into gear.

I'm sure the bike could have been set up better, but it was really all rider error in end. I need to learn how to launch. And, I need to learn the trickiness of shifting at high RPMs without letting off.

air shifter

Just powershift. Don't use the clutch at all.

It's very easy, I would recommend trying it on the street a few times first. All you have to do is pre-load the shifter by putting pressure on it, basically stick your foot under the lever and press up to the stop, and then slightly blip your throttle. As soon as your throttle starts to come off there will be a slack in the drive-train and the bike will slip right into gear. And it will not hurt the bike, they're designed to do it.

clutchless shifting if something every rider should know how to do. its tough doing it from first to second smoothly because most sport bikes first gear is wound so high, but with practice it comes with ease.

Some transmissions don't do it smoothly... ahem- Buells (or so I've heard)

I can shift without the clutch on the street but it never seems to work at the strip. Perhaps just more practice.

Here are several pictures from the day.

A couple of runs
http://mei.net/~becca/Temp/Z1000/IMG_3575s.jpg

http://mei.net/~becca/Temp/Z1000/IMG_3579s.jpg

Chit chat in the lanes
http://mei.net/~becca/Temp/Z1000/IMG_3636s.jpg

A couple more runs
http://mei.net/~becca/Temp/Z1000/IMG_3575s.jpg

http://mei.net/~becca/Temp/Z1000/IMG_3730s.jpg

http://mei.net/~becca/Temp/Z1000/IMG_3740s.jpg

Uh oh. I see Mark. He asked if I wanted to go for one more :)
http://mei.net/~becca/Temp/Z1000/IMG_3746s.jpg

And I think it's fitting for the final pic to have the finish line
http://mei.net/~becca/Temp/Z1000/IMG_3767s.jpg

Cool Pics! That looks like fun, I might have to try that sometime.

more torque def increases the "lurch"

im thinking i would love to try a day at the strip, just for shits and giggles

but launching a 1000cc vtwin ... that sounds like a recipe for a endo backwards

I have heard that the pavement they use on drag-strips offers significantly more traction, similar to a race track, which can make launches, ahem, "tricky".

yea, check out the gleam on the strip here.

http://mei.net/~becca/Temp/Z1000/IMG_3579s.jpg

and also check out the lift on that front fire and the compression on the suspension, so cool.

maybe you're too excited cuz your at the dragstrip, and not timing the shifting right? thats what i did my first time out. that, plus at the strip you shift at a higher rpm than the street, harder to get the timing right. i missed 2nd gear alot my 1st time out, sometimes 3rd too.

at what rpm/how are you launching? 2.2 seems kinda high


http://mei.net/~becca/Temp/Z1000/IMG_3767s.jpg

cool picthat thing is pulling hard at the finish line! what gear do you cross in?

Next time you hit up 131, let me know, I'll go with you. I want to see what my Z750 will do.

Well your placement looks good, your all over the tank in the first few, so thats good.... Pics look great!! :rockwoot:

Try this for power shifts if'n you're having problems;

A. Adjust your clutch at home, when the bike is hot. The plates can swell and drag, so go and do a couple burnouts and then check freeplay; you'll likely find it's GONE after you've het it up a bit. Now adjust for free play and engagment. Improper indexing the 1-2 shift and/or neutral is the best indicator of a dragging clutch.

B. Technique. I don't know your size/strength, but a FIRM boot is required for full-throttle upshifts. If you continue having problems, you may want to consider track-pattern shifting (one up/five down), it'll give you more positve upshifts (I don't know if you can flip on the Zed or not without a lot of rigamaroll). Best technique is to get that foot on the peg asap during launch and preload the lever as if your going to do a clutchless upshift, but instead of backing off the throttle, leave it on WFO and I slide my fingers out towards the end of the clutchlever ball end for better leverage, then pull the clutch in ever so slightly till the shifter slides into the next gear. Yes, bunky, you will be replacing plates more often if you are hitting the strip. And, yes, the engine will be bouncing off the limiter for a second, but that's racing, right?

Clutchless upshifts at the strip don't work very well because you have to either back too far off the throttle to remove enough pressure to get it to shift, or you have to slam shift it (yanking up (or stomping down if you've a race shift pattern) hard enough to force the shift drum to rotate) but this is hell on shift forks and gear dogs, and you WILL eventually blow the trans.

If you are racing stock classes with no air or electric shifters, check your local rules, some classes you are allowed to use the kill switch method. Add a spring-loaded button-type kill switch at a comfortable distance from your thumb. Shift technique with this is the same as clutchless shifting: full throttle, preload the lever, and when you are ready to shift, just touch the kill switch for a second and the bike will shift slick as butter. A little practice with this and you'l be amazed at the speed of your shifts.

Just a couple old racer tricks............

good tips...especially on the boot thing-gotta be a good firm shift, no matter what technique u use.

in my personal experience, clutchless worked alot better for me. fanning the clutch and shifting wot didnt help me e.t. any better, and clutchless shifting was more consistent. shifted like that for a year and a half, never had a tranny problem. i dont even think they backcut the trannys at the factory in 1980 like they do now.

one tip for clutchless-dont flap your whole elbow, just snap your wrist alil. you dont wana look like you trying to fly lol, plus all that movement upsets the bike alil. once you learn how to do one or both pretty well, just buy a airshifter. easier on the bike, and the fastest most consistent way to shift. cheaper than buying clutch plates all the time, or replacing a tranny if you screw up. but you should always know the fundamentals 1st.

:dthumb:

I've read that they don't like it much. Haven't tried on the 1125

Thanks for all the comments and suggestions!

Going down the strip I couldn't even hear my engine so i was glues to the RPM gauge. I'm sure timing is a part of it, but I also think I didn't have my clutch adjusted correctly. So then I started messing with it, made it worse, then got back to 'normal'. I honestly can't say if it's 4th or 5th at the finish. I know the RPMs are way up there and sometimes I shifted but sometimes I let it go.

Will do. I know a bunch from WMR are going on May 16th (a Friday) but I'm not sure yet whether I will run or even attend.

This was the first time I convinced the boyfriend to come out with me and be my photographer. He did an awesome job.

Thank a ton. That explanation about the clutch makes perfect sense. Especially since I tend to hot lap it a lot. My boots are pretty stiff and after having them on for longer periods or a lot of shifting I always end up with a blister on my shifting heel. I'll have to look into the costs and possibilities of changing up the shift pattern because that sounds a lot easier. One of the first comments out of my mouth was, "I need an air shifter". Okay. I need to learn the right way first, and i can't afford it, but the words came out of my mouth!

man i loved taking my cars to the dragstrip

my 03 cobra with 483 rwhp ran a 12.1 @ 119 on street tires with a 1.9 RT

if i got some drag radials and more practice easily in the 11s

Do you launch in 2nd? Someone once said they do that.

bad idea

I may go to the drag strip once, just to see what my bike and I are capable of in a straight line. Not going to be any time soon though.