HRCA Track Day

I took Monday off work to flog the 400 around Wanneroo Raceway for the Honda Riders Club of Australia Track Day. It was cold, windy but very sunny - which is a change from the expected June weather. The day started early with a gent on his new CBR1000RR riding through a cable-gate. I was next on the scene and helped him pick the bike up. I signed in, got a wrist band and waited for the day to begin. Some of my other mates had also come up for the day. Everyone was pretty excited that it was a nice day and we could also test ride the 2007 model CBR 600's and 1000's. I wasn't game enough to take the thou out, so I only signed up for the 600.

And what a day it was. Out of the capacity crowd of 100, 46 riders were registered and a handfull were walkins that just signed up on the day. This meant that we ran two groups of 15 minutes on, 15 minutes off, ALL DAY!!!

I got my knee down at Wanneroo for the first time ever in the third session of the day, around CAT corner, Skyline, the Basin and Ford Corner. In two consecutive hot laps I got my knee down around all four corners. w00t!

In the fourth session of the day I took the 2007 CBR600RR for a spin. This thing handles *incredibly* well. It tips into corners like nothing I've ever ridden. Now, the 400 is a very nimble little bike, but the 600 requires no effort to steer, it just goes where you want it to. As for power, it has no balls under about 8,000 rpm. It's a fair call considering Honda are renowned for high-revving engines. Even the 400 has more low-down poke than this thing. Saying that, when I was belting it through the Biante Esses, it was baking. It's not short of power, its just more a question of where I'd use it on the road or on a track. Braking? Awesome. But it has to be for a bike with 112km on the clock. I put another 26km on it and although it wasn't a long test ride, I was convinced that this wasn't the bike for me. Even though the white/silver 600 is the best looking bike Honda have made for a long time, it just didn't perform like a Honda should. What does it matter anyway - Honda Australia didn't even bring the white/silver one into the country. Boring red and black again *sigh*

I ended up doing over 240km of track time on Monday and I had a blast. Was good to not be at work, and even better to rip around the 400 with a small group of riders. I was most impressed with my group's riders. Everyone was extremely courteous and the fast bikes would zip past me and there would always be more than enough room to blast through the corners. That was my tact for the day, to tonker down the straights (let the big bores pass me) and then prepare and rip into the corners.

Again, a top day. Best $140 I've ever spent.

Cheers to Gordo for taking pix - I can't seem to work out who else was there taking photos!?!?!