Moto Tip | Analyze Your Race Day
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Welcome to the new Answer Racing Moto Tips feature! Answer Racing has been producing the highest-quality motocross and off-road gear since 1976, and this month launched its new line of 2020 apparel. With riders like Alex Martin, Ryan Villopoto, Nick Wey, and Mike Sleeter flying the Answer flag, there is a wealth of knowledge and know-how when it comes to riding a dirt bike efficiently and effectively in the Answer camp. Each week, Answer will bring you some riding tips to help you become better at the sport you love! Have a specific skill you’d like to improve? Comment below and we will cover it in a future post!
Every day at the track is a learning lesson. Maybe you aced the start with a good gate pick, nailed a tricky rut with a hook in it, or scrubbed by the competition on your way to a trophy. Whatever the scenario, it’s important that you take note of what happened and learn how you can apply that knowledge in the future. For this week’s Moto Tip, we asked Mike Sleeter to explain how he analyzes his motos and how you can do the same.
It’s important to have a friend, a family member, or your mechanic if you have one, that gives you feedback about how you are doing and what they thought of your riding. It needs to be someone that you trust and a person that has been to the races with you a few times, that way they know what you’re capable of and what to expect. Your spotter should be able to tell you what they saw, but you really need them to give you honest feedback. What they saw should correlate with what you think and how you felt, good and bad.
Your spotter should be able to tell you what they saw, but you really need them to give you honest feedback. What they saw should correlate with what you think and how you felt, good and bad.
When it comes to the bike, it’s important that you have a good feeling on it so that you can adapt to the track as it changes.
Take it moto by moto, starting with your practice sessions. Did you get through practice without a fall or issue, and did you feel good when you were on the track? How did the bike handle on the track or is there something that you need to take a look at? What you feel during practice is what you’ll carry into the first race of the day, so it’s important that you identify the good moments and keep those in mind while remembering the bad moments so you can avoid them.
Break your race down into segments, from the start to the opening laps to the middle and late parts of the moto. If you got a good start, you should be able to analyze what got you there and what you did to take advantage of it. If you were up front early but faded back, you will need to think about what caused you to lose positions. Was it your technique, or your fitness, a situation that you put yourself in, or a lack of fitness?
It’s equally important to take notice of the good things and figure out how they happened on the track, because you’ll want to replicate that in the future. Did you do something to the setup of your bike? Had you worked on your fitness or technique lately? Or did you just get to the track early and without any distractions?
There are things you can use that will help document your progress. If you wear a GoPro, re-watch the footage of the moto between races so you can see how your line choices were compared to where other riders went or how the track broke down. Bring a journal or keep notes on your phone that detail what you felt on the bike or what happened during the race. This will help you see the pattern of good things and bad things that take place over the course of the day.
During the week is when you will need to work on the issues you identified during the weekend. If you think it’s a fitness thing, address your training. If it’s the technique, work on the fundamentals or hire a riding coach. It’s important that you spend time working on the bad areas of your program and not just the good.
