New lap records at Manfeild.

**Bren_chch** · 28th September 2009, 15:01

Originally Posted by sinfull

Yes wont that bring out the Ozzy 450's in force next year !

Its going to be awesome!!! Good stuff by the Kirkster and the engine guy. I bet all his kirkamaniacs were cheering him on, i know i was.

He's been off a bike for a long time now, so i bet he happy at that result, 1st time on that bike and 1st time riding in a long time.

**Crasherfromwayback** · 28th September 2009, 15:29

Originally Posted by White trash

Hope he's mentally tougher than I was and ignores the bullshit if it's the case.

They're all bloody lucky I was busy this weekend. That...and my leathers have shrunk.

**roadracingoldfart** · 28th September 2009, 16:50

Originally Posted by Crasherfromwayback

They're all bloody lucky I was busy this weekend. That...and my leathers have shrunk.

Your leathers didnt shrink Pete , you got fat

**motorcyclesonline.net** · 28th September 2009, 19:29

The racing over the weekend was incredible at all levels with great races within races and it's free entry so spread the word for Rd6
Many riders are using the series as development for the Nationals - young riders like Glenn Mason - "whitebaitracing" on the nicely prepared Honda NSR 250 MC21 and Junior Payne on the Pro-twin SV650

**Kickaha** · 28th September 2009, 19:38

Originally Posted by Bren_chch

I bet all his kirkamaniacs were cheering him on, i know i was.

As was I, good to get regular txt updates with his progress

**Robert Taylor** · 29th September 2009, 08:44

Originally Posted by White trash

Who's looking after Sam suspension-wise this year Robert?

We ended up picking up the pieces because the rear shock had an overlong spring fitted to it because whoever did it ( clearly not fully conversant with Ohlins nor formally trained and accredited to do so ) failed to recognise that the R6 TTX36 shocks take a shorter series of spring, or failed to bring it to Sams attention. The bike had only 15mm of rider sag so it was an evil handling bike and frankly a crash waiting to happen. Thats despicable, if whoever did this is masquerading as a suspension guru he should at least either do so properly or not at all. Caveat emptor!! This person is not approved or formally trained to service and setup Ohlins products
That Sam went so well on an improperly set up bike is a credit to him and underlines his talent.

**GSVR** · 29th September 2009, 09:24

Originally Posted by Robert Taylor

We ended up picking up the pieces because the rear shock had an overlong spring fitted to it because whoever did it ( clearly not fully conversant with Ohlins nor formally trained and accredited to do so ) failed to recognise that the R6 TTX36 shocks take a shorter series of spring, or failed to bring it to Sams attention. The bike had only 15mm of rider sag so it was an evil handling bike and frankly a crash waiting to happen. Thats despicable, if whoever did this is masquerading as a suspension guru he should at least either do so properly or not at all. Caveat emptor!! This person is not approved or formally trained to service and setup Ohlins products
That Sam went so well on an improperly set up bike is a credit to him and underlines his talent.

I want to take no part in what your up to here Robert. What I do know is this was Jays old bike (heavier rider). We all know that by your own admition no one in NZ is as skilled at setting up Ohlins roadracing shocks. A very astute bussiness move would be to undermine any potentual opposition that dares to try and get a piece of the action.

Kerry does seem to have a knack of attracting very fast riders doesn't he! Gareth Jones won both Supersport races at Manfield last nationals on a Yamaha with Kerry setting his bike up.
An experienced rider like Bugden knows what they want and the suspension techs are just there to perform the work right? Bugden would have been faster if he had let Robert do the mods he wanted! I bet Rossi decides what spring and tyres he wants.

I get the feeling that unless Kerry fronts up on here we will only get one side of the story.

"Fueled by insecurity, I mistakenly think that if others are wrong, bad, or fault-ridden, then in comparison I must be right, good, and capable. Does the strategy of putting others down to build up my own self-esteem work? Hardly."

http://www.thubtenchodron.org/DailyL...of_others.html

**Rcktfsh** · 29th September 2009, 09:40

Originally Posted by GSVR

An experienced rider like Bugden knows what they want and the suspension techs are just there to perform the work right? Bugden would have been faster if he had let Robert do the mods he wanted! I bet Rossi decides what spring and tyres he wants.

http://www.thubtenchodron.org/DailyL...of_others.html

Far from it actually GSVR, riders like Andrew work with CKT to get the best from the bike, certainly not a case of telling them what to do. Robert and Dennis did an awesome job with the K9 in the weekend trying different set ups in each race to get a feel for the new bike. Sadly it would only be if they stopped travelling the country to meetings that alot of riders would realise how lucky we are to have CKT's services at the track.

**Pussy** · 29th September 2009, 09:58

I believe Andrew got a prize for having the shortest mechanic.....

**GSVR** · 29th September 2009, 11:41

Originally Posted by Rcktfsh

Far from it actually GSVR, riders like Andrew work with CKT to get the best from the bike, certainly not a case of telling them what to do. Robert and Dennis did an awesome job with the K9 in the weekend trying different set ups in each race to get a feel for the new bike. Sadly it would only be if they stopped travelling the country to meetings that alot of riders would realise how lucky we are to have CKT's services at the track.

Its not good for the sport when anyone who provides a service stops turning up. Be it the Hotdog stand, Leather repair guy, person with a tyre changing machine, etc.

**White trash** · 29th September 2009, 12:01

Hey everyone's obviously entilted to their own opinion, and from time to time personalities are going to clash.

I've had the honour of being associated with a number of set-up "artists" in my too short racing career.

Mr Robert Taylor of CKT closed his business (when in Hawera) to attend a test day with me and my K7, expressly to get as early a start on the ins and outs of suspension as mine was ready 3 weeks before Andrews and Craigs. Swings and round-abouts, the time was invaluable to both of us. He had an offsider who shall not be named working alongside him at the time. Having met this person years earlier, I was dubious, but good enough for Robert, good enough for me. Turns out the relationship didn't last due to someone's over inflated sense of importance and knowledge and they parted ways.

For the next twelve months, this "off sider" is still trying to give me set-up advice and telling me how I should be riding a bike. Turns out any changes we made that he suggested, then had us scratching our heads at a loss of rideability. I was told I need to "ride it harder". Needless to say, we always went back to CKT's advised settings.

But hand on heart, I can honestly say that although we've had our ups and downs due to various factors, the BEST setup person (for me) I've been lucky enough to work with is one Mr Shaun Harris. Every issue I had was easy to explain to him from a "feel" point of view and then him translate back to changes made and how it would feel "on the bike". His techniques and tips in race mentality improved my skills no end. Any young rider fortunate to work with Mr Harris can do nothing except go forwards, no lie. He also doesn't tend to bullshit about his acheivements, they're in print all over the world and on the web for anyone to see.

Long story short, from experience of who I've worked with.

Robert and Denis from CKT. Tick
Shaun Harris of Motodynamix. bloody big tick

The other nameless one, EPIC FAIL.

**Robert Taylor** · 29th September 2009, 13:36

Originally Posted by GSVR

I want to take no part in what your up to here Robert. What I do know is this was Jays old bike (heavier rider). We all know that by your own admition no one in NZ is as skilled at setting up Ohlins roadracing shocks. A very astute bussiness move would be to undermine any potentual opposition that dares to try and get a piece of the action.

Kerry does seem to have a knack of attracting very fast riders doesn't he! Gareth Jones won both Supersport races at Manfield last nationals on a Yamaha with Kerry setting his bike up.
An experienced rider like Bugden knows what they want and the suspension techs are just there to perform the work right? Bugden would have been faster if he had let Robert do the mods he wanted! I bet Rossi decides what spring and tyres he wants.

I get the feeling that unless Kerry fronts up on here we will only get one side of the story.

"Fueled by insecurity, I mistakenly think that if others are wrong, bad, or fault-ridden, then in comparison I must be right, good, and capable. Does the strategy of putting others down to build up my own self-esteem work? Hardly."

http://www.thubtenchodron.org/DailyL...of_others.html

Well Im certainly a lot closer to the sharp end of the action than your good self and attend all tracks from top to bottom of the country.
We developed a new bypass bleed path spec and needles for Gareths R6 ( delivered at the first round )and Gareth was very pleased with it. Well at least he was ( nice guy ) but no appreciation from other quarters. PERHAPS WE HAVE PROVIDED SO MUCH BACKUP FOR SO LONG ( ALL TOO OFTEN AT NO COST ) THAT IT IS TAKEN FOR GRANTED??? This spec has been adopted by a number of domestic R6 teams worldwide.
I think when there is money involved ( greeks bearing gifts ) people will find justification to jump and also there is a perception that CKT is often spread thin ( true enough ) Its always easy to align yourself with top riders to look good when in fact it can often be very rewarding helping the grass roots riders, which we often do. And Im not neccessarily talking financial gain!
With Robbie we tried for several rounds to try a totally new fork spec, when he finally did so ( at Pukekohe ) he was faster again. Riders can be fickle.
Ohlins have very high standards and it is up to Ohlins distributors to protect those standards. If indeed the said person had that shock pass through his hands then the issue should have been identified prior to the bike going on track.
We only sanction suspension tuners to work with Ohlins that have been formally trained and accredited and will conform to Ohlins requirements. Those that arent in that loop are not privy to updates at anything like the same pace and can be months behind, even years. That disadvantages their customers. SIMPLE.