Track Day Groups
 

Curious as to how you advanced riders determined you were ready to make the move from the intermediate to the advanced group.

I could be wrong on this, but I believe it's actually the control riders and/or track management that determine when you're ready to bump up.

Kinda like that but initially its the rider that makes the decision. But you're right, if you are in the wrong group and its obvious the control riders have the ultimate say and WILL bump riders down or up.

I guess I kinda know the answer but asked anyway. I just have to stop being a pussy and give it a try. I already rode with an instructor that wanted to follow me for a bit to determine whether I should bump up. I lost him for a bit (I gotta say, there was a bit of traffic and he was pretty new to the track) ,when he came back to the pits, he was surprised I had been riding in the intermediate group all day.

I guess my concern is the wide range of laptimes even in the advanced group and people treating it like "raceday". Then again, I think that gap is even bigger in the intermediate group.

I knew the first time I closed on a "intermediate rider" at twice his speed...J/K

I actually club raced before I started doing track days, just jumped right in with the sharks, and that made track day group selection real easy. You can always fall back a class once you find out where your running at that weekend.

I always go with intermediate class as I usually track day on street tires, no warmers, everything taped and wired up, but I will swap on my race plastics and get serious with tire choices and run race class or "expert" from time to time.

STT you just have to ask and be approved to do so.

Trackaddix you just tell 'em you run advanced when you register.
Usually not many people in that group.
At my track day, i figured it out by times, and I could run the whole session at the pace I was running and not get lapped by anyone, but they would be on my tail at then end of it :lol:

Personally, I loathe the intermediate group. I would recommend you go for the Advanced group. It is more about control, and the ability to handle being passed than speed. There will always be someone faster - but those that are faster typically have the ability to pass safely and manage their own personal space on the track.

Entirely too much other bullshit goes on in the Intermediate group - it's a group filled with those too fast [in their own mind] to be called slow, and sandbaggers (those good enough for Advanced, but their ego can't take being passed).

One of the organizations out here mounts transponders to your bike without charging extra. SO we were getting our lap times after an hour of each session. So I decided to move up from level 2 to level 3 because I was putting down times faster than the slow level 3 guys while in level 2.

Yeah That pretty much sums it up. I am not ready, controlled, or fast enough for advanced group yet, but am getting tired of the shit that goes on in intermediate. I want out, I need to get faster.

For me, moving from beginner to intermediate wasn't about being called "slow," but rather the fact that I didn't want to ride in a small group of people and not be able to pass slower riders. That's the way STT did it when I did track days a few years ago. Only way you could pass in beginner was if the instructor deemed it ok to do so, and one whole group would pass another. I hated that and wanted to ride at my own pace so I moved up to intermediate. I definitely wasn't ready for advanced, but couldn't handle the way they did things in the beginner group.

All that being said, I'll go into the beginner class again after I buy a bike cause I haven't been on one in 3 years, but doubt I'll stay there long.

Alot has to do with your particular track day organization and who regularly attends...If your thinking about moving up or down you have alittle insight into who makes up each level. At Hallett the expert group is usually current or ex CMRA racers with fully track prpared rides and the speeds they travel can be really daunting to the uninitiated. Meanwhile Beginner is dog slow and 25 seconds off the normal pace, so unless your on a ninja 250 you will have a hard time getting any clean laps in.

I've seen days where the pace is brisk in the intermediate group, but I've seen more days where I just can't get a clean lap. I agree a lot has to do with the particular group that's attending.

Like Dlit said, checking times is prob a good indicator of which group to ride in, I'll prob see where I stand in comparison to the times in the advanced group.

LOL
This is true.

I was suggested to do so by several of the advanced group riders, and then by an instructor.

At first I was nervous and waited a couple sessions to bump up... but after I did it was the best move I could have made.

Intermediate has a lot of yahoos in it... especially at some of the 2-day events I've done... after the first day a bunch of red group riders (their first TD, gixxer 1k type guys often times) will bump up for the second day because they were 'getting held up' in beginner group on the first day and come and park it in the corners, wail on the straights, run erratic lines, etc.

At the last TD's, I was one of the slower blue group riders... but never felt uncomfortable or like I was in anyone's way, and I never had trouble passing slower riders either. Everyone is curteous, and on their line all the time. People are just smoother and more alert/consistent.

Basically... I'm telling you to bump if the option is yours.

Just my experience, anyways...