Let’s face it, most schools are boring, and the subjects they teach are barely relevant to real-life challenges. After all, how many times has the Pythagoras Theorem or a math formula helped you get out of a genuine dilemma? This doesn’t apply to all schools, however, and some exceptional examples teach you lifelong lessons.
Case in context here are motorcycle track schools that help you become a faster, safer, and smarter rider. Now, you might think a track school is only relevant to sports bike riders and track aficionados, but that’s not the case. Most of the lessons you learn are invaluable and have a variety of applications, even if you are just a commuter. What are these lessons, you ask? Well, we recently attended the TVS Racing training academy, and here are some crucial learnings.
Take It Easy
Yes, the first lesson we learned on the track was to take it easy. Taught to us via a No Braking exercise, we simply followed one of the top Indian racers around the track, at slow speeds, with little to no braking inputs. Sounds monotonous, right? After all, who wants to go slow on a racetrack? Well, we’re happy to report that wasn’t the case. The drill helped us understand the track layout and familiarize ourselves with the peppy TVS Apache RTR 200 4V race bike.
This proved instrumental in making a mental map of the circuit and understanding how the motorcycle reacted since we had never ridden a race bike before. On the contrary, if we were to go full Valentino Rossi mode from the get-go, we’re pretty sure we would’ve ended face-front in the gravel. So the next time you’re on a new track, try this out. Believe us, you’ll be surprised how a little patience can go a long way.
Change Your Vision
You must’ve heard of the quote ‘Look where you want to go’. It has been a basic lesson in all kinds of motorcycle schools and can help you avoid serious accidents. But TVS Racing instructors had a slightly advanced version for us to learn. Essentially, we were told to change our vision as we rode, so it would change as the corner progressed. So if we were entering a corner, our eyes would first focus on the apex we needed to hit, followed by an immediate vision shift on the next reference point, and then the exit. It’s easier said than done, but with proper practice, the reward surely outweighed the learning curve. It ultimately helped us ride confidently without the worry of target fixation, not just on the track, but also on the road. Avoiding obstacles had never been easier!
Racing Lines Are Crucial But Not Fixed
A track school won’t be complete without a lesson on racing lines, and the TVS training academy didn’t disappoint. While the session began with basics like out-in-out, the latter half comprised a breakdown of the corners. This was followed by an on-track session behind professional racers who marked the entry, apex, and exit points of each corner. These reference points came as a big surprise on some corners and helped explain where we potentially lost time.
Butt Out, Knee Locked, And Hands Relaxed
Finally, another key lesson learned was the riding posture. While we all know we need to crouch on a straight to avoid windblast, most of us get the body position all wrong in the turns. But with the instructors telling us to get the butt out, lock the knees, and relax the upper body, things fell into place in no time.
How? Well, with the knees locked, the hands remained pressure-free, which helped target the focus on the throttle and countersteering, instead of worrying about falling. Plus, this also made moving the head (to change the vision, as mentioned above) that much easier. The ultimate lesson came when the instructors suggested we moved the butt out while braking, not while entering the corner. And as you’d expect, this only stabilized things further. Again, all this is something that’ll help in the real world too, whenever you’re in for a corner carving session.
Would We Recommend A Track School?
That’s a no-brainer YES from us. We can guarantee you will come out a better rider, not just on a racetrack but even on the road. Bonus points if you do it with a reputed organization like TVS Racing, which employs its finest national/international racers for this task. We also recommend you do it on your own motorcycle, as it’ll make you one with your steed and give you unmatched confidence.
About TVS Racing
With that out of the way, allow us to shine some light on the organization. TVS Motors is one of the world’s largest bikemakers, the parent company of Norton, and the maker of the BMW G 310 twins. It has always given utmost importance to racing, which is why TVS Racing - India’s first factory racing team - came to life in 1982. 39 years down the line, TVS now has its own one-make support championship for the Asia Road Racing Championship where it runs a special Moto3-like race bike built around the 313cc, single-cylinder engine built with BMW.