Thanks for the reply. I wouldn’t say my wife is terrified…she is definately nervous though. And the kids just love it !!! The closest thing these days are GP 125′s at the R.A.C.E. (regionals). They do offer a masters class but most are running relatively new models. There are a ton of “experienced” racers riding & racing bikes they raced in their hayday in the VRRA.

My bike that I rode on this day was stockish. I was running with improved fork & shock valving and heavier springs I also had some mild work done to the heads, valve job, decking and cams. Most guys do start in first gear as second has a difficult time off the line and has an increased chance of stalling on the line. Yes, you can change the internal gearing but 99 % don’t because of the costs involved. The factories however typically do to find the best ratios for a given track. Everyone does however, change the external gearing for the tracks, drive etc. to fine tune the bike. My bike has a stock gearbox so I was generally riding the same external gearing as everyone else. Gearing is like shoe’s you run whatever your comfortable with running. everything being equal you and I may run slightly (1 tooth) different gearing because of our riding style, rythyem, etc.

In the rain yes, generally mapping is flattened out for smoother power delivery. However, my bike was a carbed version and to make a jetting change on that real fast was tough at best in the cramped working quarters of the frame. So I just left it the way it was and modulated power delivery by the only true traction control…by the throttle !!