First Post

Its been over a year since an accomplished racer and coach at the California Superbike School (CSS) suggested that I start a blog about my trials, tribulations, and accomplishments while becoming a motorcycle road racer.  My career began on the public roads and that has been mostly trials and tribulations.  I've had some crashes and unplanned off road riding, i.e. I ran off the road.  Three times!  Going off course would usually have few consequences at the track since there is adequate room for run off.  However, on the public roads you can have all manner of problems like trees, debris, or worse, on coming traffic!  I also had a crash during a CSS session where I ran into a bike in front of me because I was going too fast and she was going slow.  A very good pro racer did the exact same thing sometime thereafter and I'm sure its not the first time nor will it be the last.  My error resulted in about three thousand dollars worth of damage to my bike and the bike I hit. Much worse was the lifetime ban from riding in any future CSS Schools.  Tough lesson.

However, I love the methods of CSS and I am sure they are one of the best schools in the world so I found a way back.  I have to successfully participate in two training events at another school.  I have chosen Penquin Racing School which is the oldest track school in the United States.  Eric Wood, president of Penquin, recently participated in the prestigious Daytona 200.

It looks like I closed the door to California Superbike School for quite some time with my second incident, this one at Penguin Roadracing School.  I was racing with someone and doing race style passing during a track day on a demo bike!  Not good at all.  I lost my head and got over excited.  It was certainly wrong of me to do so but it was also clearly unintentional.  The rider who was involved is also partially at fault because he could have let me pass, but I think his ego may have gotten the better of him as he chose, instead, to race with me.

Regardless of that, it is now (in 2016) incumbent upon me to ride with discretion and use good judgment when I'm out on the track.  No more foolishness.  Just good judgment, and I can hardly wait to get out there and try all the skills that I learned in 2015.  Yeah!