2.6 What is "Race-Prepping"?
Description
This article is from the How to Become a Motorcycle Roadracer FAQ, by Duke Robillard duke@io.com with numerous contributions by others.
2.6 What is "Race-Prepping"?
"Race-prepping" is getting your bike ready to race. If you've bought a
bike that's already been racing, race-prepping is all the grunt work
you don't have to do. It means stripping off all the street stuff
(lights, signals, kickstands, etc), replacing the radiator coolent
with water, safety-wiring anything you wouldn't want to come loose at
speed, putting on number plates, adding a steering damper, etc.
"Safety-wiring" is drilling little holes through the heads of bolts
that hold on important stuff, running wire through those holes, and
then attaching the wire to some fixed point, or to another bolt. This
makes it impossible for the bolt to turn, no matter how much it
vibrates and bounces. Obvious targets for safety wiring are oil drain
plugs, fork oil drains, the remote shock reservoir (mine fell off
once) and brake caliper bolts.
It is really helpful to have someone show you how and what to safety
wire; the race rulebooks are not very clear or complete. When you go
to the track to hang around before becoming a racer, you can check
this out, perhaps asking someone for hints and help. Most racers are
very helpful about this kind of thing, and love to talk about their
bikes. (Just don't catch them 10 minutes before their next race.)
Every organization has its own specific rules about race-prepping.
You'll find them in the rulebooks (see 6.1 and 3.2).
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